ESPN's Final Power Rankings...NU #13

[Herd Husker]

College Football Power Rankings - Week 15

 

1 (1) Alabama (15) 13-0 375 Alabama capped a dream season with its win over Texas in the BCS National Championship Game. The Tide did their damage on the ground, rushing for 205 yards and controlling the ball for more than 33 minutes.

 

2 (2) Texas 13-0 351 Texas rode a roller coaster of emotions in the title game. First the Horns lost QB Colt McCoy to injury, then they rallied behind Garrett Gilbert before succumbing to Alabama. A consolation to Texas: finishing No. 2 in the ESPN.com Power Rankings.

 

3 (6) Boise State 13-0 346 Boise State exacted some revenge in the Fiesta Bowl, beating an unbeaten TCU team that gave the Broncos their lone blemish last season. Once again, Boise State went to its bag of tricks, calling a fake punt that led to the eventual winning touchdown.

 

4 (5) Florida 12-1 338 Short of winning the BCS title, Tim Tebow could not have gone out on a higher note. The all-everything QB torched beleaguered Cincinnati for 533 total yards, the highest mark in a BCS bowl game.

 

5 (8) Ohio State 10-2 313 The monkey is finally off Ohio State's back. The Buckeyes ended their BCS struggles by beating Oregon in the Rose Bowl. QB Terrelle Pryor passed for 266 yards and rushed for 72 more in the best game of his career.

 

6 (3) TCU 12-0 298 Even the nation's top defense can be tricked. TCU fell short in its first BCS game thanks in large part to Boise State's trickeration. The Horned Frogs will return plenty of talent next season.

 

7 (10) Iowa 10-2 287 Iowa felt right at home in the coldest Orange Bowl ever. The Hawkeyes stymied Georgia Tech's vaunted triple-option spread, holding the Yellow Jackets to 155 total yards. Ricky Stanzi returned from injury to throw for 231 yards and two scores.

 

8 (4) Cincinnati 12-0 257 Cincinnati's season for the ages ended with a thud. We'll never know how much Brian Kelly's leaving for Notre Dame distracted the program, but we do know that Kelly didn't play defense and couldn't stop Tim Tebow.

 

9 (12) Penn State 10-2 249 Hail to the kicker! On a messy (that's being polite) field, Penn State kicker Collin Wagner connected on four field goals, including the winner with less than a minute left. JoePa picked up his 24th bowl win in the process.

 

10 (7) Oregon 10-2 239 Perhaps the rest turned into rust, because Oregon was not sharp on offense at the Rose Bowl. LeGarrette Blount capped a difficult season with a touchdown but also fumbled out of the end zone to stop a scoring drive.

 

11 (11) Virginia Tech 9-3 237 Another year, another 10-win season for Virginia Tech. That's six straight double-digit wins for Frank Beamer's crew. Hard to believe, but the Hokies won back-to-back bowl games for the first time.

 

12 (9) Georgia Tech 11-2 198 Georgia Tech's offense fell flat in the Orange Bowl. After averaging 35 points per game in the regular season, the Jackets had just one offensive touchdown against Iowa. In two bowl games under Paul Johnson, they have been outscored 62-17.

 

13 (21) Nebraska 9-4 193 Leave it to the game's most dominant defensive player, Ndamukong Suh, to help deliver the Holiday Bowl's first shutout. The Huskers showed their strength on defense, blanking Arizona 33-0. Nebraska finished its first 10-win season since 2003.

 

14 (16) Brigham Young 10-2 193 Nobody knows Vegas like BYU. The Cougars bowled in Sin City for the fifth straight season, winning for the third time. Max Hall capped his sensational career with three touchdown passes.

 

15 (17) Pittsburgh 9-3 166 Has Pitt returned to prominence? With their bowl win over North Carolina, the Panthers won at least 10 games for the first time since the Dan Marino era in 1981. Dion Lewis was again the star for Pitt against UNC, rushing for 159 yards and a score.

 

16 (23) Wisconsin 9-3 157 Save for the beginning and the end, Wisconsin dominated Miami. And that was enough for the Badgers, who won their first game over a ranked team this season. John Clay ran roughshod over the Canes, gaining 121 yards and two scores.

 

17 (13) LSU 9-3 123 A sloppy game and a sloppy finish for the Bayou Bengals. LSU lost three of its final five games to end the season and lost a bowl game under Les Miles for the first time. The Tigers had been 4-0 in bowls under Miles.

 

18 (24) Utah 9-3 122 Nobody wins bowl games like Utah. The Utes' victory over Cal was their ninth straight bowl win. And with freshman QB Jordan Wynn leading the way, things look just as good for next season.

 

19 (14) Miami (FL) 9-3 96 Miami got things rolling on the opening kickoff, then got rolled by Wisconsin. On the bright side, the Hurricanes return lots of talent, but they might be without Graig Cooper, who hurt his knee late in the game.

 

20 (30) Texas Tech 8-4 69 No head coach, no problem for Texas Tech. The Red Raiders overcame off-the-field issues to rally past Michigan State. Classic Tech offense threw for 460 yards against undermanned Sparty.

 

21 (31) Mississippi 8-4 67 Dexter McCluster owns the Cotton Bowl. After gaining 180 total yards last season, the diminutive running back piled up 229 yards in the Rebels' win over Oklahoma State. The lowlight: Ole Miss turned the ball over five times.

 

22 (26) USC 8-4 66 The season was subpar by USC standards, but it ended on a high note in the Emerald Bowl. Turns out that was nothing compared to the Trojans' offseason that saw Pete Carroll bolt to the NFL and Lane Kiffin return to the West Coast.

 

23 (25) Central Michigan 11-2 42 One of the most entertaining games of bowl season was a fitting end for one of the most prolific FBS quarterbacks of all time. Dan LeFevour, who finished his career second all time in total yards, threw for 395 yards in CMU's double-OT victory.

 

24 (18) West Virginia 9-3 27 The odds weren't stacked in West Virginia's favor as it played Florida State in Bobby Bowden's last game in Florida. Noel Devine helped the Mountaineers get off to a 14-3 lead, but it was all Seminoles after that.

 

25 (NR) Oklahoma 7-5 18 Landry Jones gave Oklahoma momentum heading into the offseason, throwing for 418 yards in the Sooners' win over Stanford. The victory snapped Oklahoma's three-game bowl losing streak.

 

Others receiving votes: Navy (17), Clemson (14), Oregon State (7), Stanford (5), Oklahoma State (2), Connecticut (2), North Carolina (1)

[WVhuskerXX]

WOOOHOOO!!!

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13 (21) Nebraska 9-4 193 Leave it to seniors Matt O'Hanlon, Phillip Dillard and Barry Turner, to help deliver the Holiday Bowl's first shutout. The Huskers showed their strength on defense, blanking Arizona 33-0. Nebraska finished its first 10-win season since 2003.

 

I fixed it for them. Suh played well, but the other defensive players could play out of their skulls and not get any recognition.