During the offseason I had just one weekend blog but each week during the season I will take a look at the Top 25 performances from the just completed week with a little analysis as well as a quick review of the past weekend. On Monday I will give you my News & Notes where I delve deeper into every game that was played this past weekend, breaking down individual drives and giving you misleading finals and other interesting tidbits.

As far as my game grades go after the 2008 season was completed I devised a power ratings system, which lets me analyze at what level each team played during an individual game. This “game grade” takes into account the yards rushing, yards passing, points scored, rushing yards allowed, passing yards allowed and points allowed and factors them in against the opponent played and even factors in the site the game was played at.

With all these factors taken into consideration you will see teams that lost the game having a better individual game grade than teams that beat them simply because the team they played was superior and much less was expected of them.

Top 25 Game Grades (Team Performances) Week 4

News and Notes Week 4 Part 1

Iowa used the hurry up offense to make a big comeback vs Pitt the previous week overcoming a 17 pt 4Q deficit. They stayed in the hurry up vs ULM. UI scored TD’s on their first 2 drives and ULM went on a 57/14pl drive in between but settled for a 43 yd FG. Later ULM was SOD at the UI20 on a 4&4 dropped pass with 4:10 left in the half trailing 21-3 and UI marched 80/8pl getting a TD with 2:07 left in the half. That gave them a 28-3 lead with a 294-134 yd edge. ULM scored TD’s on their opening two 3Q drives to make it 35-17 but UI scored a TD and a 32 yd FG on their next 2 drives to ice it.

Michigan St bounced back off the Notre Dame loss taking advantage of 4 CM turnovers. They led 7-0 after 1Q when CM was int’d on their next 3 poss. The 2nd of the int’s, MSU ret’d directly for a 37 yd TD and they converted on the other two into a TD and a FG to lead 24-0. At the half MSU was up 31-0 and did have a 256-47 yd edge. CM had beaten MSU 29-27 on a last second FG when they last met in 2009. This time MSU finished with a 481-112 yd edge and ended the game at the CM26 taking a knee in the 45-7 win.

Penn St lost LB Michael Mauti to a knee injury in the 1Q and FOR the year. CB D’Anton Lynn went off strapped to a backboard as trainers looked at his neck and upper back after a 3Q hit. Rob Bolden started the game but PSU led just 3-0 when McGloin replaced him with 10:46 left in the 2Q. McGloin led drives of 63/5pl for a TD, 64/6 to a 1st & gl at the 5 but Zordich fmbl’d into the EZ for a TB and PSU went 31/5pl (after int) for a TD to lead 17-0 at the half. They had a 222-119 yd edge. McGloin’s TD pass on his first series was PSU’s first TD pass all season. Bolden ret’d for 2 series incl a 71 yd TD pass (his first TD pass since Oct ‘10). PSU led 31-0 and 34-3. EM took over with 8:26 left and went 72/16pl and surprisingly on 4&gl from the 5 opted for a 22 yd FG.

Memphis suffered another demoralizing defeat with the stadium half empty for Homecoming. They were mauled by SMU 42-0. UM got into the RZ once which was late 1H when they got to the 10 yd line but their 4th down pass fell incomplete. Taylor Reed started and hit 17-32-153. SMU scored TD’s on their first 2 poss, fmbl’d at the UM37 then actually punted twice before going 47 (after 33 yd PR) and 44 yards for TD’s to lead 28-0. They also got to the 20 and were int’d in the EZ and had a 302-117 yd edge at the half. SMU did only lead 28-0 after fumbling at the UM5 in the 3Q but went 88/15pl and got a 3&14 TD pass with 7:51 left then after a fmbl went 13/3pl for another TD to lead 42-0 with 6:10 left.

Denard Robinson rushed for a season high 200 yds vs SDSt but did hit just 8-17-93 yds passing. SDSt actually had a 20-18 FD edge and UM only a 413-376 yd edge. SDSt had won their first 3 games for the first time since 1981 but were matched up vs their former HC who knew them inside and out. UM led 21-0 at the half. In the 1H, SDSt fumbled at the UM39, was SOD on 4&3 at the UM29, had a FD to the UM18 called back on a hold and ended up punting. UM was int’d on their first two 3Q poss and missed a 40 yd FG then fmbl’d at their own 38 setting up the Aztec’s only TD, 21-7 after 3Q’s. SDSt was SOD on 4&2 at the UM43 and UM went 57/4pl for a TD with 6:29 left. The Aztecs fumbled at the UM33 and on 4&10 from the UM13 had the pass dropped at the 1 at the end.

Bernard Pierce set a school record with 5 rushing TD’s as Temple, which gave Penn St a good fight the previous week, absolutely throttled Maryland leading 31-0 at the half and 38-0 before MD got a TD with 4:31 left to avoid a shutout. MD wore more questionable uniforms of yellow, black and red and QB O’Brien was sk’d for the first 3 times on the year. TU drove 74, 78, 7 (after punt blk), 93 and 66 yards for 4 TD’s and a FG on their five 1H drives while MD punted on their first 4 poss and were SOD at the TU10 on their last. MD got an 80/8pl drive for a TD with 4:31 left to avoid the shutout and TU even finished with a 1st & gl at the 2 taking a knee.

Mohamed Sanu set a Rutgers school record with 16 rec’s but for just 176 yards. Tyler Tettleton threw for 339 yards for Ohio while Rutgers only had a 410-404 yd edge they turned three 1H TO’s into TD’s for a 21-7 lead. Ohio fumbled at their own 29 setting up a 5 pl drive for a TD and OU drove 26 yds for a TD after an int. OU fmbl’d at the RU37 with 5:43 left in the half trailing 14-7 and after RU got 1 FD & punted, OU not only fumbled the punt, but RU fell on it in the EZ for a TD and a 21-7 lead with 2:30 left in the half. OU pulled within 28-20 and had the ball at their 46 but fmbl’d again setting up a RU FG and RU then went 80/13pl with a substitution infraction on 4&1 giving RU a FD at the OU11 and they got an 11 yd TD pass on the next play to put it away 38-20 with 5:00 left. OU went 88/12pl getting a TD with 1:39 left.

Teams off losses have been pummelling their FCS opponents and Boston College did just that to Massachusetts, even though they only finished with a 389-313 yd edge. Kellen Pagel is the UMass QB and he is ex-NFL QB Mike Pagel’s son. On his first pass on the first play of the game he was int’d and BC drove 47 yds for a TD. BC was up 17-0 when UM got a 100 yd KR TD to get within 17-7 but at the half BC had a 213-103 yd edge and led 24-7. BC got an 18 yd FR TD to go up 38-10 with 1:17 left in the 3Q and UM went 76/13pl. On 3&gl from the 1, Pagel was int’d and LB Pierre-Louis ret’d it 96 yds for a TD to make it 45-10 with 12:28 left. UMass gained 93 of their yards after that on their final 3 drives incl a 69/6pl garbage TD.

Ball St dominated as in the 1H they had a 333-101 yd edge. It was 7-0 when Army drove 48/12pl and missed a 32 yd FG. BS then went 80/6pl, 7/11pl, 17/6pl (after int) for TD’s and went 56/11pl settling for a 21 yd FG on the final play of the half to lead 31-0. It was 45-7 after 3Q’s and Army drove 80/10pl for a TD with 12:49 left and each team would get a TD in the final 3:00.

Toledo lost RB Adonis Thomas in the 1Q and was missing 4 starters on defense. UT appeared in control early leading 10-0 after 1Q but Syr took a 30-27 lead on a score and a missed xp which somehow was called good by the Big East officiating crew and was not overturned via replay with 2:22 left. UT’s opening drive was 75/22pl and they settled for a 20 yd FG and later UT was SOD at the Syr 31. The game was tied at 13 and 20 and UT got a TD with 10:54 left to take a 27-23 lead. Syr punted but then took over with 6:51 left and went 71/10pl for a TD and the lead. UT, after a PF face mask, had a 1st & gl at the 9 threatening for the win but settled for the tying FG and OT and was int’d in OT while SU got a FG. The BE issued a formal statement 2 hours after the game admitting the officials erred on the xp call.

Georgia dominated Mississippi more than the final as they had 25-8 FD and 475-183 yd edges. UGA was int’d at the Mississippi 41 but still led 17-0 when QB Rebs Mackey lined up at WR and threw a 38 yd TD pass on a reverse. With just 1:26 left in the half, UGA was up comfortably, 24-7 when UM ran a reverse on the PR and went 81 yds for a TD to make it 24-13. In the 3Q UGA missed a 48, 48 and 35 yd FG’s and Blair Walsh had 15 misses on 73 career FG’s and had 3 misses here. UM was SOD on 4&10 at their own 33 and Walsh finally hit a 43 yd FG with 4:16 left for the 27-13 final margin.

N Carolina appeared in control early with the opening drive going 63/8pl. RB Giovanni Bernard rushed for 155 yards incl 52 on the opening drive, 7-0. GT settled for 2 FG’s and missed 1 to make it 7-3 after 1Q. GT was up 10-7 when NC was int’d at the GT21. GT took over with 5:16 left in the half and got a TD with :11 left to make it 17-7. At the half GT did have a 271-93 yd edge. It was 28-21 when GT punted for the first time with 12:03 left. NC was int’d but got it back and Bernard’s 55 yd D run tied it with 7:22 left. GT went 61/4pl for a TD with 5:20 left, forced a punt with 3:07 left but punted with 1:35 left. NC got to their 41 but ran out of time.

The Irish had a 398-268 yd edge but only led at the half 7-6 because of a 79 yd Gray TD run. ND was int’d at the Pitt5 and missed a 39 yd FG on the 1H. They had a 258-143 yd edge. Pitt had its opening 3Q poss kept alive by roughing the P and they got a TD for a 12-7 lead. the next 4 poss were punts. They Irish took over with 11:28 left and went 85/11pl getting a TD and 2 pt conv with 6:48 left. Pitt got to the ND40 but on 4&25 fired incomplete with 2:24 left.

It was unusual to see that Miami and BG combined for 60 points yet BG only had a 310-308 yd edge. BG got an 18 yd TD drive after a fumble and MU got a 6 yd IR TD in the 1H. BG blk’d a punt and rec’d at the 1 setting up a TD and led 20-17 at the half. BG opened it to 20-17 when UM got a TD with 11:03 left but BG fumbled the KO at their own 3 and faced a 2nd & 9 when Anthon Samuel set a school record with a 96 yd TD run. The TD was also a stadium record to put it away. MU’s last shot ended on an int in the EZ with 2:20 left.

Florida St was off their big game vs Oklahoma which they had looked forward to for 9 months and also was starting backup QB Clint Trickett who looked pretty good. Trickett hit 24-38-336 yds in his first start. He led FSU 67/8pl for a 32 yd FG. Clemson went 80/7pl for a TD then roughing the P gave them a FD and they went 77/8pl for a TD. They were up 21-10 at the half with a 227-168 yd edge. FSU got a 25 yd IR TD on the 4th play of the 3Q to get back in it 21-17. After a punt CU went 70/12pl for a TD, 28-17 but FSU went 80/7pl to make it 28-23. CU got a 62 yd TD pass, 35-23 (13:06 4Q). FSU went 78/4pl for a TD, 35-30 (7:21). CU was SOD on 4&1 at the FSU24 (2:49). FSU got to the 37 but on 4&9 Trickett was sk’d with 1:37 left.

Akron finally got a win but it was vs lowly VMI who came in 0-3 in FCS play. VMI is shifting from the option to a pass offense and just in the 2nd year of that transition. UA rolled up 29-12 FD and 534-239 yd edges. UA did lead just 13-7 when running into the K gave them a FD and they continued on a for a FG to make it 16-7. At the half AU had a 359-105 yd edge.

Air Force piled up a school record 792 yards. The Falcons were coming off a bye week and a home loss so despite having Navy on deck, they put up some big points but they did give up a TD with :51 left and only won by 39 which was less than what they were favored by. AF had 37-17 FD and 595-188 yd edges. AF led 35-10 at the half and scored TD’s on their first 4 poss of the 4Q before punting with 5:57 left.

Wisconsin kept Russell Wilson in the game 3 drives into the 4Q when he got a TD to make it 52-3 with 12:28 left. South Dakota got a 44 yd IR to the UW22 with 7:37 left and their 4 yd TD pass with 6:44 left made it 52-10 but UW33 got 2 FD’s then on 2&12 Lewis ripped off a 41 yd TD run with 2:06 left. UW did have 612-173 yd and 25-9 FD edges.

Oregon St fell to 0-3 for the first time since 1996. OSU did have an 85 yd PR TD just before the half to get back in this one. It was the 2nd longest PR in school history. OSU finished with 375-357 yd and 22-17 FD edges. They went on an 82/17pl drive to open but settled for a 25 yd FG. UCLA went 80/3pl for a TD then after an int went 46/7pl for a TD and after a fumble went 4 yards for a TD and led 21-3 with :32 left in the half UCLA punted and OSU got an 85 yd PR TD. At the half UCLA had a 209-138 yd edge and led 21-10. OSU pulled back to 21-19 but missed the 2 pt conv on the final play of the 3Q. UCLA got a TD with 6:15 left but the xp was blk’d leaving OSU within 8. They were SOD on 4&8 at the LA22 with 2:12 left and UCLA got 2 FD’s and ran out the clock..

Tulane did not force Duke to punt until the 4Q and Duke finished with a 484-318 yd edge despite the fact TU drove 77/8 and 96/11 for TD’s in the final 10:37 while Duke gained just 29 yards in that span after leading 48-13.

Trent Richardson rushed for 126 yds and added 85 yds in rec plus had 24 KR yds. Alabama had a 210-89 yd edge at the half but only led 17-7 but Maze got an 83 yd PR TD, Richardson took a screen pass 61 yds for a TD and Bama rolled to a 38-14 lead after 3Q’s before playing conservative in the 4Q.

Braxton Miller got his first start for Ohio St and the passing numbers were not overwhelming as he hit just 5-13-83 yds after the Buckeyes not completing a pass to a WR the previous week, Miller hit a 32 yd pass to WR Devon Smith in the 2Q. Miller rushed for 83 yds on 17 carries. While it shows OSU only had a 336-314 yd edge and 20 point win, OSU did lead 37-10 when Colorado took over with 8:35 left and put together a 91/13pl drive incl 3&10 and 4&10 conversions and they got a garbage TD with 3:31 left. After recovering the onside kick OSU ended the game on the CU1.

Houston rolled to a 56-0 rout of Georgia St. They had a 732-241 yd edge and at the end were at the GSU1 taking a knee in the final 2 plays.

The UAB/E Carolina game was very interesting. EC turned it over 7 times but still managed a 28-23 win. UAB also had 3 TO’s incl an int in the EZ in the 2Q. EC led 14-10 at the half when they gave up a 35 yd IR TD. The Pirates still appeared poised to take control as they drove 62/6pl and 80/6pl for TD’s, 28-17. UAB QB Ellis was ? coming in and was taken off on a backboard and backup QB Perry fumbled. EC took over at the 50 and drove 50/7pl but going in for the TD with 13:29 left, Dobson fumbled into the EZ for a TB. Perry led UAB 80/6pl incl a 51 yd pass and the TD made it 28-23 with 10:58 left. EC35 was driving for the clinching score and was at the UAB15 on 2&5 when they were int’d at the 9. UAB9 took over with 7:02 left at their own 9 and went 73/17pl. Looking for the game winning TD on 4&8 from the 18, they fired incomplete in the EZ with 2:22 left and EC got 1 FD and ran out the clock. EC did have a 542-400 yd edge.

Louisiana Tech had a costly int in the 4Q or would have upset Miss St. MSU had 10 pts via spec tms as they got their first PR TD since 2007. It was a 72 yd punt that Bumphis ret’d 82 yds for a TD in the 1Q. LT led 10-7 but MSU rallied to lead 17-10 at the half. MSU took a gamble in the 3Q going for it on 4&1 at their own 34 and was SOD and LT got a TD 6pl later to tie it but then LT fumbled a punt on their own 25 setting up a MSU FG and trailed 20-17. With 8:42 left, LT got a 28 yd FG to tie. They took over at their 20 with 6:50 left and got 3 FD’s to the MSU20. On 3&5 from the 20, Isham floated a pass in the corner of the EZ which was int’d for a TB and the game went to OT. Isham tossed another int on the 2nd play of OT and MSU on 2&2 got a 17 yd TD pass to Perkins to pull out the win. LT had a 359-340 yd edge.

Western Michigan settled for too many FG’s in the 1H. WM in the 1H had a 227-200 yd edge but missed a 44 yd FG, went on an 18pl drive and missed a wide open rec on 1st & gl settling for a 26 yd FG, missed another FG, this one from 49 yds and went on a 13pl drive and settled for a 24 yd FG. At the half they only led 13-10. Illinois battled back to lead 20-13 but WM tied it with 13:58 left. UI got a 21 yd FG with 8:14 left for the lead. WM punted with 5:59 left and IU did a good job getting 3 FD’s before being SOD with 1:05 left and WM having no time-outs left. WM got 2 FD’s but too many of the plays were in bounds and they ran out of time at the IU41.

Troy won its 6th straight vs Middle Tenn despite being outgained 582-479 and not taking their first lead until 1:11 was left in the 3Q. They named the field at Veterans Memorial Stadium Larry Blakeney Field. MTSU led 28-24 when they settled for a 42 yd FG and missed it. Troy got a 75 yd TD pass on the next play and they forced 2 MTSU punts while scoring a TD and Troy led 38-28. MTSU got a TD with 3:18 left then forced a punt and got it back with 2:53 left and got to the Troy 35 but on 4&5 were int’d at the 17.

Kansas St QB Colin Klein was very impressive hitting 12-18-133 while rushing for 93 incl a crucial 26 yd run on 2&29 pinned at their own 3. K-St led 14-3 at the half and missed a 46 yd FG to open the 3Q. They still led 21-10 but UM got some big plays like a 59 yd TD run by Miller and a 34 yd TD pass to Benjamin and took a 24-21 lead. KSU answered with an 80/8pl drive for a TD. Each team punted but KSU only got off a 20 yd punt with 3:52 left and UM was able to get down to the 2 yd line. On 4&gl from the 1 Harris took off to the left and was clearly down and it didn’t even look like the ball ever crossed the goal line but he was awarded a TD. Replays marked the ball at the 1.5 yd line and KSU held on for the upset.

Southern Miss and Virginia appeared on their way to a shootout as it was 21-13 in the 2Q. UVA was int’d at the 10 and SM missed a 41 yd FG. At half SM had a 243-183 yd edge and 21-13 lead with the key play being a 4&15 faked punt from their own 8 when the P doing his rugby style punt saw open field and took off running. They went 87/14pl for the TD. UVA went on a 17pl drive to open the 3Q and settled for a 21 yd FG. SM led 27-16 when UVA got a TD with 5:18 left and the 2pt conversion pulled them within 3. SM converted on 3&9 and then on 3&23 got a 41 yd pass to the 18. They settled for a 27 yd FG with 1:31 left and only led by 6. UVA got to the 50 but on 4&4 dropped a pass.

Bud Foster has a bit of work to do on his 2:00 defense but Virg Tech was pretty dominant vs Marshall. They led 23-3 settling for a 41 yd FG with 1:10 left in the half but after holding Marshall to just 83 yds, gave up 71/3pl in the final 1:00 incl a 29 yd TD pass and only led 23-10 at the half. VT missed a 37 yd FG in the 3Q and then had a FD at the MU33 and got an 18 yd run by Wilson down to the 15 but he fumbled with 5:28 left. Once again the last minute defense allowed 52/9pl before MU was SOD at the VT29 with 1:58 left. MU had 123 yds in the 2 last minute drives and 128 the rest of the game as VT rolled up 444.

Buffalo played Connecticut much closer than the 17-3 final. In fact, it was basically an even game. BU had a 319-293 yd edge and 16-13 FD edge. CT had an early 49 yd FG blk’d but BU had 3 trips inside the 20 result in 3 pts. They missed a 30 yd FG early 2Q. BU went 57/13pl and had a 1st & gl at the 7 but settled for a 28 yd FG and led 3-0. CT got a 47 yd FG with just 2:34 left in the half to tie it and appeared content to go to the locker room that way. They got it back on their 17 with 1:13 left. They got a 15 yd screen pass then a 64 yd pass to Williams got them to the 4 where they got a TD 2pl later and shockingly led 10-3. BU went on an 80/11pl drive but on 3&gl from the 5 was int’d at the 2. The next 5 poss were punts. CT had a 3&7 at midfield when they got a 49 yd TD pass with 4:52 left to seal the game. BU punted with 3:26 left and was SOD on 4&9 at its own 33 with 1:46 left.

New Mexico St was without their starting QB Manley but his bkp proved pretty capable as Matt Christian hit 17-28-238. He also rushed 13-58. San Jose St RB Rutley rushed for 209 yards, the first Spartans to top 200 yds rushing 7 year and SJS ended a 13 game losing streak. After a fumble, NMSt drove 45/5pl for a TD with 4:12 left in the half and actually led 10-7 but SJS tied it at the half. SJS got a 64 yd TD pass to open the 3Q then onside kicked and NMS rec’d and went 53 yds for a TD to tie. NMS got a 78 yd TD run to lead 24-17 with 8:35 left in the 3Q but the Spartans went 75/14pl for a TD (3:19 3Q), 53/6pl for a TD (31-24 13:59), 55/5pl for a 31 yd FG, 34-24 and were SOD at the NMSt33 with 1:47 left. The Aggies gained 47 garbage yds at the end getting to the Spartan 20 down by 10.

For the 3rd straight year Oklahoma St came back from a half time deficit. Brandon Weeden threw for a school record 438 yds and 2 scores. A&M appeared in complete control scoring on 4 of their 1H poss while OSU had 3 punts. OSU scored TD’s on their first 3 poss of the 3Q while A&M punted, fumbled at the OSU44, was int’d at their own 23, int’d at their own 34, and punted on their first 5 poss. They trailed 30-20 when they drove 80/15pl for a TD with 2:20 left. They forced a punt with 1:47 left but turned it over again on an int on 2nd & 9. On the last play of the game OSU with :05 left opted for Blackmon to race 39 yds into the EZ for a safety which skewed the rushing stats a little as they lost 55 yds on the final 4pl and made the final 30-29.

Nevada unfortunately could not hold on to a 28-13 lead mid3Q. Texas Tech on 4&4 with :36 left got a 4 yd TD pass to pull out the 1 pt win. Doege looked stymie as he took the snap on the final score, back peddled to the 17, scanned for an open rec, and found Eric Ward for the TD. Nev alternated QB’s Cody Fajardo and Tyler Lantrip but Fajardo’s 139 yds rushing were a spark. TT was without top WR Moore for most of the game (inj’d ankle 1Q). The key to the game was that Nev went on an 83/12pl, 63/11pl and 78/12pl drives that resulted in 3 FG’s of 31, 25 and 21 yds. Not only did they settle for those FG’s, the missed the 13 yarder and lost by a point.

All week Tulsa QB GJ Kinne was doubtful to play and while he did play, he hit just 14-24-123 yards. TU did not cross midfield in the first 38:30 of the game. Boise had a 307-90 yd edge at the half leading 27-0 and scored a TD to open the 3Q to lead 34-0. Kellen Moore’s day was done and the backups played the rest where TU got 3 TD’s after that including a 59/8pl drive for a garbage TD with 3:19 left making the game appear closer than it really was.

Baylor punted on their first poss vs Rice but scored TD’s on the next 5 poss. They did have 2 short fields with a 28 yd PR setting up a 43 yd TD and a fumbled KR setting up a 21 yd TD drive. It was 35-17 when RJ3 fumbled at the end of a 26 yd run at the Rice 4 with :36 left. Baylor had a 381-211 yd edge at the half and 673-416 yd edge for the game.

Tim Flanders scored his 5th TD of the game in OT as Sam Houston St got past New Mexico. SHSt was favored in the game winning by 3. NM actually got a 98 yd KR TD to open but SHSt finished with a 547-528 yd edge. It was tied at 21 at half. Flanders’ 53 yd TD run with 7:33 left put SHSt up 42-28 but NM got a pair of TD’s (5:56, :27) to force OT. NM settled for a FG and SHSt got the Flanders’ 4 yd TD run in what would be NM HC Locksley’s final game for the Lobos.