It may be the most popular question amongst college football fans today: Which teams are overhyped, and which are flying under the radar?
In a year that's seen more shockers than a frat house photo, it's difficult to piece together exactly who's good and who isn't.
Here's a quick look at a few paper tigers, and a handful of teams that deserve a little more respect...
Overrated
Texas
Take a moment to peruse the Longhorns' schedule.
What's their biggest win?
TCU? UCF? Oklahoma State?
Wow.
Texas' best victory probably came against the Cowboys...in a game they were lucky to win. They were also lucky to escape against Arkansas State and TCU. It took nothing short of a miracle to beat Nebraska—216 yards and three long touchdowns in the fourth quarter by Jamal Charles.
Good teams beat bad teams, and beat them handily. The men in burnt orange have put together a season marked by mediocrity—yet somehow they remain firmly in the top 15 of all the major polls.
Colt McCoy, touted as the next great Texas quarterback last year, has produced 16 touchdowns to go along with his 16 interceptions. The Longhorns are explosive at times, but as a team they've been lethargic.
Virginia
When a team is 8-2, ranked 19th in the BCS, and on top of the ACC, you'd figure them for a solid football program.
Now stop and take a closer look.
Virginia's season starte with a blowout loss to Wyoming. Wyoming. The Cavaliers have limped through the season with six wins by five points or less, including a pair of two-point victories and three one-point triumphs.
- B/R Ticket Guide
Think about it this way: This Virginia team could just as easily be 2-8.
With games remaining at Miami (FL) and against Virginia Tech, don't be surprised if they double that figure in the loss column.
Michigan Arguing against the Wolverines by dwelling on the opening two games is too easy.
The Maize and Blue have regrouped, and are proving themselves one of the nation's elite, right?
Wrong.
Michigan now sits at No. 12 in the BCS, a rating they've achieved by winning eight straight games against weak competition. It's not the schedule itself that makes a team overrated or underrated, but how they fare against it.
Two of Michigan's "best wins"—over Penn State and Illinois—weren't very convincing. In fairness, the Wolverines have suffered through injuries to several star players, including stud running back Michael Hart, but time after time teams have exposed Michigan's very weak defense.
The coming weeks will reveal whether the Michigan offense can salvage a decent year.
Underrated
Troy
This author is jumping on the mini-bandwagon.
The more diligent football fans have started to take notice, but the Troy Trojans are still relatively unappreciated. Obscured by the bigger programs in Alabama, Troy has jumped out to a 6-3 record—a mark that looks even better when you break down their losses.
The defeats have all come on the road at the hands of SEC powers. Troy hung tough with Arkansas and Georgia, and despite the final score dominated a good portion of their loss in Florida.
The Trojans have cleaned up in-conference, and are the best Sun Belt team in some years.
Arkansas The Razorbacks have the nation's best football player in Darren McFadden, and a slew of other offensive weapons have combined to put up 41.1 points per game.
Arkansas' three losses came by a combined total of 18 points in tough SEC matchups. While the conference doesn't have the elite firepower of years past, it's got plenty of depth.
The patsies on Arkansas' schedule don't help their perception nationally, but it's worth noting that they don't mess around with inferior competition. The closest win they have is a 12-point defeat of South Carolina.
The Razorbacks have a good chance to improve their stock with games on the road at Tennessee and LSU—don't be surprised if they come away with W's.
Two 1,000-yard rushers at this point in the season is ridiculous.
Ohio State
Yes, the Buckeyes are in this article...and no, they aren't on the side you would have guessed.
That's right—I'm slapping the underrated tag on the nation's top team.
While Jim Tressel and Co. are flying under no one's radar, they have more than their share of doubters. Naysayers point to the 41-14 drubbing by Florida in last year's BCS title game, stand firm in their arguments that the Buckeyes have played no games of significance, and love to harp on the team's lack of speed.
The truth, though, is that Tressel's club has improved each and every week, and continues to put away lesser opponents in convincing fashion. The Buckeyes boast a stout defense, vaunted special teams, and an explosive offense with a multitude of weapons.
Bottom line: OSU excels in every facet of the game.
Are we building to a repeat Ohio State letdown in college football's grand finale?
Not a chance.
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about 1 year ago
Amen brother. Finally someone who has actually watched Ohio State writes an article on here.
This team is fucking STACKED. Nobody even MENTIONS Beanie Wells nationally. Everyone wacked off to Adrian Peterson his freshman year. Wells is very similar (maybe a little more bruising and a little less quickness, but VERY close overall).
Yet everyone wants to jerk Mike Hart off... and guess how many more yards he has than Beanie... 20. On 20 more carries too.
"GIVE IT TO BEANIE!!"
from about 1 year ago
Are you kidding me?
What solid opp. has OSU played?!? I love how you all love to mention washington state. Please they aren't a solid opp. when you guys actually play someone let me know.
How about alabama who almost upset the #3 team in the nation last weekend? Or FSU who UPSET the number 3 team in the nation? Where in the world is all the credit they deserve?
I'm not saying that OSU hasn't improved, but they struggled with michigan state?!? They don't have the speed of the SEC, I know everyone likes to argue that the buckeyes have speed this year...but they haven't gone against an SEC team yet. And they have YET to win a bowl game against an SEC team...EVER.
And the new arguement is that their QB deserves the Heisman?!?! lol you have got to be kidding me....they have yet to play an opp. ranked over 23.
Like i said once OSU actually plays someone worth mentioning...let me know.
from about 1 year ago
Washington, not Washington State, appeared to be a solid win at the time, but they have since fallen apart. I agree that you can't count that as a quality win by any means, but the Buckeyes can only work with the schedule they have. They put together a very weak non-conference schedule, and they'll get disrespected for it, but this team is much better than they're credited for being nationally.
Ohio State did not struggle against Michigan State. That game was never in doubt.
from about 1 year ago
Kellye, your point is well taken about Alabama and FSU. There are a couple of reasons I did not consider them for this particular list.
I'm very skeptical about FSU's ability to get it done offensively, and despite their couple of nice wins, they have a few bad losses. The Virginia Tech game should reveal a lot about their mettle.
Alabama, I feel, is already getting the publicity and recognition. They are a decent football team, but I don't like how they seem to play to their competition.
about 1 year ago
hope they don t have to play a sec team again this year...for the title...it's only been 52 weeks since they had a no show in the title game the sec is freaking stacked LOL
about 1 year ago
Coly Mccoy sucks, he will never live up to the hype that Vince Young did as a national champion QB. Texas is overrated... Darren Mcfadden will be the first pick in the 08 draft...
about 1 year ago
mfad might be in the first round, but if miami or st. louis needs a RB more than a defensive player, i dont think he'll be the first pick.
more like.....8th [or whichever's the panthers]
about 1 year ago
also, i dont think theres room to judge whos under and overrated
not this year
however the buckeyes have done well against their 3 below #20 ranked teams. espesicially wisconsin, yea they did so well getting behind a crippled team.
although the stupid buckeyes might get their what 8th championship this year......
about 1 year ago
If ohio state ends up in the national championship game this year & have to play a team from the SEC. they will get blown away just like last year
about 1 year ago
I like the disrespect for they Buckeyes, and so do they. They're playing with a chip on their shoulder, and there is no way they'll get destroyed in the title game. They're taking no one lightly.
Was Florida, as a team, 27 points better than Ohio State last year? I would argue not. They were on the day of the Championship because of the Buckeyes' complacency. Ohio State got fat and happy in their months off, hearing all about just how good they were. So much of football is the approach to each individual game. The better team doesn't always win (note: I'm not arguing the Buckeyes were better than Florida, just that the Championship game was not an accurate representation of their talent).
Please keep up the Buckeye-hating, as it will spur their play.
about 1 year ago
On a similar note, I'm worried about the Michigan-Ohio State game. I think the Buckeyes boast significantly better talent on the whole, but Michigan's going to have an additional level of motivation. While on paper, Ohio State should win that game going away, Hart, Henne, and Long all came back in part to take care of "unfinished business" against Ohio State. Do you think they might play well in their Big Ten finale? I just hope the Buckeyes continue to play each week with 41-14 on their minds.
about 1 year ago
So let's see, your 'overrated teams'...
Texas - Win, beat Texas Tech by 16 points
Virgina - Currently winning 24-0 over Miami
Michigan - Lost to Wisconsin
Your 'underrated teams'...
Ohio State - Lost to Illinois
Arkansas - Lost to Tennessee
Troy - Won by 4 against W Kentucky
So your grand total is 2 - 6 this weekend. Nice opinions, but too bad they're wrong. Maybe think through your overrated and underrated picks next time, 'tards.
about 1 year ago
Let's straighten out a few things here.
1) This was by no means a prediction of who would win/lose this week.
2) Yes, it looks like I was wrong about Ohio State.
3) I stand by my other five statements, whole-heartedly.
4) Winning doesn't always equate to validation, and as a Buckeye-hater you should recognize this instantly. A win against Texas Tech certainly doesn't mean Texas is good. They're bad. On the flip side, Arkansas is still a pretty good football team, they just were outmatched in Knoxville, a pretty tough place to play; just ask Georgia and South Carolina.
5) Generally speaking, reasoned arguments go over better than immature badinage.
about 1 year ago
A lot of people are talking about how teams seem to come from no where and beat a rated team. I believe it goes back to highschools and weight programs in their systems. A lot of schools have come up with great weight programs, and a lot of coachs have come from big systems and gone down to smaller ones. I believe the trend this year will continue next year as more and more students become involved in wieght programs at younger ages. Mike
about 1 year ago
Good point. I also feel that perhaps the largest contributing factor in parity has been media exposure to the sport and more access to smaller programs. If you look back even just 15 years, how many fans knew anything about teams like Ball State, Tulsa, or even Boise State? Now with most programs, fans have access to many of their games in any given season. The proliferation of ESPN and other sports networks have aided the smaller schools. Information is always key.
The growing accessibility has also made it so young atheletes grow up knowing a lot about the sport. In addition to better training programs, they know the intracacies of the sport, as they see coverage by football experts who help break down the game. I've heard Jim Tressell talk about how today's football player is much smarter than the one from even 10 or 15 years ago, in terms of knowing the game.
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