5 minutes ago: The college football season began with a bang last week, as three games featured ranked teams going head to head. While Week 2 has only two ranked matchups, we do have our first top-10 showdown of the season and a few other very intriguing contests.
NCAAF All Game TV Channel: Week Pass-7.99 Month Pass-19.99 and SEASON Pass-29.99
Click To: College Football NCAAF Week 2 Live
Click To: College Football NCAAF Week 2 Live
As of now, Saturday’s showdown between the Longhorns and the Wolverines is the only non-conference game between two top-10 teams. As such, this matchup has massive playoff implications. While still very early in the season, the loser could find it difficult to crack the 12-team playoff field since each team has at least two more games against currently ranked opponents.
Texas still has to host top-ranked Georgia and plays No. 15 Oklahoma, while Michigan will welcome in No. 7 Oregon and No. 13 USC before traveling to second-ranked Ohio State at the end of the year.
The welcomed hysteria of college football's triumphant return is fading into the background as Week 2 fast approaches.
Fortunately for most programs, the upcoming slate is still favorable. Nonconference games—and expectedly lopsided ones, in many cases—remain the bulk of the schedule around the Football Bowl Subdivision.
There are, however, a few marquee games. The headliner is Texas at Michigan, while Tennessee and NC State play a neutral-site affair. League matchups are also tricking in; Top 25 teams Utah and Georgia Tech are preparing for conference opponents this weekend.
Clemson, unsurprisingly, did not beat Georgia in Atlanta. But it's fair to say Clemson fans hoped for a more dangerous day from an offense that struggled in 2023. App State won't be an easy opponent, although Clemson should be able to leave its home opener with a victory.
Georgia Tech knocked off Florida State two weeks ago and then Syracuse saw Ohio State transfer Kyle McCord throw four touchdowns in his team debut. I'll narrowly lean toward the home team, but this is an ideal matchup to start shaping real expectations for 2024.
Michigan will find ways to manufacture production in the running game, but there was some concern heading into the season about whether their passing attack could recover from the losses of players like J.J. McCarthy, Roman Wilson and Cornelius Johnson. Through one game, those concerns remain. New quarterback Davis Warren posted a respectable 72.9 PFF passing grade last week against Fresno State, but he averaged just 4.7 yards per attempt and completed only one of his five passes that traveled at least 10 yards.
Perhaps a greater issue for the Wolverines is the play of their wide receivers. That group combined to catch eight passes totaling 34 yards in Week 1. Just four of those eight receptions resulted in a first down. Luckily, Michigan can rely on the best tight end in the country, Colston Loveland.
Week 2 boasts a game between two of the four playoff teams from a season ago as Texas visits Michigan. The game is the first of a home-and-home series between the two college football powerhouses as Michigan heads to Austin in 2027. In between, Texas has two games against Ohio State.
That's not the only intriguing matchup of the weekend, either. While there is just one other game between teams ranked in the AP Top 25, there's a game that could be a first-round College Football Playoff preview in Eugene and a fascinating matchup between old Big 12 rivals looking to make a bowl game this season.sadsadsad
NCAAF All Game TV Channel: Week Pass-7.99 Month Pass-19.99 and SEASON Pass-29.99
Click To: College Football NCAAF Week 2 Live
Click To: College Football NCAAF Week 2 Live
As of now, Saturday’s showdown between the Longhorns and the Wolverines is the only non-conference game between two top-10 teams. As such, this matchup has massive playoff implications. While still very early in the season, the loser could find it difficult to crack the 12-team playoff field since each team has at least two more games against currently ranked opponents.
Texas still has to host top-ranked Georgia and plays No. 15 Oklahoma, while Michigan will welcome in No. 7 Oregon and No. 13 USC before traveling to second-ranked Ohio State at the end of the year.
The welcomed hysteria of college football's triumphant return is fading into the background as Week 2 fast approaches.
Fortunately for most programs, the upcoming slate is still favorable. Nonconference games—and expectedly lopsided ones, in many cases—remain the bulk of the schedule around the Football Bowl Subdivision.
There are, however, a few marquee games. The headliner is Texas at Michigan, while Tennessee and NC State play a neutral-site affair. League matchups are also tricking in; Top 25 teams Utah and Georgia Tech are preparing for conference opponents this weekend.
Clemson, unsurprisingly, did not beat Georgia in Atlanta. But it's fair to say Clemson fans hoped for a more dangerous day from an offense that struggled in 2023. App State won't be an easy opponent, although Clemson should be able to leave its home opener with a victory.
Georgia Tech knocked off Florida State two weeks ago and then Syracuse saw Ohio State transfer Kyle McCord throw four touchdowns in his team debut. I'll narrowly lean toward the home team, but this is an ideal matchup to start shaping real expectations for 2024.
Michigan will find ways to manufacture production in the running game, but there was some concern heading into the season about whether their passing attack could recover from the losses of players like J.J. McCarthy, Roman Wilson and Cornelius Johnson. Through one game, those concerns remain. New quarterback Davis Warren posted a respectable 72.9 PFF passing grade last week against Fresno State, but he averaged just 4.7 yards per attempt and completed only one of his five passes that traveled at least 10 yards.
Perhaps a greater issue for the Wolverines is the play of their wide receivers. That group combined to catch eight passes totaling 34 yards in Week 1. Just four of those eight receptions resulted in a first down. Luckily, Michigan can rely on the best tight end in the country, Colston Loveland.
Week 2 boasts a game between two of the four playoff teams from a season ago as Texas visits Michigan. The game is the first of a home-and-home series between the two college football powerhouses as Michigan heads to Austin in 2027. In between, Texas has two games against Ohio State.
That's not the only intriguing matchup of the weekend, either. While there is just one other game between teams ranked in the AP Top 25, there's a game that could be a first-round College Football Playoff preview in Eugene and a fascinating matchup between old Big 12 rivals looking to make a bowl game this season.sadsadsad
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