College Football BCS Conference Rankings: September
After four weeks of college football, the landscape is finally starting to take shape.
Alabama and Ohio State remain unblemished and at the top of the polls. BCS buster hopefuls Boise State and TCU also make up the Top Five along with offensive juggernaut Oregon.
Looking at the polls, one can also gauge the success of the conferences this season. Some conferences have more than five teams represented in the Top 25, while another conference has no teams at all.
There have been several big Top 25 matchups in September, but all of the higher-ranked teams were able to avoid the upsets. However, some of the lower-ranked teams have given some elite teams trouble these past couple of weeks. Will it show in these rankings?
Here are the BCS conference rankings, starting with No. 6...
No. 6: Big East Conference
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If the Mountain West Conference was a BCS conference, they would have been ranked ahead of the Big East by a very wide margin. The Big East has been nothing short of atrocious as a whole in the 2010 season.
Here are a couple of key statistics that show the glaring struggles of the conference:
1-10 against BCS conference schools
6-13 against all FBS schools
0-5 against Top 25 teams
On the positive side, they are 15-13 overall and 9-0 against FCS Schools.
At least Big East fans don't have to worry about the Appalachian States or James Madisons.
In retrospect, it has been a poor season for the conference so far. League favorites Pittsburgh, Connecticut, and West Virginia have struggled with their non-conference slate. Rutgers fell to UNC in a close game but struggled with Florida International earlier in the season. No team is currently ranked in the Top 25 for the first time in several years.
Right now the league leader? Syracuse. The Orange are in first place with a 3-1 record.
Luckily for the conference, the non-conference slate is nearly over, and they will start playing each other. Some team has to win the conference. At this point, it is anybody's guess.
No. 5: ACC
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When the season began, ACC pundits claimed that the conference would be on the rise. Perennial contender Virginia Tech and defending champion Georgia Tech would be joined by the resurgent Florida teams of Miami and Florida State.
North Carolina was also predicted to make waves thanks to several NFL prospects on the defense and finally expected to contend for the championship.
Unfortunately, things have not gone according to plan for the ACC.
North Carolina was struck with NCAA investigations, causing them to sit out 13 starters against LSU in their opener. Virginia Tech fell in a valiant effort against Boise State but suffered an awful loss to FCS opponent James Madison in a letdown six days later. Georgia Tech suffered a loss at the hands of a weak Kansas team and is sitting at 2-2 on the season.
Florida State and Miami have played well but fell in their big marquee road games against Top 10 opponents. Jacory Harris struggled with four interceptions in the Hurricanes' 36-24 loss to Ohio State. Florida State was able to gain revenge against BYU from last year's loss, but the defense came up empty in Norman, as Oklahoma dominated the Seminoles 47-17.
The bright spot in the ACC so far has been the surprising NC State Wolfpack, who come in 4-0 with a solid 45-28 win over GT. The conference should see Virginia Tech and Florida State eventually return to the rankings, and the league should sort itself out as conference play begins for most of the ACC.
No. 4: Big 12 Conference
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The Big 12 Conference could be ranked anywhere from No. 4 to No. 2 at any point in the season. But despite having two teams in the Top 10 (Nebraska and Oklahoma), they only have one other team ranked in the Top 25 (Texas).
Missouri, Oklahoma State, Texas A&M, and Kansas State are also undefeated, but none have a marquee win over a Top 25 foe, and they will most likely knock each other out in conference play.
Nebraska came off a 56-24 domination of Jake Locker in Washington where the defense held the NFL prospect to 4-of-20 passing. However, one week later the Cornhuskers struggled in a 17-3 win over South Dakota State, where on most days they would lose with that effort.
Oklahoma remains unblemished but has been tested by Utah State, Air Force, and Cincinnati. They'll have another test against this Saturday in the Red River Shootout against Texas in Dallas.
Speaking of Texas, the Longhorns suffered their worst home defeat under Mack Brown in a 34-12 stomping by UCLA. Their defense, which had carried them in their other games, had a big letdown thanks to a potent Bruins run game and the ineptness of the offense. They dropped over 15 spots in the rankings and now look to play spoiler to the Sooners on Saturday.
.jpg?w=256 "Ohio State Team Doctor")
No. 3: Pac-10 Conference
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With Pete Carroll off to the NFL and USC struck with numerous sanctions and penalties, the Pac-10 Conference has re-emerged as a more balanced conference with currently four teams undefeated and ranked in the Top 25.
No. 4 Oregon has destroyed opponents left and right this season. Although tested last Saturday against Arizona State in Tempe, the Ducks offense has yet to score less than 42 points this season.
They may face their toughest test of the season this Saturday in Eugene when the No. 9 Stanford Cardinal come into town with their highest ranking in years. The Cardinal are coming off big wins against UCLA and Notre Dame thanks to stud quarterback Andrew Luck.
No. 14 Arizona has a major win over former Top 10 team Iowa and has looked balanced offensively and defensively. No. 18 USC, despite being hit with sanctions, has started 4-0 as well and will look to play the spoiler role in the Pac-10 this season.
Despite a 2-2 record, Oregon State has played arguably two of the toughest road games all season against TCU and Boise State, and the Rodgers brothers are some of the most dynamic game-changers in America. Arizona State played Oregon tough at home and gave No. 11 Wisconsin a huge scare at home two weeks ago.
UCLA, not expected to compete for the title, may have the conference's best win of the year with its upset victory over Texas. We'll find out if the Bruins can build off their huge win last week.
No. 2: Big Ten Conference
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The Big Ten Conference has finally gained back some respect after several years of being called "too slow" and making poor showings in bowl games. The Big Ten has six teams ranked in the Top 25 and several teams still undefeated.
The conference has fared well in non-conference play so far this season and took care of a somewhat easy slate last week, where Big Ten teams went 9-2 and had five teams score 45-plus points against their opponents.
National championship contender and league favorite No. 2 Ohio State has dominated offensively and defensively in all four of their games. Despite showing some flaws in special teams against Miami, the Buckeyes have opened up the playbook for junior quarterback Terrelle Pryor, and the defense has been lights out.
No. 11 Wisconsin has cruised so far outside of a surprisingly tough home game against Arizona State. They'll take on fellow Top 25 foe Michigan State, who two weeks ago stunned Notre Dame in OT with a gutsy fake FG to win the game.
No. 17 Iowa and No. 22 Penn State each fell in their Top 25 matchups against Arizona and Alabama respectively, but the Nittany Lions will have their plate full with the Hawkeyes, especially after struggling with upstart MAC team Temple last week.
The league and possibly national surprise has been the Michigan Wolverines. Led by Heisman candidate quarterback Denard Robinson, No. 19 Michigan has embraced head coach Rich Rodriguez's spread offense at last. Though the defense has shown some holes, the Wolverines look to continue their hot start against Indiana.
No. 1: SEC
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The SEC has dominated the landscape of college football over the past four seasons. Three SEC teams have won the past four BCS championships.
So far, they have dominated non-conference play and flexed their muscles. Once again, the No. 1 team hails from this conference.
Alabama, despite losing Mark Ingram for two games, remains the top team in the country. After easily handling Penn State in Tuscaloosa, the Crimson Tide were pushed to the brink by Ryan Mallett and his Arkansas Razorbacks.
It seems that there always is a marquee matchup with SEC teams every week. Last week featured Alabama-Arkansas, Auburn-South Carolina, and LSU-West Virginia. This week Alabama takes on No. 7 Florida, who, despite showing some offensive woes, finally came together in a blowout against Kentucky.
No. 10 Auburn has emerged this season with dual-threat quarterback Cam Newton at the helm. While the SEC schedule is daunting, if Auburn can make it somewhat unscathed, it will set up an Iron Bowl vs. Alabama possibly with national championship implications on the line.
Steve Spurrier's South Carolina team has come out to a great start thanks to a strong running game from true freshman Marcus Lattimore. Despite falling to Auburn last week, the No. 20 Gamecocks host Alabama down the road and may be able to challenge Florida for the SEC East crown.
No. 12 LSU remains an enigma under coach Les Miles. They're ranked in the Top 15 but have been miserable offensively this season. Yet they are undefeated and have two victories over Top 25 teams in North Carolina and West Virginia.
.jpg?w=480 "Ohio State Team Doctor")
