Welcome to Week Nine of The Lowe Down. Wow. That’s about all there was left to say about Clemson’s butt whipping at the hands of Florida State. From the moment the Tigers made their glamorous entrance on national television into Clemson Memorial Stadium — which was comparable to some of Apollo Creed’s intros in the Rocky series — to the final horn sounded, the Seminoles ran over, through and around the hapless Tigers en route to a 51-14 win. FSU quarterback Jameis Winston turned in a remarkable performance spearheading the Seminoles high-octane offense. The redshirt freshman, who was one of the most talked about players in Alabama’s recent prep history while a student at Hueytown High School (near Birmingham), smoked one of the best pass defenses in America to the tune of 444 yards passing and three touchdowns. He also handled the big stage like a pro and proved to all watching that the Seminoles will be a force to reckon with from here on out. Last week’s record was 14-6, bringing the yearly record to 125-32. To the games we go …
Friday, October 25
Boise State 24, BYU 38
Saturday, October 26
Tennessee (4-3, 1-2 SEC) at No. 1 Alabama (7-0, 4-0 SEC) 2:30 p.m. CT
Since the dramatic win at Texas A&M, all Alabama has done is outscore its opponents 201-16 in its last five games. Much of that success can be attributed to great defensive play, but the Crimson Tide ‘O’ is averaging over 40 points per game and seems to be getting better each time out. One key for Alabama’s offensive success has been the improved play along the line. Virginia Tech’s D-line (which is really good) gave the Crimson Tide problems in the season opener. But since that game Alabama has played much better up front. Maybe that’s due to Chad Lindsay replacing Ryan Kelly at center when Kelly was injured. Or maybe it’s just due to the guys developing some cohesion. Whatever the reason, the Crimson Tide has made strides up front. Against the Vols, Alabama should be able to use that improvement to its advantage considering the problems Tennessee has had defending the run. But the Crimson Tide needs to be wary of Vols defensive end Marlon Walls and tackle Daniel McCullers (6-8, 365), who have really come on of late. Conversely, Tennessee’s offensive front is arguably the best in the SEC, so it will be interesting to see how well Alabama’s front seven matches up. The Vols are fresh off a big win over South Carolina and first-year coach Butch Jones has his team believing it can compete in any game. Will that translate here? Perhaps, but it won’t be enough to snap Alabama’s six-game winning streak in the series.
The Lowe Down: Tennessee 17, Alabama 31
NC State (3-3, 0-3 ACC) at No. 2 Florida State (6-0, 4-0 ACC) 2:30 p.m. CT
When I saw Jameis Winston play against Pitt in FSU’s season opener for the first time, I came away thoroughly impressed with his skills. So much so that I instantly considered the Seminoles a national title contender. But last week I picked Clemson to take down Famous Jameis and the ‘Noles at home due to the sheer factor of the Tigers experience playing in big games. And man was I wrong. The Seminoles proved they are a player in the BCS title hunt with their 51-14 beat down of Dabo Swinney’s club, and they will look to continue their run to perfection this weekend against an NC State team that has beaten them the last two years. Something tells me that won’t happen this year.
The Lowe Down: NC State 17, Florida State 48
No. 10 Texas Tech (7-0, 4-0 Big 12) at No. 15 Oklahoma (6-1, 3-1 Big 12) 2:30 p.m. CT
If Texas Tech really wants to garner some national attention, Kliff Kingsbury’s bunch will need to storm into Norman and upset the Sooners. Is that possible? Sure. And here’s why. Quarterback Davis Webb, who set the school’s single-game freshman record for passing yards in last week’s win at West Virginia, has looked sharp throwing the football, and tailback Kenny Williams, tight end Jace Amaro and receiver Eric Ward, along with a sturdy offensive line, will pose a lot of challenges for Oklahoma’s defense. The Sooners have also struggled offensively since their embarrassing loss to Texas so the Red Raiders ability to rush the passer will be a major factor.
The Lowe Down: Texas Tech 31, Oklahoma 24
No. 12 UCLA (5-1, 2-1 Pac-12) at No. 3 Oregon (7-0, 4-0 Pac-12) 6:00 p.m. CT
For a team that dominates its opposition as much as Oregon has over the last few years it’s almost dumbfounding that the team has yet to win a national title. Game after game the Ducks are favored by 30-50 points and game after game they somehow find a way to rout the opponent. But maybe not in this spot. UCLA QB Brett Hundley is one of the most talented players in America, and Jim Mora’s defense has the athletes to make its share of plays. It will take a perfect storm to beat the mighty Ducks, but the Bruins should make a game of it.
The Lowe Down: UCLA 35, Oregon 48
No. 21 South Carolina (5-2, 3-2 SEC) at No. 5 Missouri (7-0, 3-0 SEC) 6:00 p.m. CT
With a win over South Carolina, Gary Pinkel’s team will be in prime position to win the East and play in the school’s first ever SEC Championship Game. Last week, redshirt freshman Maty Mauk made his first career start and passed for 295 yards and a score in Missouri’s big win over Florida. This week, though, Mauk will have to deal with Jadeveon Clowney — who finally made a big impact for South Carolina last week against Tennessee — and an angry Gamecocks team hungry to get back in the win column. Dylan Thompson will start in place of the injured Connor Shaw at quarterback but don’t expect a big drop off in production. In fact, Thompson is little bit better passer, which may benefit the Gamecocks in what could potentially be a high-scoring affair.
The Lowe Down: South Carolina 38, Missouri 31
Florida Atlantic (2-5, 1-4 C-USA) at No. 11 Auburn (6-1, 3-1 SEC) 6:30 p.m. CT
Yeah, yeah, yeah, we know this is going to be a blow out. But hats off to the Auburn team for its win at Texas A&M last weekend. Quarterback Nick Marshall orchestrated his second game-winning drive of the season, and the Tigers defense preserved the win by stopping Johnny Manziel and the Aggies’ offense on the game’s final drive. Before the season began it was unclear what type of team Gus Malzahn would have in his first year on the job. After seven games it’s pretty obvious that he has his team believing it can beat anybody, anywhere, anytime. That’s a testament to the Auburn players buying into what their coaches have been teaching them and working hard to do all the little things it takes to win. This Tigers team will be difficult to deal with the rest of the way and that will show Saturday night in front of the home fans.
The Lowe Down: Florida Atlantic 14, Auburn 54
Penn State (4-2, 1-1 Big Ten) at No. 4 Ohio State (7-0, 3-0 Big Ten) 7:00 p.m. CT
If Ohio State wants to reach the BCS title game it will need to start blowing some teams out to get there. Right now the Buckeyes strength of schedule is just too weak to potentially leapfrog a team like Alabama, Oregon or Florida State if all remain unbeaten. With that being said, look for Penn State to give the Buckeyes all they want here. The Nittany Lions are fresh off a bye week, have an offense that can score points behind freshman QB Christian Hackenberg and a decent run defense. Those three factors should make this an entertaining game.
The Lowe Down: Penn State 23, Ohio State 29
No. 6 Stanford (6-1, 4-1 Pac-12) at No. 25 Oregon State (6-1, 4-0 Pac-12) 9:30 p.m. CT
The Cardinal kept their conference and national title hopes alive with a win over a scrappy UCLA squad last weekend, but David Shaw’s crew faces another stiff test in Oregon State. Although the Beavers slipped up to lowly Eastern Washington in the season opener, they’ve used a potent offense, captained by quarterback Sean Mannion, who leads the country in passing yards, and an opportunistic defense (19 takeaways) to bounce back with six straight wins. But unfortunately for Oregon State, it will have trouble with the balance offense and rugged defense of Stanford — and that will ultimately prove costly.
The Lowe Down: The Lowe Down: Stanford 38, Oregon State 17
In other Saturday games:
UConn 13, No. 23 UCF 38
No. 19 Oklahoma State 31, Iowa State 21
No. 24 Nebraska 31, Minnesota 27
Vanderbilt 23, No. 16 Texas A&M 48
Georgia Tech 36, Virginia 20
Duke 14, No. 14 Virginia Tech 31
No. 8 Baylor 78, Kansas 20
Furman 7, No. 13 LSU 58