Contenders and Pretenders from College Football Week 8

If you would have asked which conference leader is least likely to lose, I would almost have West Virginia at the top, outside of your top five ranked teams. Speaking of the top five, no shakeup was necessary this weekend as the rich continue to feast off the poor. 

The LSU Tigers won in a beat down over Auburn on Friday night, while West Virginia proved to the nation to be one of the biggest frauds of the entire weekend.

Which teams exactly were the biggest contenders and pretenders in Week 8?

LSU Tigers

LSU 45, Auburn 10

You want a contender, my god!

The Bayou Bengals received some hatred if you will for their three players being suspended this weekend against Auburn, but they proved to be the best team in America in my eyes.

They dominated Auburn and throttled their potent rushing attack, limiting them under 30 yards on the ground and in total yardage, they held them under 200 yards. 

LSU's ground and pound offense just owned Auburn as the Bayou Bengals ran for over 150 yards and it seemed as if nobody can stop them.

Well, Nov. 5 will tell us a whole story in The Game of the Century.

West Virginia Mountaineers

Syracuse 49, West Virginia 23

O, boy, I thought the Mountaineers were a lock to run the table in the Big East and just when the BCS standings started, they fell flat on their faces. 

Geno Smith throws for a billion yards every game, but he could not take care of the ball and the story of the game was the defense. Or lack thereof I should say.

Antwon Bailey ran bonkers against WVU totaling 125 yards and a touchdown, while quarterback Ryan Nassib threw for four touchdowns.

What happened to this defense? It was abysmal all night, allowing nearly 200 yards rushing and a total of 443 yards to an offense that was ranked 96th in the nation!

It was not like Syracuse came in as a scorching team putting up big offensive numbers. They were awful and the Mountaineers made them look like Tom Brady and the New England Patriots.

All hope is not lost since they could run the table and still manage to win the Big East and if they get lucky, another loss would not eliminate them. Time will tell who jumps out as the favorites in the Big East and until then, any team has a legit chance, WVU included.

Oklahoma State Cowboys

Oklahoma State 45, Missouri 24

LSU's defense may be unstoppable, but the Cowboys offense looks unstoppable. Honestly, who has the makings to slow this team down before Bedlam?

If that is going to be a national play-in game, then we may be in for quite the treat. Brandon Weeden threw for 338 yards with three touchdowns and just one interception. 

Justin Blackmon (concussion) is fine despite leaving the game after getting his bell rung. However, Hubert Anyiams will be out for the season after breaking his right foot.

The loss of Kendall Hunter was expected to become a factor, but I saw a ton of potential in Joseph Randle. 

He toted it 14 times for 138 yards and three touchdowns and his backup, Jeremy Smith, ran for 71 yards on 13 carries.

The Pokes may be destined to run the table going into Bedlam and having that game at home could propel them to their first BCS Bowl, as in the BCS National Championship.

Clemson Tigers

Clemson 59, North Carolina 38

This bend but not break and extremely opportunistic defense forced six turnovers from the Tar Heels. Tajh Boyd went off, throwing for over 350 yards along with five touchdowns.

Despite Andre Ellington leaving in the first half with an injury, the Tiger offense did not suffer. The running game was non-existent but no need to worry, mainly because Sammy Watkins is the best receiver in the country and this offense is among the tops out there. They will be favored in all of their remaining games, so will they run the table?

Boise State Broncos

Boise State 39, Air Force 28

The Smurf Turfs were ranked fifth in the BCS Rankings, but I wonder how far they will drop after a lackluster performance against Air Force.

They struggled mightily against the triple option attack of Tim Jefferson as the Falcons gashed the Broncos for 264 yards. The mighty defensive line for Boise looked a bit slow and the linebackers were nearly useless.

The bigger question mark was the inability for their defensive backs to come up in the box and make an impact hit.

Luckily, Kellen Moore was on his game, threading the needle for 281 yards along with three touchdowns. In the victory, he also tied Colt McCoy for the all-time record for most wins in FBS history for a quarterback (45).

Notre Dame Fighting Irish

USC 31, Notre Dame 17

The Irish were expected to be in the rankings and even inside the top in the BCS if they were able to have a breakthrough victory over USC. 

However, they choked in the primetime and could not stop Matt Barkley. They had him stuck on a few times in which he rolled out of the pocket and both times Irish defender biffed on the tackle.

Notre Dame will continue to be favored in their next few games, but the BCS chances are likely dead now for the Irish with this devastating home loss to an unranked Trojans squad (Obviously they can't be ranked but still this is not a legit Top 20 USC squad).

Brian Kelly is finding out the hard way on life as the Irish head coach and he better hope to run the table going into Stanford so they can go 8-4. The development and continued struggles at quarterback has been the calling card as to why they have been miserable.

However, the secondary and tackling of Notre Dame at the end of the day will never be good enough unless they make some quick strides to finish off their season. Going from a BCS Bowl to a Champs Sports Bowl is tough a pill to swallow, but that is the life when you lose three games before November. 

Wisconsin Badgers

Michigan State 37, Wisconsin 31

In what just might be the greatest finish in the history of college football, the Badgers were beat on a Hail Mary pass by the Spartans of Michigan State.

Keith Nichol caught a 44-yard deflected pass at the one yard line and crossed the goal line by an eyelash as time expired. The Badgers were getting hype as if they would run the table and play for the BCS National Championship and those hopes are all but done.

Michigan State Spartans

Michigan State 41, Wisconsin

The Spartans had a two touchdown lead and were playing not to lose in the early stages of the fourth quarter, but give the Badgers some credit.

Russell Wilson pulled a houdini act off several times in the fourth quarter and hit Montee Ball and Nick Toon for huge chunks down the stretch of the game. 

Wilson's two interceptions though was what cost the Badgers. Their offense could not be stopped as it was the turnovers that killed the team. Plus, throw in the blocked punt and it was a miracle Wisconsin had a chance to win this game outright (Overtime perhaps).

Still, the Spartans must win at Lincoln if they want to keep their division and Big Ten Championships hopes alive. They have a great chance to win in Lincoln as well as in the Big Ten Championship in what could be a rematch with the Badgers at Lucas Oil Stadium on the first Saturday in December.