Courtesy of SI.com


West Virginia, which declined to go in the tank following its Sept. 28 loss to South Florida, now stands to reap some serious dividends. The Ducks dispatched, the Mountaineers will bump up to No. 5 -- behind a trio of Big 12 teams who will soon be taking whacks at each other.

Dream scenario for Pat White, Steve Slaton, et al.: Missouri loses to Kansas State on Saturday. (Not likely, but not completely farfetched: Remember, the Tigers haven't won in Manhattan since 1989.) Mizzou rallies to knock off bitter rival Kansas in Arrowhead Stadium on Nov. 24 and Oklahoma a week later in the Big 12 title game, clearing a path to the No. 2 spot for the Mountaineers ... who won't be able to seize it, of course, unless they take care of business on Saturday in suddenly imposing (though still faintly ridiculous sounding) Nippert Stadium, lair of the Cincinnati Bearcats.

The fevered musings of the preceding passage are based on the presumption that LSU will win out, a shaky presumption this season.
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You should listen to your heart, and not the voices in your head. - Marge Simpson