Past Hot and Not:
Week 1 |
Week 2 |
Week 3 |
Week 4
Week 5 |
Week 6 |
Week 7 |
Week 8
Who’s
Hot …
Oregon State pass
rush
Oregon State is 3-0 this year when it registers five sacks or
more. With 5.5 against Stanford last week, helped by two from Dorian
Smith, the Beavers lead the nation in sacks and is eighth in tackles for
loss. USC is up next.
Indiana DE
Greg Middleton
The Hoosiers might have lost to Wisconsin, but sophomore pass
rushing extraordinaire Greg Middleton had a nice day with three tackles
and two sacks. On the year he has 11.5 sacks to lead the Big Ten, with
two or more in four games this season. South Florida's George Selvie
leads the nation with 13.5.
Weber State vs.
Portland State
Whatever happened to the good old-fashioned shootout? It was alive
and well in Portland, Oregon, as Weber State beat Portland State 73-68
in a record-setting game for the most points scored in a game, at least
since the official records were kept. Wildcat QB Cameron Higgins threw
for 334 yards and seven scores, and ran for 106 yards and three
touchdowns in the win. And no, there weren't any overtimes. This was all
done in four quarters.
Florida Atlantic QB Rusty Smith
And the best quarterback in Florida is ... well, it's Tim Tebow,
and Matt Grothe of South Florida is certainly terrific, but as far as
passing yards, Florida Atlantic sophomore Rusty Smith leads the Sunshine
State. In a Sun Belt conference not exactly known for its bombing
quarterbacks, Smith has been the exception averaging 272 yards per game
with 17 touchdowns and five interceptions. Unfortunately, two of his
picks came in last week's overtime loss to UL Monroe. Arkansas State is
up next.
Kansas State WR Jordy Nelson
Who's the most dangerous player in America? Nelson has to be in the
team photo, averaging 13.3 yards per catch with 76 grabs for 1,008 yards
and seven touchdowns, with four games with ten or more catches, and five
punt returns for 264 yards and two touchdowns. That's a 52.8-yard
average after returning a punt 92 yards for a score in the 51-13 win
over Baylor. He also had eight catches for 105 yards and a touchdown. He
also has two touchdown passes for three passes.
Who’s
Not …
San Jose State field goal kickers
So far this
year, San Jose State opponents have connected on 13 of 14 field goal
attempts. Meanwhile, the Spartans have hit just two of 12 chances
meaning the offense has had to get more aggressive near the red zone.
Only two games this year have been decided by seven points or fewer, but
with four WAC dates left, the potential to go to a second straight bowl
game might depend on working out the problems.
Nebraska run defense
It's been here before and it continues to bear watching. Nebraska,
home of the Blackshirts, and some of the nastiest defenses in recent
college football history, is dead last in America in stopping the run.
Out of all the issues surrounding head coach Bill Callahan, seeing the
defense getting shoved around game after game has the Husker fans irked
at the moment. In the last three games, Oklahoma State ran for 317 yards
and five touchdowns, Texas A&M ran for 359 yards and four scores, and
Texas, thanks to Jamaal Charles in the fourth quarter, tore off 364
yards and three scores. Take away the opening day win over Nevada, and
in the last eight games, Nebraska is allowing 263 yards per game. To put
this all into perspective, the second worst run defense in America is
UAB's, and it's giving up 237.5 yards per game. Oregon State leads the
nation allowing just 54.5 yards per game. Kansas, and the nation's 14th
ranked running game, is up next.
Texas Tech QB Graham Harrell
And there goes that. One of the leaders in the Heisman race just two
weeks ago, Harrell, who threw three interceptions in his first seven
games, threw four picks in a 41-10 loss to Missouri, and four more
interceptions in a 31-26 loss to Colorado. He had never thrown more than
three picks in any of his previous 26 games.
UL Lafayette pass
defense
It's not like the Sun Belt is full of high-octane passing
offenses, but the UL Lafayette pass defense hasn't had any luck anyway.
In four games of conference play, the Ragin' Cajuns have allowed an
average of 316 yards per game and 14 touchdowns. Up next is Erik Ainge
and Tennessee's passing game, which ranks second in the SEC averaging
262 yards per game.
Florida International pass efficiency
It's one thing to be the worst in the nation at something, but it's
another to be in last by a huge margin. Notre Dame is the nation's
second most inefficient passing team with a 94.3 rating. The
quarterbacks are completing 55% of their passes for 153 yards per game
with four touchdowns and eight interceptions. Florida leads the nation
with a 175.5 passer rating. Dead last is Florida International with a
passing efficiency rating of 72.57, a whopping 21.73 points lower than
Notre Dame. Last year, the least efficient passing team in America was
Illinois with a rating of 92.22. FIU was 118th with a rating of 94.14.
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