When the mauling was complete on Saturday evening at 6:45 pm EST, a shell shocked ND quarterback Brady Quinn was in a state of shock. Just a week after they had dismembered the Penn State Nittany Lions 41-17, the Irish team looked overmatched.

The defensive backs got burned and the front seven couldn't stop the run. Michigan wide receiver, Mario Manningham, torched Wooden and Terrail Lambert for three touchdowns in the first half alone, all on crisp passes from steady quarterback Chad Henne. The Wolverines? running back, Michael Hart, made the middle of the Irish defense his personal sieve, blasting right up the gut for most of his 124 rushing yards. For those who did some on Hart must have been more than pleased with the results.

It was equally bad for the Irish offense. Quinn, who ran a turnover-free offense the first two games, threw three interceptions and fumbled a ball that led to a Michigan defensive score. He finished 24-for-48 for 234 yards with three touchdowns, his mistakes far outweighing the good.

Meanwhile, it was a bad day for what have been the top two schools in Florida for years. Miami had never lost as an underdog in the Larry Coker era and even had an early lead, but they were overwhelmed by the Louisville Cardinals. If you put money on Miami at your , it was definitely not a winning day.

Clemson won despite having two kicks blocked and returned for points by Florida State's Tony Carter. He ran back a blocked field goal attempt for a touchdown and another for two points on a blocked extra point -- the first returned PAT for points in Florida State's football history. It was a case of the passing of the guard from Father to son, as Tommy Bowden abused his papa, Bobby Bowden.

The best team in Florida is now the Gators who went into Tennessee and upended the Volunteers. Going down 17-7 on the road and rallying will pay huge dividends for Urban Meyer's troops!

Bob Acton