Past Hot and Not:
Week 1 |
Week 2 |
Week 3 |
Week 4
Week 5 |
Week 6
Who’s
Hot …
Northwestern QB C.J.
Bacher
Northwestern's defense has gone bye-bye over the last two weeks, but
fortunately, the offense has picked up the slack thanks to junior QB C.J.
Bacher. After throwing seven interceptions and no touchdowns in an ugly
three-game losing streak, he's gone ballistic against Michigan State and
Minnesota completing 79 of 106 passes (75%) for 990 yards and nine
touchdowns with no interceptions, and he ran for a score against the
Gophers.
MAC punters
Talk about the cradle of punters, the MAC is loaded with some of
the top talents in the country. Ball State's Chris Miller is an
All-America weapon, averaging 47.8 yards per kick, good for second in
the nation, while Miami's Jacob Richardson is a shade behind, ranking
fourth in America averaging 46.5 yards per kick. Toledo's Brett Kern is
fifth in the nation (46.03), Western Michigan's Jim Laney is sixth
(45.78), Northern Illinois' Andy Dittbenner is 14th (44.28), and
Buffalo's Ben Woods is 29th (43.14).
Georgia Tech RB Tashard Choice
Choice has all but taken the Yellow Jackets on his back over the
last three weeks. In the win over Clemson, he carried the ball 32 times
for 145 yards and a touchdown. In the loss to Maryland, he caught 32
passes for 135 yards and a score. Last week, he rumbled all over Miami
for 204 yards and a touchdown. Next up is Army.
The State of Kentucky vs. winning streaks
The Bluegrass State came up with a couple of big stops this
weekend, as Kentucky's triple overtime thriller over LSU halted the
nation's longest winning streak at 13. That means Cincinnati had the
nation's best streak with nine straight games, but Brian Brohm and
Louisville ended that with a 28-24 upset.
Buffalo RB James Starks
Break up the Bulls. Buffalo is a stunning 3-4, and on a two-game
winning streak, beating Ohio and Toledo over the last two weeks thanks
to sophomore James Starks. The former quarterback and running back has
turned into a terror of a workhorse, carrying the ball 36 times for 183
yards and two touchdowns in the 31-10 win over the Bobcats, and 35 times
for 244 yards and thre scores in the 43-33 win over the Rockets.
Who’s
Not …
The
Big Ten
Oh sure, its
big dog is number one in the BCS rankings, but outside of Ohio State,
the next highest ranked Big Ten team is Michigan at 25th. In the top 25,
the SEC has seven teams, the Big 12 has five, the ACC has three, the Big
East three, and the Pac 10 has four.
Wisconsin takeaways
Last year, Wisconsin's fearsome defense forced 25 takeaways, and
they almost always seemed to be a big deal. This year, the Badger D has
only forced five, tying for the second fewest in the country. Only
Marshall has fewer. The Badgers only got one fumble recovery in the loss
to Penn State, and didn't force any turnovers against Illinois despite
repeatedly tackling the ball.
Nebraska's defense
It's not exactly
the Blackshirts hanging around Lincoln these days. Nebraska is dead last
in the Big 12 in total defense, allowing 457 yards per game, and 106th
in the nation in rush defense, allowing 209 yards per game. Over the
last two games, the Huskers have been blasted by Missouri and Oklahoma
State by a combined score of 86 to 20, giving up 606 yards to the Tigers
and 551 to the Cowboys. Up next is Texas A&M.
Ole Miss vs. Alabama
The Rebels lost at home to the Tide 27-24, but that's nothing
new. They've lost 15 of their last 16 to Bama, but most painfully,
they've lost by three points in each of the last three meetings.
Purdue before the fourth quarter
Everyone wanted to see what the Boilermakers were going to do once
the meat of the schedule kicked in. Loses to Ohio State and Michigan
have all but ended any Big Ten title hopes, with the biggest problem
coming in slow starts. Against the Buckeyes, Purdue got its only
touchdown with ten seconds to play. Against Michigan, they got a first
quarter touchdown, and then decided to go home, as Michigan ran out to a
48-7 lead before Purdue scored two touchdowns in the final 47 seconds.
Iowa is up next.
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