Week 2 top 25

Here's my late college top 25. Note East Carolina as a fast riser.

1. USC (1) - Trojans had a bye, but its still hard to forget how complete their destruction of Virginia was.

2. Georgia (2) - Looked very good in a rout of a pretty solid Central Michigan team.

3. Oklahoma (4) - Sooners get props in hanging half-a-hundy against a pretty-good Cincinnati team. They definitely deserved to jump up.

4. Ohio State (3) - Looked pretty bad against Ohio U, trailing going into the final quarter as 34-point favorites. However, all will be forgetten if the Buckeyes beat USC Saturday.

5. Florida (5) - The 23-point win over Miami wasn't nearly as decisive as it looked. However, always good to get one over a rival.

6. Missouri (6) - The Tigers whupped Missouri Southern. Big deal.

7. LSU (7) - Defending national champs didn't play because of damage from Hurricane Gustav. Now their game this week against North Texas might be moved.

8. Auburn (9) - Tigers have good D and their offense showed signs. Definitely a team to watch.

9. Texas (10) - First team since Florida without Tigers as a mascot. Also have been efficient in steamrolling two overmatched opponents.

10. Texas Tech (11) - The Red Raiders showed some good defense in beating Nevada. If they can continue with that, Tech could be a player in the Big 12.

11. Wisconsin (12) - Marshall was feeling all cocky after going up 14-0 early. Too bad the Badgers threw down 51 straight points after that.

12. Kansas (13) - The Jayhawks' offense gets almost all the pub, but the defense ruled the day in a 29-0 shutout of Louisiana Tech. They have an interesting matchup with South Florida Friday.

13. Alabama (14) - I guess after the big win over Clemson, it was normal for the Tide to have a letdown against Tulane. But efforts like Saturday's won't keep them this high for long.

14. Arizona State (15) - Nice, decisive win over a spunky Stanford team. ASU might be the biggest Pac-10 threat to USC.

15. East Carolina (25) - I threw the Pirates a bone after their win over Va. Tech. After their whupping of previous No. 8 West Virginia, its clear that East Carolina wants a little bit more to chew on.

16. Oregon (17) - The Ducks' offense seems to be doing pretty well without either Dennis Dixon or Nathan Costa, putting up 109 points in Oregon's first two games.

17. BYU (16) - The Cougars get penalized for the cheap way that their one-point win over Washington went down. The official that penalized Jake Locker for celebrating should be embarrassed.

18. South Florida (18) - In one of the most overlooked, yet most entertaining games, of the weekend, the Bulls beat Central Florida in OT. USF has a chance to salvage Big East pride against the Jayhawks.

19. Wake Forest (19) - In another great game, the Demon Deacons beat Ole Miss in the final seconds. Its amazing how effective Wake is at maximizing its less-than-hyped talent.

20. Penn State (21) - Nittany Lions get some props for waxing Oregon State - or the Beavers get penalized for being truly horrible.

21. Clemson (20) - Giving up 17 points to The Citadel wasn't what Clemson wanted after being waxed by Alabama.

22. Utah (22) - The Utes didn't have much of a letdown after beating Michigan, dispatching UNLV 42-14.

23. California (23) - The Bears embarrassed Washington State 66-3 on the road. I think that says more about how truly bad Wazzu is though.

24. West Virginia (8) - The Mountaineers stay in the rankings - barely. Have to wonder how confident WVU fans are in new headman Bill Stewart after the 3-point effort against East Carolina.

25. Fresno State (25) - The Bulldogs have a great chance to prove their worth when they host Wisconsin Saturday.

On the cusp: UCLA, Illinois, Virginia Tech, Tennessee, Florida State.