This past week had a lot of interesting matchups. Some involved two well regarded teams looking for a statement win while other games featured teams needing a win to save face. While this obviously is the case for every game, I feel that this week’s winners and losers had definite weaknesses and things that went wrong that led to their loss and vice versa for a win.

Texas vs LSU

So I will just go ahead and get this one out of the way. Texas fell to LSU 45-38 in a surprising shootout. Both teams aired the ball out very nicely, but LSU seemed in control of the game the whole time.

The biggest issue in the game was that Texas’s cornerbacks got completely burned by LSU’s receivers. LSU quarterback Joe Burrow also had an amazing performance as he completed 31/39 passes for 471 yards and four touchdowns. The Tigers had three receivers with over 100 receiving yards. Justin Jefferson led the way with 163 yards, Ja’Marr Chase had 147, and Terrace Marshall had 123. While Burrow absolutely deserves his due as he had a monster game, Texas’s cornerbacks deserve some blame. Jefferson’s nine catches were on 11 targets, Chase’s eight catches were on nine targets, and Marshall came down with a catch every time he was targeted (this was done by hand so I could be wrong) While Caden Sterns, Brandon Jones, and BJ Foster (who is now injured) make up a very strong safety unit, the Longhorns do not have an answer at cornerback. Jalen Green is a decent option at the number one spot, but the second cornerback spot has been the weak link of the defense. Anthony Cook, Kobe Boyce, and D’Shawn Jamison have been battling it out for the spot, and I think the truth is that none of the three will fully get the job done. Defensive coordinator Todd Orlando will need to either find a way to work around this or find some untapped potential for someone. I am already terrified about playing against other elite Big 12 receivers like Tylan Wallace, CeeDee Lamb, and Jalen Reagor.

One statistic from baseball that I think is very valuable is runners left on base or left in scoring position. In basketball, this can be shown by a number of missed field goals while wide open. Both of these statistics show how well a team capitalizes on big opportunities and the position they could have been in if they had not failed to turn those opportunities into points. In football, the statistic that best represents this is red zone efficiency. If a team ever gets the ball into the red zone, the expectation should always be to walk away with at least a field goal and ideally a touchdown. This is amplified when the ball is inside the 10. During this game, Texas had a first and goal from the eight yard line and later the four yard line and walked away from both of those with zero points after failing to convert on two fourth downs. While these might be dismissed as unimportant since they were in the first quarter, I believe mistakes like that will almost always come back to haunt you. On the first fourth down attempt, Sam Ehlinger threw a pass to a wide open Keaontay Ingram who just saw the ball slip through his hands (I also had intense flashbacks to Blake Gideon’s dropped interception against Texas Tech in 2008). A catch there would have given Texas a 7-3 lead. Texas was given a second chance quickly after as Burrow was intercepted by Joseph Ossai at the four yard line. Texas ran the ball for four straight plays and got stuffed yet again. While Texas is a bit weak on the offensive line and had depth issues at running back, this statistic is embarrassing and shows why they lost the game. That is an upwards of 14 points Texas just left on the board. It should also be noted that the play-calling on fourth down was a bit questionable. I will not critique the call to throw it to Ingram as he should have made the grab, but the fact that they ran the ball four straight times on the next possession is a bit ridiculous, especially when Texas has a perfect red zone target in 6’6” Collin Johnson. Instead they tried to stuff the ball at a very talented LSU defensive front. The next call that had me screaming at the TV was when Texas trailed 10-7 in the second quarter and elected to punt it on 4th and 5 from the LSU 40 yard line. Texas had success all game throwing the ball and also has a kicker with decent range. Electing to do either of those things would have been defensible, but punting absolutely was not. If you are trailing in a game and face a 4th and 5 past the 50, you go for it under any circumstance (I guess maybe punt it if your offense is terrible and you have the 1985 Chicago Bears defense, but that is it). Of course the punt also was a touchback so Texas gained just 20 yards from the punt. I do not know about you, but those 20 yards do not seem worth it when Texas averaged 8.5 yards per passing attempt on the day

Another offensive issue that plagued Texas was their lack of a threat at running back. The Longhorns have definitely been bit by the injury bug at running back as Ingram was the only healthy running back on the entire roster that is on scholarship, but even he played poorly by running for just 29 yards on 10 carries. With the amount of injuries at running back, third string quarterback Roschon Johnson had to go in some and had seven carries for 32 yards. Obviously, Ehlinger is a great running quarterback, but he can not be the main running threat for Texas. First off, because he can not do everything for the offense nor should he be expected to, but also because it will increase his risk of injury, especially with the reckless way in which he runs. Texas needs to hope they can get more depth in the backfield.

Collin Johnson looked to be a key piece of Texas’s offense last season. Johnson and Lil’Jordan Humphrey were an amazing duo at receiver for the Longhorns last season and with Humphrey gone, Johnson looked to be the go to guy and a great option at receiver. Right now, Johnson sits at 108 receiving yards on the season which is fine, but less than would be expected. Johnson is also only third on the team in receiving yards with Devin Duvernay and Brennan Eagles ahead of him. Johnson also had a golden opportunity at the end of the game that slipped through his fingers (literally and figuratively). With 22 seconds left in the game, Texas scored to cut the score to 45-38. Texas needed an onside kick to keep their hopes of winning alive. During the last NFL season, just 4/53 inside kicks were successful. Despite the odds, Texas needed the ball and went for the kick. What was surprising was that Cameron Dicker kicked a perfect onside kick that went right to Johnson. Johnson unfortunately had the ball slip through his hands and go out of bounds. If he recovered it, Texas would have had one more shot. While it still would have been very difficult to score, it would have kept their hopes alive.

All in all, this was a fun game and an exciting one to watch. Texas fought hard and I think LSU is a great team. While there were disputes pregame and some jawing back and forth, i had no problem with it and I think that kind of school pride and general pettiness is just part of why I love college football. I am already looking forward to the rematch at Death Valley next season. Also neither team can claim to be DBU after this game. Texas especially can not, but LSU should not make the claim either.

Nebraska vs Colorado

This game started out quite well for Nebraska as they held a 17-0 going into halftime. Colorado then stormed back to win 34-31 in overtime (After I have hyped up Colorado all offseason and tried to bring down the same hype for Nebraska, I have to say I told you guys so).

One big thing that hampered Nebraska’s play for the second half was that the Cornhuskers turned the ball over three times in the fourth quarter while they still held a lead. These turnovers all occurred within the first four plays of their respective drives. This made it tougher for Nebraska to just sit on the ball and maintain their lead. They also were hampered by poor offensive line play as quarterback Adrian Martinez was sacked six times. Nebraska was 3/9 on third down in the second half, which did not allow them to keep drives going like they would have wanted. Nebraska had a win probability as high as 96% during this game but their offense just stalled out in the second half.

For Colorado, their offense just found their footing toward the end of the third quarter. After scoring their first touchdown, they scored on every ensuing drive except for one that was halted by the end of regulation after one play. Colorado always seemed to have momentum on their side in the second half. I also have to call attention to the fact that they called a flea flicker from their own four yard line and scored a 96 yard touchdown off of it. The risk associated with that was crazy and to see them score on it was insane.

Army vs Michigan

One of the more exciting games of the weekend was Army’s showdown with Michigan at the Big House. Michigan had a clear talent advantage, but Army was able to keep it close by sticking to their game plan and scheming well. While Michigan ended up with a 24-21 win in double overtime, quite a few mistakes led to the game being this close. Army also had their fair share of mistakes that could have led to a win for the Black Knights.

When playing a triple option team, I think tow very important rules to follow are to take care of the Ball and not fall behind early. Michigan could not hold up to their of those rules. On their first four possessions, Michigan lost a fumble on three of them. Quarterback Shea Patterson fumbled the ball away when he was sacked on the first two drives while the third one was on a run by Ben Van Summeren. In that time, the Wolverines fell behind 14-7 and were in a tough hole to dig out of. While seven points seems manageable, Michigan only had five offensive drives in the entire first half and is given less opportunities to score when playing a triple option team like Army. Patterson is going to need to figure out how to take care of the ball before Michigan plays against more talented teams. He has fumbled the ball four times through two games and has lost three of them.

Michigan went into this season with a hole at running back. While they seem to have found their new workhorse in true freshman Zach Charbonnet, they lack a big play threat on the ground. Charbonnet ran for 100 yards on the day but it took him 33 carries and his longest run was 12 yards. It is going to be hard to just slowly chip away at many Big 10 teams on the ground. Michigan clearly wants to establish the run game as they ran the ball on 60% of their plays, so this is an essential issue to fix if they want to continue to lean on the ground game. I still think Michigan has time to figure this all out. Their offense also took a hit as they were without their best receiver in Donovan Peoples-Jones and their best offensive lineman in Jon Runyan. Both will be back next week.

While Army played a great game, there were some mistakes they made that cost them the game. First off, the Black Knights struggles to convert on third down. Army was just 5/16 on third down and thus were less able to wear down Michigan’s defense on long extended drives. Army also had a chance to take complete control of the game but let it slip away. In the third quarter, the Black Knights had 3rd and goal from the 5 yard line while up 14-7 and could have ballooned the lead to two scores. Unfortunately, quarterback Kelvin Hopkins threw an interception to Michigan’s Lavert Hill. Michigan scored on their ensuing drive to tie things up. Still, this is a very scary Army team that could conceivably go 11-1 with the way their schedule works out.

Texas A&M vs Clemson

After giving Clemson their closest game last season, many people had this game pegged as a prime upset opportunity for Texas A&M when they traveled to Death Valley to take on Clemson again last week. Unfortunately, Texas A&M again fell short and in a more convincing fashion than last season. The Aggies fell 24-10 in a game where their offense just hit a wall. Texas A&M struggled heavily on the ground as they ran for just 53 yards and less than two yards per carry as a team. The Aggies had just one run over 10 yards on the day. The offensive line held up fine in pass protection, so it seems as though the issue is the Aggies just can not find solid running back play like they had with Trayveon Williams last season.

This also did not go well when it was coupled with the fact that quarterback Kellen Mond had a pretty down game. Mond completed 24/42 passes for 236 yards. While he made a lot of plays in clutch moments against Clemson last season, that ability was not there on Saturday. Texas A&M also got a third of their yards from one drive at the end of the game. The Aggies will need to find a rushing threat if they want to reach their potential in the SEC. Jashaun Corbin was their lead back for he first two games, and he unfortunately will miss the rest of the season with an injury. Isaiah Spiller looks to be the next man up and will have a lot asked of him. They also need to find a way to generate big plays.

The Aggies did do well defending the run, but were not enough to slow down Trevor Lawrence through the air, which few teams will be. It was also a pleasant surprise to see Amari Rodgers playing for Clemson as he had surgery on a torn ACL less than six months ago.

Florida State vs ULM

In what was almost a huge upset, Florida State won 45-44 in overtime against a ULM team that went 6-6 in the Sun Belt last season.

The biggest problem for Florida State is just that their offensive line still can not hold up. Cam Akers ran for 193 yards on the day, but he carried the ball 36 times and had to fight hard for those yards. The Seminoles will need to find a way to improve the unit and work around it offensively. Florida State also struggled on the defensive front as ULM running back Josh Johnson ran for 126 yards on the Seminoles. Florida State also lost the turnover battle and threw a pick six. The Seminoles also seemed to have the game wrapped up as they were ahead 24-7 at halftime.

Florida State should consider themselves lucky as they only won this game after ULM kicker Jacob Meeks shanked an extra point thy would have tied it in overtime. ULM also played things a bit more conservative at the end of the game and I think they would have had a much better chance to pull off the upset if they did not. Florida State has some things they need to work on.

USC vs Stanford

In one of the more interesting games this weekend, these two California schools were both rolling out quarterbacks in their first career start. These teams also had down seasons in 2018 (obviously this is more the case with USC) and could have used a nice win. Stanford got off to a 17-3 lead in the second quarter, but USC kicked it into gear and ended up winning the game 45-20.

The first issue for Stanford was that they were fine with Davis Mills at quarterback, but not great. Mills was a five-star recruit out of high school and had a bit higher expectations for how he would have done. It was a bit evident the coaching staff was not fully comfortable with Mills as he never really tested USC’s defense on deep balls. Stanford also did not defend the pass well. Paulson Adebo was still solid in coverage at cornerback, but the rest of the unit did him no favors. USC had four players with at least 60 receiving yards and three with at least 80.

USC also looks to be in luck as there-star true freshman Kedon Slovis completed 28/33 passes for 377 yards and three touchdowns. It will be interesting to see if this was a one time thing or if Slovis is the real deal.

Cal vs Washington

While this game was already crazy because there was a three hour lightning delay and the game ended at 1:30 AM local time, it was also an upset as Cal beat Washington 20-19.

The biggest difference between week one and this game for Washington was the performance of Jacob Eason at quarterback. Eason did very well in the season opener but in this game he completed just 18/30 passes for 162 yards while failing to throw for a touchdown. Eason’s worse performance was a bit expected with how talented Cal’s secondary is but I am sure Washington hoped to get more out of him.

Washington also had a bit of a defensive collapse on Cal’s last drive. The Golden Bears trailed Washington 19-17 with two minutes to go when they first took possession, but moved the ball 74 yards in that time before nailing a chip shot field goal with eight seconds remaining. While Washington was trotting out a new look defense, Cal has struggled offensively recently and were able to push Washington around a bit. Cornerback Kyler Gordon had an especially tough go of it as he gave up a catch to Jordan Duncan, then was called for pass interference after holding onto Duncan during an incomplete pass. Those two plays gained Cal 34 yards.

I was a bit dismissive of Cal in my season preview, but I think I might have to rethink things. They will be an interesting team to watch for as the season goes along. Cal linebacker Evan Weaver also deserves a shout out after putting up 18 total tackles and two tackles for loss.

Not every piece of news from the college football world fits the narrative of my week recap, so I always squeeze in some random thoughts to round out the post.

Some Random Thoughts

Boise State had a very impressive defensive performance in their 14-7 win over Marshall. True freshman running back George Holani had a nice showing as well. Between him and Hank Bachmeier at quarterback, Boise State has a bright future.

Wake Forest quarterback Jamie Newman has been playing like a star these past two weeks as he has already accumulated 713 yards on the season while completing 74% of his passes.

Sacramento State did a very good job of containing Arizona State’s star running back Eno Benjamin but Arizona State still came out with a win. True freshman quarterback Jayden Daniels had another solid showing.

In one of the weirder games this weekend, Maryland blew the doors off of a ranked Syracuse team 63-20. They were not favored in this game. I think people are now starting to see just how scary early season Maryland can be (you will believe when you have it happen to your team like I had with Texas).

After being upset by Old Dominion last season, Virginia Tech won their rematch but it was not very pretty. Virginia Tech still looks to be in disarray.

Although it was against FCS foe Charleston Southern, Ryan Hilinksi looked good in his debut at quarterback for South Carolina which is nice with starter Jake Bentley out for the season.

After some people suspected the game could be close, Ohio State completely blew out Cincinnati 42-0. Justin Fields is looking like the real deal.

UCLA fell to 0-2 after a 23-14 loss to San Diego State. I believe it is officially time to call Chip Kelly into question.

Jack Coan played pretty well at quarterback for Wisconsin in their last outing. If Coan can keep this up and at least look solid against Big 10 opponents, Wisconsin will be scary.

These Michigan State uniforms looked bad when they were announced and look even worse after seeing them in a game.

Akron has a turnover pencil, which is interesting to say the least.

North Carolina is now 2-0 after their win over Miami. Dazz Newsome hauled in a pass from Sam Howell with a minute to go to give the Tar Heels a 28-25 lead and the win. Miami missed a potential game tying field goal to seal the win for North Carolina.

Rondale Moore had a huge day for Purdue as he had 10 catches for 224 yards in their win over Vanderbilt.

Tennessee is in a very dark place right now as they sit at 0-2 after losing to BYU on Saturday. BYU had the ball down three from their own 8 yard line with 47 seconds to go. They managed to get into field goal range largely off a 64 yard throw from Zach Wilson to Micah Simon that led to a game tying field goal. From there, BYU won the game in double overtime. Tennessee needs to dig themselves out of this hole and soon.

College GameDay to Ames for the Cy-Hawk Classic between Iowa and Iowa State. This game is always crazy and with College GameDay in town, it will surely live up to the hype.

Coastal Carolina took down Kansas, which has deflated a lot of the hype for Les Miles at Kansas. Miles needs to modernize the offense at Kansas, the same issue that led to his firing at LSU.

Georgia State had to come back to beat FCS Furman by a touchdown just one week after beating Tennessee by eight points. This has to be a tough look for Tennessee (Tennessee fans I promise this is the last time I talk about you in this article so do not worry).

Oregon took out their frustrations from the loss to Auburn on Nevada, who they beat 77-6. The best part of the game still was offensive tackle Brady Aiello catching a touchdown pass.

UCF looks to stick with Dillon Gabriel at quarterback after he played well in week one and got the start last week. He did not play too well in UCF’s 48-14 win over FAU but I think he will stay as the starter.

Former Texas quarterback Shane Buechele did well for SMU as they took down North Texas 49-27.

Ole Miss beat Arkansas this weekend and is officially has the title of not being worst SEC team. That title looks like it belongs to Arkansas right now.

Tylan Wallace had a huge day for Oklahoma State as he had 180 receiving yards and three touchdowns in their 56-14 win over McNeese State.

Quentin Harris had a good day at quarterback Duke as he threw for 345 yards and ran for another 83 and had four total touchdowns.

Minnesota beat Fresno State for the second straight season. What was crazy was that the game was won on a game winning interception by Antoine Winfield Jr. for the second straight season.

Utah’s Bradlee Anae had a huge performance against Northern Illinois as he racked up three sacks in a 35-17 win for the Utes.

Teams need to learn to run under center on the goal line. I know that they do not want to deviate from their typical offense, but it still makes it harder to run the ball in from shotgun.

With the change of sponsor from Nike to Adidas, Washington changed up their jerseys. What is disappointing is that their jerseys now look way worse than last year. The new ones are not bad, but the Nike ones looked very nice.

Anthony Gordon had another good day for Washington State as he completed 31/39 passes for 464 yards and four touchdowns. Speaking of Washington State quarterback’s, watching Gardner Minshew step in and do well for the Jaguars on Sunday was awesome.

Hawaii is now 2-0 on the season and against Pac 12 teams as they beat Oregon State on Saturday night. The Rainbow Warriors take on Washington this week, and it will be interesting to see how they fare.

Rutgers might have lost 30-0 to Iowa but punter Adam Korsak had a monster game with 10 punts for 476 yards.

This week’s cool uniform award goes to SMU, Virginia, South Carolina, and East Carolina.

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