Opponent week in review

Temple (1-9): L 39-36 vs. No. 17 Central Florida

BCS ranking: N/A

This week: vs. Connecticut

Temple was in prime position to make its first AAC win a big win, leading BCS-hopeful Central Florida with less than two minutes remaining Saturday afternoon. An Owls touchdown and successful two-point conversion gave Temple a 36-29 lead before two Knights scores -- including a magnificent touchdown catch by J.J. Worton -- ended the upset hopes.

Temple quarterback P.J. Walker orchestrated the close call, throwing for nearly 400 yards and four touchdowns on 26-of-44 passing.

Michigan (7-3): W 27-19 in 3OT at Northwestern

BCS ranking: N/A

This week: at Iowa

For the first time in a month, Michigan ran for positive yardage against Northwestern, finishing the triple overtime contest with 139 yards on 44 carries. Derrick Green provided the crux of those gains with 79 rushing yards on 19 carries, and quarterback Devin Gardner scored the winning touchdown on a five-yard run.

Both Michigan and Northwestern relied on field goals to end regulation 9-9. Wolverines kicker Brendan Gibbons finished the day a perfect 4-of-4 on field goals including one as the clock expired in the fourth quarter to force overtime.

Purdue (1-9): L 45-21 at Penn State

BCS ranking: N/A

This week: vs. Illinois

A touchdown to open the second half brought Purdue within one score of the Nittany Lions, but 21 unanswered Penn State points eliminated any chance the Boilermakers had. Penn State has not been a Big Ten powerhouse this season, but the Lions still managed to gash Purdue for 501 total yards and held the ball for 36:29, in part due to three Boilermaker turnovers.

Michigan State (9-1): W 41-28 at Nebraska

BCS ranking: Rose three spots to No. 13, passing UCLA, Fresno State and Northern Illinois

This week: at Northwestern

Though the score indicates Michigan State beat Nebraska, it may be more accurate to say the Cornhuskers lost to the Spartans. Nebraska gifted Michigan State five turnovers, many deep within its own territory. As a result, the Spartans' five touchdown drives went a total of 66 yards.

Nebraska outgained Michigan State 392 total yards to 361 and committed half the number of penalties, but those five turnovers made all the difference.

Jeremy Langford led the Spartans with 151 rushing yards and three touchdowns on 32 carries.

Oklahoma (8-2): W 48-10 vs. Iowa State

BCS ranking: Fell two spots to No. 20 as Wisconsin and Arizona State jumped the Sooners

This week: at Kansas State

Scoring the last 45 points against Iowa State did not keep Oklahoma from dropping in the BCS polls, as computer rankings do not favor the Sooners' strength of schedule. Oklahoma rushed for 405 yards on only 44 carries to steamroll the Cyclones and Jalen Saunders added to the rout with a 91-yard punt return.

Running back Damien Williams rushed for 128 yards and two touchdowns while quarterback Trevor Knight added 123 yards and another score on the ground, each on 10 carries apiece. Brennan Clay and Kendal Thompson both also averaged double digits per carry.

Arizona State (9-2): W 30-17 vs. Oregon State

BCS ranking: Rose two spots to No. 17, rising above Oklahoma and Central Florida

This week: at No. 14 UCLA

Arizona State went up 20-0 mid-way through the second quarter and used five Oregon State turnovers to minimize any genuine Beavers' threats last weekend. Running back Marion Grice provided most of the Sun Devils' firepower, rushing for 118 yards and two scores on only 24 carries, an average of 4.9 yards per carry.

USC (8-3): W 20-17 vs. No. 4 Stanford

BCS ranking: Entered the poll at No. 23

This week: at Colorado

Interim head coach Ed Orgeron remained undefeated in conference play, leading USC to all five of its conference wins. A back-and-forth affair seemed to be tilting Stanford's way when Tyler Gaffney completed a 10-point comeback with a touchdown run in the third quarter. The Trojan defense held stout the rest of the night, however, and an Andre Heidari 47-yard field goal with only 19 seconds left gave USC the necessary winning margin.

Quarterback Cody Kessler threw for 288 yards on 25-of-37 passing, the majority of which went to star receivers Nelson Agholor and Marquise Lee, who combined for 14 catches for 187 yards.

Air Force (2-8): Bye

BCS ranking: N/A

This week: vs. UNLV on Thursday, Nov. 21

Navy (6-4): W 42-14 vs. South Alabama

BCS ranking: N/A

This week: at San Jose State on Friday, Nov. 22

Navy became eligible for and accepted a bid to play in the Armed Forces Bowl with the win over South Alabama. Four different Midshipmen ran for touchdowns, and quarterback Keenan Reynolds added to his one ground score with a touchdown through the air.

Pittsburgh (5-5): L 34-27 vs. North Carolina

BCS ranking: N/A

This week: at Syracuse

Pittsburgh's bowl hopes are dwindling, needing to win one of its next two to secure a berth, after falling behind the Tar Heels 27-3, creating too large a hole for the Panthers to climb out of.

North Carolina's winning score came on a 61-yard punt return for a touchdown, Ryan Switzer's second of the day. The two special teams scores diminished the Tar Heels' time of possession -- Pittsburgh had the ball for one second less than 37 minutes -- but compensated for a sluggish offensive performance.

BYU (7-3): W 59-13 vs. Idaho State

BCS ranking: No longer receiving any AP votes, despite the Idaho State thrashing

This week: at Notre Dame

A 35-point second quarter put this contest out of reach, highlighted by two BYU touchdowns within 52 seconds thanks to a Bronson Kaufusi interception return for a touchdown. Jamaal Williams rushed for 131 yards and three touchdowns on 13 carries, though he may have been overshadowed by Adam Hine's 141 rushing yards on only 10 carries as the Cougars gained 578 total yards.

Stanford (8-2): L 20-17 to USC

BCS ranking: Fell five spots to No. 9 after losing to the Trojans

This week: vs. Cal

Usually a disciplined team, Stanford turned the ball over three times and committed six penalties for 70 yards against a motivated USC team. The Cardinal did gain 210 rushing yards, led by Tyler Gaffney's 158 yards and 6.6 average, but with 19 seconds to find a tying field goal, it was the passing game Stanford needed to be effective. Quarterback Kevin Hogan completed 14 of 25 passes for 127 yards and a paltry 5.1 yards per attempt.