The college football season is only two weeks old and it's already turning out to be one of those years to expect the unexpected, which is bad news for someone who tends to gamble a wee bit too much. Not that I know anybody like that. Regardless, it's been a lot of fun to watch and I'm already excited to see what surprises are in store for next week. Without further ado here are some things that stood out to me from week two's action...
It appears that three teams are beginning to seperate from the preseason pack: Oklahoma, LSU, and USC. It's hard to exaggerate how impressive OU was in destroying Miami in Norman. That their defense held The U's pop gun offense to just 13 points wasn't surprising, but putting 51 on the board against a very good defense was pretty amazing. Freshman quarterback Sam Bradford has been out of control in his first two games, completing 40 of 48 passes for over 550 yards and eight touchdowns. LSU has been even more impressive, beating two BCS conference opponents by an average score of 46-3, including a 48-7 drubbing of #9 Va. Tech last night. Admittedly, that win would have looked a lot better before the season started as Tech has yet to show they belong in the top 25 let alone the top 10, but it was still awfully convincing. Apologies to Florida, Penn State, and perhaps West Virginia, who have all looked terrific, but I believe are still a step behind.
There were several coaching decisions throughout the day that either made me cringe or yell obsceneties at the TV screen, depending on the game. Without getting into specific moments from this weekend, I want to take a moment to vent about one particularly illogical move that is all too common in both the NCAA and the NFL. It's when a team that has played good defense all game long comes out in the "prevent" formation when protecting a lead late in the game. Instead of trusting their defense that has held the opposing team's offense in check for three plus quarters, these coaches decide to freely give up large chunks of yardage in exchange for running off a little of the clock. The endings of these games are frequently way more interesting than they ought to be. It drives me crazy; especially when the easy touchdown allowed by the prevent ruins the pointspread, which happens all too often, dammit.
Western Kentucky went up 49-0 after the first quarter on the way to an 87-0 victory over a fearsome West Virginia Tech squad. What are they, division nine? Anyway, I was rooting for 100.
Texas woke up from a four and a half game slumber just in time to avoid being upset by TCU. Still, if they are going to have a chance against OU on October 6 they need to get better fast.
Louisiana Tech had by far the worst defense in the country last year by almost every measure. Hawaii has a record setting offense the likes of which college football has rarely seen. So how did La. Tech hold the Rainbows to just 38 points in regulation on the way to an amazing upset that almost was? Beats the hell out of me. If Hawaii is invited to play in a BCS bowl game this year they are going to get murdered by somebody. I'm very prejudiced against them because their offense is gimmicky and most of all because they scheduled two 1-AA opponents for this year.
Wisconsin is way overrated. I wouldn't be surprised if they lose three or four games this year.
Perhaps no one in history has been more of a lame duck than Lloyd Carr is at this point. I almost feel bad for the guy. But not quite.
Speaking of coaches on the hot seat, I don't quite understand the talk of Charlie Weis' job being in jeopardy. He has been at Notre Dame for two seasons and been to BCS bowls both years. The Irish are going to be below .500 this year, but with Jimmy Clausen and the other youngsters on the team getting some experience they should be much improved next year and beyond. If the brass at Notre Dame really are considering canning Weis if this year goes badly (which it will), then they have developed a very distorted view of their program at this point. It is no longer among the most elite programs in the country, and as long as the coaches have to deal with higher admissions requirements than most schools it will be extremely difficult to get back to that level. Two BCS bowls in three years should be cause for celebration, not cause for the coach to be unemployed.
Texas A&M has some sort of built in mediocrity gene that makes them play to the level of their competition every week. It doesn't matter if the team they're playing is winless or undefeated, the game will probably come down to the final five minutes.
Go Cocks!!! I predicted that my Gamecocks would finally earn a marquee win this year, so beating Georgia in Athens made me happy for multiple reasons. Now, like everyone back in Columbia, It's time to get carried away with reckless optimism! If things go well, now that Tennessee is looking vulnerable, we can go into the Arkansas, Florida, Clemson threesome at the end of the schedule at 8-1. If we can somehow, someway manage a miracle victory at LSU in two weeks, we could be 9-0! I can smell it, we're almost there! Realistically, though, ten wins is not out of the question at this point, though eight or nine is still more likely.
This may just be a semantic argument, but the Appy State win at Michigan was not the biggest upset ever. It may have been the biggest shocker ever, insofar as no one saw it coming, but the Mountaineers are a legitimate top 25 caliber D-1 squad. Unlike, for example, the miserable 0-6 Temple team that beat then #10 Virginia Tech despite being a 38.5 point underdog and being down 17-0 in 1998. That was a much bigger upset.
That's all I got. Can't wait until week three.
-T
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