The Quarterback's Chair

At Friday night's high school football game between Loyola and Crespi, the discussion turned to Urban Meyer and Ohio State. The topic was when would Meyer start politicking for the Buckeyes, who have won 19 straight games, to move ahead of Oregon in the BCS rankings to No.2 behind Alabama?
If the season plays out to form, all three teams--Alabama, Oregon and Ohio State--will go undefeated. But after the first BCS standings were released Sunday another player emerged in the high-stakes Bowl Championship Series race--Florida State.
The Seminoles are ranked No. 2, the Ducks No. 3 and Ohio State trails at No. 4. Jumping over one team may not be too much trouble, but two may be difficult. And right behind Ohio State at No. 5 is Missouri, quite possibly the hottest team in the nation. The Buckeyes streak may end up at 26 straight and they may still be left out of the championship gala at the Rose Bowl on Jan. 6.


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add Oregon: The Ducks, who are having another stellar season in the Pac-12, entertain visiting UCLA this Saturday at Autzen Stadium. The Bruins sustained their first loss last Saturday at Stanford. Quarterback Brett Hundley was harassed by the Cardinal defense for most of the afternoon, scoring just one touchdown after he passed for over 400 yards the week before against California.   The game matches the front-runners in the Pac-12's North and South divisions, and if both  don't lose any conference games after Saturday, they will meet again on Dec. 7 for the right to play on New Year's Day.



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add Pac-12 South: USC, under interim Coach Ed Orgeron, renewed its interconference rivalry with Notre Dame Saturday night at historic Notre Dame Stadium. The game turned into a defensive struggle after Tommy Rees, the Fighting Irish quarterback, and Marquis Lee, the Trojans' All-America wide receiver, were both knocked out with injuries. The Irish prevailed, 14-10, and handed Orgeron his first loss. USC plays Utah on Saturday at the Coliseum. So far, the Utes are the only Pac-12 team to beat Stanford.