Week 2 Review

So, some minor things we learned over the weekend. Texas Tech won't throw for 500+ yards every game. Ohio State needs to get healthy and fast if they want to finish with 1 loss or fewer and make another national title game. Iowa State can roll over easy cupcakes like SD State and Kent State. Arkansas has trouble beating teams that were Division I-AA less than 20 years ago (one still is). Anyways, let's get on to our helmet stickers.

1. Undervalued and Underappreciated- The two teams that aren't getting enough credit may just meet in the Conference USA title game, Rice and East Carolina. Chase Clement did not have a good day throwing 2 INTs, but he did come through when it mattered the most against Memphis. First, he hit Jarrett Dillard for an easy TD and then James Casey for 2 points. Then, on a tremendous drive that went over 90 yards and with less than 3 minutes left, Clement scrambled for the game-tying TD. After a short drive by Memphis, Chris Jammer stepped in front of a Tigers' receiver and housed it, 69 yards for the winning score. David Bailiff may have a heart attack by the end of the year if his team has to score 29 points in the 4th quarter every week to win. Also, ECU's win over West Virginia pretty much speaks for itself. The Pirates have played the Mountaineers tough before, but never dominated them like this. Remember when last week people were talking about Pat White and the new WV passing offense? Well, I certainly didn't see it this past week, but I did see a consistent and balanced offense from the Pirates, and a team that made few mistakes. Forcing 2 turnovers and committing none, while also going 50% on 3rd downs will win you a lot of games. However, the most underrated team is Wake Forest, who with a few lucky breaks could easily go undefeated. They have tough matchups at Miami (FL), a home game with Clemson and after a bye week this week, a key tussle at Florida State next week. If they can get past those 3 opponents, going undefeated should be a breeze. Having a very experienced defense and maybe the most dominant cover corner in college football, Alphonso Smith should help. The key for the Demon Deacons is how well Josh Adams and Kevin Harris produce on the ground against tougher foes because I believe WRs DJ Boldin and Chip Brinkman should move the chains in the passing game consistently every week. DJ is the younger brother of Anquan so you know he has the pedigree of a great WR.

2. The MAC- I was going to give it to all the mid-major conferences, but they are generally too top heavy. I mean, Fresno State and Boise St. are good in the WAC, but Utah St., San Jose St. and Idaho have not been that impressive. Same goes for the Mountain West with BYU and Utah being dominant, but Colorado St. and San Diego St. are not very good. The Sun Belt was impressive with Middle Tennessee's win over Maryland and Louisiana-Monroe playing Arkansas very close but Florida International and North Texas are still dreadful, especially on offense. Now, onto the MAC. Temple did a fantastic job in the game against UConn, which they should have won, but committed too many mistakes near the end. Ball State looked rather dominant against Navy as did Akron against Syracuse, who are among the 5 worst teams in Division I-A. Ohio looked very good against Ohio St., but perhaps the Buckeyes were looking past the Bobcats. Whether that's the case or not, Ohio still acquitted themselves nicely. Miami (OH) also gave Michigan fits as the game was close in the 4th quarter, and Kent St. was great against Iowa St., keeping it 28-21 at halftime. RB Eugene Jarvis of the Golden Flashes was fantastic with 199 yards of total offense and may be the most underrated dual-purpose back in college football. Central Michigan looked rather pedestrian against Georgia, but that's to be expected as the Bulldogs had something to prove after losing their #1 ranking.

3. QB Redemption- Ever since his arrival in Austin a few years ago, Jevan Snead has been overlooked as the man who couldn't beat out Colt McCoy and had to transfer to a lower-tier SEC West squad, Ole Miss. However, in the opening win against Memphis and a good performance against Wake Forest (a game that shouldn't have been as close as it was), Snead is proving to be a good college QB. John Parker Wilson of Alabama doesn't get props for last week's win against Tulane, but he does get credit for his demolition of Clemson in week 1. We'll check back and see how he's doing in week 5 after their trip to Athens (and I don't mean Greece). Juice Williams at Illinois got some blame for the Illini losing close games as he still wasn't a polished passer, he's too short and Rashad Mendenhall carried that team at key points down the stretch in '07. However, even after a high-scoring loss to Missouri in week 1, all the media could talk about was how good of a passer Juice has turned into. That's because of good receivers, a more wide-open offense and maturity. The Illini should redshirt Eddie McGee right now so he can have 2 full years to be a starter after Juice graduates. Riley Skinner of Wake Forest is bouncing back nicely after throwing more INTs than TDs last year, after a superb freshman season. Brian Johnson of Utah is showing that his team may not lose at all this year up until their huge conference finale against BYU. Johnson has been a star-in-the-making ever since he arrived, but the Utes can't rely on potential anymore, nor can they win much with another 11-to-10 TD-to-INT ratio like Johnson had last season.

Alright, a few negatives from last week since this can't all be positive. The state of Colorado, you need to get your act together. I remember saying when he first arrived that Dan Hawkins wouldn't win anything at Boulder and that's becoming more obvious after barely beating Eastern Washington last week. Colorado St., who lost to the 'Buffs last week weren't any more impressive sneaking past Sacramento St. Is Air Force the best team in the state? Probably, they should do fine in the MWC. Also, dear lord, what is going on at Syracuse, getting massacred at home to Akron. No wonder the Carrier Dome doesn't provide A/C, the fans are probably chilly enough getting the cold shoulder from their players and coaches every week. They are worse off than Temple. They should be kicked out of the Big East for football. Period. Not even Duke looked this pathetic during their down years. Arkansas, Bobby Petrino is not the answer, neither is Casey Dick at QB. Rebuild and go with a bunch of freshman, especially VHT RB De'Anthony Curtis. Florida State, you deserve some short of shaming for starting off your schedule with a bye week and then 2 Div I-AA opponents (although it will help my fantasy team).

Well, that's all, I'm tapped out. Comments, suggestions, etc., please let me know. I should be back tomorrow with your week 3 preview. Take care everyone.