I mean seriously, remember this?:
Where were the police in their riot gear and gas masks then?
2) Georgia (1-0, 0-0, +5) - Georgia running back Todd Gurley made a statement in the Bulldogs' 45-21 romp over Clemson by running for 198 yards and 3 touchdowns on 15 carries, averaging 13.2 yards per rush. Georgia will have a chance to cement their status as SEC East favorites when they play at South Carolina on September 13th.
Meanwhile, the other SEC East contender, Florida, had to cancel their home opener against Idaho due to lightning. Just one more excuse to post this:
Also, for an excellent analysis of the meaning of Ralph Wiggum, please read this by Mallory Ortberg.
3) Texas A&M (1-0, 1-0, +5) - Texas A&M was the most impressive team in Week One, winning at South Carolina 52-28, and ending the Gamecocks' 18-game home winning streak. It's amazing how quickly football in the SEC has changed. In a conference traditionally known for its defense, teams in the first week of 2014 gave up 680 yards (South Carolina), 393 yards (Alabama), 595 yards (Arkansas), and 365 yards (Missouri).
4) Florida State (1-0, 0-0, +3) - I was going to write about how difficult it is for any team to be repeat champions, even one as talented as Florida State, and about the absurdities of preseason rankings and polls, and about how, in a just world, Oklahoma State would be ranked higher even after losing to the #1 team in the country 31-37. But then I saw this: "OSU to students: Trail of Tears sign not OK." And this:
For Pete's sake people. Can't we do anything in a not terribly racist way?
5) USC (1-0, 0-0, +2) - The Pac-12 team that impressed me the most in Week One was USC, who won at home against Fresno State, 52-13. The Trojans put up over 700 yards of offense against the two-time Mountain West champions, and gained 10.3 yards per passing play, highlighted by receiver Juju Smith's four catches for 123 yards. USC plays Stanford next week at the Farm. If they can win that game, they'll have a huge advantage in the Pac-12 South, as they do not play Oregon or Washington this year, whereas UCLA plays them both, and Arizona State is at Washington on October 25th.
6) Michigan State (1-0, 0-0, +1)
7) Stanford (1-0, 0-0, +1)
8) Auburn (1-0, 1-0, +1)
9) Oklahoma (1-0, 0-0, +1)
10) Alabama (1-0, 0-0, +1)
11) Oregon (1-0, 0-0, +1) - Better fix that D-line before the Michigan State game, Ducks.
12) Ohio State (1-0, 0-0, +1)
13) Missouri (1-0, 0-0, +1)
14) UCLA (1-0, 0-0, +1) - It's ironic that, after years of complaining about how the Pac-12 is underrated, that this year I think they're overrated. Case in point is UCLA, who let a terrible Virginia team hang around before finally winning, 28-20. The Bruins defense outscored their offense 21-7, they averaged 4.9 yards per play, turned the ball over twice, and punted on five consecutive drives in the first half. That's not the performance of the No. 7 team in the country. They play Memphis at home next week before taking on Texas on September 13.
15) Washington (1-0, 0-0, +1)
16) LSU (1-0, 0-0, +1)
17) Northern Illinois (1-0, 0-0, +1)
18) Arizona State (1-0, 0-0, +1)
19) Duke (1-0, 0-0, +1)
20) Ball State (1-0, 0-0, +1)
21) Notre Dame (1-0, 0-0, +1)
21) Notre Dame (1-0, 0-0, +1)
22) Arizona (1-0, 0-0, +1)
23) East Carolina (1-0, 0-0, +1)
23) East Carolina (1-0, 0-0, +1)
24) Texas (1-0, 0-0, +1)
25) Nebraska (1-0, 0-0, +1)
25) Nebraska (1-0, 0-0, +1)
