1. , QB, Cincinnati: Pike didn’t have his most accurate performance at Miami (of the Ohio kind), but 270 yards and two touchdowns is solid enough to take him over a still-uncleared Tebow for top spot. Now the fun begins, as the next game on their slate is a roadie against 5-0 and now-ranked South Florida. If Pike can produce a winning performance against the Bulls’ tenacious defense, he’ll be on well on his way to convincing voters and NFL

Last Week (37-13 W at Miami (Ohio)): 23-42, 270 yards, 2 TD, INT
Season Stats: 116-174, 1,493 yards, 13 TD, 3 INT, 2 rush TD

2. , QB, Florida: He hasn’t been cleared yet, and frankly, it might not be the worst idea in the world to sit him against LSU if he isn’t as all there as he still needs to be (because, you know, there are things more important than trying to win a national championship). I do think Florida can (and will) beat LSU even if he’s not on the field, but that being said, I fully expect him to be out there on Saturday night if he can be. He plays (well enough), they win, he’s #1 again.

Last Week: DNP
Season Stats: 44-68, 643 yards, 6 TD, INT (pass), 55 carries, 271 yards, 5 TD (rush)

3. , Boise State: Boise State had some trouble putting away UC Davis, but it wasn’t Moore’s fault, as he had an excellent performance.

Last Week (34-16 W vs. UC Davis): 22-31, 285 yards, 3 TD, INT
Season Stats: 92-133, 1,217 yards, 13 TD, 2 INT

4. , Texas: A big stretch coming up for McCoy and Texas after a stat-padder this week against Colorado, as the ‘Horns face Oklahoma, Missouri, and Oklahoma State all away from Austin.

Last Week: DNP
Season Stats: Season Stats: 103-145, 1,145 yards, 9 TD, 5 INT, rush TD

5. , QB, Notre Dame: Clausen had a fumble that Washington took back for a touchdown, but he more than redeemed himself in the end, throwing a late touchdown pass to Kyle Rudolph to give the Irish a 30-27 lead, and after the Huskies forced overtime with a field goal, set up what proved to be the winning touchdown with a 22-yard pass to Golden Tate on the first play of OT. It certainly didn’t hurt that Tate had a career day (9 catches, 244 yards, TD).

Clausen’s hopes to really make a dent rest on ND’s showdown with USC in two weeks. Another clutch performance will vault him into the thick of the Heisman race and significantly boost the Irish’s BCS hopes, but a defeat would be a mortal blow to both.

Last Game (37-30 W vs. Washington): 23-31, 422 yards, 2 TD, INT
Season Stats: 100-148, 1,544 yards, 12 TD, 2 INT

6. , QB, Miami: Rebounded from a nightmare performance at Virginia Tech and a slow start against Oklahoma to lead the ‘Canes to a comeback win over the Sooners. Even with the loss in Blacksburg, Miami made it out of their hellish stretch at a surprising 3-1, and that wouldn’t be possible if Harris hadn’t stepped up when his team needed him to against Florida State and Oklahoma.

Last Week (21-20 W vs. Oklahoma): 19-28, 202 yards, 3 TD, 2 INT
Season Stats: 69-112, 1,008 yards, 8 TD, 5 INT, rush TD

7. , QB, Houston: It’s not his fault that the Cougars couldn’t stop UTEP’s Donald Buckram (32 carries, 262 yards, 4 TD), or that UTEP scored as many points in the second half as Houston did all game. Unfortunately, a loss to a team that was previously 1-3 severely hurts his hopes, despite his monster night.

Last Week (58-41 L at UTEP): 51-76, 536 yards, 5 TD
Season Stats: 144-210, 1,696 yards, 13 TD, 2 INT, 3 rush TD

8. , QB, Missouri: He’ll get a chance

Last Week: DNP
Season Stats: 87-131, 1,161 yards, 11 TD, 0 INT, 2 rush TD

9. , RB, Virginia Tech: Was held to his lowest YPC output of the season against Duke, but the Hokies survived the Blue Devils thanks to ’s arm (wow, that is a weird thing to say/read, isn’t it?).

Last Week (34-26 W at Duke): 24 carries, 83 yards
Season Stats: 108 carries, 575 yards, 8 TD, 6 catches, 120 yards

10. Tyrod Taylor, QB, Virginia Tech: I’ve been waiting for him to prove that he can win games with his arm, and finally, finally, finally he did just that at Duke.

Last Game (34-26 W at Duke): 17-22, 327 yards, 2 TD
Season Stats: 51-94, 869 yards, 6 TD, INT

11. , QB, Auburn: He had only one touchdown pass after tossing nine in his previous two games, but he avoided mistakes in one of the biggest pressure cookers in college football, and that says plenty.

Last Week (26-22 W at Tennessee): 19-32, 218 yards, TD
Season Stats: 81-138, 1,230 yards, 12 TD, INT

12. , QB, Alabama: How he fares in Oxford against a tough Ole Miss defense will tell a lot about just how good he is, especially considering the hype that his opposite number, Jevan Snead, has received.

Last Week (38-20 W at Kentucky): 15-26, 148 yards, 2 TD
Season Stats: 78-119, 1,086 yards, 9 TD, INT

13. , RB, Wisconsin: Clay can really make a big jump if he can have a big performance in a Wisconsin win at Ohio State this weekend, but he’s certainly going into Columbus with a lot of momentum from consecutive big days to open Big Ten play.

Last Week (31-28 W at Minnesota): 32 carries, 184 yards, 3 TD
Season Stats: 112 carries, 582 yards, 7 TD

14. , RB, Stanford: You can’t ignore the fact that he’s the nation’s leading rusher, and you also can’t ignore the fact that Stanford is 4-1 overall and 3-0 in the Pac-10 in large part because of his production. The schedule gets tougher from here, but if he can keep putting up big numbers, he’ll be moving on up.

Last Week (24-16 W vs. UCLA): 29 carries, 134 yards, 3 TD
Season Stats: 101 carries, 650 yards, 8 TD, 4 catches, 44 yards

15. , QB, Kansas: He’s got a stat-padder at home against Iowa State and a potentially testy roadie at Colorado in the next couple of weeks, but the make-or-break games for Reesing start with Oklahoma’s visit to Lawrence on the 24th.

Last Week: DNP
Season Stats: 96-143, 1,137 yards, 9 TD, 2 INT, 2 rush TD

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