CFW Week 0 Results – Nothing zero about the Irish
Caleb Williams and Sam Hartman
pick up where they left off last year
The only difference is, Sam Hartman picked up at Notre Dame instead of Wake Forest.
What better place to kick off the 2023 college football season than Dublin, Ireland, especially if you were wearing the green. It was Week Zero but there was nothing zero about the Irish. Notre Dame cleaned Navy’s clock, 42-3.
And Notre Dame quarterback Sam Hartman, who performed miracles at Wake Forest the past three seasons, continued to perform them again in Dublin. Hartman was 19-23-0, passing for 251 yards and four touchdowns. He completed 82.6 percent of his passes.
Meanwhile, in Los Angeles, last year’s Heisman Trophy winner continued where he left off. USC quarterback Caleb Williams was 18-25-0, passing for 278 yards and four touchdowns. He completed 72 percent of his passes. USC downed San Jose State, 56-28.
Williams even had a Heisman Trophy winning moment. At the 9:38 mark in the second quarter, USC had the ball on its own 24. Williams botched the snap from center, retreated to recover the ball, evaded a couple of defenders and threw a 76-yard touchdown pass.
If USC has anything to worry about, it is Lincoln Riley’s same old nemesis – defense. Riley’s Oklahoma teams often suffered from poor defenses, and USC had that problem last year. Saturday, San Jose State had 396 total yards and 28 points.
What a difference a year makes. Last year in Honolulu, Vanderbilt beat Hawaii, 63-10. Saturday, in Nashville, the Commodores beat the Rainbow Warriors, 35-28. Hawaii quarterback Brayden Schager was impressive, passing for 351 yards and three touchdowns. But Schager also threw two interceptions. One when Hawaii had a first-and-goal on the Vandy 6-yard line.
The other four games on Saturday each had interesting twists too. In its first year as an FBS school, Jacksonville State, coached by Rich Rodriguez, eked out a 17-14 win over UTEP. UTEP had three turnovers, Jax State had none.
Well into the second quarter, Ohio led San Diego State, 6-3. Then Ohio quarterback Kurtis Rourke injured his leg and left the game. At that point, he was 8-10-0, passing for 75 yards. Rourke was replaced by C.J. Harris. Harris proceeded to throw three interceptions and Ohio lost to San Diego State, 20-13.
Either Massachusetts has a really good offense this year or New Mexico State has a really bad defense. Maybe both. UMass beat New Mexico State, 41-30. The teams combined for 859 total yards. But like UTEP, New Mexico State had three turnovers. And like Jax State, UMass had none. The game was played in Las Cruces, New Mexico, and it was Massachusetts’ first win on the road in 24 games.
Louisiana Tech trailed FIU throughout their game. FIU led 14-0 after one and 17-3 at the half. FIU still led 17-13 after three. Finally, with 1:01 left in the game, Louisiana Tech led for the first time. The Bulldogs scored a touchdown and went up 22-17. And that was the final score – Louisiana Tech 22, FIU 17. FIU only had 182 total yards – just 4 yards passing.
Saturday was an unusually long day for me. Swamp Mama and I got up at 3:20 a.m. to go outside and watch the SpaceX Crew-7 launch, sending the astronauts to the International Space Station. I should have gone back to bed, but I stayed up. Later Saturday morning, Swamp Mama and I met Rockledge Gator and Bootsie for breakfast at Palm Shores Bistro. That was followed by a trip to Lowes for Swamp Mama to get some flowers and plants for her garden. Back home, it was time for a day and night of football. I finally got to bed at 1:45 a.m. Sunday morning, following the Hawaii-Vanderbilt game. I was up for 22 hours and 25 minutes. I don’t think I have done that since my Navy days.
The NCAA failed to do it so Michigan grabbed the maize by the ears. The Wolverines handed their coach a self-imposed three-game suspension. Jim Harbaugh will not be on the sideline for Michigan’s first three games. The Wolverines have nothing to worry about. The first three encounters are against East Carolina, UNLV and Bowling Green. That’s not to say that the NCAA won’t come down the pike later in the season with additional punishment for Harbaugh. Stay tuned.
Remember Mr. NIL Jaden Rashada? A freshman, Rashada has been named the starting quarterback at Arizona State. Last year, he originally committed to Miami (Florida) and then signed with Florida. Rashada flipped from Miami and got out of his contract with Florida when lucrative NIL deals fell through at both schools. He later signed with the Sun Devils.
With the demise of the Pac-12 Conference, there is a good possibility the expanded College Football Playoff format could get modified. The current format has the six highest-ranked conference champions, plus the six highest-ranked other teams competing in the 12-team playoff. With the Pac-12 out of the picture, the other four Power Five conferences are likely to push for a change. The new format would be the five highest-ranked conference champions, plus the seven highest-ranked other teams. However, I suspect the Group of Five conferences will argue and fight against this change. Stay tuned!
Never underestimate the lobbying of Condoleezza Rice and George W. Bush. Once thought over and done with, the ACC has revived its talks with Stanford, California and SMU. The feeling is something positive could be around the corner for the three schools. All three are vying for membership in the ACC. Latest reports say we should know something one way or the other by Wednesday of this week, possibly today or tomorrow. Meanwhile, Oregon State and Washington State are not going to make any decisions about their future until after Labor Day. But the feeling is they are going to join the MWC. There simply aren’t a lot of options.
He was a ramblin’ wreck from Georgia Tech. Maxie Baughan, who played college football for Georgia Tech and pro football for three NFL teams, died on August 19. Baughan played linebacker and center for Georgia Tech 1956-59. He was a linebacker in the NFL in the 1960s and early 1970s, playing for the Philadelphia Eagles (6 years), the Los Angeles Rams (5 years) and the Washington Redskins (1 year). Baughan was an All-American in college and an All-Pro in the NFL. After his playing years, he became a defensive coordinator and linebackers coach at Georgia Tech and for several NFL teams from 1972 to 1998. From 1983 to 1988 he returned to college football as the head coach of Cornell. At the time of his death, he was living in Ithaca, New York. Maxie Callaway Baughan, a native of Forkland, Alabama, was 85.
“Come on down.” He finally did. Television personality and game show host Bob Barker died on August 26. Barker hosted the shows “Truth or Consequences” and “The Price is Right.” He hosted “The Price is Right” from 1972 to 2007, making it the longest-running daytime game show in North American television history. A native of Darrington, Washington, Robert William Barker was 99.
This week begins the first of two CFW postings a week. For the next 16 weeks, the Monday morning postings of CFW will contain the results from the weekend, plus commentary and news. The Thursday morning postings will contain the forecast for the upcoming weekend, plus commentary and news. So, the next posting of CFW will be Thursday morning, August 31 with my predictions for Week 1 and more.
Touchdown Tom
August 28, 2023
https://collegefootballweek.blogspot.com
Week 0 Recap
Navy couldn’t float its boat – Notre Dame 42, Navy 3 (Touchdown Tom said: Notre Dame 38, Navy 14). Notre Dame scored touchdowns on its first five possessions – four in the first half and one in the second half – to take a 35-0 lead with 9:36 to go in the third quarter. Navy finally stopped the Irish on Notre Dame’s sixth possession. The Irish came up short on a 41-yard field goal attempt. Navy never scored until 3:33 left in the game. The Middies kicked a 30-yard field goal. Earlier in the game, Navy missed a 36-yard field goal attempt. Standing on the sideline, Navy coach Brian Newberry often looked lost and confused. Notre Dame had 27 first downs to 12 for Navy. The Irish had 444 total yards to 171 for the Middies. It was a clean, error free game. Neither team had a turnover and there were only four penalties in the game – one by ND and three by Navy. Next year, Georgia Tech and Florida State will open the season in Dublin. Attendance in Dublin: 49,000
Heisman repeat? – USC 56, San Jose State 28 (Touchdown Tom said: USC 33, San Jose State 17). USC had 502 total yards – 341 passing and 161 rushing. San Jose State receiver Nick Nash had six receptions for 89 yards and three touchdowns. San Jose State out rushed the Trojans, with 198 yards rushing. It was an error free game. Neither team suffered a turnover. USC got its biggest lead with 6:53 to go in the fourth quarter when the Trojans scored and led by 35 points – 56-21. Caleb Williams played most of the game for USC, but his two backups – Miller Moss and Malachi Nelson – saw action in the second half. Attendance in Los Angeles: 63,411
No Rainbows in Nashville – Vanderbilt 35, Hawaii 28 (Touchdown Tom said: Vanderbilt 35, Hawaii 24). Lightning delayed the start of the game for 90 minutes. Vanderbilt’s stadium is undergoing major renovation. Vandy’s biggest lead was by 21 points. The Dores led 35-14 with 14:48 to go in the fourth quarter. Hawaii had more total yards than Vandy – 391 to 302. Hawaii receiver Pofele Ashlock had 7 receptions for 127 yards and 1 touchdown. Neither team had a running game. Vandy had 44 yards rushing and Hawaii had 40. Hawaii had two turnovers and Vandy had none. There were 15 penalties in the game. Eight by Vandy and seven by Hawaii. Attendance in Nashville: 21,407
Week Zero Results: 3 winners, 0 fumbles (100 percent)
ELSEWHERE AROUND FLORIDA:
Louisiana Tech 22, FIU 17 – Attendance in Ruston: 16,299
Superlatives
Week 0’s Best Passers:
Hawaii’s Brayden Schager – 27-35-2 for 351 yards (3TDs); Louisiana Tech’s Hank Bachmeier – 34-44-1-333 (1TD); USC’s Caleb Williams – 18-25-0-278 yards (4TDs); Vanderbilt’s A.J. Swann – 19-30-0-258 (3TDs), and Notre Dame’s Sam Hartman – 19-23-0-251 (4TDs).
Week 0’s Best Rushers:
FIU’s Sinomari Lawrence – 139 yards (1TD); San Jose State’s Quali Conley – 108 yards; Massachusetts’ Taisun Phommachanh – 96 yards (1TD); Notre Dame’s Audric Estime – 95; yards (1TD), and New Mexico State’s Monte Watkins – 95 yards (1TD).
Quotes of the Week
“It’s remarkable that Hugh Freeze has come in – gone to the transfer portal – and has a solid starting quarterback. Meanwhile, over at Alabama, Nick Saban is playing musical chairs at the most prominent position,” Paul Finebaum.
“The notion that two of the very best academic institutions in the world who also play D-1 sports could be abandoned in this latest chapter of realignment is an indictment on college athletics. You can’t have two of the greatest academic institutions in the world not have a place to play,” Notre Dame athletic director Jack Swarbrick, on California and Stanford.
“Our budgets aren’t extraordinary as it is, and now we would try to add in flights across the country to play these two schools, which would be incredibly expensive. And then the fact that now we’re exposing the whole country – not that Stanford and Cal don’t have a national recruiting platform, of course they do – but if you put those two schools in the ACC, it’s gonna be so easy for them, in my opinion, not us. We’ve built the best women’s soccer conference in the country, and there’s no way I want to share the glory of our conference with two schools that could do a very good job recruiting against us. And so basically, I want Cal and Stanford to die on the vine,” North Carolina women’s soccer coach Anson Dorrance.
Touchdown Tom
https://collegefootballweek.blogspot.com
P.S.
Not exactly college football related, but as the Labor Day Weekend approached and college football fans were hyped for the start of another season, the number one song in the country…
…80 years ago, this week in 1943, was “In The Blue Of The Evening” by Tommy Dorsey and His Orchestra with Frank Sinatra
…75 years ago, this week in 1948, was “Twelfth Street Rag” by Pee Wee Hunt and His Orchestra
…70 years ago, this week in 1953, was “Vaya Con Dios (May God Be With You)” by Les Paul and Mary Ford
…65 years ago, this week in 1958, was “Bird Dog” by The Everly Brothers
…60 years ago, this week in 1963, was “Fingertips” by Little Stevie Wonder, and “My Boyfriend’s Back” by The Angels
…55 years ago, this week in 1968, was “People Got To Be Free” by The Rascals
…50 years ago, this week in 1973, was “Brother Louie” by Stories
…45 years ago, this week in 1978, was “Grease” by Frankie Valli
…40 years ago, this week in 1983, was “Every Breath You Take” by The Police, and “Sweet Dreams (Are Made Of This)” by The Eurythmics
…35 years ago, this week in 1988, was “Monkey” by George Michael
…30 years ago, this week in 1993, was “Can’t Help Falling In Love” by UB40
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