Penn State, Texas Losses Create Major Top Ten Shakeup

The Nittany Lions and Longhorn defeats opened the door for some unexpected newcomers to the top ten in the Billingsley Report. Alabama, Texas A&M and Oklahoma benefitted greatly. The Penn State 42-37 loss to UCLA was shocking. It seems as though the Nittany Lions just left their heart on the field last week in the loss to Oregon. The Texas loss was not as surprising in the sense that it was an obvious trap game , going to the swamp to play a good Florida squad the week before they play Oklahoma, but still, it is a game Texas should have been better prepared for.  Around the Nation: Miami (Fla.)'s win over arch rival Florida State jumped the Hurricane back to #1 this week with Ohio State just a fraction of a point from taking the top spot themselves. Iowa State fell from the list of undefeated teams as thee Cyclones traveled to Cincinnati and left a 38-30 loser. Texas Tech continues to surprise everyone, now sporting a 5-0 record after beating Houston 35-11. Vanderbilt had Alabama on the ropes but threw an interception in the red zone which would have given them the lead and solid momentum. The Commodores just never seemed to recover and Alabama walked away with a 30-14 win. Oklahoma destroyed Kent State 44-0 as expected, but now I'm putting the Sooners on upset alert. I promise you a different Texas team will take the field next Saturday.  Enjoy you week. Projections will post Tuesday.    

Ole Miss Squeaks By Bitter Rival LSU 24-19

One of college football's most heated rivalries played itself out in typical fashion yesterday, a fight to the bitter end. As a result Mississippi found itself on top of the Billingsley Report for the first time since Johnny Vaught led the Rebels to a National championship at the end of the 1962 season. Staying on top may prove to be a near impossible task with a very difficult SEC schedule ahead.  Around the Nation: Georgia Tech survived a furious upset bid at Wake Forest, coming away with a late 30-29 win. Florida State was not so lucky. The Seminoles fell at Virginia 46-38. Once again Penn State had an opportunity to move into the elite class of the Big 10, and once again the Nittany Lions failed, this time at the hands of Oregon losing 30-24. Indiana moved to 5-0  with a hard fought win at Iowa 20-15.  Iowa State remains on top of the Big 12 with a 39-14 home win over Arizona.  Notre Dame remains a top 25 team in spite of a 2 and 2 record with a 56-13 thrashing of Arkansas.  After the game Arkansas fired their coach Sam Pitman.  The race for the SEC crown will be a tough week to week battle.  Alabama turned the conference upside down with a 24-21 win over Georgia.  Texas A&M remains unbeaten with a 16 to 10 win over Auburn.  Vanderbilt continues to surprise the nation moving to 5 and 0 with a 55-35 win over Utah State.  Tennessee survived an overtime win at Mississippi State 41-34.   The projections will be posted Tuesday.  I hope everyone enjoys the week in wait for the upcoming exciting weekend's games.

Miami leaps to # 1 With 26-7 Win Over Florida

Not since the 1980's has the Billingsley Report seen Miami (Fla.) ranked #1, but the dominant performance over the Gators plus the #3 strength of schedule in the nation did the trick. The Hurricane still has a formidable ACC schedule to play but they are quickly lining themselves up for a spot in the playoff.  Around the Nation: Also in the ACC Georgia Tech and Florida state just keep on rolling while Clemson and SMU keep on falling out of contention. Memphis shocked the nation with a 32-31 stunner over Arkansas. The Hogs had Notre Dame on there mind. Ohio State and Penn State had the week off but the Nittany Lions keep falling, now holding the place of  playing the worst schedule in the nation. Indiana absolutely destroyed Illinois 63-10. It makes me wonder of the Illini may be the best team in the Big 10. Same goes for Texas Tech in the Big 12 after a shocking 34-10 win on the road at Utah. LSU beat SE Louisiana 56-10 but dropped to #2 for playing an FCS team. Texas finally got the offense rolling with a 55-0 win over Sam Houston. Vanderbilt is playing lights out football. The Commodores beat Georgia State 70-21. I can't wait to see them in SEC action. And Oklahoma came from behind with less than 5 minutes left to beat Auburn 24-17. The Sooner defense was all over Jackson Arnold, sacking him 9 times.  Week 6 projections will post Tuesday. Have a fun week! 

Last Second Heroics Derail Tennessee and Notre Dame

Just when it seemed Tennessee was about to break the long 8 game losing streak to Georgia the Vols missed a game winning field goal and the Bulldogs pulled off a 44-41 win in overtime. The Irish suffered a similar heartbreak at the hands of Texas A&M with the Aggies pulling off a stunning 41-40 win. Around the Nation: Georgia Tech is fast becoming the darlings of the ACC. the Ramblin' Wreck of Georgia Tech edged favored perennial power Clemson 24-21 sending the Yellow Jackets to a 3-0 start to the season. Penn State continues to win but slide in the rankings due to a poor strength of schedule, ranked # 134 this week. LSU jumped Ohio State to take the #1 position in this week's Billingsley Report with a 20-10 win over Florida. What's wrong with Texas? The Longhorns struggled with # 133 Texas-El Paso 27-10. Ole Miss held off arch rival Arkansas 41-35. And don't look now but Vanderbilt is not the Commodores of old. They boldly walked into South Carolina and walked away with a shocking 31-7 thrashing of the Game Cocks.  Projections will be posted Tuesday. Have a great week!   

Oklahoma Tops Michigan 24-13

The “Palace on the Prairie” lit up like the Fourth of July Saturday night as the Sooners managed to hold off a talented Wolverine team 24-13. The teams have only met once before, in the Orange Bowl after the 1975 season, which earned Oklahoma the National Championship after a hard fought 14-6 win. But neither of these teams looked like National Title contenders. Both teams appeared sluggish and unfocused at times. Still, it's early in the season with lots of time to improve and with their schedules both teams will have ample opportunities to prove themselves. Around the Nation: This was a light week for big games. Most teams played what I call ‘’sluff games". But their were a few important contest here and there. Iowa State and Iowa played a defensive slugfest in Ames with the Cyclones coming away 16-13 victors by way of a late 50+ yard field goal late in the game. Baylor, just one week after losing to Auburn beat favored SMU 48-45 in double overtime. Fitting for these two old SWC rivals. Vanderbilt explode for a 44-20 win at Virginia Tech, after the Hokies seemed to have control of the game for the first half. South Florida shocked the Gators in the Swamp 18-16. Last week the Bulls upset Boise State. their may be a new king of college football in the Sunshine State, although Florida State is sure looking mighty improved after an opening win over Alabama and a 77-3 thrashing of East Texas A&M Saturday. Ole Miss traveled to Kentucky and avenged last seasons upset that put Mississippi in a tail spin. The Rebels came away with a 30-23 win this time.  This week's projections will be posted Monday or Tuesday. Through the first 3 week's of play the Billingsley Report leads the nation in predictions, according to the Prediction Tracker, with 80 wins and 18 losses for 81.6%. Wouldn't that be nice to keep up! Enjoy your week!                                                    

Florida State Shocks Alabama 31-17

It was a huge opening weekend of football and there were few surprises, but one of them has to rank as seismic in proportion. The Crimson Tide, a 14 point favorite rolled into Tallahassee expecting to come away with an easy win. Instead the Seminoles walked away with a dominating performance in front of a delighted home crowd, winning 31-17.  Around the nation: Ohio State picked up right where they left off in 2024 with a solid defensive win over highly ranked Texas, squeaking past the Longhorns 14-7. The new Billingsley Report cannot be released until Tuesday because of tonight's TCU/North Carolina game, but the Buckeyes are assured to be #1. Stay tuned. 

Emerald Isle Shines Bright For Iowa State

The 2025 college football season got underway Saturday with a  Big 12 clash that will go a long way to determining the  conference champion in December. Iowa State took a huge step toward the crown by nipping Big 12 favorite Kansas State 24-21. The game was played in Dublin Ireland.  It was an abbreviated slate of games that also saw Hawaii best Stanford on the last play of the game with a field goal, winning 23-20. Kansas ran over Fresno State 31-7, while Western Kentucky took  the lead in the C-USA with a 41-24 win over Sam Houston.  The season opens with a bang over a 5 day Labor Day bonanza with games between Texas/Ohio State, LSU/Clemson, Alabama/Florida State and Notre Dame/ Miami just to mention a few. Enjoy! 

Bitter Rivals Become Great Friends

During the time I had my stroke and later my fall that resulted in a broken hip, I spent time in the PAM South Rehab Center where I received unbelievably good care. Kenny Tien was the head of my rehab team and he was a devoted Longhorn fan. Once he found out who I was we teased each other every day about how ironic it was that a Texas fan was healing an Oklahoma fan. Once the word spread who I was and about my website I spent hours with patients dropping by to talk college football. I swear it accelerated my healing process by keeping up my spirits. Hats off to PAM Rehab CEO Allyson Cann ( a huge Sooner fan) for running such a great facility!  

Billingsley To Alter Formula For only 4th Time in 55 Years

The Billingsley Report on MAJOR COLLEGE FOOTBALL was first published in 1970. Three times in it's history the formula was changed, each time to diminish the impact of the margin of victory.  But now after all these years a major overhaul is underway that will take effect for the 2025 season. The sport has CHANGED radically with the transfer portal and NIL rules. What I have realized is that the core of some teams has changed completely and carrying over a team's rank from one season to another (a CFRC trademark in the formula) no longer makes sense. So, this year a true pre-season poll will be created by myself and my nephew Steve who is flying in from  Boston and spending the week breaking down all 136 teams based on coaching changes, returning starters, etc. You may notice big gains or losses from 2025, but hopefully you will see a more realistic ranking to start the season. 2025 starts with some of the most exciting games that I have ever seen over a Labor Day weekend. What a great start to the season. Have fun everyone!

Health Issues Jeopardize CFRC

I have not posted a blog since the end of the 2024 season. I had a stroke on February 27 that paralyzed my right side, followed by a fall that broke my hip on March 17. I was in the hospital for 8 days followed by 21 days of rehab. I returned home totally bedridden and feeling defeated because I thought there was no way I could ever continue CFRC.com. 

No Doubt About It, Buckeyes Are The Best

Ohio State is the 2024 National Champion. No discussion required. The Buckeyes beat Notre Dame 34-23 and it was not nearly as close as the score indicated. The Irish took the initial drive for over 9 minutes and a 7-0 lead, but from the time Ohio State's offense took the field the game was completely in their charge. Notre Dame made a late rally and scored twice but it was too little to late. Ironically, the Top Five in the Billingsley Report remained unchanged. Idle Oregon finished13-1, their lone loss coming at the hands of Ohio State in the Rose Bowl, remained at #2      Updates to the Encyclopedia will begin next week, with the completion of the All Time Scores expected in late March. All contingent on my health. My Parkinson's continues to progress. I am so thankful I made it through the 2024 season and was able to enjoy it so much. 

Ohio State and Notre Dame Set For National Championship

Both semi-final games lived up to the hype. Notre Dame nipped Penn State 27-24 as time ran out, and with Texas driving for a tying touchdown with a little over 2 minutes left, the Longhorns fumbled the ball and the Buckeyes scooped it up and ran 86 yards to seal the win 28-14. The Championship will be played in Atlanta January 20. Billingsley has Ohio State favored by 4.848 points. The early Las Vegas line favors Ohio State by 9.5.