Eye Candy
Posted September 20, 2010, 8:08 AM ET

We've played three weeks of college football, and now it's time to get serious about which teams can play and which teams are fooling themselves.

If common sense existed in college football, the first polls of the season would be released next week; but as we all know, that's not the case.

Here's what I can figure out, after the first three weeks of the season:

* The ACC is worse than I anticipated. I was hoping the big four "powers" of the Coastal division (VT, UNC, GT, Miami) could emerge and give the league a bona fide national player.....it's not going to happen. All four teams have been weaker than advertised.

* The Big East is even worse than the ACC. How is that possible? Look up the numbers; they are alarming.

* The SEC doesn't seem as powerful or as dominant....but there are 6 teams ranked in the Top 15 of the polls this week. But I'm not buying Arkansas as a Top 10 team....and Florida is the most overrated team in the country, after the first three weeks of the season.

* Bama is even better than I thought. As good as the Tide looks on and off the field, something tells me they get tripped up by somebody in the league. It is ridiculous that they play 6 conference teams which get two weeks to prepare for them. That's wrong.

* South Carolina is better than I thought, too. Steve Spurrier's latest edition is by far the best one he's had in Columbia. Given the decline of Georgia and Tennessee and the fact that Florida has yet to figure it out.....why not the Gamecocks?

* UNC's off-the-field problems appear to run deeper than anticipated. The fact that there were still a dozen players suspended for the GT game was surprising. The 0-2 start has eliminated any championship talk in Chapel Hill....the bigger buzz is if Butch Davis and the Heels can salvage the season.

* After watching their first two games, I didn't expect Clemson to do much with Auburn....it was a great game and one Clemson could have won. The effort gives Clemson a shot to win the wide-open Atlantic division again....only if they play with that type of intensity.

* After watching App State in person, Jerry Moore's 2010 squad is fun to watch and worthy of their #1 FCS ranking. The Mountaineers just reload, and that's a testament to Moore and his staff.

* NC State is 3-0 for the first time since 2002....so the natives should be happy. However, every time I hear Tom O'Brien, he's complaining about something. At first it was playing on Thursday night at home for ESPN, now he's ripping his fans for not showing up in the 2nd half. Hey, coach....you're 3-0....enjoy it, and get ready for a big one with Georgia Tech.

* East Carolina's offense is better than I thought. Their defense is worse than I imagined......it makes for fun and wild Saturdays in Pirate Nation.

* I expect to hear from Georgia fans that they are ready to run out Mark Richt since he's 0-2 in the SEC for the first time in his career. Richt has been fantastic for the Dawgs, but some Georgia fans think they are on the same level as Bama and Florida.....they're not.

* I like David Cutcliffe, I really do....but his comments about Duke's chances to beat Bama have to go down as some of the dumbest I've ever heard.

* I like Phil Fulmer, I really do....but his comments about the arrogance of Lane Kiffin have to go down as some of the best that I've ever heard.

* How do you rank the best three teams in Virginia? Is James Madison on top of the heap over UVa and Virginia Tech? Probably.

* How about the state rankings of Tennessee? The Vols and 'Dores are brutal....maybe the top spot is vacated like Reggie Bush's Heisman trophy.

* Wake Forest fans had been wondering about the loss of QB Riley Skinner heading, into the season; unfortunately, the defense has given up 118 points to Duke and Stanford over the last two weeks. Ouch.