College Football: Week 1 Recap

Thank you everyone who voted!

1. The winner for stadium you would most like to attend was Michigan Stadium
2. The winner for best moment from the 2011 College Football season was Michigan beating Notre Dame on a Denard Robinson TD pass with 2 seconds remaining in the game.

WEEK 1 RECAP

My Record: 8-2   losses: Clemson over Auburn & Ohio over Penn State

Best Game from Week 1: Northwestern 42, Syracuse 41

What a way to end the first weekend of College Football with an overtime thriller between Virginia Tech and Georgia Tech. There is a lot to talk about after the first weekend of the College Football season. Penn State struggled in the second half and was upset by a solid Ohio team 24-14. Alabama dismantled Denard Robinson and Michigan from the start of the game. The game was over by halftime as the Crimson Tide led 31-7. There was also some phenomenal play at the quarterback position this weekend. Geno Smith of West Virginia threw for an impressive 323 yards and four touchdowns in route of Marshall 69-34. Matt Barkley passed for for 377 yards and four touchdowns, as they manhandled Hawaii 49-10 in the LA Coliseum.  The debut of Oregon Quarterback Marcus Mariota couldn't have been any better, as he went 18 of 22, passed for 200 yards, and had three touchdown passes. Mariota's night was finished at the beginning of the second quarter as the Ducks were already up to a commanding 43-3 lead. There was also great play at the running back position as well. Michigan State's Le'Veon Bell helped Sparty beat Boise State 17-13, as he had 44 carries for 210 yards and two touchdowns. Clemson's Andre Ellington was key in his team's win over Auburn, as he had 26 carries for 231 yards. Lastly, Alabama found a new star in the making in true freshman T.J. Yeldon, as he had 11 carries for 111 yards and one touchdown.

WHAT WE LEARNED:

-Tennessee is going to be a much improved team this season and could contend in the SEC East Division. Tyler Bray threw for 333 yards and two touchdowns in their win over NC State Friday night in Atlanta 35-21.

- Boise State is clearly not as talented this season and will not be a BCS contender, as they lost to Michigan State 17-13.

- Alabama may be just as good, if not better, then they were last season. Alabama held Michigan to 69 rushing yards and didn't let Denard Robinson run for more than nine yards on a single play. The Crimson Tide offense looked solid with QB AJ McCarron and true freshman RB T.J. Yeldon. The offensive and defensive lines played very physical Saturday night, and will be very good again this season.

- Oklahoma State could be a contender in the Big 12 again this season. It was only FCS Savannah State, but the Cowboys won 84-0 and covered a 67 point spread. This Cowboy team has the chance to be as dynamic as they were the last two seasons.

- Nebraska's Taylor Martinez improved as a passer in the off-season. We won't be able to see how far he has come as a passer until the Big Ten season begins, but he passed for an impressive 354 yards and five touchdowns. The Huskers ended up beating the Southern Miss Golden Eagles 49-20.

- Oregon's Marcus Mariota may potentially be the best quarterback to ever run Chip Kelly's offense. It's not many times you see a quarterback come into this system and play lights out in their first game. It also helps to have RB Kenjon Barner and explosive WR De'Anthony Thomas, who caught two touchdowns from Mariota.

- The MAC Conference is continuing to be more and more talented every year. Arizona, Florida, Iowa, and Penn State may not be that talented, but they sure were tested. Rich Rodriguez, with a disappointed look on his face as always, looked to have his first win in regulation. Then Arizona missed an easy 25-yard field goal and had to find a way to beat Toledo in overtime  24-17. Florida struggled to score against Bowling Green, and were only up 17-14 after the third quarter. In the fourth, the Gators finally pulled away and won 27-14. Like I predicted, Iowa was going to find a way to win the game in the last few minutes. Iowa was down almost the whole game, but ran a touchdown in with 2:15 left in the game to beat Northern Illinois 18-17. Lastly, it was Ohio, who actually did pull off the upset against Penn State. Head Coach Frank Solich and his squad blanked the Nittany Lions in the second half and ruined Bill O'Brien's coaching debut.

FINAL THOUGHT:

There are three teams that we are really going to need to pay attention to. The first team, South Carolina, struggled to beat Vanderbilt on Thursday night. The Gamecocks had to rely heavily on RB Marcus Lattimore to help them win 17-13. The nation is unsure if they are even worthy of a number nine ranking. The second team, Michigan State, could be even more dangerous then we thought. The Spartan's rushing attack will be lethal with Le'Veon Bell and the defense will be solid as well. The Spartan defense held Boise State on Friday night to just 37 rushing yards. Lastly, West Virginia will be a heavy contender in their first season in the Big 12 Conference. QB Geno Smith was unstoppable against Marshall, and will have RB Shawne Alston and WR Stedman Bailey to assist him this season.