Mike Kern: COLLEGE FOOTBALL WRAP

PLAYERS OF THE WEEKEND

National

Alabama's Terrence "Mount" Cody blocked a Tennessee field goal on the last play, his second block in the fourth quarter, to preserve a 12-10 win and the Tide's unbeaten record.

>And, Rick Stanzi and Marvin McNutt hooked up for a 7-yard touchdown pass on the final play to give Iowa a 15-13 win at Michigan State and preserve its perfect season.

Local

Wide receiver/kick returner Al Desiderio (Roman Catholic) had 252 yards' total offense and scored two touchdowns as Ursinus won at McDaniel, 48-13.

AROUND TOWN

Temple 40, Toledo 24

Really, will the Owls (5-2, 4-0 MAC) ever lose again?

They own their first five-game winning streak in 3 decades. The last time they won six straight was 1973. This week they will be at Navy (6-2), where they should have won a year ago. The Midshipmen also have won their last five.

With Ohio University losing at home to Kent, the Owls are alone in first place in your MAC East. They'll host Kent (4-4, 3-1) on Nov. 21 and close at Ohio (5-3, 3-1) on Nov. 27. The title game is Dec. 4 in Detroit.

Bernard Pierce, who was listed as doubtful because of an injured left shoulder and neck, rushed for 212 yards and three TDs on 40 carries in the Glass Bowl. Some recovery. He now has 766 yards and nine scores. The old school freshman records of 628 and six had been held by Paul Palmer since 1983.

The records for any class are 1,866 and 15.

Temple scored 23 of the first 30 points, but the Rockets (4-4, 2-2) were back to within six at the break. The Owls added the next 17 over the next 19 minutes.

Villanova 36, Richmond 7

Andy Talley has been a head coach for 30 seasons, the last 25 on the Main Line. He has now won 200 games, the last 171 with the Wildcats (7-1, 4-1 CAA), who are ranked No. 4 in FCS.

He's now on a list with four other active FCS coaches, including Penn's Al Bagnoli (204). Talley has been the program's only coach since the sport was reinstated at this level following a 4-year absence from 1981-84.

Playing an unranked opponent for the first time in four games, 'Nova rushed for 376 yards. The visiting Rams are 1-6, 0-4.

The 'Cats have a week off before heading to No. 1 Richmond, the defending national champion; the Spiders lost here last season.

Penn 9, Yale 0

At Franklin Field, the Quakers (4-2, 3-0 Ivy League), again playing without their starting quarterback, won their fourth straight to remain tied with Harvard.

The Bulldogs, who had won two straight, dropped to 3-3, 1-2.

Keiffer Garton, who already had missed three games with a bad shoulder, hurt his knee in practice and is probably out for another week. Kyle Olson took his place, and completed eight of 21 for 94 yards. The Quakers also ran a lot of stuff out of the Wildcat formation.

Andrew Samson kicked a 35-yard field goal with 4 minutes to go in the first quarter. On the ensuing possession, defensive end Jared Sholly ran back an interception 15 yards for a score.

Yale managed 163 yards of offense, 25 on the ground. Tom Mante missed three FGs (from 54, 28, 47), two in the fourth quarter.

The Quakers are at Brown (4-2, 2-1) next. They go to Harvard on Nov. 14.

AROUND THE NATION

Fraud five

-- Me: I know it happens at least once a season, but I picked more losers this week than Lou Holtz. Ruined a perfectly miserable Saturday. Yo, if you can't laugh at yourself ...

-- Brigham Young: It's OK to lose to Texas Christian, even at home, in a revenge situation. But 38-7 is way beyond acceptable.

-- Nebraska: Shouldn't be losing to Iowa State (9-7) at home (for first time since 1977). Cornhuskers had eight turnovers, four inside Iowa State's 5.

-- North Carolina: Shouldn't be blowing an 18-point, second-half lead at home to Florida State.

-- Texas Tech: Shouldn't be losing at home to Texas A&M (for first time since 1993). At least not by 52-30, the week after A&M lost by 48 at Kansas State.

-- Dishonorable mention - Kansas: It's OK to lose at home to Oklahoma, even this year. Still, I was expecting more than 13 points.

Inspired effort

Connecticut lost at West Virginia on a 56-yard TD run in the closing minutes, a week after starting cornerback Jasper Howard was stabbed to death outside a university-sponsored dance.

The Huskies will fly as a team to his funeral today in Miami.

"I couldn't stop thinking about him throughout the game," said Huskies running back Andre Dixon.

Players from both teams wore stickers on their helmets in Howard's memory. The crowd gave UConn a standing ovation when it took the field, and a moment of silence was held before kickoff.

"I just feel empty," said coach Randy Edsall. "I'm so proud ... for the way they came out and played."

Did you notice?

-- Notre Dame finally beat Boston College, on a TD midway through the fourth quarter. Can a win over Southern Cal be far behind? The Irish still have to go to Pitt and Stanford, for those thinking BCS bowl.

-- Pitt is 7-1 for the first time since 1982, when Dan Marino was a senior and the Panthers were ranked No. 1.

-- Florida has fumbled nine times; it had eight last season.

-- Previously winless Ball State won at still-winless Eastern Michigan, 29-27.

-- Colorado is 2-17 on the road in four seasons under Dan Hawkins.

-- Iowa is 8-0 for the first time ever.

-- Kansas State is 3-1 in the Big 12 for the first time since 2000.

-- Missouri is 0-3 in the Big 12 for the first time since 2002, having been outscored 95-36.

-- Cincinnati's off to its best start since 1954, when it won its first eight before losing its last two.

-- Hawaii has lost five straight for the first time since 1998. So whatever happened to June Jones?

-- Tennessee became the first team since 2000 to play two No. 1s in a season.

-- Georgia Tech won at Virginia for the first time since 1990.

-- Clemson beat a ranked opponent (Miami) for the first time in nine tries.

-- Zac Robinson set an Oklahoma State record by completing nearly 90 percent of his passes (23-for-27) against Baylor. The old mark belonged to Cowboys coach Mike Gundy (from 1989).

Mike Kern's Top 15

1. Florida (7-0). Beat Mississippi State, 29-19. Saturday: vs. Georgia (in Jacksonville). Has beaten Georgia 9 of last 11. Last year it was 49-10.

2. Texas (7-0). Beat Missouri, 41-7. Saturday: at Oklahoma State. Hasn't lost to Oklahoma State since 1997. Last two in series have been by 3 and 4.

3. Alabama (8-0). Beat Tennessee, 12-10. Next: Nov. 7, vs. LSU. Has given up 1 TD and 3 FG in last 3 games this season.

4. Southern Cal (6-1). Beat Oregon State, 42-36. Saturday: at Oregon. Lost at Oregon by a TD 2 in 2007. Won last year at home by 34.

5. Boise State (7-0). Beat Hawaii, 54-9. Saturday: vs. San Jose State. Maybe Broncs should just play TCU to see who goes to BCS bowl.

6. Cincinnati (7-0). Beat Louisville, 41-10. Saturday: at Syracuse. Probably won't need Tony Pike this week, either.

7. Iowa (8-0). Beat Michigan State, 15-13. Saturday: vs. Indiana. At the very least, Hawkeyes should get to the Rose Bowl.

8. Texas Christian (6-0). Beat Brigham Young, 38-7. Saturday: vs. Nevada-Las Vegas. Perhaps Frogs should simply play Boise to see who goes BCS bowling.

9. Louisiana State (6-1). Beat Auburn, 31-10. Saturday: vs. Tulane. Hasn't lost to Tulane since 1982.

10. Oregon (6-1). Beat Washington, 43-19. Saturday: vs. Southern Cal. Has beaten USC 4 of last 6 at home.

11. Georgia Tech (6-1). Beat Virginia, 34-9. Saturday: at Vanderbilt. Jackets should be 10-1 when they host Georgia on Nov. 28.

12. Oklahoma State (6-1). Beat Baylor, 34-7. Saturday: vs. Texas. Time to fish or cut bait.

13. Penn State (7-1). Beat Michigan, 35-10. Saturday: at Northwestern. Could the Nits possibly go 11-1 and still not make it to a BCS bowl?

14. Virginia Tech (5-2). Idle. Thursday: vs. North Carolina. Has beaten North Carolina 5 straight since joining ACC. Last 2 were tight.

15. Miami (6-2). Lost to Clemson, 40-37 (OT). Saturday: at Wake Forest. Time to regroup, against team the Canes have owned.