College Football Recap (Week 3)

We are 3 weeks into the College football season.  A few questions heading into the season have been answered, a few remain.  Lets have a look at a few of them:

•  Best QB out West?  Jake Locker or Andrew Luck.  Following Locker's 4-20 performance against Nebraska on Saturday, Jock Talk can comfortably declare Luck the Heisman candidate from the Pac-10.   At 1-2, with a terrible team behind him and 5 ranked opponents still on the schedule, Locker seems like a guarantee to graduate without ever playing in a bowl game.  In his teams two losses, Locker is 24-57 with 2 TDs and 2 INTs.  Luck has been on fire to start the season.  He has 10 TDs and 0 picks through 3 weeks and has led the Cardinal to a no. 16 ranking this season.  Luck will get a chance to humiliate the Domers this weekend before visiting Oregon on Oct. 2.  A win against the Ducks could legitimize Luck's Heisman candidacy.  
• Does the Big 10 have any competitive depth behind Ohio State? Kind of.  Four Big 10 schools are ranked behind the no. 2 Buckeyes but none of them has been particularly impressive.  Wisconsin is ranked just outside the top-10 and seems to be the most legitimate contender, but the Badgers barely escaped with a win at home against Oregon State this weekend.  Penn State, Michigan, and Iowa can all be found in the bottom half of the top-25 but neither seem ready for prime time.  Penn State is using a freshman QB with a 3-5 TD-INT ratio.  Michigan game up almost 450 yards to an FCS team this weekend and needed to use Denard Robinson the entire game to pull out a win.  The Wolverines are 3-0, but their wins and defense each look worse by the week.  Denard Robinson can't carry this team through the Big-10.  Iowa was a top ranked team before their road loss this weekend.  A team with a strong pass rush and a good running game always has a chance but there is nothing about this team that makes you think "They could really contend for a Championship".
• Can anyone catch up to Alabama and Florida in the SEC?  You can catch Florida in the East, ask me next Sunday about 'Bama in the West.  Florida seems to have taken a step back this season and the door is open for both South Carolina and a 1-2 Georgia squad when it gets back AJ Green.  In the West, Alabama seems unbeatable with Mark Ingram back.  They pay a visit to the 10th ranked Razorbacks on Saturday.  The outcome of the game will have a big say in how the SEC West unfolds and which Heisman candidate is for real this year.  I wouldn't be shocked if Ingram went for 200+ and Mallett threw for 350.  
• Will someone step up in the top heavy Big-12?  No.  Texas A&M struggled at home against FIU, Oklahoma State has humiliated two teams, but also nearly lost at home to Troy.  Texas Tech managed just 144 yards of offense against Texas.  It seems like every season someone is trying to bridge the gap between UT/OU and the rest of the South, but no other teams can stay at that level consistently.  
• The ACC is still dead, so questions about its merit are irrelevant.  Jock Talk will notify you when/if the conference is brought back to life.  The same can be said for the Big East, which we think died in 2008.  There are 3 teams from non-AQ conferences ranked in the top-15, zero from the ACC or Big East.  
• Oregon looks like a serious title contender to start this season.  Facing a 13-3 halftime deficit at Tennessee week 2, the Ducks turned on the after burners en rout to a 45-0 run in the second half.  Following this weeks 69-0 drumming of some team not worth the time to look up, LaMichael James and Co. seem ready to step up out West.  
• 3 Weeks down and its time to rank the contenders.  Kok's top 5s (ranked 1-5)
  Teams:  Alabama, Oregon, Texas, Ohio State, TCU
  Heisman hopefuls:  Ryan Mallet, LaMichael James, Mark Ingram, Denard Robinson, Andrew Luck