The preseason Coaches’ Poll is out, and to no surprise Alabama is still in the drivers seat. Ohio State is in 2nd and given their returning starters, seem like a dangerous team this year. Florida and Texas rank 3 and 4 respectively, and while great teams I think these rankings are a bit too high. Particularly because they knock Boise State (who went undefeated last year) to the 5th spot. After the top 5, I begin to have much bigger issues with the list.

Virginia Tech is ranked 6th which is think is very high for them, as I consider them more of a 12-15 team. I would move Oklahoma and TCU above them easily and then I believe I would look at some surprise teams. Four teams I’d look to move high up on this list are Pittsburgh, North Carolina, Georgia, and Oregon State.

Now the NCAA investigations concern me a bit at UNC, and could serve as a possible distraction. Outside of that though, this defense is STACKED they have at least 6 players who should be top 3 round draft picks starting on their defense. On offense they don’t have the same number of weapons, but Greg Little is a very good receiver and should keep the offense going. Georgia has some questions on defense and at quarterback, but I think they are poised for a breakout year. Oregon State needs to replace their quarterback, but the Rodgers brothers will keep that offense moving. They also benefit from the NCAA issues at USC and the legal problems at Oregon, significantly weakening their two biggest rivals. The Beavers have an underrated defense that should help keep games close. The Panthers are the best team of the bunch, like Oregon State they need to replace their quarterback, but RB Dion Lewis and WR Jonathan Baldwin are the best RB-WR combo in the country (and yes that includes Ingram and Jones at Alabama). In addition, the Panthers have a very good defense that should be able to replace all of their key losses.

As for teams I’m not high on and think will fall (or should be out of the Top 25 altogether) include Oregon, Penn State, and Georgia Tech. Oregon has had major off the field legal issues that culminated in the loss of their starting quarterback. Things are pretty tense right now, and I could see the Ducks having some real early season struggles. Penn State is a classic example of hype. This is a team with no set quarterback, and that lost 6 defensive starters (including their three best players), they don’t exactly scream of Top 15 material to me. I think they will stay in the top 25 like Oregon, but should be in the low 20′s. Georgia Tech on the other hand I think should be out of the Top 25 entirely. They lost their top two offensive weapons as well as their two best defenders. The ACC as a whole is a lot better this year, and without that star talent I see the Yellow Jackets struggling this season.

Both number 1 ranked Kansas and number 2 ranked Kentucky lost yesterday which not only shakes up the brackets, but adds a bit of intrigue to the final week of the NCAA regular season. The door is wide open for Syracuse to be the top ranked team in the country and go into the tournament with the easiest road. You also have to feel for Purdue, who just lost their best player, Robbie Hummel for the rest of the season. Its hard to see them capitalizing on their opportunity without Hummel in the lineup. Beyond the new look Top 25, there is quite a bit of irony and interest that Kansas (KU) and Kentucky (UK) both lost on the same day.

Kansas and Kentucky have been linked together for some time, both are predominate basketball schools, that year in year out have permanent homes in the Top 25. This season not only were KU and UK ranked 1 and 2, but with the exception of 2 weeks one or the other has been the top ranked team this entire season (mainly KU). Kansas has never been ranked lower than 3rd at any point this year, and Kentucky has always been in the top 5 as well. Now both are teetering in that range again, and could see their number 1 seeds slip away if they stumble again before the year is out or have an early exit in their conference tournament. Both KU and UK have lost to one ranked opponent and one unranked opponent. And for both of them that ranked opponent was the Tennessee Volunteers.

While these losses are a body blow to each team, I wouldn’t worry too much. Kansas has a tough matchup with K-State, but if they get past them they should be fine. I expect both teams to be number 1 seeds, and it wouldn’t shock me in the least to see either one cutting down the nets in early April.

Top 20 Teams Survive Scares:  With the exception of (19) Vanderbilt who lost to (2) Kentucky, every top 20 team that was playing yesterday put another win on their resume. As for the rest of the top 25, (22) Baylor and (25) ranked Wake Forrest both lost to unranked opponents likely knocking them out of the poll. While the top 20 teams won, many of them had some tough scares, highlighted by Vanderbilt almost knocking off Kentucky. (4) Purdue, (8) WVU and (18) Tennessee had much closer games than they should have. And 15th ranked New Mexico almost lost to the worst team in their conference, Air Force. (17) Texas survived a close rivalry game against Texas Tech as well. Overall the top 25 won’t look much different based on yesterday’s games, but at a time when teams need to play their best basketball there were some pretty underwhelming performances.

Grizzlies Suffer A Big Loss:  Just 12 minutes into his Memphis Grizzlies career, Ronnie Brewer went down with torn hamstring. Brewer was acquired by the Grizzlies from the Utah Jazz on Thursday afternoon, in the hopes of bolstering their playoff chances. This injury is a major setback for the Grizzlies, one of the more young and exciting teams in the NBA. Brewer is expected to miss between 3-4 weeks with the injury, and his absence could put a major dent in the Grizzlies playoff hopes.

Jamison Struggles In Debut With Cavs:  One of the biggest named players to be moved at the deadline was the Wizards Antawn Jamison, who was traded to the Cavs. Jamison’s first game for Cleveland was one that I’m sure he will wish to forget. Not only did the Cavs lose by 17 points, but Jamison went 0-12 from the field and scored just 2 points. Overall one game doesn’t mean much, as the deal was a steal for Cleveland. But the pressure will remain on Jamison, until he assimilates into the roster.

McGrady Puts On A Show For First Game In 2010:  Tracy McGrady put up 26 points and almost got the Knicks a victory in his first game since the 3-team trade that brought him to New York. McGrady, who hadn’t been playing with the Rockets, due to a team dispute had only played in 7 games prior to last night this season, and none in the New Year. It was an impressive performance for McGrady and somewhat hopeful for Knicks fans, who watched New York give up a lot of talent to bring McGrady and his expiring contract to the team.

By Fanspeak Contributing Writer Geoff Nelowet

The second-ranked Kentucky Wildcats will head to Memorial Gym today to take on SEC rival and nationally ranked Vanderbilt (19).  Earlier this season, Kentucky defeated Vandy by 13 at home. Kentucky is now 25-1 on the season, and Vanderbilt comes in at a respectable 20-5.

Vanderbilt is 13-0 at home this year, and they are facing by far their biggest home test of the season. Previous to this game, the Commodores’ only win over a ranked opponent came against a volatile Tennessee Volunteers team that has been up and down all year. Vanderbilt needs this win to cement an NCAA birth and a higher seed.

If Vandy wants to pull the upset, their high-scoring offense will have bring its best performance of the year, and their defense will have to show up with some degree of consistency. A.J. Oglivy, Jeffery Taylor and Jermaine Beal each average around 14 points per game, and those impressive scoring averages will not be enough against the Wildcats who not only play better defense, but score even more points per contest.

Kentucky averages 81 points per game – compared to Vanderbilt’s 79 – and more importantly, they play tougher defense, which justifies their 25 victories to only one loss. No one in the country has been able to consistently stop Kentucky’s John Wall and DeMarcus Cousins. Wall and Cousins, two one-year rentals before they undoubtedly jump to the NBA, are shoe-ins for All-American lists, and it seems unlikely that anyone on Vanderbilt’s roster will be able to slow them down.

Vanderbilt’s perfect home record will be given a blemish today, as Kentucky is simply too physical for Vandy’s finesse, jump-shooting style. Expect Vanderbilt to keep it close for at least the first half before Kentucky pulls away. Final score: Kentucky 85 Vanderbilt 74.

The Syracuse Orangemen survived a late rally by the Georgetown Hoyas, to improve to 12-2 in the conference and 25-2 overall. Early on it looked as though the 5th ranked would rout the 10 ranked Hoyas on their home floor, jumping out to a 15 point halftime lead. Syracuse led by as much as 23 points, with 12:30 left on the clock, but the Hoyas weren’t going to go down without a fight. Georgetown kept chipping away at the lead, and with a minute remaining just one point separated the two top ranked teams.  Georgetown had a chance to take the lead but missed, and Syracuse forward Kris Johnson responded, giving the Orangemen the 3 point lead with 7 seconds remaining. Free throws decided the rest of the game and Syracuse remains undefeated on the road.

With four games to go Syracuse has a half game lead on Villanova for the conference. The two teams face off for conference supremacy on February 27th (though WVU and Pitt could still overtake them, each 2 1/2 games back). Right now I think the conference is Syracuse’s when it is all said and done. The Orange finish out at Providence, home against Villanova and St. Johns, then their last game at Louisville. Providence and St. Johns are two of the weaker teams in the conference so the ‘Cuse should have no problems there. Louisville is always a dangerous team and beat Syracuse in the Carrier Dome earlier this season, but I think Syracuse can take them.

Their tough test will be at home against Villanova, not because Villanova is ranked 4th in the nation, but because its at home. Amazingly, their only losses are at home this season, in the Carrier Dome, one of the hardest venues in college basketball for away teams to play in. Syracuse is actually really lucky how their schedule turned out, with no back-to-back away games in the final stretch, and with an easy game before each of their tough matchups. Villanova on the other hand isn’t so lucky. Their final five games are a bit tougher; they are at 21st ranked Pittsburgh (and the Peterson Events Center may rival the Carrier Dome in terms of home court advantage), home vs South Florida, who has played some great basketball against top teams this year, at Syracuse and Cincinnati back to back, before finishing up with 8th ranked West Virginia at home. While anything can happen in the Big East, the Orangemen will likely hold on to their half game lead for the regular season title (the Big East Tournament is a completely different animal).

Week four of the college football season will go down as the week where National Championship dreams, and hopes for BCS Bowl bids were shattered. Seven of the Top 25 teams lost this week, and four others (Michigan, Houston, Georgia, and LSU) barely escaped with a victory. Of the seven teams that lost, four were top 10 teams that lost crucial conference games. Only one of the seven teams lost to another top 25 team (Miami to Virginia Tech). Now the Top 25 is a complete mess and no one has any answers as to why.

Some might say that the quality of college football is down this season compared to years past, but I’m not buying that. This is probably the deepest that college football has been in talented quarterbacks in quite some time. Not only do you have the big name returners (Tebow, McCoy, and Bradford) and the future first rounders like Jevan Snead, Jimmy Claussen, Terrell Pryor, and Matt Barkley (last two based on hype and potential), but there are plenty of other quality quarterbacks. Guys like Max Hall (BYU), Zac Robinson (OKST), Jake Locker (Wash), Kevin Riley (Cal), Tony Pike (Cinn) also are great college quarterbacks with some pro prospects. That doesn’t even include the dozen or so other quality college quarterbacks, capable of leading their team to victory any given week. That’s just the talent at the quarterback position. The talent level at running back and receiver, is just as good. On the defensive side of the ball the talent level might even be better. While their is plenty of talent at every position around the country, the talent along the defensive line is particularly exceptional. The the 2010 NFL Draft should have at least 10 defensive linemen taken in the first round.

With all this talent across college football the logical answer for why seven ranked teams lost this week would be that there is so much parity between the teams. Parity would make sense if it was just the Top-25 upsetting each other, but with the exception of Miami parity isn’t a good excuse as to why these teams lost this weekend. Parity or even bad luck could explain if these Top 25 teams were losing close games on last second field goals or fluke plays.  Only Ole Miss lost by less than seven points, and they were lucky it was that close considering how bad they played. Every other team simply got beat, no chance for a last second comeback or a miracle, they just got outplayed. Now I realize teams like Oregon, South Florida, and Iowa are quality college teams, but they had no business winning on Saturday. Cal went into Oregon ranked 6th in the nation, and had a firm control of the Pac-10 with USC’s loss the week before. The Golden Bears have a very good team, with the best running back in the nation in Jahvid Best leading the offense. Oregon held their “high-powered” offense to just 3 points, and a 42-3 shellacking. The Ducks embarrassed Cal despite having their best boxer running back, LeGarrete Blount, suspended for the season. There is no reason why Cal’s team but up as many points as the Ducks second stringers yesterday. South Florida is a good program, but their senior quarterback Matt Grothe is out for the season. Grothe was a very good college quarterback, and always made the Bulls a tough team to play, without him in the game Florida State should have been able to walk all over USF. In the end though it was Florida State who looked unprepared for the game, and now leaves them with two losses on the year. Iowa is a spoiler, they upset a top ranked Penn State team last year at home with a last second field goal to win 24-23. Yesterday in Happy Valley, they trounced the Nittany Lions 21-10. Penn State was a team that was supposed to compete for the Big Ten title and even the National Championship coming into this season. You can’t do either if you lose to inferior opponents at home. There is no reason why Penn State should have lost that game last night. Parity can’t be the answer as to why any of these teams lost yesterday, there was nothing equal in any of these matchups.

The real reason I think why we are seeing more and more upsets like this comes down to the coaching and systems. I think the level of coaching has gone down in college football, and we are seeing more of a utilization of special systems and athletes over fundamentals and football players. Every year teams like USC, Florida State, Penn State (and plenty more) recruit the best players in the country, and are loaded with talent. But that “talent” isn’t showing up on the field this season. I think there has been a new ‘fad’ to recruit 40 times, and size, instead of actual football skills. Instead of showing these prospects how to run perfect routes, or find the hole, these teams just game plan on getting these athletes the ball in space. Now that works against inferior opponents, but when you go up against smarter coaches who play fundamental football, they can find a way to stop it. Its also a reason why these storied football programs, have produced a dearth of NFL talent in recent years. USC is the best example, of all the 4 and 5 star recruits they have on their offense, there best player is actually a transfer from Arkansas, WR Damian Williams. I think until teams start going back to basics in college football, we will continue to see a higher number of major upsets.

With both teams ranked in the top 25 and the higher seed (according to the AP poll, they are flipped in the USA Today poll) at home it would seem like the smart pick would be the Boise State Broncos, but I think the Cinderella team is going to have their hands full tonight. As much as I love the Broncos I can’t pick them over the Ducks tonight. It boils down to one major ‘BIG’ reason, 6’2″ 240 lbs. senior running back LeGarrette Blount. Despite sharing time with Jeremiah Johnson last year, Blount still managed to rush for over 1,000 yards and lead the team with 17 touchdowns. Blount’s size makes him a power back, but before you label him a “three yards and a cloud of dust” running back, remember he averaged 7.3 yards per carry last season. Joining Blount on offense is the dual threat junior quarterback Jeremiah Masoli. Masoli proved last year that he could handle the Oregon offense and really sparked the Ducks success. The Ducks weakness on offense is their receivers, but Masoli finds a way to make big plays regardless of who he’s throwing the ball to.

The Broncos aren’t without hope though. They return one of the most intriguing college quarterbacks in redshirted sophomore Kellen Moore. Moore last season took the college world by storm, by throwing for almost 3,500 yards and 25 touchdowns. He was extremely efficient with a completion percentage of 69.4 that led to a 157.11 QB rating (which ranked 11th in the nation). They also have a pair of quick running backs that could give the Ducks some problems on the perimeter in juniors James Avery and D.J. Harper. The Boise State defense has some weaknesses in the front 7, but their strong secondary should give Masoli fits.

Overall I think Oregon’s ground game will be too much for the Broncos to handle. I don’t think they have the speed to contain Masoli, or the talent up front to stop Blount. While Moore and company should keep Boise State in the game, I think Oregon’s talented line backing corps will stifle the Broncos’ ground game. Also I think the Ducks should be able to get solid pressure on Moore that should keep him from being the winning quarterback. I think it will be a close high scoring game overall, with the Ducks coming out ahead 38-31.