Just how far have the once mighty Notre Dame Fighting Irish fallen on the gridiron.

When UConn Huskies sophomore running back  Jordan Todman was told the Irish last won a title in football in 1988, all he could say was this:

“I wasn’t even born yet”

For the record, Todman was born on February 24, 1990.

Quote courtesy of John Silver of the Journal Inquirer.

Here are the AP and USA Today Coaches College Football Top 25 Polls for the week ending 9/13:

Here is my initial ballot for Week of 3 of the CBSSports.com Blog Poll Top 25. Please let me know in the comments section on whether or not you agree with my picks. I have until Wednesday morning at 10 a.m. to make any changes.

Rank	Team	Delta
1	Florida
2	Southern Cal
3	Texas
4	Alabama
5	Penn State	1
6	California	1
7	Mississippi	1
8	Boise State	1
9	LSU	1
10	Brigham Young	1
11	Oklahoma	1
12	Virginia Tech	2
13	Ohio State
14	Georgia Tech	2
15	TCU
16	Utah	3
17	Oklahoma State	12
18	Cincinnati	4
19	North Carolina	1
20	Miami (Florida)	1
21	Georgia	4
22	Missouri	1
23	Kansas	1
24	Michigan
25	Houston
Last week’s ballot

I was asked by the editor who runs CBSSports.com Blog Poll if I wanted to participate this season. Naturally I said yes.

I did miss the first week of balloting so here are my initial picks for Week 2. My final ballot has to be in by 10 a.m. on Wednesday morning.

Rank	Team
1	Florida
2	Southern Cal
3	Texas
4	Alabama
5	Penn State
6	Oklahoma State
7	California
8	Brigham Young
9	Mississippi
10	Boise State
11	LSU
12	Oklahoma
13	Ohio State
14	Virginia Tech
15	TCU
16	Georgia Tech
17	Georgia
18	Notre Dame
19	Utah
20	North Carolina
21	Florida State
22	Missouri
23	Kansas
24	Pittsburgh
25	Cincinnati

As I said above, this is only the initial ballot. Let me know what you think about my rankings so that I can take it under consideration as I make my final ballot up.

Oklahoma’s ranking could go down because we still don’t know how long Sam Bradford is going to be out. The initial reports are 2-4 weeks but I’ve also heard 4-6 weeks. Plus Florida State is currently playing and a loss could drop them out of the poll.

So please let me know what you think of my rankings and what changes I should make.

Boise State is the unanimous choice to win the WAC this season and is the early season darling from the non-BCS schools to possibly pluck another BCS berth when the bids come out in December. Any BCS talk will die however if the Broncos are upset on Thursday. Over 70% of bettors at Sportsbook.com think that is a possibility, backing the Oregon Ducks as a 3-1/2 point dog.

Consider the track record of Boise State coming into the season.

Boise State has had three unbeaten regular seasons in the last five years and is 55-9 in all games since 2004. Faced with oddsmakers’ numbers just begging the sports bettor to play the other side, the Broncos are 33-25-1 against the spread in that time period.

In games played on the “Smurf Turf” blue carpet at Bronco Stadium, Boise State is 64-2 and 40-17 ATS the last decade, which includes 49 in a row during the regular season. Boise State returns a dozen starters, including quarterback Kellen Moore, who broke onto the scene last year as a freshman. In truth, Coach Chris Peterson might have a team equal to or better than the 2006 squad, which was 13-0 and knocked off Oklahoma in Fiesta Bowl.

The Oregon Ducks are not to be taken for granted just because they have a new coach in Chip Kelly. With just ten returning starters from last year’s surprising 10-3 squad, the ranking appears a trifle inflated, however three components help justify the number.

Oregon might not average 41.9 points per game this upcoming season, however, will still have ample firepower with Jeremiah Masoli at the controls. The junior quarterback is far from classic passer, but he’s accurate and is powerful runner and is listed as All-Pac 10 QB in several preseason publications. Speaking of powerful, 240-pound LeGarrette Blount is one blunt object in the open field. The architect of this high-powered offense is coach Kelly, whose been the Oregon offense coordinator. The Ducks are 27-5 ATS in first road game, including covering nine of last 10.

Sportsbook.com has Boise State listed as 3.5-point home favorite, down from opening number of 5.5, with the total having risen to 64.

This is the second game on ESPN Thursday night, which will start at 10:15 Eastern. Oregon has revenge on their minds after last year’s 37-32 home upset

The AP College Football Top 25  Poll is out for the preseason and we find last year’s national champions the Florida Gators on top. As we all know these rankings mean absolutely nothing right now as none of the teams have even played a game yet.

In taking a quick look at the top 25 as far as opponents for the UConn Huskies are concerned, there are two teams that are currently ranked. They are the North Carolina Tar Heels (No. 21) and the Notre Dame Fighting Irish (No. 23).

There are no Big East teams ranked in the top 25 with the Pittsburgh Panthers checking in at No. 28 in the others receiving votes category.

Going forward during the season, I will be listing the polls side-by-side.

The USA Today College Football Top 25 Coaches Poll is out for the preseason and we find last year’s national champions the Florida Gators on top. As we all know these rankings mean absolutely nothing right now as none of the teams have even played a game yet.

In taking a quick look at the top 25 as far as opponents for the UConn Huskies are concerned, there are two teams that are currently ranked. They are the North Carolina Tar Heels (No. 20) and the Notre Dame Fighting Irish (No. 23).

There are no Big East teams ranked in the top 25 with the Cincinnati Bearcats checking in at No. 29 in the others receiving votes category.

USA Today College Football Top 25 Coaches Poll

With the College Football season just about a month away, it’s time for Sportsbook.com to release their preseason Top 25.

1. FLORIDA – Along with one of the nation’s best coaches in Urban Meyer and one of college football’s all-time greats in Tim Tebow, the Gators have 18 starters back in the fold. Nagging questions: Will the Gators stay hungry? If you don’t come ready to play each and every Saturday in the SEC, then you’ll get your teeth knocked in because this conference is chock-full of future pros. Odds to win the BCS Championship: +200; Over/Under Wins 11

2. OKLAHOMA – With the reigning Heisman Trophy winner at quarterback (Sam Bradford), two tailbacks who rushed for a combined 2,222 yards and 34 scores (Chris Brown and DeMarco Murray) and a battle-tested defense that returns nine starters, the Sooners have the horses to return to the BCS title game. Bradford (4,720 yards, 50 TD’s) is as accurate a passer as there is in college. But with four new starters along the offensive line, there will be more pressure on him in ‘09. Odds to win the BCS Championship: +600; Over/Under Wins 10

3. TEXAS – Eight starters return on offense, paced by the pass-catch combo of Colt McCoy (3,859 passing yards, 34 touchdowns) and Jordan Shipley (88 receptions, 1,060 yards, 11 scores). Mack Brown has moved linebacker Sergio Kindle (10 sacks) to end to help ease the loss of Brian Orakpo to NFL riches. It’s worth the gamble because Kindle doesn’t need a GPS system to find his way into enemy backfields and the Longhorns’ linebacking corps still features an All-American candidate in Roddrick Muckelrot (team-best 112 tackles). Odds to win the National Championship: +400; Over/Under Wins 10.5

4. USC – Each year, head coach Pete Carroll (88-15 record at USC) loses truckloads of talent to the NFL, but continues to keep on winning. Sophomore Aaron Corp and true freshman Matt Barkley will compete to replace Mark Sanchez at quarterback. Look for Carroll to lean on his tailbacks (C.J. Gable, Stafon Johnson and Joe McKnight) and his Taylor Mays led defense a little heavier in the early part of the season. Odds to win the BCS Championship: +700; Over/Under Wins 10

5. VIRGINIA TECH – Frank Beamer is one of the best X-and-O men in the college ranks, something he illustrated last fall by leading the young Hokies to 10 wins and their fourth ACC title in six years. With 16 starters back, most notably tailback Darren Evans and defensive playmakers Jason Worilds, Stephan Virgil and Kam Chancellor, the Hokies will once again be the class of the ACC. Odds to win the BCS Championship: +2500; Over/Under Wins 9

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