Written by Jesse Lamovsky

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Slow starts leading to expected results were the overriding theme of college football’s opening weekend. For the most part the heavy favorites wound up winning, but not all of them looked impressive getting there. Ranked teams like Oklahoma, Georgia, South Carolina and Wisconsin struggled to put away underdog opponents. Only the top two teams in the preseason AP poll- USC and Alabama- really looked the part.

The same was true in Columbus, where the Ohio State Buckeyes got off to a sluggish start in Urban Meyer’s first game at the helm. They trailed the O.G. Miami 3-0 after one period and they were fortunate to not be down by more, as several blown opportunities kept the Redhawks from building an early double-digit lead. A spectacular touchdown by Devin Smith finally woke the Buckeyes from their slumber, and they went on to control things from there in a 56-10 victory.

While there was plenty to be excited about after opening day- particularly the dazzling play of Braxton Miller and a front seven that held Miami to minus-one yard rushing- there was also plenty of concerns. Miller is a long way from a finished product, as is a secondary that at times was eviscerated by Miami’s talented quarterback Zac Dysart. But it’s better to have teachable moments come out of a blowout win rather than a loss.

Start Out With a Whimper: At the beginning of Saturday’s game, all the momentum and initiative came from Miami’s side of the field. The Redhawks drove into Buckeye territory three times in the first quarter, including trips to the six-and-four-yard lines. But they couldn’t take full advantage thanks to some key drops and a missed 24-yard field-goal attempt by Kaleb Patterson. Ohio State could have and perhaps should have been down 10-0 or 14-0 at the end of one period; instead it was just 3-0, and as it turned out Miami’s best chance to take command had come and gone.

Play of the Game: Ohio State’s first four possessions ended in punts as Miller missed on seven of his first eight pass attempts. But as the Buckeyes took over at their own 17 to start the second quarter, the sophomore from Huber Heights finally got going. After two rushes pushed the ball to the 39, Miller hooked up with Corey “Philly” Brown on a 38-yard catch-and-run. On the very next play Miller threw for Devin Brown in the end zone. The ball was thrown too high but Brown leaped, pulled it in with one hand and got both feet down in-bounds to complete what will remain one of the highlight plays of the 2012 Ohio State season. Devin Brown’s sensational effort gave Ohio State its first lead and changed the momentum for good.

Braxton’s Line: On paper, and at times in reality, it was damned good: 14-of-24 for 207 yards and two touchdowns, 17 carries for 161 yards and another touchdown. You’ll take 368 yards from scrimmage any day, and you’ll take Miller’s 65-yard touchdown run on the opening play of the second half in which he froze a defender with a stutter step before taking it the rest of the way. As expected, he isn’t all the way there as a passer; he looks natural throwing the football, it just doesn’t look natural once it’s in the air. He also got hit a lot, which isn’t good. Like everything else associated with Ohio State football, Braxton Miller is a work in progress.

Up and Down Defense: The defense is a bit of a work in progress as well. They did do some things well on Saturday. Miami finished with minus-one yard rushing. (The Redhawks were dead last in the nation in rushing last season, so take that number with a grain of salt.) Travis Howard came up with two interceptions and Bradley Roby scored a touchdown when he recovered a fumbled punt snap in the end zone. But Zac Dysart had plenty of success throwing against Ohio State’s defense, piling up 303 yards through the air including a 44-yard scoring toss to Nick Harwell. Miami left yards and points on the field as well.    

Offensive Numbers: There are still plenty of kinks to be worked out in Urban Meyer’s new offense, but the early returns are satisfactory. Ohio State compiled 538 total yards and got them in balanced fashion; 294 on the ground, 244 through the air. The Buckeyes went 9-of-17 on third down, didn’t turn the ball over and committed only three penalties. Carlos Hyde bulled for 82 yards on 17 carries and two scores (he was also stuffed at the Miami one-yard line on the final play of the first half.) Corey Brown led the receivers with seven catches for 87 yards and a score.

Around the Nation

Game of the Week- Northwestern/Syracuse: It seems as if Northwestern is good for at least one wild shootout per year. This season the Wildcats met their quota on the opening Saturday, blowing a 35-13 third-quarter lead before rallying to defeat the Orange 42-41 on a touchdown pass from backup quarterback Trevor Siemian to Demetrius Fields with 44 seconds remaining. Syracuse outgained the Wildcats 596-337 but gave up touchdowns on a punt return and fumble return and committed 12 penalties and three turnovers- one of which, a fumble, was scooped up and returned for a touchdown- in falling to 6-12 in the Carrier Dome against FBS competition under Doug Marrone.

Alabama/Michigan- Setting the Hierarchy: There is no need to look at Alabama’s 41-14 destruction of Michigan at Cowboys Stadium as a referendum on SEC football versus Big Ten football. That argument was settled a long time ago. It’s more a referendum on the two teams and their place in the game’s pecking order.

For the Crimson Tide their place- at or near the top- looks very much secure. Even while breaking in seven new starters the defense overwhelmed Denard Robinson, intercepting him twice and holding him to 27 rushing yards. Alabama’s powerful offensive line, perhaps the nation’s best, led the way to 232 rushing yards and no sacks for quarterback A.J. McCarron. The Tide is so strong and so athletic on both sides of the ball, particularly up front, that it will take a special sort of opponent to take them down.

That opponent isn’t Michigan, which still has a ways to go before it can play with the truly big boys. That 11-2 record in 2011 may have been a bit deceptive; the Wolverines were probably more of an 8-5 or 9-4 team in disguise. With guys like Jordan Kovacs still holding down starting spots, the sheer talent needed to compete with the likes of Alabama just isn’t there. The Big Ten being down, the opportunity for a division and conference title is still very much there. But Brady Hoke’s reclamation project isn’t done yet by any means.  

Ring that Dinner Bell: Michigan State’s defense held Boise without an offensive touchdown for the first time since 1997, but its offense spent most of the night earnestly trying to give the game to the Broncos. Quarterback Andrew Maxwell had an erratic first start to put it nicely, throwing three first-half interceptions including one Boise turned into its only touchdown. Wide receiver Tony Lippett let Maxwell’s first pick slide right through his hands and later fumbled at the Boise 18. At one point, MSU failed to score on five straight trips into Boise State territory. All those Spartan mistakes- ten penalties and four turnovers- were the reason why, despite being outgained 461-206, Chris Peterson’s team was in a position to pull the upset.

Fortunately, one man on Michigan State’s offensive squad had his act together. Touching the ball an even fifty times, Le’Veon Bell worked, sweated and toiled his way to 265 yards from scrimmage- 210 of those on the ground. He also scored both Spartan touchdowns, including the five-yard game-winner with 8:12 left in the fourth quarter.

With his offensive line not exactly blowing open gaping holes, Bell had to get a lot of those yards on his own and he did, picking his way through tacklers, finding tiny cracks in the defense and oftentimes making something out of nothing. Bell’s rendition of the Leonard Leap was a highlight, but the best example of his tenacity came early in the third quarter when, with his team facing 3^rd-and-16 from its own four, Bell got away from a hoard of Broncos, cut back against the grain and turned a potential loss into a 35-yard gain. On a night in which nothing else was working for the Spartans, Le’Veon Bell put in all the work needed to salvage what could have been a disastrous evening in East Lansing.  

The Rail-Splitter Would Be Proud: Congratulations are in order for Eureka (Ill.) quarterback Sam Durley, who threw for an NCAA-record 736 yards in his team’s 62-55 win over the Knox College Prairie Fire in the inaugural Abraham Lincoln Bowl (FYI: Knox College was the scene of one of the seven Lincoln-Douglas debates.) Durley completed 34-of-52 attempts (a sensational 14.1 yards per attempt) in breaking the record of 716 set by Run-n-Shoot master David Klingler back in 1990.

Shades of Roy Riegels: If you haven’t seen it yet on Youtube, here it is. Late in the first half of Kent’s 41-21 victory over Towson at Dix Stadium Thursday night, Golden Flash sophomore linebacker Andre Parker alertly scooped up a muffed punt and then, not so alertly, took off the wrong way up the near sideline. Parker made it 58 yards before, for some reason, he was shoved out of bounds by two Towson players. Apparently confusion breeds confusion. Hopefully Parker’s coaches won’t be too tough on him- although the execution was nowhere to be found, the effort and hustle was certainly there. Anyway, welcome to Kent State football, where you can look foolish even in the rare victory.  

Winners

Notre Dame: Got to be good when the Irish win in Ireland, right? Playing in Dublin, Brian Kelly’s team hammered Navy 50-10, rolling up 293 rushing yards while stifling the prized Middies triple option attack. With Purdue coming to South Bend next week, the Irish have a golden opportunity to start out 2-0 for the first time in Kelly’s three seasons as head coach.

Nebraska: Perhaps no Big Ten team looked better than the Cornhuskers, who piled up 632 yards in a 49-20 trouncing of Southern Miss. More surprising than the result was the day turned in by the normally run-first Taylor Martinez: 26-of-34 for 354 yards and five touchdowns. Nebraska won easily despite losing Rex Burkhead with an knee sprain after three carries (one of which was a 57-yard touchdown.)

New Mexico: Southern University isn’t exactly a power opponent- the Jags play in the SWAC, one of the weakest FCS conferences, and are 6-16 the last two seasons- but the Lobos have to feel good about their 66-21 victory in Bob Davie’s first game as head coach. Too often in recent years they’ve been on the other end of that kind of score.

Duke: After losing to FCS opponent Richmond in two of the last three opening weeks, David Cutcliffe’s Blue Devils got off on the right foot in 2012, blasting Florida Atlantic 46-26. Wide receiver Conner Vernon had ten catches for 180 yards and a touchdown in the victory. Not all was well at Wallace-Wade, however, as Duke yielded 513 total yards to the Golden Eagles. Cutcliffe simply has to hope that his offense outscores his defense enough to garner the program’s first bowl bid since 1994.

Ohio vs. Pennsylvania: Two of the Keystone State’s three FBS programs lost their openers to unheralded opponents from the Buckeye State. Ohio University’s 24-14 conquest of Penn State wasn’t much of a surprise; the bigger upset came in Pittsburgh, where Youngstown State led nearly the entire way in a decisive 31-17 victory over the Pitt Panthers.

Losers

Penn State: Saturday’s 24-14 loss to Ohio was a grim preview of what Nittany Lions fans will see from their team for the next few years. The defending MAC Champions flat-out whipped their hosts, running up 499 total yards, converting 13-of-21 on third down and running off three unanswered touchdowns in the second half. When you’re physically outmatched by a MAC school, you don’t have much hope. And it’s likely going to get worse from here, as the season goes on and Penn State’s lack of depth comes to the fore.

California: The Bears are supposed to be a dark-horse candidate to win the Pac-12’s North Division, but they certainly didn’t look championship-caliber in their 31-24 opening-day loss to Nevada in Berkeley. Cal’s defense yielded 450 yards- including 220 on the ground- and couldn’t stop the Wolf Pack from converting 11-of-20 on third down, including two third downs on their game-winning drive late in the fourth quarter. It’s only going to get tougher from here for the Bears- after a tune-up against Southern Utah they go on the road to Ohio State and USC in back-to-back weeks. It’ll take a minor miracle to avoid a 1-3 start with that slate.

Washington State: Mike Leach’s first game back on the sidelines did not go well. His Cougars managed just two field goals and 224 yards of total offense and were never in it in a 30-6 loss to Brigham Young in Provo.

Houston: The first game in the post-Case Keenum era couldn’t have gone any worse for the Cougars. Playing a Texas State team that went 6-6 as a member of the Southland Conference last season, Houston was roughed up on both sides of the ball in a 30-13 thrashing. Offensive coordinator Mike Nesbitt resigned following his very first game after coming over from Stephen F. Austin.

Idaho: The Vandals were dismal in their home opener, going 2-of-15 on third downs and generating just 237 total yards in a 20-3 pasting at the hands of FCS power Eastern Washington. Idaho head coach Robb Akey is now 19-43 overall and 8-18 since leading Idaho to a bowl win in 2009.

Next: Saturday at noon, when Central Florida visits the Horseshoe for the first time ever. Don’t sleep on the Knights- they’re a talented group that would be the odds-on favorite to win Conference USA were it not for the fact that they’re on probation. This game should be much more competitive than the opening romp over Miami.