College Football Rewind
Atssportsline.com
Let's take a look back at Week 8 in college football. Oregon fell in the BCS Standings, Duke is bowl eligible, Iowa has offensive line issues and the Big East is subpar.
In the Pac-12, Oregon somehow fell in the BCS standings. That means that their game with USC on Nov. 3 that will decide the season might not be enough to get them past Kansas State, who jumped over them to the No. 3 team. The Wildcats are number two in computer average, and they play No. 14 Texas Tech and No. 23 Texas the rest of the way and won't play in a league title game. The Ducks get Colorado this week, which means another thrashing and probable blowout. It also means another move down in the standings.
In the Big 12, Oklahoma State lost QB J.W. Walsh (knee) for the season. He has started the last three games in place of Wes Lunt, who also suffered a knee injury earlier this season. Lunt is likely back to being the starter.....Kansas State destroyed West Virginia on Saturday night. Coach Bill Snyder might be in his seventies but nobody has gotten more out of his team than Snyder this year. The Mountaineers' horrible defense came back to bite them for the second week and QB Geno Smith was once again ordinary at best. The Mountaineers have a bye before facing a dangerous TCU team.
In the ACC, Duke is the story of the season as they became bowl-eligible for the first time since 1994. They came from behind to upset North Carolina at home, 33-30. They reached the six-win mark by defeating a team that beat Virginia Tech and Miami-Fla...... Virginia Tech has been the most disappointing team though they could still go 7-5 and win the Coastal Division. A loss to Clemson on the road isn't embarrassing but they were just not in the game in the second half....NC State was fortunate to beat a young Maryland team that lost their starting quarterback in College Park by two. They needed a missed 33-yard field goal as time expired from a freshman kicker to hold on. The Terps lost freshman starting quarterback Perry Hills to a knee injury in the second quarter and had to use to backups to get through the game. Coach Tom O'Brien snapped his 13-game road losing streak in the ACC with the win.
In the Big 10, Iowa lost starting left tackle Brandon Sherff will miss the next few months after injuring his leg then undergoing surgery after Saturday night's loss to Penn State. Scherff was taken from teh field on a cart in the Hawkeyes 38-14 loss. Guard Andrew Donnal, who left the game with a knee injury, was injured as well....Ohio Stte found a way to win again. They were down to Purdue at home by eight with a minute to go and backup Kenny Guiton in as Braxton Miller was hurt early on. At 8-0, the Buckeyes seem very vulnerable, considering they had two very close wins against Purdue and Indiana.
In the Pac-12, USC's defense stepped up in their 24-14 win. Barkley was just 10-of-20 for 167 yards with a touchdown. The USC defense forced four Washington turnovers and held the Huskies to just 299 yards. Penn State transfer Silas Red rushed for 155 yards on 26 carries. Washington has made it through a brutal first-half schedule with a 3-3 mark.....
In the SEC, Florida destroyed mistake-prone South Carolina, 44-11 and can lock up the SEC East crown with a win over Georgia from Jacksonville. The Gators are winning with great defense and special teams. Georgia hung on to beat Kentucky 29-24 after losing to South Carolina the previous week, 35-7. Georgia has won just four times in the past 22 meetings in the series. Georgia needs outside linebacker Jarvis Jones (ankle), who missed the Kentucky game and his status is questionable for the Florida game....Auburn fell at Vanderbilt, 17-13 as the Tigers are 1-6 overall and 0-5 in the SEC. This is the Tigers' worst start in 60 years and the heat is on coach Gene Chizik, even though he won a National Championship two years ago....LSU fell behind Texas A&M 12-0, before coming back to win 24-19. They kept their championship hopes alive to set the stage for a game against Alabama in two weeks.
In the Big East, Cincinnati fell at Toledo, 29-23, which is not good for the league. Rutgers and Louisville are now the teams to beat and they play each in the finale on Nov. 29. Rutgers is coming off a 35-10 trouncing of Temple on the road. Gary Nova threw four touchdown passes in the second half for the win.....UConn has lost three straight and gave up 40 points to Syracuse. This was supposed to be the #6 defense in the nation. Not good news for the Huskies, who are could end up missing a bowl game for the second straight season.