Sep 1, 2016; Louisville, KY, USA; Louisville Cardinals quarterback Lamar Jackson (8) runs the ball past Charlotte 49ers linebacker Carl Yonter (47) for a touchdown during the first quarter at Papa John’s Cardinal Stadium. Photo Credit: Jamie Rhodes-USA TODAY Sports
Welcome to Week Two of The Lowe Down.
Whew!
The college football season started with a bang for the most part. That is unless you’re a fan of say, LSU, Oklahoma, UCLA, North Carolina, USC, Auburn, Notre Dame, Ole Miss, and, well … you catch my drift.
One negative about playing a capable opponent in a season opener is that a quality team has to lose. But when a team is challenged by a good team and loses, there can be significant takeaways, such as a coaching staff learning about a team’s strengths and weaknesses, what to work on, what adjustments to make, who can play and who can’t etc. etc.
With that said, one week doesn’t decide a season. Will it affect it? Sure, it can. But it doesn’t necessarily mean all is lost for a program that opened the 2016 campaign 0-1.
Now, for some of the aforementioned teams above, more losses are surely to follow. But expect one or two of those to bounce back and play well for the rest of the year. And with the salaries coaches are making these days, it will be interesting to see which ones do the best job of adjusting after disappointing losses.
Last week’s record was 16-5. To the games we go…
Friday, September 9
No. 13 Louisville (1-0) at Syracuse (1-0) 7:00 p.m. CT
Louisville starting quarterback Lamar Jackson, a rangy dual-threat who can flat out fly, accounted for a school-record eight touchdowns (six passing, two rushing) and 405 total yards at halftime in the Cardinals 70-14 rout of Charlotte last week. But the competition gets a little stiffer for Louisville when it takes on a Syracuse team that features a capable offense of its own under the command of first-year head coach Dino Babers (formerly of Bowling Green). Babers favors a warp-speed offensive approach and has a capable QB of his own in sophomore Eric Dungey. But the big matchup to watch when these two collide will be the Orange offensive line against the Cardinals’ front seven. If Syracuse can move the ball and score points, then it has a chance.
The Lowe Down: Louisville 43, Syracuse 26
Saturday, September 10
UCF (1-0) at No. 5 Michigan (1-0) 11:00 a.m. CT
Jim Harbaugh settled on Wilton Speight as his quarterback prior to the season opener against Hawaii and the third-year sophomore played well. Despite throwing an interception on his first pass, Speight settled down and competed 10 of 13 passes for 145 yards and three scores against an outclassed Warriors defense. His development will be crucial in September and October due to Michigan’s grueling road schedule (at Michigan State, at Iowa and at Ohio State) in the second half of the season. But in the meantime, look for Michigan to lean on its run game and defense to hammer out wins.
The Lowe Down: UCF 10, Michigan 48
Central Michigan (1-0) at No. 22 Oklahoma State (1-0)11:00 a.m. CT
After winning 10 games a season ago, Oklahoma State, which returns 19 starters off last year’s team, seems to be flying under the radar. But that might not be the case for long considering the Cowboys will host Pittsburgh, travel to Baylor and then host Texas and Iowa State after their date with the Chippewas. Last year, Central Michigan quarterback Cooper Rush played great (completed 28 of 41 passes for 225 yards; rushed for 51 yards and a score) in a tighter-than-expected 24-13 OSU season-opening road victory. He will need to duplicate that success if CMU wants to pull the upset in Stillwater Saturday morning.
The Lowe Down: Central Michigan 17, Oklahoma State 38
SMU (1-0) at No. 23 Baylor (1-0) 2:30 p.m. CT
Last year SMU hung around with Baylor in the season opener due to the play of quarterback Matt Davis, a dynamic athlete who has an innate ability for making the big play. But Davis is questionable (knee) for this week’s matchup with the Bears, which could open the door up for sophomore Ben Hicks as his replacement. Look, SMU is in over its head here, but if Davis can’t play the Mustangs are in real trouble. Seth Russell was sharp (14 of 20 for 163 yards and four TDs in the first half; didn’t play second half) in his return from a season-ending neck injury in the opener, and he, along with tailback Shock Linwood, could keep the Bears scoreboard operator busy squaring off against a really weak defensive team.
The Lowe Down: SMU 21, Baylor 69
Western Kentucky (1-0) at No. 1 Alabama 2:30 p.m. CT
The play of freshman QB Jalen Hurts has to have Nick Saban at least thinking about coaching for three more years — if not longer. Hurts made some unbelievable throws — and runs — last week en route to accounting for 150 total yards and four scores in the dominating win over USC. He could be the best athlete Alabama has had at QB since Kenny Stabler. Once again, the Bama D looks strong. It dominated one of the “supposed” best offensive lines in America by rushing just four men all night. That unit might face a quality passing test when WKU quarterback Mike White comes to town. Last week White threw for 517 yards and three scores in a 46-14 win over Rice. Regardless, Bama once again looks like the best team in America.
The Lowe Down: Western Kentucky 14, Alabama 52
Arkansas (1-0) at No. 15 TCU (1-0) 6:00 p.m. CT
New TCU quarterback Kenny Hill is familiar with Arkansas due to his time at Texas A&M. In fact, Hill passed for 386 yards and four touchdowns to spark an Aggies 35-28 overtime win over the Razorbacks during his freshman campaign in 2014. And although the past is the past, Hill likely enters this matchup with a lot of confidence, which is big for a QB. Hill’s counterpart, Austin Allen, should be able to find some seems in a TCU defense that allowed FCS foe South Dakota State to pass for 333 yards last week. That spells trouble facing off against a good Arkansas team that features a big offensive line, a tough group of runners and an underrated group of pass catchers, led by big-play wideout Drew Morgan and 6-foot-6 tight end Jeremy Sprinkle. The Hogs also boast a better D so… Woooo! Pig Sooie!
The Lowe Down: Arkansas 28, TCU 23
Arkansas State (0-1) at Auburn (0-1) 6:30 p.m. CT
Gus Malzahn played musical quarterbacks last week in Auburn’s close loss to Clemson. One minute it was Sean White. The next Jeremy Johnson. And the next John Franklin III. Even H-back Chandler Cox got a few snaps. But the most puzzling thing of all was that no QB was allowed to stay in long enough to get into a groove. Earlier this week, Malzahn said he’ll go with White as the starter and Franklin III as the No. 2. But who knows what we will see come Saturday night. The puzzling thing to me in all of this is that the offense needs a running QB to succeed. The whole scheme is based off Wing T principles, which involves a lot of modern day zone-read plays, misdirection, fakes, counters, reverses, deception and quarterback waggles, which gives the QB an option to run or pass. Therefore it is imperative that a runner is at the position in the offense. Two are on the roster (Franklin III and true freshman Woody Barrett) so it will be interesting to see if they get a look. With that said, Auburn’s D played fantastic against Clemson. So did kicker Daniel Carlson, a future pro. Now if that offense can come around…
The Lowe Down: Arkansas State 13, Auburn 34
Virginia Tech (1-0) vs. Tennessee (1-0) 7:00 p.m. CT (Bristol Speedway)
Tennessee was beaten like a punching bag all week by the football pundits for its performance against Appalachian State, and rightfully so. The Vols looked out of sync on offense, made mistakes and were surprisingly pushed around in the trenches, especially on offense. But all that can be forgotten with a solid performance against a Virginia Tech team armed with a new head coach (Justin Fuente), a new quarterback, 6-4, 235-pound dual-threat Jerod Evans, and a number of experienced playmakers on both sides of the ball. It’s always good to see how a team responds from adversity. That’s when you find out its true character. And I think the Vols respond here.
The Lowe Down: Virginia Tech 17, Tennessee 30
Washington State (1-0) at Boise State (1-0) 9:15 p.m. CT
Despite the stunning loss to Eastern Washington in the season opener, keep an eye on the Cougars this season. Junior quarterback Luke Falk, one of the nation’s best-kept secrets, leads an offense loaded with playmakers and experience, and the defense has continued to improve (it didn’t last week however) under the guidance of talented defensive coordinator Alex Grinch. Boise has a powerful offense, led by QB Brett Rypien, and it will score its share of points, but it had trouble with good passing teams a year ago and that will rear its ugly head here.
The Lowe Down: Washington State 42, Boise State 35
California (1-0) at San Diego State (1-0) 9:30 p.m. CT
San Diego State is riding an 11-game winning streak dating back to last season and enters a stretch where it will play three non-conference opponents (California, Northern Illinois and South Alabama) before entering Mountain West play. No offense to UNI and USA, but Cal is the big cheese of that bunch and a win would go a long way in securing a spot in next week’s Top 25. The Aztecs feature the NCAA’s active rushing leader in Donnel Pumphrey, who is on pace to shatter several records held by Marshall Faulk, a deep receiving corps, a veteran offensive line and a tenacious defense — which ranked fifth nationally in total D a year ago (287.3 ypg.) and is fresh off a shutout of New Hampshire. Cal quarterback Davis Webb stepped right in for Jared Goff and Cal’s offense didn’t skip a beat in the season opener. But the Golden Bears face a tough challenge here in what should be an electric environment at Qualcomm Stadium, home of the San Diego Chargers.
The Lowe Down: Cal 20, San Diego State 30
In other Saturday games:
Cincinnati 27
Purdue 34
Troy 10
No. 2 Clemson 56
Nevada 17
No. 18 Notre Dame 34
Tulsa 20
No. 4 Ohio State 57
Kentucky 17
Florida 30
Middle Tennessee 25
Vanderbilt 27
UTEP 17
No. 11 Texas 48
Northern Illinois 17
South Florida 36
North Carolina 23
Illinois 27
BYU 23
Utah 26
Texas Tech 48
Arizona State 38
Virginia 15
No. 24 Oregon 56
