College football has returned and all is right with the world. I did on opening day what I shall do for every college football Saturday this autumn: I planted myself on the couch and had a 12-hour Caligula-esque orgy of football, Barq's, Doritos, and Funions. In the middle of all that, I was able to take a lot away from the first full Saturday of pigskin, and here's what I thought:
* The Ohio State University has a chance to have their most explosive offensive since the Joey Galloway era, if head coach Jim Tressel will take his foot off of the brakes. In receivers Santonio Holmes and Bam Childress, Tressel has himself two big-time, game-breaking playmakers. If each of them can get the ball in their hands 6-10 times a game, this offense will average 30 points.
But, in his short, but wildly successful tenure at OSU, Tressel has been content to "win ugly" by relying on his stifling defense and steady, if non-explosive, running game. Tressel's scheme should work just fine in seven or eight games this year, but there are four games (at NC State, at Iowa, at Purdue, and vs. Michigan) in which 40 rushes at three yards (and the proverbial cloud of dust) just will not hack it. If he wants to win the big games this year, Coach Tressel might have to move from Woody Hayes-ball to wide open-ball.
* I know it's just Temple, but Virginia looked awfully good blowing out the Owls on Saturday. For two or three years, recruiting gurus have been singing the praises of the talent the Cavaliers have brought in, but they have yet to make the jump from very, very good to great. This might be the year they achieve great. They have two terrific backs, skill position players that can both get open and catch the ball (a trait that seems more and more rare these days), and a quarterback (Marques Hagans) who looks to have a great grasp of the offensive system.
Couple that with an athletic, playmaking defense that features a star-studded front-seven and one sees why optimism abounds in Charlottesville this year. I would not be surprised if UVA made it through their season with only one loss, meaning they would beat either Miami or Florida State. Now, if Al Groh can find a way to win both of those games, than we might have the makings of a team that has to start making New Year's travel plans to Miami.
* The Golden Bears seemed to have found another talented runner, J.J. Arrington, to pair with their high-powered passing game. While not what one would consider a "quality win," it is never easy to go into Air Force and deal with the flex bone. Couple that with the fact that many prognosticators felt it was trendy to call Cal overrated, and it became important for the Golden Bears to play like one of the 10 or 20 best teams in the country against the Falcons. And that is exactly how they played.
Their offense showed no signs of slowing down from last year, and even got a new wrinkle with the emergence of Arrington. It looks like how far they go this season will come down to the first two Saturdays of October, when they play at Oregon State and at USC, in what is being billed as the Pac-10 game of the year. If they can win one of those two games, then a 10-win season and major bowl birth are both great possibilities.
* Last, but certainly not least, congrats to Sylvester Croom for winning his first game as a head coach at Mississippi State. Smarter people than I have used thousands upon thousands of words this summer to examine the social ramifications of his hiring. I would like to use this last paragraph to remind people about the football ramifications of this hiring.
Croom is a tremendous football coach who had the Bulldogs looking better prepared and more motivated than they have looked in years. Given the hand Croom was dealt, it is too much to expect a miraculous one-year turnaround, but do not be surprised this fall when Croom helps the Bulldogs win two or three games they have no business winning. And, do not be surprised when, in two or three years, the Bulldogs are again players in the SEC.
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