We are now through two full weeks of the college football season. Our team here at VAVEL USA will cover several topics from week two and the weekly "upset special" for the upcoming slate of games.

1) What do you make of USC Athletic Director Pat Haden's decision to run down on the field and confront the officials during the game against Stanford?

Jon Fox: I think Haden needs to be suspended for a time for his actions. He claimed that the coach "texted" him to ask for his help with the officials and that he just got an explanation, but if you look the video he's clearly lying. He didn't like the calls made and came down to give the ref a piece of his mind. Frankly, he should have been flagged also and ejected from the game.

Caleb Wahlgren: It just looked like one of the dumbest acts I’ve ever seen by an athletic director. Jerry Jones goes down to the sideline, but he at least doesn’t yell at the referees. Pat Haden should have stayed in the box or at least had someone tell him not to go down there. It makes him look like he is an old man that doesn’t know how to handle his emotions, which would just be another problem for USC. Los Angeles has had too many old gentlemen not know how to handle their emotions and responses when the Donald Sterling adventure happened this year. Pat Haden should be removed from the 13 member college football selection committee as a result of his actions displayed by going to the field to confront the officials; it is irresponsible and just plain childish.

Austin Litterell: This whole situation is not that big of a deal. Yes, he is on the playoff committee but there is no reason to be upset here. He is an AD and former player at USC, he just let his emotions get the best of him. It was definitely strange too see though. The punishment from the conference fits the crime just fine.

Matthew Evans: It was a boneheaded decision on Pat Haden’s part. It is like Mark May from ESPN said, “If you are an administrator, particularly an athletic director like Haden, if you have a beef with the officiating crew, do it at halftime or after the game.” The thing that makes this worse is that Haden is a member of the new College Football Playoff selection committee. It was a no-win situation for Haden and USC, we’ll see how it affects his placement on the committee.

Bryan Castillo: USC athletic director Pat Haden should have never gone down onto the field for anyone reason in the manner in which he did. I understand that he received a text from a USC official over a controversial play call on the field but that’s a job for a coach, not the athletic director. Again not all of the blame should be placed on Haden but on the coach and his coaching staff as well. While more than one party are at fault, in the end Haden is the one who has received numerous negative reactions towards him, and rightfully so. An athletic director has to know better than to put himself in that type of a situation.

Mac Magee: It was blown out of proportion. Maybe he should have refrained, but he'll pay a price so it's not a big deal.

Matthew Dixon: It was clear that he did not think this situation through before running on to the field. Even if he was not part of the College Football Playoff Committee, this would have been a bizarre scene. The fact that he is only makes it worse. He has to be more aware of his action and this now calls into question the ability for the committee members to be impartial in their decision to decide the final four teams.

2) Who is your surprise team after two weeks?

Fox: Texas A&M. No one had them as a potential power team this year after losing so much to graduation and suspension. I have them as one of the favorites in the SEC west right now and could shoot into the playoffs easily. 

Wahlgren: I couldn’t particularly think of a team that is a good surprise after two weeks, but instead decided to go with a team that was expected to bounce back after an injury filled 2013 season, the Northwestern Wildcats. They are already 0-2, with losses at home to both the Cal Golden Bears and the Northern Illinois Huskies. Instead of being a power team in the Big Ten, they are just another disappointment in a conference that has been disappointing.

Litterell: The USC Trojans have been surprising this season. Yes, they were ranked to start the season but there was something that did not seem right. With troubles just a couple of weeks before the season, it was hard to expect much for the Trojans. Suddenly, they go and beat Stanford in Palo Alto. It was a big win for Steve Sarkisian and just like that he has USC in the top ten.

Evans: It is too early in my opinion to pick out a team that is surprising me just because we have not gotten into conference play yet. I will pick a few teams to look this weekend, wins by these teams will put at the front of my list.

Kentucky (2-0, @ Florida)

California (2-0, Idle, Next @ Arizona 9/20)

Wyoming (2-0, @ Oregon)

Rutgers (2-0, vs. Penn State)

Minnesota (2-0, @ TCU)

Illinois (2-0, @ Washington)

Castillo: Texas A&M has to be the most impressive team thus far after two weeks into the season. A&M has moved up from No. 21 in the rankings to No. 7. A team that wasn’t supposed to be anywhere near playoff consideration this season they are now creeping up into that illustrious number 4 spot. Their offense has looked like an absolute juggernaut thus far with their defense notably much improved. In a short amount of time they’ve proven they can be a contender in the SEC without Johnny Manziel and potentially national contenders. Coach Sumlin has his team with a certain sense of swagger and confidence that could potentially result in a memorable season.

Magee: Notre Dame! A 31-0 win - Michigan is always impressive and most did not expect that kind of performance against the Wolverines.

Dixon: Washington State. The Cougars are 0-2 and many expected them to be 2-0 after their first two games against Rutgers and Nevada. The offense was expected to be explosive in Mike Leach's third season. It was explosive against Rutgers, but stuttered against Nevada. Leach's seat could be getting very warm if the Cougars take a step back in 2014.

3) Where would you rank the Big Ten within the "Power 5" conferences?

Fox: I would have the B1G 4th out of the 5 conferences only due to the ACC's top heavy nature. Even with all the problems that the B1G has, they still have 3-4 quality teams in Michigan State, Nebraska, Wisconsin, and Penn State. The ACC has Florida State and a rebuilding Clemson side. 

Wahlgren:  The top two conferences are currently the Southeastern Conference and the Pacific 12, in that order. After that, the other three are all fairly lacking. Next up I would put the ACC, based off their talent with Florida State, but is there anyone else really that good in the conference? The Big 12 would come next, but it is also top heavy in Oklahoma and Baylor. None of the other conference teams are really that great. But the Big 10 is last. They rank in fifth place out of the power 5. When the top 3 teams in the conference lose on an early weekend like that, it really hurts.

Litterell: The Big Ten is the worst of the five conferences. Every other conference has a team who could be in the playoff this season. Even the ranked teams in the conference are not all that impressive. Wisconsin, Michigan State, and Ohio State have had chances to prove themselves and came up short. Nebraska almost lost to McNeese State and Michigan got blown out at Notre Dame. The conference as a whole is just weak.

Evans: Being a statistics guy at heart, it is very difficult to argue with the numbers. The numbers have the Big Ten Conference ranked fourth out of the Big Five. Their 14 members have a combined record of 20-7 (.741) which puts them just ahead of the Big 12 (13-5, .722) for fourth. The top three look like this SEC (22-4, .846), Pac-12 (20-4, .833) and ACC (22-5, .815).

Castillo: The Big Ten right now looks to be the fifth best conference in the nation behind the SEC, Pac-12, ACC, and Big 12. Currently there are no teams ranked in the top 10 which means they have no teams in playoff contention. This past weekend was huge blow with Michigan State being handed a convincing loss to Oregon. Ohio State also looks to be mediocre without their star quarterback Braxton Miller out on the field. Unless one of these two teams are able to turn it around, Michigan State certainly has the potential, it’ll be a long year for the Big Ten.

Magee: 5th. The rankings for me are:
1 SEC
2 Pac 12
3 ACC
4 Big 12
5 Big 10

Dixon: It is clear that the SEC and Pac 12 are the top two conferences. The Big 12 looks to the third best while the ACC and Big Ten are battling for fourth. The Big Ten's trouble this season, as well as over the last 7 or 8 years, leads me to believe they are the last of the "Power 5" conferences. Michigan, Michigan State, and Ohio State all lost on the same weekend for the first time since 1988. It may be tough times ahead for the Big Ten until they prove they belong with the top conferences.

4) What are the chances a Big Ten team will make the College Football Playoff?

Fox: It's possible, but they would need a lot of help for it to happen. It would be most possible if Wisconsin ran the table for the rest of the season and LSU won the SEC since that would be their only loss on the season. If all the B1G teams have 2 losses or more, its hard to see them getting that spot of Florida State or the Big-12 Champ. 

Wahlgren: Right now I am going to put those odds at 10%. The reasoning is that the Big 10 really is weaker than people originally thought. Wisconsin, Nebraska, and Iowa are all in the Big 10 West, and there isn’t a lot of power on that side and someone could run the table. Michigan State still has an outside chance since there will probably be 3-4 conference champions in the playoff. The other conferences could beat each other up enough that the Big 10 can still get someone in, but the odds are low.

Litterell: The chances of a Big Ten team getting into the playoff is extremely small. Ohio State had the best chance, but the injury to Braxton Miller seriously hurt their chances. Michigan State now has the best chance, but they have to win out and even then it might not be enough.

Evans: I think the Big Ten still has a pretty good shot to put a team in the College Football Playoff. It helps that their best teams have lost early and will get a chance to redeem themselves as the season goes along. The question becomes who will be the team to make a run at a potential playoff spot. At the end of the day, I think it will be Ohio State, but look out for Minnesota. If they get by TCU and Michigan going into October, they have a favorable schedule up to the last three weeks of the year.

Castillo: The Big Ten right now has less than a 20% chance of having a team represented in the college football playoffs that’ll take place in Jerry’s World in Arlington, Texas. With no Big Ten teams currently ranked in the top 10, it’ll be an uphill battle the rest of this season. Michigan State has the most chance to sneak into the top 4 but they’ll have to go undefeated the rest of the season and hope that the teams in front of them fall. Of course this is very feasible as there’s a lot of football left to be played but the Big Ten has simply looked overmatched talent wise and that’s not something that can easily change in a short amount of time. They’re the fifth best conference right now and chances are they’ll be looking the college football playoffs from home just like the rest of us.

Magee: Zero. Braxton Miller isn't walking through those doors.

Dixon: 5%. It will take a lot of dominos to fall in their favor. They would probably need all the other conference champions to have at least two losses and one of the Big Ten teams to have one loss. The best way to put it right now is this: BYU has a better chance of making the playoffs than a Big Ten team.

5) Which game is most likely to produce an upset in Week 3?

Fox: South Carolina will upset Georgia for the following reasons. 1) South Carolina's defensive struggles have been all in the passing game this season and they'll load up against the run to dare Georgia to throw on them. Georgia's also going to be missing their top two WRs on Saturday (barring a miracle). Expect the Cocks to go 4 front, 3 Lbs and a Spur LB to put 8-9 in the box on most plays. 2) South Carolina will have a massive size advantage with their o-line versus the Georgia front 7 (somewhere around 50-60 lbs on average). 3) It's in Columbia, not Athens and Georgia still has problems with noise on the road (their offense has too many calls and audibles). 4) Georgia hasn't scored 20 points in Columbia since before we knew who Monica Lewinsky was.

Wahlgren: Looking at the odds that have been made, there are two games that stand out to me. Maryland is favored at home over West Virginia, and Texas Tech is favored at home against the Arkansas Razorbacks. Take both the road underdogs for the upset victories.

Litterell: The best chance for an upset this week is East Carolina versus Virginia Tech. Tech is coming off a huge win at Ohio State while East Carolina missed an opportunity to knock off the Gamecocks. This game has turned into a rivalry with many games being close the last few years. East Carolina had a prolific offense that will make for an interesting matchup against Bud Foster’s defense. This could make for an interesting Saturday game.

Evans: This pains me to say but keep an eye on the Illinois-Washington game for a potential upset. Washington is a 13-point favorite but has struggled defensively this season. They will be without senior cornerback Marcus Peters who will be serving a one-game suspension for a tantrum thrown on the sidelines after being pulled in last week’s win over Eastern Washington. The other upset look game this week is Central Michigan beating Syracuse.

Castillo: I’m picking the South Carolina Gamecocks to upset the Georgia Bulldogs in what should be a close matchup. South Carolina are underdogs at home for the first time in years and will be looking to redeem themselves from the embarrassment they suffered in week one due to the Texas A&M Aggies. South Carolina were picked by some to be national title contenders going into the season and I expect for them to look like it against the Georgia Bulldogs. South Carolina wins 27-24.

Magee: In a week of bad match-ups, I'll go with West Virginia. The Mountaineers are a 3 point underdog and I like them to get the W.

Dixon: Central Michigan over Syracuse. Right now, Central Michigan is listed as 6.5 point underdogs. The Chippewas struggled to beat Chattanooga in the opener, but demolished Purdue last Saturday. Syracuse was unconvincing in their only win of the year against Villanova in week one. Thomas Rawls will run for over 100 yards and the Chippewas will win their second straight game against a "Power 5" conference.