Bleacher Report's Expert College Football Predictions for Week 2
The best opening weekend in college football history is in the books, and many questions have been answered.
Alabama is clearly back (or, never really went anywhere). Ohio State and Michigan look like juggernauts. Texas looks like a contender. Florida State quarterback Deondre Francois set the world on fire against Ole Miss on Labor Day night.
What will the sport do for an encore in Week 2 of the 2016 season?
Bleacher Report experts Adam Kramer, Barrett Sallee, Chris Walsh, Ben Axelrod, Greg Couch and Michael Felder break down what to expect in this week's edition of expert predictions.
Who Is on Upset Alert in Week 2?
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Adam Kramer
North Carolina. This Lovie Smith era at Illinois is nowhere close to fully functional. This kind of rebuild will take years. But Illinois offensively should be able to push a North Carolina defense that was pushed around some by Georgia in the season opener.
Barrett Sallee
Even though South Carolina won its opener over Vanderbilt and Mississippi State was stunned at home by South Alabama, the Gamecocks are 6.5-point underdogs to the homestanding Bulldogs on Saturday. After what we saw—or didn't see—from Mississippi State's offense and defense against the Jaguars, are you really comfortable laying a touchdown to any FBS team? I'm not. South Carolina will take another step offensively with quarterbacks Perry Orth and Brandon McIlwain and have the ball late with a chance to win.
Chris Walsh
I really want to say Houston coming off its huge win against Oklahoma, but Lamar got pushed around by Coastal Carolina last week and shouldn't put up much of a challenge. So keep an eye on Tennessee, which wasn't impressive in its opener and will have a lot of pressure on it this week at Bristol Motor Speedway against Virginia Tech.
Ben Axelrod
Iowa. Nobody loves "New Kirk Ferentz" more than I do, but this feels like a classic opportunity for first-year Iowa State head coach Matt Campbell to introduce himself to whatever part of the college football world isn't aware of what he did during his time at Toledo. For as impressive as the Hawkeyes have been, they've lost three of their last five matchups to their in-state rival, and I wouldn't be surprised to see the Cyclones once again make the most of their trip to Iowa City on Saturday.
Greg Couch
Thanks to ESPN, which wanted good matchups to start off the season for the sport it owns, and the College Football Playoff, Week 1 of the season was a huge party. Now, Week 2 will be the hangover. It's rough trying to pick an upset in a slate of games involving one team we've heard of and one we haven't. I'll take Utah State over USC as something to watch out for.
Michael Felder
Tennessee? Although does it really count as an upset when it looked as inept offensively as it did Thursday night? I mean, I guess technically it does since the Vols are ranked and didn't lose like a gaggle of other Top 10 teams. Isaiah Ford leads a pretty filthy Hokies' pass-catching group that's going to be a problem for the Vols.
Will Any Player Make a Heisman Statement?
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Kramer
Can I first point out that Heisman statements aren’t made in Week 2? With that said, continue to watch what Louisville quarterback Lamar Jackson does weekly. After being responsible for eight touchdowns in Week 1, the Cardinals get Syracuse in Week 2. He won’t win it here, but he will be awfully productive.
Sallee
It's really hard to find anybody who's in position to make a Heisman statement based on this lackluster slate of games. But since the Virginia Tech-Tennessee game is at night on national network television with the spectacle aspect of playing at Bristol Motor Speedway in the mix, I'll go with Tennessee running back Jalen Hurd. He had 110 yards and a touchdown last week, and he will be leaned on heavily since quarterback Joshua Dobbs had accuracy issues in Week 1.
Walsh
Normally a player needs to be playing a name opponent to make a Heisman statement, but look for one from Oklahoma quarterback Baker Mayfield. After losing to Houston, Oklahoma will take it out on Louisiana-Monroe. The last time the teams played, the Sooners won 34-0 in 2013.
Axelrod
Last week, I picked Ohio State quarterback J.T. Barrett to win this season's Heisman Trophy, and he hasn't made me look stupid yet. It may have been just one game against Bowling Green, but the Buckeyes quarterback looks like the early-season front-runner, and I expect that trend to continue against a Tulsa pass defense that gave up 234 yards to San Jose State last weekend.
Couch
Louisville QB Jackson had eight touchdowns in Week 1, but that was against Charlotte. Now, Louisville heads to Syracuse, which won't be able to stop him, either. Jackson will become a fringe candidate, but Louisville's schedule, including Florida State, Clemson and Houston, will be plenty to get Jackson a mainstream real try.
Felder
No. No one is going to make a Heisman statement. What would the statement even be? "Look how many yards I put up against a team you'll never even think about again!" It doesn't work that way. Barring injury or a bad performance, we'll see the status quo remain.
Will Tennessee Prove That It's a National Contender vs. Virginia Tech?
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Kramer
Tennessee will prove it’s a quality football team with plenty of nice pieces. Whether this qualifies as a national contender or not is probably a different story entirely, but now is not the time to panic with the Vols. I have questions about Dobbs on deep passes. I have questions about Butch Jones in certain situations as well. But I like Tennessee, perhaps not to the degree of some. At least this week, I think the Vols rally and look the part.
Sallee
After being picked no higher than fourth in the lackluster SEC East once since 2010 prior to this offseason, Tennessee isn't used to this kind of hype. It showed in Week 1, when a sense of entitlement seemed to be prevalent—especially in the trenches—against Appalachian State. Coach Jones will use that as motivation, take advantage of a couple of extra days of preparation and make a statement against a good Virginia Tech team.
Walsh
No. Even if it wins, the seeds of doubt have already been planted following the narrow 20-13 victory against Appalachian State. Justin Fuente is in his first year at Virginia Tech, which is probably a middle-of-the-pack team in the ACC Coastal division, but look for the Hokies to play like they have nothing to lose in this one.
Axelrod
No, because the Volunteers aren't a national title contender. I mean, it took overtime to beat Appalachian State, and even the game-winning touchdown was fumbled into the end zone. Virginia Tech looked sluggish early against Liberty, but ultimately, it seemed to figure some things out by the end of its debut under Fuente. I wouldn't rule out a Hokies win on Saturday.
Couch
Tennessee is not a national contender, so no, it won't prove it is. But look for this to be an annual Week 2 question. Somehow, there always seems to be this expectation that the Vols will be better than they are. The media are persuaded somehow. That happens with UCLA, too.
Felder
Nope. Quite the opposite. After watching both of these teams play, I think the Hokies actually win and announce themselves as a player in an interesting ACC Coastal race. The defense is disciplined and talented. The offense has some dogs on it, catching the football. The Hokies don't play Clemson or Florida State, and this team is going to climb.
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Who Needs a Win More, TCU or Arkansas?
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Kramer
This is a lovely question, although I’ll go Arkansas. As much as I enjoy Bret Bielema on a personal and professional level, a game like this would go a long way. Neither team looked particularly functional this past week. Each was pushed by an inferior opponent. But I still believe Arkansas needs a breakthrough. Yes, there have been some quality wins over the past two years. Even still, Arkansas has spent much of the time on the defensive rather than seizing the moment. This is a chance to do that at a time when no one is quite sure how to look at both teams coming in.
Sallee
TCU, without a doubt. Arkansas is in a rebuilding season, and that was apparent on opening day when it got a test from Louisiana Tech. It just doesn't have the players to contend for a conference title. TCU does, and it desperately needs to generate some momentum heading into the Big 12 season that includes not only the usual suspects as contenders, but Texas as well after the Longhorns stunned Notre Dame.
Walsh
TCU. After giving up 461 offensive yards to South Dakota State last week, there's real concern with the Horned Frogs, Plus, facing the Jackrabbits did nothing to prepare them for the Razorbacks' physical style of play. Most experts predicted TCU would challenge for the Big 12 title, but it can forget it with a home loss here.
Axelrod
TCU, just because I think it would mean more to what the Horned Frogs' season could become. Not to disrespect Bielema (ever), but I just don't see the Razorbacks having a very high ceiling this year. At least at this point, the Big 12 (and a potential playoff spot) appears to be there for the taking if a team is able to finish with a perfect record. When it comes to Arkansas, the same potential can't be said. We already know who's winning the SEC.
Couch
TCU gave up 41 points in beating a team known as the mighty, um, Jackrabbits (South Dakota State). Arkansas beat Louisiana Tech by one. This could be the best game of the week, though. Arkansas definitely needs it more. Coach Bielema had a strong finish last year, but he is nowhere near as safe as TCU coach Gary Patterson. Arkansas needs this more.
Felder
TCU is not only the easy answer, it is the right one. Arkansas isn't supposed to be that good this year. We all know that going in. TCU was picked by many to win the Big 12. The Horned Frogs are not supposed to stink. Plenty will talk about quarterback Kenny Hill not being Trill and overrated, but the fact is the Horned Frogs defense donated points and yards to the Jacks offense like it was its own charitable organization.
Which Coach's Seat Will Get Even Hotter After Week 2?
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Kramer
It doesn’t get any easier for Mark Stoops. After a soul-crushing loss to Southern Miss in Week 1, Kentucky draws Florida in Week 2. This is not particularly good news for anyone but Florida. While anything is possible in this game—and Florida was by no means a juggernaut in its opener—a loss, while not a shock, would not help matters. Also, real quick, can we talk about what a bad football week it was for the Stoops family? Not fun.
Sallee
It's Kentucky head coach Stoops. His Wildcats have faded down the stretch in each of the last two seasons, and that trend carried over to actual games last week when they threw away a 25-point, second-quarter lead in a loss to Southern Miss. What's more, Kentucky's front seven looked like the punchline to a very bad joke. That's not a good look for the defensive-minded Stoops. Another embarrassment at the hands of Florida, and the hat that gets passed to raise funds to cover his buyout will be flushed with cash in Lexington.
Walsh
Les Miles. Don't be surprised if he gets booed by the home fans after a long day of game prep (i.e. tailgating). Jacksonville State won't win in Tiger Stadium, but don't be surprised if the game isn't a blowout.
Axelrod
If James Franklin loses to Pitt, watch out. Even as Penn State enters its Keystone State showdown as an underdog, another loss to an in-state school won't sit well in Happy Valley a year after the Nittany Lions opened their season with a loss to Temple. I'm not sure Franklin is on the hot seat quite yet, but this is the type of game that could land him there.
Couch
If Utah State actually does beat USC, then USC coach Clay Helton's seat won't be hot. It'll be empty. The team was so unprepared to even take the field last week against Alabama that it was a shock to Trojans fans. Anyone can lose to Alabama, but you'd think you'd be ready to play hard. Just a hunch, but if Helton loses this one, he'll be canned before he even gets home.
Felder
I'm say Larry Fedora. His seat isn't exactly hot, but there are plenty of North Carolina folks smoldering after the string of poor rush defense performances and back-to-back years losing games to SEC teams they probably should have beaten. Oh, and not giving running back Elijah Hood the ball enough—just 23 rushes combined versus the Gamecocks and Bulldogs. His seat may not ignite, but with a shootout win or a loss to Illinois, it sure will make a whole heck of a lot of folks not mind his name being circulated for jobs in Texas.
Quotes obtained firsthand unless otherwise noted. Statistics courtesy of CFBStats.com unless otherwise noted. All recruiting information is courtesy of 247Sports. Odds provided by Odds Shark.
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