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About the Top 25
Downtown Magazine's NCAA College Football Top 25 is not a poll like AP or USA Today/Coach's polls, or a computer generated rating system like the BCS, but an objective ranking system based on visual and statistical observations of college football teams in Division 1-A.
The rankings, published weekly - usually on Monday - are representative of what our expert editors believe to be the best teams in college football respective of conference play and strength of schedule leading up to the traditional bowl games. Downtown Magazine strives to present the Top 25 in a manner that is objective, non-political and respectful of the standards of NCAA football. |
Bowl Matchups Set as Texas, USC seek Roses
Army Stays the Course, loses 4th straight to Navy; LSU, Va. Tech flunk out
In college football's final week of the regular season, the two teams that began the season at the top ended that way, as Texas and USC won convincingly to set up one of the most anticipated national championship games of all time.
In the Big 12 Championship, the Longhorns were lights out in a 70-3 romp over Big 12 North champion Colorado.The Buffaloes had backed into the title game when Iowa State lost to Kansas the previous week even as Nebraska was making mincemeat of the Buffs, 30-3. Colorado came into the game off consecutive losses and the Longhorns took little time to establish their dominance.
Texas scored two TDs in the first quarter, but really got going after Colorado scored a field goal at the start of the second stanza. The Longhorns scored four touchdowns in both the second and third quarter, shutting out the Buffs the rest of the way. Quarterback Vince Young hit on 14 of 17 passes for 193 yards and 3 touchdowns. He also ran 8 times for 57 yards and another score.
Out on the coast, USC and UCLA resumed their annual rivalry, but the contest was more one-sided than even the most jaded Bruin skeptics expected. Likely Heisman Trophy winner Reggie Bush romped through the UCLA defense for 260 yards on 24 carries, leading the Trojans to an overwhelming 66-19 win and a perfect 12-0 record on the season.
Bush scored twice, as did backfield mate Lendell White, while quarterback Matt Leinart spread the ball around, hitting 8 different receivers as he hit on 21 of 40 throws for 233 yards and 3 TDs. UCLA could only muster two Justin Medlock 2nd quarter field goals before the Trojans were through with their scoring outburst. UCLA scored a couple of times in the 4th quarter, but by then the outcome had already been decided.
With USC and Texas running up huge scores against supposedly quality opposition, the final regular season Downtown Magazine Top 25 rankings puts them in a tie for the #1 spot. Texas had been expected to romp the Buffaloes, but the performance by USC and their star back Bush, pushed them into a dead heat which will be decided on January 4th when the two teams meet in the Rose Bowl at Pasadena to determine the national championship.
Elsewhere, the Midshipmen of Navy sailed past the overmatched Cadets of Army, 42-23, in the annual clash of the nation's top military establishments. Navy's option offense has proven unstoppable all season, and this was no different. Navy rolled up 490 yards rushing, with fullback Adam Ballard going for 192 yards on 18 carries. Ballard had touchdown runs of 28 and 67 yards. Quarterback Lamar Owens added 99 yards rushing and three TDs in the lopsided win.
In the SEC Championship, the Georgia Bulldogs reminded everyone why they were ranked as high as 4th during the regular season with a resounding 34-14 victory over slight favorite LSU. The Bulldogs blended stout defense and an explosive passing attack to bury the Tigers and earn their way into the Sugar Bowl, where they will face West Virginia.
The ACC championship game was even more of an upset, as Florida State, bounced back from three straight losses and handed the Virginia Tech Hokies a 27-22 beating. The game was not nearly as close as the score indicates as the Seminoles turned a 3-3 half time tie into a 27-3 lead before allowing some late scores for Tech. The loss for the Hokies was huge, as they had been more than 14 point favorites going in, but could not penetrate the Florida State defense. With the win, Bobby Bowden's squad will represent the ACC against the Big 10 representative, Penn State, coached by his contemporary, Joe Paterno, who captured the Big 10 with a 10-1 record.
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