Thoughts on College Football's Week 1

Going to try to break the blog up into two pieces this year. Here are some thoughts from a packed Labor Day weekend of football and we will look at next weekend later in the week.

1. Best of the Week

Best Game: LSU vs Florida State (Orlando)

I know the final score was lopsided, but this game had some haymakers throughout that showed how talented both of these programs were. It was sloppy in stretches, for example when Jordan Travis threw a pick on a screen right after LSU muffed a punt. I am curious to see how both teams come back next week after such a physical game, go watch the highlights to see all the huge hits being delivered.

Best Player: Travis Hunter (ATH - Colorado)

Deion has given us so much in one game as the Colorado coach. But probably the best part of his tenure is his willingness to use his best player's abilities to their fullest potential. Travis Hunter was everywhere, with 11 catches and a game-sealing interception. Deion defined a generation with his swagger and his unwillingness to fit into anyone's preconceived notion of what an athlete should be. He sold that vision to Hunter, who played for Deion at Jackson State and transferred to Boulder, and we are all better for it.

Best Uniform: Houston Cougars

Houston will wear these extremely Houston-centric unis this weekend against UTSA, with endzones painted the same color blue. They seem to Luv this Blue, it appears. pic.twitter.com/b7EOxroxxe

— Dave Wilson (@dwil) August 31, 2023

I appreciate an alternate uniform that isn't just someone looking at their uniform and becoming Christian Bale in Batman:

An awesome nod to the old Houston Oilers and a great way to show how creative teams can be. Well done.

2. The Push-Assisted QB Sneak Is Here to Stay

Everyone who watched the Super Bowl last year saw how effective Jalen Hurts was doing the quarterback sneak while being pushed from behind by a player. Well, it's not just going to be Philly doing it this year. It was all over the place this weekend, teams even did it when they had a full two yards to gain. We all remember the infamous "Bush Push" in South Bend in 2005, but now that it is legal, expect a lot of it.

Speaking of this tactic, maybe take a look at Anthony Richardson for your fantasy league or on his rushing touchdown total. Last week Daniel Jeremiah said on Ryen Russillo's podcast that he is weighing in at 255 lbs and he has Hurts' former offensive coordinator as head coach and play caller. Could be an easy goal-to-go move for the Colts this year.

3. Unbalanced Formations Are Everywhere

Everywhere I looked, I saw tight end covered quads, covered wide receivers blocking wide, and other shenanigans happening to force the defense to show their hand. Yes, those players can't catch a pass, but they can block. Why not put them in the position you need post-snap and see if the defense moves a defender over? It creates easy reads where you are doing pre-snap RPO's. I feel like this started getting big with Gus Malzahn at Auburn and it makes defenses uncomfortable. Having to count who is on the line of scrimmage is difficult as you are trying to beat the snap.

4. Don't Get Chippy When You're Losing

A pet peeve. I get that football is a physical game and some dudes have to flirt with the line of being dirty to set the tone. It makes sense for underdogs to want to muddy things up, and I overall respect the tactic. But if you are going to be chippy, don't wait until you are down 20. Watching East Carolina take cheap shots and talk while down 20+ points on Saturday was so lame. Coastal Carolina was chippy against UCLA to start the game, and tried to get in the Bruins' heads. It didn't work, but I respect that a lot more than cheap shots while down late.

5. Play of the Week

We are going to try to break down a defensive play this weekend, a first for the blog. I thought Florida State did a good job making LSU's offense work for things. Sure, they gave up some big plays, but who doesn't with how rules are in modern college football? Jayden Daniels presents a lot of problems as a dual-threat quarterback, and I thought FSU's goal line stand in the first quarter showed the perfect mixture of scheme and athleticism necessary to stop such a talented player.

• Florida State puts two defensive backs over each stacked set of receivers (yellow circles). One has outside leverage of the receivers and the other is inside. This allows them to work through the pick plays that usually come out of these formations.
• Florida State used a spy player on Daniels a lot on Sunday, tracking his every move in the pocket. Is it the middle linebacker (dot 1) or one of the two stand up edge players (dots 2 and 3)?

• Florida State's defensive backs do a great job trading things off, this is difficult and fast work.
• FSU's middle linebacker is coming on an A gap blitz while they actually use both edge players as spy's, showcasing what a threat Daniels is with his legs.

• We see LSU's running back cut block the linebacker, but he fights over the top.
• The two spy players drop back a bit and actually are partially in coverage now while making sure Daniels doesn't escape the blitz to the outside.

• The linebacker gets home on the blitz. What a gutsy play call, and a tone setter for the rest of the game.

Let me know what you think about breaking up the blog into two chunks! Looking forward to making more picks, hopefully I bounce back.