thependulumswings

Four weeks into the 2018 CFB season some interesting trends have begun to emerge.   There are also some conference nuggets to digest.  Let’s kickoff.

1.  In the previous three weeks we have asked if everyone is playing for second.  Bama is playing like no one else when you consider 16 quarters of football in their portfolio.  Well, Vegas certainly agrees.  The Golden Nugget out there has the following odds on Bama v. the top four opponents should they meet in the playoffs.  THE Ohio St is +10, Georgia is +11, Clemson +12, and Oklahoma +17.  Jeez.
2. Old Dominion beat Virginia Tech after Va Tech looked pretty darn good beating Florida St.  24-3 and dismantling William and Mary 62-17.   Wow is the word.  The week off due to the East Carolina postponement as Florence wobbled did Va Tech no good.
3. Boston College, after a solid-looking start to their season,  got pushed around by then 0-3, now 1-3 Purdue.  Meanwhile Duke came in at #22 in the just released AP poll after it took care of business to move to 4-0 with a 55-13 shellacking of NC Central.
4. So, where does this leave the ACC?  It leaves them with Clemson at # 3 and Duke in the top 25.   Clemson aside, the ACC looks like a cross between a train wreck and a dumpster fire.  It also leaves Clemson in a must win situation it seems.   Duke is the only ranked opponent for them from now until any possible ACC championship opponent.  A loss against a non-ranked opponent would open the door  for other conferences to get into the playoffs and leave the ACC at home.
5.  Kentucky entered the top 25 all the way up at #16 after a surprising and thorough working of the Bulldogs of Mississippi St.   The last time Kentucky was in the top 25 was 2007.  The Dow was 13,700 then.  It went on a rollercoaster down to just under 7000 by March of 2009.  Today it stands well over 26,000.  It’s been a long, bumpy road back for the index and the Wildcats.  Are you buying or selling the Wildcats now?
6.  We’re buying Benny Snell, the Kentucky running back extraordinaire.  He might need to stop by New York in December to pick up some Heisman hardware before he’s drafted early next April.   He’s only a dark horse right now, but winning in the SEC changes that status by the week.  Saturday he produced 165 yards running on 25 carries against a front seven that is very good.  He crossed the goal line four times too.
7.  Oklahoma almost pulled off their annual Oklahoma melt moment Saturday.  Army, yes Army, extended them to overtime before the Sooners prevailed 28-21.  The phrase “stats are for losers” comes to mind when you realize that  Army ran 81 plays to Oklahoma’s paltry 26.   The time of possession favored Army by nearly 45 minutes to a very frugal 15.  The Sooners have to be better on defense to be considered an elite team.  And, the sooner the better is recommended with Big 12 foes and wide open offenses headed their way in the next two months.
8. Tom Herman told us that his team was way better in 2018 than 2017.  He said this in the post game press conference after losing to Maryland in the season opener.  We chuckled.  Maybe Tom is about to get the last laugh.   The Longhorns sent TCU back to Fort Worth after their rather convincing win. He has the attention of the fickle Texas faithful. Football is fun again in the Lone Star capital.
9.  Two big games with significant national implications will get our attention this Saturday.    It’s Penn St. hosting THE Ohio St., while Notre Dame hosts Stanford.  That’s four top 10 unbeatens that will be cut down to two by nightfall.
10. Some early lines are out.  Syracuse (4-0) travels to Clemson and gets no Vegas respect at +22.  Florida and Dan Mullen travel to Mississippi St. and get no Vegas respect at +7.5.  THE is -4 at Penn St.  And, ND is favored by 5 in South Bend over Stanford.  LSU is -13.5 over Mississippi in BR town.  Mississippi can score some points.  We like Florida and Mississippi.
11. One leftover nugget.   Scott Frost your team didn’t show up Saturday to play in Ann Arbor.   It was 39-0 before the half and 56-10 at the final gun.  At least the leaves are changing in Lincoln this fall.   The Cornhuskers are 0-3.