Stonebreaker Award: Week 9

I get a Saturday off to actually watch some games instead of just looking at box scores, so I'm posting this as there aren't any really good games at the noon hour today (although Michigan-Illinois has some potential). Before I get into the rankings, here's a couple of matchups worth noting for tonight's games.

Patrick Peterson-Julio Jones: Peterson isn't ranked that high because I would guess teams aren't really throwing the ball his way. But with Jones getting the ball a lot more for the Tide in recent weeks, the ball will come Peterson's way a lot more today as two future pros go at it.

Ed Wesley-Chaz Walker:  Utah's leading tackler goes up against one of the better unknown running backs in the land in Wesley. If Utah holds TCU's running game in check, they'll pull off the upset.

Andrew Luck-Robert Golden: Luck is one of the best QB's in the land, but Golden and his secondary mates break up a lot of passes and pick off a lot of passes. The Wildcats also bring a lot of pressure, giving Stanford a test they aren't used to in the Pac 10.

Arkansas WR's- South Carolina DB's: The Cocks secondary was called out by Spurrier on College Football Live this week, and the Razorbacks will put the ball in the air. South Carolina needs big games from Stephon Gilmore, Chris Culliver and Safety DeVonte Holloman to stay in the mix for the SEC East crown.

Top 25:

1. Jeremy Beal, Oklahoma 418 ( 34 Tackles, 6 Sacks, 3 FF's, 13.5 TFL's, 4 Bkups)
2. Nick Fairley, Auburn 390 ( 43 Tackles, 7.5 Sacks, 1 Int, 18 TFL's)

3. Drake Nevis, LSU 355 ( 40 Tackles, 5 Sacks, 1 Int, 2 FF's, 11.5 TFL's)4. Dejon Gomes, Nebraska 354 (67 Tackles, 3 Ints, 2 FF's, 1 TFL, 3 Bkups)
5. Jamell Fleming, Oklahoma 348 ( 40 Tackles, 1 Sack, 2 Int's, 4.5 TFL's, 9 Bkups)
5. Wayne Daniels, TCU 348 ( 26 Tackles, 5.5 Sacks, 1 FF, 9 TFL's, 1 Bkup)
7. Brandon Bair, Oregon, 287 ( 35 Tackles, 3 Sacks, 13 TFL's, 5 Bkups)
8. Lavonte David, Nebraska 279 ( 86 Tackles, 3 Sacks, 7 TFL's, 5 Bkups)
9. J.J. Watt, Wisconsin 277 ( 39 Tackles, 5 Sacks, 1 FF, 13.5 TFL's, 5 Bkups)
10. Kelvin Sheppard, LSU 270 ( 73 Tackles, 3.5 Sacks, 1 FF, 7.5 TFL's, 2 Bkups)

11. Chimdi Chekwa, Ohio St. 269 ( 3 Ints, 5 Bkups)
12. Cliff Harris, Oregon 268 ( 5 Ints, 7 Bkups)
13. Robert Lester, Alabama 251 ( 5 Ints)
14. Mark Barron , Alabama 246 ( 52 Tackles, 6 Bkups)
15. Travis Lewis, Oklahoma 236 ( 74 Tackles)
16. Alfonso Dennard, Nebraska 225 ( 3 Int's, 6 Bkups)
17. Lamar Chapman, Utah 217 ( 5.5 Sacks, 2 FF's)
18. Jonathan Nelson, Oklahoma 216 ( 62 Tackles, 2 FF's)
19. P.J. Smith, Nebraska 214 ( 3 Int's)
20. Anthony Leon, Arkansas 213 ( 10.5 TFL's)
21. Sean Spence, Miami 209 ( 56 Tackles, 9.5 TFL's)
22. Chaz Walker, Utah 201 ( 61 Tackles)
23. Josh Bynes, Auburn 196 ( 55 Tackles, 3 Int's)
24. Devin Taylor, South Carolina 195 ( 6.5 Sacks, 10 TFL's)
25. Olivier Vernon, Miami 188 ( 4 Sacks)

Defensive Line Rankings:

1. Auburn: I've discussed and shown the merits of one Nick Fairley on a weekly basis. Antoine Carter has been a steady contributor as well, along with true freshman DE Corey Lemonier.

2. Oklahoma: Jeremy Beal has been the headline grabber, with Frank Alexander chipping in with 3.5 sacks in limited duty.

3. LSU: DT Drake Nevis has had an outstanding season, and the Tigers would probably be ranked higher if DE Sam Montgomery wasn't lost to a season-ending injury.

4. Oregon: It's been the Brandon Bair show for most of the year, as he's basically lived in opposing teams' backfields. The Ducks could move up to number one if DE Kenny Rowe keeps coming up with big plays. The Preseason all Pac-10 selection has 5 Sacks and 10 TFL's after a slow start.

5. Texas: Texas has fallen out of the top 25, but not because of the efforts of Sam Acho and Eddie Jones, top 25 staples who came up with an abundance of sacks and TFL's while the Longhorns were ranked.

Studs of the Week:
Shane Horton, USC ( 11 Tackles, 2.5 Sacks, 1 Bkup)
Shaun Prater, Iowa ( 10 Tackles, 1 Int, 0.5 TFL, 1 Bkup)
Colin McCarthy, Miami ( 18 Tackles, 1 Int, 2 TFL's)
Johnny Thomas, Oklahoma State ( 6 Tackles, 1 Int, 1 FF, 2 Bkups)
Jamell Fleming, Oklahoma (6 Tackles, 1 sack, 2 TFL, 3 Bkups)
Antonio Allen, South Carolina ( 7 Tackles, 4 TFL's, 1.5 Sacks)