The college football season has reached the month of October. What’s changing in terms of the way the top teams in the country stack up? Not much for now, but more changes will occur soon enough. Our NCAAF Power Rankings takes a look at the latest odds of winning the title for each of the top teams.
1. Alabama Crimson Tide – This week: 6/1 odds , Last week: 13/2
The Crimson Tide didn’t play this past weekend. Coach Nick Saban’s team is preparing for Ole Miss this upcoming weekend, a game that’s going to draw a lot of attention and help determine if the Tide are for real or not. The meat of the schedule has arrived for Alabama, because the Tide will now have to play in the SEC West, a very tough division. A game against Florida of the weaker SEC East will not wind up doing much to change opinions one way or the other. The true tests are about to start for this team.
2a. Florida State Seminoles – This week: 15/2 , Last week: 15/2
The Seminoles did not look very good against North Carolina State as they gave up 24 points in the first quarter. They trailed by a 38-28 score in the third quarter, largely because they committed four turnovers up to that point.
They still won by 15 points on the road, in a place where they’ve historically had a lot of problems. Florida State lost to North Carolina State on the road in 2012 and in two of its previous four trips before that. This game easily could have spun out of Florida State’s control, but Jameis Winston and the rest of the team brought things back into their hands and did what they needed to do.
The defensive line is going to be a concern over the long haul as The Seminoles have accumulated a lot of injuries in that part of the roster, specifically at defensive tackle. The depth chart is getting worn out, and if Florida State can’t get some reinforcements soon, this could continue to be an issue. If Florida State can make the College Football Playoff, it will have three and a half weeks to deal with injuries. The challenge is for the Seminoles to get there first.
2b. Oklahoma Sooners – This week: 15/2 , Last week: 15/2
The Sooners overcame a difficult challenge in a road game at West Virginia a few weeks ago. Now, after a break, they play another road game that could become a problem for them. TCU has been waiting around, preparing for a real challenge. The Horned Frogs played a game that felt little more than a scrimmage against SMU. Oklahoma will be just a little bit more of a challenge, to understate things.
The Horned Frogs have plenty of athletic and long receivers on the edges, and so an Oklahoma defense that struggled with West Virginia’s talent on the outside areas of the football field could also be in for a rough day against TCU. Oklahoma’s offense will have to be ready to score a lot of points, and special teams will also play a role in deciding whether the Sooners will remain unbeaten or not this season.
4a. Auburn Tigers – This week: 8/1 , Last week: 15/2
The Tigers are, like Alabama, a team that is about to find out what it’s really made of. Auburn faces LSU this Saturday, in just the first of several important SEC West games for coach Gus Malzahn’s team. Auburn did play a very important game against Arkansas in week one and then again versus Kansas State a few weeks later, but LSU, Alabama, Texas A&M, Ole Miss, and Mississippi State are all teams to be reckoned with. The challenge for all the top teams in the SEC West, and in any division or conference that’s fairly deep and tough, is not necessarily to win one game on one weekend; it’s winning a series of games, one after the other. Auburn is just beginning to set forth on the path. It will be interesting to see how the Tigers try to defend their SEC championship from last season.
4b. Oregon Ducks – This week: 8/1 , Last week: 9/1
The Ducks play Arizona this Thursday in what could be one of the higher-scoring games of the week. Arizona didn’t just beat Oregon last season, the Wildcats killed the Ducks 42-16 by rushing for more than 300 yards. Oregon will want to get revenge in this game, and that’s something which should help coach Mark Helfrich’s team in prime time. Oregon’s bigger tests in the Pac-12 Conference should come later in the season. If the Ducks play anywhere close to what they expect from themselves, they should handle Arizona without too much of a problem.
6. UCLA Bruins – This week: 12/1 , Last week: 18/1
The Bruins were the most impressive team of the past week as they crushed a talented Arizona State team by 35 points on the road at night, taking the upper hand in the Pac-12 South. UCLA’s offense played what was by far its best game of the season. Quarterback Brett Hundley came alive and played the way coach Jim Mora wants him to while the offense compiled a number of really long plays that didn’t even make red zone efficiency an issue. If this offense can remain dialed in, the Bruins will be hard to beat. The offensive line, though, remains a point of concern.
7a. Texas A&M Aggies – This week: 14/1 , Last week: 12/1
The Aggies did not look very good on Saturday against the Arkansas Razorbacks, but they got a very good result. Texas A&M was down 28-14 and in big trouble, searching for some kind of answer against a team that punched hard and continued to show noticeable physical strength. The Aggies suffered a lot of wounds, but they were never knocked to the canvas. They kept fighting, and they managed to take advantage of some Arkansas penalties, a missed field goal, and some coverage busts by the Razorbacks to win in overtime. Texas A&M will have to be a lot better this weekend at Mississippi State, however. The Bulldogs are flying high after beating LSU on the road a few weeks ago.
7b. Georgia Bulldogs – This week: 14/1 , Last week: 16/1
The Bulldogs survived Tennessee by three points in a wild and bizarre game that featured a lot of mistakes with some brilliant plays sprinkled in there. Georgia’s defense comes and goes, and it has to be able to find a more consistent pass rush if it’s going to be able to win the SEC East. The Bulldogs also have to get more passing production out of quarterback Hutson Mason, who clearly struggled against Tennessee and is not doing as well as he should, since Georgia has such a great running game with Todd Gurley and several other excellent running backs on the roster.
7c. Baylor Bears – This week: 14/1 , Last week: 18/1
The Bears strolled past lowly Iowa State in a no-problem kind of game. They now go to Texas to face the Longhorns in Charlie Strong’s first year on the job in Austin. Baylor’s defense won’t be challenged by the Texas offense, but Baylor’s offense might be challenged by a Texas defense that has played very well in recent games.
7d. Michigan State Spartans – This week: 14/1 , Last week: 20/1
Michigan State is preparing for a huge Big Ten game against Nebraska. If the Spartans beat the Huskers decisively, they’ll become the clear conference favorite and will regain some ground in the race for a College Football Playoff spot.
11. Ohio State: 20/1
12. Notre Dame: 25/1
13a. USC: 33/1
13b. Mississippi: 33/1
13c. Mississippi State: 33/1
