ESPN College Football

Posted by ESPN.com's Adam Rittenberg

Sorry this is a bit late. Lot of questions about the polls this week.

Let's begin.

Michael from Akron, Ohio, writes: After all the losses in the top 10, how could Ohio State have not moved up more than they did? The AP kept them in the EXACT SAME SPOT! With Beanie & Pryor, i think they are the team we all expected them to be at the start of the season. How is Auburn or Florida ahead of OSU? Auburn struggled against Tenn & Miss St., loss to LSU, but how good is LSU really? Look at their schedule so far, they've done NOTHING to impress me. OSU just got done beating up on a previously undefeated team while Florida lost to Mississippi?? Could the AP be any more OBVIOUS that they don't want OSU anywhere near the top? That means for OSU to have a chance, florida, Auburn, and USC have to lose AGAIN! if you look at those 4 teams, only OSU's loss was to a (at the time)#1 team. Florida and USC should be out of the top 15 after losing to the teams in which they lost!

Adam Rittenberg: Ohio State deserves to be about where it is right now. The Minnesota game was the first time this season that the Buckeyes looked like the team many of us thought they would be. And the good news is a road win against Wisconsin, which has never lost at home under Bret Bielema, would bump up the Buckeyes in the polls. I had the Buckeyes at No. 13 this week in the power rankings, just ahead of Auburn. LSU has looked more impressive than Ohio State, so I wouldn't knock Auburn's loss there too much. I'll agree that there is a media bias against Ohio State after the BCS title flops. And USC gets way too much praise after repeatedly flaking out against weaker teams. If the Buckeyes start piling up some quality road wins -- Wisconsin, Michigan State, Illinois -- they'll demand more respect.

Brett from Madison, Wis., writes: Adam, Love what you do here on the blog, make class and work go by easily. My question to you is this, and it comes at a very important time in the young season. If Wisconsin can manage to win two consecutive games vs OSU/PSU at home (where Bilema has yet to lose) do they have a shot at the Rose Bowl or another BCS bowl? Wisconsin is a phenominal home team, and two night games at home will be rowdy here in madison, I have faith in us even though we left michigan with a long and painful ride home. We're hungry after this, I feel it will teach us a valuable lesson in finishing a game.

Adam Rittenberg: Glad I can be of service, Brett (my apologies to Brett's parents). After the second-half collapse in Ann Arbor, Wisconsin has to win both of those games to keep its Rose Bowl/BCS hopes alive. The Badgers are terrific at home, and the Saturday-night atmosphere will help them even more. Ohio State hasn't been to Madison since 2003 and lost that game, and I'm sure Bielema got on the players about the way they finished at Michigan. But Terrelle Pryor and Chris "Beanie" Wells will test Wisconsin's linebackers, who looked like gangbusters in the first half at Michigan, only to lose their edge in the fourth quarter.

Max from Denver writes: adam, as a die-hard badger fan, who should I be blaming saturdays meltdown on? Paul Chryst (conservative, predictable play calling the 2nd half), Bret Bielema (not giving Clay more carries, not playing Beckum until the 4th quarter), the defense (3 touchdowns in 12 minutes)?? Thanks and great work on the blog.

Adam Rittenberg: It's hard to blame Chryst, who didn't have his best two receivers -- tight ends Garrett Graham and Travis Beckum -- available for most of the game. But someone better start teaching those wide receivers how to hang onto the ball. A drop or two fewer probably saves the game for Wisconsin. As much as the offense stalled, you knew Michigan's defensive line would provide some problems. What really shocked me was the way the defense struggled in the final 20 minutes. The tackling was poor and the Badgers totally lost the edge they had earlier in the game, when every Michigan ball-carrier would pay the price.

Marc from Detroit writes: Adam, How far do you believe Michigan State will go this season with the qb play from Brian Hoyer? Honestly, waching the game from home I thought we were going to lose to a hungry, driven Indiana team who played great. Although I am happy we got the W against the toughest team we clearly played all year. Why couldnt we block #43 and #57 for Indiana? It seems like they were constantly harrassing Javon.

Adam Rittenberg: That was a wild game, but Hoyer might have had one of his better performances, which is encouraging for the Spartans going forward. Hoyer will need to improve his completion percentage and start featuring receivers other than Mark Dell (Charlie Gantt's touchdown bodes well). But this team will win or lose with the ball in Javon Ringer's hands. He's the most valuable player in the conference, and opposing defenses will do whatever they can to stop him.

Joe from Parkersburg, Iowa, writes: Adam, Let me start by saying that I am NOT calling for Kirk Ferentz's job. He's a good coach with a nice nucleus of talent coming back next year. Plus, he has a contract that makes it very costly to fire him. That said, I think some will if the team finishes without a bowl game again this year. Iowans can handle off-field distractions- if the team is winning. And we can handle losing (to some extent)- if the program is producing graduates and quality citizens. What we can't handle is losing with guys that clearly haven't learned from past mistakes. At some point, heads will roll. Okay, got that off my chest. Here's the question: If Ferentz is fired at the end of the season, what level of coach can Iowa attract? Obviously the recruiting scene here is not great, but we have nice facilities and a quality history. Would someone on the level of Butch Davis be too high to shoot for? Just wondering, even if it is premature...

Adam Rittenberg: I don't think Ferentz is going anywhere unless Iowa finishes below .500, and even then it's unlikely given his contract extension and buyout. Iowa has shown a willingness to pay, so that would attract a lot of coaches (not Davis, though). What's important is for Iowa to address the disciplinary problems both within the program and in recruiting. The hiring of a player development coach was a good step, but the coaches need to do a better job of identifying bad characters before they step on campus. The other thing Iowa needs to reevaluate is the scheme. For years I've heard other coaches talk about how Iowa sticks to its system, doesn't try to fool you and plays solid fundamental football. Vanilla has been used as a glowing term. But now I'm not so sure. Maybe a lack of mystery has become predictable? The game rewards innovation these days, and Iowa might not have enough.

John from King of Prussia, Pa., writes: What do you think PSU chances are of beating OSU in the shoe are even though PSU is ranked higher ? They always seem to be really good games despite rank.

Adam Rittenberg: The Lions have some work to do before that game
, especially since they remain unproven away from Beaver Stadium. A lot depends on how Ohio State performs from now until Oct. 25. If the Terrelle Pryor-Chris Wells backfield surges and the defense starts looking like the unit that dominated for most of last season, the Buckeyes will be tough. But I like the way Penn State's spread offense matches up against Ohio State, which struggled to contain Juice Williams last year at The Shoe. Like you mention, the Penn State-Ohio State rivalry has always been entertaining, and this year's game should be no exception.

Jason from Las Vegas writes: Why do you hate Iowa? I don't recall you visiting Iowa City during your tour of the B10 schools in August (but believe you visited every other campus), and every blog post you write about the Hawkeyes is either about the ongoing sexual assault investigation that involves two former football players, the arrest of a current football player for public intoxication or the negative aspects of the quarterback carousel used by Iowa their first four games. What gives?

Adam Rittenberg: I don't hate Iowa at all, but I wouldn't be doing my job if I didn't acknowledge the problems there. The Hawkeyes are a solid defensive football team with an excellent running back (Shonn Greene), and they finally found their quarterback in Ricky Stanzi. They don't know how to win yet, but I think they'll figure it out. As to the preseason, Iowa had only two days of media availability, which I would guess is by far the lowest among any BCS team in the country. Sorry, but that doesn't scream, "Cover us, national media!" I had conflicts on both those days, so I didn't make it. I also wasn't able to go to Penn State or Minnesota. But there's no bias against Iowa. If the Hawkeyes win games and keep their players out of jail, you'll see it reflected in my coverage.

Eric from Washington, D.C., writes: Here's an age old question: At what point is a team no longer allowed to douse their coach with Gatorade after a win? Yes, the comeback win over Wisconsin was big for Michigan and the RichRod era. But come on, this is the winningest program in NCAA history. They were at home and went down 19-0 in the first half. It would actually be too difficult to count the number of wins Michigan has had that were bigger than this one. And you end up showering the coach in Gatorade, in the beginning of the season? We have to draw the line somewhere, and Michigan definitely crossed it.

Adam Rittenberg: I see your point, but that was a huge win for Michigan and Rodriguez, especially after the team got booed off the field at halftime. What bothers me more is when coaches get the Gatorade bath before a game's outcome is in doubt. Oregon State's Mike Riley was livid when the players got him before the USC win was secure. I don't think Michigan should make a habit of dousing RichRod, but this time was excusable.

Jeff from Bloomington, Ind., writes: Adam, did you catch any of the IU-MSU game at all on Saturday? Matt Mayberry chased down Ringer at least 3 times from behind and the most noticeable was the one for a 9 yard loss. He also almost caught the long touchdown by the TE. I just want to know when he will start to be earning his respect, as he clearly is the fastest LB in the Big ten, if not top three in the country! Secondly, what about our two quarterback system, beneficial?

Adam Rittenberg: Oy, another Matt Mayberry question. Nothing against this very talented kid, but he plays on a defense that is average at best. He won't get respect until he starts making his teammates better and the defense upgrades its play as a unit. He's tied for 41st in the league in tackles -- so there's a long way to go. The two-quarterback system could help, especially with some injuries to the wide receivers. Coach Bill Lynch was very pleased with Ben Chappell during the preseason, but Kellen Lewis still should take most of the snaps. It's a nice look every now and then, as long as Lewis is comfortable at running back or wide receiver.