Saturday in Review: Week 2

The Florida State defense has gotten off to a good start this
year, particularly in stopping the pass.
Glenn Beil-USA TODAY Sports

So. That was a wacky second week, wasn't it? After a seemingly impressive start to the season, the SEC was brought back to reality with a couple upsets and close calls sending shock waves throughout the conference.

Let's start with some action last Friday. After playing close for two and a half quarter, Florida Atlantic could not keep up with Miami, and the Canes prevailed 44-20. Utah held off Utah State, but only won by 10 points; the Utes appear to be a defensively dominant team, but are lacking in offensive firepower, so expect many close, low-scoring affairs throughout their season.

Saturday's first victory belonged to Florida State after they defeated the South Florida Bulls, 34-14. The game was tied 7-7 going into the half, as both teams struggled to move against the opposing defenses. However, the day belonged to Dalvin Cook, who rushed for 266 yards (second-most in school history) and carried the Seminole offense almost single-handedly for much of the game. Perhaps the most shocking result from this weekend wasn't that Auburn won, but how they won. Favored by over 40 points coming into the game, the Tigers barely squeaked by Jacksonville State, winning 27-20 in overtime. Although a formidable FCS squad, few people on earth expected the Gamecocks to compete with (then) sixth-ranked Auburn. The game was no fluke, JSU outplayed Auburn and deserved to win, just falling inches short of the upset.

Auburn's previous victory lost even more luster after Louisville fell to Houston, 34-31. The Cardinals haven't hurt their chances to compete in the ACC, but must feel disappointed after starting the season 0-2 out-of-conference. The most lopsided game of the week featured another ACC team, Boston College. The Eagles obliterated the woefully over-matched Howard Bison, winning 76-0. And this was after coaches from both schools agreed to shorten the game by 10 minutes as a mercy to the visitors. The Eagle defense held the Bison to just 11 yards of total offense in the entire game. Needless to say, BC will face an entirely different level of competition when they play Florida State next Saturday.

Notre Dame needed a long touchdown pass with less than 15 seconds left to win against Virginia. The Hail Mary was tossed by backup DeShone Kizer after starter Malik Zaire left with a season-ending injury. Georgia began their conference schedule undefeated with a 31-14 victory over Vanderbilt. An ineffective Bulldog passing game was relieved by the stellar play of halfback Nick Chubb and his offensive line.

So far, Ole Miss has been spectacular on offense, scoring 149
points in their last two games. AP Photo/Thomas Graning

Ole Miss throttled Fresno State 73-21, becoming the first SEC team to put up 70 in two consecutive games since Florida did it in 1994. Although expected to have a great defense, the Rebels appear to have one of the conference's finest offenses. Their divisional rival Arkansas hardly fared so well. In fact, the highly-ranked Razorbacks were stunned 16-12 by the Toledo Rockets in Little Rock. This was the Rockets' first win over an SEC team (in four tries) and their first ever road win over a ranked opponent. The Hogs were doomed by their redzone ineptitude, scoring just once in five visits within Toledo's 20.

Another streak ended when Eastern Michigan toppled Wyoming in Laramie. The Eagles' 48-29 win was their first on the road over a non-conference FBS opponent in 27 years.

Once again, Tennessee had their hearts broken when Oklahoma overcame a 17-point deficit to beat the Vols 31-24 in double overtime. This 17-point lead was the largest Tennessee had ever surrendered at Neyland Stadium. OU scored the tying touchdown that sent the game into overtime with just 41 seconds left in the fourth. An interception thrown by Tennessee in double overtime sealed the Sooner victory. Another road team, Missouri, just managed to hold on against Arkansas State, winning 27-20 in Jonesboro. The Tigers had to overcome a touchdown deficit in the second half. Although seemingly unimpressive starting this season, Mizzou has resembled last year's team, which also began their season slowly (but eventually won the SEC East).

In 1983, Florida just managed a victory against East Carolina on Homecoming. In January, the Gators barely held off the Pirates in the Birmingham Bowl. History repeated itself, as the Gators escaped with another close win over ECU this Saturday. First, the Pirates stunned the large crowd at the Swamp by marching down the field on their first drive and scoring a touchdown. However, the Gator defense held ECU in check for the rest of the half, allowing no further scores. In the meantime, the Gator offense struggled to score in the redzone, only putting up 10 points in four visits. By halftime, the Gators were holding on to a slight 10-7 lead.

For the third time in history, East Carolina gave Florida all it
could handle, but the Orange and Blue emerged victorious.
Gator Country/David Bowie

After a bizarre interception thrown by the Gators deep in their own territory, the Pirates struck fast to retake the lead. Florida responded by driving down the field to regain the advantage. Later that quarter, the Gators extended their lead with a pick-six by Jalen Tabor. Early in the fourth, the Pirates kicked a field goal to bring them within seven, but the Gators reacted with a 75-yard touchdown drive, extending the lead to 14. An unsportsmanlike conduct penalty during the celebration resulted in a short field for the Pirates. ECU proceeded to cut the lead back to seven with a touchdown drive, but with time running out. The Pirate defense did their job to get the ball back, but their offense had just 115 seconds and 70 yards to go. Undaunted, ECU quarterback Blake Kemp led the Pirates down the field to scoring distance. However, the junior gunslinger let the ball slip out of his hand on second down – the Gators scooped up the ball and preserved their second victory of the season. Questionable officiating and many unnecessary errors by the Gators led this game to be closer than it probably should have been. Yet, Florida remains undefeated... for now. The Gators held the Pirates to -13 rushing yards, the lowest total by an opponent since Louisiana-Monroe in 1998.

The Kentucky Wildcats snapped a 22-game road losing-streak with a 26-22 triumph over South Carolina. The Wildcats withstood a 15-point second-half comeback by the Gamecocks. When the Cocks attempted to tie the game at 24-all late in the fourth with a two-point conversion, the Wildcat defense converted the two off a fumble return, extending their lead to an ultimately insurmountable four points. This was the first win by Kentucky in Columbia since 1999.

The big clash between Michigan State and Oregon is destined to become one of the year's best remembered battles. The two powerhouses traded blows throughout the night, but the Spartans emerged victorious after a late drive by the Ducks stalled on fourth down. Defense elevated Indiana past FIU while Temple ended a five-game losing streak to Cincinnati. Georgia State picked up their first-ever win over an FBS program after defeating New Mexico State 34-32 in Las Cruces. The woebegone Aggies now possess the best claim to be the worst team in the FBS.

LSU survived their season-opening visit to Starkville, beating Mississippi State 21-19. While the Bulldogs were dependent on Dak Prescott and the passing attack, LSU relied on Leonard Fournette and the ground game. Fournette accounted for 159 rushing yards and all three of LSU's touchdowns. The bout was as close as they get, coming down to a missed field goal as time ran out. For the second straight week, BYU and Tanner Mangum won on a late touchdown bomb. The Cougars won 35-24 over Boise State (a final pick-six put BYU up by 11 after trailing for almost the entire game).

Finally, UCF was little match for Stanford, losing 31-7 to the Cardinal in California.

State of Florida:

• Miami (2-0) over Florida Atlantic (0-2), 41-21 44-20
• 11 Florida State (2-0) over South Florida (1-1), 38-20 34-14
• Florida (2-0) over East Carolina (1-1), 44-13 31-24
• Indiana (2-0) over FIU (1-1), 31-30 36-22
• Stanford (1-1) over UCF (0-2), 16-10 31-7

Southeastern Conference:

• 6 Auburn (2-0) over Jacksonville State (1-1), 55-10 27-20 (OT)
• 17 Mississippi (2-0) over Fresno State (1-1), 38-10 73-21
• 10 Georgia (2-0) over Vanderbilt (0-2), 42-7 31-14
• 2 Alabama (2-0) over Middle Tennessee (1-1), 49-17 37-10
• 18 Arkansas (1-1) over Toledo (1-0), 41-20 16-12
• 23 Tennessee (1-1) over 19 Oklahoma (2-0), 37-34 31-24 (OT)
• 16 Texas A&M (2-0) over Ball State (1-1), 56-16 56-23
• 21 Missouri (2-0) over Arkansas State (0-2), 37-9 27-20
• South Carolina (1-1) over Kentucky (2-0), 24-17 26-22
• 14 LSU (1-0) over 25 Mississippi State (1-1), 20-17 21-19

Top 25:

• 1 Ohio State (2-0) over Hawaii (1-1), 49-6 38-0
• 3 TCU (2-0) over Stephen F. Austin (0-2), 62-7 70-7
• 4 Baylor (2-0) over Lamar (1-1), 77-17 66-31
• 5 Michigan State (2-0) over 7 Oregon (1-1), 37-30 31-28
• 8 USC (2-0) over Idaho (0-2), 62-14 59-9
• 9 Notre Dame (2-0) over Virginia (0-2), 31-17 34-27
• 12 Clemson (2-0) over Appalachian State (1-1), 38-20 41-10
• 13 UCLA (2-0) over UNLV (0-2), 42-14 37-3
• 15 Georgia Tech (2-0) over Tulane (0-2), 44-7 65-10
• 22 Arizona (2-0) over Nevada (1-1), 38-24 44-20
• BYU (2-0) over 20 Boise State (1-1), 31-21 35-24
• 24 Utah (2-0) over Utah State (1-1), 38-10 24-14

Week 2 Record: 24-3 (89%)
Season Record: 53-6 (90%)