By: Kenneth Harrison

TheSouthernSportsEdition.com news services

We are coming off the biggest weekend of the college football season. There were two games featuring unbeaten, highly ranked teams. No. 2 LSU beat No. 3 Alabama 46 – 41. No. 17 Minnesota defeated No. 4 Penn State 31 – 26.

The AP and Coaches Poll rankings for the week were revealed. Alabama only dropped one spot, which has upset fans of other one-loss teams. Let’s look at my top four teams.

#1 LSU: The Tigers have the best resume in the nation. They have beaten four ranked teams; all of them were ranked in the top 10 at the time. This is the first LSU team I can remember with a potent offense.

They are ranked fourth nationally in total offense despite playing one less game than two of the teams ranked ahead of them.

Quarterback, Joe Burrow is the frontrunner to win the Heisman Trophy. Burrow has passed for 3,198 yards, 33 touchdowns and only 4 interceptions.

He also completes 80% of his passes. They also have a great running game led by Clyde Edwards-Helaire. He has 11 TD’s, averages 5.8 yards per carry and he’s on pace to eclipse one thousand yards.

The surprising weakness is defense. The Tigers rank 33^rd nationally in total defense, allowing 340 YPG.

#2 Ohio State: The Buckeyes are the most balanced team in the nation. The defense is #1 in total defense, only giving up 215 YPG.

The offense is fifth in total offense with 536 YPG. Quarterback, Justin Fields is also a Heisman contender. He’s the best dual threat QB in college. He’s passed for 1,859 yards, 27 TD’s and only one interception. On the ground, he has 347 yards and 10 touchdowns.

J.K. Dobbins is one of the best backs in the game. Dobbins has already gained 1,200 yards, 11 TD’s and averages 7.2 YPC.

Star defensive end and possible No. 1 pick in the upcoming draft, Chase Young may miss significant time with a suspension. He did not play the last game due to a possible NCAA violation from 2018.

#3 Clemson: The Tigers are the defending national champions but they struggled early in the season. They narrowly beat unranked North Carolina 21 – 20 the last week of September.

Quarterback Trevor Lawrence looked great in the national championship game but he has not performed up to expectations thus far.

Lawrence has thrown 23 touchdowns and 8 picks. Running back Travis Etienne has been dominant with 1,214 yards, 13 TD’s and 8.9 YPC. Despite the problems, they rank second in total offense at the FBS level. They also rank fourth in total defense.

So far, they faced one ranked opponent and have one more on the schedule, No. 19 Wake Forest.

#4 Oregon: The Ducks began the season with a 27 – 21 loss to No. 16 Auburn. Since then they won 8 consecutive games.

They’re led by QB Justin Herbert, who will be a top five pick in the 2020 draft. He has thrown for 2,329 yards, 24 touchdowns and 2 interceptions.

Oregon should play No. 8 Utah in the Pac 12 championship game and that will be a good win.

The first team on the outside looking in is Georgia. The Bulldogs lost at home to unranked South Carolina.

The only ranked team left on the schedule is No. 11 Auburn. If they win the rest of their games including the SEC Championship, they have to be in the playoffs.

Alabama still has an outside shot of making it if some upsets happen and they win out.