BCS Rankings Week 3: Why Oregon Is Better Than Auburn
The latest BCS rankings contained quite a surprise for college football fans south of the Mason-Dixon Line. Despite not losing to Ole Miss on Saturday, the Auburn Tigers had slipped to No. 2 in the polls, behind the Ducks of the University of Oregon.
Both teams sit undefeated heading into this weekend's games, but do the Ducks deserve to be No. 1 in the polls?
In a word, yes. Here are 10 reasons why the Ducks are the superior team to War Eagle.
10. Kentucky
1 of 10
Remember this one? It was October 9, the Tigers were 6-0 and ranked eighth, and Kentucky, perennial football power that they are, were 3-2 and in the midst of a two-game skid.
In the early going, Auburn jumped out to leads of 24-7 and 31-14, leading by a pair of touchdowns at halftime. But, rather than finishing the Wildcats off, the Tigers let them back into the game, as the Wildcats tied it in the fourth quarter, 34-34. Were it not for the heroics of Cam Newton and kicker Wes Bynum, Auburn would have left Lexington with their national title hopes in shambles.
I realize Auburn was on the road in this one, but it's Kentucky! If you have national title aspirations, this one shouldn't be close.
9. Clemson
2 of 10
Flash back to September 18, 2010: 2-0 Auburn was hosting 2-0 Clemson. It was a game to figure out which of these two teams was an actual contender in 2010, and the favorite was Auburn. But, Clemson would jump out 17-0, and led 17-3 at halftime.
But, War Eagle rallied behind Cam Newton, and went on to win in overtime, thanks to a double clutch from Clemson long snapper Dalton Freeman nullifying their tying field goal.
Clemson is now 4-4, and has lost to Miami (FL) at home and North Carolina and Boston College on the road. If Auburn was the best team in the country, wouldn't they have smoked Clemson out of Jordan-Hare Stadium?
8. Remaining Schedule
3 of 10
Oregon deserves the top spot because the rest of their schedule is tougher as a whole than that of the Tigers.
Yes, Auburn faces sixth-ranked Alabama in Tuscaloosa, but other than that, there's not much to fear on the schedule moving forward. Georgia's looked terrible this season and is 4-5, and Chattanooga's not exactly a powerhouse.
While the Ducks don't have a top 10 clash right now, they face a fading Washington at home this week, then get Cal, a team who has been dominant at home in Berkley. They follow that with what could be back-to-back de facto Pac-10 title games.
First up is an Arizona team who is currently 7-1 and ranked 15th. Then comes an always tough battle against in-state rival Oregon State. While the Beavers are 4-3, they're 3-1 in the Pac-10 and always pose a serious threat to the Ducks.
.jpg?w=256 "Ohio State Team Doctor")
7. Darron Thomas
4 of 10
Sure, the Tigers have Cam Newton, but the Ducks have a star quarterback of their own in redshirt sophomore Darron Thomas.
Thomas has run the Oregon offense with efficiency, racking up 1,827 yards passing, 311 yards rushing, 21 passing touchdowns and a pair of scores on the ground.
Thomas has a live arm and good decision making skills, plus, he's one of the most mobile quarterbacks in college football right now, making him a threat to run or pass every play. He's got the skills to lead this team, and he's perfect for Oregon's offense.
He's not Cam Newton, but he's pretty good in his own right.
6. Margin Of Victory
5 of 10
Right now, Oregon is beating teams by an average of 37 points per game. Their closest victory was an 11-point win on the road at Arizona State.
Auburn's average margin of victory is just 15 points; they've won three games this season by just three points.
Oregon is creaming just about everyone it runs into, while Auburn seems to do just enough to win against good opponents. While that doesn't make them a bad team, it does make Oregon superior.
5. Chip Kelly
6 of 10
Kelly might be one of the best head coaches in all of college football. He's smart, dedicated and has his team poised for a national title berth despite losing projected starting quarterback Jeremiah Masoli to rules violations.
Kelly's an offensive mastermind who helped pioneer the spread offense even before he was a head coach at Oregon. As their offensive coordinator, Kelly was seen as the next big thing in coaching, and he's lived up to the hype.
But, it's the defensive side of the ball that has Kelly high on the coaching brains list. He has the Ducks playing fantastic defense and makes better halftime adjustments than just about anyone in college football.
Gene Chizik at Auburn is undoubtedly a good coach, but he's no Chip Kelly. He gives the Ducks a coaching advantage against almost any opponent they come up against.
4. Signature Win
7 of 10
To be the best team in college football, you need a signature win over another great team.
For Auburn, that win, so far, was a seven-point win over then-sixth-ranked LSU, a team who was undefeated, but probably should have lost to Tennessee, Florida and West Virginia.
For Oregon, that win was a 52-31 shellacking of then undefeated and ninth-ranked Stanford. The Ducks fell behind 21-3 in the first quarter, only to outscore the Cardinal 49-10 for the rest of the game, and 28-0 after halftime.
Which one sounds more impressive to you?
3. LaMichael James
8 of 10
James is currently a Heisman candidate and one of the best running backs in football. While Cam Newton more or less does everything by himself, Oregon can split the load between Thomas and the talented James. He's big, powerful and has run for 1,210 yards and 14 touchdowns in just seven games.
James is the kind of weapon Auburn lacks outside of Newton, and he's a big reason why the Ducks are the better team.
2. The Ducks Have a Better Offense
9 of 10
Oregon's blur offense has been unstoppable in 2010, racking up 54.9 points per game. It's not a matter of stopping them, it's a matter of controlling them.
The Ducks are loaded with weapons from top to bottom, led by Thomas and James. They spread the ball around, and they have multiple guys capable of lighting you up.
Auburn's offense, by comparison, is scoring 40 points per game. Cam Newton is an electric player, to be sure, but what if he gets hurt? The Tigers rely heavily on him to produce points and lack the balance to be considered better offensively than Oregon.
1. Better Defense
10 of 10
This is the biggest factor in Oregon's superiority to Auburn: Their defense has been better by almost a touchdown per game.
Oregon's speedy defense is allowing just 17.9 points per game, good enough for 17th in all of college football.
Auburn, by comparison, is allowing 24.3 points per game. That puts the Tigers at 59th in football in points allowed.
If a team is better offensively, defensively and is better coached, why shouldn't they be No. 1?
.jpg?w=480 "Ohio State Team Doctor")
