I love September, especially when we're in it.
- Willie Stargell, former baseball player
I think most knew ahead of time that this weekend was going to be an amazing platter of collegiate football, and it certainly didn’t disappoint. I don’t know about you, but I don’t recall an opening weekend with that many marquee matchups, and while defence definitely ruled the day (not a problem for me anyway), I would say that most games lived up to the hype.
And do you want to know something that perhaps exemplifies just how locked in on the CFF side I am currently? I completely forgot that I took this week off at work, and didn't realize until mid-day Wednesday. I subsequently canceled my meetings immediately and got back in the lab, like any sane individual would.
Before proceeding, here are some interesting stats from week one:
Temple RB Jay Ducker is the first player in FBS history to record a 100-yard rushing game for four different schools (NIU, Memphis, SHSU, Temple).
There were NINE programs that ran 80 or more plays this week, and two of them (Indiana and FAU), ran 90 or more.
UMass WR Jacquon Gibson led all receivers in week one with 19 targets.
Four true freshmen QBs started week one this year, and all four won their first games.
Some Things I’m Watching For This Week
Boise State run game vs. an FCS opponent. Despite some differing opinions on X, it felt like the Broncos did not win the line of scrimmage against USF last week (a jarring development for a program that is built on the run game). If that offence can’t get into a good rhythm running vs. EWA this week, it’ll be a big cause for concern if you’re a Sire Gaines or Malik Sherrod shareholder.
Utah RB split. Turns out the talk of co-starters Ny Rogers and Wayshawn Parker wasn’t just coach speak. Rogers actually out-carried Parker vs. UCLA but I think part of that was due to Parker fumbling the ball once. Whittingham is famously unforgiving on that front, so it’ll be interesting to see what happens going forward. This week the Utes get an FCS opponent, so there will probably be a wide split regardless, but if Parker is no longer the first RB out there, it may be time to starting thinking about exit options.
CAL has one of the best passers in CFB? I was completely blown away by Cal freshman Jaron Keawe Sagapolutele when I watched the condensed version of Cal vs. Oregon State. Everybody talks about Patrick Mahomes comparisons for Nebraska QB Dylan Raiola, but I actually think the more apt comparison would be JKS. He looks very similar from a build perspective, and then throw in the fact that he’s making ridiculous throws off platform with all kinds of filthy side angle action and I’m sold already. He’ll be one of, if not the highest paid player in CFB next season playing at Georgia, Alabama, Oregon, Ohio State etc. They get an FCS opponent this week and I hope the coach keeps the peddle to floor with JKS—it could get absolutely nasty.
Tua 2.0? Cal's Freshman Jaron Keawe Sagapolutele Intends to Start Immediately
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Mom, it's vacation! It's a breakfast buffet in Hawaii! It shouldn't be a stressful situation!
Memphis backfield split vs. Georgia State. Greg Desrosiers went down with an injury last Saturday and Sutton Smith ended up leading the team in carries, despite being the third RB to receive carries (Makai Bodiford came in after Greg D). It was always expected that there’d be some rust for Sutton Smith, given that he’s been out for a year. To my naked eye, he’s the best one they’ve got. It may still be premature, but Sutton, a Georgia native, I think will have a big day coming home on Saturday.
Another big year for CFF TEs? There were a lot of notable performances in week one from the TE position. We knew ahead of time that there was a lot of turnover this offseason and thus there weren’t really any elite TE prospects for CFF, but that some would emerge; we just didn’t know ahead of time who those would be. Michigan’s Marlin Klein, CSU’s Jaxxon Warren, NM’s Dorian Grey, ISU’s Ben Brahmer, Baylor’s Michael Trigg, Houston’s Tanner Koziel, among others, had very productive days at TE. But that’s just one data point; I’m anxious to see who of this group continues the trend in week two. Some will fall off, of course, and others will emerge out of obscurity, too.
Week 1 RECAP
On Saturday mornings in the fall, I usually like to kick things off with a bike ride. I find that in order to sit through and watch the amount of CFB required for the rest of the day, it’s generally advisable to get a very hard workout in the morning; otherwise, physically, I just start feeling not well by about 7pm.
The bike ride achieves two things: it’s physically demanding, especially on hotter days, and, because much of the route is in urban infrastructure, there’s the added component of the mental strain that comes with navigating traffic in a dense city. The danger, the alertness through physical fatigue, and constant required awareness is almost the most tiring part of the journey. The result is a physical and mental fatigue that then makes sitting and watching CFB for 12 hours much more enjoyable.
However, I woke up feeling lazy this past Saturday and instead decided to go swimming at my building’s pool. As is annual tradition, there was a jet show happening around noon as well for the long weekend, which could be seen from the pool deck. Around 11AM I sauntered down, and to my pleasant surprise, found no-one in the pool.
So I got a nice swim in, then around 12, pulled up in a chair with my pods in and enjoyed some of the jet show. I followed the updates on twitter and Fantrax and saw that my boy Desmond Reid returned a long punt for a TD. That was a good start to my day as a share holder of Reid not only in the Golden Pig Invitational league but also the Wisconsin Badgers tadpole league. I also noticed that both Ohio State and Texas were struggling early on offence, which was not surprising.
It was a cool and pleasant day, with a nice breeze in the air, delicately brushing my t-shirt up and down on my arm as I sat poolside watching the jets go by. Even though we always have week zero, and games on Thursday and Friday of week one, Saturday, to me, feels like the true start of the college football season. I wanted to embrace the feeling of anticipation, and let it linger just a little while longer. However, after about 20 minutes, I decided it was time—time to lock in and get in to the command center. And once I go in, there’s no coming out.
As I get in the door there is a realization that I have some left over chicken for lunch, which occurs right around the same time that I notice my wife is leaving to see her friends for brunch (and won’t be returning until late in the evening). The cacophony of positive things happening all it once was almost overstimulating, and we were only 20 minutes into the day at that point.
“Pace yourself” I said “It’s going to be a long day”. And I actually ended up watching the entire day until past 2AM, not falling asleep until around 3AM. My brain must have still been on adrenaline because I spontaneously woke back up at 6:30AM, and try as I did, could not fall back asleep. Despite this, I had a bike ride scheduled with a friend of mine at 10AM and I did not feel fatigued in the slightest. It was very odd, and I’m chalking it up to first weekend hype.
A few quick thoughts on the games—I thought the criticism of Arch Manning was unfair. Don’t get me wrong, I think he’s overrated, but judging a first time starter on the road vs. Ohio State is, as Dabo Swinney would put it, like starting class with the final exam.
And speaking of Dabo, I really enjoyed the Clemson vs. LSU—Tiger on Tiger—matchup. I also very much appreciate this version of Brian Kelly who’s back to talking shit. I agree with his assessment of the game, upon rewatch, the score really didn’t reflect how much better LSU played in that game compared to Clemson.
Most of all, LSU’s defensive improvement surprised me. The next most impressive component of their victory was the run game. This was a program that struggled to run the football last year despite BK’s best efforts, perhaps even to his own team’s detriment (see the USC game), so one must be encouraged if they’re an LSU fan.
The team looks more balanced than in years past, and with some of the other SEC stalwarts looking more vulnerable than previously thought, this is shaping up to be an exciting year in the Bayou.
Speaking of some of those other SEC stalwarts faltering, this was a rough weekend for Alabama football. As expected in the fallout of the loss, there’s been myriad hand-wringing regarding head coach Kalen DeBoer, and his future with the Crimson Tide.
As my pal Henri put it, Alabama hiring DeBoer when it did felt like buying a stock at its peak. Indeed, he had only been considered an elite CFB coach nationally for about a year at that point (if that), coming off a career season with the Washington Huskies, who miraculously convinced a contingency of future NFL players to return for senior and super senior seasons. Prior to that, he was at places like Fresno State, Indiana, and Sioux Falls. No disrespect to those programs, but these are not considered upper tier CFB jobs.
One thing I can't accept is the narrative currently spreading that Alabama can’t compete in the NIL era. Again, the recruiting data just doesn’t bear this out.
What people are misconstruing for lack of talent due to NIL is either poor evaluation or inability to develop said talent. Alabama’s recruiting metrics across all sites are very consistent with what they’ve always been. In fact, I’d actually say that the phenomenon people are describing started in the 2018 and 2019 classes, which in my mind was a key piece to the UGA mini-dynasty ascendence.
Alabama’s 2018 and 2019 classes—just like their most recent ones—were rated in the top three nationally, but a lot of those players didn’t pan out, as evidenced by the fact that they either: transferred, or were not starting/playing significantly by year three and four.
These classes were signed under Nick Saban and the ‘old Alabama’ regime. The Tide haven’t won a natty since the 2017 class won it for them in 2020. The 2018-2024 classes have missed the playoffs several times, and the latter ones have experienced more losses in a two year span than many of the 2009-2017 classes experienced in their whole careers.
So while people will point to DeBoer, and I, like Henri, had my doubts when he was hired, the reality is that the current decline probably started happening well before he arrived, and definitely in the pre-NIL era.
Alabama, of course, will still beat Georgia when they play on September 27 or whenever it is that they play. I’ve already come to accept this fact, and expect that they will play at the peak of their powers (and even beyond that) when they matchup with the Dawgs. Soon after that they will go back to looking like shit again against everyone else.
I imagine that’s probably the most frustrating part if you’re an Alabama fan—the ceiling is always there given the raw talent of the roster. However, at least under coach DeBoer, they don’t seem to get up for games where the opponent isn’t wearing Georgia red, or LSU purple and gold.
I suppose the one saving grace if you’re a Dawg or LSU fan is that you no longer have to beat Alabama to win a natty anymore, so that’s the good news. ◾