It was a pretty uneventful weekend in college football this week becuase a lot of teams played lesser opponents to begin their season. Still, there were teams that won the weekend and teams that lost the weekend with their performances on the field. Let’s take a look at the teams that won the weekend in Week 1.
Teams that Won the Weekend:
1). Georgia was the first big game on Saturday and they proved why they deserved the top spot to begin the season. They dominated a really good Clemson team that was favored to win the ACC going into the season. I’ll get to Clemson in a different section of this. Georgia lost a lot of really good football players to the draft and a couple through the portal and just reloaded like nothing happened. The score was only 34-3 but it felt like a way worse score than that. Carson Beck looked the part of a potential Number 1 pick in the draft, and that is the main separator between them and Ohio St, the Quarterback play. Georgia handled their first test of the season with ease and looks to be back on a warpath to the playoffs.
2). Vanderbilt, who was picked to finish last in the SEC opened up with preseason dark horse and media darling for this season, Virginia Tech, and upset them at home. Vandy jumped out to a 17-0 lead early and ended up winning the game 34-27 in overtime. This was a massive win for coach Clark Lea and his team as he is trying to turn this program around and get them to a point where they can at least be bowl-eligible consistently and a bottom-of-the-barrel SEC team every year. Transfer QB Diego Pavia from New Mexico St, flashed for the Commodores and brought some juice to an offense that has struggled with explosiveness for a long time. Vandy began the season with a win total of only 3. If they win the remaining 3 out of conference games against lesser competition, they will cover there win total with ease.
3). Miami went into the Swamp and throttled Florida and proved that they are the class of the ACC this year. Not Clemson or Florida State, but Miami looks to be the top dog in the ACC, and looking at it now after every ACC team has played a game, I don’t think anyone will beat Miami in the ACC. It is virtually impossible to walk into the Swamp and do what Miami did to Florida. But with Cam Ward transferring from Washington St. this season, they did just that. Miami needed a win like this. The first two years of the Mario Cristobal era were nothing short of disappointing. It looks like all it took was finding the right QB. Miami looks destined for good things this year. They proved it on Saturday.
Teams that Lost the Weekend:
1). Clemson was definitely lost the weekend. Yes, they were playing the best team in the country. But when you are the preseason ACC favorite and you have had a top 5-10 recruiting class for the last however many years, you cannot get outclassed that badly by one of the other top dogs. In this game Dabo Sweeney’s inability to use the transfer portal really showed. And honestly as great as they recruit high school guys, they are not going to get to that next level until they also utilize the portal. Also, Cade Klubnik just isn’t the guy. He proved last year and after one game this year, he has proven he just doesn’t have what it takes to win at this level. It’s honestly a shame because he was the number 2 QB recruit coming out of high school and was supposed to be the guy for the Tigers. Because of the 12-team playoff, Clemson can still make their way in. There road is just way tougher now after getting humiliated against a good team and Miami looking like the class of the ACC.
2). Florida might be an even bigger loser than Clemson. Florida wasn’t expected to be a playoff team this year because of their schedule, but they are still one really talented team. The 41-17 loss to Miami on Saturday was one of the worst home losses in program history. Their schedule doesn’t get any easier either. What this loss did show is that it is time for Florida to fire Billy Napier. He never should have been hired in the first place. He was a fine coach in the Group of Five but he was not ready to accept a job like Florida. Florida should never be a program that is suffering losing seasons. The bar in Florida is being lowered at a ridiculous rate and it shouldn’t be the case. The bar at Florida is and always should be competing for SEC titles with their resources. Not suffering 41-17 losses at home to one of your biggest rivals.
3). Oregon barely escaped Idaho at home 24-14. Yes, you heard that right. The number three team in the country being in a 3-point game with 6 minutes left in the fourth quarter against an FCS is embarrassing. That should never happen. I still believe Oregon is a really good team and is primed for great things this year, but this game is going to be a hard to forget when they face Ohio St in a few weeks. Oregon transfer QB Dillon Gabriel had a phenomenal game for the score. 41-49 for 380 should result in a way bigger win against an FCS school. Yes they won, but Oregon is too good for a game like that and way to talented to be playing a game like that against Idaho. Hopefully, Oregon plays better, or those hopes for a National Championship are gonna be squashed very quickly.
There were a couple of other winners and losers of Week 1. Here are some of the honorable mentions:
Honorable Mention Winners:
1). USC
2). Oklahoma St
3). Notre Dame
4). Penn St.
5). Boise St
Honorable Mention Losers:
1). Michigan St
2). NC State
3). Michigan
4). Virginia Tech
5). South Carolina
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