Week 1 Recap (Akron-Houston)

Okay, let's do this. I'll do this in alphabetical order, at least for the time being. Rankings are from my own personal preseason top 25, the updated version will be the next post.

Akron @ #21 Penn State
My Prediction: Penn State
Final Score: Penn State 34, Akron 16
Thoughts: I thought Akron could at least give Penn State a scare, but PSU jumped out to a 17-0 lead and that was that. Penn State QB Anthony Morelli's line looks good in his first start (16/32, 3 TD) as he rightfully torched a MAC defense. Akron's slightly overrated; they're lucky to be in the MAC East, they'd be #3 or lower in the West. Penn State's about the level I figured: pretty good, in the 8-4 range, pending Morelli's development.

Hawaii @ Alabama
My Prediction: Alabama
Final Score: Alabama 25, Hawaii 17
Thoughts: Hawaii apparently fumbled within the 5 during the 3rd, so Hawaii actually could've tied it with a 2-point conversion on their last TD. Hawaii also had 92 penalty yards, jesus. Hawaii QB Colt Brennan aired it out for 349 yards on 44 attempts, and both of Hawaii's TDs unsurprisingly came through the air. Alabama WR Keith Brown had a big day with 134 yards and a TD on 6 catches, and QB John Parker Wilson had 256 yards and that TD on 16/29 passing. There may be life in the Alabama passing game, although this is in fact against a WAC defense.

BYU @ Arizona
My Prediction: BYU
Final Score: Arizona 16, BYU 13
Thoughts: BYU QB John Beck showed up, going 28/37 with 286 yards, but only one TD. Looks like turnovers prevented BYU from winning this one. Arizona seems to have won on defense and field goal kicking (K Nick Folk went 3/4), as neither QB Willie Tuitama (19/38 for 185 and 1/1 TD/INT) or the rushing game (69 net yards) look to have been that great. Arizona looks to be a solid team, though we'll see how they stack up in the Pac 10. I'd say this loss was worse for BYU than good for Arizona, but the poor showings of Utah and TCU make me think BYU could still make some noise in the Mountain West.

Northern Arizona @ #19 Arizona State
My Prediction: Arizona State
Final Score: Arizona State 35, Northern Arizona 14
Thoughts: This was tied through three quarters until Arizona State got an INT TD and one of those lightning fast offensive explosions that they can occasionally do. ASU QB Rudy Carpenter got picked off on the first drive; with a TD, who knows if the momentum results in an utter beatdown. Hopefully ASU can ride the momentum of that last quarter, but Oregon looked good enough to take over the #3 Pac 10 spot in my mind. At least the Sun Devils only play Cal in two and a half weeks, so maybe Carpenter can abuse whoever was (not) covering Robert Meachem.

Army @ Arkansas State
My Prediction: Army
Final Score: Arkansas State 14, Army 6
Thoughts: I thought that Army was at least at the level to beat Sun Belt teams. Whoops. Not only that, but only had 164 yards of total offense. Arkansas State, meanwhile, ran for 222. Arkansas State should be one of the top few Sun Belt teams, and Army? There's always the VMI game.

#1 USC @ Arkansas
My Prediction: USC
Final Score: USC 50, Arkansas 14
Thoughts: USC QB John David Booty: 24/36, 260 yards, 3 TD. Three freshman running backs each had a TD. The defense got 3 picks and forced 2 fumbles. The bad news for USC? Their kicker missed an extra point. God help us all. As for Arkansas...the rushing game got 100 yards. Mitch Mustain did not get obliterated and have his psyche crushed, going 4/6 with 1 INT and a rushing touchdown. Arkansas should improve, but they're obviously nowhere near the class of USC right now, which we should've known before the game.

Washington State @ #9 Auburn
My Prediction: Auburn
Final Score: Auburn 40, Washington State 14
Thoughts: Washington State was a snakebit team last year, so I thought this could be close. In actuality, not so much. Of their 12 drives, Wazzou gained negative yardage on 3, and less than 20 yards on another 5. The other four resulted in their 2 TDs, a pick, and time running out after the game was long gone. The Auburn offense looks good -- RB Kenny Irons ran for 184, and QB Brandon Cox didn't throw any picks. Defense gave up 115 rushing yards, but held Wazzou star WR Jason Hill to only 4 catches for 15 yards (though admittedly, one of those was for a TD.) I'm impressed, enough to move Auburn ahead of LSU for #2 in the SEC, at least for the time being.

Eastern Michigan @ Ball State
My Prediction: Ball State
Final Score: Ball State 38, Eastern Michigan 20
Thoughts: I thought BSU could continue to ride the momentum from last year's finish to a solid home win, and I was right. I assume starting QB Joey Lynch got hurt or just got the "starting" removed from his title, because someone named Nate Davis came in and wound up throwing 3 TDs. Star EMU WR Eric Deslauriers still had 10 catches for 127 yards and a TD, but somehow this was not enough. Actually, looking at the stats, this may have been a lucky win for BSU, as the team stats look pretty even except for EMU's 80 penalty yards. EMU QB apparently passed for 146 yards and a TD, and ran for 164 and another TD there. Ball State could be dangerous this year, but EMU's solid performance statistically makes me think they'll be fine as well.

#23 TCU @ Baylor
My Prediction: TCU
Final Score: TCU 17, Baylor 7
Thoughts: I actually watched most of this, and Baylor really could've won this one. Three things prevented them from doing so: Two untimely turnovers within the TCU 30, a lack of any consistent running game (44 yards total), and player after player going down with cramping in the last quarter and a half. TCU didn't look that great either: Only 95 rushing yards, and QB Jeff Ballard getting concussed after only 87 yards and a pick. Backup Marcus Jackson had his way with the tired D (11/13, 148 yards, 2 TD), but TCU still didn't show me much in this game. Baylor showed flashes early, including QB Shawn Bell (31/47, 286 yards, 1/1 TD/INT), and could beat some of the low-tier Big 12 teams.

Sacramento State @ Boise State
My Prediction: Boise State
Final Score: Boise State 45, Sacramento State 0
Thoughts: There's really not much to say. Yes, a top-tier mid-major is better than Sacramento State. Sucks to be Dan Hawkins, but we'll get to that.

Boston College @ Central Michigan
My Prediction: Boston College
Final Score: Boston College 31, Central Michigan 24
Thoughts: Saw this one. Closer than I'd thought, and BC's streak of being pretty good but not great could come to an end. Matt Ryan shredded a MAC secondary like he should've (32/48, 321 yards, 2 TD), but the BC defense wasn't much better. CMU backup QB Dan LeFevour, a freshman, was forced into action early and did much better than he had any right to (22/37, 223 passing yards, 1/1 TD/INT, 71 rushing yards for 2 more TDs), and could've tied it late if not for the dumb pick that ended the game. CMU could be better than expected, but it seems more likely that this is the year BC comes down to earth.

Wisconsin @ Bowling Green
My Prediction: Wisconsin
Final Score: Wisconsin 35, Bowling Green 14
Thoughts: Bowling Green, if you haven't heard, is not going to be anywhere near as good as they've been lately. Backup QB Freddie Barnes was a bright spot, rushing for 150 yards and BGSU's 2 TDs, despite only 82 yards passing. Starter Anthony Turner should be back after being suspended for this game, though. Not much to say for Wisconsin as QB John Stocco (9/15, 124 yards, 1/1 TD/INT and a rushing TD) and RB P.J. Hill Jr. (128 rushing yards and a TD) had good but not spectacular efforts.

Temple @ Buffalo
My Prediction: Buffalo
Final Score: Buffalo 9, Temple 3 (OT)
Thoughts: I was hoping it'd be 6-3 in, say, 7 OTs myself. So, Temple is the worst team in I-A this year. Temple RB Tim Brown had 82 yards rushing on 20 carries, Buffalo's James Starks 86 on 14. Buffalo QB Drew Willy's name still makes me immaturely giggle.

#7 California @ #20 Tennessee
My Prediction: California
Final Score: Tennessee 35, California 18
Thoughts: I thought Tennessee could be dangerous and may squeak out a win, but oh jesus. Cal CB Tim Mixon is out for the year with an injury before this game, and god will he ever be missed. I forget the name of their new #2 CB, but he just got abused. I don't think Tennessee is this good, and I don't think Cal is this bad, but...jesus. To state the obvious, the Vols now become legit SEC contenders and while Cal remains #2 in my mind's Pac 10 rankings, they're now much closer to the rest of the pack than USC. I could go on about how bad Cal was (QB Nate Longshore looked lost, the defense just seemed demoralized), but if the Tennessee OL keeps Erik Ainge from doing his fainting goat impression, this may be another 2004 Auburn "oops we were one year early" situation. Even if I'm still slightly skeptical.

Eastern Kentucky @ Cincinnati
My Prediction: Cincinnati
Final Score: Cincinnati 31, Eastern Kentucky 0
Thoughts: In what will surely become a recurring theme, Cincinnati may be the most boring team in the NCAA to me. At least I can mock the really bad teams or the Sun Belt for being the Sun Belt, but Cincinnati is always mediocre to below-average. So, anyway, the Cincy defense had 3 picks and QBs Nick Davila (9/19, 115) and Dustin Grutza (9/14, 159) each had over 100 passing yards and a TD, so good for them.

Florida Atlantic @ #15 Clemson
My Prediction: Clemson
Final Score: Clemson 54, Florida Atlantic 6
Thoughts: Despite 4 turnovers, Clemson still crushed them good. No big performances yardage-wise (QB Will Proctor had 164 on 13/20 passing, RB James Davis led with 93 rushing), but field position made them unnecessary. Proctor threw for 3 TDs, and RBs Davis and Reggie Merriweather each had a score. Add in two return TDs off of fumbles, and this is domination. The big news for Clemson, however, is the loss for the season of LB Anthony Waters, last year's leading tackler. At the very least, Clemson still has LB depth (even despite the loss of Waters and Tramaine Billie), and monster DE Gaines Adams.

Montana State @ Colorado
My Prediction: Colorado
Final Score: Montana State 19, Colorado 10
Thoughts: Colorado got outgained 269-203. QB Joe Cox only went 8/22, and even All-World K Mason Crosby missed a FG. This wasn't a lucky win for Montana State, this was just an abysmal, abysmal performance for Colorado. Kansas State-worthy.

Weber State @ Colorado State
My Prediction: Colorado State
Final Score: Colorado State 30, Weber State 6
Thoughts: Well, come on, anyone can beat a I-AA. Weber State got held to -28 rushing yards. Yes, -28. All-MWC RB Kyle Bell was lost prior to the season due to injury, and replacement Gartrell Johnson scored 3 short-yardage TDs, which is a decent sign. QB Caleb Hanie also looked good, passing for 212 and a TD. I'd say results against I-AAs usually mean little, but, well, not this week.

Rhode Island @ Connecticut
My Prediction: Connecticut
Final Score: Connecticut 52, Rhode Island 7
Thoughts: The URI option attack ran for 198 yards, but UConn more than double that with 419. The UConn running game obviously looked good, with rushing TDs from Donald Brown (118 yards, 2 TD), star RB Terry Caulley (95 and a TD), Lou Allen (83, TD) and QB D.J. Hernandez (33 rushing and a TD). Hernandez also played effectively, going 8/13 for 149 yards and 2 TD.

Richmond @ Duke
My Prediction: Duke
Final Score: Richmond 13, Duke 0
Thoughts: Shut out. Duke was held to 190 yards total and only 46 rushing. By a I-AA team that I'm not sure is even any good. I don't care if their QB was suspended for plagiarism. God awful.

East Carolina @ Navy
My Prediction: Navy
Final Score: Navy 28, East Carolina 23
Thoughts: Another QB, another year where Navy should be fine. 403 yards rushing for the Midshipmen, 149 yards and a TD for QB Brian Hampton, and 97 and a score for FB Adam Ballard. ECU QB James Pinkney had a good line of 24/35 for 283 yards and a 2 TDs. Navy should have their usual (as of lately) above average record, and ECU still could make a run in the C-USA.

Southern Miss @ #6 Florida
My Prediction: Florida
Final Score: Florida 34, Southern Miss 7
Thoughts: Chris Leak is a good quarterback! For the time being. 21/30 for 248 yards and a 3/1 TD/INT. The UF defense had 3 picks. Florida remains my SEC favorite for the time being, and Southern Miss should be fine in the C-USA. That whole conference is pretty much wide open.

Florida International @ Middle Tennessee State
My Prediction: Middle Tennessee State
Final Score: Middle Tennessee State 7, Florida International 6
Thoughts: MTSU's always had the talent to be a Sun Belt champ, but has never done it. And judging from this game, that might continue, even despite the win. MTSU got outgained both through the air and on the ground, but managed to win due to a missed XP. MTSU QB Clint Marks only had 79 passing yards, which doesn't bode well. I think this, combined with Arkansas State's running all over Army, make ASU my current Sun Belt favorites, although as always, who knows with the Sun Belt.

#14 Florida State @ #12 Miami
My Prediction: Miami
Final Score: Florida State 13, Miami 10
Thoughts: Great defense, offensive incompetency. 9! rushing yards combined between teams, and the QBs weren't much better. FSU's Drew Weatherford went 16/32 for 174 and a pick, Miami's Kyle Wright 18/27 for 130 and a pick. Miami's secondary was mostly great on FSU's receivers, and Wright was too busy being chased down by FSU LB Buster Davis to know what was going on. I still have hope for both teams, but some results out of all that offensive talent would be nice.

Nevada @ Fresno State
My Prediction: Nevada
Final Score: Fresno State 28, Nevada 19
Thoughts: Star of the show: Fresno RB Dwayne Wright, coming back from being injured forever to rush for 3 TDs on 158 yards. Both QBs looked good: Fresno's Tom Brandstater, a new starter, completed lots of short passes to go 16/24 for 124 yards and a TD, and Nevada's Jeff Rowe went 18/34 for 183 yards and a score. Nevada kept their stock steady as the #3 WAC team, and Fresno almost did enough to make me buy them as a legit force before Oregon crushes their windpipes next week.

Western Kentucky @ #17 Georgia
My Prediction: Georgia
Final Score: Georgia 48, Western Kentucky 12
Thoughts: 12? You guys are slipping. An impressive team effort by Georgia, with TDs from 2 different QBs, 3 different RBs, and a kick return. As a result, no real impressive individual lines, although superfrosh QB Matthew Stafford failed to shit himself, going 3/4 for 40 yards and one of the aforementioned pass TDs.

#5 Notre Dame @ Georgia Tech
My Prediction: Notre Dame
Final Score: Notre Dame 14, Georgia Tech 10
Thoughts: GT WR Calvin Johnson? Very good (110 yards and a TD on 7 catches). They should, you know, throw it to him in the second half. UND QB Brady Quinn failed to live up to the Heisman hype statistically, but was very poised in going 23/38 for 246 yards, and rushing for the crucial TD of the game. Again, the obvious: Notre Dame is overrated but still good, Georgia Tech is probably going 7-5 again.

Houston @ Rice
My Prediction: Houston
Final Score: Houston 31, Rice 30
Thoughts: ADMINISTAFF BAYOU BUCKET! I thought this would be a slaughter for Houston, but Rice was actually up 30-14 going into the fourth. Rice's Quinton Smith rushed for 2 TDs and caught another, and the offensive star for Houston was unsurprisingly QB Kevin Kolb, going 22/35 for 233 yards and 3 TD. Rice was a missed XP from tying and thus possibly winning this game against the C-USA favorites, which makes the conference race seem even more wide open. I still have faith in Houston, however, and whether Rice can continue what seems like a successful transition to a new offense remains to be seen.

Okay, this is enough for one post. Stay tuned for part 2 later tonight.