The Ocho

Another week of upheaval in the world of college football means another shakeup in the Ocho.

Who’s Up?
Boston College- I still have questions about BC (pass defense & punt returns) but I moved them up three spots this week based on how others have played ahead of them. Many people are picking Virginia Tech in the upset tonight- I’m not one of them. Lane Stadium, the defense, and special teams will only get Va Tech so far. The aforementioned should keep the game close but that VT offense is horrendous- ranking 101st in passing and 90th in rushing against only the 54th most challenging schedule. BC’s biggest weakness (pass defense) is clearly not going to be tested by a team that can’t pass the ball and has mega questions at quarterback (back to Sean Glennon). Sean Glennon is the poor man’s Kyle Wright- and that ain’t good. BC’s running game is weak (72nd nationally) and BC will definitely not be able to run the ball consistently against Va Tech. We are going to find out what kind of Heisman candidate BC Quarterback Matt Ryan is because he is going to have to win this game. Virginia Tech is currently a 3-point favorite. This game might be even closer than that.

West Virginia- West Virginia moves into the Ocho with the exit of Kentucky and South Carolina. West Virginia gets their second biggest test of the season this week at Rutgers (already lost at South Florida).

Arizona State- ASU also moves into the Ocho in a big way with the exit of UC and SC. The Sun Devils have Cal, Oregon, UCLA, and USC in the next four weeks. Cal will be a good test this week to tell us whether or not ASU is for real.

Oregon- Oregon moved up two spots this week due to South Florida’s loss and the underwhelming body of work that Oklahoma continues to skate by with. Oregon is in the unbelievably unfamiliar position of being a 3-point favorite at home to USC on Saturday; we’ll see how they handle that. The Ducks have some questions on defense and USC clearly has the talent to exploit that. Whether or not USC plays to their ability is a whole ‘nother question. I like Oregon to win in a shoot out.

Who’s Down?
Oklahoma- As stated here previously, Oklahoma is getting a complete pass on strength of schedule with theirs being 12 spots weaker than Ohio State’s. Everyone is ready to anoint the Sooners as the National Championship opponent against LSU should Ohio State lose. I have no idea why. Scoring offense and defense look good but that loss to Colorado is looking worse and worse every week (Colorado is currently 4-4, losing the last two in a row to Kansas State and Kansas). Plus the 17-7 win over a 1-7 Iowa State team was ugly last week. U-G-L-Y ugly. Plus- Oklahoma has a Freshman quarterback in Sam Bradford who is going to struggle, maybe as soon as Texas A&M this weekend. I’m way down on the Sooners.

South Florida- Down three spots after the loss last week. The Bulls are still a quality team just not top three anymore.

Who’s on High Alert?
Ohio State- Much is being made of PSU and the white out Saturday night. The white out will be a factor in that Ohio State is still a very young team dominated by Sophomores and Juniors. The offensive line has some veterans which will help when they can’t hear the metal on their knee braces clinking but the crowd will make a difference. The biggest weakness on the Buckeyes this year has been offensive turnovers and lack of takeaways from the defense. The Buckeyes must win turnover margin to win this game.

BC- For the aforementioned reasons.

Oregon- Because USC being an underdog might just be enough to motivate them to play to their potential.

West Virginia- Because it’s the fall which means wood-chopping time.

Arizona State- Because Cal’s due for a win.

Here’s the Ocho for October 25th:
1.) Ohio State (Saturday at Penn State)
2.) LSU (bye)
3.) Oregon (USC Saturday)
4.) Boston College (Tonight at Virginia Tech)
5.) Arizona State (Cal Saturday)
6.) South Florida (Saturday at Uconn)
7.) West Virginia (Saturday at Rutgers)
8.) Oklahoma (bye)

If the season ended today, here would be your first round Ocho matchups:
#8 Oklahoma at #1 Ohio State
#7 West Virginia at #2 LSU
#6 South Florida at #3 Oregon
#5 Arizona State at #4 Boston College