NCAA Top 25 - Week 11

Upset of the Week : There were fewer candidates for the title this week.  I thought the Rutgers v South Florida game would be close - a 31-point shutout wasn't even in my consideration!  Houston's defense couldn't seem to stop Central Florida, making it harder for them to clinch their division.  The biggest surprise, though, wasn't entirely an upset.  I thought Stanford might give USC trouble.  What I didn't expect was such a large difference.  Two weeks ago, Oregon scored more against USC at home than any team had done during Pete Carroll's tenure.  That record didn't last long, as Stanford broke it this week!  Not only isn't USC's offense as good this year as it has been, but clearly something has happened to their defense.

This week's rankings [Last week's position]
1.  Alabama Crimson Tide (10-0) [1] : easy roll over Mississippi State
2.  Texas Longhorns (10-0) [2] : easy roll over Baylor
3.  Florida Gators (10-0) [3] : Not so easy time against South Carolina
4.  Boise State Broncos (10-0) [4]
5.  TCU Horned Frogs (10-0) [5] : They destroyed Utah to prove that they deserve their Top 5 ranking.
6.  Cincinnati Bearcats (10-0) [6] : They struggled, but they prevailed against West Virginia.  Toughest fight is yet to happen, though
7.  Pittsburgh Panthers (9-1) [7] : After dispatching Notre Dame, they are eagerly awaiting their showdown against Cincy in two weeks
8.  Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets (10-1) [11] : No doubt about it, this is the top team in the ACC, and the winner of the Coastal division
9.  Ohio State Buckeyes (9-2) [10] : It took overtime, but the Buckeyes capture the Big Ten title again.
10. Oregon Ducks (8-2) [12]
11. Iowa Hawkeyes (9-2) [9] : Couldn't quite get past Ohio State, but they made an interesting game of it
12. Oklahoma State Cowboys (8-2) [13]
13. Penn State Nittany Lions (9-2) [15]
14. BYU Cougars (8-2) [14] : The only team standing in TCU's way
15. Central Michigan Chippewas (8-2) [17] : Continuing their dominance in the MAC
16. Utah Utes (8-2) [8] : They failed their chance to capture the Mountain West title
17. LSU Tigers (8-2) [19]
18. Stanford Cardinal (7-3) [25] : Their victory over USC places them in contention for the Pac-10 title!
19. Wisconsin Badgers (8-2) [26] : This year we have four strong teams in the conference, even if Wisconsin's victories aren't usually as impressive as the others'
20. Houston Cougars (8-2) [18] : They fell to second place in the Conference USA West division
21. Virginia Tech Hokies (7-3) [23]
22. Clemson Tigers (7-3) [NP] : Clemson's recent roll starts making the ACC Championship Game interesting
23. Temple Owls (8-2) [NP] : Believe it or not, the MAC has TWO teams that are unbeaten in conference play, and they won't meet until the MAC Championship Game
24. Ole Miss Rebels (7-3) [NP] : The Rebs return to the Top 25 with an impressive victory
25. USC Trojans (7-3) [16] : After two blowout losses in the conference, the Trojans are teetering to fall from the Top 25 for the first time in five years

On the Edge:
+1 Rutgers Scarlet Knights (7-2)
+2 Navy Midshipmen (8-3)
+3 Oregon State Beavers (7-3) : Pac-10 title contender
+4 Nebraska Cornhuskers (7-3)
+5 West Virginia Mountaineers (7-3)
+6 Oklahoma Sooners (6-4)
+7 Arkansas Razorbacks (6-4)

Dropped: Miami Hurricanes [#20], Texas Tech Red Raiders [#21], West Virginia Mountaineers [#22], Arizona Wildcats [#24]

Title races:
Big Ten title is now set - Ohio State Buckeyes
ACC Atlantic : Clemson holds the tiebreaker on this one.  If Clemson wins out, or BC loses one more time than Clemson, they clinch the title.  BC needs Clemson to lose and the Eagles must also win out.
ACC Coastal : Georgia Tech has won the division
Big XII North : The winner of this week's K State - Nebraska battle will win the division
Big XII South : Since they already beat Okie St, Texas simply needs to win one more of their two remaining games.  The Cowboys would need to win out and hope Texas loses BOTH of their remaining games.  That doesn't seem too likely
MAC East : Unless Ohio loses this weekend, this one won't be decided until Temple and Ohio meet on Nov 27th
MAC West : Same scenario, different teams.  Unless Northern Illinois loses this weekend, their game against dangerous Central Michigan on Nov 27th decides this division
Conference USA East : Several contenders.  For Central Florida to capture it, they'd need East Carolina to lose both of their remaining games, and the Golden Knights would have to win out.  If East Carolina beats UAB this weekend, the Blazers AND Golden Knights are out of contention.  That would leave Southern Miss and their battle with East Carolina, unless Southern Miss loses this weekend.  If the Golden Eagles lose and the Pirates win, then East Carolina already captures the title
Conference USA West : SMU currently leads, but Houston is tight on their heels.  Since Houston beat SMU, they hold the tiebreaker.  SMU would have to win out.  If they lose one, and Houston wins out, then the division goes to the Cougars.
Big East : Cincy and Pitt are the only contenders, and both are unbeaten in the conference.  Their matchup on Dec 5th decides the conference title.  This one and the Pac-10 title will be the last two decided, aside from the conference championship games.
Pac-10 : Speaking of the opposite coast, Stanford defeat of USC makes this conference interesting.  USC is now out of it, removed from contention earlier than any year in Pete Carroll's tenure as head coach.  Oregon leads, but Stanford holds the tiebreaker over them (believe it or not, the Cardinal beat BOTH Oregon and USC this year!).  The Ducks would need to win out against Arizona and Oregon State, both strong teams and both title contenders.  Stanford has the easiest time, as they have only one more conference game, a home game against Cal.  Stanford lost to both Oregon State and Arizona, two teams who also have a shot.  Both of them would need to win out, which would kill Oregon and put those two in a tie for the conference title.  Since Arizona beat the Beavers, that would give the conference title to the Wildcats.
Mountain West : TCU has beaten both Utah and BYU.  If they win just one more conference game, they win the conference.  If they lose them both, the winner of the BYU-Utah battle on Nov 28th wins.  Somehow, I think TCU will win.
WAC : The winner of the Nevada v Boise State clash wins this conference
Sun Belt : Troy has beaten both Middle Tennessee and Louisiana-Monroe, so if they win one more game, the Trojans capture the title.  They'd have to lose BOTH of their remaining games to open the door for either contender.  Middle Tennessee and Louisiana-Monroe play each other on Nov 28th, but the conference title may already be decided by then.