Forward Progress: Michigan State ready for Oregon rematch Assessing the fallout from the first weekend's games and what lies ahead in college football.

Paul Myerberg | USA TODAY Sports

KALAMAZOO, Mich. — There was no opponent tied to the workouts, no scheme or system placed on display for motivation, but it was clear that Oregon's presence loomed over Michigan State's defensive efforts during fall camp.

There was no other pressing reason for the No. 6 Spartans to work on their tempo. For defenders, tempo isn't a positive; it's a negative in all shapes and forms, a tool used by opposing offenses to wear down and erode defensive production and consistency through constant speed, activity and repetition — see, for example, the way Oregon ran down the Spartans' proud defense during the second half of last September's non-conference win.

There are only two ways for a defense to combat an offense of Oregon's tempo: conditioning and rotations, two assets that essentially stand as the Spartans' blueprint for stopping the No. 5 Ducks in Saturday's crucial meeting of two would-be College Football Playoff participants.

"The main focus in the beginning was to make sure that our tempo was right during fall camp," Michigan State defensive lineman Lawrence Thomas said.

"Making sure that we were all staying active and have enough players where we can keep up with their offense a little bit. Making sure that we have our guys coming in at the right time so we can keep our legs fresh. I think it's important to do that, to have guys that can fill in and come behind that you know will step up and do just as well."

It's Oregon's offense against Michigan State's defense, even if the Spartans are without former coordinator Pat Narduzzi, now at Pittsburgh. Connor Cook against Vernon Adams, a matchup of two quarterbacks with Heisman Trophy potential. The Big Ten Conference against the Pac-12 Conference. The College Football Playoff. Storylines abound, befitting a game circled months ago as one of the defining games of the early season.

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"It's every game at one time," said running back Gerald Holmes. "You can't focus on something that's down the road when the path in front of you can be anything. But when Saturday comes, that's Oregon. We're not going to be thinking about nobody else."

Talk of Oregon wasn't allowed — if not banned, it was tacitly discouraged — all offseason, though the Ducks remained at the forefront of the Spartans' minds. Returning contributors think back to last year's game, at an opportunity slipped away; at the same time, holdovers and newcomers acknowledge that the same opportunity exists in 2015.

"For how close we were last year and stuff like that, and not being able to walk away victorious, obviously that's in the back of your mind," quarterback Connor Cook said. "And knowing you're going to play them this year and trying to get revenge, that's in the back of your mind as well."

The coaching staff, meanwhile, has been evaluating Oregon since the summer, anticipating the Ducks' offensive moves — and defensive ones, to be fair — while waiting for film on Adams, the program's newest addition.

"We have to expect the unexpected," defensive end Shilique Calhoun said. "But they're still going to be that fast-tempo team with a quarterback that can create and wide receivers that are going to make plays."

It's safe to assume Oregon's strategy won't deviate far from last year's successful plan, for two reasons: one, it worked, and two, the Ducks never stray far from their bread-and-butter offensive footprint — whether the opponent is Eastern Washington, Adams' former team, or Michigan State.

"I expect that since they beat us last year they'll come out with the same scheme and system," Thomas said.

Whether that same scheme and system can find success against this Michigan State will be the game's defining storyline — or not, given the way both defenses struggled defending the pass in their respective openers. Michigan State had trouble with Western Michigan's combination of quarterback Zach Terrell and receiver Corey Davis, while Oregon had issues of its own against EWU's Adams-less passing game.

Yet one thing is certain: As Michigan State prepares for the first of two season-defining games — Ohio State the latter — the Spartans are more familiar with Oregon's general speed, pacing and tempo.

Said Calhoun, "That's Oregon."

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FOOTBALL FOUR PICTURE

At the risk of overreaction, it is possible to make some broad statements about the general condition of the young College Football Playoff race. As in: Michigan's not going to make it, nor is Texas. Or: Texas A&M's impressive win against Arizona State has the Aggies once again pegged for greatness after the opening weekend of the regular season.

Yet this weekend's results did little to dissuade the perception of the collective elite of college football — those teams listed as the Playoff favorites in the preseason. Alabama was impressive against Wisconsin, if vanilla on offense. Auburn's defense showed signs of life against Louisville before allowing a late charge in the fourth quarter.

TCU won by six points at Minnesota, but that says less about the Horned Frogs' championship credentials and more about Minnesota's viability in an uncertain Big Ten Conference West Division; the Golden Gophers may just be the top team in the division and the third-best team in the entire conference.

Let's remember that the selection committee is a month away from unveiling its debut standings. Nonetheless, here's an early stab at the four-team Playoff field and the first two teams left out:

1. Ohio State | 2. TCU | 3. Alabama | 4. Oregon | 5. Auburn | 6. Baylor

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HEISMAN HOT LIST

UCLA freshman Josh Rosen threw for 351 yards and three scores without an interception in his college debut, winning Walter Camp National FBS Offensive Player of the Week honors and fulfilling — through one game, at least — the enormous promise accompanying his five-star arrival. For this performance, Rosen quickly moves into the early-season Heisman Trophy conversation.

He wasn't the only star from the opening weekend. Texas A&M Myles Garrett was outstanding against Arizona State. Vernon Adams started his tenure at Oregon in fine form. Based on his start against Grambling, California quarterback Jared Goff will rewrite the Golden Bears' record books.

There is one very disappointing piece of Heisman news, however: Brigham Young quarterback Taysom Hill's foot injury will cost the senior the rest of this season.

1. Alabama RB Derrick Henry

2. TCU QB Trevone Boykin

3. Georgia RB Nick Chubb

4. Notre Dame QB Malik Zaire

5. Baylor QB Seth Russell

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POLL WATCH

No. 21 Stanford is the only team certain to fall out of Tuesday's Amway Coaches Poll, though it would be somewhat surprising if No. 18 Wisconsin remained ranked after its loss to Alabama. No. 16 Arizona State's loss to Texas A&M — previously unranked, if still favored on Saturday night — should send the Sun Devils to the edges of the rankings, but not out of the poll entirely.

Given that voters already seem unsure about No. 24 Boise State, it's also possible that the Broncos slide out of the poll after struggling to put away Washington. That would be foolish.

The Aggies are moving into the Top 25, obviously. If another two spots do open up, look for the following teams to be under consideration: Utah, Mississippi State, Oklahoma State — though the Cowboys weren't great against Central Michigan — and Kansas State. Virginia Tech would soar into the poll with a win against Ohio State, of course.

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WKU AND A 'PLAYOFF MENTALITY'

Western Kentucky players and coaches haven't forgotten about last year's 59-10 loss to Louisiana Tech, "a butt-kicking in every aspect," according to coach Jeff Brohm, and how it led the Hilltoppers to rock bottom on the first Saturday of November.

WKU's record at that point: 3-5. Unlike the other four losses, however, the defeat at Louisiana Tech was marked by the Hilltoppers' utter lack of competitiveness; the remaining quartet came by a combined 22 points, including one, to Middle Tennessee State, in triple overtime.

From last year's loss to the Bulldogs came a new mindset, one that can only be described as apt given WKU's current push for access-bowl consideration.

"We kind of developed a playoff mentality last year when we went 3-5," Brohm told USA TODAY Sports. "OK, let's start putting a little bit more pressure on ourselves. If we win we can advance. If we lose we kind fall out of the ranks. Our guys kind of bought into that a little bit, and we kind of got over the hump."

One season later, and with Louisiana Tech coming up on Thursday night, a combination of factors has propelled WKU from a playoff mindset to the center of the Group of Five's College Football Playoff conversation.

The first is the team's current winning streak, which reached six games after a 14-12 win Thursday at Vanderbilt. Only Ohio State, Boise State, TCU, Memphis and Appalachian State bring a longer winning streak into the second weekend of the season.

The second is the play of this offense, which despite hiccupping against the Commodores — "They definitely outplayed us on that side of the ball," Brohm said — remains poised to challenge the program record for points in a season, 577, set a year ago.

The third is the projected improvement of the WKU defense, which leaned young last year, and struggled as a result, but returns eight starters.

"I don't consider them a great offense, but it was good our defense played well," Brohm said of Vanderbilt. "The jury is still out, in my opinion, even though I'm encouraged by what I see and what I see in practice. But until we stop a spread offense that goes fast, I'll hold my judgment. But I do think that we've improved there."

Yet nothing stands more in the Hilltoppers' favor than the schedule: WKU will face three Power Five programs in non-conference play, with Indiana and LSU joining Vanderbilt, and also take on the remaining upper crust of Conference USA in Louisiana Tech, Rice and Marshall — and would get another game with the winner of the West Division in a potential conference title game.

The Mountain West Conference is the stronger of the two leagues, but Boise State takes on just two Power Five conference teams in September. In addition, Saturday's matchup with Brigham Young may be less useful to the Broncos' eventual cause should the Cougars struggle in Taysom Hill's absence.

Essentially, talent and coaching have placed WKU in position to capitalize on its greatest asset: a schedule that allows for a degree of breathing room — say, a loss at LSU — in the push for an access-bowl bid to one of the New Year's Six games.

"I think the fan base and others look down the road on all this stuff, and probably it crosses peoples' mind here as well," Brohm said. "We know our schedule's tougher this year, we know our first three games are challenging this year, and our approach is it's a one-game season. We're going to give everything we've got to win each game. Win, lose or draw, when it's over we're moving onto the next one."

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STARS OF THE WEEK

Arkansas QB Brandon Allen. Much has been made of Arkansas' powerful running game, and rightfully so. Yet Allen's four-touchdown, four-incompletion performance in a romp against woeful UTEP illustrated just how dangerous the Razorbacks can be when the offense finds perfect balance.

Pittsburgh RB Qadree Ollison. As an injury replacement for all-conference pick James Conner, Ollison ran for 207 yards and ensured a role in the offense during his redshirt freshman season.

Western Michigan WR Corey Davis. Even in defeat, Davis' 10 receptions and 154 receiving yards against Michigan State showed he's worthy of national-award consideration.

Louisiana Tech QB Jeff Driskel. A change of scenery paid immediate dividends for the Florida transfer, who averaged 18.3 yards per attempt and tossed four touchdowns in the Bulldogs' 62-15 win against Southern.

Missouri LB Kentrell Brothers. Those 16 tackles and a punt block returned for a touchdown are a sign of what's to come for perhaps the best linebacker in the Southeastern Conference.

Old Dominion RB Ray Lawry. His four touchdowns and FBS-best 223 yards rushing helped the Monarchs slip past Eastern Michigan.

Marshall S Tiquan Lang. He made 17 tackles, returned two interceptions of Austin Appleby for touchdowns, and sealed the Thundering Herd's first win against a Big Ten opponent.

West Virginia S Karl Joseph. Joseph's three interceptions in a win against Georgia Southern should illustrate that he's much more than just a hard-hitting safety — in fact, he's probably an All-America pick.

Temple LB Tyler Matakevich. Speaking of defenders worthy of All-America consideration: Matakevich is the heart and soul of a defense that sacked Penn State quarterback 10 times in a 27-10 win.

BYU QB Tanner Mangum. His game-winning Hail Mary was the highlight-reel moment of the opening weekend. Mangum was set to replace Taysom Hill next fall, but the injury speeds up his starting career.

Mississippi DT Robert Nkemdiche. His three tackles and a QB hurry might seem a pedestrian outing until you consider he blocked a 23-yard field goal and slid out of the offensive backfield for a 31-yard touchdown catch.

Texas A&M DE Daeshon Hall and Myles Garrett. If SEC titles are won up front, A&M's end combination gives the Aggies a great shot at wearing the West Division crown.

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COACHES OF THE WEEK

South Carolina defensive coordinator Jon Hoke. In his first game as the Gamecocks' coordinator, Hoke piloted a unit that forced three North Carolina interceptions and compiled four sacks.

Hawaii defensive coordinator Tom Mason. After struggling through a tough stint last fall as SMU's interim coach, Mason showed why he's a crucial addition to Hawaii's staff in the Warriors' impressive win against Colorado.

Charlotte coach Brad Lambert. The 49ers won their FBS debut, sneaking past Georgia State by a field goal, and did so less than a month after the sudden death of offensive line coach Phil Ratliff.

Temple coach Matt Rhule. If it wasn't obvious already, Saturday's win against Penn State cements Rhule's place as one of the fastest-rising coaches in college football.

Texas A&M defensive ends coach Terry Price. The results against Arizona State speak for themselves.

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NUMBERS TO KNOW

1. Number of seasons in college football history that saw Michigan, Nebraska, Penn State and Texas all lose their openers. That would be this season, obviously.

4. Number of Michigan coaches who have lost in their debut: Bump Elliott, Gary Moeller, Rich Rodriguez and Jim Harbaugh.

6. Seniors on scholarship on Florida's roster, the program's fewest in a season since 1951.

9.63. Combined average yards per play by Oregon and Baylor in Week 1.

16. Number of quarters, dating to last season, since Texas mounted a touchdown drive of 80 or more yards.

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COLLEGE FOOTBALL'S WEEK 1 HIGHLIGHTS