Week 9 College Recap - College Football News, Tips And Picks

Week 9 College Recap
By Tom Hanson
Posted: 4:00 am PDT 2006-10-30

The streak is over. USC's run is over. But the Trojans haven't lost hope of playing for a national championship.

Oregon State didn't only knock off a WagerWeb.com 10.5-point favorite, the Beavers knocked off the king of the Pac-10. OSU may have ended the dynasty. With the 33-31 win, the Beavers snapped USC's 38 game regular-season winning streak. The Beavers became the first Pac-10 team in 27 games to celebrate after playing the boys of Troy.

"It happens," USC center Ryan Kalil told reporters after the rare loss. "You can't win forever. But it was a lot of mistakes on our part. It's just uncharacteristic of us."

And the Beavers caused celebrations in towns such as Morgantown, Louisville, Auburn, Austin and Gainesville.

With the loss, the Trojans tumbled to No. 9 in the AP rankings. With the loss, the Trojans open the door for West Virginia or Louisville -- these two meet on Thursday night. With the loss, the Trojans open the door for all the one-loss teams -- Texas, Auburn, Florida and maybe Notre Dame.

Don't forget that USC has only one loss, too.

Have the Beavers ruined the Trojans' chances of playing in Glendale, Ariz. -- against the winner of the Ohio State/Michigan clash on Nov. 18?

USC head coach Pete Carroll is hoping that history repeats itself. The Trojans' last loss came back in 2003. It came on a four-turnover fiasco against Cal. It didn't stop USC from winning a national championship.

"You never know," Carroll said. "I mentioned it to them in there. It depends on how you finish, and we'll see what happens."

The four turnovers set the tone. A rare Carroll bad decision -- going for a fourth down conversion instead of a field goal in the third quarter -- cost the Trojans in the end. But maybe this USC team isn't as good as the previous two or three.

USC will not be playing for a national title this season. The Trojans won't even win the Pac-10 (They're going to lose to Cal on Nov. 18). And USC will find itself out the BCS picture (after a loss to Notre Dame on Nov. 25).

It's time for USC to reflect. It's time for the Trojans to reflect on one great run. All good things do come to an end.

DON'T FORGET RUTGERS: Rutgers is one of six undefeated teams. The 15th-ranked Scarlet Knights aren't getting any respect -- even though they moved up a spot without playing.

You probably forgot that Rutgers faces Connecticut tonight?

The Scarlet Knights are 20-point WagerWeb.com favorites over the Huskies. Kickoff is 8 p.m.

Rutgers and the Big East have a chance to make a name for themselves. The Scarlet Knight have to avoid looking ahead. They'll host Louisville on Nov. 9.

Rutgers is a favorite for the first time in four weeks. But it hasn't slowed the Scarlet Knights down. In three road games, the Scarlet Knights have knocked off South Florida, Navy and Pitt.

With the road dog wins, Rutgers has gone 5-1 against the spread this season. Connecticut is 2-4 against the spread. Prediction: Rutgers 35, Connecticut 14.

SUNSHINE STATE BLUES: With the win over Florida State on Saturday, Maryland is bowl-eligible.

The same can't be said for the Seminoles (4-4). The same can't be said for the Miami Hurricanes (5-3), who fell to Georgia Tech 31-23 on Saturday.

But Bobby Bowden, at FSU, and Larry Coker, at Miami, have to be worried about more than going to a bowl game. They have to be worried about their jobs.

Last week, Bowden felt the heat from boosters wanting the 76-year-old coach to retire. But I personally worry about Bowden retiring. Two years ago, he told me he worries about retiring.

Bowden is afraid of dying. Both coach Paul "Bear" Bryant, whom Bowden was very close too, and his father both died only six months after retirement.

Coker, 58, is in good health, but the Hurricanes' program is dying. Coker sealed his fate with a loss to Georgia Tech. Fans can't believe that he didn't at least try an onside kick with 2 minutes remaining and only one timeout left. Coker will be safe until the end of the season, but this is it.

Miami isn't as fortunate, it faces Virginia Tech next Saturday, and the Hokies likely will add to UM's misery.

EXACT SCORE: The oddsmakers made Arkansas a 35-point favorite this week. Boy, are these guys are good. Arkansas beat Louisiana-Monroe, 44-10. But to toot my own horn, I predicted Arkansas to win 44-10. Some days, I would rather be lucky than good.

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