Week 2

Iowa vs Iowa State- Iowa is trying something new, at least in the Hawkeye world, for this year they are going to see what their offense looks like with a quarterback that can actually throw passes for completions. It’ll be interesting to see how this experiment works out in a historically one-dimensional mind-set. In the offseason they got QB Mark Gronowski to transfer from 1-AA South Dakota State to Hawkeye nation. While QB Gronowski was at SDSU he led them to the FCS Championship game two years a row, so now he wants to see if his skill set can transfer to a higher NCAA CFB level. Last week was their first test of this strange theory as they took on UAlbany…ok, ok, it’s hard to declare that cupcake game a test but it’s the only one we have. Iowa has always believed that running ball for three yards and cloud of dust, a la Woody Hayes, was the only way to operate. Against the Great Danes of Albany he went 8-15 for 44 yards and 1 TD. Not what one would call a success in the first venture, but he didn’t play the entire game, either. Just because they have a QB they think can throw the ball doesn’t mean they’re leaving their love of the running game in the locker room. The Hawkeyes still have two solid running backs in Kamari Moulton and Jaziun Patterson, who both gained a lot of experience last year. The Black and Gold still have big beasts up front that will power their entire offense and they only had to replace two starters, but, worry not, if there is one thing Iowa always has plenty of it’s big, ugly, linemen who know how to run block. Iowa has also relied upon their stingy defense, usual ranking tops in the Great White North Conference. This year they had to replace several key players who left to try and fulfil their NFL dreams, but they still have plenty of returning starters. The year could very interesting for Iowa. It’s the first time in almost forever where the offense might start off a little ahead of the   defense. If they can get their passing working, they might, MIGHT, be able to get over their own hump of mediocrity.

Iowa State, on the other hand already has two games under its belt. They traveled to Ireland, where they not only defeated Kansas State but completely dominated the Wildcats in Week 0. Then in Week 1, they took down South Dakota in their cupcake tune up game. Now they have the CY-Hawk game, where they don’t have the best record against their cross-state rival. The Cyclones are led by QB Rocco Becht who made several big plays against K-State and was almost perfect going 19-20 against South Dakota. On top of that any questions about replacing their leading receivers have been answered. Their entire offense doesn’t rest completely on QB Becht’s shoulders, for the running game, led by Tailback Carson Hansen, gives them a balanced attack. For the first time in a long time, don’t expect ISU to come into this game intimidated. They’re on a roll, their defense has been playing lights out. Against KSU they dominated by shutting down the favored high speed Wildcat offense. Both teams have manageable schedules and are looking to take that next step and get to the elite level. Whoever wins this Cy-Hawk game will have a leg up on achieving that goal. ISU is better equipped, and the culture that Cyclone HC Matt Campbell has built in Ames appears to be on the verge of a breakthrough. Iowa State is the pick to win.

Oklahoma State vs Oregon -  The last and only time these two teams met it was the 2008 Holiday Bowl in San Diego, CA, and the Ducks won, 42-31. Now they are matched up again in Oregon, at Autzen Stadium.  Last year OSU suffered through a string of injuries and were inconsistent all season long.  This year has not started off much better. The Cowboys won last week against UT Martin, 27-7, but they lost their starting QB Jauss Hejny to a foot injury for the foreseeable future. HC Mike Gundy’s preparation style is going to be put to the test yet again. Back-up QB Zane Flores is a talented passer, but he isn’t the runner that Hejny is. It’ll be a huge test for QB Flores to see if he can push this offense down the field. He’ll have plenty of help, as the receiving corps is Earth-grant loaded. Pokes’ HC Gundy went into the transfer portal and rebuilt his entire offensive line, which, as we saw, worked great for Florida State. The one big question that has always existed at OSU is can the defense actually stop anyone? Their track record the last couple of years would indicate, “no”. Against Oregon, it’s a double-down bet that the Pokes won’t achieve their defensive goals.  Oregon had little to no trouble with Montana State as they ran for 253 yards and threw for another 253 yards. The Bobcats, however, were not actually a true test, but the Ducks’ offense appeared to be in mid-season form. Oregon is known for their offense;- who hasn’t heard about the Quack-Attack? What they are not known for is the same thing Oklahoma State is not known for and that is defense. HC Dan Lanning learned his trade at Georgia under HC Kirby Smart, who spent years as the defensive coordinator under Saint Saban, has it in his mind to turn Oregon into a defensive team. It’s taken a few years but this year just might be the year. They have very big defensive linemen up front and quite talented linebackers to back them up. Where they are a bit soft is in the secondary where all five starters are brand new. These DB’s are going to get their first test against the Cowboys. The game has all the markings of a good, high scoring affair, just like the last time these two teams met. Oregon, however, appears to be loaded and they just might be the most loaded team in the nation. HC Lanning is doing a great job of turning the Ducks into the West Coast version of the Georgia Bulldogs, and that’s why they are the pick to win.

Michigan vs Oklahoma – In the only top 25 match up of the weekend, has the Sooners host the Wolverines. Each one of these teams has had enough time to get back up to speed after suffering let-downs last year. Well, grace period is over (just ask Kalen DeBoer over at Alabama), now it’s time to get back to being great in college football. The Wolverines had a kind-of, sort-of acceptable down year. They have suffered controversies because they got caught cheating, stealing other teams signals, but they did end the year by beating National Champion Ohio State and Vanderbilt victim Alabama, so things ended on a high note, sorta. In their tune up game against New Mexico, freshman QB Bryce Underwood had a good showing, going 21-31 for 251 yards, but, let’s be honest, if he hadn’t had a good game against NM, it would have been panic button time, like it is down in Alabama, only worse. The Wolverines seem to have rediscovered the forward pass, maybe. Their running game, which has carried this team over the past years, had RB Justice Haynes going for a monster 159 yards with three touchdowns. The defense was, of course, up to Great White North standards. Against New Mexico there was no need to steal other teams’ signals. Now going up against the Sooners, in Norman, OK, they will tested to see if they can win without their spyglass.

Oklahoma, under HC Brent Venables has not enjoyed a ESPN Top Ten Highlight time. Knowing that his job is on the line this year, Venables decided to make a change, and he turned his attention to Washington State, where he stole, legally, Offensive Coordinator Ben Arbuckle and the Cougars QB John Mateer. OC Arbuckle has a short but impressive resume. His Western Kentucky offense ranked in the top 10 in 2022 and while he was at WSU, the Cougar offense rose above expectations. HC Venables also went to California where he got RB Jaydn Ott to transfer from the hippe college, Cal, to OU. Last year at Cal his running style was so dominant that it reminded many of the great RB Barry Sanders from neighboring OK State.  IF these moves work out, the Oklahoma offense will not be stuck in the mud anymore. On the Defensive side of the ball, the Sooners need to improve greatly. HC Venables was known for being a defensive guru when he was at Clemson, but something was lost in the translation from DC to HC. In order to remain relevant in the SEC, and, coincidentally, keep his job, he has got to get this defense fixed. Maybe they’ll be better this year, but at the moment there have not been many signs of them having an SEC style “D”. This is going to be a hard-fought game, both teams need this game to have a successful season. I want Oklahoma to win, but there is a feeling that Michigan is going to prevail, so not going to put a lot of stock in this pick, but I’m going with Oklahoma.

Short Smokes:

Penn State is again not taking any chances they host Florida International

Texas is going to lick its wounds and beat the snot out of San Jose State

Illinois  who is ranked 11^th in the nation, might have its hands full with Duke

Baylor is not going to relish playing in Dallas as they’ll fall to SMU

Indiana, Texas Tech and Minnesota are not being tested and they’re going to win

Virginia vs North Carolina State has all the makings of great game that will be just under most people’s radar.

Pitt is going to trounce Central Michigan

Syracuse is going to struggle against UConn, but they’ll still win

Texas A&M is going to try and fine tune themselves against Utah State before they travel to confront Notre Dame

Ohio State is going to destroy Grambling,  this won’t be pretty

Georgia vs Austin Peay is going to be more of a crime scene as the Bulldogs will murder the Governors

Ole Miss better be ready against Kentucky as the Wildcats have got to play better than they did last week

Kansas and Missouri  will reignite their rivalry and the Tigers will BBQ the Jayhawks

Fresno State and Oregon State  might be a game that only interests me but this could be a good one. Bulldogs win

Army  has the potential to upset K-State as the Wildcats are not playing well at all.

Arizona State will travel to Mississippi State and ASU will destroy MSU

Alabama has a lot, and I mean A LOT, of questions, as they played like crap last week, and if DeBoer wants to keep his job, the Crimson Ripple better become totally transformed into the CRIMSON TIDE. They’ll have a chance in their tune up game against UL Monroe. If Bama loses this game, or if it’s even close, look for Alabama to have a coaching change before the end of the year, buy-out or no buy-out.

Stanford vs BYU will be the late game this weekend and it could be worth staying up for. The Cougars are going win but it could still be an interesting game.