College Football’s Top 25 after 10 weeks

#22 Auburn

War Eagle started the year off so well, defeating Washington in a top-ten matchup to open the season, but once again a loss to LSU put them in the wrong direction. That hard-fought battle was decided by one point didn’t put them out of the race however.

That was the 23-9 defeat at Mississippi State, which they followed up with a bad lass to freaking Tennessee at home. Without Kerryon Johnson putting the Tigers on their back, they simply couldn’t go on a run like they did last year and possibly even upset Alabama to win the West, but rather they seem like an afterthought.

To that, I say: Not so fast my friends!

The Auburn defense is still holding opponents to 17.3 yards a game and they are tied for eighth nationally in total sacks and third in tackles for loss. This Tigers front is very disruptive and they have made Jordan Ta’amu and Kellen Mond look mediocre at best in consecutive weeks now. I have never been a huge fan of Jarrett Stidham because he has benefitted from a strong running game and throwing tons of quick screens for the most part, but he has been making big-time throws down the field recently.

Down by ten entering the fourth quarter versus Texas A&M last Saturday, Auburn put the game into the hands of their QB and he delivered despite just 19 yards rushing on the day. I think with Darius Slayton and Ryan Davis he has at least two serious weapons on the perimeter and there are a couple of other guys who have made an impact. What has been the difference for them however have been their special teams?

The Tigers have already blocked five(!) field goals and scored a couple of return touchdowns this year, while also having a top ten punter in terms of average net yards.

#23 Utah

I believe Utah is the most disrespected team in any of the college football rankings. That 38-20 loss in the desert against Arizona State might have been their dagger in any dreams of going beyond the Pac-12 Championship game, but let’s not completely forget about the Utes.

They didn’t even make the cut in the CFP rankings or AP Top 25, yet the Football Power Index has them with the 14th-highest score of any team in the nation. We are all prisoners of the moment and as much as we would like to completely cross off names that have taken themselves out of the running, we still have to judge teams based on what they have done over the course of the entire season.

Until last week, Utah had a top ten scoring defense led by Chase Hansen, they are still top in the red zone, holding opponents to scoring any points on 55.6 per cent of their drives inside the 20, and their only two losses have come at the hands of then-tenth-ranked Washington and at Wazzu, which now looks like the favorite to win the conference.

That rushing attack with Zack Moss is something to behold and Tyler Huntley had some impressive moments. With the quarterback likely missing the remainder of the season due to a broken collarbone, they are not nearly as dynamic offensively, but I’m not quite ready to completely write them off.

They still have meetings with Oregon, Colorado and BYU on their remaining schedule and they will only have to face the Buffs on the road. Thanks to tie-breakers over USC and Arizona they are still on top of the South division and they control their own destiny – at least as far as the Pac-12 goes. Let’s see what this kid Jason Shelley can do with a week of preparation and if the entire team can regroup, after it felt like all the air went out of these players when their QB got hurt.