Where are all the great wins?

Mitchell: Where are all the great wins?

Where are all the great wins?

By Russ Mitchell
CollegeFootballNews.com
Posted Nov 14, 2011

Mitchell Week 11 Thought: Where are all the great wins?


By Russ Mitchell
Follow me on Twitter @russmitchellcfb


Where are all the great wins?

At the top of the pecking order there’s LSU, and then there’s everyone else. And no, it’s not even close Cowboys fans.

To really appreciate the separation you need look no further than the “body of work”, as one prominent college football analyst likes to parrot.

Sure, OSU is 10-0, just like their fabled Tiger brethren to the south. But that’s where the comparison ends. LSU has beaten the No. 3 Alabama Crimson Tide and the No. 4 Oregon Ducks – both games on the road, and the latter in dominating fashion.

Okie State’s best victory is a touchdown game against No. 17 (and dropping like Italian Debt) Kansas State, who’s best win itself is either a tight victory at home against unranked Missouri or a four OT thriller against unranked Texas A&M. That's it. Kansas State is overrated at No. 17, and that’s OSU’s best win.

Don’t laugh, Bama fan – until Eddie Lacy’s run in the second quarter of the MSU game, you’d gone 18 consecutive possessions without a touchdown. Your quarterback AJ McCarron is highly suspect – against LSU he had only four passes that a receiver caught more than four yards down field. The Tide’s best win is No. 6 Arkansas (more on that in a moment), and there are questions about the Hogs. No, not Penn State…PSU might be 8-2, but it’s best win is 6-4 Illinois, and for those of you that endured watching all four of those snow-tinged quarters, we use the term “best” loosely.

Hey Oregon, nice win on the road against a Stanford team that has beaten 6-4 Washington and USC. Yes, USC is 8-2, with those mighty wins over – wait for it – Minnesota, Utah, Syracuse, Arizona, Cal, ND, Colorado & Washington. Yuck. And Stanford is Oregon’s best win…by far.

Arkansas’ best win is either an Auburn team that’s surrendered 166 points in its four losses or a South Carolina team without Lattimore and Garcia. Yuck x2.

Oklahoma’s best win? They don’t have one. Trouncing the aforementioned plummeting KSU perhaps? Missouri? A&M? Florida State? Only 7-3 FSU's ranked – at No. 25. Stop - don't say Baylor - have you even bothered to look at Baylor's wins this year?

Virginia Tech’s best win? In Hotlanta this past Thursday vs. the 7-3, and unranked, Georgia Tech Yellowjackets.

Only No. 7 Clemson really has a body of work to support its top ten claim; and even that’s lost a bit of its glow, given Va. Tech’s inflated record and wins over FSU and Auburn being somewhat less prominent.

Where are all the great wins indeed?