Week One in Review

Team of the Week:

Spencer Ware gets through arm tackles and into the
end zone during his 99 yard performance Saturday

LSU: Oregon struggled with injuries throughout the game but LSU just out played them despite not having an effective passing game. Many thought that the Tigers would struggle with all the off field distractions and having their second string quarterback in the game, but it was Oregon who struggled. LSU's defense was one of the best I've seen in a while and forced 5 turnovers. The Tigers run game, lead by Spencer Ware and Michael Ford, outperformed the potent Ducks backfield. Look for this to continue all season and mark on your calendar an SEC West showdown in Tuscaloosa on November 5th.

Others that impressed:

South Florida: Going into South Bend on opening weekend and coming out with a win is very hard to do. Two long rain delays in a cramped locker room doesn't really help either but South Florida managed. The Bulls got rid of the momentum and fan noise early and held on late to get a huge win for Skip Holtz.

Northwestern: I really liked how the Wildcats played Saturday on the road against Boston College without Dan Persa. The defense was in lockdown mode for the first three quarters while the offense, lead by a backup quarterback, scored 24 points on a very good BC defense. If the defense plays all season like they did Saturday and Persa come back healthy then Big Ten teams better watch out for the Wildcats come conference play.

Houston: Case Keenum was back for the Cougars as they entered their opener at home as underdogs vs UCLA. Keenum shredded the Bruins "athletic and skilled" defense and carried them to a big nonconference win. The Cougars will enter conference play as C-USA favorites and don't be surprised to see them undefeated in December with a fairy easy schedule.

Kellen Moore celebrates after one of his three TD passes

Baylor: The Bears showed that they are also contenders in the Big 12 after a big win over 14th ranked TCU on Friday night. Lead by an almost perfect performance by Robert Griffin III they racked up 50 points vs the nations best defense last season.

Boise St: Another very impressive win for the Broncos against a BCS opponent. They were playing basically in Georgia's backyard and after giving up an early touchdown Kellen Moore rallied the troops and it was all Boise the rest of the night.

Sacramento St and Richmond: These two FCS teams knocked off BCS opponents in Oregon St and Duke. I always love it when these big upsets happen, even if the BCS teams aren't Michigan or Virginia Tech.


Major Storylines

Quarterback situations: After a very impressive performance vs Akron Joe Bauserman looks to be the Buckeyes starter. AJ McCarron played much better then back up Phillip Sims in Alabama's win over Kent St. Stephen Garcia is the man in Columbia after coming off the bench and helping the Gamecocks come back to beat East Carolina. Tommy Rees vastly out played Dayne Crist and lit up the stat book after throwing for 296 yards in a half.

Brian Kelly sounds off at TJ Jones after a ball hit
 off his helmet and was picked off in the redzone

Brian Kelly's third season? Well after very high expectations and the hopes of making a BCS Bowl for the first time since the Brady Quinn era the Irish came up short in their opener. With other tough match ups against Michigan, Michigan St, USC, and Stanford on the schedule I don't see the Irish playing in a BCS game this year. Hope is still alive for Brian Kelly's third season.

Russell Wilson looks sharp: In his first start as a Badger Wilson looked right at home while throwing for 255 yards, two touchdowns and having a very impressive 46 yard touchdown run in the 2nd quarter.

Champions almost upset: The former National Champs got a big scare from Utah St. The Tigers had to score 14 points in the last two minutes and recover an onside kick to win the game. Barrett Trotter looks to have the offense in good shape but the defense needs some major improvements after giving up 38 points to Utah St.

Denard Robinson in Big House while the rain falls. The game
was eventually called after the 3rd quarter

Weather in the Midwest: Two games got called in the 4th quarter and multiple others suffered long rain delays during the weekend.

Longhorn Network: The network showed its first Longhorns game as Garrett Gilbert and Texas started out slow but went on to roll through Rice 34-9. Freshman Malcolm Brown ended the game with 86 yards on the ground.

Pac-16 talk: Off the field talks between the Pac-12, Oklahoma and Texas have started up again. If these two leave then the Big 12 will no longer exist. Bob Stoops also talked about how super conferences are the direction that College Football is headed.

Must Watch Games

College Football is finally here! While most teams play low level DI teams and even some play DI-AA teams opening weekend, there are also some games that you MUST watch. I take a look at some of the key games coming up this weekend.

Friday

#14 TCU at Baylor: The Horned Frogs get back on the field after a 13-0 season last year an a Rose Bowl victory. Many say that they are ranked to high in the preseason but we'll see what Gary Patterson has done this offseason to make up for the loss of Andy Dalton and his top targets on offense. The TCU defense that gave up only 12 points a game last season will be tested early and often while trying to stop Baylor's Robert Griffin III.

Saturday

Duck's quarterback Darron Thomas is back

#3 Oregon vs #4 LSU: This is the best match up in the opening weekend and one of the best all season as two top 5 teams will face off. Oregon starts their campaign to get one step further and win the national title while LSU looks to shrug off their recent offseason troubles at Cowboys Stadium. This will also be a battle between elite defense and elite offense.

#5 Boise St vs #19 Georgia: This game sets up very well for Mark Richt and his Bulldogs because in all likelihood 90% of the Georgia Dome will be in Red and Black. The Broncos knocked off Virginia Tech in a hostile environment at Fedex Field last season and it looks like they can do it again. This will also be the measuring stick for quarterback Aaron Murray, who some say is the best in the SEC.

South Florida at #16 Notre Dame: Brian Kelly enters his second season at the helm of the Irish program as he looks to bring them back to a BCS Bowl for the first time since an embarrassing Sugar Bowl loss to LSU in 2007. B.J. Daniels leads an underrated and athletic Bulls team that could surprise many in this opener. Daniels will also test a Notre Dame defense that has been terrible the last few seasons. There are always high high hopes in South Bend come football season but this looks like it could be the year that those hopes pan out.

Cyrus Grey could be the best
running back in the Big 12

Akron at #18 Ohio St: This should be an easy win for the Buckeyes but it should be interesting to see how Joe Bauserman and Braxton Miller preform. Also I'd like to see how Luke Fickell manages his team in his first game in command of The Ohio State football team.

Sunday

SMU at #8 Texas A&M: Could this be the beginning of the Aggies last season in the Big 12? Looks like it will. They start off vs the Mustangs, who are coming off of two straight bowl games, and look to keep the ball rolling with a win over a top 10 opponent. This should be the Aggies game from the beginning but don't be surprised if the Mustangs hang around during this instate rivalry.

Miami (FL) at Maryland: The Hurricanes will be playing their first game since the Nevin Shapiro scandal that will result in some huge coinsecquences and possible destroy the program. Look for Al Golden and the Hurricanes to try and prove themselves vs quarterback Danny O'Brien and the rest of the Terps in College Park.

Top College Football Story lines

We are just under a month and a half away from the kickoff to the College Football season and I've been ready since January 11th. There is no better feeling then that opening kickoff at home and the sold out stadium is on their feet as the new season is about to kick off. Today I'll take a look at some reasons why you should be ready for football.

The Broncos move to the Mountain West

Nebraska in the "Big 10": The longtime Big 12 powerhouse heads east to face off with the likes of Penn St, Ohio St, Michigan and Wisconsin. The Big 10 will now separate into two divisions and it will all culminate with the first ever Big 10 championship game.

Boise St's year? The Broncos will be facing some better competition in their conference this upcoming season as they head to the Mountain West . Boise expected to face the likes of BYU , Utah, and TCU for seasons to come but Utah bolted to become part of the Pac 12 and BYU went independent. They will face TCU for one season before they will then dart for the Big East in 2012. Even without those teams the likes of Air Force, San Diego St and Colorado St are still much improved competition over many teams in the WAC.

Pacific 12: Colorado and Utah will help create the Pac 12. Utah, along with TCU, helped form the Mountain West into an elite conference but when they had the opportunity to ditch out to an AQ conference they took the bait. The Buffalo are also headed into the Pac 12 after an awful season and a possible Big 12 collapse.

Return of three Heisman finalist: Andrew Luck, LaMicheal James, and Kellen Moore will all return for their repective teams this season after their outstanding seasons last year.

War Eagle? The Auburn faithful lost Cam Newton to the NFL, as expected, but will they be able to rebound after losing their star and Heisman winner? Or will it be a one time thing for Gene Chizik and Co.?

Russell Wilson is headed to Madison

Big L(East): The Big East had two teams preseason ranked in the Top 15 last season but failed to have one in the Top 25 at the final poll. Can this conference turn it around and become an equal AQ conference once again?

Russell Wilson to Wisconsin: The star QB back at NC State has decided to pack up and head north to play for the Wisconsin Badgers. Wilson graduated last season from NC State so he is able to transfer without having to sit out a year. Is he the missing piece to a title run in Madison?

Ohio St: The Buckeyes were predicted to be a Top 5 team come August till the bottom fell out from under the program. Their three year starting quarterback Terrelle Pryor left the school, Jim Tressel resigned under loads and loads of pressure and they will also play the first several games without key players. Can this team fight through their off season troubles to continue their dominance in the Big 10?

*longer stories to come later