College football is back.
I got a chill just typing those few words consecutively in a sentence. After MONTHS of waiting and navigating through the dog days of summer, it is time to strap on the helmet and shoulder pads and get back to the gridiron.
I’ve been chomping at the bit to write this first preview as there are several great matchups to help bring in the college football season. Will we get some upsets and barn burners right out of the gate? Or will the favorites handle their business in their respective games and put the rest of the college football world on notice that they are ready to make a run at the College Football Playoff.
It’s a looooong road to January, so I won’t speculate just yet on who belongs in the playoff and who doesn’t, but for now lets get to some of the intriguing matchups on deck for this weekend.
#2 TCU vs. Minnesota
This game looked a lot better on paper a year ago when the Golden Gophers had guys like David Cobb and Maxx Williams on offense. Even though this game is in Minnesota, weather shouldn’t be an issue, and I think Trevone Boykin and the TCU offense will be way too much to handle. I think Boykin gives us all a taste of what will be a Heisman year, and opens up the season with some offensive fireworks.
Prediction: TCU
#6 Auburn vs. Louisville
Another game that looked a lot better on paper a year ago. Louisville lost an incredible amount of talent to the NFL earlier this year, including DeVante Parker, and Thorpe Award winner Gerod Hollimon. The Cardinals are trying to figure out what to do at quarterback as well and that doesn’t bode well as Gus Malzahn and Jeremy Johnson are a match made in heaven offensively. I think Auburn gets the job done and Johnson gives us a taste of what we saw from him last year.
Prediction: Auburn
#15 Arizona State vs. Texas A&M
Offense, offense, and more offense in this one. I expect this game to be an absolute track meet with both teams able to score points in bunches. A&M went out and hired John Chavis away from LSU and is expecting him to work his magic on a defensive that was absolutely atrocious outside of Myles Garrett. While I think he will help improve that unit, he is going to find out that he doesn’t have the horses he had at LSU in College Station, and when you have to convert a running back into a corner (and he is listed as a starter) that speaks volumes for me. I like the Aggie offense a lot, but they have to show me something on defense first before I buy in. I’m taking the Sun Devils.
Prediction: Arizona State
#11 Notre Dame vs. Texas
This is a game I have probably discussed more than any other this offseason for various reasons. The storylines for both teams revolve around the quarterback position, as Malik Zaire will take the field for the Fighting Irish as the full time quarterback with Everett Golson out of the picture, and Tyrone Swoopes will be the man again for Texas after a very up and down 2014 season. For me it simply comes down to the fact that this is a very tough draw Week one for a Texas team that has 20+ freshmen in their two deep, and Notre Dame is solid in the trenches and they feature two future first round picks in left tackle Ronnie Stanley and linebacker Jaylon Smith. I think Stanley will play a major factor in keeping Zaire upright, and Smith will make things tough on Texas offensively.
Prediction: Notre Dame
#3 Alabama vs. #20 Wisconsin
Another matchup with a couple of interesting storylines. After making a playoff run with Blake Sims under center, the Crimson Tide have yet to name an outright starting quarterback. After watching Melvin Gordon run wild on the entire Big 10, the Badgers are looking to find his replacement and they are going to be looking to run the ball into the teeth of a very stout Alabama defense. While the Alabama quarterback situation has yet to shake out, I think whoever they decide to rollout there will play good enough to win this game, as I am not confident a one dimension ground and pound team can take down the Crimson Tide.
Prediction: Alabama
#1 Ohio State vs. Virginia Tech
Blacksburg, Virginia. Lane Stadium. At Night. This game is a hell of a lot tougher to call now that the Buckeyes will be down a few key contributors. Everybody can remember the Hokies walking into The Horseshoe last year and pulling off the only blemish of Ohio State’s national championship run. Now the Buckeyes have a chance to go in and return the favor, but they are going to have their hands absolutely full. Anytime you don’t have a guy like Joey Bosa or Jalin Marshall out there in your starting lineup, you are going to take a step backwards. The bright side of things, you will have Braxton Miller out there in his new offensive weapon role, and you will have two GREAT options at quarterback between JT Barrett and Cardale Jones. The Hokie defense led by Bud Foster will definitely make things interesting, but I think Zeke Elliott ends up being the X-Factor in this game and the Buckeyes are able to pull off a very close victory in Blacksburg. I can’t rule out an upset going down, but I just can’t pick against the Buckeyes and their talented roster.
Prediction: Ohio State survives a scare