What We Learned Saturday

Yet another exciting Saturday of college football as Wisconsin stunned Ohio State, Steve Spurrier and Florida both lost and Nebraska still has some work to do to become a national title contender.

With the game at night Camp Randall was rocking even more than usual and no. 1 Ohio State was knocked down at the opening bell thanks to WR David Gilreath's 97y scoring return of opening kickoff. They then were further beaten down by allowing two TD runs by big RB John Clay, who rushed for 104y. The Badgers dominated in the trenches early in putting the Buckeyes in a deep 21-0 hole. But the Buckeyes showed some mettle by reeling off 18 straight points over the course of the middle of the game. Unfortunately for them, Wisconsin showed even more mettle by answering with the game's final 10 pts. The reward for Wisconsin? A trip to Iowa; the Hawkeyes have won six of the last eight games played in that series.

Florida has lost three straight games. As someone who really does not like Urban Meyer, I was pretty happy about the game effort turned in by Mississippi State. I also did not see the outcome as some huge upset as the Gators have had issues all year and the Bulldogs have been playing tough since hiring head coach Dan Mullen away from Meyer's staff (more about that later in the week). Meanwhile Auburn is getting a lot attention as they remain undefeated, but come on now. Arkansas brought in a little-used back-up--albeit a talented kid--and he ripped apart their defense. If QB Cam Newton was merely good, Auburn would have a couple of losses.

Meanwhile, how well did Mack Brown sleep last night? Texas went from annual national title contender to also ran after two losses. But the team gave a more complete effort than in either of their losses and should be back on track for future dominance. The Huskers, meanwhile, showed that an over-reliance on a freshman QB can sometimes haunt you. The bigger issue--as it well may be for Auburn soon--is that a fast rise from good-to-solid, at times mediocre--to suddenly great is difficult for a collection of kids. Nebraska went from a 2-TD dog to Texas last year to a 10-pt favorite this year. The team could not handle their sudden thrust into that position. Head coach Bo Pelini has to get his charges re-focused quickly as Oklahoma State and Missouri are next up for the Huskers. They are a combined 12-0.

So it was another great day for college football. Meanwhile the big game today for the NFL? A battle of over-rated "powers" Minnesota and Dallas.