College Football Odyssey

Last Saturday night was a programming first for ESPN.  A regular season game between two FCS schools, Eastern Washington and Montana, was broadcast on ESPN2 in prime time.  Likely this was a byproduct of a spectacular September for the Big Sky, where the conference could boast of 4 FBS scalps (ranked Washington, Arizona, UNLV and Tulsa).

Based on the thriller, ESPN should offer more FCS broadcasts.  Eastern Washington survived, 34-28, but only after a pass in the end zone was batted away on the game’s final play.

Vibrant would be a vast understatement for all aspects associated with one of the very best games of the year.  Eastern Washington’s red turf, dubbed the “Inferno”, does make one feel that they are at the Gates of Hell.  The nation got to see EWU’s stellar QB, Eric Barriere, who once again threw for over 400 yards.  The winner of this game would be in line to receive a top seed in the FCS playoffs.

Fortunately, ESPN+ does offer a lot of FCS telecasts.   There are excellent FCS tilts most weekends.  You could do lots worse than to watch North Dakota State vs Northern Iowa  and/or South Dakota State vs Southern Illinois.

Don’t feel that you are slumming by enjoying FCS football!  Stream away!!

The media is so playoff-obsessed that many interesting stories are given short shrift.   Saturday, in Amherst, Massachusetts,  is going to provide both temporary relief and ample joy to one team.

UConn will make a quick 50-mile road trip to play UMass.  One team will emerge victorious.  Neither team has won a game since 2019!  Future prospects for both programs are beyond bleak.  Both teams are orphans, relegated to independent status.  Scheduling games becomes a nightmare once conference play around the country starts in earnest.

Arguably, UMass never should have ascended to FBS status.  UConn is in perhaps a more painful situation.  UMass is a “never was” in the highest tier of football.  When UConn left 1-AA football in 2000 and later landed in the Big East, not only were the Huskies in a strong conference, UConn experienced success.  As 2010 co-champs, the Huskies represented the Big East in the Fiesta Bowl.  Heady times.  Their coach, Randy Edsall, abruptly left for Maryland and the program careened downward.  The Big East imploded as a football conference but the Huskies found a landing spot in the American Athletic Conference.

The death knell for UConn fortunes came when their abysmal record and indifferent attendance led the American Athletic Conference to kick the Huskies to the curb.  In utter desperation, UConn rehired Randy Edsall, a move so disastrous that he “retired” after the 2nd game of 2021, a 38-28 clunker to FCS Holy Cross. Car buffs might label his 2nd tenure as a real Edsel.

Post-Edsel, UConn, unlike UMass, has come to life and stopped sputtering the past 2 Saturdays.  Last Saturday, UConn QB, Steven Krajewski, scored on a 17-yard scamper with 1:07 left to put UConn ahead of Vanderbilt, 28-27.  However, the D did not do their part and allowed Vandy to walk it off with a 31-yard field goal.  UConn’s performance in their previous game was stunning.  UConn scored a TD against unbeaten Wyoming with 4 seconds left to make the score 24-22 but could not convert the tying, 2-point conversion.

The Odyssey sees no viable path for either to continue at the FBS level in any meaningful fashion. If they persist in their FBS status,  we do suggest that the teams schedule each other 6 times a year.  Not only is the short travel ecologically attractive, winning does solve some problems.  Their mutual issues seem so massive the older elements of their fan bases might yearn for the long gone days of the Yankee Conference.

The experts in the desert have put the total points in the game at 55.  With these defenses?  Seems a touch low to the Odyssey.

What we do know is that the players on both squads have put in so much effort for so little reward.  We wish both teams could win on Saturday.  For the winners, there is a going to be a hell of a celebration come Saturday evening.  Well deserved!!

K’Vaughn Pope is an Ohio State linebacker — check that — WAS an Ohio State linebacker.  Disgruntled at being subbed out in last Saturday’s Akron, Pope stormed off the field, ripped off his uniform and later tweeted “F*ck Ohio State”  He has been dismissed from the team.

Others have dismissed themselves.  Utah embraced Charlie Brewer.  Brewer gave up on his chance to start games at Baylor for a 5th straight year.  Brewer expressed a desire to go to a winning program.    This felt like a slap in the face to a program that believed in Brewer.  Brewer, who prepped at Austin’s Lake Travis, always wanted to follow in the footsteps of numerous family members who had been Longhorn QB’s.  His dad, Robert, was the MVP of the 1982 Cotton Bowl.  Baylor offered Charlie.  The Longhorns did not.  Brewer was having a tough day against San Diego State and was benched in the third quarter.  Less than 48 hours after his benching, Brewer said goodbye to the Utes.  Possibly Brewer thought he was being loyal to the Utes — after all, he could have called for an uber to LAX at the end of the 3rd quarter of the San Diego State game.   Meanwhile, Baylor upset Iowa State last Saturday to start 2021 with a 4-0 bang.

Bailey Hockman was also benched two Saturdays ago during Middle Tennessee’s game at Texas San Antonio.  Less than 48 hours later, he announced his retirement from football for family reasons.  Was there a family emergency on the Sunday after his benching?  Perhaps nobody should be surprised that Hockman continued to be a rolling stone.  He had previously been at Florida State and North Carolina State.  Thankfully, for Middle Tennessee, the Blue Raiders finally found the right QB to lead their team, Chase Cunningham.  Cunningham has had his disappointments the previous 2 years but he stayed the course.  The Odyssey was in attendance last Friday night in Charlotte as Cunningham threw for 389 yards in an excellent effort for the Blue Raiders.

Like Cunningham, another QB showed that perseverance can pay off after being benched.  Jeff Sims had given way to Jordan Yates at the Georgia Tech QB.  Sims came off the bench and was stellar in the Yellow Jackets’ 45-22 upset of North Carolina last weekend.  We salute the perseverance of both Cunningham and Sims!

As for folks like Brewer, Pope and Hockman, the Odyssey says “good riddance.”  Even as crazy as the antics of Georgia Southern lineman Gavin Adcock were last Saturday (chugging beer on top of a moving bus in pre-game!!!), we know that we would even prefer the Gavin Adcocks of the world to ungrateful quitters if forced to choose.

Friday night, we were in Charlotte at one of the unique FBS stadiums.  The stadium capacity is the smallest in FBS (if you exclude that the Hawaii Rainbow Warriors are playing in temporary digs) at 15,314.  Building an on-campus stadium this small is either pessimistic or genius, depending on your perspective.  For most Group of 5 programs with larger capacities, empty seats tend to be plentiful.  For example, the Odyssey was appalled at the vast swaths of empty seats at the September 16, Thursday night game when Louisiana hosted Ohio, particularly when Louisiana is one of the most ballyhooed Group of 5 teams.  One further element  in the decision to have a smaller stadium: Charlotte is an NFL town.  Generally, this saps the energy and the fan base for the local college team.  That the Washington Huskies draw reasonably well in Seattle is a case of the exception proving the rule.

Even though the Middle Tennessee-Charlotte did not rate to be must-watch football, in addition to being saddled competition from local Friday night prep games, the atmosphere was of a well attended game despite attendance of 11,000.  Chalk up one vote for genius.  Further, the fans went home both entertained and happy as the 49ers held off Middle Tennessee, 42-39,  Both Chase Cunningham and Chris Reynolds passed for over 300 yards in a tilt with ample offensive fireworks to the tune of 1,059 yards.

The second unique aspect of Charlotte’s stadium is that its omnipresent bricks strongly suggest design and construction by a mason.  Even the Engineering Halls that overlook the North end zone conjure memories of the Commodores’ “Brick House”.

Saturday, we eagerly looked to “Enter Sandman” as Virginia Tech’s players enter Lane Stadium to perhaps college football’s most passionate welcome.  If only the Hokies were able to retain such passion for FCS foe, Richmond.  Virginia Tech’s opening TD drive was as easy as a knife through better.  Two series later, Justin Fuente stuck in his backup quarterback, Knox Kadum   What could go wrong in a game where the QB of an FCS team has already gone down?   Turns out, plenty!   A Richmond pick and a very short field resulted in a 7-7 score.

The Hokies slept walked through a 21-10 triumph over the Spiders.  The offense proved a massive disappointment, as one of their TDs was provided courtesy of a  60-yard punt return by Tayvion Robinson.  Braxton Burmeister throws a  ball as pretty as his hometown of La Jolla but we wonder if is capable of being the field general needed by Virginia Tech to win the ACC.

Richmond suffered some terrible luck on their first drive which seriously put into question any chance of an upset.  Their run-first QB, Joe “Macho Man” Mancuso, galloped wild for 29 yards on Richmond’s second play from scrimmage.  Dinged up on the hit, his initial carry  also proved to be his last carry.  At least he can brag to his grandkids that he averaged 29 yards a rush at Lane Stadium.

If the day provided any consolation to Virginia Tech, more proof was provided that Clemson is no longer a super team as they fell at NC State in double overtime.  With their key victory over North Carolina in hand, the Hokies have a lot to play for in coming ACC contests.

Even if Appalachian State did not have a quality football program, driving to Boone, North Carolina would have easily been worthwhile for the picturesque scenery.  Breathtaking!  6 miles before you hit Boone you drive through one of the cutest and most aptly-named towns in the country: Blowing Rock.  Having previously visited North Carolina’s beaches, one develops a great appreciation for the state’s varied topography.

Marshall’s visit was a gift, producing a high-quality, evenly matched affair.  Marshall was one shoestring tackle away from having 2 kick return TDs in the first half!  The Odyssey was intensely interested in the play of both QBs, because both have had weird,  uneven careers.

For App QB, Chase Brice, Boone is his 3rd stop.  As a Clemson backup, his one blaze of Tiger QB glory was in a victorious 2018 relief stint in a nailbiting 27-23 comeback win over Syracuse after Clemson’s all-world QB, Trevor Lawrence, was hurt.  That Brice played in the game was a bit of a fluke since he was the 3rd string QB entering 2018.  However, Kelly Bryant abruptly left the team after he lost the starting gig to the freshman wunderkind.  In 2020, Brice started at Duke was an integral component of a turnover-filled horror fest.  Today, college football QBs move at the drop of a hat.  Would Brice rebound in the third chapter of his “See the Carolinas” tour?

Marshall QB, Grant Wells, has refreshingly stayed at one locale.  However, the last 3 games of 2020 morphed into his own personal horror show after Marshall’s scintillating 7-0 start to their 2020 campaign.  Marshall scored a total of 23 points in his last 3 starts which was a real shame as the defense played well enough in each of those losses.  His tailspin brought the Marshall offense to a screeching halt and certainly contributed to the end of Doc Holliday’s 11-year tenure as the coach of the Thundering Herd.  That Wells threw for 433 yards last Saturday against East Carolina last Saturday indicated that his 2020 meltdown was temporary.

Happy to say that both acquitted themselves well, or “wells” in the case of Marshall’s QB, particularly on longish throws. However, Wells does not play defense.  For the 2nd time in 5 days, the Marshall D collapsed in the 4th quarter, as the Herd could not hang on to a 2-possession lead.  App, down 30-21, pulled out a 31-30 nailbiter.  While the winning points were provided by the toe of a 45-yard field goal by Chandler Staton with 4:32 to go, we were very impressed by both the intellect and unselfishness of   Nate Noel .  With a minute to go,  Noel  broke away from the Herd and apparently was on his way to score a TD.  However, he halted progress at the Marshall 5-yard line and basically allowed himself to be tackled.  Marshall did not have enough timeouts left to keep the clock alive.  Ballgame.  If App had scored to make the score 38-30, Marshall would have had a minute for a last-gasp comeback.

The App crowd of 28,000 deserves many kudos.  The Odyssey has never heard a crowd of this size make so much noise.  The cacophony did not stop at game’s end as loud, post-game revelry continued for a good 15 minutes.  A proud night for a proud program!

With TV’s saturation programming, in-game attendance has been affected the past decade.  With this in mind, the Odyssey is saddened that Wake Forest and Virginia Tech do not schedule regular regional tilts with the Mountaineers.  Wake, with your flagging attendance, please do not be too proud!

For those who think that App State is a Johnny-Come-Lately program, you would be wrong.  Even prior to App’s earthshaking 2007 upset at The Big House, you can point back to games of 40+ years ago where App would come down the mountain and upset Wake.  In fact, Appalachian State and Marshall were Southern Conference rivals when both teams were FCS powers.

As for Marshall, you have to be one of the best 2-2 teams in college football.  Either finish better or come to a pre-game agreement with the opponents that you will only play 55 minutes.

The Odyssey looks forward to the beauty of the Appalachian and the Blue Ridge mountains this weekend.

Thursday night, App State will host a Marshall team  smarting over an epic collapse.  For 11 quarters, the Thundering Herd had been riding roughshod over its outmatched opponents.  Holding a 38-21 lead at home early in the fourth quarter against East Carolina, Marshall was facing a 4th and 2 at the ECU 22.  The Herd passed up on a field goal attempt as a fade route failed to get a soul-crushing first down.  Marshall missed a 31 yard field goal attempt after ECU had scored to narrow the gap to 38-28.  ECU scored again on a trick play with 2:30 to go as QB Holton Ahlers caught a 27-yard TD pass from a wide receiver. ECU recovered an onside kick and scored the go-ahead touchdown with 55 seconds to go.  Undaunted, Marshall quickly marched down to the ECU 15 but JaQuan McMillian intercepted a Marshall pass at the goal line to mar a 433-yard passing day by Grant Wells.  Defense in the tilt was optional as 1,218 yards of offense attested.  Will Marshall still have a hangover with such a short turnaround? Stay tuned.

If East Carolina is a barometer, App State should have an edge as their defense was much more able to keep the dangerous Holton Ahlers at bay in their opener against the Pirates.

Charlotte will be hosting Middle Tennessee on Friday night.  We expect the 49ers to fare well against a Middle team that is, charitably,  middling.  Charlotte opened with a thrilling last-minute victory over Duke.  While experts thought the 2021 Dukies would be underwhelming, Duke has a potent offense and has followed up with 2 impressive victories.  Last Saturday, the unpredictability of college football again was on demonstration.  A Georgia State defense that had been thrashed in its first two games, allowing 109 points, finally showed up.  In addition, Georgia State made a needed QB change.  The rejuvenated Panthers shockingly limited Charlotte to 9 points in a 20-9 triumph.  We thought fourth-year starting QB, Chris Reynolds, and the rest of the 49er offense would fare much better.  We expect a close game where the home field may prove the difference.

On Saturday, we will return to the mountains and will eagerly listen as “Enter Sandman” again electrifies the Blue Ridge.  Virginia Tech entertains FCS Richmond at noon.  The Hokies almost pulled off a memorable comeback at West Virginia and will want to rinse away the taste of their frustrating 27-21 defeat.  Virginia Tech’s downfall was caused by total failures after three different occasions of first and goal to go:  Result; zero points!  Toss in yet another failure for Hokies when they did not convert a 4th and 1 from the West Virginia 25 and you have the recipe for defeat in front of the passionate Mountaineer fans.

Strangely, Richmond’s season closely parallels that of Marshall.  The Spiders opened with 2 impressive victories and then let a double-digit lead in the fourth quarter slip away against Villanova.  Villanova scored 3 TDs in the final five minutes (!!) to pull a 34-27 rabbit out of the hat.  We do not expect a Virginia Tech letdown.  The Hokie coaching staff will no doubt be reminding their team of their 2010 loss to FCS’s James Madison in the aftermath of their ballyhooed, heartbreaking opening loss to Boise that the Odyssey attended in Landover. One other reason that the “boys from VPI” will not overlook Richmond.  The last time the Spiders played in Blacksburg was 1985.  Final score:  Richmond 24, Virginia Tech 14.  The Odyssey thinks it is more likely that Richmond recovers from its hangover to play to its potential than Marshall even though the Odyssey does not expect a Richmond upset.

At any rate, during our drives through the mountain roads this weekend, we will definitely keep an eye out for John Denver.

SPOILER ALERT:  If you are put off by a writer who may have abandonment issues, read no farther.

On a whim, I decided to drive up on a picture-perfect Saturday to a San Diego State home game.  If these were normal times, my commute would have been 15 minutes.  Instead, my trip was a 110-mile slog through traffic so congested that I questioned my sanity in leaving behind my beloved couch.   Thus, I had plenty of time to reflect on my drive to Carson while the Aztecs’ new stadium is under construction

Utah had not travelled to Southern California to play the Aztecs since 2010. Eleven years ago, Utah left a bitter goodbye present for the Aztecs.  The Pac12 newbie inflicted ample pain. The Utes came back from multiple 17-point deficits to outlast San Diego State, 38-34, despite Ryan Lindley throwing for 528 yards.  Months earlier, Utah had bid adieu to San Diego State and the rest of the Mountain West by saying yes to the Pac-10.  Earlier in 2010, with Boise, TCU, Utah and BYU, I was stoked that the Mountain West was becoming a kick-ass football conference.  Then conference realignment dominos fell like crazy.  The Utah loss felt like two separate punches to the gut – as if your girl friend broke up with you and then promptly took up with your best friend.

I found it deeply ironic that the Aztecs’ SoCal rendezvous with Utah took place in the initial refuge of the San Diego Chargers after the Spanos family bailed on San Diego. When I moved to San Diego in 1983, “America’s Finest City” had representatives in 3 of the 4 major sports leagues.  In 2021, despite major population increases over the previous 4 decades, “3” had become “1”.    On the plus side, I was pleasantly surprised with Dignity Health stadium.  The cozy venue, home of soccer’s Los Angeles Galaxy, was pretty cool.  Regrettably, there were far too few fans to witness what would become an epic struggle.

I was mildly surprised that the Aztecs were holding their own with a new QB, Lucas  Johnson.  Johnson was given the nod due to Jordon Brookshire’s ouchy ankle.  The 10-10 standoff at halftime was a deceptive score as neither team could garner even 90 yards of offense in the first half.  The Aztecs’ TD came courtesy of a 100-yard kickoff return from Jordan Byrd.  Besides an 80-yard punt return TD by Britain Covey, the Utes offense looked as anemic as in their loss to  bitter rival BYU last week.  If Utah was suffering a post-Holy War hangover, their headache quickly got worse as the Aztecs scored 2 TDs in the first 5 minutes of the 2nd half.

Charlie Brewer, the Utes’ QB, did not seem like a great candidate to lead a  comeback.    In 2018, the Odyssey was thoroughly unimpressed by Brewer when we travelled to the Brazos River in Waco to see Baylor’s offense stymied by TCU. Kyle Whittingham evidently felt the same way as Brewer took a seat for Cam Rising midway in the third quarter.  The starting quarterbacks typified the modern times of 2021.  Both Brewer and Johnson were transfers who had started at other outposts (Johnson at Georgia Tech).

At the start of the fourth quarter, Brady Hoke elected to nurse the 24-10 lead.  If Hoke was a boxer, he was acting like he was in the 13th round of a 15-round fight and had been told by his corner that he had the fight won as long as he did whatever to remain standing.

Given that the Utes’ QBs  had not seemed to be the reincarnation of Patrick Mahomes, perhaps Hoke’s stance was astute.  San Diego State turned away the Utes at the Aztec 4 with 9 minutes left, a defensive stop that propelled SDSU deeper into their shell.  The Aztecs’ defensive play calling also became quite conservative.  With the lack of a pass rush that hounded Brewer earlier in the affair, Rising regularly connected with his targets.  I have always felt that it was unfair to keep playing the same defensive linemen when the other team has to pass on every down, unless there is the occasional blitz.  Otherwise, the big guys just run out of gas late in the game.  When Utah scored with 4:15 left, the Aztecs received some good news when the extra point was missed.  24-16, but I was starting to have nighmarish flashbacks of 2010.  My indigestion worsened when SDSU made no real attempt to get a first down.  Utah used all its timeouts and got back the ball with 2:50 remaining.  Rising led the team down the field as my migraine worsened.  With 16 seconds left, Utah scored to make the tally 24-22.  Rising  found  Solomon Enis in the corner of the end zone for the 2-point conversion that sent the Ute fans into ecstasy.

SD State immediately opened up its arsenal in OT as Johnson connected on two passes for a TD.   Utah equalized in a nanosecond.  Utah missed a field goal in the 2nd overtime, giving the Aztecs a golden chance for a reprieve.  Three runs up the middle netted 6 yards as SD State again played the “conservative card.”   No bueno as their field goal attempt also went wide right. My nightmare kept growing larger with each agonizing moment.

The Odyssey loves the new rule that a 3rd overtime morphs into nothing but two-point conversions.  SD State’s play call was anything but conservative.  PHILLY SPECIAL, BABY, to take a 33-31 lead.  Rising found Connor O’Toole in the end zone for the tying 2-pointer….But wait!  Upon review, the receiver did not have control when the tip of the pigskin hit the ground. Overturned!  Ballgame and massive relief.

Not surprisingly, the drive home was much more pleasant, accompanied by the radio broadcast of  the UCLA-Fresno State game.  The UCLA announcers were in awe of the performance put on by Fresno State’s QB, Jake Haener.  455 passing yards and a last-minute comeback gave no doubt that Haener put on a historic performance at the Rose Bowl.

Another round of 2021 conference realignment has kept both San Diego State and Fresno State in the Group-of-Five shadows.  On Saturday night, as their team buses left Tinseltown for the long drives home, that slight seemed less important.  San Diego State is 7-2 in their last 9 encounters with the Pac12.  Fresno State has won 4 straight versus UCLA.   I hope the Who’s “Magic Bus” was cued up to max volume.

One doesn’t always have to wait to determine the wisdom of one’s wagers on season win totals.  While generally true, consider some wagers that already appear to be near “lock” status.

IOWA over 8.5  +130

Cash it!  Not only have the Hawkeyes already triumphed over two ranked teams, road games at Nebraska and Northwestern appear less daunting than 3 weeks ago.

LSU under 8.5

The upset loss to UCLA spelled major trouble .  That UCLA was superior on both lines of scrimmage added fuel to the flames.  LSU’s crossover games with the SEC East are with two teams more impressive than previously thought (Florida, at Kentucky).  Arkansas, Ole Miss and Mississippi State all look better than advertised.  The Odyssey expects LSU to do no better than 3-5 with this brutal SEC slate (How brutal??  We have not mentioned Alabama, Auburn and A&M!!!).

Ed O might want to put his house up for sale while the market is still hot.

Michigan over 7.5

The Odyssey doubted Michigan’s roster, lack of successful recruiting in Ohio and Jim Harbaugh’s acumen.  OOPS!  After watching the Blue “Cave Man” Washington on Saturday night, we apologize.  Like Iowa, their dates with Nebraska and Northwestern appear less imposing.  Even if Michigan loses at Wisconsin, at Penn State and Ohio State, the Wolverines would have to lose 2 additional games to come to 5 losses  While this is possible (Resurgent Rutgers, Maryland, resurgent MSU and Indiana are all capable of beating UM), Harbaugh looks much more at home running the ball and using about 17 tight ends.

Utah State over 3 -135

Cash it! The Aggies won their opener as a 17-point dog at Washington State.  Then, they spotted an excellent FCS team, North Dakota, a two-touchdown lead and roared back with a scintillating second half.

Utah State still has games left with UNLV and both New Mexicos.  Yumm!  Plus, playing at home will be quite helpful against Hawaii and Colorado State.  CASH IT!

Congrats to Utah State for finally getting the right Anderson as coach!  Last year, the Aggies fired Gary “The Quitter” Anderson and then hired Blake Anderson.  Brilliant move!

Clemson under 11.5 -130

You could literally have cashed this two weeks ago after Georgia’s defense ruled the day.

There are two additional season totals that have been impacted by nail-biters in the first two weeks.

Notre Dame over 8.5

Two thrilling wins over Florida State and Toledo have kept this bet alive.  However, do not get too giddy by dodging these bullets if you hold this ticket.  I have never seen a schedule where a  team has to play 6 teams coming off a bye!  For example, Wisconsin has 2 weeks to get ready for their September 25 date at Soldier Field.  For this over to cash, we would highly recommend that the Irish beat Wisconsin because their remaining schedule looks awfully tough.  Road games at Virginia Tech, Virginia and Stanford all look more difficult than thought in pre-season.

Bowling Green under 1.5

This bet was on major life support late in the 4th quarter with Bowling Green fooling the betting public, holding a 19-12 lead over South Alabama in Northern Ohio with two minutes to go.  Alas, the Falcons lost 22-19.

After Saturday, the Odyssey can offer another piece of anecdotal evidence that climate change is a reality.

One of our senior correspondents, Matt Anctil, was rooting for his Buffs in Denver.  For 57 minutes, they held 5th-ranked Texas A&M out of the end zone.  Sadly for Colorado, the Aggies converted numerous third downs on the game-winning drive to escape in a 10-7 thriller.

Matt’s thoughts:

One defense was good and the other was surprisingly good.  The Buffs’ linebackers were particularly excellent.

Matt lamented two missed opportunities for the Buffaloes.  With 3rd and 1 from the A&M 5, the Aggies’ stout D stopped 2 runs to take over on downs.  Cole Becker missed a makeable field goal.  Of course, A&M fans can point to Zach Calzada’s lost fumble at the Colorado goal line.

Colorado’s QB, Brendon Lewis, is a dual threat who is more proficient as a runner.  Matt believes that the Buffs would have had more luck in the 2nd half with more rushing attempts.

After Calzada come on in relief of injured Haynes King, he finally came alive on the game-winning drive.  His pass to Isaiah Spiller in the corner was both accurate and well conceived as Spiller was too athletic for the CU linebacker in coverage.

Matt did not feel that the combination of the 90-degree heat and the altitude  had  an impact on the outcome.

While Colorado had to be bitterly disappointed that a big upset did not come to pass, Buff fans have to be pleased with their coach, Karl Dorrell.  When Mel Tucker bailed for many MSU greenbacks after only 1 year in Boulder, Colorado was left holding the bag.  Dorrell, the former UCLA coach, has turned out to be a very pleasant surprise, which slightly soften the hard feelings that still exist toward Tucker.

The Odyssey’s on site coverage typically is exclusively on FBS teams – the big boys.  However, after no less than 6 lower-tier FCS teams toppled their FBS “big brothers” in week 1, the Odyssey decided to change its stance.  One of the teams that pulled off such an upset were the UC Aggies — one of 3 Big Sky teams to beat FCS squads in week 1.  Week 2 had the Aggies travelling to University of San Diego.

USD football has intrigued me for two reasons:

1) Jim Harbaugh started his coaching career at USD.

2) USD has excelled in football despite the huge handicap of offering no football scholarships.  The Toreros  have been frequent participants in the FCS playoff – including 4 straight years from 2016-19, when they beat two scholarship programs in the playoffs – Cal Poly and Northern Arizona.

This intrigue and the presence of the upstart Aggies prompted the Odyssey to pay a visit to the Toreros’ beautiful campus on a very warm afternoon. UC Davis was duly impressive, routing an outmanned USD squad 53-7, the worst beatdown of USD in 25 years.  Former Boise State and Colorado head coach, Dan Hawkins, has found a comfortable landing spot in Davis.  I was amused that after each of the Aggies’ first-half touchdowns, the Aggies went for 2.  Shades of Chip Kelly during his Oregon heyday!

I noted that the ticket prices were all of $10 – $5 for kids.  Refreshing!  I craned my neck to look for the band at halftime.  There was no marching band – just piped in music.  Disappointing!  The Toreros’ conference, the Pioneer League,  is one where football scholarships are not offered.  Before they dive into conference play, they travel to Bozeman on Saturday to play one more scholarship team – an excellent Montana State squad.  After their opening 3-game gauntlet against the Big Sky, USD will be able to provide ample testimony as to Big Sky excellence.

Let’s take a look at 4 Week 2 favorites who appear poised to crush overmatched dogs.  As tempting as it is to take these favorites against the spread, caution is in order.

Florida (-28) at South Florida

USF was of the very worst looking teams in week 1.  The Bulls made North Carolina State look like the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, getting outgained 525-271.  USF has to be wondering why they ever hired Jeff Scott.  The 2nd-year coach has not yet won an FBS game (USF fans are very thankful for last year’s Citadel game!) and their fans cannot be blamed for checking  his buyout amount — Scott was signed for 5 years  and $12.5 million.

The game in Tampa will not even be a “true” home game as we expect Gator fans to heavily attend.  The Odyssey fondly remembers attending a spine tingling, 31-28 USF win in 2003 over a good Louisville team.  The place was rocking!  No more.  However, Florida cannot help but looking forward to whom they host in the Swamp the following Saturday:  ALABAMA!  When you factor in that the USF players from the Sunshine State will want to show well against the school that did not offer them, giving the 4 touchdowns does not look like easy money to the Odyssey.

Purdue (-34) at UConn

After Saturday’s  38-28 loss to Holy Cross, Randy Edsall promptly announced his retirement.  Very smart, Randy, to get ahead of the posse!   Purdue may be preoccupied by their date the following Saturday at Notre Dame.  The Notre Dame game was always a huge game on the Purdue schedule until the Irish decided not to play the Boilermakers annually.  This will be the 85th installment in the series, Notre Dame leading 56-26-2.  Purdue is always fired up to play the Irish.

UTEP at Boise (-26)

Boise State will be jazzed to have a rare home date on September 18th against a Power 5 team in Oklahoma State on the blue turf!  Will there be a significant chance of overlooking UTEP  with UTEP’s lightweight pedigree.  Probably not as the Miners are actually 2-0 (a deceptive mark because their victims were the underwhelming duo of New Mexico State and Bethune Cookman).  Further, Boise will want to get the bitter taste of their come-from-ahead loss to UCF out of their mouth.  Still, Boise may hibernate a bit in the 2nd half as they look forward to the Cowboy game.

UNLV at Arizona State (-33)

Like UTEP, UNLV is a perennially downtrodden program.  ASU may be looking forward to its first big game of the year the following Saturday at BYU.  UNLV actually showed a pulse against a strong Eastern Washington team.  Despite being outmatched on the offensive line, the Rebels held a strong offense in check for most of the game.  We would only back UNLV in this spot.

Speaking of UNLV, their opener showed why sports gamblers can go insane.  The total for the game ranged between 66 and 69.  When only 9 points were scored in the first half, wouldn’t you feel awesome if you had a ticket on the under?  The game ends in regulation at 20-20.  Final score in double OT:  Eastern Washington 35, UNLV 33.

BE CAUTIOUS OUT THERE!