2017 e-Systems College Football Pool – Week 5 Results

Washington State has one of the most difficult situations in which to win in the Power 5. Pullman, Washington, is the 37^th-largest city in the state. Its home field, Martin Stadium, is the smallest in the Pac-12…by 10,000 seats.  Entering the 2017 season, Washington State football had the fewest wins in program history of any team in the Pac-12, and the second-most losses.  And yet, Mike Leach has the Cougars 5-0 for the first time since 2001, thanks to a heart-stopping 30-27 over then-#5 ranked USC.  Luke Falk threw his 105^th career touchdown pass in the fourth quarter to pass Oregon’s Marcus Mariota for second on the all-time Pac-12 list, and Erik Powell hit a 30-yard field goal with less than two minutes to go to provide the final margin.  Now Wazzu finds themselves #11 in the country, their highest ranking in the polls since 2003, when they finished the season ranked ninth after a 10-3 campaign.  The typical Leach Air Raid offense (ranked second in the country in passing yards per game) has been complemented by an opportunistic defense that has twelve turnovers this year, good for a tie for sixth in the country. That defense is coordinated by the coach with the best DC name in all of college football – Alex Grinch.

When people think of football in the state of Florida, the “Big Three” of Florida, Florida State, and Miami tend to come to mind first, and for good reason – the three have combined for eleven national championships and eight Heisman Trophies. But don’t look past what the two teams located on Interstate 4 are doing this year. South Florida has begun the Charlie Strong era with a bang, riding a rushing offense ranked fifth in the country to 44.8 points per game and a 5-0 record.  The Knights of Central Florida are just as impressive, if not more so. Despite having had several games moved or canceled at the beginning of the year due to Hurricane Irma, UCF has managed to play three games and look impressive in all three, including a 28-point win over Maryland and a 27-point week this past week against Memphis.  Admittedly with a smaller sample size, the Knights currently rank seventh in the country in scoring offense (46.3 points per game) and scoring defense (13.3 points per game).  These two teams meet in the “War on I-4” rivalry game on November 24^th; if things keep going as they are, the game will be for not only bragging rights, but a berth in the American Athletic Conference championship game and a possible New Years’ Six bowl bid on the line…

Bryce Love has quietly put up video game numbers for Stanford. The Cardinal are not in the national spotlight as much as is expected during this time of year due to early losses against USC and San Diego State, but what Love is doing right now can’t be overlooked. After five games, he has 1,088 rushing yards. That figure is not only tops in FBS, it’s first by 265 yards.  There are only ten other players in the country who have half as many rushing yards as Love.  His average of 217.6 yards per game would average 29^th in the country as a team.  What’s more? He’s done it on only 98 carries.  That works out to 11.1 yards per rushing attempt, a figure that’s best in the country by almost two yards.  He hasn’t had a game with fewer than 160 yards rushing, and had a school-record 301 in his last game against Arizona State. Love’s only the third running back since 2004 to eclipse the 1,000 rushing yard mark by his fifth game (Northern Illinois’ Garrett Wolfe had 1,181 yards in 2006, and LSU’s Leonard Fournette had 1,022 in 2015).  After near-misses with Toby Gerhart and Christian McCaffrey, maybe this is the year that a Heisman makes its way to a Stanford running back…

In small-school news, you want video game numbers? Let’s talk Hardin-Simmons.  The Abilene, Texas, Division III school is achieving numbers of which the Oregons, West Virginias, and Oklahomas of the world could only dream.  After four games, the Cowboys are averaging – averaging – 68 points per game, best in Division III by 11.7 points per game. They are averaging 684.3 yards of total offense per game, best in Division III by 117 yards per game.  Their attack is almost perfectly balanced – they average 345.3 yards rushing per game (fifth in Division III) and 339 yards passing per game (13^th in Division III).  The fewest number of points they’ve scored in a game is 55. It’s been fun, but it might be a little tougher in their next game.  Their opponent? Mary Hardin-Baylor, the defending Division III national champions and owners of a nineteen game winning streak.  The Cru, as they are affectionately known to their fans, has not allowed more than ten points in a game this year.  Something’s gotta give…

Congratulations to BoomBoomTX, who wins week 5 with 152 points! Vern Troyer, Ralphie, and Noles tied for second with 142 points each.

Standings after five weeks:

We have made it to October, and with the changing of the seasons come some big mid-season rivalries and a slew of interesting matchups.  This week we have 21 games to pick, and the race at the top is still tight! The first game this week is Louisville at NC State, Thursday, October 5 @ 8 PM ET, so make sure to get your picks in by then!