Week 1 Recap

by Big Al

Well, this week was much more interesting than we had any right to expect.

Duke 28 - Clemson 7

Wait, what?

I like sleeping. So I go to bed early on weekdays. When I went to bed, Clemson was leading 7-6. Apparently, I missed something.

I did wake up early and turned on the replay of this game just in time to see Duke go up 21-7. And then things got worse.

From what I can tell, Clemson moved the ball perfectly well. But they just kept screwing up. Two blocked field goals and two lost fumbles in the red zone. You can't have that sort of thing happen against even a moderately competent team. Duke ain't Alabama, but they have been a good-enough team for the last few years. Make enough mistakes and they're going to win. Which they did on Monday night.

I'm not pressing the panic button on Clemson yet. But they'd better watch out, because...

Florida State 45 - LSU - 24

Florida State finally looks like the Florida State I remember. One game does not make a season, but this was the first time in a while that Florida State was able to outrun, outsmart, and outhit a truly top-notch football team. They were aggressive, angry, and they absolutely disassembled LSU. Are the Seminoles ready to live in the top 5 again? Maybe, we'll see. There is still a lot of season left to go. But this is the first time I've seen them look like they belonged there in a long time.

Colorado 45 - TCU 42

I can't believe this is the third-biggest result of the weekend. But it is.

Look, neither team looked great out there. But their offenses were humming like the start of "I Walk the Line". The difference was that Colorado got stops when they needed them. Particularly on TCU's last drive. And Colorado's offense did just a little more than TCU's.

I'm not ready to anoint Deion Sanders as a great coach yet. But he had his team prepared, excited, and ready when things got tough. There's a lot still to go, but they look like a team ready to at least challenge the rest of the Pac-12 before they head back to the Big XII.

Utah 24 - Florida 11

This was a big win for the Utes. Fine, it's not against a top-5 Florida team, but beating a team that is always talented, like Florida is every year, is a big deal anytime. Utah should be very happy about this win. Especially when they did it without their starting quarterback, Cam Rising. Still hazy on how he still has eligibility, but there he is.

Big win for Utah to springboard their season. They will be in the mix again in the Pac-12.

Penn State 38 - West Virginia 15

Penn State started off the season with a very good win. They look pretty good right now. Let's see how that keeps going. And let's also see how good West Virginia is, because nobody knows that.

Tennessee 49 - Virginia 13

Not exactly Florida State demolishing LSU, but this is a good way for Tennessee to start off the season. We'll see if they can keep last season's momentum going.

North Carolina 31 - South Carolina 17

In my game preview, I forgot about one Mr. Drake Maye. My fault. He's definitely worth the price of admission. And I think it's time for me to stop talking up Spencer Rattler. He's very talented, but it's going to be a hard season if he doesn't get more help than he did on Saturday.

Louisville 39 - Georgia Tech 34

I would like to point out that I somehow totally skipped over this game when I was doing my preview. I really don't know who I would have picked, but hey, great win, Louisville!