Week 4 Winners and Losers

Another week of college football filled with plenty of storylines (both on and off the field) is in the books.  Florida State and Auburn were both pushed to the brink for very different reasons, Big Ten teams hung basketball numbers on their featherweight opponents, and Oregon suffered a scare in Pullman that almost spun the entire top 5 on its head.  We also had the weird unfold in Tucson and the bizarre in Seattle but more importantly there were winners and losers all over the landscape.

Winners

Georgia Tech: Suddenly the same Yellow Jacket side that blew a massive lead to Georgia Southern (but won) went on the road to Lane Stadium and stole a win as a TD dog. The ACC, aside from FSU, appears to be a wild ride this season so strap in. The Coastal may get weird.

Badgers ground game: I know Bowling Green is among the bottom feeders in defensive efficiency but surrendering 644 yards to anyone is a feat in itself. Obviously Wisconsin gets a lion's share of credit for their 10.7 YPC average en route to their 68-17 victory over the Falcons.

Shane Carden: Kudos to you young man for the last few games against Power 5 conference opponents.  I know East Carolina is no longer in C-USA. However they're still a transitional Power 5 member until proven otherwise, but it appears as though the Pirates aren't going anywhere... the question now becomes, are they good enough to trump UCF & Cincinnati in their inaugural run through the AAC?

Kansas: Any time they beat a FBS opponent they deserve recognition.

Indiana's Perseverance: Somehow the same team that lost to Bowling Green (yes that Bowling Green that gave up 1 million yards to Wisconsin) found a way to beat Missouri in Gary Pinkel's backyard. Talk about major revenge for the Hoosiers after being bludgeoned in their own stadium last year by these very same Tigers.

Mississippi St: I won't go as far as calling the result against LSU a program-changing win but it probably was for the Bulldogs. Going on the road to Death Valley at night and winning is no small feat. Dak Prescott looked every bit like a Heisman contender with his outstanding effort. Unfortunately the big question remaining in Starkville is if this was a 1-time thing or is Mississippi State really here to stay in the SEC West race.

Arizona's Comeback: I toyed with putting Arizona here or California on the loser list. However I want to go glass half full so that means the Wildcats get credit for a 36 point outburst in the 4th, erasing a 2 touchdown deficit late, culminating in a Hail Mary on the game's final play... a sequence witnessed live by all 18 diehard Arizona fans. BEARDOWN!

Losers

Fans watching Uconn vs USF: I'm not sure what to call that display but describing it as football seems a bit far-fetched. There's a good chance the game set football back 100 years with the 2 teams combining for just over 400 yards and a robust 23 first downs.

Florida's Secondary: Hey Will? Go dust off that resume because I'll expect your office boxed up in full after playing Florida St. UF appeared lost on both sides of the ball, but their secondary almost allowed Blake Sims to break the Alabama single game record for passing yardage with his 445 yard performance. That's not good.

Eastern Michigan's 1st Half: The Eagles had the ball for 9 series... they went 3 and out on each time. Their total cumulative offensive output for those drives? 1 yard.  

Maryland & Clemson O54.5 Bettors: Ouch, there's no reason this game should have stayed under the total. The 2 sides scored 44 points in the first half an mustered a grand total of 10 in the fourth quarter after a scoreless third. That's what we call a bad beat in this business.

Nicholls State: I have no idea how North Texas scored 77 points on anyone...and I mean that seriously.

Michigan: BLECH

Oregon's Offensive Line: The worst part for the Ducks is that this unit won't get better as the season goes on given their rash of injuries. They're pretty lucky to have already beaten Michigan St. But Stanford, UCLA, etc are waiting in the wings.  If it wasn't for Mariota's mobility we would have seen a major upset in this game... as is the Heisman hopeful was sacked 5 times in the first half - something that needs to change moving forward.

Vegas Top 10

I'm going to say something here that I never thought I would...Aggies fans were right!  Well what I mean is a win this weekend over Arkansas will get the high powered offense led by Kenny Hill into my top 10 for the first time this season.  In the meantime, they still haven't cracked the list just yet.  Also, as I said in previous columns, FSU will remain in the top spot until proven otherwise. Meanwhile, Oregon took a major nose dive with Alabama becoming the primary beneficiary.

Upset Alert (1-1): NC State +19

I know this is the definition of a long shot here but given the schedule I didn't have a lot to pick from this week. Tabbing UCLA as the prime candidate seemed too easy so I'll go after the Seminoles given Carter Finley has become a house of horrors for them in the past.  Do I think the Wolfpack can really pull this off? Probably not but the game has the makings of a Seminole scare on the heels of beating Clemson.

Lines on the move

Westgate Superbook puts out college football game of the year lines during the slower summer months.  They adjust the prices throughout the season based on changing expectations indicated through power ratings.  Here's a concise look at lines (then vs now) that will influence the national championship chase.  The biggest change here includes a massive shift in price for Texas A&M's home date against LSU on November 27th.