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College Football Week 10: Upstart Northwestern hands Iowa its first loss, 5 other teams are upset

Posted on by admin

Undefeated Iowa suffered the biggest loss as one of six AP Top 25 teams left upset during week nine of college football competition. The others were Oregon, Penn State, Notre Dame, Oklahoma and California.

The eighth-ranked Iowa Hawkeyes (now 9-1) had their 13-game winning streak, the second-longest in the nation, stopped at home after losing quarterback Ricky Stanzi to an ankle injury. in the second quarter as an upstart Northwestern team posted a methodical 17-10 upset victory.

Iowa had been making a career of throwing comebacks and winning close games all season; it seemed only a matter of time before they were discovered. Who knew Northwestern would be the one to do the job? For the 6-4 Wildcats, the victory over a Top-10 opponent was their first since defeating No. 6 Ohio State 33-27 in overtime five years ago, and their win over Iowa made them eligible to bowl. this season.

Northwestern led 14-10 at the half and added a field goal in the fourth quarter as Iowa’s offense never really got going after losing Stanzi. The Hawkeyes, who had climbed as high as seventh in the AP Top 25 poll, dropped to 13th.

No. 7-ranked Oregon’s upset 47-20 win over fourth-ranked Southern California last week, which lifted the Ducks (now 7-2) into the national title bracket, was short-lived as they were stunned at home 51-42 by Stanford. Cardinal (6-3), who became bowl eligible in the Pac 10 contest. Despite the upset victory, Stanford failed to climb into the AP Top 25 and Oregon fell to 16th.

Oregon lost because it collided with a runaway diesel named Tony Gerhart, the senior running back from Stanford who rushed for a school record 223 yards and scored 3 touchdowns. Gerhart is a battering ram waiting to happen; he can run through tacklers.

Penn State (8-2), No. 11 and a 5-point favorite at home, was beaten 24-7 by No. 15-ranked Ohio State, putting the Buckeyes in a tie for first place with Iowa at 5-1 in the Big Ten Conference race.

No. 19 Notre Dame (6-3) was beaten at home 23-21 by the 41st-ranked Navy (7-3). Navy led 21-7 after 3 quarters, and two fourth quarter touchdowns by the Fighting Irish were not enough to overcome the loss against the Midshipmen.

No. 20 Oklahoma (5-4) suffered an upset 10-3 loss at the hands of the 35th-ranked Nebraska Cornhuskers (6-3), who became bowl eligible. The Sooners have had a tremendous drop from the top this year, also losing to Brigham Young, Miami (FL) and Texas. There’s trouble in the Soonerland.

No. 23 California (6-3) was the favorite at home, but was defeated 31-14 by the Oregon State Beavers (6-3), who became bowl-eligible in the process. California never fails to disappoint; the Bears, who are always predicted to be better than they are, continually lose at the wrong time, often to the wrong team.

Eight other qualified teams went on to win games away from home.

No. 5 Boise State (9-0) remained undefeated by winning 45-35 over Louisiana Tech (3-6), which is ranked 96th. No. 6 Texas Christian (9-0) also remained undefeated by scoring at least two touchdowns in 3 of 4 quarters in a 55-12 rout of No. 95-ranked San Diego State (4-5). . No. 12-ranked Southern California (7-2) won 14-9 in a close contest with No. 53-ranked Arizona State (4-5).

Houston (8-1), ranked 13th, posted a narrow 46-45 win over Tulsa (4-5), ranked 92nd. The Houston Cougars have the second-best major college scoring offense in the country (41 points per game), but they have absolutely no defense, allowing opponents like Tulsa to score big and close out games. 18th-ranked Oklahoma State (7-2) won 73rd-ranked Iowa State 34-8 (5-5).

Virginia Tech (6-3), ranked 22nd, won 16-3 over East Carolina (5-4), ranked 67th, to become eligible for the bowl. Wisconsin (7-2), ranked No. 24, won with a field goal 31-28 over Indiana (4-6), ranked No. 91. Brigham Young (7-2), ranked No. 25, scored a 52-0 shutout of No. 108-ranked Wyoming (4-5).

Nine other qualified teams continued to advance by winning home games. They included:

No. 1 Florida (9-0) remained unbeaten as the Gators took care of business with a 27-3 win over Vanderbilt (2-8) ranked 119th in the world. No. 2 Texas (9-0) also remained undefeated with a dominant 35-3 victory over Central Florida (5-4) ranked No. 83 in the world.

No. 3 Alabama remained 1 of just 6 undefeated teams with a trademark 24-15 win over No. 9 LSU (7-2). A 73-yard receiving and touchdown run by second-year receiver Julio Jones in the fourth quarter didn’t hurt at all. Alabama is now 9-0 for the second straight season, which hasn’t happened since the glory teams of 1973 and 1974.

Alabama’s victory, which was favored by 7.5 points, was huge in that the Crimson Tide continues on an accelerated course with Florida (9-0) ranked No. 1 for the SEC Championship and a spot in the Game. National Championship game, likely against Texas (9-0) if the Longhorns remain undefeated.

No. 4 Cincinnati (9-0) remained undefeated with a narrow 47-45 win over 52nd-ranked Connecticut (4-5). The Huskies scored 3 touchdowns in a fourth quarter comeback attempt, but it wasn’t enough. No. 10 Georgia Tech (9-1) needed a 30-27 overtime win to defeat 55th-ranked Wake Forest (4-6). No. 14 Pittsburgh (8-1) scored in all quarters in a 37-10 win over No. 93-ranked Syracuse (3-6).

No. 16 Miami of Florida (7-2) had at least two touchdowns in 3 of 4 quarters to win 52-17 over 65th-ranked Virginia (3-6). No. 17 Utah (8-1) won 45-14 over New Mexico (0-9), which is ranked 164th and has not won. No. 21 Arizona (6-2) became bowl eligible with its 48-7 blowout over 115th-ranked Washington State (1-8). The Wildcats led 34-zip at the half and followed through in the second half instead of playing harder and winning even more.

Eight more unranked teams became bowl eligible this week. They included Mississippi, Clemson, Air Force, Fresno State, Northern Illinois, Kansas State, Middle Tennessee and North Carolina.

Mississippi (6-3) won 38-14 over 109th-ranked 1-AA Northern Arizona (5-4). Clemson (6-3) won 40-24 over No. 39-ranked Florida State (4-5), hastening the end of Bobby Bowden’s historic career with the Seminoles. If Bowden doesn’t retire this year, he may be fired. The Air Force (6-4) crushed the Army 35-7 in 144th place (3-6). Fresno State (6-3) beat Idaho (7-3) 31-21. A 14-point surge in the fourth quarter wasn’t enough for the Vandals to pull off another victory.

Northern Illinois (6-3) gave Eastern Michigan (0-9), ranked 179th and winless, a 50-6 drubbing. Kansas State won 17-10 over state rival Kansas (5-4). Middle Tennessee (6-3) posted a 48-21 win over Florida International (2-7), which is ranked 138th. North Carolina (6-3) won 19-6 over Duke (5-4), which is ranked 69th.

Four other teams should be noted. Temple (7-2) won his seventh straight game 34-32 over Miami of Ohio (1-9). Troy (7-2) won 40-20 over Western Kentucky (0-9), ranked 182nd and winless. Western Kentucky is the worst major varsity team this year; the Hilltoppers (now Bottom Droppers) are so bad you can smell them in Idaho.

Auburn (7-3) scored a 63-31 blowout victory over poor 1-AA Furman (4-5), who is ranked 168th, to move up in the AP Poll at No. 25. Southern Methodist ( 5-4 and ranked 80th) surpassed the .500 mark with a narrow 31-28 home victory over Rice (0-9), who is ranked 165th and did not win.

Copyright © 2009 Ed Bagley

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