CFW Week 2 Results – Quinn Ewers leads Texas over Alabama
Boulder is the center of college football
Boulder, Colorado.
Move over Athens, Georgia. Move over Tuscaloosa, Alabama. Move over Clemson, South Carolina. Move over Baton Rouge, Louisiana. Move over Columbus, Ohio.
Ralphie rules!
It may not last, but right now, two games into the season, Colorado is the talk of college football, and Boulder is the most energized town in college football. During Saturday’s 36-14 victory over Nebraska, Folsom Field was electrified. It was charged. Boulder was a hot spot. Colorado fans were juiced.
Rocky Mountain high. People can’t stop talking about Deion Sanders. Coach Prime is already being mentioned as a potential “Coach of the Year.” People can’t stop talking about Colorado quarterback Shedeur Sanders and receiver/defensive back Travis Hunter. Both are being mentioned as potential Heisman Trophy winners.
After two games, Shedeur Sanders is 69-89-0, passing for 903 yards and six touchdowns. Travis Hunter has 14 receptions for 192 yards. On defense he has one interception.
Colorado and Coach Prime are dominating the college football scene. Offensive coordinator Sean Lewis is getting a lot of hype too. Opening weekend, Colorado surprised the country with its 45-42 win over TCU in Fort Worth. Saturday, the Buffaloes continued to impress, leading Nebraska, 36-7, in the closing seconds of the 4th quarter. The Huskers scored a second touchdown with 0:01 on the clock.
Colorado fans have a right to feel energized. With two wins this season, Colorado already has one more win than the Buffaloes had all of last year. Colorado was 1-11 last season and 4-8 in 2021. In the past 25 years, Colorado has only had two 10-win seasons – in 2001 and 2016. And only one 9-win season in that time frame. The past two and a half decades have been pretty dismal. In the past 15 years, the Buffaloes have only been to two bowl games.
But Colorado has a tough road to hoe. Seven other Pac-12 teams are ranked in the Top 25. Colorado plays six of them – USC, Utah, Oregon, Oregon State, UCLA and Washington State – all but Washington. That’s murderer’s row. And Utah, Oregon, UCLA and Washington State are on the road. Stay tuned.
Meantime, Ralphie rules!
Week 2 began Thursday night in Kentucky on the Ohio River. Louisville improved to 2-0, beating Murray State 56-0. The Cardinals had 690 total yards – 346 passing and 344 rushing.
Next to Boulder, Tuscaloosa, Alabama, was the most energized town in the country on Saturday. But for Alabama fans, that energy only lasted so long. Entering the 4th quarter, Alabama led Texas, 16-13. But the Longhorns scored 21 of the next 29 points to beat the Tide, 34-24. Texas quarterback Quinn Ewers was great; Alabama quarterback Jalen Milroe was not.
There were three overtime games Saturday, and one was a big upset. Rice knocked off Houston, 43-41 (2OT). Rice quarterback J.T. Daniels passed for 401 yards. North Carolina beat Appalachian State, 40-34 (2OT), and Mississippi State downed Arizona, 31-24 (OT).
Vanderbilt and Wake Forest entered the day undefeated. Wake Forest still is, but Vandy isn’t. The Demon Deacons beat the Commodores, 36-20. UCF improved to 2-0. On the blue turf in Boise, the Knights kicked a 40-yard field goal as time expired to down Boise State, 18-16.
Utah State gets the award for scoring the most points. The Aggies plowed Idaho State, 78-28. Toledo was a close second. The Rockets blasted Texas Southern, 71-3.
Mario Cristobal got the best of Jimbo Fisher. Miami beat Texas A&M, 48-33. Aggie fans got the best of Jimbo on social media after the game.
There were nine potentially interesting and intriguing games I told you to keep an eye on. First (Illinois at Kansas): Last year, Illinois had one of the top defenses in the country. This year they don’t – Kansas 34, Illinois 23. Kansas quarterback Jalon Daniels and running back Devin Neal are poetry in motion. Bret Bielema didn’t get the job done at Arkansas. He’s not getting it done at Illinois. Wonder if Kansas will be able to hold onto coach Lance Leipold?..... Second (James Madison at Virginia): Trailing Virginia 35-24, James Madison scored two touchdowns in the 4th quarter to beat Virginia, 36-35. In the loss, Virginia quarterback Anthony Colandrea passed for 377 yards….. Third: (Utah at Baylor): Utah scored a touchdown with 0:17 on the clock to beat Baylor, 20-13. Prior to that touchdown, Utah never led in the game. Trailing Baylor, 13-3, late in the 4th quarter, Utah scored two touchdowns (14 points) in the final 1:56 of the game. Utah is 2-0 and Baylor is 0-2.
Fourth (Appalachian State at North Carolina): This game was a thriller last year, and it was a thriller again this year. As the 4th quarter began, North Carolina led App State, 20-17. Four minutes into the quarter, App State scored to go up 24-20. Less than two minutes later, the Tar Heels scored to retake the lead at 27-24. Then, with 1:22 on the clock, App State kicked a 33-yard field goal to even the score at 27-27. After one overtime, the score was 34-34. In the second overtime, UNC scored and App State didn’t. North Carolina won 40-34 (2OT)….. Fifth (Cincinnati at Pitt): Trailing Cincinnati, 27-7, Pitt rallied with two touchdowns in the 4th quarter. However, the Panthers came up short, losing to Cincinnati 27-21….. Sixth (UCLA at San Diego State): UCLA easily beat San Diego State, 35-10. The Bruins scored three touchdowns in the 2nd quarter to take a 28-10 halftime lead. UCLA racked up 550 total yards, with quarterback Dante Moore passing for 290 yards.
Seven: (Auburn at California): In a dull game, with 11 penalties and seven turnovers (4 Auburn, 3 Cal) Auburn downed California, 14-10. Combined, the teams only had 503 total yards….. Eight (Stanford at USC): Leading 49-3 at halftime, USC went on to beat Stanford, 56-10. The Trojans had 573 total yards, as Caleb Williams passed for 281 yards….. Nine: (Oklahoma State at Arizona State): Trailing 15-10 at halftime, Oklahoma State scored 17 unanswered points in the second half to down Arizona State, 27-15.
Going out with a bang! The Pac-12 Conference has eight teams ranked in the Top 25, and the Pac-12 is 20-3 in non-conference games this season. Not bad.
Texas A&M’s Jimbo Fisher, Nebraska’s Matt Rhule and Houston’s Dana Holgorsen all got skewered on social media after their games Saturday.
I think most all, if not all, of the games in the mid-Atlantic and northeast area on Saturday experienced weather delays and interruptions. Some were lengthy delays and interruptions. What a pain those are.
Touchdown Tom
September 11, 2023
https://collegefootballweek.blogspot.com
Note: CFW Week 3 Forecast will be posted Thursday morning, September 14.
Week Two Recap
GAME OF THE WEEK: Wakeup call – Texas 34, Alabama 24 (Touchdown Tom said: Alabama 28, Texas 27). Alabama only had one lead in the game and that didn’t come until 0:14 left in the 3rd quarter. The Tide scored a touchdown to go up 16-13. But Bama didn’t hold the lead very long. Less than two minutes later, Texas scored and went back up 20-13. The Longhorns never trailed again. Alabama suffered its first double-digit loss at home in 19 years. Bama had two turnovers and Texas had none. The Tide’s two miscues were both interceptions thrown by quarterback Jalen Milroe. Milroe had a poor game, barely completing 50% of his passes. The Tide was just 5-14 on third down efficiency. Texas quarterback Quinn Ewers riddled the Bama defense, passing for 349 yards. Texas coach Steve Sarkisian joined Jimbo Fisher and Kirby Smart as the only former Nick Saban assistants to beat the Alabama coach. Attendance in Tuscaloosa: 100,077
RUNNER-UP: Pratt-less in New Orleans – Ole Miss 37, Tulane 20 (Touchdown Tom said: Ole Miss 30, Tulane 29). Up 27-20, Ole Miss scored 10 points in the final two minutes of the game. Tulane starting quarterback Michael Pratt did not play. Pratt has a knee injury. That had to make a difference. Ole Miss managed the win in spite of being 1-13 in third-down efficiency. Tulane controlled the clock but not the score. Ole Miss only had 89 yards rushing. Attendance in New Orleans: 30,000
REST OF THE BEST: No potatoes for the Wolf – Notre Dame 45, NC State 24 (Touchdown Tom said: Notre Dame 27, NC State18). Notre Dame never trailed in the game. But late in the third quarter, the Irish only led by seven points – 24-17. Then ND scored 21 unanswered points. NC State quarterback Brennan Armstrong threw three interceptions. The Wolfpack only had 84 yards rushing. Irish quarterback Sam Hartman passed for 286 yards and four touchdowns. Irish running back Audric Estime rushed for 134 yards and two touchdowns. Attendance in Raleigh: 56,919
Jimbo’s in trouble – Miami (Florida) 48, Texas A&M 33 (Touchdown Tom said: Texas A&M 31, Miami 30). Texas A&M took the early lead, with leads of 7-0, 10-0, 17-7 up through most of the 2nd quarter. Miami took its first lead at 21-7 in the closing seconds of the 2nd quarter. A&M kicked a field goal and pulled within one point, down 21-20 in the 3rd quarter. The teams exchanged scores and Miami was up 31-26 early in the 4th quarter. Then Miami outscored the Aggies 17-7 in the 4th quarter. Canes quarterback Tyler Van Dyke passed for 374 yards and 5 touchdowns. Aggie quarterback Conner Weigman passed for 336 yards but threw two interceptions. Attendance in Miami Gardens: 48,792
Cougars on a mission – Washington State 31, Wisconsin 22 (Touchdown Tom said: Washington State 29, Wisconsin 28). Washington State had a big 2nd quarter, scoring 17 points. The Cougars led Wisconsin 24-9 at halftime. But the Badgers had a big 3rd quarter, scoring 13 points. As the 4th quarter began, Washington State only led by two points – 24-22. The Cougars iced the game, scoring a touchdown with 5:20 left in the game. Wisconsin quarterback Tanner Mordecai passed for 278 yards, but Washington State shut down the Badgers running game. Wisconsin only had 90 yards rushing. Attendance in Pullman: 33,024
The Raiders turned Green – Oregon 38, Texas Tech 30 (Touchdown Tom said: Oregon 40, Texas Tech 25). Oregon took a 15-7 first quarter lead. Texas Tech battled back and took a 20-18 lead early in the 3rd quarter. The Raiders increased that lead to 27-18 later in the 3rd quarter. Oregon went back up 28-27 with 1:27 to go in the 4th quarter. Texas Tech retook the lead at 30-28 with 5:13 to go in the game. Oregon then scored 10 points with less than 2 minutes to go in the game. Oregon’s Bo Nix passed for 359 yards. Texas Tech quarterback Tyler Shough threw three interceptions. The teams combined for 928 total yards. Attendance in Lubbock: N/A
Oh you Sooners – Oklahoma 28, SMU 11 (Touchdown Tom said: Oklahoma 35, SMU 26). Halfway through the 4th quarter, SMU only trailed 14-11. Then the Sooners scored 14 unanswered points. SMU had two turnovers to none for the Sooners. Attendance in Norman: 84,186
Herbie didn’t get his turnover vaccine – Colorado 36, Nebraska 14 (Touchdown Tom said: Colorado 30, Nebraska 28). Colorado led 13-0 at halftime. Ten of those points coming off of Nebraska turnovers. Nebraska scored first in the 3rd quarter to close the gap to 13-7. Then the Buffaloes scored 23 unanswered points to lead 36-7 late in the 4th quarter. Colorado quarterback Shedeur Sanders passed for 393 yards. Nebraska shot itself in the foot again, with four turnovers. The Huskers had four turnovers in the loss to Minnesota the previous week. Colorado’s weakness is its rushing game. The Buffaloes only had 58 yards rushing. They only had 55 yards on the ground last week in the win over TCU. Nebraska was 4-13 in third-down efficiency. Nebraska now has 22 consecutive losses to teams ranked in the Top 25. Matt Rhule’s inaugural seasons at Temple and Baylor were not good – 2-10 at Temple and 1-11 at Baylor. Attendance in Boulder: 53,241
The bets were on – Iowa 20, Iowa State 13 (Touchdown Tom said: Iowa 23, Iowa State 17). Iowa took the early lead and held on to win. The Hawkeyes led 17-0 late in the 2nd quarter. They led 20-3 as the 4th quarter began. Again, Iowa had no offense. The Hawkeyes only had 9 first downs – only 235 total yards. Iowa State wasn’t much better. The teams combined for 525 total yards. Attendance in Ames: 61,500
The Wildcat stepped on his paw – Mississippi State 31, Arizona 24 (OT) – (Touchdown Tom said: Arizona 27, Mississippi State 26). Miss State led 14-0 in the 2nd quarter and 21-7 in the third quarter. Then Arizona rallied to tie the score at 21-21. It was 24-24 at ten end of regulation. Miss State scored in the overtime and Arizona didn’t. Arizona quarterback Jayden de Laura threw four interceptions. That literally kicked the Wildcats. Arizona dominated the stats – not the score. Attendance in Starkville: 51,648
YE OLDE STOMPING GROUNDS:
Hooray for the weather delay – West Virginia 56, Duquesne 17 – (Touchdown Tom said: West Virginia 45, Duquesne 17). This game got started and then experienced a long weather delay. When the game was halted in the 2nd quarter, WVU led 14-10. The weather delay apparently fired up the Mountaineers. After the weather break, WVU scored 28 unanswered points and outscored Duquesne 42-7 overall. WVU played two quarterbacks and had 315 yards passing. The Mounties had 30 first downs to 10 for the Dukes, and 619 total yards to 231 for Duquesne. Duquesne only had 3 yards rushing. Attendance in Morgantown: 50,037
Happy in The Swamp – Florida 49, McNeese State 7 – (Touchdown Tom said: Florida 31, McNeese State 13). With less than three minutes to go in the game, Florida was leading 49-0. Gators quarterback Graham Meretz was 14-17-0, passing for 193 yards and one touchdown. Florida played three quarterbacks. The Gators had 33 first downs to 6 for McNeese, and 560 total yards to 112 for McNeese. McNeese only had 66 yards passing and 46 yards rushing. Attendance in Gainesville: 88,163
The Leopards get Deviled – Duke 42, Lafayette 7 (Touchdown Tom said: Duke 31, Lafayette 9). The score was 7-7 as the 2nd quarter began. Then the Dookies unloaded. Duke quarterback Riley Leonard was 12-for-12 passing. Backup quarterback Henry Belin played a good bit of the game. Duke had 515 total yards. Attendance in Durham: 17,481
Uga bounces the Ball – Georgia 45, Ball State 3 (Touchdown Tom said: Georgia 49, Ball State 10). Georgia got off to a slow start. The score was 0-0 as the 2nd quarter began. Then Uga proceeded to put 31 points on the board in the 2nd quarter – another 14 in the 3rd quarter. Ball State managed a field goal in the 4th quarter. Ball State suffered three turnovers. Georgia quarterback Carson Beck threw for 283 yards. Attendance in Athens: 92,746
Tech-less in Blacksburg – Purdue 24, Virginia Tech 17 (Touchdown Tom said: Virginia Tech 29, Purdue 27). Purdue jumped out to a 17-0 lead. Virginia Tech tied the score at 17-17 in the 2nd quarter. The game remained 17-17 until 8:00 to go in the fourth quarter. The Boilers scored a touchdown to go up 24-17. Hokies quarterback Grant Wells threw two interceptions. Purdue running back Devin Mockobee rushed for 95 yards. Virginia Tech only had 11 yards rushing. Purdue controlled the clock 38:01 to 21:59. It took 6 hours and 4 minutes to complete the first quarter due to a weather delay. Attendance in Blacksburg: 65,632
Week 2 Results: 11 winners, 4 fumbles (73.3 percent)
For the Season: 22 winners, 9 fumbles (71 percent)
ELSEWHERE AROUND FLORIDA:
West Florida 35, McKendree 3 – Attendance in Lebanon: N/A
Bethune-Cookman 31, Savannah State 6 – Attendance in Daytona Beach: 6,838
Stetson 38, Webber College 28 – Attendance in Deland: 1,430
Ohio 17, Florida Atlantic 10 – Attendance in Boca Raton: 17,934
FIU 46, North Texas 39 – Attendance in Miami: 15,754
UCF 18, Boise State 16 – Attendance in Boise: 36,447
South Florida 38, Florida A&M 24 – Attendance in Tampa: 36,495
Florida State 66, Southern Miss 13 – Attendance in Tallahassee: 74,467
Superlatives
Week Two’s Best Passers:
Washington’s Michael Penix – 28-38-1 for 409 yards (3TDs); Rice’s J.T. Daniels – 28-42-1-401 (3TDs); Colorado’s Shedeur Sanders – 31-42-0-393 (2TDs); UAB’s Jacob Zeno – 33-43-1-385 (2TDs); Virginia’s Anthony Colandrea – 20-26-1-377 (2TDs); Oregon’s Bo Nix – 32-44-0-359 (2TDs); Texas’ Quinn Ewers – 24-38-0-349 (3TDs); South Carolina’s Spencer Rattler – 25-27-0-345 (3TDs); Miami of Florida’s Tyler Van Dyke – 21-30-0-274 (5TDs), and LSU’s Jayden Daniels – 18-24-0-269 (5TDs).
Also, BYU’s Kedon Slovis – 22-32-1 for 348 yards (4TDs); Bowling Green’s Connor Bazelak – 23-28-0-319 (3TDs); Georgia Southern’s Davis Brin – 38-47-1-318 (2TDs); Michigan State’s Noah Kim – 18-22-0-292 (3TDs); Georgia Tech’s Haynes King – 21-29-0-290 (4TDs); UCLA’s Dante Moore – 17-27-0-290 (3TDs); Notre Dame’s Sam Hartman – 15-24-0-286 (4TDs); USC’s Caleb Williams – 19-22-0-281 (3TDs); Michigan’s J.J. McCarthy – 22-25-0-278 (2TDs), and TCU’s Chandler Morris – 26-30-0-263 (2TDs).
Week Two’s Best Rushers:
North Carolina’s Omarion Hampton – 234 yards (3TDs); Minnesota’s Darius Taylor – 193 yards (1TD); Louisiana Tech’s Keith Willis – 188 yards (2TDs); Wake Forest’s Demond Claiborne – 165 yards, and Rutgers’ Kyle Monangai – 165 yards (1TD).
Also, Maryland’s Roman Hemby – 162 yards (1TD); New Mexico’s Jacory Croskey-Merritt – 162 yards (3TDs); Cincinnati’s Corey Kiner – 153 yards (1TD); Georgia State’s Darren Grainger – 142 yards (1TD), and Notre Dame’s Audric Estime – 134 yards (2TDs).
Quotes of the Week
“Matt Rhule may have to find somebody else to play quarterback because Sims is costing his team games,” FOX Sports play-by-play man Gus Johnson, during the Nebraska-Colorado game.
“We obviously didn’t do very well. But it’s the midterm, it’s not the final,” Nick Saban, on Alabama’s loss to Texas.
Touchdown Tom
https://collegefootballweek.blogspot.com
P.S.
Not exactly college football related, but in mid-September as the college football season was underway, the number one song in the country…
…80 years ago, this week in 1943, was “Sunday, Monday Or Always” by Bing Crosby and The Ken Darby Singers
…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 “Volare (Nel Blu Dipinto Di Blu)” by Domenico Modugno
…60 years ago, this week in 1963, was “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 “Let’s Get It On” by Marvin Gaye, and “Delta Dawn” by Helen Reddy
…45 years ago, this week in 1978, was “Boogie Oogie Oogie” by A Taste of Honey
…40 years ago, this week in 1983, was “Maniac” by Michael Sembello
…35 years ago, this week in 1988, was “Sweet Child O’ Mine” by Guns N’ Roses
…30 years ago, this week in 1993, was “Dreamlover” by Mariah Carey
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