The Weekend That Was: "They Are Who We Thought They Were," Fighting Snyders, Willed to Win

We only get 13 Saturdays like this a year -- including your team's bye week and excluding bowl season. This one was one of the more boring ones I can remember. Every team in the top ten won (except for South Carolina who played No. 2 Florida), and there were hardly any nail-biters as they all do so easily. But enjoy them. The number of these precious Saturdays are down to four after this week.

Tough day for Connor Shaw and his Gamecocks

"THEY ARE WHO WE THOUGHT THEY WERE": As the season goes along, this phrase becomes more aprapos by the week. South Carolina made its way into the top 5 a couple of weeks on the road in some of the toughest SEC stadiums, their flaws were unmasked. Did anyone actually believe they were this good?

Their home win over Georgia was one of the most impressive of the year, but USC's inability to find a consistent run --or pass-- game with quarterback Connor Shaw leaves them with two losses in the league and a long-shot to get back to Atlanta. However, UGA, thanks to its weak schedule, has an opportunity to get back to the SEC Championship for the second year in a row with a win over Florida.

Florida, on the other hand, is a little better than we thought they were, as they have manhandled every team since their fighting out a win over Bowling Green in week two of the season. They have no aerial attack to speak of, but if the Gators can put together just a little bit of offense, their defense will do the rest.

Thanks to poor planning the SEC East race will be decided in this Saturday in the World's Largest Cocktail Party.

Sleep-depived Bill Snyder after Saturday's win.

 FIGHTING SNYDERS CONTINUE TO IMPRESS: Bill Snyder is 73 and coaching at Kansas State. He will win the national coach of the year because at the beginning of the season his squad was projected to win 7-8 games. Through seven weeks he is already there and ranked No. 3 in the BCS poll.

Kansas State rolled into Morgantown, West Virginia and layed a smackdown on the Moutnaineers, dominating in every phase of the game. They did everything right except for getting coach Snyder in bed before 9 p.m. Word is he was cranky all day Sunday. This was a team that was owned by Arkansas in the Cotton Bowl last year, but instead of letting their entire program go awry, as the Razorbacks have, they have responded and put together the season many thought the Hogs could have pre-April motorcycle ride.

"Seriously, I owe you for the Heisman."

Also of interest, Kansas State's Arthur Brown became the first player to intercept West Virginia's Geno Smith since December 1, 2010. Brown was also the first player to pick off former Baylor quarterback and Heisman trophy winner, Robert Griffin III.

While their schedule lines up nicely for an undefeated finish, the Wildcats must be careful to not become this years' 2011 Oklahoma State, who lost their next-to-last game at Iowa State and were kept them out of the BCS title game.

A WILL TO WIN: Notre Dame, Oregon State, and Texas Tech are what Skip Bayless would call "Tebowing" their way through this season. They are never overly impressive in their victories (minus TTU over WVU), but they just keep winning.

The Irish and the Beavers used fourth quarter touchdowns to secure wins this week, while the Red Raiders took No. 23 TCU to triple overtime before leaving Fort Worth as winners. At some point for these teams the luck has to run out.

One would think the Irish will have to have more than 17 points to defeat Oklahoma this week, Texas Tech will not be able to keep up with Kansas State's offense and defense, and Oregon State will have to get it together before traveling to Stanford in two weeks. Of course, those sorts of things have been said all season and these teams have delivered in unlikely situations over and over again.

LAST BUT NOT LEAST

-Tennessee linebacker, and one of my favorites in all of college football, scored his sixth rushing touchdown of the year from the Volunteers' "Beast Package." While it was impressive, it is not the sort of performance you  want to see from your offense, seeing that it was the only touchdown on the night and the defense gave up 44 to Alabama.

The Ducks are flying high (too easy).

-Oregon could have literally named the number of points they wanted to score this week versus Arizona State. The Ducks offense has done this all year and luckily -- but unfortunately for fans outside the Pac-12 -- coach Chip Kelly has called off the dogs and not embarrassed too many opponents more than they should have been.

- Arkansas didn't lose this week. Sure, they didn't play but with the way the Hogs have played this year, you never know. They also opened as a 4.5-point favorite for Saturday's game against Ole Miss.

- Are you ready for a  Orange Bowl featuring Louisville and Duke? It is a possibility. What a great way for the BCS to say "goodbye" on its way out.

-Duke is bowl eligible after beating hated rival North Carolina in some pretty heinous jerseys. This came a day after their Midnight Madness for the basketball team. What a weekend for Duke fans.

Top Ten College Foot'Bowl' Games

Throw together Christmas, New Years, family and college foot'bowl' games and you have a potent combination for am enjoyable holiday season. So unless you are Oklahoma State, Kansas State or Boise State fans, let's get ready for an wild bowl season.

And to you who favor a playoff season, did the BCS system not to what it was created to do? We have the nation's best two teams playing for the national championship. (Oklahoma State fans... be serious... we have seen the spread offense versus SEC defensive speed more than once and know the outcome.) Sure there are teams that were snubbed of the chance to play in a bigger bowl game, but this is the system we have. So can we all get along while we wait Prince of Peace's arrival? (No doubt He would have a better system...)

In the meantime, here is a list of the ten bowl games I am looking forward to the most this college foot'bowl' season:

1. BCS National Championship Game- Alabama vs. LSU- If the first game was "The Game of the Century" what does that make this one? The most anticipated rematch of all time will decide the national champion, no matter the outcome. When the country's top two defenses were not playing one another they averaged almost 40 points a game. In good news for every other conference, at the end of the night the SEC will finally have a loss in the BCS Championship Game.

2.Fiesta Bowl- Oklahoma State vs. Stanford- Two of the country's top five offenses, and best quarterbacks in Andrew Luck and Dan Weeden, will take the field . The Pokes are a little disappointed they are not in the championship game, but they must be careful of not falling to the same fate the a Alabama squad did when the Tide were crushed by Utah in the 2008 Sugar Bowl.

3. Vizio Rose Bowl- Wisconsin vs. Oregon- Here are two teams, in the "Grandaddy of them all," who get it done offensively by different means. In one corner is Oregon, who uses speed and a spread offense to keep the scorekeepers busy. In the other corner are the Badgers, who line up in the I-formation and use power to wear down opponents. Watch two of the country's top running backs -- UO's LaMichael James and UW's Montee Ball-- go head-to-head.

4. AT&T Cotton Bowl- Arkansas vs. Kansas State- In what amounts to the sixth BCS game, Kansas State is a little disappointed they do not represent the Big 12 in an actual BCS game. Arkansas' two losses this season came at the hands of the two teams in the national championship. The Wildcats defense will be charged in slowing down a Razorback passing attack which averages 307 yards per game, while the Hogs defense has to stop KSU quarterback Collin Klein, who tallied 1,745 yards and 12 scores through the air and 1,099 rushing yards and 26 touchdowns.

5. Outback Bowl- Michigan State vs. Georgia- Both schools are coming off of conference championship losses and looking to end great seasons on a positive note. The Dawgs have won 10 of their last 11 games, while the Spartans won at least 10 games for the second year in a row. MSU needs to redeem itself after their last game against an SEC opponent, a 49-7 drubbing from Alabama last year in the Capital One Bowl. Spartan head coach Mark Dantonio is 0-4 in bowl games.

6. Orange Bowl- Clemson vs. West Virginia- The Orange Bowl is usually the weakest of all the BCS bowls, but the hosts got lucky when the Moutaineers were able to win the Big East so that America was not forced to watch Cincinatti or Louisville in this game. At least WVU has been down this road before and had success. Clemson has been one of the hottest and coldest teams at times this season but handled Virginia Tech for the second time this season and won the Tigers' first ACC Championship in 20 years.



7. Sugar Bowl- Virginia Tech vs. Michigan- Of the two controversial BCS matchups in The Big Easy this year, Alabama vs. LSU is the other, the Sugar Bowl one is the most puzzling. The teams were selected solely because their fans travel better than other, more deserving, teams. The game still has the possibility to be quite entertaining, even if it is the first Sugar Bowl without an AP Top 10 team since 1945. Michigan quarterback Denard "Shoelace" Robinson work is magic is worth your time.

8. Capital One Bowl- South Carolina vs. Nebraska- The Gamecocks have won 10 games in a season for the second time in school history, and the Huskers are coming of a nine-win season in its first year in the Big 10. USC head coach Steve Spurrier may run up the score if he gets the chance. For you history buffs, the Cornhuskers gave Spurrier his most embarrassing loss, a 62-24 affair in the 1996 Fiesta Bowl when "The Ole Ball Coach" was at Florida.

9. Alamo Bowl- Baylor vs. Washington- So you like offense and you want to see the Heisman Trophy winner all in the same game? Sounds like a fun way to spend your New Years Eve Eve Eve. Two of the more explosive quarterbacks in U Dubs' Kevin Polk and the Bears' Robert Griffin III will go head-to-head in this shootout.

10. Gator Bowl- Ohio State vs. Florida- Go ahead and put the over under at 35 on the number of times Urban Meyer's name is thrown around. The former Gator coach is headed to coach the Buckeyes next year after two championship runs in Florida. Meyer has already made his presence known on the recruiting trail. If current head coach, and OSU's next defensive coordinator, Lou Fickell can pull out a win over the SEC the Buckeye bandwagon should fill back up quickly.

*For you college foot'bowl' junkies like myself, here are a few more nuggets that should be fun to watch:

-Kraft  Fight Hunger Bowl- UCLA vs. Illinois- Here is one of those games that opponents of the bowl system have to cringe when they see this matchup. Both schools suffered poor endings (UCLA has a 6-7 record.)  and neither school will have their head coach, as both Rick Neuheisel and Ron Zook have been fired. Try to hold your enthusiasm when watching interim coaches going at it.

-Champs Sports Bowl- Florida State vs. Notre Dame- Both schools entered this season with BCS aspirations but had points during the season they lost games they should not have. The winner of this game will have a leg-up in the polls heading into the 2012 season. If the Seminoles pull out the 'W,' do not be surprised if they are preseason top five next year.

The Weekend That Will Be: Week 10

LSU at Alabama- There is not a stat that I can write that you have not heard at this point in the week for the most hyped regular season game ever. These two teams are far and above the two best teams in the nation and most of the hype is well deserved (ESPN's coverage has been overbearing). One day it will be fun to look back at these talented defenses when they are dotting  NFL defenses and remember when they were on one field for a night. Pick your poison on defense. It comes down to whether you like the Blitzing Bengals or do you like the "sit back and dare you to come at me" style of the Tide. The offenses will be the real question. Two not so talented quarterbacks will be forced to make plays. Luckily for LSU, they have the better receivers, but Alabama has the better running backs. The evenness of these two teams is ridiculous. In 2009 (Bama's last national title run), I had the opportunity to see Alabama play Mississippi State in a home night game. If you have ever been to a night game in Tuscaloosa, you will understand why I am taking the Crimson Tide 23-17.

South Carolina at Arkansas- Oh yeah... there is that other game between two teams ranked in the BCS top 10. The Gamecock offense is missing  running back Marcus Lattimore, which is to be expected. Arkansas has had no running game to speak of for the entire season. Though they do boast of the number 12 passing offense in the nation, the Hogs will be facing one of the most athletic defenses in the country in USC. South Carolina has a top notch defensive line and cornerbacks. The Hogs have gotten off to slow starts in their past two games against Ole Miss and Vandy, which were both on the road and at noon. A night game in Fayetteville is just what the doctor ordered. Razorbacks win.

Kansas State at Oklahoma State- Remember when the Big 12 Conference played defense? I don't either.
The Cowboys are averaging 50 points, 400 yards passing and 181 yards rushing... per game! The Wildcats will try to slow down the most explosive offense in the country, the operative word being "try." KSU was embarrassed last week against Oklahoma 58-17 in their first loss of the season. This week's game will look similar against a different team for the Wildcats. The Pokes are looking forward to an end-of-year match-up with the Sooners to decide their BCS Championship fate and again put a ton of points on the board.

Other picks (winners in bold)

Texas A&M at Oklahoma- The worst pass defense (Aggies) and the best passing attack (Sooners) in the Big 12. This could have been one of those games that Sooner quarterback Landry Jones could have helped his Heisman chances, but he will put up big numbers nonetheless. Oklahoma wins easily.

Ole Miss at Kentucky- The two worst teams in the SEC will get together. Can Rebel coach Houston Nutt avoid a 12th straight SEC loss? Wildcat fans are just hoping it does not last long so they can get to the Breeders Cup.

UT-Chatanooga at Samford- With home win, the Bulldogs can lock up their first winning season since 2008 with a win against the Mocs.

Vandy at Florida
Notre Dame at Wake Forest
Texas Tech at Texas

The Weekend That Will Be: Week 9

Georgia vs. Florida- The Gators have tried to make the World's Largest Cocktail Party (let's just call it what it is) interesting by announcing that quarterback John Brantley will be back under center as the starter. They will also bring running back Jeff Demps to Jacksonville. Georgia said they will be without Malcolm Mitchell, who is blossoming into a true go-to target for Aaron Murray. The Dawgs boast a top ten defense and the Florida has hardly been competent on offense, but will having the senior leader back in the huddle make the difference? No. Georgia wins its fourth win in 22 tries against UF.

Michigan State at Nebraska- This game could be over in two hours as much as these teams like to run the football. The Spartans are coming off winning the best game of the season, where a Kirk Cousins Hail Mary pass barely crossed the goal line for a MSU win. State is also traveling to an intimidating Memorial Stadium, which has sold out since the mid-60s, for the first time. Husker quarterback Taylor Martinez will be forced to throw against a tough Michigan State defense in order to win their third Big 10 game. Until Martinez proves that he can throw the football consistently, Nebraska is tough to trust in big games. Sparty wins another.

Oklahoma at Kansas State- All season long the figure heads on the tube have gone against the Wildcats and they have proven them wrong time and time again. But this week the should go with their gut feeling because the Sooners will get the best of them. Under the control of coach Bob Stoops, Oklahoma does not lose again after losing the week before. The Sooner defense was embarrassed last week by Texas Tech and will not let that happen again on national television. Manhattan is one of those quirky places to play a football game on the road, but all quirkiness aside, Oklahoma wins big. Big props to KSU coach Bill Snyder who continues to make something out of little.

Other picks (winners in bold)
Arkansas at Vanderbilt- A slow start last week almost cost the Hogs their hopes of a BCS bowl bid. They will look to jump out early against a talented Commodore secondary.

Baylor at Oklahoma State- If you like points, don't miss this one. The Cowboys have a bigger goal on their mind, beating the Sooners four weeks away.

Ole Miss at Auburn- Will Houston Nutt lose his 11th straight SEC game as the Ole Miss coach? Yep. The Rebels showed hope last week and the future looks brighter.

Stanford at USC- This will be the best two quarterbacks on one field this season. Luck is clearly the better of the two, but the Trojans have the best chance at an upset this week.

Clemson at Georgia Tech- I'll be coming to you live from this game via Twitter. This will be my first time to see Clemson and ACC game in person. A shootout helps Clemson.

South Carolina at Tennessee
Purdue at Michigan
Arizona at Washington
Wisconsin at Ohio State