As we approach October, the college football preseason poll begins to shape. Teams such as Notre Dame and Florida State long for a restart, while others, such as Clemson and Baylor, soak in the thoughts of what could be. Meanwhile, LSU, Oklahoma and Alabama play a twisted game of musical chairs, only to tease the nation for what looks to be weeks to come. One month of college football has come and gone. Now, we are left to see who will be the real contenders for a national title.
SEC: Everyone knows it is all about Alabama and LSU. Through four games, both teams have looked dominant, but LSU is still given the edge in the polls. LSU boasts the tougher schedule, beating Oregon, Mississippi State and West Virginia on the road, but Oregon looks to be the only legitimate team in that bunch. Mississippi State surrendered 41 points to Auburn, could not fathom the thought of a first down against LSU and was victorious against the Louisiana Tech Bulldogs – in overtime.
West Virginia can move the ball, but when their defense allows 477 yards to teams like Maryland, one can only imagine what a mediocre LSU offense can do paired with a great defense. LSU has one test before playing Alabama – in the already most-hyped regular season game since Ohio State/Michigan in ‘06. They play Florida, but it will be in the comfy confines of Death Valley.
Alabama is the definition of consistency, and the validity of their first four games is to be seen. Penn State has proven that a key area of recruiting is the quarterback position.
As for Arkansas, Alabama has been their only legitimate opponent, but the Hogs will be a tough obstacle for anyone they play this year – especially LSU in the Battle for the Golden Boot.
Alabama’s true test before LSU lies with Florida as well, but in The Swamp. If they survive, the hype will only keep growing for the early November matchup. As quoted from Sports Illustrated, “The last time Saban and Co. spent a year dwelling over a loss, Tim Tebow ended up weeping on the sideline of the SEC Championship game.” This should trouble LSU and potential SEC East victor South Carolina.
Nick Saban has been 5-0 in rematches where his team had previously lost while at the University of Alabama.
Big 12: This may be one of the last shots at a championship for the Big 12. The conference contains two contenders, Oklahoma and Oklahoma State. One team will knock off another in their matchup, but it is doubtful that either will be playing in the national championship game.
Oklahoma State may be a high-octane, speed-trip of a football team; however, their one-two punch of Brandon Weeden and Justin Blackmon will not get them through the season. “Choklahoma” may beat Oklahoma State. Trust that they will lose to a mid-tier Big 12 team at some point.
Big Ten and Pac-12: The Big Ten will most likely be decided this weekend when Wisconsin hosts Nebraska. However, the winner of this game will most likely play the other in the premiere of the Big Ten Championship game.
Michigan is still undefeated, but they are only as strong as the untied shoes of Denard Robinson. The Pac-12 will be decided by an NBA affair between Stanford and Oregon. Over/under on the points total should be around 130.
Dark Horse: My dark horse through the first month of football resides in the ACC basketball conference. Alabama graduate Dabo Swinney and Clemson have reason to believe they are the best team in the state, if not in the country.
Although they have yet to unleash a Cam Newton, Clemson reminds me of the Auburn team that surprised the nation last year. Over the last two weeks, they have discovered that they can move the ball and score with ease.
It was Auburn’s recipe, and points are a defense’s best friend. If they beat Virginia Tech this weekend, Clemson has a great shot of being undefeated until they play their ‘fun-sized Iron Bowl’ against South Carolina.
Tyler Rigdon is a sophomore majoring in broadcast journalism and economics. His column runs biweekly on Wednesdays.
