A sneaky football play by some Texas middle schoolers is the latest viral sensation...

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Winning NFL picks, odds and power rankings all from our friends at Doc's Sports Service.

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Week #5 is here and there are several games between ranked teams that have the potential for future BCS implications. While some teams are trying to stay on top, there are a couple of smaller teams that will be hoping for some upsets. Here are a few previews as well as my predictions for the week...

#21 Texas at #8 Oklahoma - Coming off an embarassing 22 point loss last week at home to UCLA, Mack Brown is going to stop at nothing to prevent back to back losses, getting knocked from the top 25 and even worse a loss to OU. Last week Texas gave up 27 passing yards and still lost. They also gave up 264 on the ground and you have got to believe that the OU running game is going to have a great day and the Texas defense will have a hell of a time trying to keep Landry Jones from having big numbers. Gilbert has been anything but incredible so far in trying to make Texas fans forget Colt McCoy thus far. This Texas team is just not the same without a leader at QB, and they still don't have a RB that has over 200yds rushing. Texas will have a descent season, but I just don't think this will be a game Texas will want to remember...Oklahoma 41, Texas 24

#7 Florida at #1 Alabama - If the top 25 polls didn't come out until this week I am just not sure Florida would be in the top 10. They, much like Texas, are attempting to replace the face of their football program for the past few years under center. John Brantley is doing pretty well so far with 6tds and only 1 int. but the offense has taken some criticism for their slow starts, one in particular was the Miami Oh. game to open the season. One can only wonder what the QB position may look like had 2007 Freshman Cameron Newton had stayed at Florida, but I'd say they are probably pretty happy with the outcome. Brantley will continue to do fine....Just not this Saturday night. John will leave the swamp and enter the sea of crimson under the lights at 'Bama. Alabama has 3RBs that have over 25 carries and each average over 7 yards per carry.  Oh and by the way, they also have the reigning Heisman winner in Ingram. I am sure the Florida defense will find a way to keep it entertaining to watch, but I expect Alabama to pull away late and wear Florida down as well as force Brantley to make poor decisions. Alabama has no business losing this game...Alabama 31, Florida 20

#19 Michigan at Indiana - I may be the only person reading this that cares at all about this game, but that's just fine by me. I don't have a good feeling about this game Saturday. I am a UM fan and the thought of Rich Fraudriguez on the sidelines screaming at the miserable defense throughout the entire game as Ben Chappell looks like the 2nd coming of Joe Namath is making me lose sleep. I want to believe. I want to believe that Denard is going to stay healthy, throw for 200, run for 120 and the UM defense will grow up right before my very eyes. The thing is, I know better. I know what a Rodriguez version of Michigan football looks like and it doesn't sit well with me. The defensive backfield has almost no experience and the WR turned Safety Cameron Gordon, while he hits hard, is slow. My problem with this game isn't the offense at all, I am scared that the Indiana offense may have a bigger day than the Michigan offense and that is hard to believe I know. I hope Rodriguez proves me wrong...But until then...Indiana 37, Michigan 35

OSU 49, Illinois 13

Wisconsin 23, Michigan St. 21

Stanford 31, Oregon 30

Iowa 28, Penn St. 24

Boston College 16, Notre Dame 9  (One can only hope)

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Winning NFL picks, odds and power rankings all from our friends at Doc's Sports Service...

I'm not a believer in preseason polls at all. How can you rank any team before they actually play a game? I'm a firm believer that the polls shouldn't come out until around the beginning of October. By then every team has played four or five games, and are about to enter conference play. Preseason polls can really hurt teams that have stellar seasons but started out the season ranked too low to make a move to the top of the rankings. At the same time it can both help and hurt those teams that get top rankings. It can help them in the way that as long as the teams don't lose, they don't drop, even if teams below them are undefeated and beating better teams. But it can also hurt them. If a top ranked team loses, especially early in the season, they could slide pretty far down the rankings and have to fight their way back to the top, hoping to get a lot of help along the way.

With all that said, today the USA Today Coaches' Poll was released. It counts for 1/3 of the overall BCS rankings at the end of the season. Its no surprise that last year's BCS champ, Alabama, sits atop the rankings with 55 of the 59 first place votes. They are returning 10 of 11 starters on offense from last year and are definitely considered to be the favorites to take the title again this year. Behind them sits the the Ohio State Buckeyes, who received four place votes. With Heisman hopeful, Terrelle Pryor leading the charge, the Buckeyes could see themselves back in a national title game come January. Rounding out the top five is Florida, Texas, and the surprise to the party, Boise State. This is the highest the Broncos of the "Smurf Turf" have ever been ranked in preseason polls. While Boise State isn't in a BCS conference, its a very good possibility that they could crash the party this year. Their fate could very well be decided after their first game this year when they take on No. 6 Virginia Tech.

A complete listing of the USA Today Coaches' Poll is listed below:

1. Alabama
2. Ohio State
3. Florida
4. Texas
5. Boise State
6. Virginia Tech
7. TCU
8. Oklahoma
9. Nebraska
10. Iowa
11. Oregon
12. Wisconsin
13. Miami (FL)
14. Penn State
15. Pittsburgh
16. LSU
17. Georgia Tech
18. North Carolina
19. Arkansas
20. Florida State
21. Georgia
22. Oregon State
23. Auburn
24. Utah
25. West Virginia

*For those of us here in Cincy, the Bearcats are on the outside looking in at No. 26. Odds are they will be in the top 25 at some point this season, most likely after the first week if they beat Fresno State and one of the lower rank teams get upset and fall out.

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What started as a major overhaul to college sports now appears just to be another money-motivated burp of a few power schools.

Texas, who seemingly was the central piece in the realignment puzzle, opted to stay in the Big 12 rather than joining the PAC-10.

The move came down to the TV rights. The PAC-10 is planning to create a model similar to the Big Ten’s, but under that plan Texas would not be able to secure its own local TV rights. With a new deal with FOX looming and the ability to create the Longhorn Network of whatever they decide to call it, Texas was best off staying put.

The decision by Texas and the other Big 12 South schools to stay should stave off any further radical realignment.

If the PAC-10 doesn't expand to 16 and Notre Dame sticks to its stated goal of remaining independent in football, the Big Ten may opt to remain at 12 teams. That would keep the Big East safe.

With Texas A&M still in the Big 12 and no obvious reason to get bigger, the SEC likely will remain at 12 schools. That would keep the ACC safe.

Now if they could only figure out a way to implement a playoff format in college football everything would be alright.

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As we continue our series previewing the college football conferences here on GetSportsInfo, it's time to take a look at the star-studded Big 12. 

Favorite: Oklahoma

A lot of people are ready to write Oklahoma off after losing five bowl games in six years, including three National Championships, but if you look at the Sooners there's no reason to dismiss them so quickly. Sam Bradford deciding to come back and compete for a National Championship instead of cashing his check from the Jets makes the Sooners one of the top teams in the nation instantly. Bradford is a special player and the offense shouldn't lose anything coming off a year in which they averaged 51 points per contest. They have a backfield that could be the best in the nation with a 1-2 rushing punch of DeMarco Murray and Chris Brown and the coaches are high on the offensive line despite having to replace four of the five positions.  

On defense is where Oklahoma could really see improvements however. Last year the offense came up short in some offensive shootouts because the defense couldn't stop anybody, but this year the Sooners could actually hold teams in check. The defensive line boasts quite possibly the most dominant front seven in college football. They could quite possibly have six legitimate draft picks on the front line alone. Couple that with Ryan Reynolds, Keenan Clayton and Travis Lewis at the linebacker positions and no one is going to have succcess running the football. The secondary will not be near as talented as the front seven, but they should be better than last year and not near as much of a weakness especially with the pressure being provided up front. 

Sleeper: Missouri

Everyone is expecting Missouri to slip back into mediocrity, and with good reason after losing players such as Chase Daniel, Chase Coffman, Jeff Wolfert, Jeremy Maclin, Stryker Sulak, Ziggy Hood, William Moore, Brock Christopher, and Tommy Saunders. However, the future is not as grim as many believe. Head Coach Gary Pinkel and his staff have done an unbelievable job when it comes to recruiting. They haven't let a single big recruit slip out of Missouri and have even been able to steal some top talents out of places like Texas and other locations with big name programs to actually upgrade the talent of the team. They will be young and will have a lot of potential that has to be realized before success will come, but this team has maybe as much talent as any in the conference.  New starting quarterback Blaine Gabbert will have to replace legend Chase Daniel, but he will actually allow the offense to do things that they couldn't with Daniel. He has more upside than Daniel did and with that flexibility he provides them it's not out of the question to say he could have Tigers fans forgetting about their beloved Daniel. 

Overrated: Texas

Now before everyone gets all pissed off about that, know that I'm not saying Texas won't be good and win a lot of games... Because they are and they will. However, when anything less than winning a Big 12 title and ending up in Pasadena in early January is acceptable there is a big chance that this team is overrated and won't achieve those standards. Oklahoma is better, Oklahoma State has the potential and maturity to pull an upset, unlike last year, and going to Missouri could be a letdown game for the Longhorns if the Red River rivalry doesn't go in their favor. 

Final Take: 

The Big 12 is not as good as the SEC is top to bottom, but it is a heck of a lot more fun to watch. With stars on every roster in this conference, Saturdays should consist of bigtime offensive shootouts on a regular basis. The Big 12 could boast seven of the top ten draft choices in next year's NFL draft.

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It's Rivalry Week on ESPN.com, which leads us to which are the best rivalries in college hoops...

   1. Duke vs North Carolina - Always a classic and one of the best things about college basketball.

   2. Kentucky vs Louisville - The battle of Kentucky between a couple of basketball schools.

   3. Kansas vs Missouri - Kansas always seems to have a stacked team, but rivalries seem to see alot of upsets.

   4. Texas vs Texas A&M - A huge state known for its football doesn’t damper this heated college basketball rivalry. Look for both of these teams to do well the next few seasons.

   5. Duke vs Maryland - The ACC is full of fast paced, quick scoring teams. The Duke and Maryland rivalry has really been turned up the last couple of years.

   6. Indiana vs Purdue - A Classic Big Ten conference match up.

   7. Cincinnati vs Xavier - Its gotta be a rivalry when the schools are 10 minutes apart.

   8. Florida vs Kentucky - Kentucky has been the better team the last few decades, now its Florida’s time to rule.

   9. Arizona vs UCLA - Two big Pac 10 powerhouses who are historically successful.

  10. Michigan vs Michigan State - Even a better college football rivalry, this rivalry has moved down the list a bit due to a few poor seasons.

*from Campus Grotto

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Florida is No. 1 in the AP Top 25. Utah is perfect at No. 2, though not perfectly happy. Texas and Southern California also claimed to be the best - but media voters didn't think so. The Gators received 48 first-place votes and 1,606 points in the poll released early Friday, after they beat Oklahoma 24-14 in the BCS national title game.

Here's the final AP College Football:
1 Florida
2 Utah
3 Southern California
4 Texas
5 Oklahoma
6 Alabama
7 TCU
8 Penn State
9 Ohio State
10 Oregon
11 Boise State
12 Texas Tech
13 Georgia
14 Mississippi
15 Virginia Tech
16 Oklahoma State
17 Cincinnati
18 Oregon State
19 Missouri
20 Iowa
21 Florida State
22 Georgia Tech
23 West Virginia
24 Michigan State
25 Brigham Young

College Football ap poll, florida, utah, texas, usc

from the BostonHerald.com:

The national championship has never seemed more mythical.

College football has been played in this land for 140 years, and for long stretches of Thursday night’s tractor pull between Florida and Oklahoma, it looked as if these two teams were trying to set the game back by at least half that. The first three quarters were so boring, they should have been moved from FOX to C-SPAN.

The Gators’ 24-14 win over the Sooners did nothing to dispel competing claims from Southern California, Utah and Texas about who belonged in the top spot. Earlier in the week, Utah Attorney General Mark Shurtleff said he was looking into whether the BCS violated antitrust laws by barring the 13-0 Utes — the only unbeaten team in college football’s top division — from the national title game.

COMPLETE ARTICLE

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In what has become part of the BCS tradition over the past few years, Ohio State once again disappointed in their big bowl game. This time it wasn't a blowout. This time it wasn't for a title, but it was equally disappointing.

The Buckeyes battled back from a 17-6 deficit to take a lead only to see it evaporate when Texas wide receiver Quan Crosby shook off Ohio State safety Anderson Russell in the middle of the field and ran into the end zone for a 26-yard touchdown with 16 seconds to go to give Texas a dramatic 24-21 win at the Fiesta Bowl.

As Arash Markazi wrote on SI.com, "It's become a storyline as cliché as boy meets girl, boy loses girl, boy gets girl in the end.

Only for Ohio State, its romantic comedy has devolved into a horror film where the Buckeyes get the lead, lose the lead and continually fall short in the end. It's a script they've followed the past three years in BCS bowls, although this year's episode provided the most heart-wrenching finale.

While Ohio State did its best to reverse its current trend of three straight losses in the BCS and the Big Ten's now six-game losing streak in BCS bowls, Texas did its best to prove that the best one-loss team in the country may not be in Miami Beach right now."

Well, at least we made this one "a game"...one small step for OSU fanatics, one giant leap towards nowhere for the rest of us.

"A fanatic is one who can't change his mind and won't change the subject." - Sir Winston Churchill

Is it time to fire Jim Tressel?

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The bowl games finally start this weekend. Fellow GetSportsInfo.com writer, Jeremy Fischer, and myself have put together our picks including how confident we are in them. In case you've never done a pick 'em game like this before, here's how it works. In addition to picking who you think will win the game, you assign a number to that pick as to how confident you think that pick is going to be right. There are 34 bowl games this year (way too many in most people's opinion, but that's beside the point), so the max number of confidence points you can give to one game is, yep, you guessed it, 34. The game you are least confident in you assign one point too, and fill in everything in between.

A lot of office pools are done like this and make it much more challenging than simply picking a winner for each game. As J-Fish states when it comes to doing a pick 'em game like this, "I have seen many strategies and I prefer the one that calls for using the higher confidence points on the bigger BCS games." He goes on to give his reasons as to why.

"Right or wrong, the larger conference teams get more coverage. The more information that is out there, the better informed pick you can make. The more informed you are, the more confident you'll be about a particular selection." Makes sense right? So picking the BCS bowl games really isn't as difficult as picking some of the more obscure games like the R+L Carriers New Orleans Bowl between Southern Mississippi and Troy that provide more difficulty in not only picking who will win, but deciding how confident you are in that pick.

J-Fish goes on to say, "Unless you fancy yourself as the next Jimmy the Greek, don't over analyze. The amount of games will definitely lead to paralysis-by-analysis." In my opinion, when it comes to picking some of the lower level bowl games, its almost more of a gut feeling when making that selection than anything else.

With all that said, let's get to the picks. What you'll find below is the bowl schedule starting with the first game on the docket all the way to the National Championship game on January 8th. With each pick you'll see both J-Fish's pick as well as my own with a little bit of analysis and how many confidence points (#) we have assigned to the pick we've made. Let's get to it with a look at the BCS games.

January 1st
ROSE - Penn State vs. USC
JFISH: USC (34) - Too much defense.
DICO: USC (32) - Too much USC! PSU hasn't seen anything like the Trojans this year. Ask OSU how things worked out for them. Plus this is a "home game" for the Trojans.

FEDEX ORANGE - Cincinnati vs. Virginia Tech
JFISH: Cincinnati (22) - 1st BCS bowl berth will drive the Bearcats.
DICO: Cincinnati (10) - Special teams could be the difference in this game. Mardy Gilyard for the Bearcats is one of the best in the country in the return game. A chance to finish the season in the Top 10 will push the Bearcats to a win.

January 2nd
ALLSTATE SUGAR - Utah vs. Alabama
JFISH: Alabama (32) - Utah hasn't faced a defense like this.
DICO: Alabama (33) - See JFISH's comments...the Utes will have a hard time stopping the 'Bama offense as well.

January 5th
TOSTITOS FIESTA - Ohio State vs. Texas
JFISH: Texas (33) - Too much speed on defense, and the Horns will be playing angry because of the whole BIG XII, BCS screw job.
DICO: Texas (31) - QB Colt McCoy will be too much even for a good Buckeyes' defense. Terrelle Pryor will see what team speed on defense is all about against the Longhorns.

January 8th
FEDEX BCS NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP - Florida vs. Oklahoma
JFISH: Florida (26) - Tebow/Harvin will find a way.
DICO: Oklahoma (22) - Bradford leads the most potent offense in the country. Even with the loss of DeMarco Murray at RB, the Sooners won't miss a beat. Expect a high scoring affair.

COMPLETE PICKS (ALL 34 GAMES) 

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