College Football
Week 2 – CFP expanding from 4 to 12 teams
We’ve only just
begun
That’s right, it was just the beginning. Twelve more weeks of the regular season to go. Then the conference championship games, the bowl games and finally, the national championship game. We’ve only just begun.
“Hard play and promises
And what a beginning it was. Thursday night, West Virginia-Pitt and Penn State-Purdue were two games filled with emotion and excitement. Between the two games, the lead changed hands 13 times – six in the WVU-Pitt game and seven in the Penn State-Purdue contest. Both games were decided with less than three minutes on the clock – less than one minute in the Penn State-Purdue game.
With 2:58 on the clock, Pitt took a 38-31 lead over West Virginia and held on to win. With just 0:57 on the clock, Penn State took a 35-31 lead over Purdue and held on to win.
There were lots of similarities between the WVU-Pitt and Penn State-Purdue games. Both games had pick-sixes in the fourth quarter. Purdue picked off a Sean Clifford pass and returned it for a touchdown. That pick-six gave the Boilers a 31-28 with 8:29 to go. But Purdue couldn’t hold on. Pitt picked off a J.T. Daniels pass and returned it for a touchdown. That pick-six occurred with 0:57 left in the game. Conversely, Pitt held on to win.
WVU and Purdue both had more first downs and more total yards than Pitt and Penn State respectively. But neither could turn those stats into victories.
Unsimilar about the two games was “the punt.” Leading Pitt, 31-24 with less than 7 minutes to go in the game, West Virginia had a 4th-and-1 on the Pitt 47. That 1 wasn’t a yard. It was 1 foot. It was just 12 inches. With several options to get the first down, C.J. Donaldson and Garrett Greene to name a couple, WVU coach Neal Brown chose instead to punt. That punt cost West Virginia the game. Well, most likely it did. It sure took the wind out of WVU’s offense.
Speaking of offense, Oklahoma State and Central Michigan combined for 1,077 total yards, Thursday night. The Cowboys beat the Chippewas, 58-44. Okie State quarterback Spencer Sanders passed for four touchdowns and rushed for two more.
Tennessee racked up 569 total yards and 32 first downs in the Vols 59-10 win over Ball State, while Missouri had 558 total yards in the Tigers 52-24 win over Louisiana Tech.
On the other side of the ball, Minnesota’s defense held New Mexico State’s offense to just 91 total yards – 53 passing and 38 rushing. The Gophers beat the Aggies, 38-0.
“Before the rising sun we practice
Ole Miss transfer John Rhys Plumlee quarterbacked UCF to a 56-10 win over South Carolina State. Plumlee played quarterback and wide receiver at Ole Miss.
And finally, Thursday night, former Florida quarterback Emory Jones was 13-18-0, passing for 152 yards in Arizona State’s 40-3 win over Northern Arizona. Jones also ran for 48 yards, scoring two touchdowns.
But that was just a beginning.
Like Thursday night, Friday night had two games filled with emotion and excitement – Virginia Tech-Old Dominion and Illinois-Indiana. Between the two games, there were seven lead changes – three in the Virginia Tech-Old Dominion game and four in the Illinois-Indiana contest. Both games were decided with less than 60 seconds on the clock.
With 0:33 on the clock, Old Dominion took a 20-17 lead over Virginia Tech and held on to win. With just 0:23 on the clock, Indiana took a 23-20 lead over Illinois and held on to win.
Like the West Virginia-Pitt and Penn State-Purdue games on Thursday night, there were lots of similarities between the Virginia Tech-Old Dominion and Illinois-Indiana games on Friday night. Both games were won by three points. Both Old Dominion and Indiana scored touchdowns to win and both of those touchdowns were plunges into the end zone from the one-yard line.
Virginia Tech and Illinois both had more first downs and more total yards than Old Dominion and Indiana respectively. But neither could turn those stats into victories. Both Virginia Tech and Illinois suffered from numerous turnovers – five for the Hokies and four for the Banned Indians.
Speaking of turnovers, Kansas had three of them, but still managed to rack of 502 total yards against Tennessee Tech. The Jayhawks beat the Golden Eagles, 56-10.
“Sharing horizons that are new to us
Charlotte lost for the second time this young season and has given up 1,036 yards in the two games. I’d say Charlotte doesn’t have a defense. Friday night, the 49ers lost to William & Mary, 41-24.
The Mike Elko era has begun at Duke. The Blue Devils downed Temple, 30-0. Duke quarterback Riley Leonard had a combined 392 yards passing and rushing.
After only scoring 7 points in the first half, TCU went on to score 31 points in the second half and beat Colorado, 38-13. The Sonny Dykes era has begun at TCU. It wasn’t a good night for Ralphie. It probably won’t be a good season for Ralphie either.
And we’ve only just begun.
Saturday was the big day. And Saturday was filled with a lot of big games. Lots of games filled with emotion and excitement. Ohio State 21, Notre Dame 10; Arkansas 31, Cincinnati 24, and Florida 29, Utah 26, to mention a few.
It also gave us two games that were entirely and extremely different in play from one another. These two games were totally the opposite of each other. They were at the extreme opposite ends of the spectrum.
“Talkin’ it over, just the coach and us
We’ll call them Game A and Game B. Game A had a total of 124 points; Game B had a total of 10 points. Game A had a total of 64 first downs; Game B had a total of 16 first downs. Game A had a total of 1,216 total yards; Game B had a total of 290 total yards. Game A had a total of 713 passing yards; Game B had a total of 94 rushing yards. Game A had a total of 17 touchdowns scored; Game B had a total of 0 touchdowns scored.
Game A kept 40,148 people wide awake, on the edge of their seats. Game B put 69,250 people to sleep, falling out of their seats. There was nothing boring about Game A, while Game B was an exercise in boredom. The fans were cheering with excitement in Game A. The fans were booing with excitement in Game B.
Game A was the North Carolina-Appalachian State game. Game B was the South Dakota State-Iowa game. In Game A, North Carolina beat Appalachian State, 63-61. In Game B, Iowa beat South Dakota State, 7-3. And Iowa’s 7 wasn’t the result of a touchdown and PAT. It was the result of one field goal and two safeties.
Talk about big brother-little brother games in North Carolina, the UNC-App State game was just one of them. NC State at East Carolina was the other one. The Wolfpack and the Pirates didn’t score near as many points as the Tar Heels and Mountaineers, but their game was every bit as exciting.
At halftime, it didn’t look promising for East Carolina. Although the Pirates had scored first in the game, they trailed at the half, 21-7. But late in the third quarter, things began to get interesting. ECU scored and now trailed by a touchdown, 21-14. Then with just 2:58 on the clock in the fourth quarter, the Pirates scored again and trailed 21-20, awaiting the PAT kick. The kick, however, was wide left. It didn’t look good for ECU. Instead of tying the score, ECU trailed by one.
Determined, the Pirates held the Wolfpack to a three-and-out and got the ball back for one more chance. ECU drove 47 yards to NC State’s 24-yard line. With nine seconds left in the game, the Pirates attempted a 41-yard field goal. Again, Owen Daffer’s kick was wide – this time wide right. Instead of beating NC State, 23-21, East Carolina lost to the Wolfpack, 21-20.
“And when the evening comes, we smile
Several teams had a big day on offense Saturday, none bigger than Air Force. In beating Northern Iowa, 48-17, the Falcons racked up 691 yards on offense – 582 from rushing. Miami (Florida) clocked in with 605 total yards. The Canes downed Bethune-Cookman, 70-13. Marshall amassed 612 total yards, while beating Norfolk State, 55-3. In crushing Oregon, 49-3, Georgia had 571 total yards.
BYU put 576 total yards on the board, dusting off South Florida, 50-21. James Madison celebrated its debut, playing at the FBS level. The Dukes put down Middle Tennessee, 44-7, and registered 548 total yards along the way. And finally, on the West Coast, in Lincoln Riley’s debut at USC, the Trojans tallied 538 yards on offense, beating Rice, 66-14.
Meanwhile, Texas Tech had the luxury of playing three quarterbacks on Saturday. In doing so, the Red Raiders racked up 605 total yards. The three quarterbacks – Donovan Smith (14-16-0 and 3 TDs), Tyler Shough (6-10-0 and 1 TD) and Behren Morton (7-10-1 and 1 TD) were responsible for 483 of those 605 yards.
Speaking of quarterbacks, the two top signal callers at preseason had a good day Saturday. Alabama’s Bryce Young threw five touchdown passes, going 18-28-0 for 195 yards. Young also rushed for 100 yards, scoring another touchdown. Alabama subdued Utah State, 55-0. In Columbus, C.J. Stroud was impressive. The Ohio State quarterback was 24-34-0, passing for 223 yards and two touchdowns. The Buckeyes got by Notre Dame, 21-10.
And while we are on quarterbacks, in two games this season, North Carolina’s Drake Maye has passed for 646 yards and 9 touchdowns. As a team, North Carolina has racked up 1,175 total yards, scoring 119 points. However, the Tar Heels defense has given up 984 yards and 85 points. North Carolina coach Mack Brown looks and moves like the Pillsbury Doughboy.
Liberty and Southern Miss won the overtime contest. It took 4 overtimes, the most OTs of the weekend, for Liberty to edge Southern Miss, 29-27 (4OT). Southern Miss’s Frank Gore rushed for 178 yards in the game. Liberty quarterback Charlie Brewer broke his hand in the game. Houston and UTSA had a 3-overtime battle. Finally, in the third overtime, the Cougars beat the Roadrunners, 37-35 (3OT).
In a bit of a surprise, Rutgers, trailing 21-15, scored with 2:43 left in the game and beat Boston College, 22-21. Unless he beats Army at the end of the season, look for Navy coach Ken Niumatalolo to get fired. The Middies lost to Delaware, 14-7. Of the three service academies, Air Force was the only winner on Saturday. Army lost to Coastal Carolina, 38-28.
Back to the Virginia Tech-Old Dominion game on Friday night, the second half of that game had a delay. But not because of the weather. The start of the second half was delayed 15 minutes because the elevator, taking the Virginia Tech coaches up to the coaches box in ODU’s Ballard Stadium, got stuck. That should have been an omen.
“We’ll find a place where there’s room to improve
They’re back. The Seminoles, not the Tigers. Sunday night, Florida State beat LSU, 24-23. Trailing 24-17, the Tigers scored a touchdown as time expired. LSU had the choice of going for 2 and winning the game, or going for 1 and putting the game into overtime. The Tigers went for 1. LSU coach Brian Kelly is not gutsy. Yes, the Tigers went for 1 and lost. The extra-point kick was blocked.
LSU’s special teams were miserable throughout the game. There were two muffed-punt receptions, resulting in fumbles recovered by FSU. There was an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty on a kickoff. A blocked field goal attempt. And finally, most damaging of all, a blocked extra point attempt.
In Week 1, the SEC was 13-1. The 1 loss? LSU.
And, also on Sunday, in case you missed it, Deion Sanders’ Jackson State downed Florida A&M, 59-3. Sanders’ son, Shedeur Sanders, was 29-33-0, passing for 323 yards and five touchdowns.
The five-day Labor Day weekend came to an end last night, as Clemson demolished Georgia Tech 41-10. It was a boring game. The Tigers held Tech to 71 yards rushing.
Expansion! Expansion, at last! The CFP is expanding from 4 to 12 teams, possibly as early as the 2024 or 2025 seasons, but by the 2026 season at the latest. Friday, the CFP board of managers voted unanimously to expand the playoff to 12 teams. The 12 teams would consist of the six highest-ranked conference champions, plus the six highest-ranked at large teams. The rankings of the teams will continue to be determined, as it is done today, by the CFP selection committee.
The four highest-ranked conference champions will be seeded one through four, each receiving a first-round bye. The other eight teams will play in the first round which will take place on the second or third Saturday in December. The first-round games will be played at the home field of the higher ranked team or at a domed stadium located near the higher ranked team. The quarterfinal and semifinal games will be played in six bowl games on a rotating basis – the New Year’s Six bowls. The national championship game will continue to be played at a neutral site.
Meanwhile, Urban Meyer’s next coaching job? Syndicated radio host Dan Patrick believes it just might be Nebraska or Arizona State. Stay tuned!
Yes, we’ve only just begun. If your team lost, don’t be down in the dumps. If your team won, don’t get too high on your horse. The season has only just begun.
Touchdown Tom
(Note: Next week’s CFW – CFW Week 3 – will return to its usual Monday morning posting. And my apologies to Roger Nichols and Paul Williams)
Weekend Recap
GAME OF THE WEEK: Buckeyes mash the potatoes out of the Irish – Ohio State 21, Notre Dame 10 (Touchdown Tom said: Ohio State 28, Notre Dame 13). Notre Dame took a 10-7 lead late in the second quarter and held onto that lead until 0:17 left in the third quarter when C.J. Stroud hit Xavier Johnson with a 24-yard touchdown pass. The Buckeyes never trailed again. Ohio State iced the game with 4:51 to go in the fourth quarter. Miyan Williams scored on a 2-yard touchdown run. Ohio State dominated the stats – first downs, rushing, passing and time of possession. The Irish never could establish a running game. The Buckeyes held ND to just 76 yards rushing. Attendance in Columbus: 106,594
RUNNER-UP: Sad Ducks – Georgia 49, Oregon 3 (Touchdown Tom said: Georgia 24, Oregon 14). What a mismatch and what a rout. Georgia led 21-0 before Oregon managed its only points – a 35-yard field goal. Georgia quarterback Stetson Bennett looked sharp. Oregon quarterback (Auburn transfer) Bo Nix looked dull. Bennett was 25-31-0, passing for 368 yards and two touchdowns. Nix passed for 173 yards and threw two interceptions. Attendance in Atlanta: 76,490
Utes-less in The Swamp – Florida 29, Utah 26 (Touchdown Tom said: Utah 28, Florida 23). Good game. The lead changed hands five times. The teams were about as evenly matched as you can get. Utah was a little better passing; Florida a little better running. Each team suffered one turnover. Both quarterbacks were amazing. The Gators Anthony Richardson passed for 168 yards and rushed for 106. The Utes Cameron Rising passed for 216 yards and rushed for 91. Rising’s one flaw was an errant pass for an interception near the end of the game, with the Utes on the Gators goal line. That interception sealed Utah’s fate and gave the victory to the Gators. It was a great opening win for first-year Gator coach Billy Napier. Attendance in Gainesville: 90,799
REST OF THE BEST: Porky wallows – Arkansas 31, Cincinnati 24 (Touchdown Tom said: Arkansas 28, Cincinnati 26). Arkansas had two early 14-point leads (14-0 and 21-7), but Cincinnati found itself in the third quarter and came back to make the game a close one. Arkansas briefly led again by 14 points in the fourth quarter (31-17), but Cincinnati quickly closed the gap to 7 points again. Arkansas was the better running team. Cincinnati was the better passing team. Otherwise, the teams were evenly matched. Attendance in Fayetteville: 74,751
It’s not over till it’s over – Penn State 35, Purdue 31 (Touchdown Tom said: Purdue 23, Penn State 21). The Penn State-Purdue game went back and forth. The lead changed hands no less than seven times. In the fourth quarter, when Penn State, leading 28-24, appeared to have the game in control, Purdue intercepted a Sean Clifford pass and returned it for a touchdown. The Boilers went up 31-28. After stopping Penn State’s ensuing drive, Purdue appeared to have the game in control. But with less than two minutes to go, the Nitts had got one more chance. And they capitalized. Penn State scored on a 10-yard Clifford to Keyvone Lee pass with 57 seconds left on the clock – 35-31. Attendance in West Lafayette: 57,307
Coach Punt – Pitt 38, West Virginia 31 (Touchdown Tom said: West Virginia 31, Pitt 30). West Virginia shouldn’t wait until the end of the season to fire Neal Brown. WVU should fire Brown now. For three seasons, costly mistakes and missed opportunities have plagued Brown’s teams at WVU. Last Thursday night against Pitt was no exception. WVU continued to suffer from costly mistakes and missed opportunities. Brown is not a game-day coach. He’s incompetent – borderline stupidity. He makes poor decisions and continues to mishandle timeouts and the game clock. Yeah, Thursday night, WVU demonstrated some improvement over the past three seasons, but spotty improvement at best. Brown’s teams continue to suffer from poor pass defense. Three seasons and one game into Brown’s tenure at WVU and he has yet to win a big game. At this slow rate of improvement, this slow rate of progress, Brown may never win a big game at WVU. After three seasons and one game into the fourth season, his record at WVU is 17-19. Under Brown, West Virginia missed another opportunity Thursday night. An opportunity to win the game. But again, costly mistakes and poor coaching decisions cost WVU the game. From now on, I think I will call Neal Brown – Coach Punt. He loves to punt. Attendance in Pittsburgh: 70,622
Voodoo – Florida State 24, LSU 23 (Touchdown Tom said: LSU 27, Florida State 20). With less than five minutes to go in the game, LSU trailed Florida State, 24-10. It looked grim for the Tigers. But in the final 4:07 of the fourth quarter, LSU managed to score two touchdowns. The second touchdown of the two came as time expired and was the culmination of a 99-yard drive by LSU. That touchdown was the last thing the Tigers had to cheer about. At the end, FSU coach Mike Norvell was doing all the cheering. He was a happy camper. Norvell was jumping up and down. He even jumped on the back of a staff member. Norvell was like a kid who just won the Little League World Series. His two years of frustration were wiped out in one game. But it was just one game. We’re still not sure how good, or bad, LSU is. We’re still not sure how good, or bad, FSU is. We’ll soon find out. Both quarterbacks – FSU’s Jordan Travis and LSU’s Jayden Daniels – threw two touchdown passes. Both passed for more than 200 yards. Neither threw an interception. The difference? Daniels rushed for 114 yards. Travis rushed for 31 yards. Attendance in New Orleans: 68,388
No pelts for the Broncos – Oregon State 34, Boise State 17 (Touchdown Tom said: Oregon State 26, Boise State 25). Five turnovers killed Boise State’s chances in this game. Oregon State took advantage and built up a 24-0 lead at halftime. The Broncos found themselves in the second half, but the Beavers held them off. Actually, Oregon State had three turnovers so it wasn’t all that slanted against Boise State. Attendance in Corvallis: 27,732
Cougars do the honking – Houston 37, UTSA 35 (3OT) (Touchdown Tom said: Houston 35, UTSA 27). UTSA gave Houston more than the Cougars wanted. The Roadrunners dominated Houston for three quarters, leading the Cougars 21-7 at the start of the fourth quarter. Houston scored 17 unanswered points in the fourth quarter and led 24-21 with 0:23 left in the game. However, UTSA kicked a 37-yard field goal as time expired to put the game into overtime. And it went for 3 overtimes before Houston pulled it out. Roadrunners quarterback Frank Harris passed for 337 yards and three touchdowns. He also rushed for another 63 yards and a touchdown. Attendance in San Antonio: 37,526
Unbelievable, totally unbelievable – North Carolina 63, Appalachian State 61 (Touchdown Tom said: Appalachian State 34, North Carolina 30). How many times did this game appear to be over? Let me count the ways. App State led 21-7 early in the second quarter and it appeared the Little Mountaineers had the Tar Heels number. But North Carolina woke up and came roaring back to score 34 unanswered points. As the fourth quarter began, the Tar Heels held a 41-21 lead over App State. Then it got wild – really wild. The teams scored nine touchdowns in the fourth quarter – six for App State and three for North Carolina. Trailing 56 to 49, App State scored a touchdown with 0:31 left on the clock. It was 56-55. App State went for two, to win the game, and failed. Quarterback Chase Brice overthrew his wide-open receiver in the end zone. The Little Mountaineers executed an onside kick. Would you believe, North Carolina returned it for a touchdown? Believe it. The Tar Heels went up 63-55, with 0:28 on the clock. Would you believe it took App State 19 seconds to score again? Believe it. App State trailed 63-61. Again the Little Mountaineers went for 2 and the run failed. What a finish! A game for the ages. Attendance in Boone: 40,168
YE OLDE STOMPING
GROUNDS:
Elko’s the man – Duke 30, Temple 0 (Touchdown Tom said: Duke 25, Temple 12). Duke went big-time when they hired Mike Elko last year. Elko is one serious coach and a defensive genius. Saturday, Duke’s defense lived up to Elko’s reputation. The Dookies held Temple to 179 total yards – just 65 yards rushing. Duke’s offense was no slouch either. The Dookies scored 30 points, racking up 500 total yards along the way. They scored their first touchdown with just 2:03 elapsed in the first quarter. Duke quarterback Riley Leonard completed 80% of his passes. Attendance in Durham: 20,722
Thank goodness for Grant – Nebraska 38, North Dakota 17 (Touchdown Tom said: Nebraska 38, North Dakota 10). A slow start for the Huskers. The score was 7-7 at halftime. Twitter was lighting up like crazy with attacks on Scott Frost. The Huskers found themselves in the second half, outscoring North Dakota, 31-10. But late in the third quarter, it was 17-17. Anti-Frost messages were still flooding Twitter. From 17-17, Nebraska scored three unanswered touchdowns. The hero for the Huskers was running back Anthony Grant with 189 rushing yards and two touchdowns. Would you believe North Dakota controlled time of possession for 36:01? They did. Nebraska only controlled the ball for 23:59. Attendance in Lincoln: 86,590
Horns won, but had Alabama on their minds – Texas 52, ULM 10 (Touchdown Tom said: Texas 42, ULM 10). Texas just toyed with ULM. The Horns led the Warhawks 52-3, before ULM scored a final touchdown in the closing minutes of the game. Quarterback Quinn Ewers had a so-so debut with Texas. He threw an early interception, but then seemed to settle down. Texas was definitely reserving itself for Alabama. Attendance in Austin: 94,873
Week 1 Results: 8 winners, 5 fumbles (61.5 percent)
ELSEWHERE AROUND
FLORIDA:
UCF 56, South Carolina State 10 – Attendance in Orlando: 43,810
BYU 50, South Florida 21 – Attendance in Tampa: 31,521
Stetson 24, Concordia 14 – Attendance in Deland: 1,715
Superlatives
Weekend’s Best Passers:
Tulsa’s Davis Brin – 30-52-0 for 460 yards (3TDs); SMU’s Tanner Mordecai – 23-32-0-432 (4TDs); Mississippi State’s Will Rogers – 37-47-1-427 (5TDs); Central Michigan’s Daniel Richardson – 36-49-1-424 (4TDs); Oklahoma State’s Spencer Sanders – 28-41-0-405 (4TDs), and Fresno State’s Jake Haener – 36-42-0-377 (2TDs).
Also, Georgia’s Stetson Bennett – 25-31-0 for 368 yards (2TDs); Appalachian State’s Chase Brice – 25-38-1-361 (6TDs); North Carolina’s Drake Maye – 24-36-0-352 (4TDs); Ohio’s Kurtis Rourke – 27-34-0-345 (4TDs); Washington’s Michael Penix – 26-39-0-345 (4TDs); Duke’s Riley Leonard – 24-30-0-328 (2TDs), and UCF’s John Rhys Plumlee – 20-31-0-308 (4TDs).
Weekend’s Best Rushers:
Nebraska’s Anthony Grant – 189 yards (2TDs), and Southern Miss’s Frank Gore – 178 yards.
Quotes of the Week
“That’s probably the most difficult question I could possibly be asked. If it happens in the next two to three years, I would keep my eyes on Mario Cristobal, Billy Napier and Dave Aranda. Those are three candidates that would be worth paying close attention to, Paul Finebaum, on being asked who will eventually replace Nick Saban at Alabama.
“I’m terrified for Florida State’s future because they will fall behind every team in the SEC. They will fall behind every team in the Big Ten. The ACC has the worst TV deal negotiated in college football. And it runs through 2036,” CBS Sports analyst and former FSU quarterback Danny Kanell.
“Passionate rivalry games like the Backyard Brawl make college football special and unique. There has been an incredible energy leading up to Thursday night, not just this week, but all summer long. We are honored to host the long-awaited renewal of this great series. Acrisure Stadium is going to be electric,” Pitt athletic director Heather Lyke.
“My wife could call the plays with that guy at quarterback,” Florida coach Billy Napier, on his quarterback Anthony Richardson.
“His legs, they’re a difference maker. You saw it tonight. The fourth-down play in the last drive. The two-point conversion. I think we’re figuring out here that this guy’s a pretty special player,” Florida coach Billy Napier, on his quarterback Anthony Richardson.
“We’ve got some learning to do,” LSU coach Brian Kelly, after the Florida State game.
Touchdown Tom’s
Predictions for
GAME OF THE WEEK: 1. Alabama (1-0) at Texas (1-0) – (SEC vs. Big 12) – 12 noon ET, Saturday, FOX – We know how good Alabama is – very good. We don’t know how good, or bad, Texas is. But we’ll find out. Both teams won big in their openers. But neither was playing a viable team. Bama has an experienced quarterback in Bryce Young. Texas has an inexperienced quarterback in Quinn Ewers. Experience most always beats inexperience. Still, it should be a big an exciting night in Austin. Big and exciting for the Tide – Alabama 34, Texas 17.
RUNNER-UP: 2. Baylor (1-0) at BYU (1-0) – (Big 12 vs. Ind.) – 10:15 pm ET, Saturday, ESPN – Both teams are explosive on offense. Baylor appears to have the stronger defense. Both teams won big in their openers, but like Alabama and Texas, neither played a worthy opponent. Next year, both teams will be in the same conference, as BYU joins the Big 12. The Bears give the Cougars an early welcome. But not a generous welcome – Baylor 30, BYU 20.
REST OF THE BEST: 3. Tennessee (1-0) at Pitt (1-0) – (SEC vs. ACC) – 3:30 pm ET, Saturday, ABC – Pitt had a worthy opponent in its opener, while Tennessee had a cupcake. Pitt was tested while Tennessee wasn’t. Last year, this was a high-scoring game. Pitt won in Knoxville, 41-34. I think it is going to be a high-scoring game again this year. But this year, the Vols do the higher scoring – Tennessee 33, Pitt 24.
4. Kentucky (1-0) at Florida (1-0) – (SEC vs. SEC) – 7 pm ET, Saturday, ESPN – If Florida plays as well as the Gators did against Utah, then I can’t see Florida losing. Kentucky won its opener, but against a much weaker opponent. And the Wildcats didn’t look all that good at times. But I’m sure they were holding back for the Gators. Florida quarterback Anthony Richardson gives the advantage to the Gators. And the game is in The Swamp, where only Gators come out alive – Florida 27, Kentucky 21.
5. South Carolina (1-0) at Arkansas (1-0) – (SEC vs. SEC) – 12 noon ET, Saturday, ESPN – Last week, South Carolina quarterback Spencer Rattler started out the way he ended up at Oklahoma – awful. Arkansas quarterback – K.J. Jefferson – looked good in his opener. Arkansas also had a good running back – Raheim Sanders. And Arkansas was playing a tougher opponent – Cincinnati. Had South Carolina played Cincinnati, the Gamecocks would have lost. As Emeril Lagasse says, “Pork rules” – Arkansas 34, South Carolina 23.
6. Iowa State (1-0) at Iowa (1-0) – (Big12 vs. Big Ten) – 4 pm ET, Saturday, BTN – Last week, Iowa had a defense, but the Hawkeyes sure couldn’t find their offense. I’m not sure they have one. If they do, it was hiding pretty good. The Hawkeyes beat South Dakota State, 7-3, and didn’t even score a touchdown. Last week, Iowa State displayed a lot of offense – 469 yards. The Hawkeyes are still looking for their offense – Iowa State 20, Iowa 17.
7. Arizona State (1-0) at Oklahoma State (1-0) – (Pac-12 vs. Big 12) – 7:30 pm ET, Saturday, ESPN2 – Oklahoma State has an offense. But the Cowboys don’t have a defense. Last week Okie State tallied 535 total yards on offense. But the Cowboys defense gave up 546 yards. Last week, Arizona State looked good on defense, but not so good on offense. Okie State quarterback Spencer Sanders is the difference in the game. Cowboys take the Sun out of the Devils – Oklahoma State 31, Arizona State 23.
8. Missouri (1-0) at Kansas State (1-0) – (SEC vs. Big 12) – 12 noon ET, Saturday, ESPN2 – This has the makings of a high-scoring game. Much higher than I’m predicting. Both teams demonstrated good offense last week. K-State was the better on defense. The Wildcats are supposed to be a “sleeper” this year. They put the Tigers asleep – Kansas State 27, Missouri 16.
9. USC (1-0) at Stanford (1-0) – (Pac-12 vs. Pac-12) – 7:30 pm ET, Saturday, ABC – Lincoln Riley had a good debut in the land of Troy last week. His Trojans put 66 points on the board. Quarterback Caleb Williams looked good. Stanford’s Tanner McKee was no slouch. He completed 82% of his passes, throwing for 308 yards. But the Trojans have too many horses – no pun intended. The Trees are branchless – USC 30, Stanford 18.
10. Oregon State (1-0) at Fresno State (1-0) – (Pac-12 vs. MWC) – 10:30 pm ET, Saturday, CBSSN – Nothing like opening the season against the two best teams from the MWC. Last week it was Boise State. This week it is Fresno State. The Beavers beat Boise State. But that game was at home. The Beavers are the visitors against Fresno State. And the Bulldogs may be just as tough, if not tougher, than Boise State. Benny takes the Bull out of the Dogs – Oregon State 27, Fresno State 21.
Seven other games to keep your eyes on during Weekend 2 are: Wake Forest (1-0) at Vanderbilt (2-0) – (ACC vs. SEC) – 12 noon ET, Saturday, SECN….Washington State (1-0) at Wisconsin (1-0) – (Pac-12 vs. Big Ten) – 3:30 pm ET, Saturday, FOX….and Appalachian State (0-1) at Texas A&M (1-0) – (Sun Belt vs. SEC) – 3:30 pm ET, Saturday, ESPN2.
Also, Houston (1-0) at Texas Tech (1-0) – (AAC vs. Big 12) – 4:00 pm ET, Saturday, FS1….Virginia (1-0) at Illinois (1-1) – (ACC vs. Big Ten) – 4 pm ET, Saturday, ESPNU….UAB (1-0) at Liberty (1-0) – (C-USA vs. Ind.) – 6 pm ET, Saturday, ESPN+….and Mississippi State (1-0) at Arizona (1-0) – (SEC vs. Pac-12) – 11 pm ET, Saturday, FS1.
YE OLDE STOMPING GROUNDS:
Kansas (1-0) at West Virginia (0-1) – (Big12 vs. Big 12) – 6 pm ET, Saturday, ESPN+ – Believe me, the West Virginia players will play hard this week. I can’t say the same about the coaching of Neal “Punt” Brown. He doesn’t coach hard. Brown is not aggressive. The WVU defense will have to be aggressive against Kansas. The Jayhawks had 502 yards on offense last week. Except for the secondary, which broke down at times, WVU’s defense looked good against Pitt. WVU’s offense was tested last week and they looked good. The Kansas offense wasn’t tested. J.T. Daniels gets his first win as a WVU quarterback. The Mountaineers turn the Jayhawkers into Jaywalkers – West Virginia 34, Kansas 23.
Georgia Southern (1-0) at Nebraska (1-1) – (Sun Belt vs. Big Ten) – 7:30 pm ET, Saturday, FS1 – All right, it took most of the game, but the Huskers got their first win last week. Granted, it was a struggle at times. Georgia Southern will be a tougher opponent than North Dakota – not much, but tougher. And will Nebraska have Oklahoma on its mind? The Huskers better not, or the Golden Eagles may surprise them. But Herbie finds his mojo – Nebraska 40, Georgia Southern 20.
Duke (1-0) at Northwestern (1-0) – (ACC vs. Big Ten) – 12 noon ET, Saturday, FS1 – Duke and Northwestern seem to play each other a lot. And although Northwestern is generally always favored, Duke seems to win most of the time. The Dookies have the Wildcats number. They may have it again. Mike Elko’s squad looked good last week – on offense and defense. Northwestern had the big Irish win over Nebraska two weeks ago and rested up last week. I like both quarterbacks – Duke’s Riley Leonard and Northwestern’s Ryan Hilinski. Both looked sharp in their openers. The Dookies lose the Wildcats number – Northwestern 26, Duke 25.
Samford (1-0) at Georgia (1-0) – (Southern vs, SEC) – 4 pm ET, Saturday, SECN – This is one of those weeks when Kirby Smart plays the third, fourth and fifth teams, and the cheerleaders and the band members. After annihilating Oregon, 49-3, what can you say when you are playing Samford. Stetson Bennett may play all of one quarter. Believe it or not, Samford are the Bulldogs too. But Samford’s Dogs aren’t Dawgs. Only Uga is – Georgia 52, Samford 10.
ELSEWHERE AROUBND FLORIDA:
Louisville (0-1) at UCF (1-0) – (ACC vs. AAC) – 6:30 pm ET, Friday, ESPN2….
Louisiana Christian (0-1) at Stetson (1-0) – (SAC vs. Pioneer) – 6 pm ET, Saturday, ESPN+….
West Florida (1-0) at Southwest Baptist (1-0) – (Gulf South vs. GLVC) – 6 pm ET, Saturday….
Touchdown Tom
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