It was an opening weekend to forget for most of the Big Ten as the conference went just 8-6 including two losses to non-Power 5 conference opponents. Penn State embarrassed themselves against Temple and Purdue fell late on the road to Marshall. Aside from Ohio State’s victory in Blacksburg, Northwestern was the most impressive in victory, upsetting No. 21 Stanford.

Utah 24, Michigan 17

Jim Harbaugh’s debut didn’t go as planned as Utah took advantage of their home field to win their third consecutive game against the Wolverines. Devontae Booker had 124 yards of total offense and a touchdown for the Utes. The Wolverines had their chances to win this game, but a Justin Thomas interception return for a touchdown halfway through the 4th quarter all but sealed the victory.

Jake Rudock threw for 279 yards and two scores, but was picked off three times in his first game as the Wolverines’ quarterback. Harbaugh returns to Ann Arbor for his first home game next week against Oregon State.

TCU 23, Minnesota 17

Minnesota stuck around against the No. 2 team in the country but just couldn’t find a way to overcome the talented Horned Frogs. Trevone Boykin showed flashes of what’s made him a Heisman Trophy contender as he threw for 246 yards and a TD as well as rushing the ball for 92 yards and another score.

Mitch Leidner was good, not great, for the Golden Gophers, going 19-35 for 197 yards and a touchdown. Freshman Rodney Smith led the way on the ground with 88 yards, doing his best to fill the big shoes left by David Cobb. Minnesota travels to play Colorado State on the road on Saturday.

Michigan State 37, Western Michigan 24

Buckeye fans probably had an eye on this matchup in Kalamazoo with two future opponents squaring off. The score made it look a little closer than it was, as the Spartans jumped out to a 27-10 halftime lead before faltering down the stretch. Zach Terrell had a big game for the Broncos, throwing the ball 50 times for 365 yards and two touchdowns.

For Michigan State, Connor Cook was very average, going just 15-31 passing for 256 yards and two scores. Madre London ran in two touchdowns in the early going for the Spartans as they got a tune-up before next week’s primetime showdown against Oregon in East Lansing.

Northwestern 16, Stanford 6

Northwestern pulled off one of the bigger shocks around the conference by taking out No. 21 Stanford. Northwestern quarterback Clayton Thorson made the biggest play of the day when he took off 42 yards down the left sideline in the 2nd quarter to give the Wildcats a lead they would never surrender. All other scoring plays were field goals as Northwestern held on to start the season 1-0.

The Wildcats will look to build off their early season success when they host Eastern Illinois on Saturday.

Iowa 31, Illinois State 14

In a game some pundits thought the Redbirds might give Iowa a run for their money, the Hawkeyes handled the 2014 FCS runner-ups easily, nearly doubling Illinois State’s yardage total (431-231). C.J. Beathard got his first career start at Kinnick Stadium and was impressive in the victory.

Beathard threw for 211 yards and a touchdown while adding two more scores on the ground as Iowa jumped out to a 31-0 lead before allowing a couple late touchdowns. It’s a rivalry week for the Hawkeyes as they prepare for a trip to Ames to take on Iowa State.

Maryland 50, Richmond 21

Maryland survived a bit of a scare early from Richmond when the Spiders took a 14-13 lead less than five minutes into the 2nd quarter. The Terrapins would put all fears at ease though and they reeled off 37 straight points after falling behind.

William Likely set a Big Ten record for punt return yards in a game with 233 in the season-opening win. Likely took one punt all the way back 67 yards for a touchdown that put the exclamation point on this one. Things get a little tougher next week for Maryland when they welcome Bowling Green to town.

Rutgers 63, Norfolk State 13

Rutgers was expected to dominate their MEAC foe and dominate they did. The Scarlet Knights outgained Norfolk State 539-196 and Leonte Carroo helped blow things open in the 3rd quarter when he caught three touchdown passes.

Mike Leach and the Washington State Cougars come to Piscataway for the return trip of a home-and-home series that Rutgers took the opener of last season.

Illinois 52, Kent State 3

It’s been a rough couple of weeks for the Illinois faithful so it had to feel good to put a beat down on hapless Kent State in the season opener. Wes Lunt threw four touchdowns and Josh Ferguson added another on the ground to lead the Illini in this game that was postponed Friday night due to lightning.

Illinois will look to keep the good times going when Western Illinois take a trip across the state to Champaign on Saturday.

Temple 27, Penn State 10

For a guy hyped to be a possible first overall pick in the 2016 NFL Draft, Christian Hackenberg has done a great job of seeming extremely average. Hackenberg was just 11-25 passing for a measly 103 yards with no touchdowns and an interception.

Akeel Lynch scored the Nittany Lions’ only touchdown of the game in the first quarter to make it 10-0, Penn State. Hackenberg led the Nittany Lions to just 180 yards of total offense all game and will need to get a lot better if they want to turn things around against Buffalo this weekend.

BYU 33, Nebraska 28

Playing without Heisman candidate Taysom Hill down the stretch, BYU shocked the whole state of Nebraska by scoring the game-winning touchdown on a last-second Hail Mary. Backup Tanner Mangum found Mitch Mathews at the front of the end zone to complete the Cougars’ comeback.

Tommy Armstrong, Jr. played well for the Cornhuskers in the loss, throwing for 319 yards and three scores. Nebraska will look to get their first win of the season on Saturday when they take on South Alabama.

Indiana 48, Southern Illinois 47

Indiana escaped their season opener against the FCS Salukis by just a single point after a Southern Illinois two-point conversion failed with 18 seconds left in the game. The Salukis were up 32-21 at halftime but squandered their lead before the 3rd quarter was over.

Jordan Howard paved the way for the Hoosiers, rushing for 145 yards and three scores, including the game-winner with 58 seconds left. Indiana looks to start 2-0 when Florida International comes to Bloomington for a night game.

Alabama 35, Wisconsin 17

Wisconsin couldn’t stop Derrick Henry and the Crimson Tide rode their talented back all the way to a blowout win over the Badgers. Henry ran for 147 yards on just 13 carries but still managed to find paydirt three times. Jake Coker was efficient in his first start, going 15-21 for 213 yards and a touchdown pass.

Joel Stave was the more experienced signal caller in this matchup, but his 228 yards and two touchdowns weren’t enough to keep Wisconsin in this game. The Badgers will look to bounce back in Camp Randall against Miami (Ohio).

Marshall 41, Purdue 31

Purdue had plenty of chances to win their season opener on the road in Huntington, leading at halftime and after the 3rd quarter, but turnovers doomed the Boilermakers. Austin Appleby threw four interceptions, including two picked off by Tiquan Lang that were returned for touchdowns. Purdue was driving with less than two minutes in the game when Lang sealed the game for the Thundering Herd.

D.J. Knox ran for 102 yards in the loss and DeAngelo Yancey added 78 yards receiving for the Boilermakers. Purdue is back at home to take on Indiana State in their next matchup.

Ohio State 42, Virginia Tech 24

Cardale Jones got the start at quarterback. Ezekiel Elliott kicked off his Heisman campaign by taking a handoff 80 yards to the house on his first carry of the game. Braxton Miller looked like, well, Braxton Miller again as he showed off his XBraxOne type moves on his way to being the conference’s offensive player of the week in his first college game in 20 months.

Michael Thomas and J.T. Barrett also got in on the action, hooking up for a 26 yard touchdown pass where Thomas made All-American cornerback Kendall Fuller look like a JV backup. The Buckeyes return home to meet up with the Hawaii Rainbow Warriors.

What did you think of the conference’s opening weekend? B1G disappointment? Let us know in the comments below.

Some Teams Impress, Others Do Not in Week One

Welcome to my weekly column, A Look Around the Country, which will highlight notable games from the week before and week ahead as well as the Heisman and Playoff race. Special features include an in-depth look at the Buckeyes as well as a Michigan update, mainly for folks bask in their misfortunes. As always, feel free to comment with your own opinions and I hope you enjoy!

It was an exciting first week back with a Hail Mary pass that put BYU on top of Nebraska in the first edition of the Mike Riley era while teams like Ohio State and Alabama rolled to big wins in primetime. Notre Dame and UCLA certainly looked impressive but TCU and Michigan sure didn’t. Anyway, it sure is great to have football back.

Notable Games Last Week

TCU 23, Minnesota 17

In a game that was much closer than the experts predicted (I was not one of those experts,) the Horned Frogs were able to escape a close one in Minneapolis. Trevone Boykin was not overly impressive and neither was the rest of Gary Patterson’s squad. They need to improve or else they’ll drop one and be out of the playoff picture again.

Northwestern 16, Stanford 6

The Wildcats were able to pull off the upset of the 21st ranked Stanford, which should be huge for their confidence, looking forward into the season. With the Big Ten West being wide open, anything can happen and that includes Northwestern being in the hunt to head to Indy in December. Stanford’s loss is disappointing but the Pac 12 is as wide open as any conference so they are not out of it yet.

Texas A&M 38, Arizona State 17

The Aggies were very impressive in their win over the Sun Devils and they now, deservedly so, are ranked in the AP Top 25. I thought A&M would take another step backwards while ASU would take a step forward and really contest for the Pac 12 crown. At this point (even though anything can happen- see 2014 Ohio State), it appears I was wrong.

Notre Dame 38, Texas 3

The Irish sure looked impressive in their romp of Charlie Strong’s Longhorns but the loss of RB Tarean Folston for the season hurts their playoff chances. Other than that, Notre Dame looked as impressive as any team I watched this weekend and their ranking below reflects that. Texas has a long way to go.

Alabama 35, Wisconsin 17

Despite Alabama’s big win, I do not think they are deserving of their high ranking. Derrick Henry was very impressive (he shot up in my Heisman poll) but the mediocrity of QB Jake Coker keeps me from having more respect for them. Wisconsin has taken a step back with the loss of Melvin Gordon but Paul Chryst will have them back near the top of the Big Ten West.

Ohio State 42, Virginia Tech 24

We finally have our answer to the QB race to end all QB races: Cardale Jones. The offense seems to be clicking in mid-season form (even without three of their best receivers) and the Silver Bullets picked up where they left off. I almost forgot: Braxton Miller is a freak of nature athlete and will only get better. The Buckeyes don’t have that tough of a schedule (get used to hearing that all season) and they really won’t get tested again until Michigan State in late November. The Buckeyes play Hawaii on Saturday. RIP to the Rainbow Warriors.

Big Games this Week

Oklahoma at Tennessee

These two teams which are in serious transition this season, will battle it out in Knoxville. I believe that both teams are overrated at this point and would be surprised if either made a New Year’s Day Bowl. Fifteen years ago this would have been the game of the year.

Saturday, September 12 at 6pm on ESPN

Oregon at Michigan State

The Sparties has been waiting a year to avenge their loss in Eugene from last season and I think they will get revenge. Connor Cook will play great but the dominant offensive and defensive lines of Michigan State will manhandle Oregon. I wouldn’t be surprised if this gets out of hand in the second half. The nation will be put on notice after watching this one.

Saturday, September 12 at 8pm on ABC

LSU at Mississippi State

Mississippi State finds themselves back in the Top 25 (not sure why) but they will be playing a pretty talented Tiger team with Leonard Fournette leading the charge. In the SEC, anything can happen so expect a competitive game. This one just begins to shape the SEC playoff picture.

Saturday, September 12 at 9:15pm on ESPN

Michigan Update

Jim Harbaugh’s much anticipated opener didn’t go exactly as planned for Wolverine fans. To be fair, Michigan didn’t look half bad and will improve as the season wears on but the quarterback situation is dire. If they get that fixed, they’ll turn some heads. Michigan plays Oregon State this week.

Heisman Watch

Trevone Boykin, TCU: E

Cardale Jones, Ohio State: +

Derrick Henry, Alabama: +

Ezekiel Elliott, Ohio State: E

Cody Kessler, USC: +

Josh Rosen, UCLA: +

Christian Hackenberg, Penn State: –

My Playoff if the Season ended Today

1. Ohio State (beat Virginia Tech, vs Hawaii)

2. Baylor (beat SMU, plays Lamar)

3. USC (beat Arkansas State, plays Idaho)

4. Alabama (beat Wisconsin, plays Middle Tennessee)

Just Missed the Cut

5. Michigan State (beat Western Michigan, plays Oregon)

6. Notre Dame (beat Texas, plays Virginia)

7. Auburn (beat Louisville, plays Jacksonville State)

8. Oregon (beat Eastern Washington, plays Michigan State)

9. Clemson (beat Wofford, plays Appalachian State)

10. UCLA (beat Virginia, plays UNLV)

Your wondering what Hokie Nation is wondering about the Buckeyes, your curious as to what their mindset is along with what some of their questions are. Wonder no more Buckeye Nation as Dwight Lester not only answered some questions I had for him but asked me some questions.

FG: Urban Meyer stated he wasn’t going to name a starter until the day before or day of the game with the Hokies, give us here in Hokie Nation some insight on the most burning question around this game who the starting quarterback is going to be when the Buckeyes walk into Lane Stadium.

MotSaG: I can say after Urban Meyer’s press conference on Monday very little light was shed on the subject. He did however say he should have a feeling when the Buckeyes start Game Week Practices on Wednesday. He stated that it will depend on who does what in practice and can change weekly, even during the game. He did stress that mistakes weren’t going to be a reason to change “Mistakes are fixed by great effort”. Meyer says that this is still to close to call and he isn’t trying to be difficult or hide who he is actually going to put in to be the starter.

In all honesty I know its the million dollar question but who would Hokie Nation want to face? The quarterback that, in his first season after not playing any football for two years, finished in the top five of Heisman voting or the quarterback who won the Big Ten championship, Sugar Bowl and National Championship. Barrett starts he might have extra motivation since the only team he has lost to in college football is Virginia Tech, in his house. Jones starts and Hokie defensive tackles might get a little worried as Jones is know for tucking and driving defensive tackles back when he initiates the hit first.

Whoever lines up under center for Ohio State Monday night, Buckeye Nation knows the Scarlet and Gray are in good hands.

FG: Do you believe the revenge factor will play a big part in this game or will the Buckeyes treat it like any other stiff non-conference foe?

MotSaG: Not going to lie there probably is, for us fans without a doubt and I can imagine the players feel the same thing. The Hokies prevented Buckeyes from getting a perfect season. Urban said that he feels a little nudge because the Hokies defeated Buckeyes. He said he doesn’t want to take anything away from VT “They have great players and team” but he has always said the Buckeyes coaching staff didn’t prepare team for the scheme Hokies came at them with.

Will be hard to treat this like any other non conference foe seeing no matter how bad Hokies looked after beating OSU they are better than Hawaii, Western Michigan and Northern Illinois. Plus the game will be on national TV, the coveted Monday Night Football spot, it’ll almost be like an NFL game.

FG: What do you believe will be the biggest factor in the game on Labor Day? How will Ohio St use this factor to their advantage or overcome this factor?

MotSaG: The biggest factor right now is the WR position. Buckeyes have 3 players suspended and they are all pretty good then last week Noah Brown suffered a season ending broken leg. Can the buckeyes spread the field to allow Ezekiel Elliott to do his thing? Can Braxton Miller make some magic plays we are use to him doing while he was the QB? The WR group doesn’t have very much actual game playing experience now.

This can be an advantage because how much tape is available on them. How hungry are these kids to make a name for themselves and be the “next man up”.

FG: How big a part in the offense do you look for Braxon Miller to play?

MotSaG: Everyone who is familiar with Urban Meyers offense knows that the H-Back position is an integral part of the offense. Everyone is always curious as to who is the next Percy Harvin type to play the position. Nothing against any other Buckeye players but in my opinion Miller might be the closest. He truly is one of the greatest athletes in college football today. You don’t win Big Ten player of the year two years in a row (sophomore and junior years). Miller was a Heisman candidate before the injury last season, matter of fact, still is one just his odds are lower than if he was the QB. Braxton is a spectacular player and you sit there with your mouth dropped open with some of the moves he makes, they are seriously just like enjoying a video game. The major knock on Miller though is his toughness and durability, have to see how he handles hits when he goes across the middle to catch the ball.

FG: Losing Joey Bosa was a huge blow to the Buckeyes defensive pressure schemes. How do they recover and who do you think Hokie fans should be on the look out for?

MotSaG: Without a doubt not having Bosa and 4 other WR is going to hurt, but this is Ohio State. It was proven last year at the most important position (QB) it’s Next Man Up and Buckeyes have very good depth at every position since Urban Meyer arrived in Columbus.

That being said watch out for Sam Hubbard, Jalyn Holmes and Adolphus Washington just to name a few on the defensive line. Buckeyes have a lot of depth there and will be rotating a lot to keep guys fresh. The linebacker group of Raekwon McMillan, Darren Lee and Joshua Perry is projected to be one of the best in the nation, Buckeyes secondary isn’t a slouch either as possibly one of the top units in the country since Chris Ash joined the Buckeyes last year to straighten that mess out. Eli Apple, Gareon Conley are the starting corners, Damon Webb will be the nickle and the safeties Vonn Bell and Tyvis Powell are some hard hitting ball hawks. They say the Silver Bullets are back. The tough hard nose defense that Ohio State use to have is back and they are ready to make that jump up to be elite. Even if they stole Pat Narduzzi and Michigan States defense they will just do it better than Sparty.