Standings:
1.) Draper 2-1 (1-0 upset)
2.) Hoying 1-2 (0-1 upset)
2.) Seeberg 1-2 (0-1 upset)
2.) Schweinfurth 1-2 (0-1 upset)
After the eyes of Texas (and everyone else) were on Columbus last weekend, the bitter rivals of those competitors are meeting up for a semi-phenomenal, nearly cosmic battle of their own in Big 12 SEC country. Still, it's easily the best matchup of the day, unless you want to see a dead body in the Shoe (and who doesn't?) or you have the true heart of a Sicko to cast your eyes upon an annual rivalry of futility and mediocrity renewed once again.
Michigan Wolverines @ Oklahoma Sooners
Draper: What to do? TTUN was a QB away from being decent last year, but we still don't know if they have one. He looked decent in week one, but the peripheral pieces have dropped off a bit. OU was supremely mediocre last year but there are some rumblings that they may have found the next QB in John Mateer. It's really hard to pull any information from these week 1 games, but Underwood flashed at times (and wasn't awful) while Mateer looked phenomenal (against a paper bag). I wouldn't be surprised either way, but I tend to avoid picking freshman led teams in their first road start. Norman is a tall order for the youngling and also.....screw them. BOOMER!! UM: 17--OU: 24
Hoying: Time to find out just how good a coach Sherrone Moore is. Yes, he stood toe to toe with Ohio State and Alabama last year and refused to flinch, but the Wolverines were playing with house money by that point. Now, after enduring Jack Tuttle, Alex Orji, and Davis Warren during last year's torturous campaign, Moore finally has his QB of the future. And as last season marched onward, it seemed that a decent QB may have been the only piece stopping the maize and blue from running it back for a for real no asterisk run at the title. Of course, Kenneth Grant and Mason Graham have moved on, but it's not like UM has been hurting for elite level D-line play in the post-COVID era. OU had their own problems at quarterbacks last season but seemed to have a few more problems in lopsided losses to South Carolina, Texas, and LSU (and a bowl loss to Navy). The Cheat Weasels didn't inspire a lot of confidence with last week's kind-of-close win over New Mexico, but I'm betting they were saving their best for this week. UM: 24--OU: 21
Schweinfurth: UM: 17--OU: 20
Seeberg: Well the season has begun, we have an actual data point for teams now! Still not much on which to base conclusions, however. I think it’s relatively safe to say that UM’s offense looked a notch better than anticipated, while the defense maybe looked a half-step worse. The Sooners, meanwhile, may actually have the better quarterback in the Red River Rivalry this season, which would have sounded blasphemous just seven short days ago. Venables seems to have the defense shaped up as well. And, let’s be real, nobody reading this wants to see the maize and blue win…ever. Boomer Sooner. UM: 17—OU: 27
Draper: What to do? TTUN was a QB away from being decent last year, but we still don't know if they have one. He looked decent in week one, but the peripheral pieces have dropped off a bit. OU was supremely mediocre last year but there are some rumblings that they may have found the next QB in John Mateer. It's really hard to pull any information from these week 1 games, but Underwood flashed at times (and wasn't awful) while Mateer looked phenomenal (against a paper bag). I wouldn't be surprised either way, but I tend to avoid picking freshman led teams in their first road start. Norman is a tall order for the youngling and also.....screw them. BOOMER!! UM: 17--OU: 24
Hoying: Time to find out just how good a coach Sherrone Moore is. Yes, he stood toe to toe with Ohio State and Alabama last year and refused to flinch, but the Wolverines were playing with house money by that point. Now, after enduring Jack Tuttle, Alex Orji, and Davis Warren during last year's torturous campaign, Moore finally has his QB of the future. And as last season marched onward, it seemed that a decent QB may have been the only piece stopping the maize and blue from running it back for a for real no asterisk run at the title. Of course, Kenneth Grant and Mason Graham have moved on, but it's not like UM has been hurting for elite level D-line play in the post-COVID era. OU had their own problems at quarterbacks last season but seemed to have a few more problems in lopsided losses to South Carolina, Texas, and LSU (and a bowl loss to Navy). The Cheat Weasels didn't inspire a lot of confidence with last week's kind-of-close win over New Mexico, but I'm betting they were saving their best for this week. UM: 24--OU: 21
Schweinfurth: UM: 17--OU: 20
Seeberg: Well the season has begun, we have an actual data point for teams now! Still not much on which to base conclusions, however. I think it’s relatively safe to say that UM’s offense looked a notch better than anticipated, while the defense maybe looked a half-step worse. The Sooners, meanwhile, may actually have the better quarterback in the Red River Rivalry this season, which would have sounded blasphemous just seven short days ago. Venables seems to have the defense shaped up as well. And, let’s be real, nobody reading this wants to see the maize and blue win…ever. Boomer Sooner. UM: 17—OU: 27
Iowa Hawkeyes @ Iowa State Cyclones
Draper: Everyone's favorite rivalry that no one particularly cares about. Are the Clones ready to stake a claim as contenders? I'm not so sure that a win cements their status as ready to compete, but a loss would be a major blow. Rocco Becht and Co. look like the frontrunners of the Big 12 (along with Utah) but can Ferentz work his voodoo in El clAssico once more? I'm not sold on Iowa, but stranger things have happened. On second thought, looking at the fire performance from the Hawkeyes on offense last week, maybe it's just business as usual. Iowa: 16--ISU: 27
Hoying: This always seems to be a game that gives the Hawkeyes fits even when Iowa State is wallowing in the Big 12 mud. But this year, the Clones are already 2-0 with a ranked win (though a highly suspect looking one in hindsight) across two continents. And Iowa just finished up a dreadful performance by their new transfer QB Mark Gronowski, who put up 44 total passing yards on just 2.9 yards per attempt. And that was against Albany. I'm not sure why any offensive player would ever transfer to Iowa (unless, like Cade McNamara, you've been booted out of your job at your old school) but settle in, Mark. It's going to be a looong season with Penn State, Oregon, and yes, even Indiana and Michigan State coming to town. The eternally glacial flame under Kirk Ferentz's seat might actually pick up a few degrees this year as the Hawkeye faithful begin to wonder if an actual working offense might not suit them better. No more free passes to the Big Ten Championship out of the feckless west, Kirk. Iowa: 10--ISU: 20
Schweinfurth: Iowa: 9--ISU: 10
Seeberg: Ah yes, that classic in-state battle for a pretty cool trophy and…typically that’s about it. Still uncertain if either of these teams is good, but I am certain that the Hawkeyes’ offense is bad. Less than 50 yards passing against an FCS opponent is both REALLY sad and REALLY predictable. Iowa State, meanwhile, beat Will Howard’s former squad that apparently is poor at talent recognition since they ran him out of town for whatever Avery Johnson claims to be. This is probably a “first to 20” wins game…and 20 is rarified air for the black and gold. Cyclones take the Cyhawk. ISU: 20—Iowa: 13
Hoying: This always seems to be a game that gives the Hawkeyes fits even when Iowa State is wallowing in the Big 12 mud. But this year, the Clones are already 2-0 with a ranked win (though a highly suspect looking one in hindsight) across two continents. And Iowa just finished up a dreadful performance by their new transfer QB Mark Gronowski, who put up 44 total passing yards on just 2.9 yards per attempt. And that was against Albany. I'm not sure why any offensive player would ever transfer to Iowa (unless, like Cade McNamara, you've been booted out of your job at your old school) but settle in, Mark. It's going to be a looong season with Penn State, Oregon, and yes, even Indiana and Michigan State coming to town. The eternally glacial flame under Kirk Ferentz's seat might actually pick up a few degrees this year as the Hawkeye faithful begin to wonder if an actual working offense might not suit them better. No more free passes to the Big Ten Championship out of the feckless west, Kirk. Iowa: 10--ISU: 20
Schweinfurth: Iowa: 9--ISU: 10
Seeberg: Ah yes, that classic in-state battle for a pretty cool trophy and…typically that’s about it. Still uncertain if either of these teams is good, but I am certain that the Hawkeyes’ offense is bad. Less than 50 yards passing against an FCS opponent is both REALLY sad and REALLY predictable. Iowa State, meanwhile, beat Will Howard’s former squad that apparently is poor at talent recognition since they ran him out of town for whatever Avery Johnson claims to be. This is probably a “first to 20” wins game…and 20 is rarified air for the black and gold. Cyclones take the Cyhawk. ISU: 20—Iowa: 13
Grambling State Tigers @ THE Ohio State University Buckeyes
Draper: Not a lot to say.... even the Grambling coach knowns what's happening. Honestly, this is a moment to work out the kinks we saw last week on offense. Sayin should open up a little more with little fear of 'making the big mistake'. Don't expect too many starters in the 2nd half. Jeremiah is a lock for at least 1 TD to fix those dropsies while the game plan should be getting live game reps and trying out new things. Defensively, there's not much room to grow, but I predict Grambling will get in the end zone much to Buckeye Nation's chagrin (against the scrubs). Honestly, this is a game in which we hope no one gets hurt and we try some fun things out. Grambling's coach mentioned they'll compete...as a band....but we all know what's going to happen. GSU: 7--OSU: 59
Hoying: 1-0 is 1-0, especially against the #1 team in the country. But let's not pretend that last week's performance was flawless. The two most heavily touted pass catchers on the team had the old Crisco gloves on during the first quarter, and the run game wasn't able to generate much push once Texas figured out that the Buckeyes were trying to run clock Lt. Governor style for the entire second half. Grambling should provide a good opportunity to work on their timing and execution against some nominally live reps. The defense, however, was unimpeachable last week. My categorical error in predicting last week's outcome was thinking that the defense had to be rebuilt, instead of just not breaking it, especially with Caleb Downs practically being a mini-coach out there on the field himself. So the Silver Bullets should be able to name their score this weekend (hopefully zero) so long as they can stay focused. Another cupcake next week, a bye, and then the season really gets interesting as Big Ten play starts off with a bang in Seattle. For now, just stamp the ticket and move on to week 3. GSU: 3--OSU: 63
Schweinfurth: GSU: 0--OSU: 63
Seeberg: Well, nice to have that big win out of the way isn’t it? The fact that 14 points and barely over 200 yards of offense was enough speaks volumes about how good Matt Patricia and that defense are already - and how great they can become. As long as that D-line gets just enough pressure, it looks as though the back 7 will hold up well. Downs actually wasn’t in on a ton of plays, but he was reading things and taking away reads all over the field while Reese and McClain tackled everything carrying the football. On the offensive side of the ball, Sayin actually graded out a champion, and his stats would look markedly different without the 4(!) drops from a usually sure-handed WR/TE corps. Hopefully, Day and Hartline use this week’s outmatched opponents to work the run game and open up the offense for Sayin to command more of it. Pass protection looked very solid which was a plus. I don’t know if Day will shorten games as much this season as he did last year, since this squad is young and needs more reps. Either way, it should be a relaxing 3:30 watch, with astonishingly non-homer Jake Butt on the call. Enjoy, Buckeye Nation. GSU: 10—OSU: 45
Upset Special
Draper: ULM over Bama
Hoying: Mississippi State over Arizona State
Schweinfurth: East Texas A&M over Florida State
Seeberg: South Florida over Florida
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