2017-09-12 09:07

Despite that Irma did hit Florida hard did most college football games happen and many were good ones, some with surprising results.

The biggest question for me every season in the first 4 weeks is, whether the shown results do reflect the real strength and weaknesses of the teams. Or are these results of worse or better preparation and execution and once the teams get into their rhythm some thought to be weak teams become as good as expected and some good teams do collapse and have to face reality.
Of cause that means that each team has to live with their results and some slow start did limit some great teams from competing for the prices they aimed for, but that's live.

This week it did hit Ohio State, Notre Dame, Baylor, Stanford and many more.

Here the 3 games I selected as BLOCK OF GRANITE TOP 3 GAMES FOR WEEK 2

Sat, Sept. 9
#13 Auburn @ #3 Clemson
Closer as expected, for sure.
Clemson did lead at halftime only by 1 point, but kept Auburn from scoring in the second and won by 8.
That is not what I expected, beside the win.
Whether this is for both teams enough to compete in their conference is a discussion, which will only be closed after some of the crucial games were played.
Auburn will face LSU mid-October and Georgia in November, with the closing line against Alabama on the last gameday in the Iron Bowl.
My guess is, this game will not decide the SEC West, at least not between this 2 teams.
Clemson will have to win against Louisville next week and then against FSU in November.
Next week could be already a shifting point, since the Cardinals did look good against North Carolina this week.
Overall was the clash of the Tigers not really an exciting game, sorry.
Auburn 6 - Clemson 14 -> Jacks TOP 3 GAMES Score: 7-0

Sat, Sept. 9
#5 Oklahoma @ #2 Ohio State
This will be talked about for ages.
The Sooners came and won, in the Horseshoe and the Sooners-QB Mayfield did plant their Flag on the mid if the field. Bam.
Now the nation is Sooners-crazy.
And that's just fair.
The game was tied at 3 at halftime, but then it was almost only Sooners.
The Buckeyes players for sure can hear the mockery about that loss not only this week, but for a very long time.
Don't think the Big 10 is already decided, but OSU will have a hard time to make this one forgotten when it comes to playoff spots and they are in the mix.
Oklahoma is now at least back in discussion to win the Big 12, if not a playoff candidate and we might see something special this season.
Riley winning a national championship title in his first season?
Not so fast, but for sure Sooners fans would love to see that.
Oklahoma 31 - Ohio State 16 -> Jacks TOP 3 GAMES Score: 7-1

Sat, Sept. 9
#15 Georgia @#24 Notre Dame
That was closer than expected and I'm still thinking about the consequences of this.
Notre Dame tougher than expected?
Georgia weaker than expected?
Starting sputtering or overachievements and in a few weeks we will see the real teams?
Both teams did have 2 turnovers each, Georgia just were lucky to get a bit more out of this.
I have the feeling we might see something not so nice happening with one or both teams.
I fear that Notre Dame will make a splash into the coaching market soon.
Georgia 20 - Notre Dame 19 -> Jacks TOP 3 GAMES Score: 8-1

Other interesting games:

Sat, Sept. 9
#23 TCU @ Arkansas
TCU did win, big time 28-7 and the Razorback fans can again scream for the coaches head.
Jacks interesting games Score: 4-1

Sat, Sept. 9
Pittsburgh @ #4 Penn State
James Franklin described the 33-14 win over Pitt like a win over Akron, which might be intended to keep the players focused on the tougher teams, but is quite harsh for a proud Panthers team.
Jacks interesting games Score: 5-1

Sat, Sept. 9
#14 Stanford @ #6 USC Trojans
Risky pick and that was steam rolled. USC did dominate at home 42-24 and is the leading candidate to win the South. Stanford will have to battle it out against the other contenders in the North, but that loss this week will not help.
Jacks interesting games Score: 5-2

And some other results and info which might be interesting:
Duke did beat Northwestern 41-17. I think they have a good chance for a bowl spot this season. Maybe more.
Iowa did win against Iowa State in OT 44-41. Iowa won now 3 in a row in the rivalry.
Middle Tennessee won against Syracuse 30-23, on the road. Nice won for the Blue Raiders.
Eastern Michigan won against Rutgers 16-13. Last time the Eagles started 2-0 into the season was 2011. Chris Creighton might get some offers after the season.
Central Michigan did beat Kansas 45-27. Looks like upset week for MAC-teams.
FCS-team New Hampshire won against Georgia Southern, which is quite surprising.
Oregon won against Nebraska 42-35. I can hear the Huskers fans calling for consequences, already.
Washington State won against Boise State in OT 47-44. Also the first 2-0 start for the Cougars sine 2011.
FCS-team South Dakota did beat Bowling Green 35-28.
And another MAC-upset, Toledo won against Nevada 37-24.
Baylor lost against UTSA 10-17, starting this way 0-2.
New Mexico State did beat rival New Mexico 30-28. Aggies won now the Rio Grande Rivalry 2 in a row.
Utah did edge BYU 19-16, winning the rivalry game 'Holy War' now since 2010.
And not a good day for Arizona, losing against Houston 16-19 and Arizona State losing against San Diego State 20-30.

Tags: Block of Granite