The Bookie of Eli

The first week of college football is already behind us with massive upsets and surprising results unfolding across the country. In a marquee match up of top 3 teams Ohio State shut down Arch Manning and top ranked Texas in the Horseshoe. The battle of the tigers ended with LSU on top over Clemson while Miami took down Notre Dame to jump start their season. Florida State made a statement against Alabama and Crimson Tide head coach Kalen Deboer’s seat is already hot. The rest of the top ranked teams faced inferior opponents with most teams using week 1 as a warm up for what is sure to be a highly competitive college football season.

(1)Texas – 7 @ (3)Ohio State – 14

Buckeyes Bully Arch

In just the 4th match up of the reigning champion meeting the AP #1 ranked team in the opener, Ohio State made it 3 in a row for the reigning champion with a staunch defensive performance. Despite all the hype surrounding Texas quarterback Arch Manning and Ohio State reciever Jeremiah Smith, it was the defense who stole the show as both teams struggled to move the ball down the field. After a scoreless 1st quarter, Ohio State’s first drive of the 2nd quarter ended in a CJ Donaldson rushing touchdown. Of the 9 first half drives by either team 8 of them ended in a punt or a turnover on downs. Texas had a strong drive to begin the second half, but a goal line stop by the Buckeyes gave them all the momentum. Arch continued to struggle later in the 3rd quarter throwing an interception to Ohio State freshman cornerback Jermaine Matthews. Quarterback Julian Sayin connected with reciever Carnell Tate who made a juggling catch on a 40 yard touchdown pass early in the 4th quarter. Sayin completed just 13 of 20 passes for 126 yards on the day, but did just enough as the Ohio State defense held Arch Manning to 17 of 30 passing for 170 yards. Texas went 1 for 5 on 4th down being stopped twice inside of Ohio State’s 10 yard line and even a 32 yard Arch Manning touchdown pass in the 4th quarter wasn’t enough to get Texas back into this game. The Texas loss snapped a streak of 11 wins in road games for the school with 5 of those being against ranked opponents. The Longhorns host San Jose State next week with an opportunity to regroup for Steve Sarkisan’s squad. Ohio State will move to #1 after this win and have an easy opponent next up with a visit from Grambling State.

(9)LSU – 17 @ (4)Clemson – 10

Tiger on Tiger Violence

For the second year in a row Clemson lost to a highly ranked SEC team on their opening week. This time LSU took down the SEC favorites in what was another defensive game where points came at a premium. Clemson scored the first touchdown of the game when running back Adam Randall punched it in from a yard out on 4th and goal putting them ahead 10-3 in the 2nd quarter. That would be Clemson’s last score of the contest as LSU and a swarming defense consistently pressured Cade Klubnik. LSU dominated the time of possession in the 2nd half holding the ball for all but 9 minutes behind running back Cade Durham who rushed for 74 yards and a 3rd quarter touchdown that tied the game. Chip Kelly’s team went ahead for good when quarterback Garrett Nussmeier tossed a go-ahead touchdown pass to Trey’Dez Green early in the 4th quarter. The LSU defense held Clemson to just 31 yards on 20 carries and what was expected to be a high scoring contest ended up being a defensive masterclass. Losing star wide receiver Antonio Williams to an injury early in the first quarter did Clemson no favors, but depth should fill in the production until he is healthy. A game against Troy next week will give Dabo Swinney and Clemson a week to rest and recover from a tough loss that must not derail their season. Meanwhile Kelly and LSU will be on cloud 9 this week after breaking their streak of 5 straight losses in openers. LSU will have a cupcake game next week when they take on Louisiana Tech at their own Death Valley.

(8)Alabama – 17 @ Florida State – 31

Seminoles Stun Crimson Tide

While Ohio State and LSU had massive wins for their playoff hopes, no team had a better result on week 1 than Florida State. A program that only won 2 games all season last year took down a top 10 ranked team by multiple scores. An opening drive touchdown by Alabama was matched by Florida State and new quarterback Tommy Castellanos on their first drive. A missed Alabama field goal led to another Seminole touchdown this time on a reverse to receiver Micahi Danzy. After Alabama went 3 and out on their next drive a FSU field goal made the score 17-7 at halftime. The second half brought more of the same as Alabama turned the ball over on downs before Castellanos connected with running back Jaylin Lucas for a 64 yard gain. A short run later and Florida State were up 24-7 before an Alabama field goal and touchdown gave the Crimson Tide a glimmer of hope. That was short-lived however, as FSU answered with a touchdown drive of their own to grab a double digit lead midway through the 4th quarter. A 4th down stop by the Seminoles defense on Alabama’s next drive ended the game with 5 minutes left and elated ‘Noles fans rushed the field post game. This loss snapped Alabama’s streak of 23 wins in season openers, the second longest in the nation. Alabama head coach Kalen Deboer will have to endure the hot seat talk until his team wins against a quality opponent. Florida State’s 24 points scored in week 1 is more than they scored against any FBS offense last season. For the Seminoles, an ACC title and playoff appearance are not completely out of the realm of possibilities. Next week both schools have easy match ups with Alabama taking on Louisiana-Monroe and FSU welcoming East Texas A&M.

(6)Notre Dame – 24 @ (10) Miami – 27

Hurricanes Hold Off Irish

Miami wide reciever CJ Daniels made a catch of the year candidate in week 1 with a spectacular 1 handed touchdown grab 12 seconds before halftime. That catch put the Hurricanes up 14-7 before halftime and a 75 yard drive to start the second half capped by a touchdown run by Marty Brown that gave Miami all the momentum. In Notre Dame and debut quarterback CJ Carr’s defense, the Irish did not roll over and a couple of 4th quarter touchdowns tied the game up late in the 4th quarter. Miami and transfer quarterback Carson Beck then showed their poise on the final drive as they went 10 plays and 46 yards for a game winning field goal from FAU transfer Carter Davis. A good performance by Carson Beck and the Miami offense was complimented by a significantly improved defense in week 1 compared to a year ago. The win snapped an 8 game streak of losses against top 10 ranked opponents for the Hurricanes. Mario Cristobal and Miami will get a breather next week when they host Bethune-Cookman. The Fighting Irish became the 4th team to lose in week 1 that was ranked in the top 8 joining (1)Texas, (4)Clemson and (8)Alabama. Notre Dame must bounce back immediately as their season and playoff hopes are on the line next week when they welcome Texas A&M to South Bend.

Best of the Rest:

(Week 0)

(22)Iowa State – 24 vs (17)Kansas State – 21

Iowa State quarterback Rocco Becht and running back Chris Hansen lead the Cyclones over Big 12 rivals Kansas State in a tight week 0 contest.

(Week 1)

(25)Boise State – 7 @ South Florida – 34

USF quarterback Byrum Brown threw for 200 yards and trucked multiple defenders on the way to 2 rushing touchdowns.

New Mexico – 17 @ (14)Michigan – 34

Freshman sensation Bryce Underwood looked the part and Michigan rushed for 200 yards including 159 and 3 touchdowns from Alabama transfer Justice Haynes.

North Dakota – 35 @ (17)Kansas State – 38

A last minute touchdown pass by Avery Johnson gives Kansas State a close win against FCS opponent.

Syracuse – 26 vs (24)Tennessee – 45

Transfer Joey Aguilar passes for 250 yards and 3 touchdowns in debut win against a solid non-conference opponent in Syracuse.

Virginia Tech – 11 vs (13)South Carolina – 24

Heisman hopeful LaNorris Sellers looked the part with a passing and rushing touchdown and the Gamecock defense held Virginia Tech to just 3 field goals.

Cupcakes:

Nevada – 11 @ (2)Penn State – 46

Marshall – 7 @ (5)Georgia – 45

Montana State – 13 @ (7)Oregon – 59

Northern Arizona – 19 @ (11)Arizona State – 38

Western Illinois – 3 @ (12)Illinois – 52

Long Island – 0 @ (15)Florida – 55

East Texas A&M – 13 @ (16)SMU – 42

Illinois State – 3 @ (18)Oklahoma – 35

UTSA – 24 @ (19)Texas A&M – 42

Old Dominion – 14 @ (20)Indiana – 27

Georgia State – 7 @ (21)Ole Miss – 63

South Dakota – 7 @ (22)Iowa State – 55

Arkansas-Pine Bluff – 7 @ (23)Texas Tech – 67