What we learned in high def...

Of the multitude of sportscasters/analysts out there, I'd put ESPN's Chris Spielman among the worst. He uses so much football jargon that it sounds like he's calling out military coordinates. The average person, Chris, doesn't know what a SAM linebacker, a flag-in route, a zone read or a stunt are. Still, you use these words repeatedly and in tandem with each other. No one but Peyton Manning knows what you're saying, man.

Following Mr. Spielman is ESPNU's Larry Coker. The former Miami coach brings almost no insight to the table. He might as well be your great grandfather hollering at the television. "Arrgh. Shoulda run the ball there. Arrgh." Thanks Larry. Pearls of wisdom.

Thoughts from Saturday:

Get your shots in on the Buckeyes now. Ohio State QB Terrelle Pryor is going to be unstoppable in about 12-15 games. He is so strong and his strides so long that he makes everyone else look like they are stuck in the mud. It reminds me of when Reggie Bush was running the ball at USC. With a little game experience and some more muscle on that lanky frame, watch out.

Florida State is a tale of two teams. The offense is sooooo very pathetic. At home against Wake Forest, the Seminoles turned the ball over seven times and looked like a high school unit. The defense, on the other hand, can hang with any offense in the country: Florida, Missouri, Oklahoma. The question is this: Will the offense come around soon enough? My answer is no.

I'll say it again: Missouri needs to shore up its defense if it wants to compete with the elite. QB Chase Daniel also needs to find targets other than WR Jeremy Maclin. It took over 400 passing yards from Daniel for Mizzou to overcome Buffalo (Buffalo!) in the second half.

Arizona State gets a gold star for hanging in there against Georgia. The Sun Devils didn't win, but, as Jake pointed out earlier, Georgia had to expend quite a bit of energy in the victory. I thought the game's key play was when the Georgia offense converted a long third down from inside its 10 yard line in the first half.

LSU will not repeat as national champions, not with that offense. A number of teams have defenses that are at least equal to LSUs, but much better offenses: Florida, Georgia, USC, Texas and Oklahoma, to name a few.

The ACC is stacked with teams that are good but not great: North Carolina, Virginia Tech, Georgia Tech, Boston College, Miami, Florida State, Wake Forest, Clemson, Maryland. It's like a poor-man's SEC.

I wouldn't say that Brigham Young is doing it with smoke and mirrors, but I don't foresee them getting through their conference schedule unscathed. Yes, the Cougars beat Wyoming 44-0 at home Saturday. But the score sounds more impressive than the game really was as BYU had the help of six Wyoming turnovers. The Cougars have to play better if they want to beat TCU, Utah and Air Force.

Penn State is the Big Ten's best team. I have yet to see any team come close to stopping Penn State's new hybrid spread offense. The defense ain't bad either.

Hats off to Fresno State. They play anyone, anywhere and at anytime. On Saturday they traveled to the Rust Belt to take on Toledo in a night ESPNU game (a scrappy double OT win). The Toledo game came one week after their big nationally televised home glamour game against Wisconsin.

Crystal Ball rewind... A tough week for the Crystal Ball. My Troy-upsetting-Ohio-State scenario didn't play out, Florida State lost to Wake Forest and SMU didn't show any signs of offensive improvement. Bright spots: The Crystal Ball called Ball State's upset of Indiana, LSU's win and Miam's victory over Texas A&M.