So in an effort to make this as cheesy of a column as possible, I have named it 1st and 10 and I am pretty sure it’s a direct ripoff of a John Clayton column concept on ESPN.com

First…

I feel really bad for Sam Bradford. He doesn’t seem like douchey, like the always-trying-too-hard Tim Tebow. It sounds like he is only going to miss up to 4 weeks but who really knows. Will there be any long term affects? This has sparked a lot of “this is what you get for not leaving early” sentiment which I hate because I think these guys should stay and get degrees. This kind of thing underlines that. In the blink of an eye you can be hurt and out of football. If that happens in week 1 of the pros, you are SOL. If that happens in college you get to keep your scholarship, get a degree and get a job. How come no one plays of that angle?

And Ten…

  1. The Big Ten appears to be on a mission to embarrass themselves. Ohio St. narrowly escapes Navy (and don’t give me that BS about “looking ahead”), Iowa wins thanks to the worst kicker ever, Minnesota escapes because Greg Paulas got rattled in OT of his first football game in 5 years (or whatever), Illinois (with Benn and Juice back) gets throttled by a Missouri team (without Chase Daniel/Coffman and Jeremy Maclin).
  2. Oregon looks pitiful. Chip Kelly cannot under any circumstances ruin what Mike Belotti built there. Forget about Blount, that offense was awful.
  3. Florida St. and Miami was by far the best game of the weekend. But as I said, and Gene Wojciechowski agrees, FSU choked away that last drive. That was unacceptable for a supposed top 25 team at home with a veteran QB.
  4. Minus the aforementioned game the Big East is certainly making a case to be passed up by the Mountain West. Special mentions to Virginia and Duke who both lost to Division II teams (yea thats what I called them).
  5. Is Alabama that good or is Virginia Tech that bad? This is what I don’t like about week 1, it’s impossible to know anything. Like what did we learn by Texas and Florida destroying teams who’s best player probably couldn’t walk on to either of those schools?
  6. I feel like we are on the cusp of a potential shift in power. LSU looked weak against Washington, Georgia got outplayed by OK St., BYU beat Oklahoma. I am going to throw this out there, there will be at least one ACC school who makes the MNC conversation at some point this year.
  7. Brian Kelly outclassed Greg Schiano on Sunday. My cousin pointed out that they have basically traded places from a year or two ago. Kelly is prime for a big time job next year. I won’t even mention our cheeseburger-eatin’ Irish buddy, but if Zook or Bielma gets canned this year you have to to think Kelly will be a top choice.
  8. I know this isn’t going out on a limb but Penn St. and Oklahoma St. sure do look like the most likely MNC contenders from their conferences.
  9. I tried to find a dark horse for the Heisman who emerged, but the best I came up with was Max Hall from BYU. Those 2 INTs don’t help though.
  10. I would be remiss if I didn’t mention how pleased I was with Michigan in week 1.

Extra Points…(looking ahead)

  • Fan or not, the Michigan/ND game is huge this week. Someone will be a much needed 2-0. I think after last week’s UM win it’s a much bigger game for ND even if it is on the road.
  • If Ohio St. gets blown out in Columbus it’s going to be a long road back for the Big 10. Personally I don’t think they stand a chance (apparently neither does Vegas who has them +7 at home).
  • Speaking of which, I was 1-2 this week in my picks which is (honestly) just for fun. I won BYU but lost Minnesota and VaTech.
  • Mad props to anyone that can find a 3rd game worth watching this week. Best I could come up with:
    • UNC at UConn – We find out how real UNC is
    • S Carolina at Georgia – SEC FTW!