Luck of the Irish still intact

For any true college football fan, last Saturday's games were must-watches. But, if for some reason you missed the games, I'm here to brief you as to what took place. First, we will go down to the capital of Florida to see if the luck of the Irish could finally turn into the skill of the Irish against Florida State. Next on the roller coaster of this week's Inside College Football, you as the reader will be taken to the Big House to see what went wrong with the Wolverines against Iowa.

The key to beating Notre Dame lies in the opposing team's ability to contain running back Ryan Grant. Unfortunately for the opposition, not a single team has been able to do so, which has given the Irish an undefeated record heading into the contest against Florida State. The key for Florida State is having a balanced rushing attack with a leader at quarterback who can serve the ball to incredible athletes at receiver.

Grant rushed for 94 yards including two touchdowns. You guessed it folks, Notre Dame won. The final score was 34-24, but in actuality, the game was not even that close. Notre Dame never trailed in the contest, paced by its suffocating defense that has blanketed three ranked opponents over the season. The Irish D held the ACC's leading rusher, Greg Jones to just 34 yards on 14 carries. FSU quarterback Chris Rix tossed for 207 yards. Unfortunately, he completed two passes to Notre Dame defenders while throwing no touchdown passes.

With Notre Dame up 34-10 in the fourth quarter, coach Bobby Bowden had seen enough of his star quarterback and brought in back-up Adrian McPherson. McPherson was the spark FSU needed, as he went 8-11 for 118 yards and two touchdowns. To the Seminoles dismay, there are only four quarters of football, so the contest ended with the Seminoles finally playing like a top 15 team. The problem for the 'Noles is that they only played one quarter of good football, while the Irish played three.

Notre Dame quarterback Carlyle Holiday continues to play solidly by not turning the ball over. Although he only threw for 185 yards, he did have two touchdown passes. This win continues Notre Dame's National Championship hopes as the Associated Press has the squad ranked at fourth in the country to last week's sixth.

What if? That question must be on the minds of Iowa fans as well as players. What if the Hawkeyes beat instate rival Iowa State instead of losing by five? The answer: legitimate National Championship consideration.

Under coach Kirk Ferentz, the Iowa football program has sparkled. The Hawkeyes entered last Saturday's match-up against Michigan 7-1. They exited the contest 8-1, handing Michigan its worst home defeat since 1967, 34-9.

Nothing worked for the Wolverines. Although Iowa's offense was spectacular _ led by running back Jermelle Lewis (109 yards rushing, one touchdown) and quarterback Brad Banks (222 yards passing, 3 touchdowns) _ its defense was stupendous.

Michigan was 6-1 and ranked eighth in the country coming into the game. Its yardage reflected none of this. The Iowa defense held running back Chris Perry to 14 yards on nine carries. In fact, quarterback John Navarre was Michigan's leading rusher with a total of 18 yards. The passing attack was not much better. Navarre actually succeeded in not turning the ball over, but he did not succeed in throwing a touchdown. His ineffectiveness led to his benching. Backup Spencer Brinton had six attempts, completing three.

So what went wrong for the Wolverines? Answer: Everything. What went right for the Hawkeyes? Answer: Everything. Iowa is starting to make believers out of the Associated Press as they cracked the top 10, with the ninth spot in this week's polls. Most seasons Iowa would be in the thick of the National Title chase, but this season boasts six undefeated teams through 11 weeks of football. Some of these squads must lose for Iowa to make a run at the Sears Cup.