Week 1 delivered the kind of wake-up call three big-name programs wanted to avoid.
Michigan, Oregon and Clemson all came into the opener with expectations hanging over them, and all three left with more questions than answers after uneven, stressful or downright ugly starts.
Michigan nearly got buried by an upset nobody saw coming. No.
16 Michigan needed a controversial second chance on a Hail Mary just to slip past Western Michigan 13-12, a team that came in as a 27.5-point underdog in Kyle Whittingham's debut as head coach. Bryce Underwood’s night was a mess for long stretches: he threw an interception, lost a fumble at his own 31-yard line with under two minutes left and almost tossed two more picks before officials added one second back to the clock after his first Hail Mary try appeared to touch a WMU defender who was out-of-bounds as time expired.
That extra snap gave Michigan life, and Underwood made the most of it by finding JJ Buchanan for a 47-yard touchdown that kept the Wolverines from suffering one of the biggest upsets in program history. Western Michigan held the ball for more than 15 minutes longer and finished with 221 total yards to Michigan’s 276, a shaky opening for a team many expected to be in the Big Ten title mix.
Oregon escaped with a win, but not with the kind of authority that comes with a No. 2 ranking. The Ducks beat Boise State 34-27 at Autzen Staduim, yet they were 18.5-point favorites and had to wait until under eight minutes remained before Dante Moore hit Dakorien Moore on a 62-yard touchdown pass that finally created some breathing room.
Oregon spent plenty of the night on the back foot, trailing 17-7 in the second quarter and later sitting tied at 24-24 late in the third. The Ducks also piled up 10 penalties and gave Boise State a touchdown after a muffed punt, even though they outgained the Broncos by a wide margin.
For a team picked by many to win the national championship, this was far too close for comfort - though Boise State may have been better than expected.
Clemson’s opener was a full-scale disaster. The Tigers, unranked in the AP poll for the first time in 15 years, had Dabo Swinney talking about an undefeated season before kickoff.
What followed was a 51-10 loss to No. 11 LSU, one of the roughest outings of Swinney’s coaching career.
Christopher Vizzina threw an interception that was returned for a touchdown and was replaced by freshman Tait Reynolds late in the second quarter. By the third quarter, LSU had already built a 44-3 lead, and Clemson’s only touchdown came on an 11-yard run by David Eziomume in the fourth quarter, long after the game had been decided.
It was Clemson’s worst loss in nearly 30 years, and a brutal start for a team trying to reassert itself as an ACC and playoff threat.
There’s still a long season ahead, and Week 1 doesn’t lock anyone into a final judgment. Teams can recover, stack wins and build a CFP case over time. Notre Dame did exactly that two years ago after losing to NIU before going on to play in the national title game.
In Other News...
LSU Just Got Caught In College Footballs Eligibility Chaos
A Baton Rouge judge was weighing whether two former NFL players could suit up for LSU this fall, another sign of how unsettled college footballs eligibility rules have become. For the Tigers, it is part of a wider mess that now stretches well beyond campus and into courtrooms, where questions about who can play, when they can play and under what conditions are being argued almost as often as they are decided on the field.
Now the issue is heading to Washington, where Sen. Ted Cruz has been pushing the bipartisan Protect College Sports Act as a way to set federal standards for eligibility, NIL and transfers while giving the NCAA limited antitrust protection to enforce its rules. The Senate is scheduled to vote on the bill between Sept. 15 and 23, and LSU's latest brush with the chaos shows why college sports leaders are under growing pressure to find something more stable before every roster question turns into another legal fight. [Read more 🡒]
LSUs Clemson Statement Just Sparked A Bigger Early Season Question
LSUs season-opening rout of Clemson did more than announce the Tigers as a team to watch, it also put several of its best players in the league spotlight. After the 51-10 win, three LSU players were recognized by the SEC, with Sam Leavitt earning Offensive Player of the Week honors, Jordan Seaton landing Lineman of the Week on offense and Jordan Ross taking home Defensive Lineman of the Week.
The awards only sharpen the early-season conversation around LSU, because a performance that dominant tends to raise the bar quickly. When three different players are honored after one game, it suggests the Tigers were not just sharp in one area, but carried the kind of balance and physical edge that can travel into the rest of September and beyond. [Read more 🡒]
Former LSU Tigers Took The Clemson Rout Into The Saints Locker Room
LSUs 51-10 win over Clemson did not stay on the field for long. By the time several former Tigers who now play for the New Orleans Saints got back around their own locker room, the victory had turned into a bit of cross-team mischief, with Saints players using the result to needle a couple of former Clemson teammates in a way only pro athletes seem to appreciate.
Travis Etienne Jr. and Bryan Bresee came back to decorated lockers, with LSU-themed items waiting for them courtesy of Saints teammates Barion Brown, Davon Godchaux and Will Clapp. Brown and Godchaux are still active players, while Clapp has moved into a coaching role on the Saints offensive line, and the whole thing added a little extra local flavor to a win LSU fans were already enjoying. [Read more 🡒]