Dawg Defense Derails Longhorns

The biggest game of the weekend almost turned into a rout with Georgia jumping out to what seemed an almost insurmountable 23-0 lead, but Texas fought back in the 3rd quarter to close the gap to 23-15. But it was too late and the Georgia defense shut down Texas in the final quarter, ending the game with a 30-15 win over the #1 Longhorns. Oregon, 35-0 winners over Purdue, moved into the top spot in this week's Billingsley Report, followed by idle Penn State. Georgia jumped to #3 followed by #4 Texas. Miami (Fla.) takes the #5 position.  Indiana shocked the Husker nation with an unbelievable 56-7 beat down of Nebraska. The Hoosiers moved to 7-0 on the season. Illinois beat Michigan 21-7 to move to 6-1. The Trojans are finding life very difficult in the Big 10. USC fell to 3-4 after losing at Maryland 29-28. BYU and Iowa State remained unbeaten by identical scores of 38-35, and both in similar dramatic fashion with wins coming over Oklahoma State and UCF in the final moments of the game. Tennessee beat arch rival Alabama 24-17. All the cigar smoke gave new meaning to “Smoky Mountains”. Oklahoma was humiliated at home by South Carolina 35-9. It was the worst home loss for the Sooners since the John Blake era of 1997, a 69-7 loss to Nebraska. Projections will post Tuesday.     

Oregon nips Ohio State 32-31

In a battle of Big 10 Titans (I still can't wrap my head around that statement), the Ducks prevailed in a back and forth tussle with the Buckeyes. Ohio State appeared positioned to kick a game winning field goal but the last second ticked off the clock as the Buckeye QB slid trying to gain a few precious more yards before the attempt. Something tells me we will see these two powerhouses play again, and maybe twice, before a National Champion is crowned.  Pittsburgh remained unbeaten after squeaking by California 17-15 in an ACC conference game. Can I just say this? I miss the Pac 12! Cal and Stanford in the ACC? Oregon, Washington, USC and UCLA in the Big 10? It's more than this old timer can handle. Hell, I still miss the Big 8 and the SWC. Those were the days, the 1950's thru the 1970's were college footballs greatest years.  Penn State had the comeback of the day, scoring 14 late points to move the game with USC into overtime, then beating the Trojans 33-30. Iowa finally showed some offensive muscle, pounding Washington 40-16. The Hawkeyes are now 4-2. The Big 12 is all up for grabs, although BYU and Iowa State lead the pack at 6-0. Kansas State, Texas Tech and Arizona State are all 5-1.  Oklahoma scored the first points in the Red River Rivalry to lead 3-0….. and never saw the light of day again. The Longhorns smothered the Sooners with 34 straight points. I just took a look at Oklahoma's upcoming schedule, Yikes. South Carolina, Ole Miss, Missouri, Alabama and LSU. I don't believe Oklahoma will be going bowling this year. LSU won a thriller over Ole Miss 29-26. Hard to beat the Tigers in Death Valley at night. And Vandy did it again, pulling off another upset, this time on the road over Kentucky 20-13. The Commodores now stand at 4-2. Nashville may never stop celebrating.  Texas remains #1 in this week's Billingsley Report, followed closely by Oregon. As the season unfolds I doubt anyone will go undefeated and we could be looking at several two loss teams in the CFP. Anyone want to bet a 3 loss SEC or Big 10 team might sneak in at #12? Wouldn't surprise me in the least. Projections will be posted Tuesday. 

Alabama Falls into Vanderbilt Trap

Longtime fans of college football could see it coming a mile away. On one hand we had Alabama, undefeated, ranked #1 in the nation after beating longtime foe Georgia in what was called an “Instant Classic”, a "game for the ages", going on the road to play perennial SEC cellar dweller Vanderbilt. Problem is…… Vandy was a very well prepared eager hungry team that had already beaten Virginia Tech and taken Missouri to double overtime. Result: Vanderbilt 40 Alabama 35. I lived in the Nashville area for 12 of the best years of my life. I know their frustrations first hand and I don't want to take a thing away from the Commodores. They played the best game in Vanderbilt history and they earned it with great offensive play calling, great defense, and sheer determination.  It was a weekend full of upsets. The Crimson Tide was not the only casualty. Texas A&M destroyed previously unbeaten Missouri 41-10 and Arkansas shocked unbeaten Tennessee 19-14 in the night cap. Texas rose to #1 after being idle, preparing for the Red River Rivalry game with Oklahoma Saturday. Miami (Fla.) roared back from 25 points down to sneak past California 39-38. Army and Navy are both 5-0 for the first time since 1945. Heck fire, that's even before my time and that's going back a few years. The Billingsley Report is top heavy with Big 10 teams after the SEC implosion. Oregon is #2, Penn State is #3 and Ohio State is #4. Should make for an interesting match when the Buckeyes travel to Eugene Saturday. Projections will be posted Monday.     

Alabama Survives Furious Georgia Rally

The Crimson Tide soared to a 28-0 lead early and made the game look like a blowout in the making. But the Bulldogs held strong and never gave up, shockingly rebounding to take a 34-33 lead in the 4th quarter. Alabama retook the lead at 41-34 and Georgia still had a shot to potentially take the game to overtime. The classic ended with Alabama intercepting the ball in the end zone with 49 seconds left on the clock. The win vaulted Alabama to #1 in this week's Billingsley Report followed by #2 Texas, 35-13 winners over Mississippi St.  The SEC was a wild crazy place to be Saturday. Double digit underdog Kentucky visited the Grove in Oxford and found a way to shut down the high flying Ole Miss Rebels 20-17. Just imagine where the Wildcats would be sitting right now if they had completed that near13-12 upset of Georgia a few weeks ago. Auburn fans were left unbelievably stunned after dominating Oklahoma, leading 21-10 with 6 minutes left in the game before Sooner Magic took over and boom…. Oklahoma scored 17 points to win 27-21. Miami (Fla.) remains unbeaten at 5-0 after a very controversial game ending that was  originally called a Virginia Tech TD for the win but overturned in replay to an incomplete pass giving the Hurricane the win. Duke, also unbeaten at 5-0 stormed back from a 20-0 deficient to slip by arch rival North Carolina 21-20. UNLV has take over the early lead for the G5 CFP bid at 4-0 with a big 59-14 shellacking of Fresno State.  Notre Dame looks strong again with an impressive 31-24 win over Louisville. Northern Illinois has dropped two straight since beating the Irish. How in the world did Notre Dame ever let that one slip away? The Big 10 is still growing strong with 5 teams still unbeaten, Oregon, Penn State, Ohio State and surprise surprise, Rutgers and Indiana.  BYU and Iowa State are the lone unbeatens in the Big 12 after Arizona traveled to Utah and took down the Utes 23-10. What a topsy turvy season so far, and we just got started. Ain't College football grand!