Week 3 college football action is in the books, so we decided to fire up the Tuesday Tweetbag to tackle the burning topics on your mind this season about everything from top prospects to the best teams in the sport.
Feel free to submit your questions to @BryanDFischer on Twitter each Monday or early Tuesday morning to get them answered every week. Without further ado, let the smorgasbord of questions commence.
I don't think there's any question, this season or the past five-plus, that the SEC has been the best conference in the country. Watch any SEC game -- take last week's South Carolina-Georgia game, for example -- and you can see terrific athletes all over the field and a high level of play that is rarely found elsewhere.
That said, it should not be an excuse for wimping out on the non-conference scheduling, especially in the playoff era. Does playing Kentucky, Vanderbilt, LSU and Alabama (among others) really make up for the fact that Mississippi State's non-league slate is Southern Miss, UAB, South Alabama and Tennessee-Martin? No, it does not. Florida, to use one example, hasn't been West of the Mississippi River for a non-conference game in over 30 years. The FCS foes and small-school pushovers that stock most of the SEC's 56 non-conference games artificially inflate the league's record and provide little value to fans who pay for tickets and TV networks that televise the games. It's fine for one game like that to be on the schedule, but three or four should be unacceptable no matter how hard the eight conference games are.
That said, some coaches and teams have challenged themselves. It seems like LSU plays in a big opener every season. Alabama, while not into home-and-homes, has been a mainstay in the Chick-fil-A Kickoff Game in recent years. Nick Saban has talked longingly about playing only Power Five opponents, and perhaps one day he'll get his wish. I wouldn't be surprised if, as athletic directors start to better understand the ramifications of the playoff and the strength-of-schedule component, an improved slate of games will be on the table for most of the SEC. For now, though, the bottom half of the league will still worry about getting six wins and a bowl game and the top half will only be concerned about one big test a year to get their team ready.
This week is not the first, nor the last, time Stanford fans will question David Shaw's play calling. Most of the frustration recently stems from the loss to USC, during which the Cardinal got inside the 35 every drive but came away with just 10 points and were shut out in the second half. However, this criticism is not new.
It was interesting to hear Shaw's reaction when asked about the play calling after the USC game. He said, in essence, it might look like Stanford is simplistic, but the team throws out a variety of different formations -- everything from an empty shotgun set to a jumbo formation with extra offensive linemen. That's true, but play calling goes well beyond formations, and it's hard to be as ineffective as Shaw's team has been this year inside the red zone with all that talent.
I think some of the criticism of the play calling is a little unwarranted, as it does come down to execution most of the time. Cardinal players have not operated at the level they should (see those penalties and turnovers against USC). However, I think Shaw has used the Wildcat formation ineffectively the past few years, and he's failed to identify the strength of this year's team by defaulting to the offensive identity the team has created.
Too many times it seems like they're willing to run up the middle for a short gain on predictable run downs just because they think they can. Stanford also has a veteran quarterback with two of the best receivers on the West Coast in Devon Cajuste and Ty Montgomery. The tight ends are also much improved from last season, too. It simply wouldn't hurt for the team to open things up in the downfield passing game, and you wonder if a less-effective play-action game is responsible for not doing so.
Shaw is a smart coach who does mix things up, but if Stanford still wants to win the Pac-12 North this year, he needs to start opening things up a little more and rely less on his running backs, who are not quite the workhorses the team has had in the past.
Great question and especially pertinent now with the Cougars in the hunt for a New Year's Six bowl game.
Let's start with the Big 12, where they are clearly above Texas after whipping the Longhorns in Austin. I definitely don't think they're on par with elite powers like Baylor and Oklahoma this year, but they could have a solid case against the mid-level teams in the league like Kansas State, TCU, West Virginia and Oklahoma State. I'd probably slot them third or fourth in the Big 12 this year, but it's still early in the season and we don't really know what to expect from teams like the Horned Frogs.
As for the Pac-12, things are a little trickier. In the North, I'd put them a solid third behind Oregon and Stanford and ahead of Washington at this point. Things are a little murkier in the South. Were BYU to be in that division, I could even envision the Cougars winning it given how shaky UCLA and USC have been. Based on current play, I'd put them at the top of the South actually, especially with Taylor Kelly questionable for Arizona State the next few weeks and offensive line issues at USC and UCLA.
Technically, every team is capable of it, but the Trojans will face at least six teams who can run the play effectively. USC has struggled quite a bit with dual-threat quarterbacks, and this year's squad is no exception.
The Red Raiders need four more victories to become bowl-eligible, and after last week's shellacking at the hands of Arkansas (plus early struggles in their first two games), it's easy to see why the preseason optimism around Lubbock has turned to worry.
Texas Tech should be able to beat Kansas (home) and Iowa State (road) for two more wins. A home game against Texas late in the season also is a possibility. If all Tech needs is a single win against the middle of the Big 12 -- Oklahoma State, Kansas State, West Virginia and TCU -- then I think it will be going bowling because it always seems like the Red Raiders will upset somebody at the end of the day. If you ask me, next Thursday's game in Stillwater might be prime for Kliff Kingsbury and company to get back on track.
You can follow Bryan Fischer on Twitter at @BryanDFischer.
