1. No one ever really dies in the SEC East.

Had none of us ever watched a Georgia-South Carolina game before? Did we not know that nothing in that series ever makes sense? Of course the team that got destroyed in Week 1 outlasted the team that had entered College Football Playoff projections all over, including ours.

The Gamecocks literally won by inches, 38-35 -- no, far less distance than that. But they showed their young secondary can hold up against passing attacks less explosive than Texas A&M's (which is almost all of them), that Dylan Thompson is still a good-enough quarterback (271 yards, three touchdowns, and one pick), and that their hyped offensive line is still a force (the Dawgs managed just one sack after notching five against Clemson). Carolina met its kryptonite in Week 1, but right now must be considered a co-favorite for Atlanta.

The other is Missouri, the current SEC East belt-holder. The Tigers' defensive front is up to Missouri standards, and that's saying a lot. Maty Mauk has Mizzou's customary wide range of weaponry, with three receivers already combining for 11 touchdowns. The Tigers travel on Sept. 27 to South Carolina, which ended Mizzou's run to perfection last season, and that could be the division's biggest game going forward.

And, in case we're still neglecting the lessons of the UGA-Carolina series, let's remember this is actually a good omen for the Dawgs' SEC Championship chances: the loser of the Dawgs-Cocks game has finished ahead of the winner in the standings three years running.

And, in case we're really not in tune with the crazy yet:

An important reminder that math is an artifice created by man. pic.twitter.com/qqQcRe4kof — Ryan Nanni (@celebrityhottub) September 14, 2014

2. The Pac-12 South: ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

Matthew Emmons, USA Today

UCLA, a preseason College Football Playoff pick by many, is somehow both 3-0 and looking shakier by the week, in different ways each time. "The offense didn't make the trip to Virginia two weeks ago, and against Memphis last week, it seemed as if the defense hadn't made the trip home," Bill Connelly wrote last week, and now quarterback Brett Hundley's injured following a grimy, 20-17 win against Texas.

He should return, and the Bruins appear to have a capable backup (Rick Neuheisel's son!), but it's amazing to think this team is favored to arrive at any particular end out of 1,000 possible ones. A win at Arizona State after a bye would soothe concerns.

A week after lucking out a win at Stanford, USC got smashed to paste on the ground at Boston College, a team that lost to Pitt a week prior, spoiling Playoff chances for both the Trojans and the Cardinal. And now the hard part of USC's schedule begins, including Notre Dame in the out-of-conference.

ASU has excelled against nothing in particular, but has a major worry in injured quarterback Taylor Kelly. Arizona's defense remains a friend to the late-night viewer and to the television network alike, reliably turning should-be blowouts into fourth-quarter drama. Colorado is still the Colorado of recent years, with signs of life.

And then there's Utah, which blasted its two weak opponents so far, Idaho State and Fresno State, by a combined 115-41. The Utes were far better than their 5-7 record last year, and could be combining both a classic Kyle Whittingham defensive front (a nation-leading 21 tackles for loss entering the weekend) and a balanced offense led by quarterback Travis Wilson. If Wilson can cut down on his prized erraticism (so far, so good -- he was one of only four quarterbacks with six or more touchdowns and no interceptions through two weeks), the Utes will make a run. Next up are Michigan and Washington State, and wins against that spastic duo would probably teach us ... not a whole lot.

The Pac-12 South could use a strong Utah, if it can get one. Otherwise, Oregon could just run away with this conference.

3. 59 teams are now chasing East Carolina.

Jeremy Brevard, USA Today

That's how many other teams are in the American, Conference USA, MAC, Mountain West, and Sun Belt. Those teams all compete for the non-power conferences' designated spot among the marquee post-BCS bowls. And right now, one team has the inside track.

The East Carolina Pirates went into Blacksburg Saturday and took care of a No. 17 Virginia Tech team that was fresh off a road victory over Ohio State, putting up over 500 yards of offense on the Hokies in the 28-21 win. It took a frantic comeback for Tech to get that close in the first place -- East Carolina led 21-0, and the Hokies tied the game with just 80 seconds to play. Pirates quarterback Shane Carden (427 yards, four total touchdowns in the game) ran it in from one yard out with 16 seconds to play, giving ECU the huge victory and moving them to 2-1 on the season.

Carden's one of the most productive quarterbacks in the country (43 total touchdowns last year, already eight this season) and he has a pair of talented targets in Cam Worthy (11 receptions, 302 yards) and Justin Hardy (23 receptions, 267 yards). The running game is strong, as well. The Pirates still pass the ball a whole lot more, but Breon Allen (7.9 yards per carry), Marquez Grayson (10.2), Chris Hairston (7.6) and Anthony Scott (5.8) have all performed in that rotation this season.

East Carolina lost to South Carolina 33-23 in Week 2, but that loss is looking a whole lot better after the Gamecocks' victory over Georgia. Many of the other preseason non-AQ frontrunners have already suffered worse losses: Louisiana-Lafayette, UTSA, UCF, and Fresno State have each lost multiple games in a row, while Boise State, Bowling Green, and Utah State were all blown out in Week 1.

There are other non-AQ schools still lurking near ECU, such as Northern Illinois, Marshall, and Cincinnati, but none has a win nearly as impressive as the Pirates' victory Saturday.

NIU's best win is at Northwestern, and if it can add a win against an Arkansas team that just demolished Texas Tech, ECU will have strong competition. The Thundering Herd are 3-0 with blowout victories over Miami (Ohio), Rhode Island, and Ohio, but can likely count 2-1 Middle Tennessee State, 0-2 Rice and 2-1 UAB as their toughest remaining games on the schedule. The Bearcats did not open the season until this past Friday, cruising to a 58-34 victory against Toledo. They'll have some tougher tests before the year is out: they travel to Ohio State September 27 and host East Carolina November 13 in a game that could decide which non-AQ team goes to a major bowl.

Scores

No. 2 Oregon 48, Wyoming 14 (recap)

No. 3 Alabama 52, Southern Miss 12

No. 4 Oklahoma 34, Tennessee 10 (recap)

No. 24 South Carolina 38, No. 6 Georgia 35 (recap)

No. 7 Texas A&M 38, Rice 10 (post-game thoughts)

Boston College 37, No. 9 USC 31 (recap)

No. 10 LSU 31, ULM 0 (first impressions)

No. 11 Notre Dame 30, Purdue 14 (recap)

No. 12 UCLA 20, Texas 17 (recap)

No. 14 Ole Miss 56, Louisiana-Lafayette 15 (recap)

No. 15 Stanford 35, Army 0 (recap)

No. 16 Arizona State 38, Colorado 24 (recap)

East Carolina 28, No. 17 Virginia Tech 21 (recap)

Virginia 23, No. 21 Louisville 21 (recap)

No. 20 Missouri 38, UCF 10 (recap)

No. 22 Ohio State 66, Kent State 0 (recap)

Abilene Christian 38, Troy 35

Air Force 48, Georgia State 38 (recap)

Arizona 35, Nevada 28 (recap)

Arkansas 49, Texas Tech 28 (recap)

Boise State 38, UConn 21 (recap)

Bowling Green 45, Indiana 42 (recap)

Colorado State 49, UC Davis 21 (recap)

Duke 41, Kansas 3 (recap)

Florida 36, Kentucky 30 (3OT) (recap)

Florida Atlantic 50, Tulsa 21 (recap)

Georgia Tech 42, Georgia Southern 38 (recap)

Hawaii 27, Northern Iowa 24 (recap)

Indiana State 27, Ball State 20 (recap)

Iowa State 20, Iowa 17 (recap)

Marshall 44, Ohio 14 (recap)

Miami 41, Arkansas State 20 (recap)

Michigan 34, Miami (Ohio) 10 (recap)

Middle Tennessee State 50, Western Kentucky 47 (3OT)

Mississippi State 35, South Alabama 3 (reaction)

Navy 35, Texas State 21 (recap)

Nebraska 55, Fresno State 19 (recap)

NC State 49, USF 17 (recap)

Northern Illinois 48, UNLV 34 (recap)

Oklahoma State 43, UTSA 13 (recap)

Old Dominion 17, Eastern Michigan 3 (recap)

Penn State 13, Rutgers 10 (heartbreak)

Pittsburgh 42, Florida International 25 (recap)

Syracuse 40, Central Michigan 3 (recap)

TCU 30, Minnesota 7 (reaction)

Tulane 35, Southeastern Louisiana 20

UAB 41, Alabama A&M 14

Utah State 36, Wake Forest 24 (recap)

UTEP 42, New Mexico State 24 (recap)

Vanderbilt 34, UMass 31 (recap)

Washington 44, Illinois 19 (reaction)

Washington State 59, Portland State 21 (recap)

West Virginia 40, Maryland 37 (recap)

Western Michigan 45, Idaho 33 (recap)