BATON ROUGE, La. -- Vanderbilt's three-game winning streak has become a national story in college football.

It also makes you wonder: How many UT fans have adopted the Commodores as their second favorite team?

My best guess: Two or three.

As for the hundreds of thousands of UT fans who haven't adopted the Commodores as their second favorite team, they might at least have some questions about a program that is usually either ridiculed or ignored.

Question: With a one-point lead against Ole Miss, why didn't Vanderbilt try to run out the clock, rather than score a touchdown that actually gave the Rebels a chance to tie the game?

Answer: The Commodores know margin of victory impresses Top 25 voters.

Question: In the race to play Southern Cal for the national title, who has the tougher schedule, Texas or Vanderbilt?

Answer: Vanderbilt still must play four teams ranked in The Associated Press top 10. None of Texas' remaining opponents are ranked in the top 10.

Advantage, Longhorns.

Question: In the race for the state championship, who has the tougher schedule, UT or Vanderbilt?

Answer: Vanderbilt plays a winless Middle Tennessee State team at home and UT on the road; UT plays Memphis (1-1) and Vanderbilt at home.

Slight advantage, Vols.

Vanderbilt 27, Richmond 17: Since UT has no Heisman Trophy candidate, wouldn't it be a wonderful gesture if the Vols cranked up their publicity machine on behalf of Commodores quarterback Jay Cutler?

Vanderbilt simply doesn't have the manpower or experience to promote a Heisman candidate. But with UT behind Cutler, maybe he could finish second.

Alabama 27, Arkansas 14: Don't be misled by the Razorbacks' 70-17 loss to Southern Cal. The embarrassing defeat can be attributed to a slight misunderstanding.

Arkansas mistakenly thought it was going to Los Angeles for a football game. Instead, it was a track meet.

The game was in doubt for about as long as it takes the Hogs' best middle-distance runner to cover 800 meters.

In case you're wondering which two coaches are voting Texas No. 1, it's safe to eliminate Arkansas' Houston Nutt from your list of suspects.

Florida 45, Kentucky 13: Gators coach Urban Meyer was emphatic in saying his team would not overlook the Wildcats after a victory over UT.

Obviously, as a first-year SEC coach, Meyer doesn't realize that it's OK to overlook the Wildcats. You can still beat them with points to spare.

Wyoming 27, Ole Miss 23: How long before Rebels fans change first-year head coach Ed Orgeron's nickname from "Coach O" to "Coach Zero?"

Sorry, but that's the nasty sort of commentary that's required after a loss to Vanderbilt.

Something else follows a loss to the Commodores. It's called "a hangover" and it lasts at least a week.

The week after losing to Vanderbilt, Wake Forest lost by 28 points to Nebraska. The week after losing to Vanderbilt, Arkansas lost by 53 points to USC.

Georgia 27, Mississippi State 7: Sylvester Croom's Bulldogs are averaging only 10.9 points per game against SEC teams not coached by Ron Zook.

Speaking of Zook, imagine how he felt about Bobby Moreau not being allowed to officiate last week's UT-Florida game. A year too late, huh, Coach?

Auburn 52, Western Kentucky 10: You probably think it's ridiculous for a program as successful as Auburn's to schedule such patsies. But is it really that much different than playing the University of Kentucky, which Auburn plays Nov. 5?

Early prediction: Auburn 52, Kentucky 10.

South Carolina 27, Troy 10: This brings to mind another misunderstanding by the Hogs' honchos.

You might be wondering why Arkansas would schedule a non-conference game against an opponent as formidable as USC.

Athletic director Frank Broyles probably said something like, "Hey, Coach, you think you'll be ready for the Men of Troy in a couple of years?"

Perhaps not hearing the "Men of" part, Nutt said something like, "Bring 'em on."

Top 25: USC 52, Oregon 27; Virginia Tech 27, Georgia Tech 14; Ohio State 27, Iowa 21; Louisville 48, South Florida 24; Purdue 30, Minnesota 27; Miami 38, Colorado 23; Michigan 34, Wisconsin 27; Notre Dame 44, Washington 27; Arizona State 45, Oregon State 27; Texas Tech 60, Indiana State 20; Virginia 37, Duke 10.

Record: 51-17 (.750) overall, 34-34 (.500) against the spread.