Alright, let’s start the college football season. What’s that you ask? You thought we started last week? Well, we did, and we had some big match-ups. But some teams that you will see below opened against the equivalent of Our Sisters Of The Poor, so they are just now joining the 2018 campaign. Let’s welcome those just embarking on their real 2018 season with the College Football Preview-Week 2.
College Football Preview-Week 2; A Starter
UCLA (0-1) @ Oklahoma (1-0); Saturday 1pm EST Fox
We would not ordinarily highlight a game where one team is a 30-point underdog, and at the end of it, all the oddsmakers may be dead on. Yet, there are a few intriguing story elements to the game. Oklahoma opened up last week by trashing Lane Kiffin’s Florida Atlantic Owls 63-14. Quarterback Kyler Murray was nine of 11 passing for 209 yards and two touchdowns in just under a half of play. The Sooners were up 42-0 at halftime and there was no need to tax the starters. Running backs Rodney Anderson and Trey Sermon combined for 169 yards and three touchdown runs, with their production limited, because they had only 14 total carries.
UCLA opened with a surprising nine-point loss to Cincinnati at home. The defense was much improved for three quarters, but the second quarter lapse was costly. The offense on the other hand was something less than notable. Starting quarterback Wilton Speight went out early with a back injury. Freshman Dorian Thompson-Robinson came in to go back to the sprint-out offense fans had been expecting. Results were mixed at best. UCLA had 24 players making on-field debuts, including Thompson-Robinson and his center Christaphany Murray, (the first freshman to start the season at center at UCLA since 1982). It will be a lot of young players making their first major trip to a storied venue.
The last time UCLA and Oklahoma played was back in 2005, (Heisman winner Adrian Peterson had 58 yards). Chip Kelly has never lost back-to-back games in college. Well…..
Georgia (1-0) @ South Carolina (1-0); Saturday 3:30pm EST CBS
Georgia took the first week off by playing FCS school Austin Peay and winning 45-0. The Bulldogs scored on their first six series of the game went up 38-0 before calling off the proverbial hounds. Jake Fromm threw for 157 yards. Demetris Robertson had one carry for 72 yards. But seriously, the stats mean nothing. Neither does the game film. It was Austin Peay. What matters for Georgia to this point is the ability to replace game breakers like Sony Michel and Nick Chubb, and by all counts, the talent is there. Expect Robertson and running back D’Andre Swift to need more work this week for the Bulldogs to have success.
The Gamecocks at least played an FBS school in their 49-15 route of Coastal Carolina. Quarterback Jake Bentley threw for 250 yards and Rico Dowdle ran for 105 yards in limited action. Regardless of the stats coming against an inferior opponent, the results, coupled with being at home, have Gamecocks fans with feathers in a flurry over this weekend’s match-up. South Carolina is going to have to play turnover free ball, rely on a veteran offensive line and have the re-vamped offense that is run-first, produce yards, kill clock and keep the Georgia offense off the field. Last Word’s David Knight looked at it from the South Carolina standpoint earlier this week.
Clemson (1-0) @ Texas A&M (1-0); Saturday 7pm EST ESPN
Two teams who had a BYE last week by picking on unworthy opponents. Clemson beat local whipping boy Furman 48-7. Like some of the other teams mentioned, there is little to be gained by revisiting the game or the highlights for they have no bearing on facing a real opponent. Kelly Bryant is still going to start at quarterback, but we should expect to see plenty of eventual starter, freshman Trevor Lawrence.
If you have not seen Clemson recently, the thing to watch is the defense. It returns eight starters from last year and is rock solid. Actually, their promotional material calls them the Steel Curtain, after the NFL’s Pittsburgh franchise of the 1970’s, so that is kind of silly. Pittsburgh was actually called the Steelers and came from a steel city. Clemson’s defense needs a new nickname, but they are the ones who give the offense their opportunities to pile up the points.
Texas A&M’s new coach Jimbo Fisher obviously knows Clemson well from his days at Florida State in the ACC. Fisher was 4-4 against Clemson during his years in Tallahassee, but lost three in a row to Dabo Swinney and the Tigers before heading out to College Station. The Aggies “played” Northwestern State (Northwestern State University of Louisiana if you want to get technical), last week with a 59-7 win. Forget the points put up. This is not the Kevin Sumlin spread offense of years past. A&M is using a tight end. Quarterback Kellen Mond was mixing in snaps from under center. Trayveon Williams carried the day on the ground with 240 yards rushing. This is more pro-style than what the Aggies have seen in years, against a defense that will all be headed to the pros soon enough.
USC (1-0) @ Stanford (1-0); Saturday 8:30pm EST Fox
Believe it or not, we have ourselves a huge conference game, right here in week 2. USC is coming off an expected win over UNLV and Stanford beat San Diego State. But now things get real.
USC is led by freshman quarterback JT Daniels. He would have been a senior in high school this year, but he is 19-years-old, so he is mature and ready for big-time football. Unlike some other quarterbacks above, he didn’t get to take a seat at halftime. Daniels was 22 of 35 for 282 yards and a touchdown in his college debut. The Trojans have plenty of weapons on offense with depth at receiver and enough to work with at running back. What is going to challenge them this week figures to be on defense. They gave up 308 yards rushing to UNLV and now they get a dose of Bryce Love.
For his part, Love was held to 29 yards by San Diego State last week. Coach David Shaw stuck to his vow to diversify the offense and not make it an “all-Love team” each week. The evidence lies in quarterback K.J. Costello going 21-of-31 for 332 yards and four touchdowns in an offense that was more wide open than in last year.
Two stats to keep in mind as you watch the game. USC beat Stanford twice last year, including in the Pac 12 title game as they held Bryce Love in check. The other; David Shaw is 22-2 in September as head coach at Stanford.
