Week 1 of college football did not disappoint. There were upsets aplenty along with many dramatic finishes. My picks went 2-1 straight up and 2-1 against the spread. Let’s dive right in to week two, and the three games you can’t miss.
No. 12 Texas A&M at No. 1 Clemson (3:30 p.m. EST on ABC)
Texas A&M made easy work of Texas State in week one, but now the Aggies have to head to South Carolina for a date with the defending national champions. Clemson still looks the part of the behemoth after routing Georgia Tech in its season opener.
Travis Etienne is the biggest home run threat in the country and he looked incredible against the Yellow Jackets, running for over 200 yards and three touchdowns on just 12 carries. Trevor Lawrence, the sophomore phenom who led the Tigers to the national title last year, was very rusty. He was 13-of-23 for 168 yards, a touchdown, and two picks. The performance was pretty out of character for Lawrence, considering that he only threw four interceptions during his entire freshman campaign. Clemson has the talent to endure a performance like that and still win, but it’ll make life much more difficult for the Tigers if Lawrence doesn’t play like his usual self.
Kellen Mond nearly led the Aggies to an upset of No. 2 Clemson last year in College Station. Kelly Bryant, who is now at Missouri, helped spark the Tigers and helped them escape with a 28-26 win. Mond led the Aggies in passing and rushing in that game, throwing for 430 yards and three touchdowns while adding another 33 yards on the ground. He’ll have to have another monster game if Texas A&M wants to have a chance to win.
Texas A&M had four interceptions against Texas State, but I don’t think its secondary will be able to replicate that kind of dominant performance this week against a much better team. Overall, the Aggies defense did a great job against Clemson’s offense last year, but the Tigers were a very different team a year ago. Since the start of the 2018 season, there have been only two games in which Clemson didn’t win by at least 20 points. Texas A&M was the first and then Syracuse, three weeks later, was the second. The Tigers are a legitimate juggernaut.
The spread: Clemson (-17.0)
My pick: Texas A&M nearly beat the Tigers at home last year and it took a tremendous performance from Kelly Bryant off the bench to save the day as Clemson escaped with the win. The champs definitely won’t overlook the Aggies. I think Etienne will have another great game and I see Lawrence bouncing back from his sub-par performance in the opener. I’m picking Clemson to win, but I think the line is a little too high so I’ll take the points.
No. 6 LSU at No. 9 Texas (7:30 p.m. EST on ABC)
Both LSU and Texas looked great in their season openers. Joe Burrow tied a school record with five touchdown passes in the first half as the Tigers overwhelmed Georgia Southern with its defense and new spread offense. LSU scored 21 points in the first quarter. The Tigers didn’t manage to score 21 points in a single quarter during the entire season last year. Needless to say, I think the system suits Burrow well.
Meanwhile, Sam Ehlinger threw for 276 yards and four touchdowns as Texas steamrolled Louisiana Tech. Ehlinger is a stud and can hurt opponents with his arm and his legs. I think he could work his way into the fringe of the Heisman conversation and that’s why I think the X-factor in this matchup will be Ehlinger against LSU’s linebackers. LSU had to replace Devin White, who was arguably the best linebacker in the country last year and the fifth overall selection in the NFL Draft, but this group is still very athletic and has great range. If they can blitz and pressure Ehlinger as well as keep him from taking off down the field, that will go a long way in trying to limit this dangerous Texas offense.
After going to the Big 12 title game last year and beating Georgia in the Sugar Bowl, Texas really can say that it has returned to the national stage. The hype is considerable and so is the pressure. This is a big game for LSU, but it’s a huge one for Texas. If Texas loses, it would almost definitely have to run the table in the Big 12 to make the College Football Playoff. Perhaps the Longhorns could get in with two losses, but in that scenario they’d probably need to beat Oklahoma twice, win the conference, and also have help.
Interestingly enough, Ed Orgeron and Tom Herman were both candidates for the LSU head coaching job when the Tigers tossed Les Miles out back in 2016. Tom Herman ended up going to Texas to replace Charlie Strong and Orgeron replaced Miles at LSU.
The spread: LSU (-6.5)
My pick: LSU is highly motivated to pick up a statement win just like they did when they beat Georgia at home last year. This is the opportunity for the Tigers to make that statement. I think Ehlinger will have a good game and make some big plays, but the athletic LSU defense will keep him from having a monster game. I’m taking LSU to win and cover.
No. 23 Stanford at USC (10:30 p.m. EST on ESPN)
Quarterback injuries make this a particularly interesting and difficult game to predict. Neither team had a great showing in its season opener. Stanford struggled to beat Northwestern in Palo Alto while USC held on at home to beat Fresno State.
USC’s JT Daniels is out for the year after tearing the ACL and meniscus in his right knee. Meanwhile, Stanford’s K.J. Costello took a forearm to the chin and had to exit Stanford’s season opener against Northwestern. True freshman Kedon Slovis will start for USC. He was 6-of-8 for 57 yards and an interception when he relieved Daniels.
I expect the Trojans to try and lean heavily on their run game to take some of the pressure off of Slovis. Since Costello was just ruled out for this game, the Cardinal will likely do the same. I think the X-factor for this matchup is the battle between the offensive and defensive lines at the line of scrimmage. Stanford’s outstanding left tackle Walker Little will miss at least a month with a leg injury and left guard Dylan Powell is “doubtful” for the game. That will have a huge impact on the battle in the trenches because the left side of Stanford’s offensive line is now much weaker.
Redshirt sophomore Davis Mills, who was ESPN’s No. 2-ranked ranked pocket passer in the Class of 2017 and was 7-for-14 for 81 yards in relief of Costello last week, will get the start at USC in place of Costello. Can he remain poised in a conference game in a hostile environment? The injuries to the offensive line could make it very difficult to establish the run in addition to protecting Mills from USC’s pass rushers.
The spread: USC (-1.0)
The pick: I think the Cardinal defense will have a great performance against the Trojans, especially with Slovis making his first career start and knowing that they have to step up with Costello out. With USC favored by just a single point, Vegas has basically said this is a toss-up. With Costello out and the left side of the Stanford offensive line decimated by injury, I’m taking the Trojans to win and cover.
