College Football
Top 25
1. Ohio State, 4-0, 1
2. Notre Dame, 4-0, 2
3. Ole Miss, 4-0, 3
4. UCLA, 4-0, 5
5. Louisiana State, 3-0, 6
6. Michigan State, 4-0, 4
7. Texas Christian, 4-0, 7
8. Baylor, 3-0, 8
9. Georgia, 4-0, 9
10. Utah, 4-0, 21
11. Alabama, 3-1, 11
12. Florida State, 3-0, 12
13. Texas A&M, 4-0, 13
14. Oklahoma, 4-0, 14
15. Clemson, 4-0, 15
16. Northwestern, 4-0, 21
17. Stanford, 3-1, 20
18. Southern Cal, 3-1, 23
19. Michigan, 3-1, NR
20. Mississippi State, 3-1, NR
21. Oklahoma State, 4-0, 16
22. Wisconsin, 4-0, 17
23. Florida, 4-0, NR
24. West Virginia, 4-0, NR
25. Duke, 3-1, NR
OUT: Oregon (10), Georgia Tech (19), Tennessee (22), Brigham Young (24) and Arizona State (25).
VOTES: Oregon, Miami, Iowa, Texas Tech, Brigham Young, Arizona, Arizona State, Temple, Tennessee, NC State, Auburn, Houston, Nebraska, Boise St, Toledo, Louisville, Memphis, Georgia Tech, California, Temple, Boston College, Arkansas and Minnesota.
NEBRASKA ANALYSIS
Nebraska defeated Southern Miss at Lincoln on Saturday, and while there were some some positives to take away, it was another performance that leaves the Nebraska faithful scratching their heads. Offensively, Nebraska scored on almost every first half possession, but many drives resulted in field goals; the Big Red lead 22-0. It should have been 34-0. The 'Huskers also utilized the fullback, a position that seems to have been forgotten in recent years. Andy Janovich hauled in a 53 yard pass and had five carries for 68 yards, and looked impressive doing it. Tommy Armstrong played well, no drops from the receiving core and the running game was sound, although it would appear Terrell Newby needs to put his foot in the dirt and run upfield rather than running east and west. Targets to TE Cethan Carter brought failing results, which is confusing. Nebraska had 610 yards of offense. Defensively, the 'Huskers continue to stop the run effectively, but they are giving up miles of yardage through the air. The pass rush is adequate, and Freedom Akinmoladum is really coming on and looks to have quite a future ahead of him. Michael Rose-Ivey and Josh Banderas were both out at linebacker, as was DT Vincent Valentine, and in the second half, Southern Miss did a good job of exploiting the interior vacancies, killing Nebraska in the middle of the field with crossing routes and hooks, and wheel routes down the sideline. The defensive backs continue to struggle, and even Josh Kalu, who we see as the best of the bunch, got burned a couple of times. Jonathan Rose did not perform well, nor did Chris Jones or Byerson Cockrell outside of one great tackle. The defensive coaches have got to get this secondary deal figured out quick, or losses will continue to mount. Southern Miss got rolling in the second half after Imani Cross fumbled deep in Husker territory, which the Eagles got a TD off of. An onside kick Nebraska appeared unprepared to handle gave USM the ball again, and they scored again. A wipeout turned into a game the 'Huskers had to hold on to win. The Big Red was really thin on defense, and the future appears bright if they can weather the storm, get the new scheme down and get healthy. I think they can win all their remaining games, but appear to certain to drop another one most likely at Michigan State. I will chalk up this game, which should have been about 56-14, up to growing pains. However, the time for excuses for things like lack of adjustments and game management are drawing to a close.
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