College Football Week Two Breakdown: Four Intriguing Match-ups

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Every team around the country now has a game under their belt. There were some good games last week, this week will be no different.

The biggest game last week was the match-up between Alabama and Florida State. Florida State fought hard, and their defense played well, but Alabama’s defense was too strong. The Crimson Tide won 24-7, and much to the surprise of literally nobody look like one of the top teams in college football once again this season.

This week the there will be another battle between top five teams, as well as three other games where ranked teams will face off.

These are the four best games on Saturday:

#15 Georgia at #24 Notre Dame, 7:30 pm on NBC

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Both of these teams handled their games against lesser opponents to start their seasons last week. These are also both teams that have underachieved by their standards last season. There is NFL talent on both teams.

Georgia’s offense features two NFL quality running backs. Nick Chubb (pictured above) is the top guy, but Sony Michel gets work too.

Chubb, a senior this season, is one of the most talented backs in college football when healthy. Unfortunately he suffered a knee injury six games into his sophomore year which cost him the rest of that year, and although he played last year he didn’t look quite as explosive as he was before injury. He says he feels healthy this year so he could be in for a huge season.

Michel, also a senior, would be the starting running back for most teams in college football. He is a talented runner who has performed well when given the opportunity.

The Bulldogs also have one of the best defensive tackles in the country in junior Trenton Thompson who will get a chance to play against a talented offensive line that features one of the best tackles in the country, Mike McGlinchey, and one of top guards, Quenton Nelson.

One more golden domer to watch for, and one of the best names in college football, is wide receiver Equanimeous St. Brown. He’s a 6’4” 205 lbs. junior who makes a lot of big plays down the field.

#14 Stanford at #6 USC, 8:30 pm on Fox

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Stanford dominated Rice last week 62-7. USC beat Western Michigan 49-31 but didn’t pull away until the fourth quarter. While Western Michigan isn’t an awful team, they aren’t the type of team that USC should struggle with. They will need to step up to win this one.

Stanford was featured in the first edition of this series. Obviously all of those players are still worth keeping an eye on.

Another potential prospect emerged in the game against Rice as well. Running back Bryce Love took 13 carries for 180 yards and a touchdown. The junior will need to show he can do it against better competition but anytime someone averages 13.8 yards per carry in their debut as a starter it’s impressive.

USC is one of the most talented teams in college football. Everyone knows about quarterback Sam Darnold (pictured above) by now. Darnold didn’t have a great week one. He completed 22 of 33 passes for 289 yards and rushed for a touchdown but he also tossed two interceptions and fumbled. He will need to clean up the turnovers against Stanford.

USC running back Ronald Jones II had a great game against Western, rushing for 159 and three touchdowns on 18 carries. Jones is one of the best backs in college football and could wind up being a high round draft pick next draft.

#13 Auburn at #3 Clemson, 7 pm on ESPN

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These are another two teams who beat up on lesser opponents in week one. Auburn beat Georgia Southern 41-7 while Clemson defeated Kent State 56-3. This week will be more of a challenge for both teams.

Auburn quarterback Jarrett Stidham (pictured above) has generated draft buzz this season. He originally played for Baylor but spent last year at Waco Community college before ending up at Auburn. Stidham has a big arm and will look to build up his draft stock this season.

In addition to Stidham, Auburn has a few defenders who look like future pros. Cornerback Carlton Davis, and defensive linemen Byron Cowart and Dontavius Russell are all players to watch.

Clemson won the national title last season and are loaded with talent again this year. The two best prospects they have for the 2018 draft are probably defensive tackle Christian Wilkins and defensive end Clelin Ferrell.

On offensive for Clemson, wide receiver Deon Cain is one of the most explosive players in college football. He scored a 61-yard touchdown week one and will look to keep it going.

#5 Oklahoma at #2 Ohio State, 7:30 pm on ABC

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Last season Ohio State beat Oklahoma pretty easily, winning 45-24. But this is a new year. Both teams lost a lot of key guys, but both Ohio State and Oklahoma are still two of the most talented teams in college football.

For Oklahoma the main guys to watch are outside linebacker Ogbonnia Okoronkwo, tight end Mark Andrews and of course quarterback Baker Mayfield.

All three players performed well week one. Okoronkwo notched his first sack of the year. Andrews caught seven passes for 134 yards and a touchdown. Mayfield played nearly a perfect game, completing 19 of 20 passes for 329 yards and three scores.

As for the Buckeyes, they have probably the most talented defensive line in college football. Defensive ends Tyquan Lewis and Sam Hubbard, as well as defensive tackle Dre’Mont Jones, are going to be drafted in 2018. They also have Nick Bosa, Joey’s little brother, who is another future NFL defensive end.

Ohio State also has another cornerback who looks like he could end up being a first rounder in Denzel Ward (pictured above).

Another interesting thing to watch for in this game is how the Buckeyes use running back Mike Weber. Weber had a solid year last season as a redshirt freshman and generated some draft buzz this offseason. He missed week one with a hamstring injury but will be in action against Oklahoma. The problem is that freshman J.K. Dobbins rushed for 181 yards on 29 carries while filling in for Weber and was named the starter for week two. Maybe Urban Meyer is trying to play some sort of trick on Oklahoma but there’s also a chance that Weber doesn’t get as many carries as many expected this season.

I really hope you enjoyed the article! Follow me on twitter @CHayes95 and join the discussion on the Lions’ subreddit!

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About the Author

Cory Hayes
I attend Central Michigan University, I am majoring in Journalism and minoring in Sport Management. I am a junior. I am from Marysville, MI. I love following sports, both professional and collegiate. I follow the Lions, Pistons, and Tigers very closely, and the college team that I choose to cheer for is Ohio State.