If you are a casual football fan you would have probably looked at this week 2 schedule and said that there are not any good games on outside of Texas vs Michigan. If you were one of those people you were wrong because Week 2 of College Football absolutely delivered in every time slot. There were also some games though that turned out to be real stinkers compared to expectations of the game coming into the week. Just like every week in College Football, there are a handful of winners and losers from the week. Let’s break those down.
Winners from Week 2:
1). Texas is my first winner of Week 2. When you walk into the Big House and dominate Michigan the way that they did, it makes you start taking Texas seriously in the National Championship conversation. I already thought they were a playoff team but seeing the physicality of their offensive line and defense line they belong in the same category as Ohio St and Georgia. Quinn Ewers looked phenomenal, 24-36 for 246 and 3 touchdowns. Texas scored on 5 of their first 6 possessions and could have run up the score in the second but decided to play it conservatively instead. That was a dominant performance from Texas.
2). Northern Illinois walked into number 5 Notre Dame as 30-point underdogs going into the game Saturday. The Huskies walked out of that stadium Saturday with the programs first AP Top 5 win ever, and 1.4 million dollars richer. Northern Illinois head coach, Thomas Hammond coached a phenomenal game and was emotional on the sidelines after the game and he had every right to be. Huskies running Antario Brown led the team in rushing and receiving. He had 20 carries for 99 yards and 2 receptions for 126 and a touchdown. Kicker Kanon Woodill drilled a 35-yard field goal with 31 seconds left to win the game for the Huskies. This was an incredible day for that program and one that will never be forgotten anytime soon.
3). Syracuse hosted number 23 Georgia Tech on Saturday and was able to pull off the upset at home for the Orange. Transfer QB Kyle McCord has looked incredible in his first two games at Syracuse. On Saturday McCord went 32-46 for 381 yards and 4 touchdowns. The Orange are a much-improved team under new head coach Fran Brown and are a dark horse to play in the ACC title game with how weak the conference looks. Syracuse also has a really weak schedule which benefits them because it looks they will be able to throw the ball all over the yard against their opponents. Syracuse receiver Oronde Gadsden II also had a monster game, racking up 6 catches for 93 yards and 2 touchdowns. This is a dangerous team that I am looking forward to watching all year long.
4). The Tennessee Volunteers faced Number 24 NC State in a neutral site game in Charlotte on Saturday night. NC State should have just stayed in Raleigh because the Vols dominated that game from start to finish. The Vols as a team rushed for 249 yards and 3 touchdowns and was averaging 5.7 yards per carry. The real story of the game though was the Tennessee defense. NC State converted 3 first downs on their opening drive and then outside of that went 0-11 the rest of the way. NC State was always held to only 144 total yards of offense and were completely outmatched by the Vols defense. Tennessee’s defense also recorded 11 tackles for loss and 33 percent of NC State's rushes were for a loss or no gain. It was a statement game from the Vols letting the world know that they are for real and can compete for a championship this season.
5). Iowa St went into Iowa City and knocked off number 21 Iowa to win the Cy-Hawk Trophy. This is one of the best rivalry games in college sports and Iowa St came out the victors in a close and physical game. Before this game, Iowa had won 8 of the last 10 meetings. Iowa St QB Rocco Becht had a solid performance finishing 23-35 for 272 yards and 2 touchdowns against a top 10 Iowa defense. Iowa St receive Jaylin Noel finished the game with 5 catches for 123 yards and a touchdown in a great performance. His touchdown came from a 75-yard TD reception to get Iowa back in the game late in the 3rd quarter. And then to win the game Iowa St kicker Kyle Konrardy nailed a 54-yard field with 6 seconds remaining to bring home the victory. This was a great performance from the Cyclones on the road and proved why they are a dangerous team in the Big 12.
Losers of Week 2:
1). Michigan was at home against a top 5 team and laid a complete egg on both sides of the ball. That cannot happen at home. The Michigan defense was supposed to be one of the best defenses in the country but Texas was able to do whatever they wanted on offense the whole game. The defense barely got any pressure on Quin Ewers and their corners allowed way too much separation for the Texas receivers. Yes, Michigan won the National Title last year, but after watching this game and seeing how many players they lost last season, Michigan is another 3-4 years away from being serious contenders in college football again. If Texas did not take their foot off the gas, Michigan would have given up 50 points at home.
2). Notre Dame is the biggest loser from Saturday. After beating Texas A&M last week, Notre Dame moved up to number 5 in the AP rankings. Also after last week, everyone was saying how Notre Dame was going to finish the season undefeated and make the playoffs. After losing to Northern Illinois, Notre Dame does not deserve to make the playoffs. You can’t lose to a middle-of-the-pack MAC school and still make the playoffs. That’s the problem with the 12-team playoff. Notre Dame is still the same team it has been for the last 10 years. They can run the ball, but they don’t have a Quarterback they can trust to throw the ball and win them games. Riley Leonard is a solid QB at a school like Duke, but he is completely outmatched a high-level college football program.
3). Yes, Oklahoma won on Saturday, but they are still a massive loser this weekend because they only beat Houston by 4 at home. Houston was just coming off of being shut out at home against UNLV. Oklahoma QB Jackson Arnold went 19-32 for 174 yards 2 touchdowns and an interception. Oklahoma should have been able to throw all over Houston but they were not able to. This game showed that Oklahoma is not a serious contender in the SEC this year and is probably a year or two away from being serious contenders for the SEC and for the Playoff. Oklahoma has a tricky game against Tulane this week and then hosts number 7 Tennessee the following week. If Oklahoma plays the way it did on Saturday against Tulane and Tennessee, Oklahoma will be staring down a 2-2 start to the season with all of conference play remaining.
4). NC State came into this season as a top 4 team in the ACC and a team that many experts predicted to be a serious contender to make a playoff spot. After these first two weeks of the season, the Wolfpack will be lucky if they win 7 games this season. Grayson McCall was a great QB while playing at Coastal Carolina, but he looks like he is above his weight class playing for a Power 4 team. NC State was only able to rack up 144 total yards of offense and was held to 1.6 yards per carry. Receiver KC Conception is still a really good player, but I would not be surprised if he transferred to a better program after this year because he has no one to get him the ball. The Wolfpack still have Clemson and Northern Illinois who just beat Notre Dame, Syracuse, and Georgia Tech on their schedule with a couple of tricky games in between. I do not like the rest of the way for NC State.
5). Kentucky was supposed to be a middle-of-the-pack SEC team that could mess up other team's seasons, but after that performance on Saturday, they will be lucky if they make a bowl. Kentucky quarterback Brock Vandagriff went 3-10 for 30 yards and an interception. At one point in the game Kentucky coaches lost so much faith in their offense line pass blocking that they ran the ball 17 straight times. For an offensive line unit nicknamed the Great Blue Wall they are pretty bad up front. If this season goes the way I think it will, Kentucky coach Mark Stoops is definitely gonna be on the hot seat and might end up getting fired. Things are not gonna get any easier for Kentucky either. They have to play number 1 Georgia this upcoming week and will probably lose by 40. Buckle up Kentucky fans.
Honorable Mention Winners:
1). Boise St
2). Clemson
3). South Carolina
4). Idaho
5). Cal
Honorable Mention Losers:
1). Penn St
2). Colorado
3). SMU
4). Auburn
5). Oregon
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