Week 2 in college football is loaded at the top, and the headliner is exactly the kind of matchup that gets everybody talking early: No. 1 Ohio State against No.
5 Texas. It’s a rematch of last year’s opener, when Ohio State won 14-7 at home, but this one comes with a different feel.
The game is in Austin, Arch Manning has a full year of starting experience behind him, and both teams looked sharp in Week 1.
Ohio State’s offense, in particular, arrived already looking like it’s in midseason form. Julian Sayin went 21-of-25 for 320 passing yards and four total touchdowns, while Jeremiah Smith piled up eight catches for 151 yards and two scores.
Texas was businesslike as well, which is why this one feels like a real early-season measuring stick. The winner can make a strong claim as the best team in the country.
The loser won’t be done, but the road gets tighter fast.
And there’s no soft landing ahead for either side. Ohio State still has road games at No.
22 Iowa on Oct. 3, No.
6 Indiana on Oct. 17 and No. 14 USC on Oct. 31, plus home dates with No.
2 Oregon on Nov. 7 and No. 16 Michigan on Nov.
- Texas has six AP top 25 teams left on the schedule: No.
20 Tennessee on Sep. 26, No.
10 Oklahoma on Oct. 10, No.
9 Ole Miss on Oct. 24, No.
25 Missouri on Nov. 7, No.
11 LSU on Nov. 14 and No. 8 Texas A&M on Nov.
- Only Ole Miss is at home.
Elsewhere, Michigan’s latest win over Western Michigan has shoved the Wolverines back into the spotlight for all the wrong reasons. Lane Kiffin and LSU briefly escaped the public enemy No. 1 label, only for Michigan to reclaim it after the controversial added-second finish.
The Big Ten spent two hours trying to explain it away, saying the clock shown on television wasn’t real, but that didn’t do much to calm the noise. The Wolverines were already carrying the baggage of the sign-stealing controversy that shadowed their 2023 national championship, and now they’re back in villain territory.
That matters because the game against Oklahoma brings SEC referees into the mix, which means Michigan’s usual favoritism should be minimal. It also matters because the quarterback situation is getting shaky.
Sophomore Bryce Underwood struggled badly against Western Michigan before the extra down bailed Michigan out, and first-year Michigan coach Kyle Whittingham made it clear Monday that patience is running thin, calling him "our QB right now... At some point, we've got to turn a corner." (h/t ESPN) Oklahoma, which ranked seventh in FBS in points allowed last season at 15.5 per game and shut out its opener, may not be the ideal opponent for Underwood to find his footing.
The Border War is back on the calendar too, with Missouri and Kansas meeting Friday in the 123rd edition of the rivalry. Missouri has won the last four, and the series, which resumed in 2025 after a long pause from 2012-24 following Missouri’s SEC move, is about to go quiet again. After this weekend, the rivalry takes another four-year break before returning in 2031, so the winner gets bragging rights for a long time.
North Carolina, meanwhile, is dealing with another messy chapter. Last Thursday, former general manager Michael Lombardi resigned while under investigation, a situation his representative Tom Mars had dismissed as a "witch hunt." Later that day, WRAL News reported troubling allegations around the program, including questions about potential drug use by defensive coordinator Steve Belichick, who has been away from the team since early August.
"Unrelated to Steve Belichick," WRAL wrote, a lawyer who is part of the probe "asked about reports of a purported sexual relationship between a female recruiting staff member and at least one UNC player."
Bill Belichick addressed the situation Monday after North Carolina’s Week 1 bye, saying, "We want to run the program in the very best way. And if there's things we need to do to correct it, then we'll obviously do them.
"Everybody's responsible, including me, for doing things properly," Belichick added. The investigation is still unfolding, and depending on what comes out of it, this may not stay his problem for long.
In Other News...
Ohio State Faces A More Dangerous Texas Test Than Last Year
The rematch on the schedule already carries enough weight, but this one comes with a different feel for Ohio State. The Buckeyes and Texas are meeting for the third straight year, only this time it is in Austin at DKR-Texas Memorial Stadium, with ESPNs College GameDay on hand and the Longhorns carrying a 1.5-point edge. After the last two seasons gave both programs a fresh look at each other, the matchup now arrives with even more attention and a bigger stage.
For Ohio State, the challenge is not just the venue or the buildup, but the version of Texas waiting on the other side. Arch Manning gives the Longhorns a new layer at quarterback, while new defensive coordinator Will Muschamp adds a familiar edge to that side of the ball. For a Buckeye team used to measuring itself against the nations best, this one feels less like another early heavyweight game and more like a true test of how much has changed since the last time these teams lined up. [Read more 🡒]
Lincoln Kienholz Just Sparked An Ohio State QB Debate
Lincoln Kienholz spent enough time around Ohio State to know how unforgiving the quarterback conversation can be there, and his latest outing at Louisville gave the discussion a fresh jolt. In his debut against Ole Miss, the former Buckeye showed the kind of production that turns heads quickly, topping 300 yards and throwing three touchdowns while looking comfortable as both a passer and a runner.
For Ohio State fans, the appeal is obvious because it feeds into the never-ending question of what might have been and what the Buckeyes missed when Kienholz moved on. His path also says something about the fit in college football: sometimes a player needs a different setup, a cleaner runway and a coach like Jeff Brohm to let the full skill set show up on game day, even as the foundation built in Columbus still shapes how he leads and handles the position. [Read more 🡒]
Michigan's QB Uncertainty Just Added Intrigue To The Game
Ohio State opened its season with a comfortable win over Ball State, while Michigan had a far less reassuring afternoon in a narrow escape against Western Michigan. That alone would have been enough to keep Buckeyes fans watching closely, but the storyline got more interesting when Michigan coach Kyle Whittingham left the door open on Bryce Underwoods status at quarterback, a notable twist for a position that usually settles the tone for the rest of the rivalry week chatter.
Underwoods uneven play has only deepened the questions around Michigans offense, and it carries extra weight because of what this game means beyond one Saturday in September. For Ohio State, any uncertainty on the other sideline only adds to the intrigue heading into a meeting where the Buckeyes will be paying attention to whether Michigan can steady itself, or whether the Wolverines are heading toward a bigger change than anyone expected. [Read more 🡒]