Notable Games:
The biggest game of the week was #20 Wisconsin and #3 Alabama. This was the only match-up between ranked teams, so people were excited. Unfortunately, this game did not live up to expectations. Wisconsin's offense had trouble taking on the Crimson Tide D. The win took Alabama up to the #2 spot.
Many experts had Texas upsetting #11 Notre Dame, but that didn't even come close to happening. The Fighting Irish completely dominated the game from whistle to whistle and won 38-3. The impressive win moved the Irish two spots up in the polls.
Jim Harbaugh's Michigan debut yielded unimpressive debuts, as Utah defeated the Wolverines 24-17 on Thursday. The Wolverines were expected to be dark-horse contenders for the Big Ten, but that doesn't look like it's going to happen anymore.
The first game of the week involving a ranked team was #16 Georgia Tech taking on Alcorn State. The Yellow Jackets completely dominated and picked up a 69-6 win, one of their biggest wins in the program's history.
Quite possibly the biggest upset of the week involved #21 Stanford and Northwestern. The Cards were expected to contend for the Pac-12 North, but it looks like they are not up to par with expectations. The Wildcats are now three spots from the polls.
The biggest win of the week: #17 Mississippi laying an absolute smackdown on Tennessee-Martin. The Rebels won 76-3. That's right, Ole Miss won by 73 points, but are still ranked at 17 and are one of ten SEC teams ranked.
Many people were expecting the Louisville Cardinals to beat the Auburn Tigers, but #6 Auburn held on for a 31-24 win. The Tigers are dark-horse candidates to win the SEC, and this win validated their championship dreams.
Vernon Adams led the Oregon Ducks to a 61-42 win over his former team, Eastern Washington. The Ducks are still ranked at #7 following their win. This was a good win for the Ducks, who are expected to win the Pac-12.
Chris Petersen had a great career at Boise State, but he left that when he filled the vacancy left by the departing Steve Sarkisian. In Week 1, Washington traveled to Boise, but that ended in a 23-16 defeat that moved the Broncos to #20.
Ohio State began its quest for a second-straight championship by taking on Virginia Tech on Monday night. V-Tech was the only team that beat the Buckeyes last season, so many fans were hoping that OSU would slip again. Unfortunately for them, the Buckeyes won 42-24 and are still #1.
Notable Performances:
True-freshman QB Josh Rosen had a lot of expectations riding on his shoulders. He surpassed all of them in his performance against Virginia. He went 28 for 35, threw for 351 yards and three scores, and led the Bruins to a 34-16 win over the Cavs.
Daeshan Hall of Texas A&M had a great performance against Arizona State on Saturday night. He had four tackles for loss, four sacks, and two forced fumbles and helped the Aggies beat the Sun Devils 38-17.
One of the biggest matches of the week was South Carolina taking on North Carolina. Leading the way for them was Skai Moore. He had ten tackles and had two interceptions in the end zone, helping the Gamecocks win 17-13.
You probably haven't heard of Calvin Mudson of San Diego State, but you should start paying attention to him. Against in-city rival San Diego on Saturday, Munson had 11 tackles and returned two picks for touchdowns.
Marshall beat Purdue 41-31 to get their season off to a good start. Safety Tiquan Lang put up some eye-popping stats during the game. He had 17 tackles, two interceptions, and two touchdowns. The defending Conference-USA champs are off to a great start.
Heisman Watch:
Again, it's hard to pick the Heisman right now, but we have to do it anyways. The biggest news from the Heisman watch: James Conner of Pittsburgh, who had a devastating season-ending injury. The other player to drop out was J.T. Barrett, who did not start against V. Tech.
10. Deshaun Watson, Clemson (Last Week: NR)- Watson went 18-22 for 194 yards in Clemson's win over Wofford. He only played for less than a half and still accounted for two scores. Look for Watson to move up the rankings when the Tigers play better teams.
9. Dak Prescott, Mississippi State (Last Week: 9)- Prescott is still a Heisman long-shot, but it's too soon to write him off. He passed for 237 yards and accounted for three scores against Southern Mississippi.
8. Leonard Fournette, LSU (Last Week: 6)- Fournette didn't play in Week 1 (LSU's game against McNeese St. was cancelled due to poor weather). He'll have a chance to move back up the rankings when he plays Mississippi State on Saturday.
7. Braxton Miller, Ohio State (Last Week: NR)- Miller has been slightly ignored since the season began, but he has forced his way into the Heisman conversation. Against Virginia Tech, Miller accounted for more than three scores and 78 receiving yards.
5. Derrick Henry, Alabama (Last Week: 9)- Henry had a huge game against the Badger defense on Saturday. He rushed for 147 yards and three touchdowns on just 13 carries. He should put up even bigger numbers against Middle Tennessee in Week 2.
4. Cody Kessler, USC (Last Week: 5)- The Trojan QB went 19 of 26 for 236 yards and four scores to give the Trojans a good start to the season. If Kessler keeps putting up these kinds of numbers, he has a very good chance of going to New York.
3. Nick Chubb, Georgia (Last Week: 3)- Chubb had a good game against Lousiana Monroe, picking up 120 yards and two touchdowns in 16 carries. Next week, he'll take on the Vanderbilt defense, who managed to limit him to 78 yards last year.
2. Ezekiel Elliot, Ohio State (Last Week: 2)- Elliot was overshadowed by his teammate Miller, but he still had a good game. He ran for 122 yards and one touchdown on 11 carries, giving him an 11.1 average.
1. Trevone Boykin, TCU (Last Week: 1)- Boykin manages to hang on to the top spot after amassing more than 300 yards of total offense and three scores for the Horned Frogs, who beat Minnesota on Thursday. Everyone was hoping for bigger numbers out of him, but he still got the job done.
Playoff Picture:
Like I said last week, it's way too early to really get a good look at the playoff picture. But there are a few notes we can make about it. For example, Ohio State looks like the real deal. Many thought they were getting too much hype when the season started, but they showed just how good they were this week. Another note: Notre Dame has a very real chance of crashing the playoffs. They looked fantastic against Texas and are obviously very talented.
Draft Outlook:
Since the NFL season has yet to start, we can't say what player would make a good fit with specific teams just yet. We can however, look at specific prospects. This week, we're going to look at a couple of the top QB prospects. First up is Connor Cook of MSU. Cook doesn't really get any Heisman love, but he's got a great arm and leads his offense well. He should be one of the first quarterbacks taken next year. Next up is Jared Goff of Cal. Goff puts up huge numbers and has already drawn comparisons to former Cal QB Aaron Rodgers.
Games to Watch Next Week:
On Friday, the #24 Utes, fresh off of their victory over Michigan, will play their in-state rival, Utah State. The Aggies are coming off of a low-key win over Southern Utah, but could give Utah a run for its money.
The first match-up of the season between two ranked SEC teams will take place this week when #14 LSU takes on #25 Mississippi State, This game could serve as an early indicator as to which of these teams will contend for the SEC West.
BYU opened up their season with a win in Week 1, but lost QB Taysom Hill to a season-ending injury. However, they should still be able to put the squeeze on #20 Boise State when the two meet on Saturday.
After its disappointing loss against UCLA, Virginia will try to bounce back on Saturday when they take on #9 Notre Dame. It won't be easy however, as the Irish are riding high following a big win over Texas.
The biggest game of the week will be #7 Oregon and #5 Michigan State. These are two of the biggest contenders for the playoffs right now, and a win would go a long way in securing that berth. This could be one of the best games of the season.
Thanks for reading.
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