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texas2089 Ballot for 2023 Week 2

Ballot Type: Human

Submitted: Sept. 5, 2023, 12:21 p.m.

Rank Team Reason
1 Georgia Bulldogs The Bulldogs got off to a slow start against UT Martin, punting on 3 of their first 4 possessions. Carson Beck looked everything like a QB making his first career start. He settled in though finishing 21/31 for 294 yards and TD as the Dawgs rolled to a 48-7 victory. Georgia is still on top until otherwise dethroned, but this position is at risk if things break a certain way soon......
2 Florida State Seminoles In the only AP ranked vs ranked matchup of the weekend, the Seminoles got off to a sluggish start on both sides of the ball The defense allowed LSU to move up and down the field for most of the first half with some boneheaded penalties helping keep some LSU drives alive. If not for some stout defense at the goalline and some key 4th down stops, they could have been down a lot worse than 17-14 at the half. The offense after an opening drive TD was up and down in the first half, with a Jordan Travis interception and several key drops stalling drives. Whatever Mike Norvell fed the boys in the locker room at halftime, serve that shit up all season. The Noles absolutely obliterated the Tigers in the second half, opening with a 31-0 run and scoring on every single possession before a garbage time TD made the final score closer than it really was. The defense gave Jayden Daniels fits all second half and Jordan Travis finished with with 380 yards of total offense and 5 total TDs. Keon Coleman made a statement in his Florida State debut with 9 catches for 122 yards and 3 TDs. Maybe premature to jump this high, but Florida State posted easily the most impressive performance of the weekend. If they can repeat this in 3 weeks in Death Valley we may have a new #1 team in college football.
3 Michigan Wolverines Playing in their first of 3 games without Jim Harbaugh, the Wolverines jumped out to a 30-0 lead before ECU hit a FG as time expired to avoid the shutout. Not much to take away from this game. It went about as you'd expect.
4 Alabama Crimson Tide The Tide may have found their next starting QB. Jalen Milroe got the start and a bulk of the reps as Alabama rolled noted Miami killer MTSU. Milroe certainly has some things to work on, but after accounting for 5 total TDs he may have put the QB competition to bed, for now at least. A showdown with the Longhorns looms large next week.
5 Ohio State Buckeyes Kyle McCord got the start for the Buckeyes and it was anything but inspiring as Ohio State limped to a 23-3 win, with Marvin Harrison Jr and Emeka Egbuka combining for only 5 catches for 34 yards and 0 TDs. There is entirely too much talent on this roster for them to not figure it out though. They better figure it out quickly as a tough road test against Notre Dame comes up in just 3 weeks. The one bright spot was the defense was absolutely stifling, holding Indiana to just 153 yards of offense.
6 USC Trojans Reigning Heisman trophy winner Caleb Williams through 2 games is 36/49 for 597 yards and 9 TDs. The Trojans are averaging 61.0 ppg in their first 2 contests against a pair of Mountain West foes. The defense showed some improvement from Week 0 to Week 1, but still has room for further improvement as they move into their Pac-12 schedule next week.
7 Penn State Nittany Lions The Drew Allar era in Happy Valley opened up with an impressive 325 yard, 3 TD performance against West Virginia. The Nittany Lions defense played well and this team looks to be every bit as formidable as we thought they were. Ohio State and Michigan on alert.
8 Washington Huskies Michael Penix Jr showed why he's one of the top contenders for the Heisman with a 450 yard, 5 TD showing against Boise State. The Huskies tallied 568 yards of offense en route to a 56-19 victory over the Broncos.
9 Notre Dame Fighting Irish The Fighting Irish were one of two ranked teams to play in Week 0, and after seeing them in action twice so far, they look like they have their QB. Sam Hartman has thrown for 445 yards and 6 TDs while completing over 80% of his passes in just 6 quarters of work so far. Hartman took the second half off as Notre Dame routed Tennessee State in their first ever matchup against an FCS program. The Irish have yet to allow a touchdown through 2 games as well.
10 Texas Longhorns The Longhorns had their fair share of miscues but put together an overall decent offensive showing, led by Quinn Ewers' 260 yard, 3 TD day. The story of the game was the Texas defense suffocating the Owls to the tune of just 176 yards while forcing 3 turnovers. The Longhorns have defeated Alabama's daddy. The question is, can they now defeat Alabama?
11 Oregon Ducks 546 pushups. That tells you all need to know about Oregon's demolishing of Portland State. The most jacked mascot in the country resides in Eugene. Puddles' MMA career begins now.
12 Tennessee Volunteers Joe Milton III threw for 201 yards with 2 passing and 2 rushing TDs, and the Vols rushed for nearly 300 yards in a dominating win over the Cavaliers, who were playing their first game since the tragic shooting on campus. The Tennessee defense dominated this game, holding Virginia to just 201 yards of total offense, as the Vols were the only SEC team to beat a P5 opponent this week.
13 Utah Utes The lil ah confines of Rice-Eccles proved to be too much for the Gators as the Utes jumped out to a 24-3 early in the 3rd quarter and never looked back. Down several starters, including the heart of this team in Cam Rising, the Utes did enough to get the victory and avenge last season's loss in Gainesville. The Gators just got called for another false start as I was typing this up.
14 Kansas State Wildcats The Wildcats rolled up almost 600 yards of total offense in their 45-0 shutout over Southeast Missouri State. The game went about as expected. Former Seminole RB Treshaun Ward threw for a touchdown and rushed for another.
15 Oregon State Beavers DJU begins the next chapter of his career in Corvallis with a 5 total TD showing. The Beavers' defense clamped down and only allowed 17 points and 279 yards of offense against a team USC allowed 28 points against. Uiagalelei looked more comfortable in this start than he did in maybe his entire Clemson career. The Beavs are looking to send the Pac-12 out with a glorious finish.
16 LSU Tigers The Tigers are a tough team to place. There was some good, some bad, and some ugly. The good: Jayden Daniels accounted for over 400 yards of total offense. The bad: Outside of Daniels, the rushing attack was nonexistent. Star LB Harold Perkins Jr was a virtual non factor in this game. The ugly: The Tigers were outscored 31-7 in the second half, including 31 straight by FSU to open the half. The Tigers are still an extremely talented team, and they also faced the stiffest competition of any other ranked team so it's tough to say how far they should fall. They can't afford to follow this game up with another dud though as SEC play begins for them in just 2 weeks. I'll give LSU the benefit of the doubt with their roster and keep them fairly high considering how badly they were whipped in the second half.
17 North Carolina Tar Heels The Tar Heels managed just 17 sacks all of last season. They posted NINE against Spencer Rattler and the Gamecocks and after factoring sack yardage, they held South Carolina to a net -2 yards rushing. Drake Maye played well, but did have 2 picks so some room for improvement, but the Tar Heels staked their claim for the "real" Carolina.
18 Oklahoma Sooners The Sooners demolished Arkansas State 73-0. Dillon Gabriel barely broke a sweat and as a team, OU went 30/33 passing for 422 yards and 3 TDs. Tack on another SIX rushing TDs, and yeah you can see where this is going.
19 Wisconsin Badgers Stop me if you've heard this before: Wisconsin can run the football. Over 300 yards on the ground and the Badgers made short work of the Bulls despite throwing 2 picks.
20 Tulane Green Wave Tulane did what they needed to against a very good South Alabama team. Tulane QB Michael Pratt went an insane 14/15 for 294 yards and 4 TDs.
21 Duke Blue Devils The Blue Devils came to play. They were among my first 5 teams out, and this performance showed exactly why I had such high hopes for this squad. Riley Leonard posted nearly 300 yards of total offense and showed exactly why he's one of the top QB prospects in next year's NFL draft. Duke had their own issues with turnovers, but the defense and special teams forced 3 of their own. Duke was outgained in this game but they showed the moxie to bounce back and win this game in convincing fashion against a good Clemson team.
22 Ole Miss Rebels I know it was only Mercer, but the Rebels looked DANGEROUS. Jaxon Dart threw for 344 yards and 4 TDs. Quinshon Judkins who is arguably the most dynamic back in the country posted 60 yards and 2 TDs in limited work. Lane Kiffin's offense was humming in a beatdown of FCS Mercer.
23 Texas A&M Aggies The Bobby Petrino era at College Station is so far so good. Conner Weigman had 5 passing TDs for the Aggies, as they routed New Mexico 52-10. The Aggies posted just TWO games of 30+ points, with a season high of just 38 in 2022. They dropped 52 in game 1 this season so looks like some noted improvement. A trip to Miami Gardens is on deck for next weekend in another high-profile nonconference ACC-SEC showdown.
24 Clemson Tigers The Tigers have the talent. The talent did not show out in a Labor Day showdown with the Blue Devils. Cade Klubnik is still raw, making only his second career start. Several missed throws by the QB, but his receiving corps didn't give him much help either. I think this Clemson team will be VERY good come the season's end, but a lot to figure out in the early parts of this season.
25 Colorado Buffaloes I had the Buffs predicted as a 4 win team, maybe 5 at the top end. Shedeur Sanders and Travis Hunter told the nation that this team might be for real. Sanders threw for mindblowing 510 yards and 4 TDs against the national runner-up a season ago, and 2-way star Travis Hunter had 119 yards receiving to go with his incredible INT at the goal line. TCU lost a TON of production and the Buffs defense still gave up 541 yards and 42 points so definitely some things to work on, but the Deion Sanders era started off with an absolute BANG.

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