Dominant defenses lead nation's top teams

Published Oct. 13, 2009 1:43 a.m. ET

Peter Schrager

What a difference a year makes.

The 2008 college football season was all about the spread offense, big name quarterbacks and jaw dropping offensive numbers. Yes, offense was king in '08, a season that saw an offense score the most points in college football history (Oklahoma), a quarterback break the NCAA's single season completion percentage record (Texas's Colt McCoy) — and not win the Heisman — and an unheard of 10 FBS teams average more than 40 points per game.

After a summer of endless literature in just about every publication on "Why No One Can Stop the Spread," an onslaught of media coverage on the dozens of returning established quarterbacks set for big seasons, and expectations for an encore to '08's weekly offensive fireworks show — the 2009 college football season has been about one thing and one thing only: defense.

If you're a fan of aerial displays and gaudy fantasy football statistics, the first six weeks of college football haven't been for you. They've been stingy. They've been ugly. They've been pretty much everything '08 wasn't.