By Ben Little
Yes, college football fans, the 2023 season is here and we are already in full swing. Week one delivered the much-anticipated fix we have been starving for since the Georgia Bulldogs went back-to-back 236 days ago, but who’s counting? It was a week of highlight-reel plays, blowouts, upsets, and big-name matchups. As the dust settles and we look ahead to week two, what were the defining moments in college football’s epic return?
Honorable Mentions
Daniel Jackson’s toe-tapping touchdown in Minnesota.
This Daniel Jackson catch came on a 4th-and-10 inside the redzone, with 2:32 to play trailing the Huskers by a touchdown–Making it an even more impressive highlight catch. Nebraska would drive the ball into Golden Gopher territory on the ensuing drive, before Huskers QB Jeff Sims threw his 3rd interception of the game with 1:06 to play. The Gophers would march into field goal position for kicker Dragan Kesich, who delivered on a 47-yard boot through the uprights as time expired, sealing the Minnesota comeback at home on Friday night.
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Purdue, Texas Tech, and Boston College get exposed.
It was a week full of upsets, and these three are certainly worthy of an honorable mention.
When Purdue receiver Deion Burks spun off three Fresno State defenders en route to an 84-yard touchdown not even three minutes into the game, it seemed the Boilermakers were on their way to a 1-0 start. However, football is a long game and the Bulldogs showed no quit. Quarterback Mikey Keene threw for 366 yards and four touchdowns, while senior receiver Erik Brooks amassed 170 yards in receiving and two touchdowns. The Bulldogs outscored Purdue 22-7 in the 2nd half, and it was just enough for a 39-35 week one win on the road.
Is Texas Tech not who we thought they were this season? Or is it Wyoming? Who is the imposter? Either way, the Cowboys would be happy to play imposter in their week one overtime upset over the Red Raiders–Who some have slotted to compete for the Big 12 Championship game this season. In double overtime the Red Raiders struck for a touchdown, only to miss their two-point convert, opening the doors for Wyoming. On a 4th-and-seven from the TTU 11-yard line, Cowboy quarterback Andrew Peasley evaded a seven-man rush to find tight end John Michael Gyllenborg in the nick of time. One three-yard Sam Scott rush later, the Wyoming Cowboys had converted their two-point attempt, as the student section rushed the field to celebrate.
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Northern Illinois visited Boston College over the weekend, in another close finish that went beyond regulation time. The Huskies out-possessed Boston College by nearly 13 full minutes, while simultaneously out-disciplining the Eagles, who took 10 penalties resulting in 93 yards. The Eagles found the endzone twice in the 4th quarter, to close a 14-point deficit and force overtime. However, after coming up short on their first possession in overtime, settling for a Liam Connor field goal, NIU took the ball over with a chance to win the game. On their fourth play of the series, running back Rocky Lombardi punched it in from a yard out, as NIU stole one from Boston College in Chestnut Hill on Saturday.
5. Iowa’s opening-drive touchdown pass.
A touchdown reception on an opening drive may not seem super significant, but yes, Cade McNamara‘s 36-yard touchdown pass to Seth Anderson does qualify for our top-five craziest plays of week one.
McNamara transfers in from Michigan to an Iowa offense that has been the laughing stock of the Big 10. Notorious for boasting one of the nation’s best defenses in the past, the heat is on for the Hawkeyes to start producing on the other side of the ball. If Iowa can manage some offensive production this season, there’s no question that they should compete for the Big 10 West crown.
So why does a touchdown pass carry any significance at all? The Hawkeyes have not begun the season with an opening-drive touchdown pass in 32 years. With former Wolverine quarterback Cade McNamara commanding the offense, Iowa just may have found a leader to give this offense what it so desperately needs: points and production.
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4. Florida State 45, LSU 24
The 8th-ranked Florida State Seminoles proved their worth, and then some, in Sunday’s Camping World Kickoff in Orlando. In front of a crowd of 65,429, as well as 9.1 million viewers on ABC, the Seminoles pummeled Brian Kelly and the 5th-ranked LSU Tigers, outscoring them 31-7 in the second half.
Seminole quarterback Jordan Travis threw for 342 yards and four touchdowns, also tacking on a rushing TD. Two FSU receivers accounted for 100+ yards in juniors Keon Coleman and Johnny Wilson. Florida State’s offensive line was exceptional in their protection of Travis, not allowing a single sack.
For LSU quarterback Jayden Daniels, 410 total yards of offense did not translate to points. Against a tough FSU front seven, Daniels managed to lead the Tigers in rushing, but it was LSU’s inability to convert that contributed to their dismay. The Tigers went just 3-for-10 on 3rd down, and a pivotal 0-for-3 on 4th down – including once on the goal line.
In his post-game press conference, LSU head coach Brian Kelly was quoted saying “We certainly are not the football team that I thought we were”, which is about as harsh as the 21-point loss the Tigers suffered.
Florida State’s convincing effort in week one propels them to the number four spot in this week’s AP Poll, while LSU falls nine spots to 14.
3. Texas State Stuns Baylor
While NIU, Wyoming, and Fresno State produced noteworthy upsets as well in week one, Texas State’s upset of Baylor this Saturday was just a little more impressive.
Not even a year ago, the Bobcats marched into McLane stadium and were demolished 42-7 by a top-25 Baylor squad. This season, in new head coach G.J. Kinne‘s debut, the offense showed up and made a mockery of a Baylor defense that also struggled in 2022.
Bobcat quarterback TJ Finley made it look easy Saturday, completing 22 of 30 for 298 yards, three touchdowns, and a QBR of 96.2. He also added a rushing touchdown. The Bobcats jumped out to a 28-13 lead at halftime and never looked back, finishing on top 42-31. The Bobcats not only upset Baylor but looked strong for a full 60 minutes of football, something their Sun Belt opponents should be weary of when they head into conference play. Could the Bobcats be a force in a competitive SBC this season?
For Baylor, it wasn’t all bad. Defensively, the Bears gave up 441 yards in an abysmal effort. Offensively, however, the Bears put up 524 total yards. While this effort did not result in a win, it’s clear they have some pieces to work with on that side of the ball. Meanwhile, defensive coordinator Matt Powledge, who returned after a year at Oregon to help refurbish the Baylor defense, has significant work yet to be done if the Bears are to increase their win total of just six from 2022.
2. Duke 28, Clemson 7
Clemson comes into the 2023 campaign with a combination of pressure and high hopes. Sportswriters everywhere are spelling out the demise of head coach Dabo Swinney, claiming the dynasty is officially finished. A top-10 ranked team heading into week one, Clemson’s high hopes were met with reality when the Tigers fell to Duke by 21 points.
The Tigers’ only touchdown of the game came early in the 2nd quarter when quarterback Cade Klubnik connected to Will Shipley in the flat for a two-yard score. That was the highlight in a series of lows for the Tigers on Monday night. Klubnik didn’t look fantastic, completing 27 of 43 for just 209 yards, paired with a touchdown and an interception. Add two fumbles (one inside the five-yard line) and two failed 4th down conversions and we start to get a picture of what went wrong for Clemson.
Duke’s defense did give up 422 yards, but still had a good deal to be proud of. They played with an edge, forcing two fumbles and nearly a couple of others. They had two sacks while giving up none, as well as making six stops behind the line of scrimmage. Oh yeah, they also gave up seven points in 60 minutes against the formerly 9th-ranked team in the country.
Junior quarterback Riley Leonard was pivotal at quarterback, he had a modest completion percentage but accounted for 273 yards of total offense. Duke’s Jordan Waters put the game on ice with just over three minutes to play when he took it 36 yards to the house, an exclamation point on a fantastic start to the season for the Blue Devils.
1. Coach Prime calls game, Colorado upsets TCU
Colorado Head Coach Deion Sanders, a.k.a. Coach Prime, said that his Buffaloes would go into Texas and beat last year’s national runner-up. I didn’t believe him, did you?
This is a team that went 1-11 last season, a team that lost by the biggest deficit per game in the entirety of the FBS. It is also a team that brought in 68 newcomers on scholarship to the 2023 roster. Nobody expected this team would step up to upset last year’s number two in the very first week of football, right?
Well, Coach Prime believed it. And people are finally starting to realize that he may be onto something.
Shedeur Sanders, son of Deion Sanders, who spent the last two seasons at HBCU Jackson State, silenced the critics on Saturday, to say the least. The questions of how he would transition to FBS football were answered as he completed 38 of 47 attempts, for an astonishing 510 yards, four touchdowns, and no interceptions – quite the debut.
Speaking of FBS debuts, Travis Hunter played 139 of the 160 possible snaps on Saturday. If you don’t know the sophomore WR/DB’s name yet, you might want to look him up. Hunter had 11 receptions for 119 yards, while also recording an interception inside the red zone that likely saved a touchdown. He was one of four Colorado receivers to eclipse 100 yards on the day.
We know this isn’t the same TCU team that went to the National Championship game in January, but the win for Colorado is impressive nonetheless. The now 22nd-ranked Buffaloes travel to Eugene in three weeks to face the Ducks in Pac-12 play, which should be a telltale sign of just how legitimate the Buffaloes are this season.
