ESPN College Football

Every Saturday during the 2007 season, the ESPN.com college football team will be blogging live from Bristol, bringing you inside information and commentary from our writers and analysts who are at the top games at stadiums across the country. Refresh this page often to keep track of all the entries throughout the afternoon.

Have a question or comment on today's action? E-mail us and let us know what you're thinking.

12:01 p.m.: Who's ready for some football? We've got a full day's worth of great games -- and by Sunday morning, we'll know a lot more about what the national landscape looks like.

12:05 p.m.: Wisconsin-Illinois kicked off on ESPN. Meanwhile, Syracuse is looking to score its second upset of the season against West Virginia.

12:11 p.m.: How important is this game for the Badgers and Illini? Here are a few interesting stats from ESPN Research:
• As of right now, there is just one more ranked opponent on the schedule for Illinois after this game, so with a win over the Badgers, the Illini could certainly find themselves among the Big Ten title contenders. Illinois’ other remaining game against a ranked team is on November 10th at Ohio State.

• Within Wisconsin’s 14-game win streak is a run of 9 consecutive conference victories, the longest in school history. The Badgers have statistically dominated opponents during that stretch. However, Wisconsin’s last 3 Big Ten wins have all been by 4 points or less.

12:15 p.m.: West Virginia gets on the board first. Could be a long day for the Orange. Bowling Green is up 3-0 on Boston College.

12:22 p.m.: ESPN.com's Mark Schlabach from Wisconsin-Illinois
CHAMPAIGN, Ill -- It's been a fast-moving first quarter between Illinois and No. 5 Wisconsin so far. Each team has had one possession -- the Illini went three-and-out and the Badgers moved past midfield before punting. Illinois is working on its second possession, and they're already trying to create mismatches for freshman receiver Arrelious Benn. He lined up at tailback on first down and gained 7 yards after taking a handoff. On second down, Juice Williams found Benn for an apparent 17-yard gain, but it was reviewed by the instant replay official, who ruled he was bobbling the football as he ran out of bounds. It's a warm day here in Champaign (forecast calls for temps near the high 80s), certainly warmer than when I was here back in December.

12:27 p.m.: Rashard Mendenhall's 32-yard scamper puts the Illini on the board with a 7-0 lead. Other scores from around the nation:

Boston College 7, Bowling Green 3
West Virginia 7, Syracuse 7
Kansas State 7, Kansas 0
North Carolina 10, Miami 0
Northwestern 7, Michigan State 6

12:35 p.m.: Illinois' defense is really rattling Wisconsin. The Badgers missed a 38-yard field goal badly after Tyler Donovan and PJ Hill couldn't get anything going.

12:37 p.m.: Pat White rushed for another TD to give West Virginia the lead over up and down Syracuse.

12:39 p.m.: From ESPN Research: This is Rashard Mendenhall's ninth consecutive game with a touchdown, dating back to 2006.

12:41 p.m.: In helping the Wolverines to a 10-0 lead against Eastern Michigan, Mike Hart broke the school's all-time career rushing record. He gained 49 yards in the first quarter.

12:49 p.m.: Straight from the mailbag:
From Brian in Houston: With everyone, and I mean EVERYONE, picking Oklahoma, shouldn't a voice of reason realize that if everyone was right, Vegas wouldn't be in business? I think Oklahoma has to fight tooth and nail and wins by a field goal.

A Texan taking Oklahoma. Lee Corso picking LSU. Anyone else have bold predictions?

12:56 p.m.: More trouble for Wisconsin in Champaign -- the Illini just tagged on a field goal, boosting their lead to 10-0. Should Badger fans be worried? Considering that Wisconsin has been tied or trailed at the end of the first quarter of every game this season, maybe not.

1:05 p.m.: Bowling Green is hanging around with Matt Ryan and the Eagles. BC has a 14-10 lead halfway through the second quarter. Other scores from around the nation:

Maryland 14, Georgia Tech 3
North Carolina 20, Miami 0
West Virginia 21, Syracuse 7
Northwestern 13, Michigan State 13
Auburn 7, Vandy 0

1:10 p.m.: Arrelious Benn made an insane catch from Juice Williams to set up Illinois' second TD of the game. The Illini have a 17-0 lead midway through the second quarter.

1:14 p.m.: From ESPN Research: Surprised by the throttling of Butch Davis' former team by his current team? You shouldn't be. Although the Miami-UNC series is tied at 5-5 all time, the Heels are undefeated at home (2-0) against the Canes. They won in October of 2004 and in November 1963.

1:20 p.m.: J Leman is putting on a defensive clinic against Wisconsin -- and Badgers QB Tyler Donovan is paying the price.

1:29 p.m.: From ESPN Research: K-State has a 14-7 lead against in-state rival Kansas … but even the fact that Kansas scored in Manhattan is newsworthy. It's the first TD the Jayhawks have scored at K-State since 1999. This the most points allowed in game by Kansas this season -- the most the Jayhawks allowed prior to Saturday was 13 against Toledo on Sept. 15. Coming into today, the Jayhawks had allowed a total of 23 points for the entire season.

1:35 p.m.: As we near the half in the noon games, a few teams are separating themselves:

Boston College 38, Bowling Green 10
Maryland 21, Ga. Tech 3
North Carolina 27, Miami 0
West Virginia 31, Syracuse 7
Auburn 21, Vandy 0
Kansas 14, K-State 14

1:39 p.m.: From ESPN Research: Boston College's 38 points is the Eagles' season high for points in a single game this season. BC scored 38 points in its season opener vs Wake Forest on Sept. 1.

1:48 p.m.: Miami has lost eight conference games in 3+ seasons in the ACC (since 2004). Their largest ACC loss was by 10 points, to Virginia last season. The other seven were by seven points or less.

1:53 p.m.: We have kickoff in the second half of Eastern Michigan-Michigan. The Wolverines are letting EMU stay in the game, with just a 16-8 lead.

1:58 p.m.: ESPN.com's Mark Schlabach from Wisconsin-Illinois
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. -- Wisconsin couldn't punch it into the end zone near the end of the first half at Illinois, but the Badgers came up with a pair of field goals to keep the pressure on the Illini. Remember, Illinois led Wisconsin 21-3 near the end of the first half a year ago in Madison, Wis., before the Badgers rallied for a 30-24 victory. Wisconsin has to do a better job with its running game. The Badgers ran 14 times for only 39 yards in the first half, with P.J. Hill running 12 times for 30 yards. Wisconsin's defense is having a hard time slowing down the Illini attack, especially running back Rashard Mendenhall, who had 100 rushing yards and 33 receiving yards in the first half. He scored each of the Illini's touchdowns. The Badgers get the football to start the second half, so the Illini might feel even more pressure early in the half.

2:04 p.m.: Tough loss for the Badgers: Luke Swann is out with a knee injury -- and now P.J. Hill is on the bench. Wisconsin will need them on offense to come back from the 17-6 deficit.

2:08 p.m.: Could another upset be in the works? A 10-yard rushing TD by Andy Schmitt put Eastern Michigan within two points of the Wolverines.

2:10 p.m.: Wisconsin scores its first touchdown of the game on a bomb from Tyler Donovan to Kyle Jefferson to put the Badgers within a score of the lead. That's 13 unanswered points by the Badgers.

2:19 p.m.: Wisconsin-Illinois was supposed to feature two of the premier running backs in the nation, but so far it's been all Rashard Mendenhall. He has scored all three of Illinois' touchdowns and has 118 yards rushing, 33 yards receiving.

2:28 p.m.: Kansas is up 21-14 in Manhattan. Boston College, Auburn and West Virginia are winning in routs. Here's a look at some of the other scores from around the country:

Michigan 26, Eastern Michigan 14
North Carolina 27, Miami 13
Northwestern 27, Michigan State 27

2:32 p.m.: Playing through pain, P.J. Hill scored his first TD of the game to put Wisconsin within a score. Illinois thwarted Wisconsin's 2-point conversion attempt.

2:37 p.m.: What a comeback by Miami. As quickly as the Canes fell behind 27-0, they've erased that deficit and are now trailing by just seven points.

2:39 p.m.: From ESPN Research: Boston College has increased its lead to 52-10. Matt Ryan already has four TDs on the game -- his second such game this season. He had never thrown for more than three TDs in a game before this season.

2:45 p.m.: ESPN.com's Mark Schlabach from Wisconsin-Illinois
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. -- Bad news for the Illini, who are trying to upset No. 5 Wisconsin at Memorial Stadium. Receiver Arrelious Benn, one of the country's top freshmen, appeared to dislocate his right shoulder while trying to stiff-arm Badgers linebacker DeAndre Levy near the end of the third quarter. On second-and-10 at the Illinois 37, Benn took a handoff from quarterback Juice Williams and ran to his left. After clutching Levy's face mask, Benn stopped and fell to the turf. He walked off the field and is still sitting on the Illini's bench. Illinois leads 24-19 early in the fourth quarter.

2:50 p.m.: Kevin Mitchell's interception of Tyler Donovan's pass is exactly what the Illini needed to maintain momentum and the lead.

2:54 p.m.: Mark Wangrin from Texas-Oklahoma
DALLAS -- Fifty minutes before kickoff at the Cotton Bowl and the skies are gloomy and the air heavy with humidity, but the rain has held off except for intermittent light drizzle. Both teams have come out for warmups and Texas QB Colt McCoy, coming off a mild concussion against Kansas State last week, is going through the full warmup and is expected to play. He is wearing a protective sleeve on his throwing elbow, but Texas officials say its strictly to protect a scrape that hasn't fully healed and he's not expected to wear it during the game.

3 p.m.: Georgia Tech has pulled within eight points of Maryland with over 12 minutes to go in the fourth quarter.

3:07 p.m.: Kansas State scores and nails the PAT to go up 24-21 on Kansas. Here are a few of the other scores we're watching:

BC 55, Bowling Green 17
Maryland 28, Georgia Tech 26
Michigan 33, Eastern Michigan 14
North Carolina 30, Miami 20
West Virginia 55, Syracuse 14
Illinois 24, Wisconsin 19
Northwestern 41, Michigan State 34

3:09 p.m.: The Illini charged down the field to take a 31-19 lead on Wisconsin, whose nation-leading winning streak is now in serious jeopardy. And in Kansas, the Jayhawks regained the lead, 27-24, with a little over six minutes remaining in regulation.

3:15 p.m.: Straight from the mailbag:
From Sean in Ventura: Is the #5 ranking Cursed? Should Wisconsin lose, it would be the 3rd #5 team to lose.

Sean brings up an interesting point. Michigan was the preseason No. 5, and everyone knows what happened to the Wolverines in Week 1. West Virginia vacated its spot at No. 5 after losing to South Florida. If Illinois hangs on, Wisconsin will be the third team in six weeks to fall from that spot.

3:23 p.m.: We're just minutes away from kickoff at the Cotton Bowl, but we're still waiting to see if Illinois and Kansas can hang on for upsets. Texas-OU can be seen in some parts of the country on ABC.

3:30 p.m.: ESPN's Rece Davis on Miami-UNC
Orthopedic surgeons across the country should get plenty of business from people jumping off the Miami bandwagon. You get in trouble making too much of one week … or trying to draw conclusions from a series of scores. But maybe the Big 12, aside of Oklahoma, just isn't very good. The Texas A&M win for the Canes could've been overvalued. On the flip side, North Carolina was ready to bust out. The Heels have had a couple of near misses. Young talent. Confident coaching. UNC is getting a feel good win. This could be the one that lets Carolina finish the season strong. Where Miami goes from here … whew. Giving up nearly 300 yds of offense -- most of it on the ground. That was a Louisville-esque defensive performance from the Canes.

3:32 p.m.: Are we allowed to call him Big Game Ron Zook yet? Illinois held on to give Bret Bielema just his second loss as a head coach. Here are a few other final scores:

Kansas 30, Kansas State 24
Boston College 55, Bowling Green 24
Maryland 28, Ga. Tech 26
West Virginia 55, Syracuse 14
Michigan 33, Eastern Michigan 22

3:45 p.m.: The Red River Rivalry is underway. Colt McCoy is starting for the Horns after sustaining a concussion last week against Kansas State. Texas looks a little slow on offense, but the Horns' D has come out of the gate with a few punishing hits.

3:51 p.m.: In one of the afternoon's more surprising scores, Wake Forest leads Duke by just five points -- the Demon Deacons are up 34-29. Tennessee has jumped out to a 7-0 lead on Georgia, thanks to a 9-yard Arian Foster rush.

3:53 p.m.: Mark Wangrin from Texas-Oklahoma
DALLAS -- Both teams avoided early disaster on their first drives. OU's Sam Bradford was high with a screen pass to Manuel Johnson, who tipped the ball into the air, but both UT linebackers were more concerned with popping Johnson and missed an INT on the old tip drill. On the Longhorns' first possession, they got a false start penalty and burned a timeout before they'd even run three plays. Then Colt McCoy appeared to hit Limas Sweed on a slant at the UT 30. Sweed appeared to catch the ball and take one step before he was stripped of the ball, but officials ruled the pass an incomplete.

4:01 p.m.: Straight from the mailbag:
From Mike in Columbus, Ohio: Hi guys. Why is it when the SEC teams beat up on each other all season it's an indicator of how deep the conference is, while when the Big 10 teams start beating up on each other, it's because the Big 10 is a weak conference?

Mike makes a good point -- and something we'll see very clearly in Week 6, with Florida and LSU playing later tonight. While Wisconsin's loss to unranked Illinois will certainly cost the Badgers a few spots in the polls, how far should they fall?

4:05 p.m.: Mark Wangrin from Texas-Oklahoma
OU's early strategy against a UT pass defense that's been a sucker for play action has been to use screens to set up the deep ball. UT has snuffed the screens and the Sooners haven't connected on a deep ball, though the Longhorns appeared to have gotten away with a pass interference call on a deep ball down the right sideline. John Chiles is in at quarterback and promptly handed to Jamaal Charles for a 16-yard gain out of the zone read formation. McCoy came back in on the next play, but the Longhorns can't continue to use Chiles as a run-play only decoy and hope to get away with it against the Sooners.

4:11 p.m.: Oklahoma gets on the board first, with Sam Bradford exploiting Texas' struggling secondary for a Sooner touchdown with seconds remaining in the first quarter.

4:15 p.m.: Mark Wangrin from Texas-Oklahoma
OU's found the play-action weakness in the Longhorns. Three times Sam Bradford chucked it deep. The last, a 41-yard post to Malcom Kelly, set up -- yup, you guessed it -- more play action. It resulted in a 2-yard TD pass to tight end Jermaine Greshman, who was wide open, sweeping across the back of the end zone.

4:17 p.m.: The Vols aren't having a problem with Georgia, as Erik Ainge led Tennessee to its second TD of the game. Vols lead 14-0.

4:20 p.m.: Mark Wangrin from Texas-Oklahoma
Colt McCoy survived his first test when he got blindsided by DE Auston English and driven to the turf. Officials has already whistled an illegal procedure call against Texas so the play didn't count -- except for McCoy. The sophomore, knocked out of last week's game with a concussion, peeled himself off the ground and walked slowly back to the huddle as Mack Brown stormed on to the field in protest and the Sooner sideline jumped up and down to incited the crowd. McCoy quieted them somewhat on the next play, finding Limas Sweed on a slant for a first down close to midfield. Bad timing for the Longhorns though, as the first quarter expired and the teams switched ends, sending them headed back toward the OU crowd.

4:24 p.m.: From ESPN Research: Wisconsin allowed over 200 yards rushing in back-to-back games for the first time since allowing over 200 in five consecutive games in the 2005 season. The 289 yards allowed is the most since allowing 411 to Minnesota on Oct. 15, 2005.

4:28 p.m.: It's all tied up in Dallas, as Colt McCoy's TD gets Texas on the board.

4:39 p.m.: It's turning into a rout in Knoxville, where Tennessee leads 21-0. Here are a few other scores we're watching from around the country:

Wyoming 21, TCU 6
Alabama 23, Houston 7
NC State 10, Florida State 7
South Florida 7, FAU 0

4:41 p.m.: Colt McCoy's been lights out since the late hit. He found Jermichael Finley for another Horns touchdown. Texas leads 14-7.

4:51 p.m.: Straight from the mailbag:
From Chris in Fayetteville: So, with Kansas improving to 5-0 with a road win over a good team, is that enough to get them in the Top 25 in the Harris Poll? The teams above them -- Miami (FL), Kansas State, Michigan State -- have lost, but Illinois (two spots below KU) has the more impressive name to notch in their belt today. Who do you rank higher this week, the Illini or KU?

There are a lot of questions about rankings following Illinois' and Kansas' wins. It's tough to say how everything shakes out since we're not even halfway through the day, but I would expect to see both teams in the Top 25.

4:56 p.m.: Oklahoma answers, tying Texas on a Sam Bradford pass to Jermaine Gresham. Tennessee extends its lead over No. 12 Georgia -- the Vols lead 28-0 with 2 minutes remaining in the half.

5 p.m.: ESPN's Rece Davis
We might not have the upsets we had last week, but it's like Lou Holtz says -- brand new teams every week. How do you figure out Georgia? Or Texas. Horns look like the team everyone has been expecting. I type this just as OU ties the game.

Couple of thoughts from our studio. MayDay told me to slap him if he did another Heisman list this season without Mike Hart on it. What a leader that kid is. I know, I know. Eastern Michigan … but what a treat it is to watch him every week.

Don't overlook the Indiana story. Hoosiers just a win away from becoming bowl eligible. The theme for the season, is "Play 13" -- as in, get to a bowl game, and it's in honor of their late coach Terry Hoeppner. Bill Lynch has done a great job. Kellen Lewis and James Hardy are dangerous. It's a feel good story.

Holtz says he thinks Kansas might win the Big 12 North. He was surprised by the Jayhawks' speed and athleticism on D. Jordy Nelson burned Aqib Talib early … but he made plays later. I think he's in line for a helmet sticker from me tonight on College Football Final.

5:05 p.m.: From ESPN Research: Chadron State's Danny Woodhead just set the all-time NCAA rushing record. Woodhead got the 121 yards he needed by the third quarter to surpass the previous record of 7,353 yards held by R.J. Bowers.

5:09 p.m.: Bruce Feldman on Florida-LSU
Just arrived at Tiger Stadium … quite the tailgating scene. Reports on TV say there could be as many as 200,000 people here for this party.

5:12 p.m.: The Red River Rivalry isn't the only close battle going on. South Florida and FAU are tied at seven at the half. Here are a few other interesting scores from around the nation:

Alabama 23, Houston 7
NC State 10, Florida State 10
Washington State 3, Arizona State 0
Oregon State 31, Arizona 3

5:20 p.m.: A few Red River Rivalry stats: This is the 102nd meeting, with every game since 1929 at the Cotton Bowl. Texas has won back-to-back games vs. OU after losing five straight from 2000-04. The matchups have not been that close in recent years, though. In fact, you have to go back to 1997 (before Mack Brown or Bob Stoops) to find a game decided by single-digits.

5:25 p.m.: Straight from the mailbag:
From Adam in Denver: This is the craziest season I've ever seen! My question is, do you think that this season was going to have all these upsets anyway, or do you contribute a BIG part of it to Appalachian State giving hope to the underdogs, week in and week out?

It's hard to say what's causing all of the upsets -- preseason polls are notoriously inaccurate, but this years seems stranger than most. According to our friends at ESPN Research:

This season has provided further proof of the absurdity of preseason polls. After one month of games, the preseason Top 10 looks as dated as the fumblerooski. Only USC, LSU and Wisconsin made it through September without a loss, and Wisconsin had to survive multiple scares against unranked teams. Two preseason top-10 teams -- Michigan and Louisville -- lost twice. It's the most preseason top-10 teams to lose before October since 2000 (also 7).

5:30 p.m.: Mark Wangrin from Texas-Oklahoma
If anyone had suggested that the Texas-OU game would be a matchup of tight ends, they probably would have been laughed at -- unless they had been referring more to the pucker factor of neither school wanting to start the Big 12 conference season 0-2. But both teams, unable to establish a solid rushing threat, turned to their respective tight ends and UT's Jermichael Finley and OU's Jermaine Gresham delivered, accounting for three of the four touchdowns in a 14-14 first half.

Gresham's scores came on carbon-copy plays, with OU setting up the Longhorns with action to the outside or play action on previous plays before releasing Gresham over the middle. Finley, who caught three balls for 135 yards in the first half, was isolated on linebackers underneath the OU safeties by using crossing routes and posts. His first two catches set up a 6-yard pass from Colt McCoy to Jordan Shipley on an improvised route after the right-handed McCoy was forced to roll to his left.

McCoy took a bit of a pounding from the Sooners, getting sacked three times and taking a blindside hit on another play that had been blown dead by a false start, but he didn't show any signs of last week's concussion. McCoy completed 8 of 10 passes for 166 yards. Neither team was able to establish a consistent rushing threat -- the Sooners had 2.6 per carry; the Longhorns only 1.5 (3.7 if the sacks are deducted). Look for OU to re-emphasize its run game and go back to deep balls to the wide receivers, something the Sooners did with success early on. Texas could finally show what the Longhorns have been setting up with backup QB John Chiles taking snaps with McCoy also on the field.

5:39 p.m.: Arizona State is being challenged by Washington State, which has a 10-7 lead. The Sun Devils don't get to the meat of their Pac-10 schedule till the last five games of the season, and many experts expected them to roll to 7-0 before being tested.

5:41 p.m.: South Florida has broken the 7-7 tie with a TD early in the third quarter. Are the Bulls getting over the sluggishness of the first half? In Knoxville, Georgia is finally on the board, but the Dawgs will need a whole lot of offense to come back against Tennessee.

5:43 p.m.: Texas had a great chance to take the lead in the second half, but a fumble by Jamaal Charles at the 3 gave Oklahoma the ball. The Horns need a stop to regain momentum.

5:51 p.m.: The Vols aren't taking it easy on Georgia in the second half. Tennessee scored again on an Arian Foster rush for a 35-7 lead. Here are a few other scores:

Texas 14, OU 14
Penn State 20, Iowa 0
Florida State 17, NC State 10
South Florida 14, FAU 14
Washington State 10, Arizona State 7

5:57 p.m.: DeMarco Murray showed off his wheels, streaking down the sideline for an OU touchdown -- the longest the Horns have given up all year. The Sooners have a 20-14 lead with just over 4 minutes remaining.

6 p.m.: There's a storm brewing at the Cotton Bowl … and it's not just OU's offense. Looks like there could be major storms in the Dallas area.

That's it from us in Bristol. Check back next week for more from our experts and analysts. Enjoy the rest of the games!