1. Houston (10-0)—Another big win for the Cougars in destroying Tulane and getting their 10th win of the season. The Cougars are passing for just over 455 yards per game and scoring 54.7 points per game. Houston has scored 50 or more points in their last 5 games. Quarterback Case Keenum has 3951 yards passing with 2 games left on the season. Previous: Defeated Tulane 73-37, Next: SMU.
2. Boise State (8-1)—The kicking game let down the Broncos yet again to kill any chances for a national championship opportunity. The Broncos dropped down to #10 in the rankings and could still have a chance at a BCS game but must get over the devastating loss and win the final 3 games of the season. Quarterback Kellen Moore has over 2500 yards passing and 31 touchdowns on the season. Previous: lost to TCU 36-35, Next: At SDSU.
3. Southern Miss (9-1)—Quietly moving up the polls to #20, the Golden Eagles has fully put that loss to Marshall on the back burner and are working towards a matchup with either Houston or Tulsa in the Conference USA title game. The Golden Eagles must either beat UAB or Memphis (combined 4-16) to make it to the title game. The win over UCF was the only win by 6 points or fewer for Southern Miss since a 30-24 win over Virginia on September 24th. Previous: Defeated UCF 30-29, Next: At UAB.
4. TCU (8-2)—The Horned Frogs made a big statement in going for 2 points and winning the game versus Boise State and knocking the Broncos out of national championship contention. With losses to in-state foes Baylor and SMU, the Horned Frogs look to win the MWC and move into the Big 12 on a roll. The Horned Frogs have moved up to 19th in the nation and put 4 non-big 6 teams in the top 25. Previous: Defeated Boise State 36-35, Next: Colorado State.
5. Tulsa (7-3)—The Golden Hurricanes are on a 6 game winning streak and are bowl eligible for yet another year. After easily taking care of Marshall last week, the attention turns to UTEP and making sure not to look over this game before the regular season finale versus #11 Houston. The winner of that game decides who goes to the Conference USA title game to play Southern Miss. A win over Houston in the finale would kill the Cougars undefeated record and dampen Case Keenum’s brilliant senior season. Previous: Defeated Marshall, Next: At UTEP.
6. Arkansas State (8-2)—After a hard fought battle versus ULL, Arkansas State is in great position to win the Sun Belt Conference. The only team with a mathematical shot to unseat the Red Wolves is WKU and that would involve losses by Arkansas State to both MTSU and Troy to end the season. Quarterback Ryan Aplin has been very solid throwing for over 2500 yards and rushing for over 500 yards to lead the team. Previous: Defeated ULL 30-21, Next: At MTSU.
7. Northern Illinois (8-3)—Another shootout win for the Huskies in defeating Ball State 41-38 and moving up to 8 wins on the season. The Huskies must enjoy playing all 60 minutes as 5 games were settled by a touchdown or less with NIU going 3-2 in those contests. Quarterback Chandler Harnish is in line to win the conference player of the year again with over 2500 yards passing and over 1200 yards rushing on the season. Previous: Defeated Ball State 41-38, Next: Eastern Michigan.
8. BYU (7-3)—At 7-3 and having two very winnable games left on the schedule, the Cougars are having a solid but unspectacular season as an independent. Since Riley Nelson took over the quarterbacking for the Cougars, the offense has been much better. BYU has scored 20 or more points in every game that Nelson has started this season. Previous: Defeated Idaho 42-7, Next: New Mexico State.
9. Toledo (6-4)—Looking back, this will be seen as a “what might have been” season. The Rockets are much better than their 6-4 record and while they are bowl eligible, the Rockets could have shaken things up on a national landscape with a few plays going a different way. Three of Toledo’s 4 losses have come by 5 points or fewer with a 5 point loss to Ohio State, a controversial 3 point overtime loss to Syracuse and a 3 point overtime loss to NIU. Previous: Defeated Western Michigan 66-63, Next: At Central Michigan.
10. Louisiana-Lafayette (8-3)—The Ragin’ Cajuns cannot complain when looking at this season and sitting at 8 wins with a game left on the schedule. ULL lost to Sun Belt #1 Arkansas State, Sun Belt #2 Western Kentucky, and #2 nationally Oklahoma State. The Ragin’ Cajuns end their regular season with a trip to Arizona to face the Wildcats for a tricky cross country road trip to end the season. With or without a win, this is a season to remember for ULL and will go down as one of the best in school history. Previous: Lost to Arkansas State 30-21, Next: At Arizona.
Also Receiving votes: SMU, Ohio, Ball State, Wyoming, SDSU, Nevada
NIU beat Toledo in regluation, NIU went up with 18 seconds left.
ReplyDelete