It was either a blowout of a bad Ohio State Buckeyes team, or a stunning display of dominance by a USC team that really is that good.
In a matchup that had been hyped for months Ohio State was so dominated by USC that ABC's audience could not have helped but decline throughout the game.
The Buckeyes were dramatically outplayed.
Could Ohio State really be that bad? Most of the starters from a team that made it to the BCS championship game last year are back, including at least three bonafide NFL players.
For as overrated as many believe they are, Ohio State was easy to put in the top five before the USC game. It would be hard to put them back there after a struggle against the Ohio Bobcats and Saturday's blowout by USC.
USC, on the other hand, may just be that good. Mark Sanchez completed 17 of 28 passes for 172 yards and four touchdowns. Joe McKnight rushed for 105 yards on 12 carries.
Damien Williams caught two touchdown passes and on defense, Middle Linebacker Rey Maualuga, lived up to his star billing with a 48-yard interception return for a touchdown.
All of that against a defense that has a star linebacker of its own as part of a unit that Pete Carroll earlier in the week called, "an incredible team".
Unless there is an upset, similar to the Stanford game last year, USC is almost certainly destined for the BCS championship game this year. So the question is, at this point in the season, who is capable of challenging them?
Lets take a look.
Georgia
The Bulldogs started the season No. 1 in some polls, but quickly dropped to No. 2 in the AP and USA Today Poll.
The Dawgs have a tough schedule with Alabama, LSU and Florida still ahead. Getting through the season undefeated looks less likely after barely getting past South Carolina, an unranked conference rival not expected to do better than fourth place in the SEC East.
If the Bulldogs can't do better against the likes of South Carolina their chances of getting back to the title game for the first time in 28 years is fading. And any chance of beating USC, should they get there, looks dismal.
If this is the best the SEC has to offer the conference isn't getting back to the title game this year. Or, in what could be a sad fate, for the second straight year the Bulldogs could be leap-frogged by another team from the SEC (Florida).
Oklahoma
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