The first week of the College Football season saw many ups and downs for several of the top teams. From Georgia’s annihilation of Clemson to Oregon’s scare against an FCS team, there’s a lot to take away from this week of action. Or in our case, to take with a mouth full of salt.
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No One Can Beat Georgia
The fact of the matter is… this might not be much of an overreaction. The Bulldogs have won 2 of the last 3 national championships and very well may have the best roster in college football again this season.
Yesterday, in a 34-3 win over the #14 Clemson Tigers, the Bulldogs dominated on both sides of the ball. their defense was suffocating, giving up only 189 total yards and a single field goal. The offense was clicking as well. Georgia outscored Clemson 28-3 in the second half as Heisman contender Carson Beck led the way, throwing for 278 yards along with two TDs. Nate Frazier filled in for Trevor Etienne nicely, nearly eclipsing 100 yards and going in for one score.
Although the season is still young, there is an argument to be made that Georgia is the team to beat in not just the SEC, but in all of College Football. The Bulldogs have a rough road ahead, with away games such as Texas, Alabama, and Ole Miss, followed by a Top 15 matchup against Tennessee. If they can continue to dismantle teams, like they did against Clemson, there’s no doubt they can end the season undefeated.
Ohio State Has a Quarterback Crisis
Maybe yet another overreaction that has some truth to it.
Will Howard did not look like an incompetent quarterback yesterday. In fact, he looked better than anything my Wolverines had to offer. But in an Offensive system that relies heavily on elite QB play, Howard was below par.
Since urban Meyer took over as the Head Coach in 2012, quarterbacks such as Braxton Miller, J.T. Barrett, and Dwayne Haskins have been some of the most dynamic and productive players in college football. Miller’s dual-threat capabilities set the stage for a potent offensive scheme, while Barret set multiple Big Ten records while being incredibly consistent. Each quarterback brought a unique skill set to OSU, establishing the Buckeyes once again as a powerhouse in College Football. The question is… what does Will Howard actually bring to the table?
In the Buckeyes 52-6 win over Akron on Saturday, Howard completed 17 of his 28 attempts for 228 yards and three touchdowns. While this isn’t the worst stat line to post, for the level of competition and the WR corps he had at his disposal, this was more than cause for concern by the Buckeye faithful.
For comparison, in 2022 Kyle McCord started for the Buckeyes as CJ Stroud was out with a shoulder injury. In his first career start against Akron, he threw for 319 yards and two touchdowns, nearly a 50% increase from Howard. If the Buckeyes wish to return to the top of College Football this season, Will Howard has to be better, or Ohio State will indeed have a crisis.
Oregon Might Be the Most Overrated Team in College Football
I saw it. You saw it. Everybody saw it. Oregon looked BAD against FCS Idaho yesterday. And this wasn’t the type of bad where a southern woman would say “Oh Bless their hearts.”
No.
This was the type of bad that made every Ducks fan in the nation ashamed to be wearing puke green. The type of bad that made them take their signed Justin Herbert jersey and set it aside to use as fuel for their Labor Day cookout.
Maybe we’re being too hard on Oregon. But the Vandals dang well nearly came away with a win in Autzen Stadium. For a team that I, along with every reliable sports network in the industry, picked to win the national title, the season opener was nothing short of a slop fest. Although Dillon Gabriel looked fairly gelled in his first game as an Oregon Duck, throwing for 380 yards, 2 touchdowns, while going a total of 41-49.
Dan Lanning had this to say on the game:
“Different than we thought it would look like. Great teams are able to learn from tight matches. This was a tight match, and we didn’t create some of the explosive plays I was hoping we could create offensively. Gave up a couple of critical plays on defense. So certainly some things to attack.”
Lanning seems to get the expectations for this Oregon team in 2024. This is a team with the talent to be the best in College Football, but College Football also has a heck of a lot of talent. Speaking of talent, Oregon’s Matayo Uiagalelei had this to say about the Vandals, following his coaches remarks.
“You can never doubt an opponent. tip my hat off to Idaho, that’s a great program. Shoot, it was a close game. I don’t think we were expecting that.”
It seems as if Lanning and his players are on the same page that this is both beneficial and problematic for the Ducks. While they got a look at what the weaknesses were on their team and how they would show up in game, what they also learned was that they may just not be as good as they once thought.
This team is very reminiscent of the Texas A&M teams of the past few years, with a much higher ceiling. They have all of the NIL money in the world at their disposal and recruit better than anyone in College Football. But if you can’t piece it all together it just doesn’t matter how many 5-Stars you have on your roster.