The Contenders and Pretenders of College Football

With week one of college football almost over, some things are very clear—crystal clear.

There are some very good football teams out there who deserve their lofty ranking.

There are also some teams who not only don't deserve their ranking or perceived status—they should be taken to the back shed and beaten to within an inch of their lives.

Virginia Tech

When you lose two kickers, a long snapper, and your two best punt/kick returners, and you rely on your special teams to make big plays and win games, the truth hurts.

Va Tech is overrated.  Sean Glennon proved why Beamer went to the dual-QB system last year and will probably resort to it again this year, despite innuendo that Tyrod Taylor will be redshirted.

Verdict: Pretender

Ohio State

Sure, they played cupcake Youngstown State, and they limited the Pens to only five first downs.  (Beanie Wells ran for 111 yards before injuring his foot in the third quarter, and hopefully it's not serious.)

Here's the thing though: The Buckeyes beat an FCS team by only 43 points—15 of which were on field goals.  They get Ohio next week, and unless they beat the Bobcats by 50, they will be in serious trouble against the Trojans' D in two weeks.

Verdict: Pretender

Clemson

Nice job Bowden.  Alabama just rolled over the Tigers and proved once again that the Tigers are really a bunch of pussycats.

The ACC looks very weak this year—Va Tech, NC State, Clemson, and Virginia all lost, while Maryland had to struggle to beat FCS team Delaware, who didn't have Joe Flacco at the controls.  Clemson had to win this game due to their soft schedule, and they failed to live up to the expectations.  Fire up Tommy Bowden's hot seat.

Verdict: Pretender

Penn State

Another cupcake for the Big Ten, but the Nits showed up and dinked 66 points on the hapless Chanticleers.  While it doesn't prove how good the Nits really are, it does prove the QB situation has been resolved and Penn State has a productive offense.  When you play cupcakes, you had better beat them bad.  Penn State did just that.

Verdict: Contender

Oklahoma

Hanging 50 points in the first half—on what looked like a JV team who never learned tackling skills—is just what the Sooners needed to do to answer their critics—so far.

Bradford passed for 183 yards and two TDs before the Sooners put it in cruise control.  It's hard to really say how good the Sooners are since they manage to erase all the regular season hype in BCS Bowl performances, but so far, so good.

Verdict: Contender

Florida

The Gators had to struggle a bit early in the game but got their chomp together and beat the Warriors, 56-10.  The D played very well, and while Tim Tebow's stats were low, it was mainly due the running attack finally jelling.

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