Week 1 Scores and Highlights

[DRU2012]

Former Gator Mahmoud Diabate only made one tackle in the 26-29 Utah loss. Only Gators get out alive!

I never really understood exactly why he MADE this move...a "lateral" one at BEST (and out of the SEC). Did he think it somehow gave him better position for getting picked up by a pro team?
More than ever, it strikes me as a MIS-use of the "Transfer Portal".

 

[Escambia94]

Mississippi State remembers to bring a defensive coordinator this time and avenges last year’s loss to Memphis 49-23.

 

[Escambia94]

Today I learned that Mercer has a football program. Auburn defeats the mighty Bears of Macon, 42-16.

 

[Escambia94]

The SEC went undefeated this weekend with only LSU-FSU left to play. Assuming LSU does not crap the bed, all 14 SEC teams may go undefeated in a weekend for the first time with 14 teams (and possibly first time in the modern era since the 1990s). Florida was the only team not favored to win. The state of Utah went 0-2 against the SEC. The state of Utah went 1-1 against the state of Florida thanks to the BYU victory over USF.

 

[Escambia94]

The top 10 teams went 7-1 against non-top-10 teams and was 7-1 in games when they were favored.

1. Alabama defeated Utah State 55-0
2. Ohio State escaped 5 Notre Dame 21-10
3. Georgia demolished 11 Oregon 49-3
4. Clemson plays Georgia Tech on Monday
6. Texas A&M drowned Sam Houston 31-0 after rain delay
7. Utah lost to unranked Florida
8. Michigan defeated Colorado State 51-7
9. Oklahoma defeated UTEP 45-13
10. Baylor demolished Albany 69-10

 

[Escambia94]

Pac-12 was 0-3 against Power 5 teams with losses to SEC (Georgia vs Oregon and Utah vs Florida), and Big 12 (Colorado vs TCU). This includes going 0-2 against the SEC.

 

[Escambia94]

I never really understood exactly why he MADE this move...a "lateral" one at BEST (and out of the SEC). Did he think it somehow gave him better position for getting picked up by a pro team?
More than ever, it strikes me as a MIS-use of the "Transfer Portal".

Whenever there is a transfer there are always rumors. Diabate was rumored to have attitude issues. Setting aside rumors that always fly around, he said that he wanted to be a pass rusher and he wanted to play for a conference championship. He is undersized as a pass rusher in the SEC, but he is about the same size as the Pac-12 All-American that he is replacing.

There is no more misuse of the transfer portal. Years ago the athletes had to create an excuse to transfer. That is no longer the case, which is why NCAA relaxed class size restrictions over recent years.

 

[DRU2012]

Whenever there is a transfer there are always rumors. Diabate was rumored to have attitude issues. Setting aside rumors that always fly around, he said that he wanted to be a pass rusher and he wanted to play for a conference championship. He is undersized as a pass rusher in the SEC, but he is about the same size as the Pac-12 All-American that he is replacing.

There is no more misuse of the transfer portal. Years ago the athletes had to create an excuse to transfer. That is no longer the case, which is why NCAA relaxed class size restrictions over recent years.

Thankyou, E--. I see what you mean.
It adds up...but still: The choice itself to some extent retroactively somewhat supports the "flying rumors" then in this case though, wouldn't you agree? Certainly a "Fine: Live with your decision!", and maybe even a bit of a "Good riddance then..." might be in order here, if the young man turned his back on his now "FORMER" teammates.
On the other hand, we ALL make emotional mistakes when we are young. And things can get VERY "emotional" when Coaches who recruited you are suddenly fired, when your evolving ideas about who you are, how you fit in and where it's all headed are swept aside.
After our big win last night, I suppose we can afford to be magnanimous and wish him well.
Bottom line: "Let's move on..."

 

[DRU2012]

Another thing:
The supposed "Quarterback whisperer" sure seems to have "missed the boat" where Anthony Richardson was concerned--especially in comparing him to Emory Jones.
As soon as we saw Anthony in game-situations many of us began asking pointed questions along these very lines. Yes, there were some injury questions, but if anything Mullen used these as excuses to favor Emory's solid installation as our unquestioned "QB-1"--and after that AR himself as mostly just a psychological "goad", looming over Jones' shoulder as a "change-of-pace".
ANOTHER strangely ineffective choice on his part it seems now, looking back.
Something "strange" in GENERAL appears to have affected Mullen's coaching decisions and devopment the last couple of years, I think.

 

[Escambia94]

Another thing:
The supposed "Quarterback whisperer" sure seems to have "missed the boat" where Anthony Richardson was concerned--especially in comparing him to Emory Jones.
As soon as we saw Anthony in game-situations many of us began asking pointed questions along these very lines. Yes, there were some injury questions, but if anything Mullen used these as excuses to favor Emory's solid installation as our unquestioned "QB-1"--and after that AR himself as mostly just a psychological "goad", looming over Jones' shoulder as a "change-of-pace".
ANOTHER strangely ineffective choice on his part it seems now, looking back.
Something "strange" in GENERAL appears to have affected Mullen's coaching decisions and devopment the last couple of years, I think.

Stubborn loyalty. Emory Jones was Mullens’s first recruit going all the way back to his time at Mississippi State. John Hevesy has been with Mullen since they were at Bowling Green 20 years ago. Todd Grantham has been with him since the later years at State. The better business decisions should have been to replace and upgrade Grantham and Hevesy. He should have made Richardson get the knee surgery a year earlier and played him more in 2021. Stubborn loyalty did him in.

 

[DRU2012]

Stubborn loyalty. Emory Jones was Mullens’s first recruit going all the way back to his time at Mississippi State. John Hevesy has been with Mullen since they were at Bowling Green 20 years ago. Todd Grantham has been with him since the later years at State. The better business decisions should have been to replace and upgrade Grantham and Hevesy. He should have made Richardson get the knee surgery a year earlier and played him more in 2021. Stubborn loyalty did him in.

Hopefully we can stop "looking back", bemoaning past missteps--and finally close the book on the Mullen Era. I will henceforth endeavor to do MY part after this. But you're right, of course: Like a stubborn child (a role that seemed to arise periodically from within him as time went on, by the way: Remember his running around the field at the end of that Missouri game, seemingly looking for a fight himself instead of cooling out his team? THEN that cheap "Darth Vader" costume he sent someone out to the Dollar Store for so he could wear it at the subsequent post-game press conference???) Mullen did increasingly reveal a stubborn, churlish side as time went on here.
We wasted at least a YEAR of needed change-and-rebuild time--but maybe things just had to play out just as they did to get us to where we are now, which may be starting to look just fine in the long run.
Regardless, there is nothing we can do to "change the past" now, in any event.
The good news: The growing evidence (and FEELING) that we have the right guy--and with him, a growing SLEW of staff and players who will eventually together create something special at UF.

 

[Escambia94]

It is only halftime and the LSU-FSU game is hot trash. FSU leads 7-3, with 160 yards of offense to LSU’s 119. FSU’s only score came by way of a trick play, a reverse flea flicker.

 

[Leakfan12]

How about that ending?

 

[DRU2012]

I only really joined this game for the late-4th quarter (Sorry, but when it comes to FSU, it sure looked like the Noles were playing a fairly inept LSU squad and seemed more and more to have the game in hand--which had me watching Star Wars for the umpteenth time and doing "Gator stuff" online instead...) at which point the Tigdrs finally seemed to wake up and (with help from FSU) was on the verge of coming all the way back from a 2 score deficit in the final seconds, having scored a TD with 0.00 left on the clock and needing only an extra point to tie it up and send it to overtime.
This ki ker had apparently MISSED one earlier, and I actually found myself thinking that given the circumstances, the GIFTS they'd been handed to get back at all, the fact that they were at home with all the momemtum.and everything else (INCLUDING a shaky freshman kicker) that maybe Kelly should just line up quickly and GO FOR THE WIN...But no, they "played it safe"--only it WASN'T: DOINK! It was blocked and we t off the upright.
Criminoles win, announcers calling it a "signature win", only if it was, it wasn't one they should be particularly proud of. Kelly is no miracle worker, his team has a long way to go, you could say the same for the Noles (BOTH look eminently beatable by us at this point), and though somewhat entertaining, I doubt EITHER team is going anywhere as the season goes on.

 

[Escambia94]

There were no winners in this FSU-LSU game, only a loser with more points. FSU not-loses to LSU on a blocked PAT, 24-23.

Thanks to stank-ass LSU, the SEC does not go undefeated in week 1. However, if we temporarily suspend carpetbagger Brian Kelly and idiot LSU from the SEC for the week and count Vanderbilt’s week 0 victory on top of their week 1 victory, the SEC went 14-0 in weeks 0 and 1.

 

[Escambia94]

LSU was this close to tying the game and going into overtime.

 

[Escambia94]

Clemson sleepwalks through Georgia Tech 41-10.

This concludes week 1! Onto the next!

 

[DRU2012]

Clemson sleepwalks through Georgia Tech 41-10.

This concludes week 1! Onto the next!

The ESPN announcers (on both the highlight shows AND.the Monday games themselves) kept going on about "the drama of college football" and "how GREAT it is to be back", but I surely got more the impression of it all wearing down and petering OUT--them AND us!
Or maybe it was just ME (?).
TRUTH is, I WAS happy and excitedly engrossed in the early going. certainly into and THROUGH our home opener Sat night!
But those final installments we could all do without. If it weren't for being CFB-starved, AND our Gators having pulled the big opening win, we wouldn't have been the least bit interested--but as it was, they at least had me peeking in.
But at by midnight last night I was DONEI--I was nodding off to the last coupla Firefly Marathon installments.
So: I still think Utah was (and IS) a good team--probably more disciplined AND efficient than Kentucky;
We've got plenty of room and motivation for improvement--Billy and his Staff will have their charges working HARD on BOTH this week...
That "Week One to Week Two"-improvement is ALWAYS important--we have to "WIN" that this time. This first part of the season may depend upon it.

 

[DRU2012]

...more of the SAME come Tuesday.
Here are the regulars on ESPN's "College Football Now" all with their prepared "takes"--and I SWEAR: Everyone ONE of them strike me as sort of ridiculous..."MY 'take away' from Week 1 is how DEEP the Big 12 is!" said one.
Are you KIDDING us, guy?!!
The only possible reason you would SAY that is to somehow bolster y'all HAVING to cover so many essentially MEANINGLESS (long since scheduled, BEFORE all these inevitable changes started cascading down upon College Football) games on your networks in the season(s) ahead.
Subsequent such featured "take aways" from the others were no less irrelevant.
And the WORST is when one or another embarks on a confusing trail of obscure stats and metrics ultimately rationalizing some dubious proposition. Circular logic seems the order of the day.
Have these folks never heard of the "K.I.S.S. Principle"? "KEEP IT SIMPLE, STUPID!", right?
You watch the games, you can SEE if one is the better team--bigger, faster, better coached... and should win the game. Or sometimes they BOTH stink--especially early in the season. But no matter what, once they start playing the games, it is the EYETEST that SHOULD be given top place in any analysis pregame.
But not these guys. Somehow, UK's bumbling, inept performance against a hugely inferior in terms of talent Miami-of-Ohio team, now facing a young and still somewhat stumblingly finding themselves Florida Gator team with clearly a wide range of superior talent that just SWAMPED a really good, Top Ten Utah team, somehow adds up to "Kentucky matches up better against Florida than the Utes did..." in the Swamp, according to one of the people who will be announcing this week's game.
I DON'T recall him (or anyone ELSE) saying anything LIKE that in the weeks leading up to the opening weeks. But THAT'S his "take away" from all we've seen so far? I don't know if that's just another effort to spice up the pre-game controversy; I DO think we continue to see extensive evidence of how Billy Napier, among his many skills is more talented and aware of how to recognize and prepare a team's mindset going INTO a particular contest than Dan Mullen was.
We eliminate a good portion of the errors (not just ours either--how about a better game by the REFEREES???) and slippery hands on the part of our RBs and I THINK we'll return to our old ways, the habit(s) of beating UK AND "always-winning-in-the-SWAMP".
My point: NOTHING is gonna be GIVEN to us, but even BEFORE Billy & Co. get a week to raise-the-level-of-play for Game 2, what I saw of BOTH teams in their openers tells me that we are the better team going IN. Now it's up to US to PROVE it. For the first time in YEARS, there is a vibe, a FEELING SURROUNDING this program that actually gives me a certain calm, a growing SOMETHING: What IS this half-remembered state-of-being? Is it, could it BE...CONFIDENCE?
Maybe not quite, not YET.
Let's see what happens THIS week.
Then we'll talk.

 

[Escambia94]

I am fine with the hyperbole. We all missed college football, so it is understandable to exaggerate how good these games were. If I had to rank the best games of the week I would rank it as such:

1. #2 Ohio State vs #5 Notre Dame. Two storied programs going at it in week 1? Yes, please!
2. #3 Georgia vs #11 Oregon. Two great programs meeting as top 15 teams coached by master and student!
3. NR Florida vs #7 Utah. Florida represents one of newest “blue blood” programs that had won the most games since 1990. Utah has been the most consistent program since 2004 and has done it with one head coach. These teams looked the same on paper and they played each other close. It was not the prettiest game for either team, but it was the kind of ugly that defines a team. Florida proved it could win ugly. Utah has the opportunity to bounce back from this and run the table with its Pac-12 schedule.
4. #19 Arkansas vs #23 Cincinnati. Two top-25 teams in week 1. This is the last of the intriguing games.