Week 2 Recap, Pt. I: The Top 25

Trying a different format this week. I'll be starting off with how my top 25 did, and then in subsequent posts go through everything alphabetically.

#2 Ohio State @ #3 Texas
My Prediction: Texas
Final Score: Ohio State 24, Texas 7
Thoughts: Well, that was...thorough. If Texas had scored on their second possession, momentum might've made it a completely different game, but as it is, Ohio State is definitely the better team. I'm somewhat surprised to see that the yardage was as close as it was (368-340), so the defense hasn't erased ALL doubts that I had, but LB James Laurinaitis made himself a star here. Troy Smith (17/26, 269, 2 TD) made himself the top Heisman candidate, Colt McCoy (19/32, 154, 1/1 TD/INT) looked fine, I really have nothing much to say besides that I'm optimistic about both teams, and again, Ohio State is definitely better.

Washington @ #4 Oklahoma
My Prediction: Oklahoma
Final Score: Oklahoma 37, Washington 20
Thoughts: That's more like it? The OU offense looked good, with Adrian Peterson (165, 2 TD) being his usual great self, and QB Paul Thompson (21/33, 272, 2/1 TD/INT) being improved, but Washington gaining 406 yards worries me. The UW passing game was kept mostly in check, with starter Isaiah Stanback only gaining 139, and backup Carl Bonnell throwing a TD in garbage time. However, the Huskies gained 226 on the ground. Kenny James broke a 54-yard TD run, and Louis Rankin (112 yards on 17 carries) also had a big day. A more impressive win for OU than over UAB, obviously, but I'm nervous. Washington...has some hope, and at the very least should beat Stanford.

#20 Penn State @ #5 Notre Dame
My Prediction: Notre Dame
Final Score: Notre Dame 41, Penn State 17
Thoughts: The yardage was close (432-417 UND), but like Texas-OSU, a fumble killed PSU's momentum early, and a later one was returned by Tom Zbikowski for a TD. Oh, and Brady Quinn rebounded quite nicely, going 25/36 for 287 and 3 TDs. Penn State is decent, and there are no real individual lines that stick out. Morelli went 21/33 for a TD and a pick, but also had the awful fumble Zbikowski got. UND, a lot like OSU, solidified themselves, but gave up big yardage, which still makes me worry a bit about their defense.

Central Florida @ #6 Florida
My Prediction: Florida
Final Score: Florida 42, Central Florida 0
Thoughts: The yardage tells it all: Florida 643, UCF 177. Ow. Chris Leak looked great (19/29, 352, 4/1 TD/INT), but at the same time, it does nothing to stop the Alex Rodriguez parallels. UCF would be Chris Leak's Devil Rays, or something. Florida actually turned it over thrice, while forcing none, which in a way makes the utter domination of this game even more impressive.

#7 Auburn @ Mississippi State
My Prediction: Auburn
Final Score: Auburn 34, Mississippi State 0
Thoughts: How to put this nicely. The MSU passing game sucks hard, with QB Tray Rutland going 12/25 for only 82 and a pick. The rushing game wasn't much better, with only 117 yards. Auburn is very good. QB Brandon Cox looked good (18/27, 249 yards, 2 TD), and while Kenny Irons (only 69 yards?) had a bad day, the slack was picked up by Brad Lester (40 yards and 2 TD on 5 carries.)

Arizona @ #8 LSU
My Prediction: LSU
Final Score: LSU 45, Arizona 3
Thoughts: ...wow. Well, Arizona has a ways to go, apparently. They were held to only 190 yards, and star QB Willie Tuitama went 8/17 for only 50 yards and 2 picks before being knocked out in the third. LSU had a balanced attack, rushing for 241 and passing for 230. Six Tigers ran for at least 20 yards, including QB JaMarcus Russell, who also threw for 196 and 2 TDs (and a pick) pasing. Very impressive win.

Central Michigan @ #9 Michigan
My Prediction: Michigan
Final Score: Michigan 41, Central Michigan 17
Thoughts: Admittedly, Washington is better than Central Michigan (I think.), but this is the type of win both Michigan and Oklahoma SHOULD'VE had. Rushing and defense, baby. Mike Hart had a huge day, running for 116 and 3 TD, and Kevin Grady added a score for good measure. The defense gave up 260 yards, most of it passing, but that's to be expected from a CMU team that kept having to play catch-up. They also forced 3 turnovers, including a Max Pollock INT returned for a TD. Chad Henne also played, throwing for 113 on 11/19 passing.

Troy @ #10 Florida State
My Prediction: Florida State
Final Score: Florida State 24, Troy 17
Thoughts: ...what? If not for two late INTs, Troy wins this one. Statistically, FSU won the yardage battle 419-304, but turned it over 3 times, and only ran for 83 yards (though Troy only got 33.) So somehow, Troy is lucky it was this close but Florida State is just as lucky that they won. The new Troy offense also seems to have taken, although those two picks make Omar Haugabook's 29/46, 219 yard, 1/3 TD/INT day look less pretty. This was...not good, and Jeff Bowden should be taken out back and...well, I don't know what.

Eastern Washington @ #11 West Virginia
My Prediction: West Virginia
Final Score: West Virginia 52, Eastern Washington 3
Thoughts: Not much to say, as both Slaton and White had short days. Slaton still managed to rush for 105 and 2 TDs though, yeesh. Star of the game: Backup QB Jarrett Brown, passing for 129 and a score, and rushing for 70 and a TD.

#12 Iowa @ Syracuse
My Prediction: Iowa
Final Score: Iowa 20, Syracuse 13 (2 OT)
Thoughts: Drew Tate better not get injured ever again. Backup QB Jason Manson's line: 14/28 for 178 yards, a TD and 4 picks. He was OUTPERFORMED BY PERRY PATTERSON. Thankfully for Iowa, this IS the Syracuse offense, and here's how the game ended with Syracuse having 1st and goal at the 5, needing a TD to send it to OT #3:
PLAY ONE: Penalty on Iowa
PLAY TWO: 1st down at the 2. Rush, one yard gain.
PLAY THREE: 2nd down at the 1. Rush, one yard loss.
PLAY FOUR: Iowa penalty, automatic first down.
PLAY FIVE: 1st down at the 2. Rush, one yard gain.
PLAY SIX: 2nd down at the 1. Rush, no gain.
PLAY SEVEN: 3rd down at the 1. QB sneak, no gain.
PLAY EIGHT: This is it. 4th down at the 1, chance number EIGHT! to get it in. Stuffed, game over.
Seriously, just forfeit.

#13 Louisville @ Temple
My Prediction: Louisville
Final Score: Louisville 62, Temple 0
Thoughts: Louisville outgained them 677-277. Brohm had 307 yards with a 1/1 TD/INT. The rushing game had 318 total yards and 7 TD. Temple is awful.

Florida A&M @ #14 Miami
My Prediction: Miami
Final Score: Miami 51, Florida A&M 10
Thoughts: Kyle Wright looked decent, going 13/18 for 166 and a TD. The real story was the running game, featuring Derron Thomas (109 yards), Javarris James (75 yards and a TD rushing, along with a 21 yard TD reception), Tyrone Moss (64 yards and a TD) and Charlie Jones (62 and 2 scores.) A good rebound game, especially in light of FSU-Troy.

Air Force @ #15 Tennessee
My Prediction: Tennessee
Final Score: Tennessee 31, Air Force 30
Thoughts: Well, maybe we jumped the gun. Air Force lost the game when they got a TD late and WENT FOR TWO!!!!!, but missed. The AFA defense held the Vols rushing game to 99 yards, and as a result the yardage battle was about even (432-424 UT.) An Erik Ainge INT also led to a scoring drive that fueled the Falcon comeback, putting a blemish on an otherwise great day for the Vols QB (24/29, 333 yards, 3/1 TD/INT.) A game that really could've gone either way, but who knows what it means in the grand scheme of the season.

Minnesota @ #16 Cal
My Prediction: Cal
Final Score: Cal 42, Minnesota 17
Thoughts: Excellent rebound game for Cal. The suspect pass defense allowed 243 yards, but picked off Gophers QB Bryan Cupito twice. The offense looked excellent, headed by the triad of RB Marshawn Lynch (139 yards, 2 TD), WR DeSean Jackson (114 yards, 3 TD), and, in probably the rebound performance of the week, QB Nate Longshore (22/31, 300 yards, 4 TD.) On the Minnesota side, Cupito had the two picks, but RB Alex Daniels had a decent day of 78 yards and a TD.

#17 Clemson @ Boston College
My Prediction: Clemson
Final Score: Boston College 34, Clemson 33 (2 OT)
Thoughts: Despite the result, I still think Clemson is the better team. They won the yardage battle 515-351, and would've won if not for BC returning the 2nd half kickoff for a touchdown. Or, of course, the blocked XP in OT. A fumble within the BC 10 also hurt, but BC also fumbled near their own 30, which basically gave back Clemson's lost touchdown. Both offenses looked good; Clemson had great performances from QB Will Proctor (25/40, 343, 2 TD) and RB James Davis (93 yards, 2 TD.) BC QB Matt Ryan also had a good night (22/38, 212, one passing TD, one rushing), and while RB L.V. Whitworth's 78 and a score on the ground may not look THAT impressive, he absolutely ran over the Clemson D en route to the winning score. BC's better than I thought they were, but I still think Clemson would win this 9 out of 10 times.

#18 Georgia @ South Carolina
My Prediction: Georgia
Final Score: Georgia 18, South Carolina 0
Thoughts: The Gamecock offense looked bad against Mississippi State, so I'm not sure how much credit to give to the Georgia D here. Still, SC QB Blake Mitchell was only held to 156, and the Gamecock running game didn't do much either. But at the same time, superfrosh UGA QB Matthew Stafford, forced into action due to injury, didn't look great either, throwing for 171 with 3 picks. Luckily, the running game bailed him out, with 205 yards and a TD through another team effort. A double-edged sword of a win; they shut out a Spurrier offense and mostly dominated despite a mediocre offense performance, but Stafford's showing raises some flags, especially now that Tereshinski is apparently out for 4-6 weeks.

#19 Virginia Tech @ North Carolina
My Prediction: Virginia Tech
Final Score: Virginia Tech 35, North Carolina 10
Thoughts: RB Branden Ore had the only impressive performance for the Hokies (111 yards and 3 TD), as VT only had 233 yards against a game UNC defense, which also forced 3 fumbles. However, UNC has Joe Dailey (10/17, 55 yards, 2 INT) at QB. Backup Cam Sexton (9/21, 124, 1/2 TD/INT) wasn't great, but still, he has to be better than Joe Dailey. Joe Dailey is really really horrible. And killed any chance of UNC getting momentum, as they remained in it for the first half. Joe Dailey is bad.

Nicholls State @ #21 Nebraska
My Prediction: Nebraska
Final Score: Nebraska 56, Nicholls State 7
Thoughts: Zac Taylor (19/23, 202, 4 TD)? Waaaaaaaaaaaaaaay better than Joe Dailey.

#22 Oregon @ Fresno State
My Prediction: Oregon
Final Score: Oregon 31, Fresno State 24
Thoughts: Pretty even yardage-wise, with Oregon taking the advantage 397-367. The Ducks scored after Fresno blocked a FG and botched the return, then later on a fake FG to get the win. Fresno QB Tom Brandstater looked bad (16/33, 150 yards, 1/2 TD/INT and a rushing TD), but RB Dwayne Wright (154, TD) picked up the slack. On the Oregon side, QB Dennis Dixon (23/36, 240) had a good night, and backup RB Jeremiah Johnson had 2 scores. Starter Jonathan Stewart was mostly unable to play, but did have one carry for a 3 yard TD. Oregon looked good, and Fresno had a CLOSE GUTTY PERFORMANCE!!!!, which if tradition holds up, means they'll be losing to Washington next week.

Nevada @ #23 Arizona State
My Prediction: Arizona State
Final Score: Arizona State 52, Nevada 21
Thoughts: ASU QB Rudy Carpenter looked excellent, throwing for 333 with 5 TDs and a pick. Nevada's Jeff Rowe, however, fell back to earth, with only 163 and a TD and 2 INT. A good win for Arizona State, especially for Carpenter.

#24 Texas Tech @ UTEP
My Prediction: Texas Tech
Final Score: Texas Tech 38, UTEP 35 (OT)
Thoughts: So, that high-powered Tech offense got outgained by UTEP 502-482. And this is despite UTEP's Jordan Palmer Interception Experience (34/51, 334, 3/2 TD/INT.) So, to summarize: Tech's offense doesn't look all that high-powered (especially when UTEP only came up 1 yard short of TTU through the air), and they still don't have a defense. This isn't the year.

UC Davis @ #25 TCU
My Prediction: TCU
Final Score: TCU 46, UC Davis 13
Thoughts: TCU QB Jeff Ballard (18/23, 190, TD) looked good and unconcussed. The running game had 293 yards. They won, as they should have. I just accidentally bit my lip. Ow.