College Football Week 2 – Hurts headed for the Heisman?

The picture of Dorian is gray,

the picture of Jalen is bright

Wow! The opening weekend of the 2019 college football season – college football’s 150^th – gave us everything imaginable – and then some! The thrilling finish of the Auburn-Oregon game, the brilliant performance of Jalen Hurts, the victorious return of Mack Brown and the outcome of the Georgia State-Tennessee game. Oh my! And then some? – The approach of Hurricane Dorian.

I’m sitting here in my hotel room waiting for Hurricane Dorian to make up its mind. Hopefully it will remain offshore as it passes by. Swamp Mama and I are bivouacked at a Hampton Inn off I-95 west of Titusville, Florida. We’re about 40-45 miles north of our home on the barrier island in Indialantic, Florida.

During the past 20 years, several Hurricanes have had an impact on our football weekends here in Florida. The first one occurred in September 1999. Swamp Mama and I spent a weekend in Gainesville, visiting our daughter and attending the UCF-Florida game. It was the first meeting between the two schools. The Gators won, 58-27.

A day after returning home, we learned that a monster of a storm – Hurricane Floyd – had its eye fixed on Melbourne. The tracking path led straight to the Space Coast. Floyd was big. Floyd was scary.

Swamp Mama and I went about securing our house as best we could. Then we made an unexpected return trip to Gainesville – two cars this time. We dropped the cat off at our daughter’s apartment, before checking into our hotel.

Upon checking into the hotel, we were told we had to check out by Thursday. The desk clerk had us sign a paper, agreeing to the check-out requirement. Why? The Tennessee-Florida game was scheduled for the upcoming weekend. The hotel was booked. But the game was under threat of being postponed due to Floyd.

Lo and behold, during the night, Floyd took a fortunate turn – a turn to the right. The next day we took a turn – a turn back home. That weekend, the Tennessee-Florida game took place as scheduled. No. 4 Florida beat No. 2 Tennessee, 23-21.

There was not one but two storms in 2004 – Frances and Jean. And they didn’t make a turn. Frances hit Florida’s east coast over Labor Day weekend. Swamp Mama and I high-tailed it to our daughter and son-in-law’s house in Florida’s panhandle. The Middle Tennessee-Florida game scheduled for Gainesville was postponed to October 16.

Then Hurricane Jean came along a month later. Jean followed the same path as Frances. Swamp Mama and I were in Gainesville for the Kentucky-Florida game. Scheduled for an evening start, the game was moved up to an 11:00 a.m. kickoff. The earlier start would allow people to get out of Dodge in plenty of time before the storm. Florida beat Kentucky, 20-3.

Instead of returning home the next day, Swamp Mama and I just extended our stay at the hotel. We rode out the storm in Gainesville.

For 12 years, we got a break – no storms. But lo and behold, in 2016, Hurricane Matthew came along. Bootsie, Rockledge Gator, Swamp Mama and I were scheduled to attend the LSU-Florida game in Gainesville. The game was called off. Swamp Mama and I went to Punta Gorda to stay with her cousin. Mathew traveled up the east coast of Florida.

The LSU-Florida game was ultimately played on November 16 – but in Baton Rouge, not Gainesville. Both the Tigers and the Gators had home games scheduled for November 16. LSU bought out of its game against South Alabama and Florida bought out of its game against Davidson. The SEC commissioner got Florida to agree to play in Baton Rouge, with the understanding that the LSU-Florida game would be held in Gainesville in 2017 and 2018. So Florida went to Baton Rouge in 2016 and beat LSU, 16-10.

The following year, 2017, Hurricane Irma showed up. Nobody knew where Irma was going to go – not even the folks at the National Hurricane Center or the folks on the Weather Channel for that matter. I don’t think Irma knew either.

Some said the east coast of Florida, some said the west coast of Florida. Some said she would go up the middle of the state. Irma was running the spread offense. Ultimately, she went up the west of Florida. But Irma’s swath covered most of the state. Florida’s scheduled game against Northern Colorado in Gainesville was canceled.

Hurricane Dorian didn’t have much impact on college football in Florida, primarily due to its post-weekend arrival. One game was canceled – Presbyterian at Stetson – and one game was relocated – Boise State-Florida State. Scheduled to be played Saturday evening in Jacksonville, the Boise State-Florida State game was moved to Tallahassee, with a 12 noon start on Saturday. The Noles probably wish they had canceled the game.

Now, what will Dorian do?

There were several good and exciting games over the weekend, but the best game and the most exciting game had to be Auburn’s 27-21 win over Oregon. It was the game of the week and it lived up to its hype. With time running out in the fourth quarter and trailing Oregon 21-20, Auburn had the ball on the Ducks 26-yard line.

I thought the game was going to come down to Auburn kicking a field goal as time expired to beat Oregon the same way they did in the national championship game in January 2011. But with less than 20 seconds on the clock, Gus Malzahn wasn’t playing conservative. Auburn quarterback Bo Nix threw a 26-yard touchdown pass to Seth Williams. When Williams scored, the clock showed 0:09 left in the game. Auburn beat Oregon 27-21.

It’s a good thing for the SEC that Auburn beat Oregon. The conference needed that win after four SEC teams sucked on Saturday. First, there was the unthinkable in Knoxville. Georgia State upset Tennessee, 38-30. Yes, Georgia State. Jeremy Pruitt is on the hot seat after only one season and one game. And Phil Fulmer is looking like a fool for hiring Pruitt.

Second, Missouri, with quarterback Kelly Bryant, lost to Wyoming, 37-31. This after Mizzou had a 14-0 lead six minutes into the second quarter. Missouri coach Barry Odom was on the lukewarm seat at the beginning of the season. He’s on the hot seat now.

Third, South Carolina was shocked by North Carolina, 24-20. Entering the fourth quarter, the Gamecocks led the Tar Heels, 20-9. North Carolina, under debut coach Mack Brown, outscored South Carolina 15-0 in the final 15 minutes of the game. It was a big win for Brown who is making his return to college football after a six-year absence. Meanwhile South Carolina coach Will “Mustake” Muschamp is on a very hot seat.

And finally, fourth, Ole Miss fell to Memphis, 15-10. Mister hot-shot offensive coordinator Rich Rodriquez couldn’t master mind more than 10 points against the Tigers. Ole Miss coach Matt Luke has to be feeling some warmth on his bottom.

Will an Oklahoma quarterback win the Heisman Trophy for the third straight year? If Jalen Hurts continues to play the way he did Sunday night, then the answer is: Yes. In leading Oklahoma to a 49-31 win over Houston, Hurts passed for 332 yards (no interceptions) and rushed for 176 yards. He scored six touchdowns for the Sooners – three passing and three rushing. He completed 87% of his passes. You can’t get much better than that. After week one, Hurts has to be the leading contender for the Heisman.

But close behind are Clemson’s Travis Etienne and Alabama’s Tua Tagovailoa. Etienne rushed for 205 yards in Clemson’s 52-14 win over Georgia Tech. Tagovailoa passed for 336 yards (no interceptions) in the Tide’s 42-3 win over Duke. Tagovailoa had four touchdown passes and completed 84% of his throws.

Speaking of coaches on the hot seat, two Florida coaches are in trouble – Florida State’s Willie Taggart and South Florida’s Charlie Strong. Boise State beat Florida State, 36-31. The Noles held a 31-13 lead at one point in the game. In Tampa, Wisconsin flattened South Florida, 49-0. The Bulls have now lost seven-straight games.

UCF and Tulane had impressive wins in their openers. UCF downed Florida A&M, 62-0, while Tulane beat Florida International, 42-14. UCF has now won 26 of their last 27 games. Tulane could be a bit of a surprise this season.

In his second year with UCLA, Chip Kelly is off to another bad start. Kelly’s Bruins lost to Cincinnati, 24-14. Herm Edwards got off to a good start. Arizona State downed Kent State, 41-7. It’s Edwards second season in Tempe.

In the “Holy War” – the big rivalry game in the State of Utah – Utah blasted BYU, 30-12. BYU coach Kalani Sitake is on thin ice, getting thinner. Trailing 21-20 in the fourth quarter, Minnesota scored with 5:39 left in the game to beat South Dakota State, 21-20. 

Army was supposed to be a Top 30 team, even Top 25 in some polls, this season. But the Black Knights looked anything but in their lackluster 14-7 win over Rice Friday night. Army had to score in the final 3:58 of the game to pull out the seven-point win.

Two of the weekend’s most exciting games took place on Thursday night. First, Wake Forest scored with 1:08 left in the game to beat Utah State, 38-35. Then, after trailing Purdue, 31-14, late in the third quarter, Nevada scored 20 unanswered points to rally and beat the Boilers, 34-31. The Wolf Pack won on a 56-yard field goal as time expired.

Colorado won the “Rocky Mountain” rivalry. The Buffaloes beat neighbor Colorado State, 52-31. Northern Iowa took Iowa State to three overtimes before the Cyclones finally won, 29-26 (3OT). Les Miles’ return to college football was a happy one for the “Mad Hatter.” Miles’ Kansas Jayhawks beat Indiana State 24-17.

Before the season started, longtime Virginia Tech defensive coordinator Bud Foster announced he is retiring at the end of the season. Maybe it’s a good thing he is. The Hokies gave up 35 points, as Boston College downed Virginia Tech, 35-28. And is Justin Fuentes in trouble?

USC beat Fresno State, 31-23, but lost its starting quarterback J.T. Daniels. Daniels suffered a season-ending knee injury in the game.

Maryland and Penn State came oh so close to making the 80s Club. The Terrapins beat Howard, 79-0, while the Nittany Lions downed Idaho, 79-7.

The AAC announced last week it would do away with divisional play after this season. The decision comes after Connecticut announced it was leaving the conference following the 2019 season, leaving the AAC with 11 teams. Rather than seek a 12^th team (new member), the AAC has decided to do away with two divisions. The conference would still have an end of the season championship game to be played between the two top teams in the AAC.

College football’s five-day weekend came to an end Monday night with Notre Dame at Louisville. It took the Irish a while to wake up, but once they did, they rolled over the Cardinals, 35-17.

The season is underway!

And meanwhile Dorian? Well, it looks like we’re going to dodge a bullet. Stay tuned.

Touchdown Tom
September 3, 2019
https://collegefootballweek.blogspot.com




Weekend Recap

GAME OF THE WEEK:  From Bo Jackson to Bo Nix – Auburn 27, Oregon 21 (Touchdown Tom said: Auburn 27, Oregon 23). Bo knows football. Wow! What a game! It couldn’t have been more exciting. Auburn won on a 26-yard Bo Nix touchdown pass with nine seconds left in the game. Nix needed that touchdown pass because on the night, he was just 13-for-31 passing with two interceptions. With less than five minutes to go in the third quarter, Auburn trailed Oregon, 21-6. But in the final 19 minutes of the game, the Tigers outscored the Ducks, 21-0. Attendance in Arlington: 60,662 

RUNNER-UP:  Heisman performance -- Oklahoma 49, Houston 31 (Touchdown Tom said: Oklahoma 35, Houston 20). So Dana Holgorsen continues to lose to Oklahoma. He now stands at 0-9 against the Sooners. Typical of a Holgorsen team, the Cougars showed no defense. Oklahoma tallied 686 total yards against Houston. Jalen Hurts was responsible for 508 of those yards. Oklahoma wasn’t exactly the greatest on defense itself, giving up 408 total yards and 31 points – although 14 of those points were given up in the fourth quarter after the Sooners had a 42-17 lead.  Attendance in Norman: 84,534 

REST OF THE BEST:  Roots – Stanford 17, Northwestern 7 (Touchdown Tom said: Stanford 26, Northwestern 20). Primarily a defensive battle, Stanford had 365 total yards to only 210 for Northwestern. As a result, Stanford controlled the ball for 38 minutes of the game. Stanford scored 10 points in the second quarter. The Cardinal didn’t score again until they recovered a fumble in the end zone with just 20 seconds left in the game. Northwestern struggled passing and running. Attendance in Palo Alto: 37,179 

Routine – Alabama 42, Duke 3 (Touchdown Tom said: Alabama 45, Duke 15). A fairly tight game at the break, Alabama led, 14-3. The Tide blew it open in the second half, outscoring Duke, 28-0. Bama dominated with 31 first downs to 10 for Duke and 512 total yards to 204 for Duke. Tide quarterback Tua Tagovailoa passed for 336 yards and four touchdowns. Attendance in Tuscaloosa: 71,916 

Utes holier than the Cougars – Utah 30, BYU 12 (Touchdown Tom said: Utah 26, BYU 19). This was a close game in the first half. Utah led BYU at the break, 9-6. Then the Utes ran away from the Cougars in the second half. With 12:25 to go in the fourth quarter, Utah led BYU, 30-6. Utah was the better rushing team. Utes running back Zack Moss rushed for 181 yards. BYU was the better passing team. BYU had three turnovers; Utah had none. Attendance in Provo: 61,626 

Taggart seeing pink – Boise State 36, Florida State 31 (Touchdown Tom said: Boise State 29, Florida State 27). Florida State led 21-6 at the end of the first quarter. Then the Noles were outscored 30-10 in the remaining three quarters – 10-0 in the fourth quarter. FSU was scoreless in the second half. Boise State had 38 first downs to 19 for the Noles and 627 total yards to 450 for the Noles. Broncos quarterback Hank Bachmeier passed for 407 yards and running back Robert Malone rushed for 142 yards. Attendance in Jacksonville: 50,917 

Mason also seeing pink – Georgia 30, Vanderbilt 6 (Touchdown Tom said: Georgia 32, Vanderbilt 15). Georgia dominated the game with 326 rushing yards. D’Andre Swift had 149 of those yards. After scoring three touchdowns in the first half, Georgia was held to three field goals in the second half. The Dawgs had 482 total yards to 225 for Vanderbilt. Attendance in Nashville: 40,350 

Trojans survive – USC 31, Fresno State 23 (Touchdown Tom said: USC 30, Fresno State 27). Fresno State had two bad quarters and two good quarters. USC outscored the Bulldogs 14-3 in both the first and third quarters. Fresno State outscored USC 7-3 and 10-0 in the second and fourth quarters respectively. The 10-0 rally in the fourth quarter came up short. The teams were pretty equal in the stats – ball control, first downs, total yards, turnovers, etc. Trojans running back Vavae Malepeai rushed for 134 yards. Attendance in Los Angeles: 57,329 

No Kelly’s heroes here – Cincinnati 24, UCLA 14 (Touchdown Tom said: Cincinnati 30, UCLA 24). This game was almost, if not more so, sloppier than the Florida-Miami game – 19 penalties and six turnovers. It was a close game at the half – the Bearcats led 10-7. And a close game at the end of three – Cincinnati led 17-14. Luke Fickell is off to a good start. Chip Kelly still has some work to do – a lot of work. Attendance in Cincinnati: 38,032 

It’s a good thing Foster is retiring – Boston College 35, Virginia Tech 28 (Touchdown Tom said: Virginia Tech 27, Boston College 22). The second quarter was the killer for Virginia Tech. That’s when BC outscored the Hokies 21-7. The rest of the game was pretty even. The other killer for Tech was turnovers – five (2 fumbles and 3 interceptions). Tech quarterback Ryan Willis threw for 344 yards, but he also threw the three interceptions. The Hokies had no running game. Attendance in Chestnut Hill: 35,213



…AND ONE TO KEEP AN EYE ON:

It was under the arm for the Panthers – Virginia 30, Pitt 14 (Touchdown Tom said: Virginia 27, Pitt 25). Pitt led at the break, 14-13. But it was all Virginia in the second half. The Cavs outscored the Panthers 17-0. Pitt only had 78 yards rushing. Attendance in Pittsburgh: 47,144



YE OLDE STOMPING GROUNDS:

Sputtering on offense – West Virginia 20, James Madison 13 (Touchdown Tom said: West Virginia 30, James Madison 14). Debut coach Neal Brown won his first game at WVU, but it was obvious he has a lot of work to do on offense. The Mounties only had 34 yards rushing. Hopefully, Brown was holding back on the play calling with Missouri and NC State coming up in the next two weeks. If the offense doesn’t improve, it’s going to be a long season in Morgantown. WVU was benefitted by three James Madison turnovers. Attendance in Morgantown: 61,891

Frosty – Nebraska 35, South Alabama 21 (Touchdown Tom said: Nebraska 48, South Alabama 10). Strange game – eight turnovers between the two teams. South Alabama had 316 totals yards to 300 for Nebraska. The Jaguars controlled the clock, but the Huskers controlled the game. Scott Frost still has some work to do. Attendance in Lincoln: 89,502

The Boilers got  divorced – Nevada 34, Purdue 31 (Touchdown Tom said: Purdue 30, Nevada 20). Up 24-7 at the break, Purdue blew a 17-point lead. Nevada outscored the Boilers 27-7 in the second half – 17-0 in the fourth quarter. Nevada’s win came on a 56-yard field goal as time expired. Turnovers hurt Purdue. The Boilers had three miscues to none for the Wolf Pack. Purdue tallied 519 total yards to only 404 for Nevada. Boilers quarterback Elijah Sindelar passed for 423 yards. Attendance in Reno: 20,144

Was Terry Bradshaw there? – Texas 45, Louisiana Tech 14 (Touchdown Tom said: Texas 40, Louisiana Tech 11). Texas led 38-0 before La Tech finally put points on the board in the fourth quarter. A big passing game for both teams – La Tech quarterback J’mar Smith passed for 331 yards. But the Longhorns defense kept the Bulldogs out of the end until the final 13 minutes of the contest. Attendance in Austin: 93,418



Week 1 Results:  13 winners, 2 fumbles (86.7 percent)
For the Season:  14 winners, 2 fumbles (87.5 percent)



ELSEWHERE AROUND FLORIDA:

Richmond 38, Jacksonville U. 19 – Attendance in Richmond: 7,707
UCF 62, Florida A&M 0 – Attendance in Orlando: 44,073
Tulane 42, FIU 14 – Attendance in New Orleans: 16,361 

Wisconsin 49, South Florida 0 – Attendance in Tampa: 46,704
Ohio State 45, Florida Atlantic 21 – Attendance in Columbus: 103,228
Bethune-Cookman 36, Jackson State 15 – Attendance in Jackson: 23,333 

Presbyterian at Stetson was canceled



Superlatives

Weekend’s Best Passers: 

Texas Tech’s Alan Bowman – 40-55-0 for 436 yards (2TDs); Missouri’s Kelly Bryant – 31-48-1-423 (2TDs); Purdue’s Elijah Sindelar – 34-52-2-423 (4TDs); Washington State’s Anthony Gordon – 29-35-0-420 (5TDs); Boise State’s Hank Bachmeier – 30-51-1-407 (1TD); Temple’s Anthony Russo – 32-41-1-407 (4TDs) and Wake Forest’s Jamie Newman – 34-47-0-401 (3TDs). 

Also, North Texas’ Mason Fine – 28-37-1 for 383 yards (4TDs); Colorado State’s Collin Hill – 31-47-2-374 (3TDs); Western Michigan’s Jon Wassnik – 20-25-0-368 (5TDs); SMU’s Shane Buechele – 30-49-1-360 (0TD); Virginia Tech’s Ryan Willis – 29-47-2-344 (4TDs); Alabama’s Tua Tagovailoa – 26-31-0-336 (4TDs); Oklahoma’s Jalen Hurts – 20-23-0-332 (3TDs) and Louisiana Tech’s J’mar Smith – 34-51-1-331 (2TDs). 

Also, Florida State’s James Blackman – 23-33-0 for 327 yards (3TDs); Indiana’s Michael Penix – 24-40-2-326 (1TD); Arkansas State’s Logan Bonner – 32-50-1-324 (4TDs); Tennessee’s Jarrett Guarantano – 26-40-1-311 (2TDs); NC State’s Matthew McKay – 25-37-0-308 (1TD) and Western Kentucky’s Steven Duncan – 26-39-2-304 (1TD). 

Weekend’s Best Rushers: 

Clemson’s Travis Etienne – 205 yards (3TDs); Oklahoma State’s Chuba Hubbard – 203 yards (3TDs); California’s Christopher Brown – 197 yards (1TD); Mississippi State’s Kylin Hill – 197 yards (1TD); Utah’s Zack Moss – 181 yards (1TD) and Oklahoma’s Jalen Hurts – 176 yards (3TDs).

Also, ULM’s Josh Johnson – 173 yards (2TDs); Central Michigan’s Johnathan Ward – 158 yards (2TDs); Rutgers Isaih Pacheco – 156 yards (4TDs); Western Kentucky’s Gaej Walker – 152 yards (2TDs); Georgia’s D’Andre Swift – 149 yards (0TD) and Connecticut’s Kevin Mensah – 144 yards (1TD).

Quotes of the Week

“I was so excited to watch Feleipe Franks against Miami and I saw the same old Feleipe Franks. So much for maturity. So much for showing he’s the CEO of that team and that offense. He showed a lack of that even worse against Miami than he showed all of last year. If Florida ever wants to ever get serious about winning the SEC East, their leader and their quarterback needs to show maturity or they’ve got no chance of challenging anybody in the East,” ESPN’s Kirk Herbstreit, on Florida’s quarterback.

“It’s pretty ridiculous that Willie Taggart has to ask fans to support him and his team. If you want to give up on them after a loss to a damn good team then go root for another team. It sucks and it hurts, but just leave now and don’t come back when the Noles start winning again,” former Florida State quarterback Danny Kanell, on FSU fans.

“To me it’s pretty definitive. This is the lowest point in the modern history of Tennessee football,” Nashville sports talk radio host Chad Withrow, on the Vols loss to Georgia State.  

“Congrats to everyone who hates Vols fans. I think 60% of the fan base died today,” Nashville sports talk radio host Chad Withrow, after Tennessee lost to Georgia State.

“That’s as poor of an offensive performance as I’ve seen in a long time,” Nebraska coach Scott Frost, on the Huskers offense in the South Alabama game. 



Signs of the Week 

My Girlfriend Entered The Transfer Portal 



Touchdown Tom’s Predictions for
This Week’s 10 Biggest and Most Intriguing Games.…and then some

GAME OF THE WEEK:  1. Texas A&M (1-0) at Clemson (1-0) – (SEC vs. ACC) – 3:30 pm ET, Saturday, ABC – Texas A&M could be Clemson’s toughest opponent all season. In fact, the Aggies may be Clemson’s only tough opponent until the playoffs. Both teams won big in their openers but neither were tested. Both teams have good quarterbacks and running backs – Clemson has the better. This game will come down to how well the offensive lines and defenses perform. Tigers make the Aggies holler uncle – Clemson 26, Texas A&M 19.

RUNNER-UP:  2. LSU (1-0) at Texas (1-0) – (SEC vs. Big 12) – 7:30 pm ET, Saturday, ABC – Part II of ABC’s big double header. This one should be as good if not better than Part I. Both of these teams won big in their openers but neither were tested. Texas has the better quarterback – Sam Ehlinger – but LSU has the better defense. The Tigers defense could negate the strength of the Longhorns quarterback. This game will determine if the Longhorns are truly back. They are. Bevo gores Mike – Texas 25, LSU 23. 

REST OF THE BEST:  3. Cincinnati (1-0) at Ohio State (1-0) – (AAC vs, Big Ten) – 12 noon ET, Saturday, ABC – Cincinnati beat UCLA in its opener last week, but the Bearcats looked sloppy. They can’t afford to be sloppy this week. The Buckeyes will take advantage of their sloppiness. Cincinnati would love more than anything to beat Ohio State, but the Buckeyes have too much depth and too much talent for the Bearcats. Brutus skins the Cat – Ohio State 32, Cincinnati 22.

4. Army (1-0) at Michigan (1-0) – (Ind. vs. Big Ten) – 12 noon ET, Saturday, FOX – The way Army looked against Rice, this game shouldn’t be a contest. And it may not be. You have to figure the Cadets were holding back against Rice. They didn’t want to show all their cards. Army gave Oklahoma a tough time last year, taking the Sooners to overtime before eventually losing. The Cadets could do the same to Michigan. The Wolverines, however, have a lot of guns on offense and defense. Too much of an arsenal for Army to handle. Harbaugh rides a mule – Michigan 26, Army 14. 

5. Stanford (1-0) at USC (1-0) – (Pac-12 vs. Pac-12) – 10:30 pm ET, Saturday, ESPN – USC has one big disadvantage from the get-go. The Trojans lost their starting quarterback – J.T. Daniels – for the season – leg injury incurred during the Fresno State game. But backup Jack Sears is no rookie. He gave Daniels a run for the starting job. Stanford is strong on defense. But the Trees have to get their offense tuned up. It sputtered against Northwestern. The Trees may be all bark, but the Trojans have no bite – Stanford 21, USC 20.

 6. California (1-0) at Washington (1-0) – (Pac-12 vs. Pac-12) – 10:30 pm ET, Saturday, FS1 – Washington quarterback Jacob Eason looked awesome in the Huskies opener – 27-36-0 for 349 yards and no interceptions. Cal struggled at times in its opening win against UC Davis. Washington looks to dominate in this encounter. Plus there is a revenge factor for last year’s loss to Cal. Huskies tree the Bears – Washington 30, California 16. 

7. Marshall (1-0) at Boise State (1-0) – (C-USA vs. MWC) – 7 pm ET, Friday, ESPN2 – Marshall has a good chance of winning this game and may well take an early lead. You gotta figure Boise will still be on a high from last week – that big win over Florida State in Tallahassee. The Herd can jump out and take advantage of that. Eventually, the Broncos should wake up and settle down to reality. If they do, it will be curtains for Marshall. It may be curtains to begin with. Broncos corral the Herd – Boise State 31, Marshall 24. 

8. Syracuse (1-0) at Maryland (1-0) – (ACC vs. Big Ten) – 12 noon ET, Saturday, ESPN – Both teams held their opponents scoreless last week. It won’t happen this week. Both teams will score. But I don’t think Maryland is going to score 79 points this week. In fact I know they won’t. The Terps will be outscored this week. Otto shell shocks the Turtles – Syracuse 23, Maryland 18. 

9. Nebraska (1-0) at Colorado (1-0) – (Big Ten vs. Pac-12) – 3:30 pm ET, Saturday, FOX – Both teams scored big last week – 52 points for Colorado and 35 points for Nebraska. With Steven Montez to Laviska Shenault, Colorado will put points on the board this week. But Nebraska has a good quarterback too – Adrian Martinez. However, the Huskers have to get those miscues out of their system – Colorado is tougher than South Alabama. They do. Herbie has a Buffalo burger – Nebraska 28, Colorado 26. 

10. West Virginia (1-0) at Missouri (0-1) – (Big 12 vs. SEC) – 12 noon ET, Saturday, ESPN2 – If West Virginia is going to get out of Columbia alive, the Mounties need to find an offense. Missouri’s weakness is its defense. But if WVU has no offense, the Tigers don’t have to worry about their defense. Between these two teams, something’s got to give. The Mounties find out that Columbia is not almost heaven – Missouri 24, West Virginia 17. 



…AND ONE TO KEEP AN EYE ON:

11. Miami (Florida) (0-1) at North Carolina (1-0) – (ACC vs. ACC) – 8 pm ET, Saturday, ACCN – Miami has had two weeks to get its act together after the close loss to Florida. Meanwhile in Chapel Hill, the Tar Heels will still be celebrating their upset win over South Carolina. The Canes will take advantage of that. Miami starts its run for the ACC Coastal Division title. The Tar Heels find no sugar in these Canes – Miami 26, North Carolina 20. 



YE OLDE STOMPING GROUNDS:

UT-Marin (1-0) at Florida (1-0) – (Ohio Valley vs. SEC) – 7:30 pm ET, Saturday, ESPNU – There’s UT-Bob, UT-Sam, UT-Joe and UT-Dick. Florida chose Martin. Oh well, the Gators had to choose somebody. Hopefully they don’t choose Feleipe Franks to quarterback this game. After his obnoxious behavior in the Miami game, Dan Mullen should sit Franks’ butt on the bench. Mullen should let Kyle Trask quarterback the first half and Emory Jones quarterback the second half – or vice versa. Let Franks sit on the sidelines and foam  at the mouth. But I’m not sure Mullen is a disciplinarian. We’ll see. Florida was off last week and for all intents and purposes, the Gators are off this week too. UT-Martin? Has anybody here seen UT-Martin? Can you tell me where they’ve gone? They’ve kicked a lot of footballs, but it seems, they lose all the time – Florida 40, UT-Martin 12. 

North Carolina A&T (1-0) at Duke (0-1) – (MEAC vs. ACC) – 6 pm ET, Saturday – After getting throttled by Alabama, the Dookies have it easy this week. But they can’t overlook the Aggies. NC A&T is a competitive team. David Cutcliffe is too smart of a coach to let the Dookies go to sleep against the Aggies. The Devils make ham out of the Aggies – Duke 35, North Carolina A&T 15. 

Murray State (1-0) at Georgia (1-0) – (Ohio Valley vs. SEC) – 4 pm ET, Saturday, ESPN2 – I must say, the Dawgs sure are starting out low on the vine this season – Vanderbilt last week and Murray State this week. This is just another preseason practice for Georgia. Uga outruns the Racers – Georgia 38, Murray State 12.

Vanderbilt (0-1) at Purdue (0-1) – (SEC vs. Big Ten) – 12 noon ET, Saturday, BTN – Turnovers caused Purdue to lose last week. The Boilers not only lost, they let a big lead slip through their fingers. Vanderbilt has to be every bit as good as Wyoming – in fact better. The Boilers will find that out. Still, Purdue manages to bounce back. The Commodores can’t float their boat in West Lafayette – Purdue 27, Vanderbilt 22. 



ELSEWHERE AROUND FLORIDA:

West Florida (0-0) at Carson-Newman (0-0) – (Gulf Coast vs. South Atlantic) – 7 pm ET, Thursday…. 

South Florida (0-1) at Georgia Tech (0-1) – (AAC vs. ACC) – 2 pm ET, Saturday, ACCN….
SE Louisiana (1-0) at Bethune-Cookman (1-0) – (Southland vs. MEAC) – 4 pm ET, Saturday….
ULM (1-0) at Florida State (0-1) – (SBC vs. ACC) – 5 pm ET, Saturday, ACCN…. 

Florida Tech (0-0) at Savannah State (0-0) – (Gulf Coast vs. Ind.) – 6 pm ET, Saturday….
Louisiana College (0-0) at Stetson (0-0) – (American Southwest vs. Pioneer) – 6 pm ET, Saturday….
UCF (1-0) at Florida Atlantic (0-1) – (AAC vs. C-USA) – 7 pm ET, Saturday, CBSSN….
Western Kentucky (0-1) at FIU (0-1) – (C-USA vs. C-USA) – 7 pm ET, Saturday…. 

Florida A&M (0-1) and Jacksonville U. (0-1) are off


Touchdown Tom
https://collegefootballweek.blogspot.com 



P.S.

Not exactly college football related, but there were three passings of note last week – Donnie Fritts, Valerie Harper and Bobby Dillon

Donnie Fritts, a songwriter, singer and piano player who helped shape both the soul music made in Muscle Shoals, Alabama, in the 1960s and the outlaw country music that bucked Nashville in the 1970s, died last week in Birmingham, Alabama. He was 76. Known to enthusiasts of American roots music and perhaps better known as the pianist in Kris Kristofferson’s band, Fritts was a creative force in Southern popular music for more than two decades. As part of a close circle of songwriters working in northern Alabama in the 1960s, he wrote or co-wrote signature songs for the likes of soul singer Arthur Alexander and the Box Tops. Fritts co-wrote the intimate “Breakfast in Bed,” a centerpiece of Dusty Springfield’s 1969 album “Dusty in Memphis.” He moved to Nashville in 1970 and joined Kristofferson’s band. In 1973, Nashville outlaw Waylon Jennings had a Top 40 country hit with “We Had It All,” a bittersweet ballad co-written by Fritts. The song was subsequently recorded by many artists, including Dolly Parton, Tina Turner, Ray Charles and the Rolling Stones. Donald Ray Fritts was born in Florence, Alabama, on November 8, 1942.

Valerie Harper, the actress who became a television star for her portrayal as Rhoda Morgenstern on the long-running “Mary Tyler Moore Show,” died last week. She was 80. Along with the “Mary Tyler Moore Show,” Harper took on the leading role on “Rhoda” the spinoff that ran from 1974 to 1978. She won four Emmy’s. The “Mary Tyler Moore Show” ran on CBS from 1970 to 1977. She won three consecutive Emmys as best supporting actress in a comedy and a fourth as lead actress for “Rhoda.” Valerie Harper was born on August 22, 1939, in Suffern, New York. As she was growing up, her family lived in Oregon, Massachusetts, Michigan and California.

Bobby Dillon, who lost his left eye as a result of a childhood accident but became an All-American defensive back for the University of Texas and a four-time Pro Bowl safety for the Green Bay Packers of the 1950s, died last week in Temple, Texas. He was 89. Playing for the Packers from 1952 to 1959, Dillon set a record that still stands for interceptions with 52, including four against the Detroit Lions on Thanksgiving Day in 1953. But he never played for a winning Packer team until 1959. Green Bay went 7-5 in Vince Lombardi’s first season coaching the team. Bobby Dan Dillon was born on February 23, 1930, in Pendleton, Texas. His family moved to Temple when he was a youngster, where he lived for the rest of his life.