What a week for college football in “Season X.” In our simulated college football season, the upset bug is upon us. In the Game of the Week, Florida upset top-ranked Miami 38-21. This vaulted the sixth-ranked Gators into the No. 1 spot in the Media Poll and the No. 2 spot in the Coaches’ Poll; Texas is No.1.
Through two games, Florida’s Rex Grossman has completed 50 of his 80 passes for a total of 701 yards. He has thrown only four interceptions.
This was not the biggest upset of the week. In an overtime shocker, Alabama beat No. 3 Oklahoma 52-49. The Crimson Tide rode running back Santonio Beard all the way to victory. Beard had 211 rushing yards on 38 carries and 46 yards on three catches with a total of four touchdowns.
The Oregon Ducks logged their second straight win of the season by narrowly escaping the Fresno State Bulldogs 35-32. The win is the second game of a four game homestead for the Ducks, who only leave Autzen Stadium for four of their 12 scheduled games.
Ole Miss survived a scare this week by beating Memphis 33-27. Eli Manning has seen only three of his 41 pass completions go for touchdowns. While his 120.2 quarterback rating is outstanding, it falls considerably short of the marks set by Grossman and Casey Clausen, not to mention they both have twice as many touchdown passes and average over 100 yards a game more than “The Golden Boy.”
National Player of the Week on offense was Washington quarterback Cody Pickett. He passed for 512 yards on 33 passes for five touchdowns in the Huskies’ 65-17 win over San Jose State.
On defense, Troy State cornerback Freeman White earned National Player of the Week honors. White forced two fumbles, intercepted two passes, and hauled in five tackles in the Trojans’ 22-17 win over UAB.
Next week brings us several good matchups. No. 9 Nebraska at No. 16 Penn State, No. 24 Michigan at Notre Dame, and in the Game of the Week, No. 4 Florida State at No. 17 Maryland.