<strong><span class="subhead">Big 12</span></strong></p><p>&bull;<strong>RISING:</strong> Colorado is among the living once again. The one-point victory over Texas A&M followed a horrid home loss to Missouri. Which Buffs team shows up Saturday at Iowa State? No telling.</p><p>&bull;<strong>FALLING:</strong> This was supposed to be the easy part of Missouri&rsquo;s conference schedule. Lowly Baylor left the Tigers in the dust in the second half, all but ending Mizzou&rsquo;s reign as two-time North Division champ.</p><p><strong><span class="subhead">SEC</span></strong></p><p>&bull;<strong>RISING</strong>: The division races are over. It&rsquo;s Florida and Alabama for the seventh time in SEC title game history. We don&rsquo;t know who will win, but defense will dominate.</p><p>&bull;<strong>FALLING:</strong> Officiating. Controversy is becoming a weekly occurrence. This time an LSU interception that appeared good was ruled no good by officials. Replays seemed to confirm the pick, but officials said it was inconclusive.</p><p><strong><span class="subhead">Big Ten</span></strong></p><p>&bull;<strong>RISING:</strong> Look who&rsquo;s back. Ohio State&rsquo;s solid victory at Penn State means the Buckeyes are headed to the Rose Bowl if they defeat Iowa at home on Saturday. No national title for this conference, but if Ohio State continues like this, it will be a tough out in Pasadena.</p><p>&bull;<strong>FALLING:</strong> Michigan led by two touchdowns at halftime but couldn&rsquo;t beat Purdue. If you&rsquo;re counting at home, it&rsquo;s three conference victories in two seasons for Rich Rodriguez.</p><p><strong><span class="subhead">PACIFIC-10</span></strong></p><p>&bull;<strong>RISING:</strong> Tony Gerhart&rsquo;s Heisman hopes. The Stanford running back couldn&rsquo;t be stopped in the upset of Oregon with 223 yards and three touchdowns. He tops the conference and is second nationally at 135 yards per game.</p><p>&bull;<strong>FALLING:</strong> Washington State isn&rsquo;t coming close. The Cougars have lost their last three by a combined 137-38 score.</p><p><strong><span class="subhead">BIG EAST</span></strong></p><p>&bull;<strong>RISING:</strong> Pittsburgh has won its last two games by a combined score of 78-24 and has moved into the top 10. To think, this conference had no team in the preseason top 25. Along with fifth-ranked Cincinnati it has two in the top 10.</p><p>&bull;<strong>FALLING:</strong> Connecticut threw a major scare into Cincinnati before falling short and has to be the nation&rsquo;s most tough-minded team with a losing record.</p><p><strong><span class="subhead">ACC</span></strong></p><p>&bull;<strong>RISING:</strong> Could it be, a Clemson division championship? We&rsquo;ve been waiting since the ACC split to see the Tigers play for the conference title. They hold the tie-breaker over Boston College, have their season flop (a loss to Maryland) out of the system, so fans can start making plans.</p><p>&bull;<strong>FALLING:</strong> Four straight losses for Maryland and the Terps could easily turn in a 2-10 season.</p><p><strong><span class="subhead">OTHERS</span></strong></p><p>&bull;<strong>RISING:</strong> Texas Christian is fourth in the polls and the BCS. ESPN&rsquo;s Gameday is headed there Saturday for the Utah game. Clearly, the Horned Frogs are headed to a BCS bowl if they stay undefeated, but it&rsquo;s unlikely they&rsquo;ll get to No. 2 in the final BCS standings ahead of an undefeated SEC winner or Texas to play for the national title.</p><p>&bull;<strong>FALLING:</strong> Tulsa dropped to 4-5 when Houston kicker Matt Hogan blasted a 51-yarder at the gun. It was the fourth straight loss for a Golden Hurricane team that started 4-1.