Week 1 Observations

1. Clemson may have taken the next step.
The Tigers have always been a big flirt.  They always have a ton of talent, but have never really could put it all together.  This year may be different.  It's only one game, but their win over Georgia is normally a game that they lose.  The difference this year is the experience they have.  Helps having a three year starter in Tajh Boyd and WR Sammie Watkins.  Their schedule sets up really nice too.  Their only two other games they could lose are Florida State at home and at South Carolina.  Could be a special year.

2.  Don't mess with the FCS.
Normally when you schedule a FCS school your looking for an easy win to start the season.  However this year many teams got more than they asked for.  Several teams started their season on the wrong foot by losing to these lower division teams.  UConn (Towson), Kansas State (North Dakota State), Oregon State (Eastern Washington), South Florida (McNeese State), San Diego State (Eastern Illinois), and Iowa State (Northern Iowa) all lost games.  Heck KState was in a BCS Bowl last year while Oregon State was ranked #25 in the coaches poll.  South Florida even gave up 53 points.  These aren't your daddy's 1AA.

3.  South Carolina is no longer a dark-horse.
Going into this year the Gamecocks were one of the favorites to win the SEC East, but that was about it.  They still have a talented roster, but had to replace a lot of key starters that have left.  But after their performance against North Carolina on Thursday night shows us that they are a team to be reckon with.  They held the potent Tar Heel offense to only 10 points and did with with Clowney being sick, or wore out.  Either way with Alabama not looking great, that means South Carolina are a National Title contender now.

4.  Johnny just doesn't get it.
The whole Johnny Manziel off-season story line was drawn out.  So you had to think that with the season starting it would calm down and we can focus on football.  And then there was Johnny's antics during the Rice game that has everybody talking again.  Whether it was constantly trash talking, doing a signature taunt, or doing the money hand gesture after each TD.  He looks entitled, clueless, and just flat out dumb.  I didn't think he had a chance to win the Heisman (the whole autograph drama and already winning it) again, but really think he eliminated his chances this past weekend.  You also have to wonder if NFL teams are running and hiding from his immaturity again.

5.  Keep an eye on these QBs
Both Brett Smith and Nate Scheelhaase are coming off disappointing seasons.  Especially after playing very well two years ago.  But what most people don't realize is that both QBs were banged up last year and are healthy and ready to go.  That wasn't anymore evident in their week one games.  Smith was dynamic in Wyoming's near upset at Nebraska shredding their defense.  While Scheelhaase threw for 426 yards in their opening game.  Look for both QBs to put up huge numbers this year, especially if they can stay healthy.

6.  Michigan State's offensive woes continue
Going into this year, the Spartans were a trendy pick to win the Legends Division mainly because their defense is always one of the best.  However what most people forgot that their offense was terrible and their only offense was Le'Veon Bell and he was gone.  Well those problems continued this year and Andrew Maxwell hasn't gotten any better.   They still beat Western Michigan, but the offense was only able to score 6 points.  The better figure things out, or this is going to be another long year.

7.  Watch out for Duke
If you didn't see Miami play on Friday night, then you may not have head about Duke Johnson's explosion.  Johnson ran wild for 186 yards and also pulled in 38 yard receiving while looking dominant.  His performance also jettisons him into the thick of the Heisman Race.   If he can continue to put up at least 100 yard games and the Hurricanes win their division, we could see him have a realistic shot at winning the award.

8.  Uncertainty at the top
Going into this year we knew that Alabama would be there, but there was also Oregon, Texas A&M, Ohio State, Louisville and a few others.  It's still early, but there are a lot of questions about those top teams.  Alabama won by a large margin, but their offense struggled.  A&M had to suspend a bunch of players while Ohio State took a while to put away a bad Buffalo team.  Then you add that Louisiville is sitting there, but could go the entire season without playing anybody that is ranked.  This could lead to a crazy season.

9.  He's back
You probably didn't see it, but you likely heard.  Western Kentucky and Kentucky had their annual meeting  and for a second straight year the Hilltoppers got the victory.  The significance of this is that former Arkansas coach Bobby Petrino was leading them.  Nobody denies that Petrino knows how to coach and with a good team (that Willie Taggart left behind) he could lead them to the Sun Belt Title.  But the real question is how long will Petrino stay there.  Especially with a couple of SEC jobs likely opening.

10.  Is the Boise magic all dried up?
For years the Boise State Broncos have been a lock opening weekend against a BCS Power school.  They've beat Virginia Tech and Georgia.  But now for two straight years they've dropped games to teams that have a ton of talent, but aren't elite teams.  Last year it was to a five loss Michigan State team while this year it was to Washington.  What makes matters worse is that the Broncos only put up six points.  The magic may be gone.