Andy Staples discusses Alabama's stranglehold on college football

Key notes from Andy Staples interview

• Here's what you need to remember, good teams win and great teams cover. And A&M covered on Saturday. This Alabama team is scary, and they will be for a few years with Tua at the helm. You have to have a certain type of roster to even compete with them, but even then it's so tough.
   
• People were wondering about Alabama's young secondary, but the scary thing may be that this group might be even better than the ones who left. Alabama has developed such a brand that they always have a shot at the best players in the nation. Essentially when they find a guy they want on the defensive side of the ball, they do everything they can to get him. If you're a football player in high school, you have to listen to the like of Alabama and Ohio State because of the amount of guys they've developed for the next level.
   
• Kellen Mond is a tough quarterback and isn't afraid of anyone. The thing is, there's not much better than Alabama and Clemson and he hung with those defenses. I think they have the quarterback for the future in College Station. Now you just have to start putting the pieces around him.
   
• Kentucky is a very dangerous team with a good offensive line and Benny Snell running behind it. Kentucky isn't going to get pushed around by anyone, as shown by last weekend against Mississippi State. Kentucky will still have to play a great game to take down Georgia.
   
• As far as a contender for Alabama in the West, it's looking like LSU or bust. Tua hasn't even played in the fourth quarter yet and that might be the only time in the regular season he does. The thing is about that matchup is I don't see LSU scoring anywhere near the amount of points to stay in that game.
   
• With Virginia Tech's loss, you would think they have enough talent to eventually pull away in that game, but ODU kept coming back and throwing haymakers. In Oklahoma/Army, the Sooners' defense is just not very good. If they had a moderate defense, they would compete for the National Championship, but they just can't do it.
   
• The option is the great equalizer in college football. If each play is blocked correctly, you have a chance for a touchdown. If one defender makes an assignment bust, it could go for a touchdown. To stop that offense all you really need is one guy who can't be blocked. Oklahoma doesn't have that guy on their roster.
   
• Florida and Mississippi State will be a crazy game this weekend with Mullen coming back. I would've thought before last weekend that State would've won, but then they got pushed around by Kentucky. I'll be interested to see how Florida preforms this week with Mullen's first game back in Starkville. Mullen recruited all those guys to Mississippi State, he knows how good they are.
   
• If you made me pick, I think Penn State and Notre Dame come out of the weekend undefeated with big wins. With Penn State playing Ohio State at home and Notre Dame taking on Stanford.