NCAA Football Power Rankings - Longhorns leapfrog Gators, Crimson Tide

With so much going on the sportsbook industry, a little midseason hiatus from the Power Rankings was needed. But we’re back with a new No.1, and it’s about to get really hot in the college football betting world as the games get bigger with championship and bowl season on the horizon.

1. (3) Texas (9-0): The Longhorns were shaky before their trip to Missouri. In three games since, Texas has outscored the competition 117-24. Quarterback Colt McCoy’s also back in the Heisman hunt, as well.

2. (2) Florida (9-0): It was all fine and good for linebacker Brandon Spikes to suspend himself for the Vanderbilt due to his eye-gouge attempt against Georgia, because Urban Meyer’s “suspension for a half” thing was just garbage. It’s not like the Gators even needed him.

3. (1) Alabama (9-0): If only the Crimson Tide had a half-decent quarterback. Receiver Julio Jones may be an online betting favorite for the Heisman if someone could get him the ball besides Greg McElroy.

4. (7) Cincinnati (9-0): The Bearcats keep winning with a backup pivot, Zach Collaros, but the defense will have to do better than giving up 45 points to Connecticut at home.

5. (12) TCU (9-0): The Horned Frogs are impressive because they’ve been dismantling everyone in their way. Only two of their wins have come by 10 points or less.

6. (13) LSU (7-2): A couple of breaks and the Tigers would be 9-0. Whoever missed that interception call against Alabama, especially with replay taken into consideration, needs to be fired. In fact, the SEC needs to look at all of their officiating. It’s been terrible this year (unless you’re Florida and/or Alabama).

7. (10) Georgia Tech (9-1): The Yellow Jackets do one thing: run the triple option. And yet, no one can seem to stop them.

8. (17) Ohio State (8-2): They aren’t national-championship worthy, but the Buckeyes showed a lot of heart to go into Happy Valley and manhandle Penn State like they did. Now they have to keep up against Iowa this week at home.

9. (8) Boise State (9-0): Nope. Still not impressed. The fact that the WAC hired a PR firm to trumpet the Broncos’ BCS case makes me even angrier.

10. (14) Pittsburgh (8-1): The Panthers have quietly put themselves in the Big East race, but their closing stretch is no joke: Notre Dame, at West Virginia for the “Backyard Brawl”, then a visit from Cincinnati that could decide the conference champion, who gets a BCS berth.

11. (--) Houston (8-1): Don’t be surprised if you see Casey Keenum lifting the Heisman in New York at the end of the season. He’s a big college football betting underdog to overcome McCoy and Florida’s Tim Tebow, but he’s putting up insane numbers, albeit in a run-and-gun system.

12. (9) Oregon (7-2): Stanford is decent and all, but 51 points, Oregon fans? They still have to go to Arizona before the “Civil War” with Oregon State.

13. (4) USC (7-2): You just watch. With Matt Barkley at the helm and a young defense, these boys are going to be a problem next year, and there’ll be hell to pay in the Pac-10.

14. (--) Arizona (6-2): I wonder what the sportsbook odds were for the Wildcats to win the Pac-10? They have the toughest closing stretch of any team in the conference, too: Oregon, at Arizona State and at USC.

15. (16) Utah (8-1): The Utes figured that they would win the Mountain West when they put up a stink about being left out of the national-championship chase. That makes this week’s game at TCU that much more exciting for sportsbook players.

16. (6) Iowa (9-1): You can’t go all year winning close games before it comes back to bite you. Still a great year for Iowa, though.

17. (--) West Virginia (7-2): The next two weeks are critical for the Mountaineers, who head to Cincinnati before hosting Pitt. Win both, and they could sneak away with the Big East title.

18. (15) Penn State (8-2): Sportsbook players couldn’t have been more disappointed with Penn State’s performance against Ohio State unless they were Joe Paterno himself.

19. (11) Oklahoma State (7-2): Here’s to the Cowboys doing their thing without All-American receiver Dez Bryant.

20. (18) Virginia Tech (6-3): It’ll be weird not seeing the Hokies in the ACC championship game after appearances in three of four years, including wins in the last two.

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Blake Frazier is one of BetOnline.com's college football experts.