BlogPoll: Week Eight and Nine...even though it's clearly Week Nine

Sorry. I went on vacation last week and didn't have time to post, well, anything. Not that it matters that much. My picks needed a week off, and there weren't any games this week that really intrigued me. The one that did (Tennessee-'Bama) absolutely sucked.

Here is the Week 8 ballot I submitted to BlogPoll.

Dropped out
20 Cal-->
22 Louisville-->
25 Colorado-->

The old Top 25
1. Southern Cal
2. Texas
3. Virginia Tech
4. Georgia
5. Alabama
6. Miami (Florida)
7. Louisiana State
8. UCLA
9. Florida State
10. Notre Dame
11. Penn State
12. Ohio State
13. Oregon
14. Boston College
15. Auburn
16. Tennessee
17. Michigan State
18. Minnesota
19. Texas Tech
20. Texas Christian
21. West Virginia
22. Florida
23. Wisconsin
24. Fresno State
25. Texas A&M

Now, we'll move on to this week. The fact that Texas is now #1 in the BCS is exactly why I hate the BCS. What does a beatdown of not-yet-tested-by-a-good-team Texas Tech prove? USC has beaten three quality opponents on the road this year (Oregon, Arizona State, Notre Dame). They've beaten down practically everyone they've played. Texas beat a marginally decent Ohio State team on the road because Ohio State's quarterback sucks. What else have they done? They beat Rice. They beat the worst Oklahoma team since the John Blake Era. They beat Louisiana-Lafayette. And they're #1 in the BCS. Ugh.

Oh, and Arkansas State is one win away from being bowl-eligible. You've seen nothing until you've seen Jonesboro empty for a bowl game.

Dropped out
16 Tennessee--> I know their schedule has been really really really really hard, but the Volunteers are now 3-3, and they've lost Gerald Riggs for the season.

17 Michigan State--> Clearly, Northwestern is better than anyone thought. But 49-14? At home? Same ol' Michigan State.

19 Texas Tech--> What have I kept saying about this team? Beating Kansas State does not qualify someone as having beaten a good team, and they just lost their best test of the season by 35 points.

The new Top 25 ballot
1. Southern Cal (1 last week). Still the top dog until proven otherwise...
2. Texas (2). ...and beating down Texas Tech doesn't do it for me.
3. Virginia Tech (3). Got it done in a tough road environment.
4. UCLA (8). I keep waiting for everything to fall apart, but it hasn't...yet.
5. Georgia (4). Shockley's injury could be a killer against Florida.
6. Alabama (5). No team looked worse in a home victory.
7. Miami (Florida) (6). Nothing personal...UCLA deserved a jump.
8. Louisiana State (7). Nice OT win at home against Auburn. Good ballgame.
9. Florida State (9). I'm still not sold on this team.
10. Notre Dame (10). Brady Quinn: Wow. He's the next Kyle Boller.
11. Penn State (11). 56-3 halftime lead gives Penn State the second half off.
12. Ohio State (12). Road whipping of Indiana. Running game looked good, even though it wasn't much of a test.
13. Boston College (14). Flip flopping with the Ducks...
14. Oregon (13). ...because of the Clemens injury. I'll refrain from further judgment on Oregon's chances.
15. Texas Christian (20). Should win the Mountain West. What a way to debut in the new league.
16. West Virginia (21). Unless they slip like last year, WVU is heading to a BCS bowl.
17. Minnesota (18). Idle. Ready to beat Ohio State.
18. Auburn (15). Shouldn't be horribly penalized for OT loss at LSU.
19. Florida (22). Cocktail Party awaits.
20. Wisconsin (23). Still overrated. Just watch. Defense gave up another 200+ rushing yards, and was only bailed out by bad playcalling and worse execution by Purdue's passing game.
21. Fresno State (24). May be the class of the WAC. But so might Nevada. Doesn't say much for the WAC.
22. Texas A&M (25). Moved up by default.
23. Northwestern (NR). Damn.
24. Toledo (NR). Do you have any better ideas?
25. Rutgers (NR). Just wanted to see how this looked.

The Watch List
California
Louisville
Michigan
Tennessee
Texas Tech