College Football 2011: Grading the Top 25 Teams' Performances from Week 10

Man what a weekend Week 10 of college football turned out to be!

We had the "Game of the Century" pitting No. 1 LSU against No. 2 Alabama, we had a tremendous Big 12 showdown between Oklahoma State and Kansas State that nearly upset the national standings even further, and we had a Big Ten meltdown of sorts that will haunt the conference for the remainder of the year.

On top of all of that, we also had another SEC battle between two teams in the Top 10 with South Carolina and Arkansas doing battle.

The weekend left us with a lot to talk about around the water coolers this week and gave us a lot to ponder going forward.

How will the BCS handle the situation at the very top? Are Bama and LSU clearly the best two teams in the country? If so, how will they deal with the fact that they come from the same conference and what will come of any remaining undefeated teams?

Is Oklahoma State good enough to potentially challenge for a spot in the big game? How big of a revolt would it cause if they were overlooked?

What about Boise State? We all know their schedule isn't even in the same league as everyone else, but should that be reason enough to exclude them once again?

These are the burning questions that fans face heading into the final few weeks of the 2011 regular season. Beyond them though, there are still some fantastic conference races that are getting even more heated and there are teams that are putting together some confusing performances.

It's time once again to grade the performances of the Top 25 of college football for Week 10.

25. Southern Miss

Opponent: East Carolina

Outcome: Won 48-28

Houston has been getting the majority of the attention out of Conference-USA, but Southern Miss is only a half step behind.

East Carolina didn't prove much of a challenge. The Golden Eagles hung 38 points on the Pirates in the first half alone and cruised through the second half to an easy victory.

Turnovers and special plays were the name of the game. In the first quarter alone, the Golden Eagles had a 97-yard pick-six in their favor, a 60-yard punt return for a TD and a 15-yard return of a blocked punt for a TD.

In the span of six minutes of game time, Southern Miss had accumulated 21 points off turnovers and special teams play.

Late in the second quarter, Deron Wilson added another 79-yard pick six to boost that total to 28 points.

Of the 48 points Southern Miss put on the board, only 20 of them were provided by the offense. The stats really aren't that eye popping. In fact, they're downright pedestrian.

However, what they put together in big plays more than makes up for the lack of consistent production by the offense.

Grade: A

24. West Virginia

Opponent: Louisville

Outcome: Lost 35-38

Can we stop the charade now? West Virginia hasn't played like a true Top 25 team in a long time. Probably, they haven't played like one all year long.

This loss put the nail in that coffin.

In case anyone's been paying attention, the Mountaineers have lost to Syracuse and Louisville in just the last three weeks. They haven't beaten anyone of real note and likely aren't even the best team in the Big East.

So, why has the media and pollsters loved them enough to keep them in the Top 25 this long?

QB Geno Smith had a tremendous day. He threw for 410 yards and three touchdowns with a 70.5 completion percentage. RB Dustin Garrison didn't have a terrible day, averaging almost five yards per carry.

The problems were two-fold though.

For one, the Mountaineers only got the ball to Garrison 13 times where he could only pick up 64 yards. In all, the run game wasn't terrible, but the people doing the most damage didn't have enough opportunities to win the game for them.

Secondly, breakdowns at key times allowed Louisville to hang around just when West Virginia threatened to put them under.

An 82-yard return of a blocked field goal extended Louisville's lead to 10 just when the Mountaineers were threatening to tie the game and keep the momentum in their favor. The defense allowed Louisville to score with just over a minute left, again extending their lead to 10 when the Mountaineers were within striking distance of stealing the win.

West Virginia out-played Louisville in just about every facet of the game except where it counted most. A pair of lost fumbles hurt them dearly, but they were just more demonstrations of how West Virginia handed the game away to a team that had no business playing along with a Top 25 team.

Grade: D

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23. Georgia Tech

Opponent: Idle

Outcome: N/A

The Yellow Jackets got the benefit of a down week. Considering the upending that has gone on in the Top 25 the last couple of weeks, they should maybe count their lucky stars to have gotten their bye week so late in the year.

They're coming off an important 31-17 victory over Clemson that ended a two-game losing skid and got them back in the standings and back on track. The remainder of their schedule looks something like this:

vs. No. 12 Virginia Tech

@ Duke

vs. No. 18 Georgia

Grade: N/A

22. Auburn

Opponent: Idle

Outcome: N/A

The Tigers got an opportunity to lick their wounds following a rough stretch that saw them go 2-2 over their last four games. Auburn has to be a little excited to see what's going on around the SEC. LSU is now the clear front-runner, but the East is reeling.

While they were down, the league around them went to war and opened some doors for the Tigers to potentially capitalize on. The rest of their schedule won't be overly easy, but there are opportunities to both pad their record and make some statements.

It plays out like this:

@ No. 18 Georgia

vs. Samford

vs. No. 2 Alabama

Grade: N/A

21. Texas

Opponent: Texas Tech

Outcome: Won 52-20

The Longhorns haven't had an easy road back to respectability after a disappointing 5-7 campaign in 2010. They've been in and out of the rankings all year and even came into this week sitting within the BCS standings, but outside both the Coaches' Poll and barely squeaked into the AP Poll.

This was a huge week for RB Joe Bergeron. The Longhorn blasted off 191 yards on 29 carries and scored three touchdowns. Fossy Whittacker also had some big moments, rattling off 83 yards on just 10 carries and picking up a pair of scores.

The pass game wasn't anything to get overly excited about, if you're looking for sheer numbers. David Ash only attempted seven passes and Case McCoy only threw it once. In total, Texas only tossed the rock nine times.

Ash did however, connect on four of those passes for an impressive 125 yards, averaging over 31 yards per completion. And McCoy's one pass was complete for a touchdown.

In a nutshell, everything was working for Texas. Their defense stopped the Red Raider run game, holding them to just 30 net yards. They gave up 381 passing yards, but surrendered just two scores out of that and buried the Raiders early.

Grade: A

20. Wisconsin

Opponent: Purdue

Outcome: Won 62-17

The Badgers needed this win. I don't necessarily mean beating Purdue. That was nice too, considering the Boilermakers upended Illinois a few weeks back and gave Penn State trouble the week before that.

No, this was important because Wisconsin won big. It reasserted that this team hasn't faded into the twilight after losing consecutive heart-breakers to Michigan State and Ohio State.

A narrow victory could have spelled doom for the team's psyche. Maybe they weren't all that and a bag of chips. Maybe they still aren't, but at least this looked like the Wisconsin team we're used to seeing.

RB Montee Ball thundered for 223 yards on 20 carries, averaging an amazing 11.2 yards per carry with three touchdowns. QB Russell Wilson also had a good day, completing 15 of 20 passes for 207 yards and a pair of scores, while also running 10 times for 76 yards and another score.

All-in-all, a purely dominant performance as Wisconsin put together 605 total yards of offense versus 289 by Purdue.

Grade: A+

19. Arizona State

Opponent: UCLA

Outcome: Lost 28-29

This one hurts on a number of levels. Losing is never a fun thing and losing to a team that isn't ranked when you are is even worse.

What makes the whole thing even tougher to stomach is that Arizona State now takes an even bigger back seat in the Pac-12. Coming into this game, they were just one loss behind Stanford and Oregon in the overall picture and were a game ahead of USC and UCLA in their division.

Obviously, USC can't participate in the postseason, but UCLA can and the Bruins can play for the conference title. Now, the Sun Devils are two full games behind the North leaders and are in a dogfight with UCLA in the South.

If the final week ends with UCLA and ASU tied in their conference records, the Bruins now have the head-to-head advantage and would get the nod to play the North winner for the Pac-12 title.

In other words, they lost all control over their shot at the Rose Bowl.

Brock Osweiller threw for 264 yards and a pair of touchdowns and Cameron Marshall blasted for 168 yards on 27 carries. Overall, the Sun Devils put up 465 yards.

They even won the turnover battle, taking away two fumbles from the Bruins and didn't give the ball away once.

However, they struggled with RB Derrick Coleman who put up 119 yards of his own and gave up three total touchdowns on the ground. Their defense failed them against a dangerous Bruin attack and watched their game slip away when UCLA scored with just 48 ticks left on the clock.

Grade: C

18. Georgia

Opponent: New Mexico State

Outcome: Won 63-16

Georgia might be peaking at the right time. The NMSU Aggies aren't a power team that's going to turn heads, but a 47-point victory should make a few people take notice. At the very least, it looks more impressive than anything they've done lately.

The Bulldogs are now on a seven-game winning streak. They struggled to put away Tennessee, Vanderbilt and Florida in the three weeks leading up to this one. A thoroughly lopsided victory was just what the doctor ordered to keep a little extra respect coming the Bulldogs' way.

QB Aaron Murray threw for five touchdowns and completed 18 of 23 passes. Houston Mason came in after the outcome was pretty well decided and tossed another 131 yards and a touchdown.

The ground game worked well too with Brandon Harton leading the way. Harton carried the ball 15 times and gained 98 yards with a touchdown as the Bulldogs racked up 258 total yards on the ground.

The defense meanwhile, gave up only a field goal until the fourth quarter when they held a 56-3 advantage. Finally, they surrendered a pair of touchdowns, but it really didn't matter by that point.

New Mexico State didn't present the kind of opponent that will help Georgia much with the computers, but the Bulldogs did what they needed to do and showed that they were clearly the better team.

Grade: A

17. Michigan State

Opponent: Minnesota

Outcome: Won 31-24

I'm probably going to cut Michigan State a little more slack than they deserve. Why?

Because I can't make out Minnesota at the moment. Or I should say, I can't figure them out again.

At the beginning of the season, they played USC incredibly tough on the road. Then they turned around and had a pathetic streak that lasted for six straight weeks with just one mediocre win tossed in there.

However, last week they came out looking good again as they took down Iowa. They looked pretty good again this week against the Spartans.

So, it all begs the question: is Minnesota suddenly good again or is Iowa that bad and was Michigan State just overlooking an opponent they shouldn't have?

Keep in mind that Iowa upset Michigan this week, in case you were thinking of taking the latter part of that question.

QB Kirk Cousins looked more like the gunslinger we know and love, completing 23 of 34 passes for 296 yards and a pair of touchdowns. RB LeVeon Bell grabbed 96 yards on 15 carries and scored twice.

WR B.J. Cunningham landed 104 yards on just three catches.

So, why did it take 10 fourth quarter points for Michigan State to eek out a win over a 2-6 team?

They couldn't contain Marquis Gray, plain and simple.

The Spartans allowed Gray to pass for 295 yards and three scores while also allowing him to scamper for 71 more yards. Gray burned them often and made their defense look far less powerful than we've been believing they are.

They couldn't cover Da'Jon McKnight (who caught all three Gray TD passes) and looked lost against the Golden Gophers.

I'll give them some credit because Minnesota suddenly decided to turn the lights back on and play football, but they really don't deserve a decent grade for almost losing to a team like Minnesota, at home no less.

Grade: C

16. Penn State

Opponent: Idle

Outcome: N/A

Penn State is another team that might ought to count themselves lucky to have been sitting down this particular week. The Nittany Lions have been winning ugly for a while now and the rest of the Big Ten was shaken to its core over the weekend.

Michigan lost to Iowa in Iowa City. Nebraska lost to Northwestern in Lincoln and Michigan State needed all four quarters to put away Minnesota in East Lansing.

None of those games really should have ended up the way they did. At least, not on paper.

Penn State may have dodged a bullet as upsets and close calls were the norm this past weekend. On top of all of that, the Lions have enough to deal with having off-field issues causing quite a stir in Happy Valley.

They are the only one-loss team left in the Big Ten and the only undefeated team in conference play. Can they hang onto that lead and find their way to Indianapolis in December?

The rest of their schedule looks like this:

vs. Nebraska

@ Ohio State

@ Wisconsin

Grade: N/A

15. Michigan

Opponent: Iowa

Outcome: Lost 16-24

How do you take yourself out of the conference title race? You lose to Iowa on a down year for the Hawkeyes.

Okay, in fairness, Iowa played one of their best all around games of the year. That's not really a good reason to get a warm fuzzy over what happened.

Denard Robinson was largely held in check. The Heisman hopeful completed less than half his passes. Still he grabbed 194 yards and a pair of touchdowns. An interception was costly, though.

He wasn't allowed to scramble for much either. Robinson only picked up 55 yards on the ground. That's both strange and disappointing considering Iowa's run defense is ranked eighth in the conference against the run and has struggled mightily all year against dual-threat quarterbacks.

RB Fitzgerald Toussaint couldn't bail out the offense either as he was held to just 58 yards rushing. In total, the Wolverines managed only 323 yards of total offense against a team that has been giving up over 400 yards per game.

In truth, Michigan out-performed Iowa on the stat sheets. They had more yards passing, nearly as many yards rushing and committed fewer penalties. Turnovers killed them, though.

Overall, it was a lackluster performance on the road and now Michigan is trailing in the Legends Division of the Big Ten.

Grade: D

14. Kansas State

Opponent: No. 3 Oklahoma State

Outcome: Lost 45-52

You can't knock the Wildcat effort. The Cowboys are a talented group and Kansas State was in this game right up to the bitter end.

In fact, the Wildcats led this game twice and tied the score at 45-all with just over three minutes left to play. Their defense couldn't hold on though, and they surrendered the lead for the last time with 2:16 left in the game and couldn't find a way to finish it out.

Man, they were close. Kansas State drove into the red zone and had first and goal from the five yard line. That's as far as it got, though.

QB Collin Klein threw for 231 yards, a touchdown and an interception. He also ran the ball for 144 yards and three more scores.

WR Tyler Lockett also ripped off a couple of big gains, totaling 84 yards on three carries.

The offense worked as well as could be asked and the team won the turnover battle, taking away two fumbles and two interceptions to one of each given away.

The problem was that the defense couldn't do much. They held the Cowboys to just 73 net rushing yards, but gave up 502 passing yards and four passing touchdowns.

It was a valiant effort and Kansas State nearly pulled out a very big upset that would have completely shaken up the BCS race. They just fell a little short.

Grade: B

13. Houston

Opponent: UAB

Outcome: Won 56-13

The Cougars are fighting an uphill battle when it comes to rankings. This game, however dominant, isn't going to do a lot to improve that situation. Their entire schedule reads like a Who's Who of mediocrity.

The Blazers came into this game with just one win in eight games. They aren't going to make anyone sit up and take notice of Houston for having won this game.

Still, you beat the teams that are in front of you and if they're not tremendous opposition, you beat the snot out of them just to prove a point. That's what you've got to do when you play in a conference that doesn't enjoy a lot of respectability.

Case Keenum continued his Heisman march, completing 39 of 44 passes (88.6 percent) for 407 yards and a pair of scores. RB Michael Hayes also ran the ball for 93 yards on 16 carries as Houston out-gained UAB 654yards to 269.

Grade: A

12. Virginia Tech

Opponent: Idle

Outcome: N/A

The Hokies sat out this week in preparation for a Thursday night meeting with Georgia Tech. That showdown will go a long way toward clarifying the ACC Coastal race as the Yellow Jackets are just a game behind the Hokies.

A loss would put Tech behind the 8-ball, needing GT to stumble in the last couple of weeks while a win would all-but hand them a spot in the ACC Championship Game.

Only Virginia would likely thwart them in the final game of the season and the Cavaliers have to travel to Florida State this coming week, so even that game might not derail Tech's chances.

The rest of their schedule shakes out like this:

@ Georgia Tech

vs. North Carolina

@ Virginia

Grade: N/A

11. Clemson

Opponent: Idle

Outcome: N/A

Clemson finally saw their perfect start to the 2011 season come to an end on October 29th when Georgia Tech spoiled their party. They had a little extra time this week to think about what went wrong in that match and work on ways to fix those problems going forward.

The rest of the season lines up fairly well for the Tigers to make a concerted run at 11-1 and a spot in the ACC Championship Game. Here's how it lays out:

vs. Wake Forest

@ NC State

@ South Carolina

Grade: N/A

10. Nebraska

Opponent: Northwestern

Outcome: Lost 25-28

Now Nebraska knows why Northwestern is such a thorn in the sides of so many Big Ten teams. They're that quirky little, annoying team that finds ways to surprise you and beat you just when you think they're down and out.

Nothing about Northwestern's performance screams that they should have won this game. Other than an 81-yard strike from Kain Kolter to Jeremy Ebert, the pass game was thoroughly mediocre. None of the rushers had crazy yards or even above-normal averages.

Nebraska just couldn't keep them down.

QB Taylor Martinez had a pretty strong day. He completed 28 of 37 passes for 289 yards and two touchdowns. Unfortunately, he was about the only offense Nebraska could drum up.

RB Rex Burkhead has been the star of the Cornhusker offense the last couple of weeks, but he could only manage 69 yards on 22 carries with one touchdown.

Where did the black shirts of last weekend go? Where did Burkhead go?

If Nebraska was overlooking Northwestern simply because they had a 3-5 record coming into this game, they've learned their lesson the hard way.

You can't do that with Northwestern and there's no excuse for a Top 10 team to lose to a team with a losing record at home.

Grade: D

9. South Carolina

Opponent: No. 7 Arkansas

Outcome: Lost 28-44

The Gamecocks just handed over the SEC East to Georgia. Don't get me wrong, the Bulldogs haven't locked that down yet, but the ball's in their court now. SC no longer has control of its own destiny.

QB Connor Shaw and RB Brandon Wilds had looked so good lately as replacements for Stephen Garcia and Marcus Lattimore respectively. That was against lesser competition of course and this time around they didn't look so hot.

Shaw had a decent enough completion percentage, nailing down 16 of 25 passes, but he could only gain 128 yards and threw an interception. Wilds had an exciting touchdown early in the game to give the Gamecocks an early lead, but then he was held silent. On 10 carries, he could only manage 21 yards.

Overall, the team could barely break 200 yards of total offense while their defense surrendered over 400 to the Razorbacks. They fumbled away the ball three times in addition to Shaw's interception as they officially shot themselves in the feet.

Arkansas is a very good team and you've got to play good football through and through. South Carolina just couldn't hang.

Grade: D

8. Oregon

Opponent: Washington

Outcome: Won 34-17

Not impressed with this win? It may not look like much if you're seeing Washington in the old light of it's recent past. This isn't the same team that was 0-12 in 2008 or even the team that was 7-6 just last year.

The Huskies are coming around.

Keep in mind also that Washington was just one win behind Oregon in the conference race heading into this game.

Still, Oregon is the better team right? Right.

RB LaMichael James returned to action with a 25-carry, 156-yard performance that included a touchdown. James showed that he hadn't missed a beat after recovering from a dislocated elbow suffered against Arizona State.

The pass game was okay with Darron Thomas throwing a touchdown with 169 yards backing it up, but it wasn't spectacular. The ground game carried the team, picking up 212 yards and three scores.

The Duck defense held the Huskies to just 82 net yards on the ground and took away three Husky turnovers.

Solid win to stay at the front of the Pac-12 title race.

Grade: B

7. Arkansas

Opponent: No. 9 South Carolina

Outcome: Won 44-28

It wasn't that difficult to defeat South Carolina was it? They pretty much beat themselves.

Still, Arkansas had a highly ranked opponent in front of them and did the necessary job to get the big win.

QB Tyler Wilson completed 54 percent of his passes for 299 yards and a pair of touchdowns. He also threw an interception (a pick-six, no less), but with SC turning the ball over four times, what did that matter?

RB Dennis Johnson averaged a little under six yards per carry, picking up 86 yards on 15 carries. WR Jarius Wright hauled in both of Wilson's touchdown passes as the offense rolled through 435 yards of total offense.

The Razorbacks needed a big SEC win. Typically, playing a Top 10 team provides that challenge. This week it didn't as South Carolina seemed more intent on handing the ball over to Arkansas.

Still, the South Carolina defense rates as one of the best in the SEC in terms of yards allowed and Arkansas picked that defense apart.

Grade: A

6. Oklahoma

Opponent: Texas A&M

Outcome: Won 41-25

Would you believe the Aggies had more total yards, more passing yards, just one fewer rushing yards, and eight more first downs than the Sooners? I wouldn't either if I hadn't scoured the stat sheets after the game.

Yet, that's what happened.

In a lot of ways, the Aggies out-performed the Sooners, though you wouldn't know it from the scoreboard. Actually, the scoreboard at halftime might have given that indication as Oklahoma held a slim 13-10 lead.

A 28-point third quarter blew this thing wide open though and that was all she wrote.

Nothing about Oklahoma's stats are all that impressive. QB Landry Jones completed fewer than half his passes, though he did amass 255 yards and a couple of scores. The ground didn't see anyone with over one carry cross the four-yard-per-carry mark, yet the group accounted for three touchdowns.

The defense gave up 527 yards, yet held the Aggies to just 13 points until the fourth quarter, when they held onto a 41-10 lead.

It wasn't necessarily pretty from a statistical standpoint, but Oklahoma forced four turnovers and took advantage of a huge third quarter to walk away with a comfortable win.

Grade: B

5. Boise State

Opponent: UNLV

Outcome: Won 48-21

The Broncos keep on riding their way toward a potential shot at the BCS National Championship. Don't think it can happen?

I don't either, actually.

In light of the talk already circulating around a Bama/LSU rematch, there are all kinds of reasons that Boise State won't see the big game even if they end the season with a perfect record. Debate that all you want, but this time around, I have to agree.

They're probably not the best team in America and their schedule absolutely won't allow them to prove it.

A 27-point victory over UNLV isn't going to convince anyone either.

QB Kellen Moore continues to pad his stats with a five touchdown performance and RB D.J. Harper snagged 109 yards on just 13 carries (8.4 average). The defense allowed one big run of 55 yards but otherwise held the Rebels pretty much in check.

It was a quiet day for the Broncos as they watched mayhem thunder around them in the BCS standings. Too bad it really won't be enough in the end.

Grade: B+

4. Stanford

Opponent: Oregon State

Outcome: Won 38-13

So, the Cardinal finally got the Oregon monkey off their backs. Too bad it wasn't the "other" Oregon they knocked around.

QB Andrew Luck had a so-so day in his Heisman chase. He completed 67 percent of his passes for 206 yards and three touchdowns but that yardage isn't fantastic and he also threw up an interception.

Of course, it really didn't matter. The ground game was strong enough to pick up any slack Moore may have allowed.

Stepfan Taylor rumbled for 95 yards on just 13 carries and Tyler Gaffney added another 56 yards on 12 carries with a touchdown.

It wasn't a flashy win for Stanford, but it was a dominant one as they out-paced the Beavers in about every major category, including the scoreboard.

Grade: B

3. Oklahoma State

Opponent: Kansas State

Outcome: Won 52-45

The Cowboys had a fight on their hands, but they knew that going in. Kansas State is a tough team that had a lot of motivation coming into this game and Oklahoma State had an awful lot on the line.

Brandon Weeden took the team on his shoulders and delivered a 502-yard, four-touchdown performance. He also had a pair of picks, including a costly pick-six.

In the end, it was Joseph Randle that was the hero when he scampered for a 23-yard touchdown run to put the Cowboys on top of the Wildcats for the final time.

The defense struggle to keep Kansas State down all day, but they came up big with a stop late in the fourth quarter with the Wildcats deep in their territory.

It took everything the Cowboys had to put away the Wildcats, but that shouldn't be a knock against them. This game was one of the big games before the "big game." These two teams were both ranked in the Top 25 and both teams had a lot riding on the outcome.

In the end, the Cowboys had enough left in the tank to pull off an exciting win in a tough-fought football game.

Grade: A-

2. Alabama

Opponent: No. 1 LSU

Outcome: Lost 6-9 OT

Can anyone say "blown opportunity?" With all due respect to LSU and their defense in particular, this game shouldn't have ended this way. In so many ways, it shouldn't have ended this way.

The kicking game let the Tide down horribly. Cade Foster was just one for four in field goals while Jeremy Shelley was one of two. For those keeping score, that's just two of six, or one-third of their attempts.

In a game as tough and tight as this, you can't afford to have special teams meltdowns, but that's exactly what happened to the Crimson Tide.

Yes, the majority of those field goals were near or beyond the 50-yard range. They shouldn't have probably been attempting so many from that far.

And yes, Nick Saban did ask Shelley to attempt a field goal that was nearly 12 yards longer than the longest he'd kicked all year.

Still, you've got to do better than 33 percent in field goals when you're playing a game where field goals are the only points going on the board.

That alone could have won the game for Alabama in regulation.

Beyond that, the coaching confused me at times. I'm a big fan of Saban's and happen to think he's one of the smartest coaches in college football today.

So, why did he put Shelley in such a position? Why didn't he punt the ball away when his defense was doing such a fantastic job of limiting LSU's offense?

Why did he go on later and put WR/PR Marquis Maze on punt return duty when he was obviously still trying to shake off an ankle tweak? Maze was unable to back-pedal to the ball and let it sail over his head, resulting in a 73 yard punt that should have only gone for about 40.

QB A.J. McCarron threw for 199 yards and his completion percentage wasn't horrible (57 percent), but he couldn't get the touchdown strike and tossed up an interception. RB Trent Richardson was held to just 89 yards on 23 carries as Alabama's offense struggled to get anything consistently working against LSU's defense.

Poor game management in my opinion. Valiant effort, but they were let down by the two entities in the best position to get them the biggest win of the year.

Grade: C- (with credit because the defense played well)

1. LSU

Opponent: No. 2 Alabama

Outcome: Won 9-6 OT

Champions win, no matter what. They win incredible duels. They win ugly. They win even when they don't really win.

That's what makes Champions rise above the crowd. They just win.

For all the Ice Man credit typically given to Nick Saban, Les Miles was the better coach Saturday night. He called it all right and put his team in position to make the plays.

The very threat of trickery got inside Saban's head and the quiet genius balked.

I've not been that big a fan of the LSU offense. They've gotten things done, but they've never been that flashy in the process. Jarrett Lee hasn't impressed me that much as a quarterback and the run game has largely been second-tier to the big names floating around the nation.

This weekend, the Tigers showed why it's so dangerous. When Lee coughed up a couple of ugly interceptions, Miles pulled the trigger on Jordan Jefferson and switched his offense from a standard pro-style attack to an option attack that threw Alabama's defense for a loop.

The numbers still weren't eye-popping, but it didn't matter. They got inside the Tide's head (again) and started pushing their defense around a little.

Meanwhile, the Tiger defense did an outstanding job against a very balanced and tough Alabama offense. RB Trent Richardson was held to an average under four yards per carry and kept the Tide run game to just 96 total yards on the night.

They allowed 199 pass yards, but kept the Tide out of the end zone and took away an interception.

You can point to Saban's insistence on attempting field goals from too far out in the first half, and you can point to certain miscues in the second half. That's just football.

LSU played a tough, physical game and came away with an exciting overtime victory.

Grade: A