(09-01-2014 02:42 PM)BruceMcF Wrote:  Altogether, another "too early to tell so lets guess" ranking exercise, I'll wait until week three to see where things are at.

Yes, and let's face it: Picking a best G5 conference is really looking like splitting fine hairs among tallest midgets.

One thing's for sure: There was nothing "powerful" about the AAC's performance this past weekend OOC. They didn't come close to backing Aresco's claim that the AAC is a Power on the football field.

(09-01-2014 01:17 PM)quo vadis Wrote:  

(09-01-2014 01:12 PM)Ned Low Wrote:  Sincerely, I do not have an AAC bias in these rankings... although I obviously want us to be the best. These rankings were based on results and much guesswork. Let's keep the thread alive and track it as the year goes on.

Remember, even when Vandy is, by their standards, "good", they are never expected to be more than the 8th or 9th best SEC team. In contrast, Houston is/was expected to battle with UCF and Cincy for the AAC title. Getting shellacked in their remodeled stadium by a team that wasn't even classified as FBS until earlier this month is pretty terrible.

While that was the expectation---do you really think that Houston team is going to be anywhere near the AAC championship this year? That offense was offensive. As it currently stands---the Coogs might struggle to score 10 points a game. Its obvious the OC hire from within was a HUGE mistake for Houston and could very well end up costing Levine his job at the seasons end. The Coogs will be lucky to win 3 games this year. They are obviously not the crème of the AAC crop. That said, Houston is now set to weigh down the bottom of the AAC--so that does hurt the AAC rating. The saving grace may be that Memphis, USF, and Temple could turn out to be surprisingly better than preseason predictions.

You guys have 2 different trains of thought going on here. The Op is subjectively basing his rankings on his opinion of what the teams will do for the rest of the season. It is his guess and of course it remains to be seen how accurate that will be. He is just guessing how things will end up in the long run based on his perception of the first weeks games, not just the final results.

For those of you who are looking strictly at the first week results, I think we all have to agree that C-USA is atop the G-5, for now, since they went 5-0 against the other 4 conferences and the other 4 only managed 1 FBS win each (or none in the MACs case). Obviously this group is not saying this is the way things will end up at the end of the year, it is just the way things stand currently.

(09-01-2014 03:15 PM)Attackcoog Wrote:  

(09-01-2014 01:17 PM)quo vadis Wrote:  

(09-01-2014 01:12 PM)Ned Low Wrote:  Sincerely, I do not have an AAC bias in these rankings... although I obviously want us to be the best. These rankings were based on results and much guesswork. Let's keep the thread alive and track it as the year goes on.

Remember, even when Vandy is, by their standards, "good", they are never expected to be more than the 8th or 9th best SEC team. In contrast, Houston is/was expected to battle with UCF and Cincy for the AAC title. Getting shellacked in their remodeled stadium by a team that wasn't even classified as FBS until earlier this month is pretty terrible.

While that was the expectation---do you really think that Houston team is going to be anywhere near the AAC championship this year? That offense was offensive. As it currently stands---the Coogs might struggle to score 10 points a game. Its obvious the OC hire from within was a HUGE mistake for Houston and could very well end up costing Levine his job at the seasons end. The Coogs will be lucky to win 3 games this year. They are obviously not the crème of the AAC crop. That said, Houston is now set to weigh down the bottom of the AAC--so that does hurt the AAC rating. The saving grace may be that Memphis, USF, and Temple could turn out to be surprisingly better than preseason predictions.

I hesitate to draw conclusions from just a single game. Houston could make some adjustments and end up having a fine season.

USF? We barely squeaked by Western Carolina so I think the jury is still way-out on us. We play back to back P5 schools these next two weeks while Memphis is at UCLA, so both will have a chance to make their marks very quickly.

Warren Nolan NPI (Nolan Power Index):

http://warrennolan.com/football/2014/conferencenpi

Remember it's still only Week 1 so don't get yer panties in a wad over it.

1. SEC (Best team -Texas A&M)
2. Pac-12 (California)
3. Big Ten (Ohio State)
4. Independent (BYU)
5. Conference USA (UTSA)
6. Big 12 (Baylor)
7. ACC (Boston College)
8. Mid-American (Ohio)
9. American Athletic (Temple)
10. Sun Belt (ULM)
11. Mountain West (Colorado State)

In fairness, you didn't give ULM nearly enough credit for not just beating an ACC team, but actually getting them to schedule a home and home. That's great for the conference even if it is Wake. That's a good win for the Sun Belt.

(09-01-2014 05:41 PM)BamaScorpio69 Wrote:  Warren Nolan NPI (Nolan Power Index):

http://warrennolan.com/football/2014/conferencenpi

Remember it's still only Week 1 so don't get yer panties in a wad over it.

1. SEC (Best team -Texas A&M)
2. Pac-12 (California)
3. Big Ten (Ohio State)
4. Independent (BYU)
5. Conference USA (UTSA)
6. Big 12 (Baylor)
7. ACC (Boston College)
8. Mid-American (Ohio)
9. American Athletic (Temple)
10. Sun Belt (ULM)
11. Mountain West (Colorado State)

Hard to respect an index that has Cal as the best team in the PAC and BC in the ACC

(09-01-2014 06:17 PM)reick Wrote:  

(09-01-2014 05:41 PM)BamaScorpio69 Wrote:  Warren Nolan NPI (Nolan Power Index):

http://warrennolan.com/football/2014/conferencenpi

Remember it's still only Week 1 so don't get yer panties in a wad over it.

1. SEC (Best team -Texas A&M)
2. Pac-12 (California)
3. Big Ten (Ohio State)
4. Independent (BYU)
5. Conference USA (UTSA)
6. Big 12 (Baylor)
7. ACC (Boston College)
8. Mid-American (Ohio)
9. American Athletic (Temple)
10. Sun Belt (ULM)
11. Mountain West (Colorado State)

Hard to respect an index that has Cal as the best team in the PAC and BC in the ACC

It's hard to respect any rankings after Week 1.

(09-01-2014 06:17 PM)reick Wrote:  

(09-01-2014 05:41 PM)BamaScorpio69 Wrote:  Warren Nolan NPI (Nolan Power Index):

http://warrennolan.com/football/2014/conferencenpi

Remember it's still only Week 1 so don't get yer panties in a wad over it.

1. SEC (Best team -Texas A&M)
2. Pac-12 (California)
3. Big Ten (Ohio State)
4. Independent (BYU)
5. Conference USA (UTSA)
6. Big 12 (Baylor)
7. ACC (Boston College)
8. Mid-American (Ohio)
9. American Athletic (Temple)
10. Sun Belt (ULM)
11. Mountain West (Colorado State)

Hard to respect an index that has Cal as the best team in the PAC and BC in the ACC

and one that labels every game in Week 1 a non conference game, even the ones that weren't.

(09-01-2014 04:13 PM)reick Wrote:  For those of you who are looking strictly at the first week results, I think we all have to agree that C-USA is atop the G-5, for now, since they went 5-0 against the other 4 conferences and the other 4 only managed 1 FBS win each (or none in the MACs case).

That is a pretty wide gap. Particularly since none of the singular P5 wins were against top 25 squads.

(09-01-2014 11:09 AM)Ned Low Wrote:  After week #1, I see the conference power rankings as such:

1. SEC. They did not win pretty but they did win. TN looks to be very much improved and Georgia looks to be the best of the bunch. For now, I would have Auburn repeating in the West with Georgia winning the East.

2. PAC12. USC dominated in what some thought would be a competitive game. UCLA traveled cross-country, played poorly and still won. Oregon, Arizona and Arizona State dominated.

3. B10. Michigan State should win the conference. Wisconsin snatched defeat from the jaws of victory. Ohio State will be good even without Braxton Miller and Michigan will be better. Michigan State could wind up in the national title game.

4. ACC. Florida State won... but not as convincingly as some thought they would. UNC looks good, but not great. UVA seems to be improved and may find themselves in a bowl at the end of the year. VPI looks improved and might win their division. Clemson disappointed.

5. B12. Baylor and Oklahoma looked really, really good against much weaker competition. Kansas State looks to be improved, as does Texas. Their lack of a championship game could wind up costing them a playoff birth.

6. AAC. They barely find themselves in this spot over CUSA. UCF will be fine now that they've found their QB; it's a shame that they had to do so in a loss to a team that they were better than. ECU, even though they played a much weaker team, looks to be improved. Temple and Memphis are vastly improved. Cincinnati will have their hands full with Toledo if I were to guess.

7. CUSA. UTSA hammered Houston, a team that was supposed to contend for the AAC crown. WKU looked really good and is now my pick to win the conference title. Marshall won in a less than convincing fashion against a team that was supposed to be really bad. The only reason that CUSA is rated under the AAC is because their bottom 2/3s is worse than the AAC bottom 2/3s.

8. MAC. The reason that I place them above the MWC is because I don't think that the MWCs top is is as good as the MACs top, in general.

8. MWC. Nearly tied with the MAC. Boise State will progress nicely under Harsin's watch but SDSU is clearly the best team at this time. I could also see SJSU in the title game. Fresno State really disappointed me in their first game of the season, as did Utah State. At least Boise State stayed in the game until the fourth quarter against a very good Ole Miss squad. The MWC needs to go after NDSU, "conference footprint" be damned.

9. Sunbelt. Louisiana looked very good, but that's about it. Troy got trounced. ULM beat a terribly inept Wake squad. App got destroyed and GSU lost against a horrid NCSU team. The boys in Lafayette will win the conference easily this year and Hudspeth will find himself either in Houston or Dallas at the start of 2014. He might also find himself in Orlando, depending on what O'Leary decides to do.

Please continue to ignore the fact that Arkansas State has won 3 straight league titles. We don't exist.

(09-01-2014 08:23 PM)chiefsfan Wrote:  

(09-01-2014 11:09 AM)Ned Low Wrote:  After week #1, I see the conference power rankings as such:

1. SEC. They did not win pretty but they did win. TN looks to be very much improved and Georgia looks to be the best of the bunch. For now, I would have Auburn repeating in the West with Georgia winning the East.

2. PAC12. USC dominated in what some thought would be a competitive game. UCLA traveled cross-country, played poorly and still won. Oregon, Arizona and Arizona State dominated.

3. B10. Michigan State should win the conference. Wisconsin snatched defeat from the jaws of victory. Ohio State will be good even without Braxton Miller and Michigan will be better. Michigan State could wind up in the national title game.

4. ACC. Florida State won... but not as convincingly as some thought they would. UNC looks good, but not great. UVA seems to be improved and may find themselves in a bowl at the end of the year. VPI looks improved and might win their division. Clemson disappointed.

5. B12. Baylor and Oklahoma looked really, really good against much weaker competition. Kansas State looks to be improved, as does Texas. Their lack of a championship game could wind up costing them a playoff birth.

6. AAC. They barely find themselves in this spot over CUSA. UCF will be fine now that they've found their QB; it's a shame that they had to do so in a loss to a team that they were better than. ECU, even though they played a much weaker team, looks to be improved. Temple and Memphis are vastly improved. Cincinnati will have their hands full with Toledo if I were to guess.

7. CUSA. UTSA hammered Houston, a team that was supposed to contend for the AAC crown. WKU looked really good and is now my pick to win the conference title. Marshall won in a less than convincing fashion against a team that was supposed to be really bad. The only reason that CUSA is rated under the AAC is because their bottom 2/3s is worse than the AAC bottom 2/3s.

8. MAC. The reason that I place them above the MWC is because I don't think that the MWCs top is is as good as the MACs top, in general.

8. MWC. Nearly tied with the MAC. Boise State will progress nicely under Harsin's watch but SDSU is clearly the best team at this time. I could also see SJSU in the title game. Fresno State really disappointed me in their first game of the season, as did Utah State. At least Boise State stayed in the game until the fourth quarter against a very good Ole Miss squad. The MWC needs to go after NDSU, "conference footprint" be damned.

9. Sunbelt. Louisiana looked very good, but that's about it. Troy got trounced. ULM beat a terribly inept Wake squad. App got destroyed and GSU lost against a horrid NCSU team. The boys in Lafayette will win the conference easily this year and Hudspeth will find himself either in Houston or Dallas at the start of 2014. He might also find himself in Orlando, depending on what O'Leary decides to do.

Please continue to ignore the fact that Arkansas State has won 3 straight league titles. We don't exist.

Dude we get it! You split the title last year with the Cajuns because Broadway broke his arm. The Louisiana Ragin Cajuns, get they hype because we singlehandedly put the Nola Bowl on the map.

(09-01-2014 08:46 PM)geauxcajuns Wrote:  

(09-01-2014 08:23 PM)chiefsfan Wrote:  

(09-01-2014 11:09 AM)Ned Low Wrote:  After week #1, I see the conference power rankings as such:

1. SEC. They did not win pretty but they did win. TN looks to be very much improved and Georgia looks to be the best of the bunch. For now, I would have Auburn repeating in the West with Georgia winning the East.

2. PAC12. USC dominated in what some thought would be a competitive game. UCLA traveled cross-country, played poorly and still won. Oregon, Arizona and Arizona State dominated.

3. B10. Michigan State should win the conference. Wisconsin snatched defeat from the jaws of victory. Ohio State will be good even without Braxton Miller and Michigan will be better. Michigan State could wind up in the national title game.

4. ACC. Florida State won... but not as convincingly as some thought they would. UNC looks good, but not great. UVA seems to be improved and may find themselves in a bowl at the end of the year. VPI looks improved and might win their division. Clemson disappointed.

5. B12. Baylor and Oklahoma looked really, really good against much weaker competition. Kansas State looks to be improved, as does Texas. Their lack of a championship game could wind up costing them a playoff birth.

6. AAC. They barely find themselves in this spot over CUSA. UCF will be fine now that they've found their QB; it's a shame that they had to do so in a loss to a team that they were better than. ECU, even though they played a much weaker team, looks to be improved. Temple and Memphis are vastly improved. Cincinnati will have their hands full with Toledo if I were to guess.

7. CUSA. UTSA hammered Houston, a team that was supposed to contend for the AAC crown. WKU looked really good and is now my pick to win the conference title. Marshall won in a less than convincing fashion against a team that was supposed to be really bad. The only reason that CUSA is rated under the AAC is because their bottom 2/3s is worse than the AAC bottom 2/3s.

8. MAC. The reason that I place them above the MWC is because I don't think that the MWCs top is is as good as the MACs top, in general.

8. MWC. Nearly tied with the MAC. Boise State will progress nicely under Harsin's watch but SDSU is clearly the best team at this time. I could also see SJSU in the title game. Fresno State really disappointed me in their first game of the season, as did Utah State. At least Boise State stayed in the game until the fourth quarter against a very good Ole Miss squad. The MWC needs to go after NDSU, "conference footprint" be damned.

9. Sunbelt. Louisiana looked very good, but that's about it. Troy got trounced. ULM beat a terribly inept Wake squad. App got destroyed and GSU lost against a horrid NCSU team. The boys in Lafayette will win the conference easily this year and Hudspeth will find himself either in Houston or Dallas at the start of 2014. He might also find himself in Orlando, depending on what O'Leary decides to do.

Please continue to ignore the fact that Arkansas State has won 3 straight league titles. We don't exist.

Dude we get it! You split the title last year with the Cajuns because Broadway broke his arm. The Louisiana Ragin Cajuns, get they hype because we singlehandedly put the Nola Bowl on the map.

And you have one half of a conference title in that time, congratulations.

The New Orleans Bowl has shaped your program, much like the coaching changes have shaped ours. We just get ignored nationally because of our shape, while you guys are proclaimed the greatest thing since sliced bread because of yours.

Even you would admit, it would be foolish to declare the Cajuns Champs without even looking at what Arkansas State (Or South Alabama for that matter) have to offer.

(09-01-2014 04:13 PM)reick Wrote:  You guys have 2 different trains of thought going on here. The Op is subjectively basing his rankings on his opinion of what the teams will do for the rest of the season. It is his guess and of course it remains to be seen how accurate that will be. He is just guessing how things will end up in the long run based on his perception of the first weeks games, not just the final results.

For those of you who are looking strictly at the first week results, I think we all have to agree that C-USA is atop the G-5, for now, since they went 5-0 against the other 4 conferences and the other 4 only managed 1 FBS win each (or none in the MACs case). Obviously this group is not saying this is the way things will end up at the end of the year, it is just the way things stand currently.

Given CUSA is 5-0 vs G5 schools I can not disagree with you.

(09-01-2014 11:09 AM)Ned Low Wrote:  After week #1, I see the conference power rankings as such:

1. SEC. They did not win pretty but they did win. TN looks to be very much improved and Georgia looks to be the best of the bunch. For now, I would have Auburn repeating in the West with Georgia winning the East.

2. PAC12. USC dominated in what some thought would be a competitive game. UCLA traveled cross-country, played poorly and still won. Oregon, Arizona and Arizona State dominated.

3. B10. Michigan State should win the conference. Wisconsin snatched defeat from the jaws of victory. Ohio State will be good even without Braxton Miller and Michigan will be better. Michigan State could wind up in the national title game.

4. ACC. Florida State won... but not as convincingly as some thought they would. UNC looks good, but not great. UVA seems to be improved and may find themselves in a bowl at the end of the year. VPI looks improved and might win their division. Clemson disappointed.

5. B12. Baylor and Oklahoma looked really, really good against much weaker competition. Kansas State looks to be improved, as does Texas. Their lack of a championship game could wind up costing them a playoff birth.

6. AAC. They barely find themselves in this spot over CUSA. UCF will be fine now that they've found their QB; it's a shame that they had to do so in a loss to a team that they were better than. ECU, even though they played a much weaker team, looks to be improved. Temple and Memphis are vastly improved. Cincinnati will have their hands full with Toledo if I were to guess.

7. CUSA. UTSA hammered Houston, a team that was supposed to contend for the AAC crown. WKU looked really good and is now my pick to win the conference title. Marshall won in a less than convincing fashion against a team that was supposed to be really bad. The only reason that CUSA is rated under the AAC is because their bottom 2/3s is worse than the AAC bottom 2/3s.

8. MAC. The reason that I place them above the MWC is because I don't think that the MWCs top is is as good as the MACs top, in general.

8. MWC. Nearly tied with the MAC. Boise State will progress nicely under Harsin's watch but SDSU is clearly the best team at this time. I could also see SJSU in the title game. Fresno State really disappointed me in their first game of the season, as did Utah State. At least Boise State stayed in the game until the fourth quarter against a very good Ole Miss squad. The MWC needs to go after NDSU, "conference footprint" be damned.

9. Sunbelt. Louisiana looked very good, but that's about it. Troy got trounced. ULM beat a terribly inept Wake squad. App got destroyed and GSU lost against a horrid NCSU team. The boys in Lafayette will win the conference easily this year and Hudspeth will find himself either in Houston or Dallas at the start of 2014. He might also find himself in Orlando, depending on what O'Leary decides to do.

Hudspeth is making close to $1.2 million I seriously doubt he leaves for a non P5 program. Last I saw he is sitting in the 6th richest per capita city in the country, the money is here to keep him away from other non-AQ school.

I think he ends up in Gainesville.

(09-01-2014 01:05 PM)quo vadis Wrote:  

(09-01-2014 01:01 PM)Ned Low Wrote:  .... and Temple beat the tar out of a team that won 8 games last year, including a bowl victory.

You can't dismiss UTSA's utter embarrasment of a Houston team that went 8-5 last year and was celebrating a new stadium by saying "Houston looked horrid" and then claim Temple had a great victory over a Vandy team that won a bowl last year when Vandy too looked horrid against Temple.

Also, let's be fair: The Vandy/Temple game was decided by that scoop and score that put Temple up 21-7 at the half, and that was the result of a bad call, as the Vandy ballcarrier looked to have been down before the ball came out.

Verdict: The other posters are correct, your AAC slip is showing.

To be fair, Texas State beat Houston 30-13 the year after Houston went 13-1. Nice win for UTSA but Houston doesn't deserve that much respect and hasn't since Sumlin left.

(09-01-2014 08:46 PM)geauxcajuns Wrote:  

(09-01-2014 08:23 PM)chiefsfan Wrote:  

(09-01-2014 11:09 AM)Ned Low Wrote:  After week #1, I see the conference power rankings as such:

1. SEC. They did not win pretty but they did win. TN looks to be very much improved and Georgia looks to be the best of the bunch. For now, I would have Auburn repeating in the West with Georgia winning the East.

2. PAC12. USC dominated in what some thought would be a competitive game. UCLA traveled cross-country, played poorly and still won. Oregon, Arizona and Arizona State dominated.

3. B10. Michigan State should win the conference. Wisconsin snatched defeat from the jaws of victory. Ohio State will be good even without Braxton Miller and Michigan will be better. Michigan State could wind up in the national title game.

4. ACC. Florida State won... but not as convincingly as some thought they would. UNC looks good, but not great. UVA seems to be improved and may find themselves in a bowl at the end of the year. VPI looks improved and might win their division. Clemson disappointed.

5. B12. Baylor and Oklahoma looked really, really good against much weaker competition. Kansas State looks to be improved, as does Texas. Their lack of a championship game could wind up costing them a playoff birth.

6. AAC. They barely find themselves in this spot over CUSA. UCF will be fine now that they've found their QB; it's a shame that they had to do so in a loss to a team that they were better than. ECU, even though they played a much weaker team, looks to be improved. Temple and Memphis are vastly improved. Cincinnati will have their hands full with Toledo if I were to guess.

7. CUSA. UTSA hammered Houston, a team that was supposed to contend for the AAC crown. WKU looked really good and is now my pick to win the conference title. Marshall won in a less than convincing fashion against a team that was supposed to be really bad. The only reason that CUSA is rated under the AAC is because their bottom 2/3s is worse than the AAC bottom 2/3s.

8. MAC. The reason that I place them above the MWC is because I don't think that the MWCs top is is as good as the MACs top, in general.

8. MWC. Nearly tied with the MAC. Boise State will progress nicely under Harsin's watch but SDSU is clearly the best team at this time. I could also see SJSU in the title game. Fresno State really disappointed me in their first game of the season, as did Utah State. At least Boise State stayed in the game until the fourth quarter against a very good Ole Miss squad. The MWC needs to go after NDSU, "conference footprint" be damned.

9. Sunbelt. Louisiana looked very good, but that's about it. Troy got trounced. ULM beat a terribly inept Wake squad. App got destroyed and GSU lost against a horrid NCSU team. The boys in Lafayette will win the conference easily this year and Hudspeth will find himself either in Houston or Dallas at the start of 2014. He might also find himself in Orlando, depending on what O'Leary decides to do.

Please continue to ignore the fact that Arkansas State has won 3 straight league titles. We don't exist.

Dude we get it! You split the title last year with the Cajuns because Broadway broke his arm. The Louisiana Ragin Cajuns, get they hype because we singlehandedly put the Nola Bowl on the map.

ASU lost their QB at the end of the year as well. Relax and take deep breaths.

(09-01-2014 11:09 AM)Ned Low Wrote:  After week #1, I see the conference power rankings as such:

1. SEC. They did not win pretty but they did win. TN looks to be very much improved and Georgia looks to be the best of the bunch. For now, I would have Auburn repeating in the West with Georgia winning the East.

2. PAC12. USC dominated in what some thought would be a competitive game. UCLA traveled cross-country, played poorly and still won. Oregon, Arizona and Arizona State dominated.

3. B10. Michigan State should win the conference. Wisconsin snatched defeat from the jaws of victory. Ohio State will be good even without Braxton Miller and Michigan will be better. Michigan State could wind up in the national title game.

4. ACC. Florida State won... but not as convincingly as some thought they would. UNC looks good, but not great. UVA seems to be improved and may find themselves in a bowl at the end of the year. VPI looks improved and might win their division. Clemson disappointed.

5. B12. Baylor and Oklahoma looked really, really good against much weaker competition. Kansas State looks to be improved, as does Texas. Their lack of a championship game could wind up costing them a playoff birth.

6. AAC. They barely find themselves in this spot over CUSA. UCF will be fine now that they've found their QB; it's a shame that they had to do so in a loss to a team that they were better than. ECU, even though they played a much weaker team, looks to be improved. Temple and Memphis are vastly improved. Cincinnati will have their hands full with Toledo if I were to guess.

7. CUSA. UTSA hammered Houston, a team that was supposed to contend for the AAC crown. WKU looked really good and is now my pick to win the conference title. Marshall won in a less than convincing fashion against a team that was supposed to be really bad. The only reason that CUSA is rated under the AAC is because their bottom 2/3s is worse than the AAC bottom 2/3s.

8. MAC. The reason that I place them above the MWC is because I don't think that the MWCs top is is as good as the MACs top, in general.

8. MWC. Nearly tied with the MAC. Boise State will progress nicely under Harsin's watch but SDSU is clearly the best team at this time. I could also see SJSU in the title game. Fresno State really disappointed me in their first game of the season, as did Utah State. At least Boise State stayed in the game until the fourth quarter against a very good Ole Miss squad. The MWC needs to go after NDSU, "conference footprint" be damned.

9. Sunbelt. Louisiana looked very good, but that's about it. Troy got trounced. ULM beat a terribly inept Wake squad. App got destroyed and GSU lost against a horrid NCSU team. The boys in Lafayette will win the conference easily this year and Hudspeth will find himself either in Houston or Dallas at the start of 2014. He might also find himself in Orlando, depending on what O'Leary decides to do.

Sorry... The AAC is #7 or #8 at best.

(09-02-2014 09:04 AM)Crump1 Wrote:  

(09-01-2014 01:05 PM)quo vadis Wrote:  

(09-01-2014 01:01 PM)Ned Low Wrote:  .... and Temple beat the tar out of a team that won 8 games last year, including a bowl victory.

You can't dismiss UTSA's utter embarrasment of a Houston team that went 8-5 last year and was celebrating a new stadium by saying "Houston looked horrid" and then claim Temple had a great victory over a Vandy team that won a bowl last year when Vandy too looked horrid against Temple.

Also, let's be fair: The Vandy/Temple game was decided by that scoop and score that put Temple up 21-7 at the half, and that was the result of a bad call, as the Vandy ballcarrier looked to have been down before the ball came out.

Verdict: The other posters are correct, your AAC slip is showing.

To be fair, Texas State beat Houston 30-13 the year after Houston went 13-1. Nice win for UTSA but Houston doesn't deserve that much respect and hasn't since Sumlin left.

The trouble with Houston is the talent is there---the coaching is not. The year we lost to Texas State, we simply we had lost a lot of important senior players were young and frankly not very good. We finished 5-7. This year, we are returning a lot of talent---this was a coaching issue. Im afraid Levine may not be the guy. We will see if he can right the ship, but if he cannot, in his 3rd year with a ton of returning players off an 8-5 team, he really cant place the blame on a lack of talent.

After today, I see it as follows:

1. SEC. The results speak for themselves. I'm not sure who the best team is, but I feel that it will boil down to the usual suspects: LSU, Bama, Auburn and Georgia. In addition to those teams, there's also Tennessee, South Carolina, Ole Miss, Mississippi State and Mizzu. They are clearly the best conference from top to bottom.

2. PAC12. Southern Cal is a legit Top 5 team. The same can be said for Oregon. Arizona, Arizona State and Stanford are all really good teams.

3. B12. Oklahoma is one of the best in the nation and Baylor is not far behind. We'll learn more after next week's games and the Kansas State-Auburn matchup will be telling.

4. ACC. Florida State is the best in the land according to the rankings and are definitely a Top 5 team. VPI beat Ohio State today and UNC beat a good SDSU team. After that, the conference falls off, with the exception of a Clemson team that I can't get a read on.

5. B10. They've had a terrible week. Northwestern lost to Northern Illinois, MSU lost and Ohio State lost. Michigan got destroyed and Illinois nearly got beat by a good WKU team. Even the Golden Gophers struggled against MTSU.

6. AAC and CUSA (tied). I'm inclined to give CUSA the edge, but won't because I want to see how WKU, UTSA, Marshall and UAB fare next week. UCF, ECU and Cinci all have tough games next week and South Florida has a chance to redeem themselves against an overly confident NCSU squad.

ECU looked good against South Carolina and Memphis is playing UCLA really tough. On the other hand, SMU got destroyed by UNT, Tulane lost to a Georgia Tech team they could have beaten and South Florida snatched defeat from the jaws of victory against Maryland.

As for CUSA, Marshall hammered their opponent while MTSU, WKU put forth valiant efforts against middle-of-the-pack B10 teams. La Tech destroyed Louisiana.

8. MWC. There was nothing to cheer for today. Utah smashed Fresno State, UNLV is struggling against Northern Colorado, Hawaii is getting trounced, San Jose State got demolished and New Mexico got stomped. San Diego State and Nevada have nothing to be ashamed of.

9. MAC. Northern Illinois and Central Michigan won against B10 opponents today... but in CMU's case, Purdue is putrid. Ball State played admirably against Iowa but lost. South Alabama beat Kent State and Buffalo lost to Army.

10. The Sunbelt. Look at the scores and you'll understand. Arkansas State played admirably against Tennessee but that was the only bright spot. Louisiana got butt-kicked by La Tech.