College Football Awards Week 6 (2026) October 12, 2026
Posted by intellectualgridiron in Sports.Tags: Alabama, Appalachian State, Arch Manning, Ball State, Bob Chesney, Bowling Green, Brent Venables, college football, Florida, football, Georgia, Indiana, Jon Sumrall, Ken Niumatololo, Kentucky, Kirby Smart, Longhorns, Louisville, LSU, Maryland, Memphis, Michigan, Michigan State, Minnesota, NCAA football, Nebraska, Northern Illinois, Northwestern, Notre Dame, Ohio State, Oklahoma State, Penn State, Purdue, Red River, Rutgers, SDSU, SJSU, Sooners, South Carolina, Sports, Stanford, Steve Sarkesian, Tennessee, Texas, Tulane, UCLA, USC, Washington, Will Stein
add a comment
COACHES
Wish I were him: Kirby Smart, Georgia
Glad I’m not him: Steve Sarkesian, Texas
Lucky guy: Brent Venables, Oklahoma
Poor guy: Ken Niumatololo, SJSU
Desperately seeking a wake-up call: Steve Sarkesian, Texas
Desperately seeking a P.R. man: Bob Chesney, UCLA
Desperately seeking sunglasses and a fake beard: Steve Sarkesian, Texas
Desperately seeking … anything: Jon Sumrall, Florida
TEAMS
Thought you’d kick butt, you did: Northwestern (defeated Ball State 45-14)
Thought you’d kick butt, you didn’t: Indiana (defeated Nebraska 20-17)
Thought you’d get your butt kicked, you did: Stanford (lost to Notre Dame 58-7)
Thought you’d get your butt kicked, you didn’t: Penn State (lost to USC 31-23)
Thought you wouldn’t kick butt, you did: Purdue (defeated Minnesota 41-13)
Dang, they’re good: Notre Dame
Dang, they’re bad: Appalachian State
Can’t Stand Prosperity: Texas
Did the season start? Florida
Can the season end? Northern Illinois
Can the season never end? Georgia
GAMES
Play this again: Oklahoma 27, No. 1 Texas 24
Play this again, too: No. 2 Georgia 20, No. 6 Alabama 17
Never play this again: Oregon State 66, SDSU 14
What? No. 21 UCLA 17, No. 13 Oregon 15
What-what? Purdue 41, Minnesota 13
Huh? North Carolina 21, No. 25 Pittsburgh 17
Double-Huh? Kentucky 34, No. 10 LSU 33 (OT)
Are you kidding me?? South Carolina 38, No. 16 Florida 19
Oh – my – God: Oklahoma 27, No. 1 Texas 24
NEXT WEEK
rankings are current AP (week 7)
Ticket to die for: No. 5 Ohio State @ No. 7 Indiana
Best non-Power Four vs. Power Four matchup: none
Best non-Power Four matchup: Memphis @ Tulane (Friday)
Upset alert: Florida @ No. 7 Texas
Must win: No. 6 Alabama @ No. 14 Tennessee
Offensive explosion: No. 13 Missouri @ No. 9 Ole Miss
Defensive struggle: Penn State @ Michigan
Great game no one is talking about: No. 18 Oklahoma State @ No. 20 Houston
Also: Washington @ Purdue
Intriguing coaching matchup: Brent Venables of Oklahoma vs Will Stein of Kentucky
Who’s bringing the body bags? No. 25 Northwestern @ Michigan State
Why are they playing? Elon @ Stanford
Plenty of good seats remaining: Ball State @ Bowling Green
They Shoot Horses, Don’t They? Rutgers @ Maryland
Week 6 Thoughts:
The Red River Rivalry did not disappoint in terms of delivering a dramatic game. Having 92,000 fans in the storied Cotton Bowl stadium, evenly divided between fan bases in a bitter rivalry never fails in delivering an incredibly electric environment.
As far as the game itself and its dramatic outcome, there are lessons to be learned. On paper, Texas should have put Oklahoma away early on. The fact that they failed to do so, thus allowing for the Sooners to hang around, eventually got the underdogs thinking that they could win the game. Some key errors late in the 4th quarter, namely Steve Sarkesian opting for a [missed] field goal instead of going for it on 4th and 2, and Arch Manning throwing a most-costly interception that put Oklahoma in position to kick a game-winning field goal in the final seconds. So one lesson learned: if you are the Number-one team, act like it, assert yourselves accordingly, and put your rival away without mercy.
As far as Arch Manning goes, it is beyond time to have a grown-up conversation that he is not as great a QB as hype would suggest otherwise. That said, he does have the occasional flash of brilliance. The long bomb into the end zone in the 1st quarter was certainly impressive. Sark would do well to sometimes get out of his way and allow for him to move the chains with his schoolyard ball-style heroics that did him so well against Ohio State. The other lesson, should Sark thus heed it, is to take the straightjacket off Arch, who has clear limitations at this point, and let me run more with the ball.
In fairness, credit Oklahoma with their offensive line play. They held off Texas’ killer front four the whole game, minimizing sacks allowed with their QB, Mateer, was underperforming throughout the game except for, inexplicably, the final series.
Elsewhere, Georgia beat Alabama, in Tuscaloosa, in a hard-fought game. Many have speculated that the Bulldogs could be the best time in the country currently, but as good as they looked, it was against nobodies. Now they played somebody in the form of Kalen DeBoer’s resurgent Alabama squad, and beat them at that. Now we know that Georgia is for real after all.
Random Thoughts:
Don’t look now, but UCLA is 5-0 and just upset Oregon. Given the offensive output of both teams going into that game, it seemed like an enticing prospect for an offensive explosion. Inexplicably, it turned out to be a defensive struggle instead.
Elsewhere in the Big Ten, Purdue, who was one of the conference punching bags for a while, just beat Minnesota, in butt-kicking fashion no less. Next up for the Boilermakers to prove they deserve more respect in the conference is a Friday night matchup against visiting Washington, a team that is trying to lick its wounds after taking a 41-24 shellacking at home against Iowa this past Friday.
Louisville remains the biggest mystery in the ACC. After frustrating performances against both Wake Forest and NC State, they turn around and wallop Florida State, arguably a better team than either of the previous two. If we did not know any better, we might assume that they flipped some magical, invisible switch that got the Cardinals to play good football again.
Florida’s decline seems to continue. First they laid an egg last week against Missouri. Now South Carolina embarrassed them at home. Was their ripping victory over Ole Miss at Pyrrhic?
Back to Red River to offer a parting observation: throughout that game, neither team’s QB elected to throw over the middle, despite it being undefended during the bulk of regulation. No doubt this will be a vexing issue for both Texas’ and OU’s offensive coordinators to deal with this week during film study, and have a thing or two to point out to their respective QBs in the process.
College Football Awards, Week 5 (2026) October 5, 2026
Posted by intellectualgridiron in Sports.Tags: Alabama, Auburn, B1G, Ball State, Bill Belichick, Bowling Green, BYU, college football, Colorado, Cougars, David Braun, Eastern Michigan, Florida, football, Gators, Georgia, Hurricanes, Illinois, Iowa, Iowa State, James Franklin, Jeff Brohm, Jon Sumrall, Kentucky, Kyle Whittingham, Louisville, Maryland, Matt Campbell, Memphis, Miami (FL), Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi State, Missouri, Mizzou, NCAA football, New Mexico, NFL, North Carolina, Northwestern, Notre Dame, Ohio State, Oklahoma, Oregon, P.J. Fleck, Pat Narduzzi, Penn State, Pittsburgh, Purdue, Red River, Rice, SEC, Shane Beamer, South Carolina, Sports, Stanford, TCU, Tennessee, Texas Tech, Tigers, UCLA, UMass, USC, UTEP, UTSA, Virginia Tech, Wake Forest, Washington, West Virginia
add a comment
COACHES
Wish I were him: PJ Fleck, Minnesota
Glad I’m not him: Kyle Whittingham, Michigan
Lucky guy: Pat Narduzzi, Pitt
Also: Will Stein, Kentucky
Poor guy: James Franklin, Virginia Tech
Also: Shane Beamer, South Carolina
Desperately seeking a wake-up call: Matt Campbell, Penn State
Desperately seeking a P.R. man: David Braun, Northwestern
Desperately seeking sunglasses and a fake beard: Jon Sumrall, Florida
Desperately seeking … anything: Jeff Brohm, Louisville
TEAMS
Thought you’d kick butt, you did: Memphis (defeated Charlotte 59-8)
Thought you’d kick butt, you didn’t: Texas Tech (defeated Colorado 29-7)
Thought you’d get your butt kicked, you did: Stanford (lost to Wake Forest 57-3)
Thought you’d get your butt kicked, you didn’t: Rice (lost to UTSA 16-14)
Thought you wouldn’t kick butt, you did: Mizzou (defeated No. 8 Florida 45-17)
Dang, they’re good: Alabama
Dang, they’re bad: UTEP
Can’t Stand Prosperity: Florida
Did the season start? Louisville
Can the season end? Charlotte
Can the season never end? Missouri
GAMES
Play this again: No. 18 USC 25, Washington 21
Play this again, too: Iowa State 45, West Virginia 42
Never play this again: New Mexico 61, UTEP 7
What? Eastern Michigan 38, UMass 14
Huh? Northwestern 34, Penn State 13
Are you kidding me?? Temple 17, South Florida 13
Oh – my – God: No. 25 Missouri 45, No. 8 Florida 17
NEXT WEEK
rankings are current AP (week 6)
Ticket to die for: No. 2 Georgia @ No. 6 Alabama
Best non-Power Four vs. Power Four matchup: none
Best non-Power Four matchup: South Florida @ UTSA
Upset alert: Oklahoma vs No. 1 Texas in the Red River Shootout
Must win: Florida State @ Louisville (Friday)
Offensive explosion: No. 21 UCLA @ No. 13 Oregon
Defensive struggle: No. 20 Iowa @ Washington (Friday)
Great game no one is talking about: No. 22 Houston @ Kansas State
Intriguing coaching matchup: Pat Narduzzi of Pitt vs Bill Belichick of North Carolina
Who’s bringing the body bags? Stanford @ No. 3 Notre Dame
Why are they playing? Ball State @ Northwestern
Plenty of good seats remaining: Sacramento State @ Bowling Green
They Shoot Horses, Don’t They? Maryland @ No. 5 Ohio State
Week 5 Thoughts:
Let us be honest: this was not the greatest week for college football. Even the so-called “ticket to die for” turned out to be something of a dud. Mississippi State is good, but apparently, Alabama found another gear of performance and shifted into it in Starkville when folks were least expecting it.
That said, there were good games. Auburn, which has quietly gained strength, put up a real fight against the Volunteers in Knoxville. Minnesota demonstrated that they are not a team to be taken lightly as they retained the Little Brown Jug against Michigan. North Carolina put up an impressive fight against Notre Dame at home, and Kentucky won in a shootout at South Carolina.
If that is not enough, Iowa gave Ohio State a good fight for a half, and on-again, off-again rain in Fort Worth made the BYU-TCU game a close, defensive struggle wherein the Cougars eventually triumphed. Moreover, Iowa State squeaked by West Virginia in a massive shootout of a game. If that is not enough, Purdue snapped a 19-game B1G losing streak, at Illinois, no less.
So there were plenty of interesting games, just no “monster games” as in previous weeks. Games between Texas and Ohio State, and also Texas at Tennessee, not to mention Oregon at USC, have spoiled us.
But next week Georgia faces their first true test, on that road in Tuscaloosa, and it’s also Red River time in Dallas.
Random Thoughts:
What to make of Florida? Just when they appear to be a force to be reckoned with in the SEC, they lay an egg on the road at Mizzou. The Tigers cannot be that good, can they?
Keep an eye on how the Gators bounce back from this embarrassing loss as they venture up to South Carolina next week. Same could be said for the Gamecocks: they lost a heartbreaker at home to Kentucky, and now recently-embarrassed Florida is about to come calling.
Clemson put up a decent fight against Miami at home. If I were Marcus Freeman, I would be studying film of this game very intently as I prepare my team to face the Hurricanes later this year.
College Football Awards, Week 4 (2026) September 28, 2026
Posted by intellectualgridiron in Sports.Tags: Alabama, Bill Belichick, Bowling Green, Buffalo, Cal, college football, Duke, Faizon Brandon, Florida, Florida Atlantic, football, Georgia, Indiana, Iowa, Iowa State, Jake Dickert, Jeff Brohm, Josh Heupel, Kirk Ferentz, Kyle Whittingham, LA Monroe, Longhorns, Louisville, Luke Fickell, Marcus Freeman, Maryland, Matt Campbell, Michigan, Mike Locksley, Mississippi State, Missouri, NCAA, NCAA football, North Carolina, Northwestern, Notre Dame, Ole Miss, Panthers, Penn State, Pittsburgh, Purdue, SMU, South Alabama, Sports, Steve Sarkesian, Tennessee, Texas, UNLV, Virginia Tech, Volunteers, Wake Forest, West Virginia, Western Michigan, Wisconsin
add a comment
COACHES
Wish I were him: Steve Sarkesian, Texas
Glad I’m not him: Josh Heupel, Tennessee
Lucky guy: Kirk Ferentz, Iowa
Poor guy: Kyle Whittingham, Michigan
Desperately seeking a wake-up call: Jeff Brohm, Louisville
Desperately seeking a P.R. man: Jake Dickert, Wake Forest
Desperately seeking sunglasses and a fake beard: Matt Campbell, Penn State
Desperately seeking … anything: Mike Locksley, Maryland
TEAMS
Thought you’d kick butt, you did: Pitt (defeated Bucknell 59-0)
Thought you’d kick butt, you didn’t: SMU (defeated Missouri State 34-24)
Thought you’d get your butt kicked, you did: Purdue (lost to No. 3 Notre Dame 49-10)
Thought you’d get your butt kicked, you didn’t: Northwestern (lost to Indiana 29-23)
Thought you wouldn’t kick butt, you did: Florida (defeated No. 4 Ole Miss 52-28)
Dang, they’re good: Florida
Dang, they’re bad: Maryland
Can’t Stand Prosperity: Louisville
Did the season start? Penn State
Can the season end? Bowling Green
Can the season never end? Georgia
GAMES
Play this again: No. 1 Texas 20, No. 14 Tennessee 17
Play this again, too: No 17 Iowa 20, No. 18 Michigan 19
Never play this again: Duke 62, William & Mary 7
What? No. 24 Mississippi State 31, No. 19 Missouri 24
Huh? Wake Forest 30, No. 16 Louisville 27
Are you kidding me?? Wisconsin 24, No. 13 Penn State 20
Oh – my – God: No. 21 Florida 52, No. 4 Ole Miss 28
NEXT WEEK
rankings are current AP (week 5)
Ticket to die for: No. 7 Alabama @ No. 16 Mississippi State
Best non-Power Four vs. Power Four matchup: Cal @ UNLV
Best non-Power Four matchup: Western Michigan @ Buffalo
Upset alert: Michigan @ Minnesota
Must win: Louisville @ NC State
Offensive explosion: No. 7 Alabama @ No. 16 Mississippi State
Defensive struggle: Michigan State @ Wisconsin
Great game no one is talking about: Pittsburgh @ Virginia Tech (Friday)
Also: West Virginia @ Iowa State
Intriguing coaching matchup: Marcus Freeman of Notre Dame vs Bill Belichick of North Carolina
Who’s bringing the body bags? No. 11 LSU @ McNeese State
Why are they playing? No. 11 LSU @ McNeese State
Plenty of good seats remaining: LA Monroe @ South Alabama
They Shoot Horses, Don’t They? Texas Southern @ Florida Atlantic
Week 4 Thoughts:
Texas survived yet another strong challenge, this time in the hostile confines of legendary Neyland Stadium. Many in the sports commentary sphere remarked that had this been a night game, the place would have been more intimidating to the visiting Longhorns to the point where the odds would have been more in the Volunteers’ favor. That assessment does not take a rocket scientist to figure out: the fans would have had all day to get good and drunk. Drunker fans equal louder fans, making for an even more hostile environment in which for the visitors to play. Small wonder LSU plays most of their games in the evening.
To compensate for this lack of, er, augmented home field advantage, Neyland Stadium opened up its gates early. Parking lots opened at 6 AM for example, but that’s not the half of it. The University of Tennessee discounted all of their stadium concessions, including (read: especially) beer, at 50 percent between 9 and 10 AM (!). The ostensible reason for all of this was to encourage early arrival in order to avoid congestion as President Donald Trump, who also attended the game, was to arrive. But let us kid ourselves. As plausible as this may be, on the surface, for the reason behind this “early bird special”, we all know the real reason behind it, and its somewhat genius. Some might say dangerously genius, as it could set a new precedence for new degrees of fan inebriation earlier in the day going forward, but time will tell.
Regardless, all of this was before the game itself. Hard to believe that this was the first time the Horns and Volunteers played each other in the regular season. Moreover, the last time these two storied programs clashed was in the Cotton Bowl on New Year’s Day, 1969, almost seven months shy of the Apollo 11 moon landing, and a prelude to the Longhorns’ undefeated season that same year which culminated in a national title of their own.
The game lived up to its hype, for both teams gave strong efforts, and at the end, Texas’ defensive line made the difference in stifling Tennessee’s young but potentially-gifted QB Faizon Brandon. Such potential showed itself in the form of Faizon almost completing a Hail Mary pass in the end zone as the game ended.
Random Thoughts:
There are body bag games, then then there are worse, even more pointless body bag games. To wit, regarding the latter: rarely would one consider the Pittsburgh Panthers to be pitiless executioners in such affairs, but so it went when they mercilessly ground down Bucknell 59-0. It is one thing for a Power-Five team to pick up an easy win against a “Group of Six” team for cash. It is quite another to pulverize a middling FCS team with no playoff hopes even at the latter’s level of competition. In this new day and age of playoffs and increased parity in the sport at the upper levels of FBS play, is it not unreasonable that we ban such ugly matchups from ever happening again?
Same thing goes for Duke. Scheduling a low-end Sunbelt or MAC conference team for an easy win is one thing. Scheduling a middling FCS team is getting ridiculous. At least with Pitt, they kept it in-state. Stunts like these make for begging for some central authority to start making schedules like they do in the NFL.
How many holes did Jeff Brohm kick into the wall of his office in the wake of Louisville’s puzzling loss, at home to Wake Forest? Either the Demon Deacons are far better than their currently unranked status shows, or the Cardinals demonstrated some weird refusal to effectively execute plays. For a team to go toe-to-toe with Ole Miss and then to take down a formidable SMU squad only to come up short against this team leaves one to sympathize with Brohm in his current frustrations.
Don’t look now, but Luke Fickell finally got something close to a signature win in taking down then-undefeated Penn State, in Happy Valley, no less. Perhaps the Badger program is gaining strength under his leadership after all. Time will tell if this is a harbinger of further success for the program, or some curious anomaly instead.
Something to monitor for Week 5: can Missouri’s defense contain Florida’s offense more effectively than Ole Miss’ did in The Swamp this week?
College Football Awards, Week 11 (2025) November 10, 2025
Posted by intellectualgridiron in Sports.Tags: Alabama, Auburn, Boise State, Boston College, BYU, Cal, California, Clark Lea, Clemson, Colorado, Cougars, Curt Cignetti, Deion Sanders, Florida, football, Georgia, Georgia Tech, Hoosiers, Indiana, Iowa, Jedd Fisch, Joey McGuire, Justin Wilcox, Kalani Sitake, Kentucky, Louisville, Marcus Freeman, Memphis, Michigan, Navy, NCAA, New Mexico State, Nittany Lions, Northern Illinois, Northwestern, Notre Dame, Oklahoma, Ole Miss, Oregon, Oregon State, Pat Narduzzi, Penn State, Pitt, Pittsburgh, Red Raiders, San Diego State, SMU, South Florida, Steve Spurrier, Tennessee, Terry Smith, Texas, Texas A&M, Texas Tech, Tulane, Tulsa, USC, Vanderbilt, Virginia, Wake Forest, Washington, Wisconsin
add a comment
COACHES
Wish I were him: Joey McGuire, Texas Tech
Glad I’m not him: Kalani Sitake, BYU
Lucky guy: Curt Cignetti, Indiana
Poor guy: Terry Smith, Penn State
Desperately seeking a wake-up call: Clark Lea, Vanderbilt
Desperately seeking a P.R. man: Justin Wilcox, Cal
Desperately seeking sunglasses and a fake beard: Jedd Fisch, Washington
Desperately seeking … anything: Deion Sanders, Colorado
TEAMS
Thought you’d kick butt, you did: Ole Miss (defeated The Citadel 49-0)
Thought you’d kick butt, you didn’t: Indiana (defeated Penn State 27-24)
Thought you’d get your butt kicked, you did: Boston College (lost to SMU 45-13)
Thought you’d get your butt kicked, you didn’t: Penn State (lost to Indiana 27-24)
Thought you wouldn’t kick butt, you did: Kentucky (defeated Florida 38-7)
Dang, they’re good: Georgia
Dang, they’re bad: Northern Illinois
Can’t Stand Prosperity: Virginia
Did the season start? Washington
Can the season end? Florida
Can the season never end? Texas A&M
GAMES
Play this again: No. 2 Indiana 27, Penn State 24
Play this again, too: No. 9 Oregon 18, Iowa 16
Never play this again: No. 6 Ole Miss 49, The Citadel 0
What? Tulane 38, No. 22 Memphis 32
Huh? No. 8 Texas Tech 29, No. 7 BYU 7
Double-Huh? Wisconsin 13, No. 23 Washington 10
Are you kidding me??: Cal 29, No. 15 Louisville 26, OT
Oh – my – God: Wake Forest 16, No. 14 Virginia 9
NEXT WEEK
rankings are current AP (week 12)
Ticket to die for: No. 10 Texas @ No. 5 Georgia
Best non-Power Four vs. Power Four matchup: none
Best non-Power Four matchup: Boise State @ San Diego State
Upset alert: Iowa @ No. 17 USC
Must win: No. 11 Oklahoma @ No. 4 Alabama
Offensive explosion: South Florida @ Navy
Defensive struggle: No. 18 Michigan @ Northwestern
Great game no one is talking about: Clemson @ No. 19 Louisville
Also: Arizona @ Cincinnati
Intriguing coaching matchup: Marcus Freeman of Notre Dame vs Pat Narduzzi of Pittsburgh
Who’s bringing the body bags, B1G edition? Wisconsin @ No. 2 Indiana
Who’s bringing the body bags, ACC edition? No. 14 Georgia Tech @ Boston College
Why are they playing? New Mexico State @ No. 21 Tennessee
Plenty of good seats remaining: Oregon State @ Tulsa
They Shoot Horses, Don’t They? Tennessee Tech @ Kentucky
Week 12 [Random] Thoughts:
Indiana averted one of the biggest upsets of the season when they came back in the last minute of the game to score on Penn State, in Happy Valley. For the first time all year, the Hoosiers had to play from behind, initially having to punt with only four minutes and change left in the game, and somehow forcing Penn State to punt at the two-minute warning. Moreover, the game-winning drive only became such with a series of amazing catches, including two improbable ones, one of which was the touchdown itself, what with Omar Cooper, jr., barely keeping his feet in bounds at the back of the end zone. Still, Penn State theoretically had time to kick a field goal with the ball back, with the drive stalled at the 50, forcing a Hail Mary play that went nowhere.
Once again, Penn State played up to their initially high-rank potential, as if they too were still a top-ten team. In so doing, instead of getting their doors blown off, as my speculated they would, the Nittany Lions forced the Hoosiers into situations they had not faced all year. Upon further review, perhaps Curt Cignetti should send a case of wine over to the Penn State coaching staff, as they forced IU into situations the Hoosiers will certainly have to deal with some playoff time.
In other news, Texas Tech boat raced BYU during the Noon ET timeslot in Lubbock. Remember when that was supposed to be the game of the week (admittedly as part of a relatively weak slate of games for this weekend)? As things manifested, however, it soon became clear that the Red Raiders had too many ponies for the Cougars to corral. Just as war is a laboratory to find out what should have been known between countries’ powers before the first battle, lining up teams and having them play is the ultimate showing of who is actually better than whom, and the outcome of this game is “Exhibit A”.
They say that by November, you pretty much are who you are as a team. For example, by November of 2014 (Steve Spurrier’s last full season coaching South Carolina), the Gamecocks were a team that blew 4th quarter leads. Today, and in a similar vein, Louisville is a team that blows it in overtime at home.
Who had the Auburn @ Vanderbilt game as the offensive explosion of the week on their bingo card? Not this guy: where had that offense for Auburn been all year?
College Football Awards, Week 7 (2025) October 13, 2025
Posted by intellectualgridiron in Sports.Tags: Akron, Alabama, Alex Golesh, Arizona, Arizona State, Arkansas, Bobby Petrino, Boise State, Bruins, BYU, Clemson, college football, Colorado, Cougars, Curt Cignetti, Dan Lanning, DeShaun Foster, Drew Allar, Eliah Drinkwitz, Florida, Florida State, Georgia, Georgia Southern, Georgia State, Georgia Tech, Houston, Indiana, Iowa, Iowa State, James Franklin, John Mateer, Kalen DeBoer, Lane Kiffin, Longhorns, Memphis, Michigan, Michigan State, Mike Elko, Mike Norvell, Missouri, NCAA football, Nittany Lions, North Texas, Northwestern, Ohio State, Oklahoma, Ole Miss, Oregon, Oregon State, Penn State, Red River rivalry, Rice, Sooners, South Florida, Steve Sarkesian, Tennessee, Texas, Texas A&M, Tigers, UAB, UCLA, UNLV, USC, USF, Utah, UTSA, Virginia, Washington State, Yellowjackets
add a comment
COACHES
Wish I were him: Curt Cignetti, Indiana
Honorable mention: Steve Sarkesian, Texas
Glad I’m not him: Dan Lanning, Oregon
Lucky guy: Kalen DeBoer, Alabama
Poor guy: Eliah Drinkwitz, Missouri
Desperately seeking a wake-up call: Lane Kiffin, Ole Miss
Desperately seeking a P.R. man: Alex Golesh, South Florida
Desperately seeking sunglasses and a fake beard: Mike Norvell, Florida State
Desperately seeking … anything: James Franklin, Penn State
TEAMS
Thought you’d kick butt, you did: Clemson (defeated Boston College 41-10)
Thought you’d kick butt, you didn’t: Ole Miss (defeated Washington State 24-21)
Thought you’d get your butt kicked, you did: N/A
Thought you’d get your butt kicked, you didn’t: Northwestern (defeated Penn State 22-21)
Thought you wouldn’t kick butt, you did: South Florida (defeated North Texas 63-36)
Honorable mention: Utah (defeated No. 21 Arizona State 42-10)
Dang, they’re good: Ohio State
Dang, they’re bad: Akron
Can’t Stand Prosperity: Oregon
Did the season start? Penn State
Can the season end? Florida State
Can the season never end? Indiana
GAMES
Play this again: No. 7 Indiana 30, No. 3 Oregon 20
Play this again, too: No. 8 Alabama 27, No. 14 Missouri 24
Never play this again: UTSA 61, Rice 13
What? Colorado 22, No. 22 Iowa State 17
Huh? USC 31, No. 15 Michigan 13
Double-huh? No. 7 Indiana 30, No. 3 Oregon 20
Are you kidding me?? Texas 23, No. 6 Oklahoma 6
Oh – my – God: Northwestern 22, Penn State 21
NEXT WEEK
rankings are current AP (week 8)
Ticket to die for: No. 12 Tennessee @ No. 8 Alabama
Best non-Power Four vs. Power Four matchup: Washington State @ No. 19 Virginia
Best non-Power Four matchup: UNLV @ Boise State
Upset alert: Utah @ No. 18 BYU
Also: No. 20 USC @ No. 13 Notre Dame
Must win: No. 4 Ole Miss @ No. 9 Georgia
Offensive explosion: Air Force @ UNLV
Defensive struggle: Penn State @ Iowa
Great game no one is talking about: Arizona @ Houston
Intriguing coaching matchup: Mike Elko of Texas A&M vs Bobby Petrino of Arkansas
Who’s bringing the body bags? No. 22 Memphis @ UAB
Why are they playing? Washington State @ No. 19 Virginia
Plenty of good seats remaining: Georgia State @ Georgia Southern
They Shoot Horses, Don’t They? Lafayette @ Oregon State
Week 7 Thoughts:
Another monster week for college football, with great games abounding from noon Eastern through night, and upsets abounding in turn. Indiana proved that they are a considerable force to be reckoned with in defeating Oregon, on the road, no less. USC continues to quietly gain strength after losing to Illinois earlier in the year, this time by defeating ranked Michigan in rather convincing fashion. Colorado proved to have some fight within them by upsetting Iowa State on the road. Then we had the Red River Showdown, and the incredibly electric environment it always produces. Many in the sports commentary space had given Texas up for dead after their loss to Florida in the Swamp last week. The calculus was that since the Longhorns’ offense sputtered against the Gators’ defense, given that Oklahoma’s defense is even better, Texas would likely be demolished in Dallas. But as the great Lee Corso would say, “[N]ot so fast, my friend!” The Longhorns’ defense stepped up in a major way, cramping the performance of the Sooner’s star QB John Mateer as he returned to the line-up, going so far as to shut out OU in the second half and to deny them reaching the endzone the entire game. In so doing, Texas defense gave their offense time to get their sea-legs under them. Thus, Texas’ triumph was unexpected, and all the more savored.
Elsewhere, Pitt upset Florida State, in Tallahassee, no less, but perhaps the biggest upset of all came when Northwestern stunned Penn State in Happy Valley, 22-21. That loss came on the heels of the Nittany Lions already losing that heartbreaker to Oregon, then laying an egg on the road to UCLA. Now they have suffered this defeat, which is no ignominious and ill-timed that Penn State fired James Franklin today. Penn State’s current state was made all the worse with QB Drew Allar suffering a season-ending injury late in the game. What started out as a potential championship season for the Nittany Lions now lies in ruin.
Some near-upsets also occurred wherein Mizzou was on the verge of defeating favored Alabama before the Tiger’s QB threw a sudden pick that ended the drive and their hopes of victory. In a similar situation was Washington State, who ventured into Ole Miss and nearly defeated the home team before the Rebels somehow managed to escape with their skin intact. Arkansas presented a serious challenge to Tennessee, signaling that the Bobby Petrino Era 2.0 is on the rise in Fayetteville. Late into the night, Arizona took BYU in a second overtime before the Cougars managed to pull out the win.
What a week.
Random Thoughts:
UCLA was once the whipping boy of the B1G. Not anymore. Perhaps all it took was the firing of the inept DeShaun Foster, inter alia. But now the Bruins are a rising force in the conference. First, they massively upset Penn State at home last week. This week, they went on the road to dismantle Michigan State. Not a moment too soon, either, since all the remaining opponents – including Indiana and Ohio State – or nearly-ranked (e.g., Maryland and Washington). At this rate, their traditional rivalry game against USC should be one the best in Gen-Z’s living memory.
Meanwhile, has there been a team to more quietly advance up the rankings than Georgia Tech, at least recently? The Yellowjackets are currently undefeated (6-0), and have now reached the rank of No. 12.
College Football Awards, Week 5 (2025) September 29, 2025
Posted by intellectualgridiron in Sports.Tags: Akron, Alabama, Arkansas, Boise State, Bret Bielema, Brian Kelly, Cavaliers, college football, Dan Lanning, Drew Allar, FIU, Florida, Florida State, Garrett Nussmeier, Georgia, Houston, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, James Franklin, Kalen DeBoer, Kent State, Kentucky, Kirby Smart, Lincoln Riley, Louisville, LSU, Memphis, Miami (FL), Miami (OH), Mike Norvell, Mississippi State, Missouri, NC State, NCAA, Nittany Lions, North Texas, Northern Illinois, Notre Dame, Ohio State, Oklahoma, Ole Miss, Oregon, Penn State, Purdue, Razorbacks, Ryan Silverfield, Sam Pittman, Seminoles, South Alabama, South Carolina, Texas, Texas Tech, Toledo, Trinidad Chambliss, UCLA, UConn, UMass, USC, Vanderbilt, Washington
add a comment
COACHES
Wish I were him: Dan Lanning, Oregon
Glad I’m not him: James Franklin, Penn State
Lucky guy: Bret Bielema, Illinois
Poor guy: Lincoln Riley, USC
Desperately seeking a wake-up call: Brian Kelly, LSU
Desperately seeking a P.R. man: Ryan Silverfield, Memphis
Desperately seeking sunglasses and a fake beard: Mike Norvell, Florida State
Desperately seeking … anything: Sam Pittman, Arkansas
TEAMS
Thought you’d kick butt, you did: Missouri (defeated UMass 42-6)
Thought you’d kick butt, you didn’t: Indiana (defeated Iowa 20-15)
Thought you’d get your butt kicked, you did: Akron (lost to Toledo 45-3)
Thought you’d get your butt kicked, you didn’t: South Alabama (lost to North Texas 36-22)
Thought you wouldn’t kick butt, you did: Notre Dame (defeated Arkansas 56-13)
Dang, they’re good: Oregon
Dang, they’re bad: Akron
Can’t Stand Prosperity: LSU
Did the season start? Florida State
Can the season end? UCLA
Can the season never end? Ole Miss
GAMES
Play this again: No. 6 Oregon 30, No. 3 Penn State 24, 2OT
Play this again, too: No. 13 Ole Miss 24, No. 4 LSU 19
Never play this again: No. 22 Notre Dame 56, Arkansas 13
What? No. 23 Illinois 34, No. 21 USC 32
Huh? No. 17 Alabama 24, No. 5 Georgia 21
Double-Huh?: No. 13 Ole Miss 24, No. 4 LSU 19
Are you kidding me?? No. 6 Oregon 30, No. 3 Penn State 24, 2OT
Oh – my – God: Virginia 46, No. 8 Florida State 38, 2OT
NEXT WEEK
rankings are current AP (week 6)
Ticket to die for: No. 3 Miami (FL) @ No. 18 Florida State
Best non-Power Four vs. Power Four matchup: Boise State @ No. 21 Notre Dame
Best non-Power Four matchup: FIU @ UConn
Upset alert: No. 16 Vanderbilt @ No. 10 Alabama
Must win: Mississippi State @ No. 6 Texas A&M
Offensive explosion: No. 11 Texas Tech @ Houston
Defensive struggle: No. 7 Texas @ Florida
Great game no one is talking about: No. 24 Virginia @ Louisville
Intriguing coaching matchup: Bret Bielema of Illinois vs Barry Odom of Purdue
Who’s bringing the body bags? No. 7 Penn State @ UCLA
Why are they playing? Kent State @ No. 5 Oklahoma
Plenty of good seats remaining: Miami (OH) @ Northern Illinois
They Shoot Horses, Don’t They? Campbell @ NC State
Week 5 Thoughts:
What a week for the game. We experienced a week in college football where the monster Saturday lived up to its hype. We witnessed an epic nighttime clash in Happy Valley; an interesting test for the No. 1 team in Seattle; a stunning upset Between the Hedges; defensive struggles in College Station and Iowa City alike; a near-upset in Starkville; and a statement game near The Grove. Did we also mention a Friday-night upset in Charlottesville, echoing one involving the same opponents almost 30 years ago to the day?
So, where to begin?
If we were to start with perhaps the biggest of all the games this day, why not start with the purported “ticket to die for”? What was a 3-3 tie at halftime became a 17-17 tie in regulation. Penn State struggled to get their running game established for the majority of the 60 minutes, but managed to put together some impressive runs late in the 4th quarter, enough to come back from a deficit to Oregon. Both teams scored in the first OT, Oregon answered with another TD in the 2OT, but botched their two-point attempt. The window for the Nittany Lions was open…only for it to close in an instant when Drew Allar threw an inexplicable pick to the right side of the field. What ended in huge triumph for Dan Lanning and the Ducks ended in turn as continued frustration for James Franklin & Co., who continue to search for a top-ten win.
Ohio State journeyed out to Seattle to take on undefeated, underrated Washington. The Huskies were prepared well to take on Ohio State, but the Buckeyes managed to slowly, gradually, subdue their hosts over the course of the game, winning 24-6.
Alabama came into a raucous Sanford Stadium at night to take on Georgia, and led for the majority of the game in an incredibly physical contest, walking out from Between the Hedges with a huge win that vindicates Kalen DeBoer’s tenure – for now – in Tuscaloosa, and continues Kirby Smart’s head-scratching Alabama woes.
The purported “defensive struggle” for this week, Kentucky @ South Carolina, turned out not to be for this pathetic prognosticator, as the Gamecocks surprisingly revived their offense to drub the Wildcats 35-13. Meanwhile, the true defensive struggle took place in College Station, where the home team Aggies beat Auburn 16-10. The Tigers have demonstrated to have a good defense, but to describe their offense as anemic would still be an understatement.
The other defensive struggle of note took place in Iowa City. Apparently, Indiana was still on Cloud Nine after ripping Illinois the previous week, for their offense seemed to take the week off. Meanwhile, Iowa, who seemed to discover their offense against UMass (does that even count?) only to lose it again when it counted two weeks later. That aside, an early 4th-quarter field goal put the Hawkeyes up 13-10 over the Hoosiers, who nevertheless answered in delayed fashion with a touchdown with 1:36 left in the game. It proved to be the decisive score, ending at 20-15 in IU’s favor.
Tennessee came calling at Mississippi State, amid more than 60,000 fans with clanging cow bells. The Bulldogs, undefeated prior to this game, put up an incredible fight against the Volunteers, staying close to the orange-clad team throughout regulation, where the teams ended in a tie. But Tennessee’s talent shined through in OT, allowing them to leave with a win, 41-34. Nevertheless, if Mississippi State’s performance is any indication, they can make life difficult for many subsequent teams on their conference schedule.
Meanwhile, a true ‘statement game’ unfolded in Vaught-Hemingway Stadium. Despite No. 4 LSU drawing first blood in this huge game, home team (and No. 13-ranked) Ole Miss quickly took the lead, and never looked back for the remainder therein. Backup QB Trinidad Chambliss contributed 385 of total offense, including a 20-yard completion for a 4th-down conversion that sealed the game. This decisive win was a ‘statement’ in that it proved the Rebels belong in the conversation as part of the highest tier in the brutal SEC. Conversely, this loss to a major rival raises lots of questions for LSU. Fans were already grumbling over what they perceived to be an unconvincing win over dubious Florida earlier this month. Imagine the grumbling in Bayou Country right now. Perhaps instead of complaining about whether the scrutiny over his coaching is justified, perhaps Kelly should work to develop an offense that takes advantage of QB Garrett Nussmeier.
Finally, Friday night yielded perhaps the greatest upset of the week, when No. 8 Florida State came into town to play unranked Virginia. The Cavaliers played the undefeated Seminoles closely throughout the game, even taking the heavily-favored visitors into overtime. Throngs of students gathered on the grassy slopes behind Scott Stadium’s northwest endzone in anticipation of their Virginia team coming through, which they did when Florida State failed to convert in the second overtime. Instantly, the fans filled the field in wild celebration. This 46-38 win echoes a similar upset 30 years earlier, when, on a Thursday night game on Nov. 2, 1995, then-No. 2 Florida State came to town, only to leave Charlottesville with their first loss of the season (and Virginia’s first-ever win over the vaunted Seminoles). Time to party like it’s 1995!
Random Thoughts:
Here we thought that Syracuse was a good team, I guess, because they beat Clemson. Then they go on to lose a home game in embarrassing fashion to Duke. What gives?
Remember how we thought that Arkansas’ defense taking leave of the entire second half against Memphis was a fluke? Perhaps it was not after all, given the drubbing the Razorbacks just took at home to Notre Dame. Sam Pittman just nudged Billy Napier out of the No. 1-coach-on-the-hotseat-in-the-SEC spot after sustaining the Razorbacks’ eighth-worst loss at home.
College Football Awards, Week 4 (2025) September 22, 2025
Posted by intellectualgridiron in Sports.Tags: Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, Army, Auburn, Bret Bielema, Clemson, college football, Curt Cignetti, Dabo Swinney, Florida State, Georgia, Hugh Freeze, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa State, Kent State, Kentucky, Kyle Whittingham, Lincoln Riley, Louisville, LSU, Maryland, Memphis, Miami (OH), Michigan, Mike Locksley, Navy, NCAA, Nebraska, North Texas, Northwestern, Notre Dame, Ohio State, Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, Ole Miss, Oregon, Oregon State, Penn State, Pittsburgh, Red Raiders, Rice, Ryan Silverfield, Sam Pittman, South Carolina, Steve Angeli, Syracuse, Texas Tech, Tulsa, UCLA, USC, Utah, Utes, Wisconsin
add a comment
COACHES
Wish I were him: Curt Cignetti, Indiana
Glad I’m not him: Hugh Freeze, Auburn
Lucky guy: Ryan Silverfield, Memphis
Poor guy: Sam Pittman, Arkansas
Desperately seeking a wake-up call: Kyle Whittingham, Utah
Desperately seeking a P.R. man: Mike Locksley, Maryland
Desperately seeking sunglasses and a fake beard: Bret Bielema, Illinois
Desperately seeking … anything: Dabo Swinney, Clemson
TEAMS
Thought you’d kick butt, you did: Florida State (defeated Kent State 66-10)
Thought you’d kick butt, you didn’t: North Texas (defeated Army 45-38)
Thought you’d get your butt kicked, you did: Oregon State (lost to No. 6 Oregon 41-7)
Thought you’d get your butt kicked, you didn’t: Army (lost to North Texas 45-38)
Thought you wouldn’t kick butt, you did: Indiana (defeated No. 9 Illinois 63-10)
Dang, they’re good: Oklahoma
Dang, they’re bad: Oklahoma State
Can’t Stand Prosperity: Illinois
Did the season start? Utah
Can the season end? Clemson
Can the season never end? Indiana
GAMES
Play this again: No. 11 Oklahoma 24, No. 22 Auburn 17
Play this again, too: No. 21 Michigan 30, Nebraska 27
Never play this again: No. 7 Florida State 63, Kent State 10
What? Maryland 27, Wisconsin 10
Huh? Memphis 32, Arkansas 31
Are you kidding me?? Tulsa 19, Oklahoma State 12
Oh – my – God: No. 19 Indiana 63, No. 9 Illinois 10
NEXT WEEK
rankings are current AP (week 5)
Ticket to die for: No. 6 Oregon @ No. 2 Penn State
Hon. mention: No. 4 LSU @ No. 13 Ole Miss
Best non-Power Four vs. Power Four matchup: N/A
Best non-Power Four matchup: Rice @ Navy
Upset alert: Arizona @ No. 12 Iowa State
Must win: Auburn @ No. 9 Texas A&M
Offensive explosion: (inconclusive)
Defensive struggle: Kentucky @ South Carolina
Great game no one is talking about: Louisville @ Pittsburgh
Intriguing coaching matchup: Bret Bielema of Illinois vs Lincoln Riley of USC
Who’s bringing the body bags? South Alabama @ North Texas
Why are they playing? UMass @ No. 23 Missouri
Plenty of good seats remaining: UCLA @ Northwestern
They Shoot Horses, Don’t They? Lindenwood @ Miami (OH)
Week 4 Thoughts:
The Texas Tech-Utah game reminded us fans that one can have a defensive struggle for a game, and still enjoy an exciting contest. That being said, the aforementioned defensive struggle lasted for three of the four quarters of the game. Then in the 4th quarter, things finally clicked offensively for the Red Raiders, they opened up the game, and the Utes had no answer, hence the lopsided score in the end.
A random observation: since the Utes elected to wear white helmets at home, how come Texas Tech could not wear their signature black helmets to further, and properly, differentiate themselves on the field? Furthermore, do not get me started on the irony of how I predicted this game to be an offensive explosion, only for it to materialize as a defensive struggle instead…for three quarters, at least.
That said, the best game of the week was definitely the showdown in Norman, Okla., between the Sooners and visiting Auburn. Both teams had good talent; both fought hard throughout the game. Underdog Auburn was certainly, and commendably, game for the fight, but in the end, did not quite have enough offense to overcome the favored home team. But what a game. This win should put the rest of the western half of the SEC on notice that the Sooners are not to be taken lightly.
Meanwhile, what was the “ticket to die for” on paper was at…Indiana University? That’s right. No. 9 Illinois came calling to play at No. 19 Indiana, on an NBC night game, no less. In what was perhaps the most electric atmosphere ever in Bloomington, Ind., the Hoosiers threw down the gauntlet early when drawing first blood at 9:35 in the 1st quarter, off a blocked punt, no less. While Illinois seemed to answer the challenge with their own score only 1:01 later, that answer proved anemic, as the Hoosiers then ripped off eight unanswered scores in what amounted to one of the biggest blowouts of the week. All the Illini could muster within IU’s eight-score stretch was a sad field goal right before halftime. Not exactly the expected performance of a No. 9-ranked team: concurrently, can we acknowledge the possibility that this year’s IU squad is even better than last year’s surprise playoff team?
Random Thoughts:
Syracuse triumphed over Clemson, in [the other] Death Valley, 34-21. A couple of weeks ago, this would be considered a massive upset. But going into this game, the Orange was 2-1, while the Tigers were unranked at 1-2. Given that context, is the Orange’s win even an upset? Not to put a bad spin on Syracuse’s big win, but it came at the cost of an injury (the crutches-and-protective-boot kind) to their starting QB, Steve Angeli, meaning that this victory could prove to be Pyrrhic.
Where was Arkansas’ defense in the second half? Their defense allowed for 18 answered points scored, in turn allowing for Memphis to pull off a stunning upset.
So, next week should be a monster one for the sport that we love. In addition to Auburn and Texas A&M; LSU and Ole Miss; Alabama and Georgia; plus Oregon and Penn State knocking heads, plenty other interesting matchups abound. TCU plays Arizona State; Notre Dame plays Arkansas; USC plays Illinois; Cincinnati plays Kansas; Louisville plays Pittsburgh; Indiana plays Iowa; Tennessee plays undefeated Mississippi State; Arizona plays Iowa State; Ohio State plays Washington; and BYU takes on Colorado. To express things another way, for once, there is a dearth of body bag games this week (potentially two, and that is it). Let us give thanks to the Lord our God, and buckle up, buckaroos.
College Football Awards, Week 1 (2025) September 2, 2025
Posted by intellectualgridiron in Sports.Tags: Alabama, Arch Manning, Army, Bill Belichick, Boise State, Brent Key, BYU, Chris Klieman, Clemson, college football, College Gameday, Colorado, Deion Sanders, ESPN, Florida International, Florida State, Georgia, Georgia Tech, Illinois, Iowa, Iowa State, James Madison, Jeff Monken, Kalen DeBoer, Kansas, Kansas State, Kentucky, Lee Corso, Longhorns, Louisville, LSU, Marshall, Matt Patricia, Miami (FL), Miami (OH), Michigan, Mike Norvell, Missouri, NCAA, North Carolina, North Texas, Notre Dame, Ohio State, Oklahoma, Penn State, Rutgers, Ryan Day, San Jose State, South Carolina, Steve Sarkesian, Syracuse, TCU, Temple, Texas, Toledo, UConn, UMass, Virginia Tech, Western Michigan
add a comment
COACHES
Wish I were him: Ryan Day, Ohio State
Glad I’m not him: Steve Sarkesian, Texas
Lucky guy: Brent Key, Georgia Tech
Poor guy: Deion Sanders, Colorado
Desperately seeking a wake-up call: Chris Klieman, Kansas State
Desperately seeking a P.R. man: Mike Norvell, Florida State
Desperately seeking sunglasses and a fake beard: Jeff Monken, Army
Desperately seeking … anything: Kalen DeBoer, Alabama
TEAMS
Thought you’d kick butt, you did: Illinois (defeated Western Illinois 52-3)
Thought you’d kick butt, you didn’t: Kansas State (defeated North Dakota 38-35)
Thought you’d get your butt kicked, you did: Marshall (lost to No. 5 Georgia 45-7)
Thought you’d get your butt kicked, you didn’t: Toledo (lost to Kentucky 24-16)
Thought you wouldn’t kick butt, you did: Temple (defeated UMass 42-10)
Dang, they’re good: Ohio State
Dang, they’re bad: UMass
Can’t Stand Prosperity: N/A
Did the season start? Kansas State
Can the season end? Army
Can the season never end? Florida State
GAMES
Play this again: No. 3 Ohio State 14, No. 1 Texas 7
Play this again, too: No. 9 LSU 17, No. 4 Clemson 10
Never play this again: BYU 69, Portland State 0
What? No. 3 Ohio State 14, No. 1 Texas 7
Huh? No. 9 LSU 17, No. 4 Clemson 10
Are you kidding me?? Florida State 31, No. 8 Alabama 17
Oh – my – God: Tarleton State 30, Army 27 (2OT)
NEXT WEEK
rankings are current AP (week 2)
Ticket to die for: Michigan @ Oklahoma
Best non-Power Four vs. Power Four matchup: James Madison @ Louisville
Best non-Power Four matchup: North Texas @ Western Michigan
Upset alert: UConn @ Syracuse
Must win: UCLA @ UNLV
Offensive explosion: Kansas @ Missouri
Defensive struggle: Miami (OH) @ Rutgers
Great game no one is talking about: Iowa @ No. 22 Iowa State
Intriguing coaching matchup: Frank Reich of Stanford vs Kalane Sitake of BYU
Who’s bringing the body bags? San Jose State @ Texas
Why are they playing? Florida International @ Penn State
Plenty of good seats remaining: Bryant @ UMass
They Shoot Horses, Don’t They? Eastern Washington @ Boise State
Week 1 Thoughts:
The 2025-’26 college football season has launched for real, and a few good games have helped the season launch more than respectfully. Indeed, in one of the greatest opening games in living memory, No. 1 Texas came to Columbus to play No. 3 (and defending national champ) Ohio State. Adding even more drama and poignancy to this already-historic matchup was the fact that this was legendary ESPN football commentator Lee Corso’s last appearance on the network’s College Gameday show. In a very classy farewell gesture, Corso, 90, wore a tuxedo for his farewell appearance. The Ohio State band formed the letters “CORSO” on the field right before kickoff, and he was joined by the Gameday crew a the 50 yard line of Ohio Stadium to deliver his final “headgear” stunt. Appropriately, he donned the Brutus Buckeye head. How could he not? Twenty-nine years ago, his first ever big-game outcome prognostication vis-à-vis donning the team’s mascot head was born at Ohio State, where he likewise put on Brutus’ head. It was more than fitting that he bookended his legendary body of work at ESPN by doing the same thing, in fitting tribute to the place where the cherished tradition began.
The game itself was incredible, with huge defensive plays abounding throughout the game. Ryan Day’s overall strategy of bringing in Matt Patricia from the NFL paid off handsomely. Patricia used his vast NFL experience to call up defensive schemes to make inexperienced Texas QB Arch Manning uncomfortable, and it showed in the Longhorns’ lack of offensive output throughout all but the last drive of the game. Still, Manning managed to exploit the occasional crack in the Buckeyes’ defense, and Texas was thus one pass completion away from taking the game into overtime.
In a larger sense, this loss on the part of the Longhorns shall not tank their season. Should Texas effectively regroup and make the playoffs come season’s end, surely their path shall cross that of Ohio State yet again. Should they do so, it is almost always impossible to beat the same formidable opponent again in the same season, as the Buckeyes demonstrated with devasting effectiveness against Oregon in the most recent Rose Bowl.
The Broader Line-up of Games
In what might become an annual tradition for the first week of college football awards each season, it is worth noting the many poor matchups among a few really great games. Once again, most of the matchups scream “[W]hy are they playing?” To wit (final scores indicated in parentheses):
Louisville vs EKU (51-17); Arizona State vs Northern Arizona (38-19); SMU vs East Texas A&M (42-13); BYU vs Portland State (69-0); Tulsa vs Abilene Christian (35-7); North Texas vs Lamar (51-0); Ole Miss vs Georgia State (63-7); Texas Tech vs Arkansas Pine Bluff (67-7); USC vs Missouri State (73-13); Florida vs Long Island University (55-0); Arkansas St. vs SE Missouri State (42-24); W. Kentucky vs North Alabama (55-6); Oklahoma vs Illinois State (35-3); Iowa vs Albany (34-7); James Madison vs Weber State (45-10); Memphis vs Chattanooga (45-10); Arkansas vs Alabama A&M (52-7); Oregon vs Montana State (59-13); Penn State vs. Nevada (46-11); Georgia vs Marshall (45-7); Iowa State vs South Dakota (55-7); Air Force vs Buckness (49-13); Boston College vs Fordham (66-10); West Virgina vs Robert Morris (45-3); UConn vs Central Conn. St. (59-13); Pittsburgh vs Duquense (61-9); Navy vs VMI (52-7); Illinois vs Western Illinois (52-3); Kansas vs Wagner (46-7); Florida International vs Bethune-Cookman (42-9); SDSU vs Stony Brook (42-0); Houston vs Stephen F. Austin (27-0); Missouri vs Central Arkansas (61-6); Oklahoma State vs Tennessee-Martin (27-7); Duke vs Elon (45-17)
I would add other games as well to the above litany, except that the intended punching bags managed to make the games somewhat respectable, such as Indiana vs Old Dominion (27-14); Wisconsin vs Miami (OH) (17-0); Minnesota vs Buffalo (23-10); Wyoming vs Akron (10-0); UNLV vs Idaho State (38-31); Kentucky vs Toledo (24-16) and Michigan vs New Mexico (34-17). The joke was truly on Army, who lost to lowly Tarleton State in the second overtime, 30-27.
As far as college football has evolved (e.g., the new playoff format), further evolution is clearly in order. To be sure, these absolutely atrocious lineups are likely a holdover of the recent time when one loss could potentially tank a team’s entire season. That is no longer the case, however, so going forward, it is not unreasonable for us fans to expect more marquee matchups such as the aforementioned Texas vs Ohio State, or Virginia Tech vs South Carolina, or Alabama @ Florida State, or Miami (FL) vs Notre Dame, and especially LSU @ Clemson, a memorable game in its own right. Likewise with Notre Dame @ Miami (Fla.), which turned out to be another fantastic game. More of these top-ten matchups, please! Moreover, Monday night matchup of TCU @ North Carolina, which happens to also be Bill Belichick’s college coaching debut, holds much promise as well.
Just do not expect to see such needed evolution take place next week, which shall deliver too many “why are they playing?” matchups as well.
