Week 1

Week 1

It's time for college football once again and I, for one, am very excited.  What makes it even more awesome is that this is the first year of the new College Football playoff!!

For the first time ever college football will have playoffs!  This is something that I have been longing for since I first started watching college football: a system by which more than two teams can compete fair and square for the national championship.  Here's how it works: at the end of the year 4 teams will be selected by a 13 member selection committee to take part in 2 semifinal games.  Then, the winners of the semifinals will play each other for the championship!  No more relying on polls and computer calculations, just reasonable decisions by people who all have backgrounds or relationships with football programs.  

The championship will be played at huge Cowboys Stadium, while one semifinal will be played at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena and the other at the Sugar Bowl where the New Orleans Saints play.  Next year the Orange Bowl (Miami Dolphins' stadium) and the Cotton Bowl (Dallas Cowboys' stadium) will host the semifinals game.  Finally, the Fiesta Bowl (Arizona Cardinals' home) and the Chick-Fil-A Bowl (Atlanta Falcons' home) will round out the semifinal rotation.  I can't think of better locations for the most anticipated games of the year.

(And for the people who've seen the movie Rudy, this video explains all of this in hilarious fashion:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ayN6tB9uJec)

Top Two Most Exciting Games of the Week 

1. Abilene Christian Wildcats @ Georgia State Panthers

The reason you probably haven't heard of either of these two teams is that one is from the 1-AA division of college football and one just became a full member of the 1-A division.  Let me explain those terms.  1-A is the division of college football that everyone watches and the one I blog about, which includes teams like Florida, Ohio State, and Auburn, etc.  1-AA is the division just below that with the best teams being Sam Houston St, North Dakota State, and Eastern Washington among others.  Georgia State is the 1-A team who has just climbed to the top of the ladder of college football divisions.  Coming up to the highest level of collegiate football is no small task, with the skill and talent of your opponents having greatly increased.  This point was effectively demonstrated during last season for the Panthers as they went into a tailspin on their way to a 0-12 record.

This year Georgia State was looking to start fresh.  The game was played in the Atlanta Falcons' stadium as are all of Georgia State's home games.  How nice to play half your games in a stadium like that!  The game was played on Wednesday night so that it would be the lone game on that day and thus get on ESPN.  The game was a back and forth affair with the score 21-16 at the half.  But in the 4th quarter the Panthers found themselves down 28-37 with 6 minutes left.  They put together a touchdown scoring drive (score 35-37) and managed to force Abilene Christian to punt on their next drive.  The Panthers got the ball back but were forced into a 4th and long with just over a minute left.  With his back against the wall, quarterback Nick Arbuckle threw a perfect pass and it was caught for a stunning 1st down.  Later in the drive, Georgia State converted another 4th down to keep their hopes alive.  Then Arbuckle scampered for 13 yards to set up a game winning field goal.  Kicker Will Lutz knocked it through and after a final kickoff the Panthers rushed the field, wildly celebrating their first win in two years!

2. Clemson Tigers @ Georgia Bulldogs

Both teams came into the game with a lot to prove.  Both had new starting quarterbacks, each having lost their previous talented starters by way of graduation.  The Bulldogs had a rough season last year with injuries to key players plaguing them throughout SEC conference play.  This game has become a rivalry game in recent years and the Georgia fans were hungry for a victory.  However, Clemson clawed its way to 21-14 lead midway through the 2nd quarter.  Seizing the opportunity Georgia's Heisman contending running back Todd Gurley ran the ensuing kickoff back 100 yards for an electrifying touchdown.

The score remained deadlocked at 21 at the half and the only points scored in the 3rd quarter was a field goal by Georgia.  During the 2nd half Georgia's defense became a stone wall to the Clemson offense, shutting them down completely.  Then Gurley and the other Bulldog running backs, with great blocking by their offensive line, began tearing through the Tigers' defense.  The game quickly became a rout as Gurley scored twice and his running mate Nick Chubb added another TD.  The Bulldogs finished with over 300 rushing yards and won the game by a score of 45-21.  It was a statement win and seems to suggest that Georgia will be a serious contender for the year's SEC Championship.  It has been a great week for Georgia.

Top 2 Games to Watch: Week 2

1. No. 8 Michigan State Spartans @ No. 3 Oregon Ducks: Saturday 9/6 at 6:30 p.m. on Fox

This game pits the high scoring offense of Oregon against the rock hard defense of Michigan State.  Oregon better show they can fly above their opponents if they want to avoid more questions about the effectiveness of their program.  They have a state-of-the-art multi-million dollar training facility and a jersey deal with Nike.  They better start making it to championship games or else they will become known as overconfident pretty boys.

2. Michigan Wolverines @ No. 17 Notre Dame Fighting Irish: Saturday 9/6 at 7:30 p.m.

This game between perennial college football powers has important implications for both teams.  Can Head Coach Brady Hoke get his Wolverines to play up to the high expectations of Michigan fans or will Notre Dame quarterback Everett Golson (pictured in photo), after serving a one year suspension due to academic reasons, put together another stellar performance as he did last week against the Rice Owls.