Fall begins, Notre Dame... wins?

I admit, I really didn’t see Kansas State coming. After watching them win games last year on effort alone, I assumed their talent-deficit roster would once again doom the Wildcats to failure against their more talented Big 12 brethren. Through September, in fact, there’s not actually been any evidence to the contrary. What K-State did Saturday was a shock to the system. A Stoops-coached OU team, losing at home to ranked team? Unheard of. It’s enough that I, like the voters, had to reward the Wildcats for a job well done.

The flip side of this, of course, was that Oklahoma got exposed. This is particularly stinging given how much I believed in the Sooners. But the most obvious problem revealed in Norman wasn’t that OU is a bunch of frauds; that team has the talent to play with anyone. The problem was QB Landry Jones, who has mysteriously regressed since last season. It’s true that losing top target Ryan Broyles to injury was a setback to Jones, but logically he should have adjusted during the long offseason. That hasn’t been the case.

So does that now make West Virginia the favorites in the Big 12? After this week’s game against Maryland, I can’t see it. Geno Smith looked Heisman-worthy, but the overall team performance was poor. The Mountaineers escaped by 10 against a highly inferior opponent at home. I guess that puts KSU at the top of the list, but because of their lack of playmakers I can’t see them going undefeated. For now they get the nod in the polls, though.

By the way, I continue to be impressed with the pollsters. I don’t know if this is the year the voters finally decided to start doing their jobs or if this is a sign of the apocalypse, but once again the results just seem to make too much sense. For the most part, that is. There are still the ridiculous bits here and there, like Nebraska being ranked and UCLA unranked when they have the same record and the Bruins won head-to-head. By and large, though, it’s logical. LSU played a bad game against Auburn and was passed by Oregon and nearly passed by FSU. This makes sense. This is what should be happening.

Both the Seminoles and Ducks passed early-season tests Saturday night, though they came in different situations. Oregon faced a simple skill test: could the sometimes-maligned defense contain Arizona’s explosive attack? The answer was a decided “Yes.” There remain questions about the Ducks’ curious inability to run the ball, but the defense was the story of the game.

Florida State, on the other hand, had a much more difficult question to answer: how tough mentally was the team? As they always seem to do, the ‘Noles got down early against an opponent they should have been able to beat. But where past FSU squads would have quailed at the pressure, this one stepped up and fought back. Down 14 in the third quarter, they went on a 35-3 run that was as masterful a defensive effort as it was an offensive one.

And, because it apparently wouldn’t be a regular week without some Big Ten-bashing, here are the latest woeful results from the proud Legends and Leaders: Wisconsin struggled once again, beating UTEP 37-26; Iowa lost to Central Michigan; Ohio State had to put away UAB late; Michigan State trailed at the half before beating Eastern Michigan; Michigan fell to Notre Dame, and Illinois was blown out by Louisiana Tech. Minnesota and Northwestern are both 4-0. During the middle of the day I realized that, without a doubt, this is the worst Big Ten ever. It truly is the apocalypse.

Looking ahead, it’s another lean week, unless you really think Baylor is a top 25 team and can hang with West Virginia. Ohio State plays Michigan State, which was one of the worst games of last year. We’ll see how bad Wisconsin really is when the Badgers play at Nebraska. Louisiana Tech, 3-0 and averaging 54 points a game, plays at Virginia and will likely beat the Cavaliers. Missouri, fresh off their inaugural SEC spankings, faces a game Central Florida team that may very well beat them. None of the contenders should be challenged. The best contest of the day might be one of the last: newly ranked Oregon State travels to Tucson in a late-night battle against the still-smarting Wildcats. That’s about it.

Top 25

1) Alabama

The Crimson Tide finally ceded some points this week. Oh well. Between their monstrous ground-and-pound attack and their insane 5.3 points allowed per game, I’m ready to proclaim this team number one by a wide margin. The next three opponents are Ole Miss, Missouri and Tennessee. They might not give up another point until November.

2) Oregon

You just don’t do what the Ducks’ defense did against Arizona: six red-zone possessions, no points? Even mighty ‘Bama would have trouble matching that. The offense is clearly a work in progress, but Oregon fans had to be very relieved by what the “other” side of the team delivered Saturday. Shutouts against conference foes are rare and impressive.

3) Florida State

Based on this week’s results, FSU has to be this high. In the second half, the Seminoles thoroughly beat a team who, by the way, just beat Auburn by more than LSU did. After giving up 37 points, the previously stout defense has to be a little embarrassed. USF is a good team to practice on this week.

4) LSU

The Tigers just never got going against Auburn. It’s early, but you have to be concerned with the way the passing game still hasn’t improved. I guess now we know why Zach Mettenberger didn’t beat out Jordan Jefferson and Jarrett Lee, eh? The defense is top-notch, but you shouldn’t be in danger of losing to a team that barely puts up double digits.

5) Kansas State

I remain skeptical of this team’s long-term title hopes; it just seems cruel to expect too much out of a group that, relatively speaking, has so little to work with. I don’t think there’s much question at this point who the toughest team in the country is. I rank KSU ahead of UGA and Carolina because the Wildcats have actually played, you know, anyone.

6) Georgia

Buffalo, Mizzou, FAU and Vandy, and we’re supposed to be sold that this is a top-five team? Next up is rival Tennessee, which won’t say much either – unless the Bulldogs lose, in which case it’ll say a whole lot. UGA does get South Carolina after that, so we’ll finally get a real test for those two.

7) South Carolina

With a resume similar to Georgia’s and another easy win on the way (Kentucky? Really? Did the SEC plan this? Actually, probably yes), there’s not a lot to say about the Gamecocks. They expectedly thrashed Missouri in the Wildcats’ first conference road game. Connor Shaw rebounded nicely to go an eye-popping 20-21 last game, though his health remains a factor.

8) Stanford

The Cardinal had Saturday off to prepare for their Thursday game at Washington (as if they needed it). This is the first road game of the year, but I doubt it will matter. UW has been massively outclassed in the last two contests. Things to improve for this week: more efficiency in the passing game, less making Matt Barkley sad.

9) Notre Dame

To be completely honest, Michigan and MSU probably aren’t that good. Nevertheless, it’s hard to not get excited about this team. The painful years of getting trashed on the field and by the media (and folks like me!) are being exorcized seemingly every down by this resilient, hard-working bunch.

10) West Virginia

Hmmm. Things I was impressed with: Geno Smith and Tayvon Austin. Things I was not impressed with: everything else. Maryland is way too average to let hang around for four quarters. I’m pretty sure someone in the Big 12 can beat this team. They’ll need the right combination of offense and defense, but it’ll happen.

11) USC

How underwhelming can a 27-9 victory be? When it comes against Cal, very. SC led early and held a huge yardage advantage. By all rights, it should have been over by halftime, yet Cal actually had the ball in the red zone trailing by only eight late in the third quarter. A lot of things still need to get cleaned up.

12) Clemson

For about 34 minutes, everything was going the Tigers’ way. They had Florida State right where they wanted them, having sprung multiple explosion plays that shocked the Seminole defense. Then came the avalanche. It’s unfortunate these teams play in the same division, because a title game rematch would be sweet.

13) Texas

The Longhorns should be able to contain Oklahoma State’s passing attack without too much trouble. Getting an extra week to prepare can only have helped the stingy Texas D. The offense still has questions marks and must prove things on a week-to-week basis; UT hasn’t put together a great scoring performance against a good team in two years.

14) Florida

Shutting out Kentucky does nothing for me. However, the Gators are off this week before hosting LSU. With the way the Tigers just played I might actually take UF in that game. A lot depends on Jeff Driskel – has he really improved as a quarterback, or was it just the result of bad competition. LSU tends to live off bad quarterbacking.

15) Ohio State

Another week, another shaky performance by the Buckeyes. Aside from one outburst keyed by turnovers, OSU showed nothing against (another) vastly inferior opponent. This team could very well go undefeated in the watered-down Big Ten, but it’s a good thing they’re ineligible, because they’d get hammered in a BCS game.

16) TCU

Somewhat sluggish effort by the Horned Frogs. I’d like to see this team put a whole game together for once. If they can, there’s no reason why they couldn’t win the conference. The defense-first approach is certainly more sustainable than WVU’s all-passing philosophy.

17) Oklahoma

Thanks for repaying all my loyalty, Sooners. I’m not sure why a team with OU’s riches can’t figure it out, but they’ve only got one more week to do it. Next week is Texas. The Longhorns have the defensive personnel to make life miserable for a sputtering offense. Oklahoma has the offensive talent to make them pay for trying. They just have to show up.

18) Oregon State

Who would have thought? The Beavers are essentially 3-0 (I’m counting Nicholls State early) with a pair of wins over teams that were ranked at the time. Before the season nobody would have penciled in Wisconsin and UCLA as victories. Now the tough part begins: playing as the favorite (in front of the raucous ‘Zona Zoo, no less).

19) Louisville

Well… that was uninspiring. A week after nearly giving a game away to UNC, the Cardinals only beat FIU by a touchdown. Because of the Big East’s goofy schedule they have another week to hash things out, but this can’t continue. The league badly needs this team to stay undefeated.

20) Michigan State

To be honest, this might be too high. We pretty much know what we have for the season with MSU: a good defense and Le’Veon Bell. The glacial pace of the offense didn’t end up hurting the team against EMU, but it will at some point. There’s just not enough on offense to expect this team to contend.

21) Boise State

As eye-gougers go, last Friday’s BYU-Boise game was fairly entertaining. It makes for great TV when a defensive tackle’s interception wins the game. It’s less humorous for a coach when he scores your team’s only points. BSU might not make it through the Mountain West unscathed.

22) Oklahoma State

Big test this week against Texas, but regardless of the outcome OSU figures to be ranked in the coming weeks anyway: the following two games are Kansas and Iowa State. The important thing is deciding what exactly this team wants to be, a shootout-minded group or one that plays defense.

23) UCLA

UCLA should probably fall out of the rankings for at least a week, but I still want to rank Nebraska so the Bruins stay. Despite the frustrating loss to Oregon State when the team clearly thought it had turned a corner, there’s a lot to be happy about. I still think I’d rather be a UCLA fan than a USC fan right now.

24) Nebraska

By all rights, Nebraska should be the favorite in the Big Ten at this point. Now they need to prove it by beating Wisconsin this week. The division road isn’t easy with Michigan State and Michigan on the horizon, but this is the year to do it. Winning the conference opener at home is a crucial piece of the puzzle.

25) Michigan

Hanging on. Just barely. I don’t think any of the other fringe candidates (Rutgers, Mississippi State) could handle the Wolverines. After turning the ball over six times against Notre Dame, Michigan only has itself to blame. The good news is that conference play is now starting in the soft Big Ten.

Pac-12 Thoughts

While much of the focus is on Oregon (rightfully so) for their 49-0 pasting of Arizona, the bigger story this week is Oregon State. I always assumed the Ducks would win, I just didn’t know how many points they would allow. The Beavers are a different story. The underdog in both their games so far, they’ve come out swinging in a way unseen in the Mike Riley era.

Even when OSU had good seasons in the past, it was a combination of great late-season play and pointed improvement from the beginning of the year that led to their success. Now Oregon State has opened the year with great defense and (largely) mistake-free offense, trademarks of the halcyon Riley seasons but noticeably absent of late. The Beavers have never (2000 notwithstanding) really put together a full year of great performances; they generally turn it on after September and go from there. What can they do if they play 12 games like this?

To be the voice of reason, I must note that UCLA is good but not elite and Wisconsin is undoubtedly bad. OSU still lacks the talent to beat Oregon and Stanford and a lot can happen injury-wise the rest of the way. However, the Beavers have lost to even average teams in the past in early-season flops, so just getting to 2-0 (really, 3-0) is so important. Before the year I thought 6-6 was probably the ceiling for this team. Now, who knows?

As impressive as Oregon’s defense was in blanking ‘Zona, there were a ton of questions raised about the offense. The 3-3-5 seemed to completely stymie the Ducks’ line. This can’t keep happening if the team wants to be a serious BCS title contender. Everything UO does is predicated through their strong running game; without it, there’s no play-action or uncertainty for the defense. Everything depends on the line, which has frankly been substandard to this point.

It’s worth noting that Cal ran a 3-3-5 two years ago in Berkeley the night they nearly upset the undefeated Ducks, 15-13. No other team in the Pac-12 runs this style of defense, but after seeing this game they might try it. We know teams have been searching for how to stop this offense for three years to no avail.

USC wasn’t great against Cal on Saturday, but there’s not a lot more to say about that game. Cal is a mess and the Trojans should be better than they’re playing. A more surprising finish was Colorado’s comeback against Wazzu. Neither of those teams is any good, though, so it won’t really have an impact on the league.

The most surprising result in the conference was actually the other late game, ASU versus Utah. The Utes were coming off an excellent performance against a ranked BYU team and figured to lock down the Sun Devils defensively. Instead, they got their doors blown off. Where was that Arizona State team against Missouri? For whatever reason, ASU plays much better at home. The problem? The next game is on the road. Granted, it’s Cal, but this is exactly the kind of game the Devils have dropped in the past.

This weekend we have both potential blowouts and good games. The heavyweights, Oregon and Stanford, should handle the Washington schools fairly easily. UCLA, coming off a frustrating defeat, should likewise have no trouble with Colorado. But ASU-Cal and OSU-Arizona are hard to pick. Both visitors should be confident, maybe overconfident, after this week. Both home teams will be angry. Should make for some great TV.

Heisman Watch

The frontrunner remains Geno Smith, who has put together the best numbers to date. Jonathan Franklin’s hopes took a major hit when Oregon State shut him down last week; he’ll need to put up huge stats and keep winning to have a shot. De’Anthony Thomas dropped a little because he failed to score against Arizona, but there’s a larger margin of error for him than there is for Franklin. Braxton Miller might actually be second at this point, because imagining Ohio State without him is scary.

Random Thoughts and Observations

In case you missed it, the Miami (FL) - Georgia Tech game was insane. I've never seen a football game flip momentum so drastically so many times. The 'Canes dropped 19 in the first quarter and looked headed for a blowout. Then Tech scored 36 straight over the next quarter and a half. Miami, not to be denied, scored the final 17 of regulation, tying the game with 27 seconds left. Then they stuffed the Yellow Jackets on fourth and one and scored in two plays to win in overtime. I have no idea how this happened.

The only tidbit from this week I found very interesting was the news that Taylor Heinicke of Old Dominion broke the Division I passing record with 730 yards against New Hampshire. Heinicke surpassed the 22-year-old record set by the legendary David Klingler of Houston, whose 716 yards against ASU in 1990 remain the FBS record. That is absolutely ridiculous.

You wouldn't like me when I'm angry

Questions were answered this week. A whole bunch of ‘em, in fact. Let’s see: my doubts about USC? Vindicated. Issues with Virginia Tech? Lost to previously winless Pittsburgh. I didn’t predict Notre Dame handling Michigan State with ease, but it officially let the nation know that the Big 10 is a joke (although Wisconsin and Ohio State should have tipped us off to that).

The headlining story of the weekend was USC’s loss to Stanford, but the more relevant news long-term was the continuing series of awful performances by Big 10 schools. The conference picked up right where it left off last week, with Ohio State fortunate to escape an average Cal team at home. Minnesota struggled to put away Western Michigan, Iowa barely beat Northern Iowa, Ball State beat Illinois and Wisconsin needed a missed field goal to survive Utah State. All of these games were at home. Then, of course, there was the league’s last real hope, MSU, getting shut down in its own stadium. All 12 Big 10 teams played at home, by the way. Shameless.

(I noted last week that MSU was the last undefeated Big 10 team, which wasn’t entirely true. Northwestern and OSU are still undefeated, but I didn’t include them because no one expects the Wildcats to challenge for the BCS title and the Buckeyes are postseason-ineligible.)

I was certainly surprised to see USC go down in the fashion the Trojans did, even though I said before the season I didn’t think they were as good as people were saying. It was more surprising to me that Stanford was the team to expose USC. Given the lack of secondary speed on the Cardinal D, you would have expected the Trojans’ receivers to run wild. They did for about a quarter, but then the Cardinal wised up to Matt Barkley’s game, which seemed to consist of throwing solely to Marquise Lee, never deeper than five yards down the field. The Trojans never really threatened again. More on both teams in the Pac-12 section.

In more frightening news there was the performance Alabama put on in Fayetteville, where they eviscerated Arkansas 52-0. Granted, we now know we can add the Razorbacks to the list of teams that were vastly overrated in the preseason (which also includes Wisconsin and Virginia Tech). But 52-0 is impressive against an FCS team. It’s hard to know what to think about this Bama team. Are they really that good? Thus far the things that should have at least somewhat bothered them – new starters on defense, zero experience at receiver – have been no problem whatsoever. It helps that Crimson Tide’s O line can flatten almost anybody in the country, but even the run-heavy nature of the offense shouldn’t be a big deal. I can’t imagine the team ever being in a must-throw situation anyway.

Last week ended up being more entertaining than expected, but this week conference play really gets going so I shouldn’t have to say that again. Thursday night features an interesting mid-major mash-up when BYU travels to face Boise State on the blue, while the Friday game has last year’s darling (Baylor) versus this year’s early favorite for that title (Louisiana-Monroe). The Saturday slate is light until the evening, when we get some of the best matchups of the young season: Michigan – Notre Dame, Kansas State – Oklahoma, Clemson – Florida State and Arizona – Oregon.

Top 25

It finally makes sense to rank teams, even though some (like Oregon) still haven’t been tested. At least at this point we’ve seen enough of most squads to know more or less where they’re headed this season.

1) Alabama

As stated above: Wow. The receivers are all young, the backs are a step down from the past two seasons and the defense is relatively inexperienced. So far, it hasn’t mattered. Right now I’d take the Crimson Tide over anyone at any location, home or away. They look that dominant.

2) LSU

The Tigers haven’t really played anyone (Washington doesn’t count) so it’s possible this is too high. Then again, they returned most pieces from last season’s juggernaut but upgraded at quarterback. I’m not going to knock them for a weak nonconference schedule after the historic run they nearly completed.

3) Oregon

The Ducks closed out an underwhelming preseason by crushing Tennessee Tech. There are still kinks to be worked out on both sides of the ball, but the fact remains that the only way to beat this team seems to be to physically overwhelm them. Right now the only schools with that capability are the two above.

4) Oklahoma

Stupid for the Sooners to get jumped because they didn’t play. Until I see evidence to the contrary (a la USC), this team should be treated like one of the elite. The Big 12 road is long and perilous, but I still believe in OU. They might have even more playmakers on offense than Oregon.

5) Florida State

Very, very nice win against Wake Forest. True, the Demon Deacons are bad, but just as I said with Alabama, 52-0 is impressive no matter who you play. Besides, we’ll know just how for real these Seminoles are after this week’s mega-showdown with Clemson. FSU at home? I’ll take the ‘Noles.

6) West Virginia

Were it not for a) FSU’s win this week and b) WVU’s weak opponents thus far, I would have had the Mountaineers at fifth. Boy, have they been impressive. Geno Smith looks flawless, the offense shares the ball wonderfully and the defense has been solid. The competition is going improve just a bit, though.

7) Georgia

What about UGA’s first-half struggles (again) against mightily inferior FAU compelled voters to move the Bulldogs up to number five? Georgia has looked very good at times this year, very average at others, so rewarding them seems short-sighted. Remember how they looked last season against every good team they played? Wait and see with this squad.

8) Clemson

I’m biting. I like what the Tigers have shown so far this year. Even if Auburn is awful. Clemson has played in the efficient manner they began last season with before that second-half downturn. I don’t think they’ll win in Tallahassee this weekend, but they’re still a very good team that, at this point, deserves a high ranking.

9) South Carolina

The Gamecocks hammered another hapless patsy this week. Given that they struggled in their only real live action this season, I’d be lying if I said I had a lot of confidence in Carolina. Nevertheless, their defense is about as good as you’ll see this side of Alabama, so perhaps that can carry the team most of the year.

10) Stanford

This is an unfortunate side effect of so many Big 10 teams losing; I don’t have anyone else to rank above the Cardinal. While their win over SC was stirring, this really isn’t a top 10 team. I have to put them ahead of the Trojans, though, so for now this is where they go. The offense still needs a lot of work.

11) USC

Even I, a fairly vocal dissident to the USC bandwagon, was stunned at the ineptitude of the Trojan offense on Saturday. We already knew they couldn’t run; now this team can’t pass either? It’s not all doom and gloom, though. SC remains a very talented team with (thus far) few injuries, and their defense only gave up 21 points in defeat. Things could be a lot worse.

12) Notre Dame

Toyed with the idea of jumping ND into the top 10, but I have a sneaking feeling Michigan State might not be that good. The relevant thing is the Irish are, well, relevant. For the first time in my lifetime, there’s a team in South Bend that legitimately has the potential to win it all. Love it or hate it, that’s good for college football. Everybody needs a good villain.

13) Kansas State

I have K-State ahead of Texas for several reasons. We know what we have with KSU: a returning 10-win team whose grit is second to none and a veteran leader at the QB position. Texas has looked good so far this season, but the competition has been lackluster. I’m going with the proven commodity before I believe in the Longhorns.

14) Texas

With that said, the UT defense has been excellent in 2012. The question marks coming into the season were pretty much all on the offensive side but Texas seems to have improved in that regard (just ask Ole Miss). They’re not good enough to run the table in the Big 12 this year but they’ll figure into the picture and remain the chic pick in 2013.

15) Ohio State

The first Big 10 school, down at fifteenth? Gulp. Unfortunately for the Big 10, this is about as generous as I can be at this point. Nobody in the conference has looked particularly good and even the seemingly powerful Buckeyes were nearly tripped up at home by a mediocre Cal squad. Too bad OSU is banned from the postseason.

16) TCU

I’m a bit skeptical after the Horned Frogs could only manage a 20-6 win against Kansas in their first Big 12 game. I like QB Casey Pachall a lot and TCU has some nice weapons around him, which makes 20 points against what was one of the nation’s worst defenses a year ago underwhelming. They don’t play another league game until October, though.

17) Michigan

In a holding pattern after beating up new FBS member UMass. Three games into 2012, Michigan appears to be exactly what they were in 2011. That’s nothing to be ashamed of, but it’s not going to get UM back to where their fans think they ought to be. There’s more work to be done here. Beating Notre Dame next week would help.

18) UCLA

Houston wasn’t a test at all, but you still have to be impressed with the job on the whole UCLA did in the preseason. It was workmanlike, physical and efficient, and the end result was a 3-0 record heading into Pac-12 play. We’ll need to see the Bruins knock off a couple conference foes too, but for now I’m convinced this team will have a say in the division race.

19) Louisville

After crushing North Carolina for three quarters, the Cardinals had a near-disaster on Saturday. There’s no question that this team is the class of the Big East, but they very nearly gave one away, on their home field no less. At least there’s plenty for Teddy Bridgewater and Co. to improve before they get too pleased with themselves.

20) Florida

I’ll throw the Gators a bone here. After watching their inept offensive performances in the first two weeks I couldn’t possibly see them as a top 25 team. Given a couple games, though, Florida seems to have rounded into a very South Carolina-like form. As long as they can play defense and run effectively, they can win games. If they ever get down, all bets are off.

21) Arizona

A close win over a pretty good Toledo team, then the shootout win over Oklahoma State, now a blowout over FCS South Carolina State. I think Arizona has its best team since the ‘Cats nearly won the conference in 2009. The defense gave up big numbers in its only real test of the season (OSU), but the offense looks like it can score in bunches. We’ll know this week, when ‘Zona travels to Autzen to meet the three-time conference champs.

22) Nebraska

The 2-1 record is actually a bit of a smokescreen; I think Nebraska is better than last season. At the very least the Cornhuskers should be the co-favorites in the competitive Legends division. The one issue is that all the difficult games come in a row; after Idaho State this week, Nebraska doesn’t have an easy game until November against Penn State. If they make the league championship, they’ll have earned it.

23) Michigan State

The good news? MSU is giving up just 13 points per game. Those are Alabama-like numbers. The bad news? They’re only scoring 20. The conference opener in two weeks is Ohio State. The Spartans had better make some significant gains in the next 14 days, or we could have a massacre on our hands.

24) Boise State

The Broncos are stuck in a frustrating spot after their opening woulda-shoulda-coulda loss to Michigan State. They have the ability to run the table the rest of the way, but even an 11-1 record has proved insufficient for a midmajor to reach a BCS bowl in the past. However, given their struggles in-conference the past two seasons (BSU has not won a league title since 2009), perhaps it’s just best to focus on that.

25) Oklahoma State

All right, the OSU offensive machine is still humming along. We get it. But can they stop anyone? They couldn’t last year, even when they went 12-1. So far in 2012, there’s been no evidence that they’ve improved. I like the Cowboys, but it seems apparent they’re going to have problems in conference play. The Big 12 ain’t no cakewalk.

Pac-12 Thoughts

Well then. Mayhaps my calls for Stanford’s demise were a bit premature? In any case, Cal isn’t going to be a problem for the Cardinal this season, so there goes that prediction. Give all the credit in the world to David Shaw and the Stanford defense for putting the clamps on USC’s offense. However, Oregon is still the clear favorite in the North, even with the impressive display we say this week. Here why:

First, without taking anything away from Stanford, it is clear that I was absolutely right about USC. The team just isn’t nearly as good as the media hyped them up to be. Stanford’s front seven controlled the line of scrimmage, forced the Trojans to throw and adjusted nicely once they realized Barkley had locked on to one receiver. The Cardinal won’t be able to do the same against Oregon, because Oregon’s offense naturally spreads the ball around much more than USC’s does. That’s just a simple strategic fact.

Second, Stanford won’t be able to play as soft against UO because that’s exactly what Oregon wants. The Ducks live off the short and medium game with both quick passes and option runs. Playing conservative defensively over the top – as Stanford did to USC do prevent the deep ball – will thus backfire.

Third, the Oregon-Stanford game this year is at Autzen Stadium. The Ducks have blown out the Cardinal the past two seasons and scored over 50 points in both contests. Despite his late-game heroics Saturday, new QB Josh Nunes completed fewer than half his passes and remains a work in progress. When an opposing offense cannot throw consistently, UO tends to go blitz-crazy. I’m not confident Nunes can stand up to that and beat them in a shootout.

Now, it’s possible Stanford may try to adjust to fix these problems. Play the Ducks one-on-one outside. Blitz to control the interior line (as they did against USC). Continue to pound the ball to slow the game down. But they tried these things the past two years and the result was the same. This season’s Stanford team is certainly weaker than the last two; why should their defense suddenly be able to contain an Oregon offense that hasn’t slowed down in the slightest? In the end, as it always does, it’ll come down to UO’s athletes in the open field versus Stanford’s defenders. That’s a matchup Oregon always wins.

All of this does not apply to USC, though. It’s all a matter of styles. Stanford doesn’t have the personnel to outscore Oregon. The Trojans do, despite what we saw Saturday. That doesn’t mean USC will necessarily beat the Ducks on November 3^rd, but I expect they’ll play them closer than Stanford will. They might have to, because another conference loss – combined with UCLA’s resurgence – might mean they only get one shot at Oregon this season.

The Bruins, meanwhile, have become much more than that “other” team in L.A. Despite rolling out a new head coach, new offense and redshirt freshman QB in Brett Hundley, UCLA is leading the conference in offense through three games. Could they win the South – for real this time? Time will tell, though I’d still favor USC until the Bruins prove it in conference play. They have a great opportunity this week to make a statement against Oregon State, who remains an enigma after Hurricane Isaac forced them to play just a single game.

The important game this weekend is of course the cross-divisional matchup between Arizona and Oregon. The Ducks are undoubtedly the better team, but as we’ve seen many times, that doesn’t necessarily mean they’re guaranteed a victory. The Wildcats have taken to Rich Rod’s spread-option with aplomb and have the key element that made his West Virginia teams so lethal: a great QB-RB combo. Matt Scott and Ka’Deem Carey are the real deal, and given the lapses UO’s defense has shown in the first few weeks it’s same to assume the ‘Cats will score. The real question is whether they can slow down the Oregon offense in turn, which is probably unlikely.

In other league action, there’s the “Battle at the Bottom” when Colorado plays at WSU, a chance for USC to rebound at home versus Cal and a sneakily-important South contest between Utah and ASU in Tempe. Is USC really overrated, or was last week a fluke? Can Utah’s defense play well enough to cover for their pedestrian offense? How much better are the Sun Devils at home? Tune in and find out!

Heisman Watch

Although he hasn’t played a semblance of real competition yet, Geno Smith has to be considered the frontrunner. He’s a highly efficient QB on a title-contending squad that puts up big offensive numbers, so he fits the description. I predicted before the season that West Virginia would stumble against the tougher Big 12, but until that time comes Smith is the most likely candidate. His numbers thus far have also been eerily similar to RG3’s last year, if you believe in that kind of thing.

The case for Matt Barkley was severely damaged Saturday. It’s a long season, so there’s plenty of time for him to make up ground, but nothing he’s done to this point has been that impressive. To be honest, Jonathan Franklin is the better candidate in the City of Angels to this point. The UCLA back leads the nation in rushing and is dynamic enough to make plays in the passing game as well. If the Bruins continue to roll offensively, he’ll have a shot.

There’s a distinct sectional bias when it comes to the Heisman this year, though that’s because so many of the best candidates seem to come from the West (and because it’s hard to imagine Ohio State’s Braxton Miller playing at this level all season). That continues with the final member of my current short list, Oregon’s De’Anthony Thomas. In one sense, it’s strange to think that a player with no real position could be a Heisman frontrunner. However, as with all things relating to Thomas, the usual rules don’t seem to apply. He makes more of his minimal touches than any player in recent memory and, early in his career, seems to be the most perfect blend of player-to-system college football has ever seen. It’s hard to imagine such an indefinable player taking football’s top honor; yet at the end of this season perhaps it’ll be hard to imagine that we ever could have thought otherwise.

Random Thoughts and Observations

It will be fun to see what Michigan and Notre Dame have in store after playing one of the most memorable games of the season in 2011. Hopefully we’ll see better defense than the insane finish last year featured, when the teams scored a combined 21 points in the final 1:12 in just seven plays from scrimmage. It would only be fitting, though; the past two seasons Denard Robinson has stunned the Irish with touchdowns in the final 30 seconds to win.

SI cover curse? Oregon’s young Thomas will grace the cover of the September 24^th Sports Illustrated. The subsequent injuries and poor play of athletes who have appeared in the past are well-documented. Thomas has been remarkably healthy in his first year-plus at UO despite his slight frame (listed at 5’9”, 173 lbs., he is probably smaller). Could this be the end of his good fortune? Gulp.

Miller of Ohio State nearly earned himself a Stanzi award Saturday (named for the recent hot-and-cold Iowa QB) by tossing what should have been the go-ahead pick to Cal in the waning moments, then coming back to fire a long bomb for the lead. Miller gets off the hook because a) Cal didn’t score and b) he didn’t play badly enough throughout the game to really earn a Stanzi. I haven’t seen a performance worthy of one yet this season, but don’t worry, it’s coming.

Speaking of Cal… I normally would never take such a strong position on a coach’s employment, but that loss to the Buckeyes proved it’s time for Jeff Tedford to go. I’ve long defended Tedford (he’s an Oregon man, after all) and his inability to get the most out of the good recruiting classes Cal brings in. But the game has clearly passed him by to some degree. The Bears blew an absolutely golden – yeah, I went there – opportunity to beat Ohio State in the ‘Shoe and many of the reasons they did not can be attributed to playcalling. In particular, the decision to kick a fraidy-cat field goal on fourth and one deep in OSU territory with the score tied sticks out.

There’s just so much to say about this. Cal had momentum following Miller’s interception. Isi Sofele was averaging four yards a carry and the team averaged nearly six on the afternoon. Cal’s kicker had already missed two attempts left, and the ball was on the left hash. The Bears’ defense had stymied the Buckeyes the entire second half, allowing just a single scoring drive after the 13:30 mark of the second quarter. Yet out came the kicker (after a timeout by Cal, no less) to shank another one.

Well, we know what happened. Three plays later Miller dropped in a 70-yard touchdown that ended up winning the game. Here’s the excruciating thing: the odds are in the offense’s favor on fourth-and-one. Any number of scenarios could have played out if the Bears had gone for it: closer field goal, TD, turnover followed by another OSU turnover, or just forcing OSU to punt from deep in their own territory. Yet even had Cal gone for it on fourth down and failed, the absolute worst-case scenario would have been EXACTLY WHAT HAPPENED. There was no excuse for this decision, which finally turned me against Tedford. Now he’ll probably do something like go out and beat USC this week to save his job. But he shouldn’t.

Next week: I find something else to rant about, while we mourn the end of De’Anthony Thomas’ career following his unprecedented “spontaneous kneecap combustion,” which doctors simply dub “SI injury.”

Wherein I lament the lack of any good games

Well, well, well. Look who finally came crawling to the big-boy table. Wednesday’s announcement that Notre Dame would partially join the ACC was, without question, the biggest news of the week. The Fighting Irish will now play five games per year in the ACC with seven independent, but that plan is fooling nobody. Eventually, ND will be a full member.

The news was a huge blow to the Big East, which undoubtedly hoped to retain Notre Dame as a flagship university in football (the Irish currently play all other sports there) to resuscitate its on-lifeline long-term prospects. After the ACC’s grab last season for Pittsburgh and Syracuse, I assumed this would happen – my blog from that week is now eerily prescient – so it can’t have taken the conference completely by surprise. But that doesn’t mean it isn’t devastating. I can’t see any scenario now where the Big East can survive longer than the first few years of the playoff. What school serious about competing for a championship would want to play there?

In other news, there was almost no news. For the first time in 32 weeks there was a total of zero ranked-versus-ranked matchups, a barren slate even less appetizing than week one’s meager fare. The idea of a playoff is wonderful, but if schedules like this are the result... I'm not sure it will be worth it. Everyone assumed a postseason selection committee would force teams to give up games against cupcakes, but what if it has the opposite effect? The early-season returns this year have been pitiful. Very few schools have taken the initiative to schedule real opponents in non-conference play. I hope this isn't where the sport is headed.

To be honest, this week’s schedule doesn’t impress much either. Alabama plays at Arkansas, but given what just happened to the Razorbacks (Huzzah for Louisiana-Monroe!) I don’t have much hope for that one. There is the intriguing Florida-Tennessee matchup, but that rivalry is a lot more fun when both teams are near the top of the polls rather than the bottom. USC also plays at Stanford – I’d be surprised if the Cardinal made a game of it – and, in the most important game of the weekend, Notre Dame goes to Michigan State.

Why is this game so important? For one, Notre Dame could threaten for a BCS berth this year. While the Irish didn’t look the part last week against Purdue, they still boast an undefeated record and their once-daunting schedule might not turn out to be quite as brutal as it initially appeared. If they can get by the Spartans – a perennial thorn in their side – it will go a long way toward locking up a lucrative bowl bid. Michigan State, on the other hand, is the Big 10’s lone unbeaten squad after just two weeks. Any title hopes the conference had now rest on the Spartans. No pressure.

The only truly noteworthy result from last week was the performance of the Pac-12 and Big 10 on the national stage. In three visits out west, the League of Legends and Leaders went a crushing 0-3, watching ranked powerhouses Wisconsin and Nebraska go down along with Illinois at Oregon State, UCLA and Arizona State, respectively. It was a stunning and embarrassing finish for the storied conference, yet where the Big 10 saw infamy, the Pac-12 flourished. Bouncing back from ugly losses by its newcomers Colorado (FCS-level Sacramento State) and Utah (Utah State), the Conference of Champions dropped all three of its Rose Bowl bedfellows and then finished the night off with Arizona’s second-half evisceration of Oklahoma State. Needless to say, it was the Pac-12’s best Saturday in a long time.

Top 25

Many ranked teams have still failed to face any sort of reasonable challenge, which makes picking a top 25 extremely difficult. Going against my instincts, though, I’m going to release a (very) tentative list this week, with the caveat that it may change dramatically as soon as my next post. As such, I’ll only give a short description of my thoughts.

1) Alabama

Have shown enough through two weeks to be the undisputed number one.

2) LSU

Runner-up last year, runner-up this year? Possibly.

3) USC

Unimpressive against Syracuse, but fewer question marks than Oregon.

4) Oregon

Explosiveness is undeniable but injuries are now a big concern.

5) Oklahoma

Looked better against Florida A&M… but who wouldn’t?

6) Florida State

Game against Savannah State called early. Still haven’t learned anything about this team.

7) West Virginia

Idle in week two, but I’ll ride the buzz from their opening win a little longer.

8) Georgia

Closed nicely in Columbia, but Mizzou isn’t top-25 material.

9) Michigan State

Spartans have one of the few good wins to date, even if they were lucky not to fumble it away.

10) Ohio State

So far looking like the class of the Leaders division, though ineligible for postseason.

11) Clemson

Have looked powerful thus far, even without WR Sammy Watkins.

12) South Carolina

Close win in opener said a lot more than blowout over patsy. Vandy is better than ECU.

13) Kansas State

Might be really, really good, but we don’t know how bad Miami (FL) is yet.

14) TCU

With only one game, hard to judge. Horned Frogs’ reputation carries enough weight for a ranking, though.

15) Texas

I’m not blown away by what I’ve seen, but this week’s game at Ole Miss might clear things up.

16) Virginia Tech

I’m very confident these guys are frauds. Any struggles with Pitt and we’ll know.

17) Michigan

Wolverines lucky to not be 0-2, but I doubt they’d lose to anybody below them.

18) Notre Dame

Fantastic against Navy, so-so against Purdue. MSU game is absolutely huge.

19) Louisville

If the Cards don’t put on a show against North Carolina, the Big East is in trouble.

20) Stanford

A much better performance than the opener, though I’m still not convinced.

21) UCLA

This feels like a bit of an overreaction… but I’m intrigued to see what these Bruins can do.

22) Arizona

Once again, could be premature, but they were just so good against Okie State.

23) Nebraska

To be honest, they’ve looked better than Michigan. But Alabama > UCLA, so tough luck.

24) Boise State

Opening loss shouldn’t really count against them; Broncos will roll through Mountain West.

25) Florida/Tennessee

The winner this weekend will be deserving of a spot in the rankings.

Pac-12 Thoughts

From Friday evening through Saturday afternoon, the Pac-12 couldn’t have fared much worse. On Friday night QB Jordan Wynn went down against Utah State and took Utah’s season with him. Cal and Wazzu looked average against FCS teams, Colorado actually lost to Sac State and both Oregon and USC wrapped up unimpressive victories. It appeared to be a very disappointing weekend. Then the Oregon State-Wisconsin game went final and everything went crazy. UCLA took down Nebraska in dramatic fashion. ASU hammered visiting Illinois. Arizona dropped 59 on Oklahoma State. As I said before, it was pretty stunning. It was also a major boost to a conference that desperately needed one.

Despite Stanford’s success over the past few seasons, the Pac-12 has mainly had a lone banner-carrier since 2008. Oregon dominated the league, going 25-2 in three seasons. While the Rose Bowl win last year was nice, it didn’t provide the total validation the conference needed in the absence of major non-conference wins (UO over Tennessee in 2010 doesn’t count). Last Saturday changed all that: the Big 10 can say nothing to the Pac-12 for at least one year, national respect shot through the roof and the polls reflect it.

Of course, playing at this level for the rest of season would also be helpful, starting with Cal at Ohio State this weekend (not a chance). But regardless of the outcome of that game, the damage has been done. This was particularly crucial because of how vulnerable USC and Oregon looked this week.

The Ducks’ injury concerns have now reached critical, with senior stars Carson York and John Boyett for the season and Josh Huff sidelined again. On top of that, UO has played terribly inconsistent so far in 2012, outscoring opponents 85-6 early before getting beat 53-14. USC wasn’t great against Syracuse at the Meadowlands, either, holding just a five-point lead in the fourth quarter and sinking to even more ludicrous depths to pad Matt Barkley’s stats (187 yards, six touchdowns? Please). While I would still pick them both to represent their divisions in the conference championship, they could both actually lose a game.

That’s because both divisions suddenly look to have challengers who can truly, well, challenge the Ducks and Trojans. OSU might have thrown off two years of frustration with that win over the Badgers. Stanford looked much better in game two of the post-Luck era. Arizona can apparently score with anybody. Even UCLA, who can generally be relied on to faceplant, scored a big upset. Could the Bruins actually pose a threat to the league's elite? Look out. The Pac-12 just got very interesting.

Random Thoughts and Observations

A lot was made this week of the alleged “evils” of both Oklahoma State and Florida State scheduling hapless FCS foe Savannah State early in the season. Savannah State has just four wins over other FCS teams in the past seven seasons, so the media focus was on how unethical it was for these FBS powerhouses to pay a inferior foe to show up and get annihilated. My reaction was, “Who cares?” Savannah State wanted the money. They scheduled the games, they weren’t forced into it. If that’s how the program wants to make money, they have every right to do so. OSU and FSU shouldn’t be ashamed for doing the same thing as most FBS teams in the country.

In the ridiculous news of the week, I present: pass-happy offenses! Arkansas’ home loss to Louisiana-Monroe was stunning, but the forgotten statistic in the upset was QB Kolton Browning’s 67 pass attempts (he completed 42) that carved up the Arkansas defense. Of course, that was nothing compared to the Houston Cougars, who let new QB David Piland toss the rock an astounding 77 times in their loss to Louisiana Tech. Piland completed 53 attempts for 580 yards. Good god. The NCAA record is 83, by Drew Brees in 1998.

If the Heisman were given out after week one, I opined, it would have gone to West Virginia QB Geno Smith. After week two, it would probably go to UCLA RB Jonathan Franklin, who leads the nation in rushing and has an upset of a ranked team to his name. Obviously this will change as the season progresses, but for now Franklin has been the best player in the country. 

Ball so hard

There weren’t any major upsets in week one, but it wasn’t for lack of trying. Several ranked teams showed absolutely nothing in their openers and would have lost had they not scheduled terrible opponents. Michigan did not follow suit, leading to the Wolverines’ unfortunately predictable beatdown at the hands of Alabama. Say what you will about UM being overrated – they most certainly were – the Tide were still impressive. If I were releasing a top 25 this week, they would be number one. However, I’d rather wait for another week or two to really get a sense of where teams deserve to be ranked.

Michigan, on the other hand, is an interesting case. We know UM will win games; Denard Robinson is just too good of an athlete for them to lose more than a few times. But the truth is that he is not now, nor has he ever been, a quarterback. It’s the equivalent of Oregon lining De’Anthony Thomas up behind center: it would be cool for a while, but gimmicks don’t work against real defenses. Michigan is talented enough to still challenge for a division title, but just like last season, they aren’t close to a top 10 team.

While a lot will be made of Oklahoma’s struggles against UTEP, at least give the Sooners credit for going on the road when they didn’t have to. The team has enough time to figure things out and be a player in the BCS championship race. The defense didn’t allow a point Saturday; the offense is the only real concern. I’d knock OU down if I had a poll this week, but only a few spots.

South Carolina, on the other hand, is a different story. Even with QB Connor Shaw, the Gamecocks were anemic against Vandy. They were lucky to not go down 14-0 in the first quarter, a position that, as it turns out, would cost them the game. The forward pass remains a mystery to the Gamecocks, which should really have cost Steve Spurrier his “genius” label by now. However, analysts still seem to think it’s 1996 and the “Fun ‘n Gun” is tearing up the SEC. If Shaw is out for any length of time this team is in huge trouble, and they’re not a top 10 team with him anyway.

The same is more or less true for Stanford. I’ve been indignantly defending Andrew Luck’s greatness this entire offseason and my preseason prediction became prophetic when the Cardinal barely escaped San Jose State opening night. Yes, Stanford still has a great O-line and a quality (though not elite) defense. But Luck was REALLY, REALLY good. I don’t understand why this is so difficult for people to grasp. He made the Cardinal better than they were and this is a fringe top 25 team right now.

Florida is in the same boat. The Gators were fortunate to beat Bowling Green, looking out of sorts defensively and atrocious offensively. The QB situation in Gainesville is a mess, which has dragged the entire offense down. It makes sense now that Will Muschamp couldn’t pick a starter before fall camp – Jeff Driskel and Jacoby Brissett are both awful. Regardless of who starts (it looks like it might be Driskel from now on), Florida is going nowhere this year.

On the other hand, West Virginia was nothing but impressive on opening weekend. QB Geno Smith was easily the best player Saturday with his hyper-efficient, 32-36 performance against Marshall. The Mountaineers are a legit top 10 squad. As I said in the preseason, I still have reservations about the team’s ability to hold up over the course of a nine-game Big 12 schedule, but right now they deserve nothing but praise. Likewise for Oregon and USC, but I’ll get to that later.

Top 25

I have to say, I’ve never been as impressed with the polls as I am right now. Almost every team came in right about where they deserved after week one. Teams that should have dropped (Michigan, Stanford, Oklahoma) did so, and dropped the appropriate amount. Teams that deserved to move up (Oregon, West Virginia, Ohio State) also moved a few spots. The only real complaint is South Carolina – we’re still pretending that’s a top 10 team? – and the coaches jumped WVU over the Gamecocks anyway. Looks like people are finally doing their homework.

As I said, I’ve decided to hold off on releasing rankings for at least one more week, two if I deem it necessary. Some teams still have players under suspension or don’t play real opponents for a while, so it’s better to take some time. However, that doesn’t mean I can’t draw conclusions from what happened this week.

Without a doubt, the top four teams are: Alabama, LSU, USC and Oregon; I’d also throw Oklahoma in there to round out the top five. Based on last week, Bama deserves to be number one and OU should be fifth; other than that it doesn’t really matter. The SEC teams and the Pac-12 teams play each other. I feel there’s a fairly clear delineation between this group and the next tier of schools, composed of West Virginia, Florida State, Georgia and Arkansas. The third tier consists of most of the teams currently ranked in the teens, followed by the fringe top-25-er’s like Stanford, Florida, Boise State, BYU, Utah and Notre Dame.

I hate to say it, but the truth is that most of the rankings don’t matter. If any two of the current top-five schools go undefeated, they will advance to the BCS Championship. In fact, I’d go so far as to say that the usual group of about eight to 12 true title contenders has been whittled down to those five this season. Teams from the second group could challenge (or more likely, impact by upsetting) members of the elite class, but realistically the list is very short. More on this next week, when I may or may not have my initial rankings.

Pac-12 Thoughts

USC and Oregon were both about as excellent as one could expect, given the atrocious level of competition. The Ducks rolled up 50 points in 23 minutes, then watched their backups allow 31 points, which was a little disheartening. Still, new QB Marcus Mariota looked great in his limited minutes, which was the biggest concern. SC didn’t do their reputation any favors by attempting three two-point conversions and playing their starters into the fourth quarter, but that’s what you gotta do when you’re working on a Heisman campaign, brah! BARKLEY 2012!

In the end, we didn’t learn anything from these games we didn’t already know. Oregon and USC are both extremely talented and faced completely overmatched opponents. Let’s be honest: both squads are just trying to avoid injuries on the road to their November 3^rd showdown. These are two of the best five teams in the country and they’ll represent the Pac-12 well throughout the season.

That’s good, because there was little else to get excited about Saturday. We should have known it would be a cursed week for the conference when, thanks to Hurricane Isaac, Nicholls State was unable to travel to Corvallis to hand the Beavers a much-needed confidence-boosting win (this could really end up hurting OSU down the road, though at 5-6 they could apply for a bowl waiver). But where to begin? Wazzu began the Mike Leach era with a dispiriting “thud” on Thursday night, getting blasted 30-6 by BYU. Utah, ASU and UCLA all won, but against vastly inferior opponents.

Stanford then gave the Pac-12 its biggest scare of the weekend by nearly losing at home to San Jose State on Friday night. Make no mistake, the Cardinal looked terrible. As the league’s only ranked team other than USC and Oregon, they must stay ranked for the Pac-12 to be taken seriously this year. The conference can’t afford this sort of embarrassment.

Of course, Cal was having none of that, and promptly lost their opener Saturday to Nevada. Oh, Cal. Every time I think I’m done with you, you pull me back in. I had believed, reasonably, that a year of strong defense and a more efficient offense could drive the Bears to a successful 2012 campaign, but it seems we’re right back where we started with this team. What do inconsistent QB play, a defense worse than the sum of its parts and miscues at the worst possible moments have in common? They’re hallmarks of the last several years of Cal football. Ugh.

Now, just to prove that Cal wasn’t the only team that could lose to a mid-major, Colorado dropped the Rocky Mountain Showdown with Colorado State, Arizona got taken to overtime by Toledo and Washington sweated out a victory over San Diego State. It may be rash to state only one week into the season, but right now the Pac-12 looks like Oregon/USC and a bunch of pancakes. The league will need some member to come up with a big non-conference win, or things could get ugly.

Random Thoughts and Observations

Apparently Joe McKnight took money while at USC, a charge that could have serious ramifications for the Trojans if true. It’s unclear at this point how the powers that be might treat this given that it occurred after Reggie Bush but before the program was put probation. However, it’s a possibility that it could be treated as a violation of NCAA bylaw 19.5.2.3.1., AKA the “repeat violator” clause. That’s the one they got SMU for. Keep an eye on that developing story.

Penn State played its first game since the Sandusky scandal/fallout/Joe Paterno’s death/severe sanctions fiasco, losing 24-14 to Ohio. Not Ohio State, Ohio. From one perspective, I was glad that the NCAA chose to make PSU ineligible for the postseason but still able to stay – why punish the players? However, it was very hard to watch that game and not wonder if the NCAA had erred by not going with their original punishment of a four-year death penalty. If the death penalty wasn’t invented to correct the exact kind of cult of personality still clearly residing in Beaver Stadium and Happy Valley, then what was it created for? It’s going to be interesting to see how the Nittany Lions are received at visiting stadiums this season.

I liked Oregon’s new uniforms in the sense that they combined a futuristic design with old-school coloring. Not sure about all the potential combinations, but we’ll get a chance to see a whole lot of them. I wasn’t happy with Northwestern’s new digs, which looked like a failed attempt at space-age and just came across as pointless. The same was true for Georgia Tech’s ridiculous honeycomb pattern and Cal’s white helmets. Why wear white helmets with home jerseys? It makes no sense. I thought we’d learned from the 2009 Oregon-Utah disaster.

There’s much more to come in the weeks ahead. We’ve only just begun!