It was a wild week in college football, and with the expanded playoff, things are more entertaining than they have ever been in September. Amidst a huge upset and multiple other championship contenders managing to rise to the top, here is a look at our 10 biggest takeaways from the second weekend of the 2024 season.
1. Notre Dame pulls a Notre Dame
Nothing about the Fighting Irish has changed in college football. Marcus Freeman’s team lost to the Northern Illinois Huskies 16-14 a week after a huge win over the Texas A&M Aggies. This inconsistency has been the story of the program since the 1990s, and it’s not changing any time soon. Also, A&M may have been overrated.
2. Group of 5 play is way more entertaining
The expanded College Football Playoff is expanding the level of excitement around the nation. NIU’s win over Notre Dame now generates even more coverage because of what it means for their CFP ranking. Watching the Boise State Broncos put up a fight against the Oregon Ducks and this week’s top 25 Memphis Tigers facing the Florida State Seminoles adds to that. Memphis now has pressure to win.
3. Oregon, Alabama, Oklahoma and Penn State are big concerns
Speaking of Oregon, they join a chorus of teams in the top 15 looking hideous against lesser competition. The Alabama Crimson Tide were only up by one on the South Florida Bulls until pulling away in the fourth quarter. After dominating the West Virginia Mountaineers, the Penn State Nittany Lions struggled with the Bowling Green Falcons, and the Oklahoma Sooners struggled with the Houston Cougars.
Diving further into this, Jalen Milroe doesn’t look like a fit for Kalen DeBoer’s offense. Penn State is pulling a Penn State under James Franklin with inconsistency. OU is starting to live up to the concerns about Brent Venables and that he can’t really run an elite program. This was Oregon’s second straight ugly game. All four schools should be worried.
4. Colorado hype is over
Deion Sanders deserves blame for this. The Colorado Buffaloes could still be building as a program in college football, but after a 28-10 loss to the Nebraska Cornhuskers, fans needed to remember that this was going to be a long rebuild. Fans and media turning on them in September may help them with that rebuild. People needed to expect another step this year, not a leap into a top 25 program.
5. Nebraska is rising as a program
Speaking of being on the rise, the Cornhuskers may have finally found their head coach in Matt Rhule. Entering his second year, his use of analytics has this program back on the rise in college football. This team could be top 25 caliber this year, and they may be a title contender down the road. Are we back in the 1990s now?
6. Texas, Tennessee join the ranks of elite
Watching the Longhorns go into The Big House and deliver a blowout against the Michigan Wolverines is huge. Steve Sarkisian clearly has a College Football Playoff contender right now. Meanwhile, the Tennessee Vols belong on that list as well now, as they have a defense with Josh Heupel’s offense. Both programs should be in the top 5.
7. Michigan is BAD
Sherrone Moore inherited a program in way worse shape than it was just a year ago. Michigan lost a ton of talent from last year’s team, and now they have the distraction of the Connor Stalions scandal hanging over them. Taking this into account, they look like a second-tier Big Ten program that went all in on last year’s national championship.
8. SEC is losing too many marquee games
Sure, the Vols and Georgia Bulldogs looked fine, but after going 2-3 in marquee college football games last week, the SEC struggled again. The Auburn Tigers lost at home to the Cal Golden Bears, the Arkansas Razorbacks choked at the Oklahoma State Cowboys, and the Mississippi State Bulldogs lost to the Arizona State Sun Devils. There’s no excuse for the best conference in America to struggle like this.
9. Heisman race
1. Jaxson Dart
2. Cam Ward
3. Miller Moss
4. Cam Skattebo
5. Kyle McCord
10. Top 10
1. Texas
2. Miami
3. Georgia
4. USC
5. Tennessee
6. Boston College
7. Syracuse
8. Iowa State
9. Penn State
10. Northern Illinois
