NCAA Football Week 2: Burning Questions Heading into College Football's 2nd Week

Fireworks exploded in Week 1 of the college football season. From Tajh Boyd’s dazzling performance leading Clemson over Georgia, to seven upsets by FCS teams, to Johnny Manziel’s antics on the field instead of off it—the action was as good as it gets for opening weekend.  

Still, there are several key questions heading into Week 2.

Should Alabama Fans Be Concerned About the Crimson Tide Offense?

After a shaky offensive performance against Virginia Tech, there is a faint glimmer of hope that the Crimson Tide’s reign of BCS championships could come to an end.

The good news for all the other teams is that the Crimson Tide seem vulnerable. The bad news is that there are only three games in the regular season that Alabama could possibly lose.

First up is Texas A&M in two weeks when Alabama travels to College Station seeking to avenge its only defeat last year.

Not that Nick Saban needs any extra motivation to win this game, but Manziel won his Heisman Trophy last year in part based on his gritty performance against the Crimson Tide. How many times has Saban reminded his players of this over the last nine months?  

Surprisingly, Alabama has an early-season bye this week, giving him more time to correct the O-line issues that occurred against Virginia Tech.

If the Crimson Tide beat the Aggies, the next reasonable opportunity to stop Alabama’s three-peat chances won’t be until the Nov. 9 game at LSU.

Right or wrong, recent history has shown that Alabama is the only team that can sustain a loss and still comfortably make it to the BCS title game.

There might be one loss in the schedule, considering the grind of the SEC, but finding two is difficult.

Unless they completely fall apart, chances are strong that the Crimson Tide will defend their title in January.

Should Bo Pelini Be on the Hot Seat?

If Bo Pelini thought his 2012 defense was abysmal, what can he be thinking after it allowed Wyoming to rack up 602 yards and 34 points in Lincoln Saturday night?

You have to wonder what Nebraska did during the offseason to fix last year’s weaknesses. Besides the defensive woes, penalties and turnovers plagued the team too.

Those trends continued against the Cowboys, as the Cornhuskers were penalized 10 times for 84 yards and had two turnovers in the fourth quarter, allowing Wyoming to stay in the game.

Chances are slim that Nebraska will compete for the Big Ten title if it has to rely on Taylor Martinez and the running game to score enough points to win shootouts. He is not good enough to overcome significant shortcomings in the other parts of the game.

In his first three seasons, Pelini lived up to his prowess, as Nebraska’s defense was consistently one of the best in nation. Pretty impressive considering the high-octane offenses Nebraska was facing in the Big 12.

Oddly enough, since joining the Big Ten, the defensive side of the ball has slowly deteriorated into mediocrity.

Bill Callahan lost his job because his defenses were atrocious. Pelini has clearly done much better, but holding him to the same standard seems fair when the team is clearly underperforming.

Is the Big 12 Really More Balanced Than the SEC?

On ESPN Mack Brown called the Big 12 "more balanced" than the SEC, while Bob Stoops told the Tulsa World that it is mere perception that the SEC is the best conference.

Considering that the defending champions, Kansas State, lost to North Dakota State; Iowa State lost to Northern Iowa; and West Virginia struggled at home to beat William and Mary, Brown and Stoops might want to revise their statements.

Kansas had a bye this week. Otherwise the list of FCS losses might have grown to three. We’ll see what happens on Saturday, when the Jayhawks host South Dakota.

The Big 12 can certainly hang its hat on Oklahoma State’s 21-3 win over Mississippi State and a decent performance by TCU in a 37-27 loss to LSU, but the bottom half of the conference looks shockingly weak.

Regardless, Brown and Stoops can harp all they want about SEC bias and favoritism, but at the end of the day, the only factor that matters is winning.

The best teams in the SEC typically do their talking on the field, not off of it. Until this changes, the SEC remains the best conference.

In Week 2 Georgia will try to avoid an 0-2 start when it hosts South Carolina, Notre Dame goes to Ann Arbor for a night game and Florida heads to Miami to refuel an old rivalry.

Let’s hope Week 1’s excitement was a preview of what’s to come this week and throughout the season.