Week 4 Top 25

The top 25 is up in a more timely manner this week.  Not a lot of huge changes occurred this week.  Of course, Stanford beating USC is the one that really rocked the boat.  Stanford comes in at #12 after being unranked last week.  The first few weeks of cupcakes are coming to a close, which means conference schedules are starting, and the games we will start to find out what everybody is really made of.  Last week, I feared I had Michigan State rated too highly, and they responded by getting their tails kicked by Notre Dame.  The Gamecocks are making me nervous in the top ten and may not last much longer.

Week 4
1. SEC	The idea that John L. Smith could step in seamlessly for Bobby Petrino was and has been proven to be laughable.  A 52-0 beat down, however, is nothing to laugh at.  There's a long way to go, but right now it looks like the Tide are even better than last year.
2. Oregon	Oregon only scored 35 points in the first half against Tennessee Tech.  Sound the alarm.  Things only got worse in the second half when they only scored 28 points.  Fire Chip Kelly.  This week's game with Arizona should be sufficiently entertaining.
3. SEC	LeSU has yet to be tested, and they likely won't be tested when they make a trip to Awbarn this week.  Fresh off a thrilling OT victory against ULM (the powerhouse who just took down mighty Arkansas), Gene Chizik's Tigers should be ready to get rolled this week.
4. Florida State	Speaking of 52-0, FSU got the Wake monkey off their back.  The big deal here is not that FSU is so much more talented than Wake.  They always have been.  The difference is that FSU kept it together mentally and absolutely demolished a team that has had their number lately.  That is a big sign they are closer to competing at the top.
5. West Virginia	WVU beat JMU 42-12.  Yawn.  They may exceed that against Maryland.  If they really belong in the top 5, they   will.
6. SEC	FAU gave the dogs a bit of a scare by keeping it close in the first half.  That changed quickly, though.  Mark Richt is now 3 for 3 letting teams hang around early before turning it on late.  With the Dores up next on the schedule, don't be surprised to see it again.  Vandy is just good enough to almost beat a lot of teams.  No better and no worse.
7. Oklahoma	After a week off, the Sooners get a big test as Collin Klein comes to town.  We will see in this game if the Sooners have really toughened up with the other Stoops running the defense again.
8. Texas	Get ready to crown Texas.  They put up 66 points on an SEC defense.
9. SEC	The Gamecocks are in trouble if Connor Shaw can't stay healthy.  As good as Marcus Lattimore is, you can't lean on an RB coming off ACL surgery.  The defense has been very good so far, but they're going to need Shaw to compete in conference.
10. Clemson	Sammy Watkins came back and announced his presence with authority against Furman.  After feasting on the weak to start the year, Clemson goes to Tallhassee this week for the 4th annual Ex-Bowden Bowl.  This may be the biggest one yet with both teams in the top ten.
11. Collin Klein	Collin Klein won another game by himself against North Texas, but it wasn't pretty.  If he can do the same against Oklahoma this week, he will officially move in RG3 territory.
12. Stanford	Maybe the Trojans just have bad luck, but Stanford can offically claim ownership of USC.  The year got off to a rocky start, but it looks like there maybe life after Andrew Luck in Palo Alto.
13. Notre Dame	Notre Dame took a big step forward on Saturday when they dominated Michigan State.  Toughness has really held Notre Dame back but not in East Landing where they beat the Spartans at their own game of physicality.  The Irish will need to keep up that level of play to get through the tough upcoming schedule.
14. USC	When the schedule got hard the Trojans got soft.  Everybody was concerned if the defense could hold up for the whole year, but it was Matt Barkley who couldn't keep it up against Stanford.  National title hopes are likely gone for USC.
15. TCU	TCU beat Kansas 20-3.  Status quo for the Horned Frogs is still boring.  They're not going anywhere until they play somebody.  Fort Worth better stock up on Zima with UVA coming to town this week.
16. Michigan	Michigan came to life against UMass on Saturday.  Not exactly a revelation but at least a positive step.  The Woleverines need to be ready to take a big positive step against Notre Dame this week or risk the season snowballing on them.
17. UCLA	UCLA continued their strong start by rolling over an awful Houston team.  This Saturday presents an interesting matchup when the Bruins face Oregon State to open up the Pac-12 schedule.  We will learn a lot more about the Beavers as well, whose only game so far this season was a 10-7 victory over Wisconsin.
18. Nebraska	Nebraska pulled it back together with a blowout over Arkansas State.  They get Idaho State next for a final warmup before the conference schedule begins against Wisconsin.  If Nebraska is for real, they will roll over struggling Wisconsin.
19. SEC	I've resisted putting the Gayta in here as long as possible.  They struggled against Bowling Green and A&M before blowing out the Vols in the second half on Saturday.  That was the first time under Will Muschamp that the Gayta have looked like a team that can contend in the East.  I'm still skeptical.  Go Gayta.
20. Arizona	Now it gets interesting.  We saw Arizona outscore Oklahoma State in a big way, but Oregon is a very different animal.  The Wildcats will need to be nearly perfect to win up in Eugene.  Either way, there should be plenty of fireworks.
21. Michigan State	Andrew Maxwell struggeld again against a solid defense.  The Spartans havea great defense and a strong running game, but if Maxwell can't start making the basic plays at QB, Michigan State won't be making a run at the Rose Bowl.
22. Louisville	Louisville jumped out to an impressive 36-7 lead at halftime over UNC.  They then had to hang on for dear life to win 39-34.  That's not exactly a championship level performance.  It may be a Big East championship level performance though.
23. Cincinnati	The Munchies didn't exactly blow away Delaware State on Saturday.  They get an interesting matchup in two weeks with VPISU, who just got blown out by Pitt- a team Cincy beat 34-10.
24. Northwestern	Northwestern may be the only team to have recorded three wins over three BCS conference teams to start the year.  Granted, those teams are Syracuse, Vandy, and BC, but give Northwestern credit for scheduling real games.  And hey, they beat an SEC team.  That counts for at least 2 wins, right?
25. Boise State	Boise beat up on MiamiU, which isn't all that impressive, but nobody did anything worth unseating them.  The matchup with BYU on Thursday is interesting.  We will get a better feel for where the Broncos stand after that one.