College Football Week 1 Shakedown

At the onset of college football's first weekend, John McCain tabbing Sarah Palin for a running mate turned out to be a huge surprise in American politics. Naturally, college football reminded us all what national institution is the true sultan of shock, with lesser opponents toppling highly rated programs — again. McCain would have had to have selected Charles Barkley to match last weekend.

(I promise, that was a non-partisan analogy to lead into the article, and I will cease and desist from political references henceforth.)

There was plenty of turmoil in a week usually consisting of three decent games, several creampuff beat-downs, and maybe one giant killing. Of course, later this season, this wouldn't be a huge week of upsets. Even with two teams picked near the top of their conference falling to non-BCS schools. But most teams treat the first week as a scrimmage, leaving fewer games that even have potential for an upset.

Some of the other games weren't much of upsets at all when you really looked at it. So here we start at the top and work our way down the list of upsets, from holy-crap-did-you-hear to ya-know-I-almost-picked-that-myself.

1. East Carolina over Virginia Tech

There's nothing like a neutral-site loss to a C-USA team to kick off an ACC title defense. East Carolina is a solid team, and Skip Holtz is not new to giving BCS teams fits. But Virginia Tech is the defending ACC champ, was picked to win its division again, was ranked 17th, and has won at least 10 games each of the past four years. Oh, and the Hokies hadn't lost an early-season non-conference game to a team not in the top five in over 10 years.

What does it mean? C-USA be warned; East Carolina is pretty good. Oh, you meant for Virginia Tech. Well, based on the weekend the rest of the ACC had, not much. Clemson appears later in this article, Virginia and NC State were abused on national television, Maryland sneaked out a 14-7 win over the mighty Fightin' Blue Hens of Delaware, and Boston College didn't exactly light up Kent State (21-0). So basically, Virginia Tech is right on track for another title.

2. Bowling Green over Pitt

This was the year Dave Wannstedt had it together and was ready to challenge for a Big East title. Okay, so we've heard that before, but this year they had a big win knocking West Virginia out of the BCS title game to build off of, right? But a loss to a good, not stellar, MAC team sure wasn't in the plan. After taking a 14-0 lead, Pitt rode a 4-1 turnover deficit to a 10-point loss, Pitt's first ever at home to a MAC team.

What does it mean? Pitt is still Pitt, legit Big East contention is still a pipe dream. The defense did its job. But turnovers, 56 rushing yards in the final three quarters, and refusal to dominate a theoretically weaker team at home belies a team not ready for big time. Oh, and it also means Wannstedt might want to update his resume.

3. UCLA over Tennessee

Yes, for the second straight year, the Vols kicked off the season with a loss in California. But last year, they fell — hard — to a ranked, high-firepower Cal team (which didn't start its gross underachieving until midseason). This year, enter UCLA, a rebuilding program picked in the bottom half of the Pac-10 by most, in part because their top two quarterbacks were out. Oh, and early in the game, they lost their starting tailback, tight end, and wideout, all seniors and team leaders.

What does it mean? UCLA might be better than expected. The defense was relatively solid, but that's nothing new under coordinator DeWayne Walker. Of course, he is now overshadowed by newcomers Rick Neuheisel and Norm Chow, and the offense looked nothing like anything seen in Westwood under Karl Dorrell, at least once Kevin Kraft was informed his team was wearing blue at halftime. This is a quality Pac-10 team, but there are still a lot of holes for the top half of the conference to take advantage of until the new staff gets recruit reinforcements.

Tennessee, meanwhile, was frankly the more athletic, physical team out of the gate, unlike last year. But they repeatedly refused to deliver the knockout blow. It was only 14-7 at half, with four Bruin interceptions. That's insane failure to capitalize. Plus, they were running all over UCLA at 5.2 per, but let penalties and a weak passing game prevent the fatal right cross. Hey, they have lost in Cali and come back to win a division before. You just can't count on that twice in a row.

4. Youngstown State outlasts Beanie Wells

Injuries happen in football. So do punt blocks. That doesn't mean they should happen to your star, bruising running back against an inferior opponent. (Yes, another jab at VaTech.)

What does it mean? Not much now, considering he might even be ready against Ohio in a week. Let's just say if a non-contact injury not even taking him out a week took him out of a game against YSU, USC's defense might find itself less than intimidated.

5. Alabama over Clemson

The result wasn't surprising. These were two ranked teams, and Alabama under Nick Saban, say what you want about the guy, is on its way up. What struck everyone over the head like a lead pipe was how apathetic Clemson seemed to be to the whole scenario. The preseason pick to unseat Virginia Tech as ACC champs, not to mention the supposed No. 9 team in the country, was beaten every way a team can be beaten. It's heralded, NFL-ready, two-headed monster backfield of James Davis and C.J. Spiller combined for 20 yards. Without their kickoff return for a touchdown (they had plenty of chances), they accomplished nothing. Except showing that they are, again, not an elite football team.

What does it mean? LSU lost a lot from last year, some are unconvinced Auburn is a top 10 team, and Mississippi State already lost to Louisiana Tech (okay, that last one was irrelevant). The SEC West is in play for Alabama this year, if this was any indication, and John Parker Wilson seems ready to take this team up a notch. Clemson? Buh-bye top 10, hello teaming masses of ACC teams trying to prove they are less allergic to excellence than their counterparts.

6. Stanford over Oregon State

Forgot about that one, didn't you? Late Thursday night, the Cardinal continued their steady improvement under Jim Harbaugh in a great game against the visiting Beavers. Not an earth-shattering coup, but certainly an upset worth noting.

What does it mean? Let's remember, this team did beat USC. No matter how bad USC choked, that shows this isn't the same old Stanford the Pac-10 just kicked around. Oregon State, meanwhile, was crushed last year early against Cincinnati, and had a quality, nine-win season, giving the Beavers 19 over the last two years.

7. Fresno State over Rutgers

Rutgers is relevant. Relevant enough even to qualify as an upset victim to a good WAC team. Now, this game was ugly on both sides, especially in the first half. But Rutgers certainly didn't do itself any favors when it let the Bulldogs walk out of Piscataway with a W. Still, the Bulldogs got off to a good start before facing UCLA and Wisconsin in coach Pat Hill's traditional non-conference gauntlet.

8. Utah over Michigan

Not so much of a surprise. Not after last year. Utah gets Appalachian State's sloppy seconds. Only for this loss, Michigan was rolling out a new coach and his offensive scheme, which is ill-designed for the players already in place in Ann Arbor, who clearly hadn't grasped its intricacies (or basics). Intelligent fans wouldn't have really raised an eyebrow if the Utes were favored by Vegas going into the Big House, and that tells you all you need to know about Michigan.

Top 10

In honor of the fact that I don't believe in rankings before October, here is a top 10. In this one, there is a lot of fluidity and not (as) much reliance on prior rankings.

1. USC — Trojans properly rewarded for clubbing a bona-fide team in their first game. There should be more than one other team on this list (Missouri).

2. Florida — Clocked Hawaii and has an offense that is lethal. Is the defense ready? We'll see soon enough, like next week against Miami (hey, 52 is good, even on Charleston Southern).

3. Georgia — This team is largely back and lit up teams to finish last year. Not quite as impressive against Georgia Southern as the top two were in their games, though.

4. Oklahoma — Popped Chattanooga; stop the presses. Until proven otherwise, still the class of the Big 12.

5. Missouri — Offense will run track meet with any defense. But they have to beat the big boys (Texas, and presumably OU in the title game) to belong. They can do it, but a secondary that lets teams hang around is a concern.

6. Ohio State — And this still might be too high. Stay tuned for Sept. 13. Apparently, they have an engagement in L.A. to look forward to (after dispatching Ohio).

7. LSU — Avoided the Appalachian State bug ... easily. But again, this team has lost a lot from last year.

8. Texas — Colt McCoy and the Longhorns are still lurking; let's remember, they tattooed a decent Arizona State team in the Holiday Bowl. But who doesn't beat Florida Atlantic 52-10?

9. Oregon — Offense didn't miss Dixon in 44-10 rout of Washington. This team may still be USC's top threat in the Pac-10. (ASU needs to win a big game to join the club. UGA is on its way to Tempe in late September? Opportunity knocks, er, barks.)

10. West Virginia — A 48-21 win over FCS (read D1-AA) Villanova doesn't quite inspire. But Pat White and Noel Devine are still there, and their romp on Oklahoma last year does inspire. Just watch out for East Carolina next week. Ask Virginia Tech.