Around The Campus: Wide Open Race, Alabama Down, Belichick Embarrassed, More Week 1 Takeaways ...Middle East

Week 1 of the college football season is in the books! We had some epic matchups come down to the wire, including a pair of top ten showdowns. Alabama, as we know it, is reeling. Is Kalen DeBoer the one to get them out of their spiral? Plus, Bill Belichick and the Tar Heels were embarrassed on Monday night, and a whole lot more. Let’s recap Week 1.

Wide Open National Title Picture

We got quite a few impressive Week 1 performances, but I’m not sure we saw one team really establish itself as the team to beat in college football this season.

Sure, there’s last year’s champions, Ohio State. They beat #1 Texas 14-7 at home while breaking in a new quarterback, running back, and multiple other starters on both sides of the ball. While they had the biggest win of the weekend, did their performance really leave us thinking they’re head and shoulders above the rest of the country?

I thought new quarterback Julian Sayin was fine, but I don’t think he blew anyone out of the water. However, Ohio State’s conservative playcalling didn’t really give him much of a chance to sink or swim. I’m not sure we learned a ton about him. On the other side of the ball, Ohio State’s defense looked great despite having to fully reload on the defensive line. But Texas QB Arch Manning also looked like he’s got a lot of development left to do, and Steve Sarkisian’s playcalling didn’t really help him out much either.

A lot of people are going to rag on Arch Manning, and I can’t really blame them. He looked uncomfortable. His throwing motion looked really long and wonky, almost sidearm at times. I’m not going to write the kid off just yet after having a really tough starting debut in arguably the most hostile environment in college football. But, if Texas is going to contend for a title, he’s going to have to be A LOT better. Maybe the hype train got a little out of control.

As for the other top ten matchups, LSU and Clemson both did some good things, but also struggled at times offensively. However, I do think what we saw from Garrett Nussmeier has him as the favorite to be drafted first overall this spring. The point total wasn’t eye-popping, but I thought he commanded the offense well and made some really nice throws when he needed to. He was already my favorite QB of the class heading into the season, but his Week 1 performance confirmed it for me.

In South Beach, Miami picked up a big win over Notre Dame. They looked outstanding in the trenches and had some playmakers do great things offensively, but also, despite controlling the game for most of the first three quarters, they allowed ND to climb back in late and tie it. Also, Carson Beck, when pressured, looked a little uncomfortable.

And as for the Irish, they played a ‘C-‘ game on the road against a Top 10 team and lost on a last-second field goal. They struggled in the trenches, and the playcalling on both sides of the ball was suspect, but their biggest question mark – freshman QB CJ Carr – looked pretty darn good in his first start, even with the one bad mistake late. Seeing both of those teams in the playoffs come December wouldn’t shock me in the slightest.

All of that to say is, I think we have a lot of good college football teams this season, but not sure we’ve seen a great one yet. The next few weeks should be a whole lot of fun as we learn more about these teams and see who starts to separate themselves from the pack.

Alabama Looked Brutal … But Let’s Give Florida State Some Credit

The most shocking result of the Week, in my opinion, was Florida State thumping Alabama by two touchdowns. No, 31-17 doesn’t exactly look like the final score of a blowout, but that game felt very much like one. Bama went down and scored on their first drive, and from that point forward, it was all Florida State.

First off, credit where it’s due. Thomas Castellanos looked awesome for the Seminoles, and Mike Norvell took a group that was on the mat after last year’s disaster and had them bought in and ready to play. They controlled the Tide the whole way after that first drive. That’s a heck of a coaching job for Norvell, who entered the year in a bit of a make-or-break situation.

Now, it’s Kalen DeBoer who looks to be in that make-or-break situation. DeBoer took over for Nick Saban at Alabama. That was always going to be a near-impossible task. Having said that, I’m not sure many envisioned Bama turning into whatever it is we saw on Saturday. That was a team that looked unprepared, and darn near uninterested in playing that football game. If we thought the pressure on DeBoer was intense heading into the season, it just got cranked up a whole lot more. The Tide is now just 5-5 in their last 10 games. That’s just not going to get it done.

A lot of people are celebrating the demise of the Alabama program. And honestly, I can’t blame them. The Tide owned college football for nearly two decades under Saban. It would be foolish to write a team off like that too early, but wow, whatever it is we saw Saturday didn’t even look like a shell of a Saban team; it looked like it was playing a different sport. DeBoer has a tall task ahead; otherwise, he might not make it through the season. As for the Seminoles, well, the ACC race just got even more interesting!

Bill Belichick & Tar Heels Embarrassed

For about five minutes on Monday night, it looked like Bill Belichick was putting the college football world on notice. North Carolina got the ball to start Monday’s game against TCU and drove down the field with ease. Seven plays, 83 yards, less than five minutes off the clock. Easy work. Then, not only did the wheels fall off, but the whole damn car fell apart.

TCU would then go on to score 41 (!!) unanswered points and embarrass the Tar Heels on their home field, in front of some high-profile figures in attendance. Now, credit where it’s due, TCU is a team that figures to compete in the Big 12 this season and has a veteran roster. However, there’s zero reason for a program like North Carolina to get embarrassed in that fashion in a season opener.

People have been questioning Belichick’s motivations at North Carolina, really, since he took the job. His operation has turned a bit into a media circus, which couldn’t be more different from how he ran things in New England. It’s only one game, but for those questioning Belichick and thinking the game might have passed him by, Monday’s performance was certainly a notch in their column.

It Was Awesome Seeing Big Games Played On Campuses

This is something that has become a bit of a pet peeve of mine over the past few seasons. For a while now, so many early, big non-conference matchups have taken place on neutral sites. This season, it felt like we took a bit of a step away from that.

In years past, Alabama and Florida State had met in Atlanta. This year, it was on campus. LSU and Clemson played at Clemson. Notre Dame and Miami played in Miami. Ohio State and Texas played in Columbus. Michigan and Oklahoma meet in Norman next week. It was a nice, refreshing change of pace not only to see these big matchups, but to see teams willing to go on the road early and face a stiff test in Week 1.

College football games are meant to be played in college towns, in college stadiums, in front of home fans. It’s part of what makes the games so great. Hopefully, this is a trend we continue to see going forward, and if we see the CFP Committee not punishing teams for losing tough, early road tests as much, I think there’s a good chance it will.

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