Musings, not Promises - Week 1 Weeknight Primer
We are repainting the hash marks before the second drive.
A note from the author before we dive into the action:
Week 0 taught us that prognosticating is stupid, predictions are dumb, and we really misread the Iowa State Cyclones. We will be careful not to stray into the lanes of the obnoxious talking heads calling for their MORTAL LOCKS and PLAYS OF THE YEAR. After all, these are college football musings, not college football promises. We will adjust accordingly and be better moving forward. We apologize to Matt Campbell and his pearly whites; we doubted all 33 of you.
In other news, let’s muse on the rest of the action we saw in Week 0.
We are a bit concerned with the UNLV defense, but we will chalk it up to working out the first-game kinks and ignore that they gave up over 500 yards of offense to a middling Big Sky program. Our eyes will be on their trip to Sam Houston this Friday night. If that defense is still suspect, it could be a rocky year for Dan Mullen.
Kansas handled their business against Fresno with no issues. Jalon Daniels was able to pick apart the Bulldogs through short passes and had just three incompletions the whole afternoon. Fresno is not as strong as they typically are, but could we look back on this game as being the first sign that the 2025 Jayhawks were real contenders in the Big 12?
WKU threw the ball over 50 times for 400 yards as they soared past Sam Houston; 2025 will be business as usual for the Hilltoppers. It’s amazing how the WKU offense never seems to skip a beat no matter what personnel are on the field. On Sam Houston’s side, their loss of defensive talent was incredibly apparent. Phil Longo can do all he wants with the offense but a defense like that will not keep them in many ball games.
Stanford and Hawai’i went as expected with the Rainbow Warriors winning on a walk-off field goal after a hideous 60 minutes of football. It was a bit jarring to see just how outmatched Stanford was in the trenches on Saturday night. Except for one long Stanford TD drive in the 4th quarter, Hawai’i absolutely controlled this game after a strip-sack touchdown in the endzone gave Stanford a 10-0 lead. It could be a long season in the ACC for the Cardinal; they are officially on 0-12 Watch as this was their easiest game of the year.
Win Your Opener.
Let us take a few moments before we dive into the weeknight slate to thank the folks at Harp & Crown in Philadelphia for an absolutely phenomenal meal this past weekend. Wow. For the cost to get in the door at Sanford Stadium this Saturday, we were treated to a tasting menu that came ready to play - unlike Matt Wells and the K-State offense. If you find yourself in Philly, make this a destination.
Our Week 0 Players of the Week: Caesar Salad, Hamachi Rice Cracker, Roasted Eggplant with Flatbread, Creme Fraiche Pierogis, Fig & Ricotta Toast, Steak Frites, a 12” Spicy Soppressata Pizza, Creamy Gnocchi with Shrimp, Maverick McIvor, and a Chocolate Mousse cup for dessert.
We won Week 0 and we will reap the rewards in Week 1.
WEEK 1 MUSINGS
In case you missed it, we discussed our ground rules for College Football Saturdays on Tuesday afternoon.
College Football Saturday Ground Rules
We at For Vigor have experimented with many different TV configurations over the years.
Now, let’s dig in.
Thursday Night
Main Screen
Boise State (-6.5) at USF - 5:30PM - ESPN
We are not even through happy hour and we’ve already got a top notch G5 matchup to enjoy.
The weather will be 90 degrees in Tampa, USF will be wearing their all-black unis, and Boise will be struggling to breathe. I absolutely love getting to see a matchup like this standing on its own instead of buried beneath a full Saturday slate of games.
USF’s Byrum Brown returns from a season-ending injury in 2024 and will be one of the most exciting quarterbacks in the G5 this year. The only other player to throw for 3,000 and rush for 800 in 2023? Jayden Daniels. Don’t sleep on the Bulls at home.
For Boise, this may not be a must-win game but it sure is close. Notre Dame awaits in early October and two losses before Week 6 will be very tough to climb back from if they hope to return to the playoff.
Nebraska (-6.5) at Cincinnati - 9:00 PM - ESPN
The winner of this one will leave feeling like 2025 could be a big year. The loser will have to grapple with how much Scott Satterfield’s buyout will cost.
I’m most interested to see what a full offseason of Dana Holgorsen directing the offense has done for Dylan Raiola. This game and a September visit from Michigan should be the only games in the way of an 8-0 start. Check out this quick read from Brandon Vogel on Holgorsen.
Cincinnati, losers of 5 straight to end 2024, desperately need DL Dontay Corleone to become a game wrecker in the middle of the defense. Him and QB Brendan Sorsby are the two most important pieces in Scott Saterfield’s quest to stay gainfully employed.
Quad Box Slop
Ohio at Rutgers (-14.5) - 6:00 PM - BTN
I’m not saying that Parker Navarro is the best player in this game and Ohio is fully capable of pulling the upset against the worst iteration of the Scarlet Knights in several years, but I’m not saying anything else about this one…
ECU at NC State (-12) - 7:00 PM - ACC Network
If the refs can escape with no bodily injuries, we have made progress since bowl season.
Buffalo at Minnesota (-18) - 8:00 PM - FS1
Minnesota on a Week 1 Thursday night is a wonderful annual tradition. Avoiding whatever game Tim Brando and Devin Gardner are calling is a wonderful weekly tradition. Thank God for free will.
Miami (OH) at Wisconsin (-17.5) - 9:00 PM - BTN
Ah, we love to see a second game on BTN scheduled 3 hours after the first one kicks off. Surely this will not create any annoyances to Badger and Redhawk fans. Anyways, this one is probably the least likely upset of the 3 MAC-B1G paycheck games on Thursday, but who knows. Dequan Finn returns to the MAC after a failed jump up to Baylor last season, and he’s capable of frustrating the Badgers if he brings his A Game.
Friday Night
Main Screen
Auburn (-2.5) at Baylor - O/U 57.5 - 8:00PM - FOX
Jason Benetti, the best of humanity, steps away from my 1st place Detroit Tigers to bring us a banger in Waco.
Auburn may have the best WR group (Cam Coleman, Eric Singleton, Perry Thompson) in the country that is not located in Columbus, OH. Will Baylor be able to stop their passing attack? That would be made easier if QB Jackson Arnold doesn’t improve after a rough debut in Norman last season. If he takes a leap, expect Auburn to make some noise this season.
Baylor ended 2024 on a heater (ignore the bowl loss to LSU) and looks to extend a six-game regular season win streak with Sawyer Robertson quickly becoming one of the best QBs in the Big 12. Dave Aranda saved his job with last year’s finishing stretch and this game will be great measuring stick for where his program stands.
Both programs feel confident heading into 2025 and I won’t write off whoever loses this one unless it’s Auburn. I hope it’s Auburn.
Second Screen
Georgia Tech (-4) at Colorado - 8:00 PM - ESPN
I can’t imagine a team more motivated to kick Colorado’s ass than Brent Key’s Georgia Tech squad. This will be one of the biggest culture and style clashes of the season.
I have a hard time thinking that Colorado can sustain their success without the best player in college football and a slightly more than competent quarterback (let’s retire his jersey though!). Will they run the ball more than 8 times a game this year? Will blue-chip freshman Julian Lewis get any work at QB?
The Colorado defensive line may be surprisingly competent after bringing in a good transfer haul, but it will be a tough task to overpower the GT front. Check out what happens on the line of scrimmage early in this one and you’ll have a good idea of how it will play out.
Quad Box Slop in case the first 2 games get ugly
App State (-6.5) at Charlotte - 7:00 PM - ESPNU
A bit surprising to see this one designated as the Duke’s Mayo Classic. A very mayonnaise-like game, as this one is completely disgusting on its own. I recently discovered via the Twitter algorithms that these fanbases despise each other. They can duke it out in Charlotte (pun), and we can grab dinner with our loved ones before the good action starts at 8:00.
Western Michigan at Michigan State (-19.5) - 6:00 PM - BTN
It’s a game.
UNLV (-10.5) at Sam Houston - 10:30PM - CBSSN
Two losers in Week 0, one via the scoreboard and one via the vibes. WKU showed the extreme flaws in the Bearkat pass defense, and UNLV should exploit them via the run game. Lots of points should be scored in this one.
Central Michigan at San Jose State (-12.5) - 10:30PM - FS1
I would recommend getting a good night of sleep before a marathon of a Saturday, but this game may showcase both your 2025 Mountain West champion and directional Michigan. Check it out!
(Don’t)
We will be back on Thursday afternoon with a primer for Saturday’s games. Until then, For Vigor!
Go bulls 🤘🏼🤘🏼 #USF