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A week ago, the college football world hailed Notre Dame’s road win over Texas A&M as one of the toughest of the weekend and, given the remaining schedule, dubbed the Irish one of the favorites to make the College Football Playoff.
So, about that schedule…
Week 2 brought us some hangovers on Saturday, none bigger than Notre Dame’s home loss to Northern Illinois. Phew! Penn State was a bit dazed, too. The Nittany Lions trailed for most of the game against Bowling Green before pulling out a seven-point win.
That wasn’t the case for the Irish, who lost another disconcerting game under Marcus Freeman. Remember the losses to Stanford and Marshall during his freshman year and last year’s blowout at Louisville? The loss to UNI may be the worst of all.
For the MAC Huskies, it’s their first top-10 win in school history and moves them into our own Top 10.
What else happened in week 2?
Well, let’s start with Texas, which marched into Ann Arbor and defeated Michigan in one of the most dominant and impressive performances of the year so far. Pitt and Oklahoma State rallied from double-digit deficits to earn wins over Cincinnati and Arkansas, respectively. And Kansas State needed a controversial offensive pass interference call to survive Tulane.
Did you see what happened at Jordan-Hare Stadium? Cal — yes, Cal of the ACC — made the round trip to Auburn and won 21-14. The SEC is 5-6 against other power leagues in the nonconference slate so far.
Plus, we had two last-second field goals for the win in Iowa City (Iowa State over Iowa) and College Park (Michigan State over Maryland).
No more needs to be said. Let’s move on to the Top 10!
A reminder about our rankings: we don’t take into account any preseason polls or any results from previous seasons. What happened in the past is, well, in the past. What matters is who you beat and how you beat them!
Ohio State, which has played teams such as Western Michigan and Akron, is not in our poll. Neither is Ole Miss, which opened with Furman and Middle Tennessee. This system typically rewards teams with tougher opponents early in the season, but it also creates an unusual group in the first few weeks.
1. Georgia Bulldogs
This week: beat Tennessee Tech 48-3
Next week: in Kentucky
Trevor Etienne made his Georgia debut after a suspension in the season opener, rushing for 78 yards on just five carries, including a 45-yarder. This highlighted UGA’s rout of the FCS Eagles. Even Carson Beck’s backup, Gunner Stockton, had his way, completing 10 of 12 passes for 90 yards. The Bulldogs remain our best team with that neutral-field win over Clemson in Week 1.
2. Texas Longhorns
This week: beat Michigan 31-12
Next week: vs. UTSA
If the hype around this Texas team and QB Quinn Ewers wasn’t already at an all-time high, it is now. The Longhorns manhandled Michigan and further exposed the Wolverines’ offensive ineptitude. Sherrone Moore has some big things to fix in Ann Arbor. Meanwhile, Steve Sarkisian appears to have a championship-caliber team, led by a projected first-round QB. Ewers flashed three touchdowns and 246 yards in the Big House.
3. Miami Hurricanes
This week: beat Florida A&M 56-9
Next week: vs. Ball State
The Hurricanes crushed the FCS Rattlers. The season-opening win in Florida may not seem like a huge win at the end of the season, but it’s enough to keep the Canes in the top five. Have you seen their schedule? You should check it out. Miami might not play a ranked team until Oct. 19 at Louisville, which could also be their toughest test of the regular season.
4. USC Trojans
This week: beat Utah State 48-0
Next week: goodbye
The Trojans aren’t hungover after their Week 1 win over LSU. The revamped defense has looked great through the first two weeks of the season and that bodes well for a future Big Ten slate that includes Michigan, Penn State and Nebraska. Miller Moss and his plethora of receivers are dangerous, but on Saturday, Lincoln Riley showed the Trojans can run the ball just as well.
5. Tennessee Volunteers
This week: beat NC State 51-10
Next week: vs. Kent State
Under offensive-minded coach Josh Heupel, the Vols’ offense gets a lot of attention, but what about the defense in this game? Defensive coordinator Tim Banks’ unit held the Wolfpack to 143 yards, forced three turnovers and had three sacks. The unit was responsible for a key play just before halftime. With NC State inside the UT 20-yard line and needing a touchdown to tie the game, Tennessee defensive back Will Brooks intercepted Grayson McCall and returned it for an 85-yard score and a 14-point gain on the game.
6. Penn State Nittany Lions
This week: beat Bowling Green 34-27
Next week: goodbye
Last week, James Franklin told reporters that the country wasn’t talking enough about the Nittany Lions’ defense. Well, now they’ll be talking about them, and not in a good way. Penn State trailed for most of the game against the MAC Falcons and that PSU defense gave up nearly 400 yards. Bowling Green converted seven of 13 third downs! Franklin’s group remains in our Top 10 with that road win at West Virginia, but a few more performances like Saturday’s will get them out the door.
7. North Carolina Tar Heels
This week: beat Charlotte 38-20
Next week: vs. NC Central
In their first game without QB Max Johnson, the Tar Heels leaned on a pair of running backs, Davion Gause and Omarion Hampton, to rush all over Charlotte for an impressive 269 yards. UNC’s season-opening win at Minnesota wasn’t pretty, but it was a road win from a power conference and those are rare this early in the season.
8. Northern Illinois Huskies
This week: beat Notre Dame 16-14
Next week: vs. Buffalo
Credit UNI defensive coordinator Nick Benedetto and his Huskies defense. They held the Irish to just three third downs and 286 total yards. Coach Thomas Hammock has nothing to envy of the others after pulling off what must be an emotional victory. Hammock grew up in Fort Wayne, Indiana, just down the road.
9. Iowa State Cyclones
This week: beat Iowa 20-19
Next week: goodbye
The Cyclones trailed 19-7 with 4 minutes left in the third quarter before scoring a touchdown and getting field goals of 46 and 54 yards from Kyle Konrardy, the latter with 9 seconds left to win this annual rivalry game for just the second time in nine years. ISU quarterback Rocco Becht and WR Jaylin Noel connected five times for 133 yards, and Matt Campbell’s defense suffocated Iowa in the second half (three consecutive three-and-outs in a crucial third-quarter stretch).
10. Vanderbilt Commodores
This week: beat Alcorn State 55-0
Next week: at Georgia State
For the second straight week, the Commodores find themselves in our Top 10, largely a product of their Week 1 win over Virginia Tech. Clark Lea’s team has a good chance to get to 3-0 next week before a trip to Missouri to open the SEC season on Sept. 21. How good would a 3-0 start be? Well, the program has won that many games in a full season just once in the past four years.
Dropped out: Notre Dame (3), Georgia Tech (6), Colorado (8), Alabama (9), TCU (10)
