For those of you who have not noticed, it has been one crazy season in college football. There are unexpected teams at the top of the standings in every conference and in the Bowl Championship Series rankings.
Let's start at our own school, the University at Buffalo. Our beloved Bulls are currently sitting in first place in the Eastern division of the Mid-American Conference. The pre-season rankings had our team at 117 out of 118 schools in the entire country that play Division I football. That's right, second to last.
We currently sit at 2-0 in the division and 3-1 in conference. We are actually playing for something called a bowl game in the month of November and will be eligible with three more victories. Many "experts" thought we would not even win one game this season. So much for them thinking that they know what they are talking about.
Now let's go to the rest of the nation. Who would have ever thought the Ohio State Buckeyes would be the top-ranked team in the nation right now?
After losing quarterback Troy Smith last season, the same college football experts thought the Michigan Wolverines or the Wisconsin Badgers were the two teams to beat in the Big Ten conference. Well, once again, they were wrong.
Ohio State has played a soft schedule so far and is 8-0 and first in the BCS rankings. The remaining four games will show the rest of us if the Buckeyes are for real, with the Buckeyes next four opponents having a combined 23-9 record.
This week, the number two team in the BCS rankings is the Boston College Eagles. That's right, Boston College, without Doug Flutie playing quarterback, is ranked second in the polls.
Quarterback Matt Ryan might be the front-runner for the Heisman Trophy right now. He has thrown for 2,148 yards and 17 touchdowns. He averages 306 yards per game and has a quarterback rating of 94.6. Not too shabby.
How about the rest of the undefeated teams? Who ever knew the Kansas Jayhawks had a football team that was actually good? Who are the Arizona State Sun Devils? Should Hawaii really be considered a school in the United States?
I don't see any way that any of these teams finish the season undefeated. The closest might be Ohio State. However, I see them losing to the Wolverines in a revenge game from last season where Ohio State defeated Michigan and advanced to the championship game.
But seriously, do any of us really think that Ohio State and Boston College will be the two teams playing in New Orleans on Jan. 7 in the BCS National Championship game? I don't think so.
I believe that the top two teams in college football this year are LSU and Oklahoma. They both have one loss, but those were tough defeats in hostile environments on the road.
The SEC is the toughest conference in the country. Whoever wins that conference's championship game should be given strong consideration for the title game in New Orleans. Currently, seven out of the 12 teams in the conference are ranked in the top 25 in the nation. The Florida Gators are the defending national champions and they are in this conference.
The LSU Tigers' only loss this season came two weeks ago at Kentucky in triple overtime. They have played a tough schedule so far with games against Florida, Auburn, South Carolina, and Virginia Tech, all top 25 teams, and have beaten them all. They only have one more tough game against Alabama and if they win out, LSU should definitely be in the final game representing the SEC.
Now let's talk about the Sooner state, also known as Oklahoma. The Sooners' only loss this season came on the road against the Colorado Buffaloes. This was on a game-winning field goal as time expired. Prior to this loss, Oklahoma out-scored its opponents 246-47.
Even though the Big XII conference isn't as strong as in previous seasons, Oklahoma is one of the top teams in college football. They are fifth in the nation in points per game with 44.5 and are 13 in points allowed per game, giving up 16.6 per game. If the Sooners win the conference championship and the Buckeyes and Eagles fall even once, Oklahoma can book a ticket to Bourbon Street.
As I see it, there is no reason to play the rest of the college football season. LSU and Oklahoma will play for the BCS national championship and our Buffalo Bulls will end up in a bowl game for the first time ever.
But the way this season is going, I might be wrong just like the "experts" were wrong in the pre-season. Nobody knows what is going to happen.
Photo: Courtesy of Laron Fomby
