The 2015 college football season is shaping up nicely as we head into Week 3.
A few teams have already asserted themselves as legitimate playoff contenders, while some teams with high expectations have been found to be unworthy of the preseason hype.
With some phenomenal contests on the schedule this weekend featuring the nation’s powerhouse programs, the landscape of the top 25 is sure to be altered.
With that in mind, it is time to examine the top storylines for Week 3.
1. Is Clemson (No. 9) for real?
It seems strange to ask this question of a top-10 team as we head into Week 3, but Clemson’s schedule has been about as easy as it gets to this point. Wofford and Appallachian State (both FCS schools) are not worthy tests for a top FBS school with playoff aspirations.
Up next for the Tigers is a scrappy Louisville team that gave Auburn all it could handle in Week 1 and then lost a nail-biter to Houston in Week 2. The Cardinals will be fighting for their lives at home on Thursday night on this nationally televised contest (begins at 7:30 p.m. ET on ESPN).
Sophomore quarterback Kyle Bolin could get the start over freshman Lamar Jackson, who was pulled from the starting lineup in Week 2 against Houston. Bolin played well in reserve, and head coach Bobby Petrino seems to be leaning in his direction for this upcoming prime-time contest.
“As we got into the fourth quarter I felt Kyle gave us the best chance to operate the offense that could get us back in the game,” Petrino said, via kyforward.com. “And he came in and did a nice job with it, just like he did against Kentucky (last season). He hit hands and he executed what we were asking him to do in that part of the game and I think he’s had a good week of practice, as have the other ones.”
Louisville’s defense has caused four interceptions in its first two games, meaning Clemson’s sophomore quarterback Deshaun Watson needs to bring his “A-game” to this upcoming contest. He’s been terrific to this point, leading the Tigers to score 90 points in two games. Any lapses in judgement against the Cardinals, however, could lead to a big upset on the national stage.
2. Another test for Northwestern (No. 23) against Duke
The Wildcats have been one of the bigger surprises of the early 2015 season after knocking off Stanford to open the season. True freshman quarterback Clayton Thorson and sophomore running back Justin Jackson comprise one of the nation’s most entertaining young backfields. They’ll likely need to continue piling up the yards and scores on the road against an underrated Duke squad this Saturday.
The Blue Devils have scored 92 points the first two weeks of the season and will present the first big test for Northwestern’s defense, which has yet to give up a single touchdown. This is a fact one player has only been too happy to remind folks this week.
Ifeadi Odenigbo, speaking after the Wildcats blanked Eastern Illinois in Week 2, offered this boast: “We expect to have a shutout next week,” via the Chicago Tribune.
Let’s just say Odinigbo’s comment didn’t exactly sit well with Duke’s Shaun Wilson. He used his Twitter account to voice his displeasure over the defensive lineman’s presumptuous statement. The sophomore running back sent these messages as a response, basically challenging Odinigbo to back it up on the field.
Unfortunately, this contest isn’t being broadcast nationally, though it is available on ESPN 3. The first whistle is set to blow on Saturday at 12:30 p.m. ET.
3. Will Vernon Adams Jr.’s broken finger keep him out of the lineup?
Oregon (No. 12) shouldn’t have much trouble dispatching Georgia State at home on Saturday, but at this point it’s not known if Adams will play or if head coach Mark Helfrich will keep him on the sideline.
Watching Adams against Michigan State in Week 2, it seemed apparent that he wasn’t as accurate as we saw in the team’s opener against Eastern Washington. Reports of a finger injury emerged on game day, but it wasn’t until this Tuesday that we learned the quarterback has a broken finger on his throwing hand.
Helfrich brushed off questions of Adams’ availability when asked.
“We don’t really talk about those kind of player availability kind of things other than the best guy for us is going to be out there playing. … Like everybody is less than 100 percent at some point in the season,” Oregon coach Mark Helfrich said Tuesday, via ESPN.
If Adams is held out of action, then Jeff Lockie will surely get the start after losing the quarterback competition to the graduate transfer a few weeks ago. This will be an interesting story to continue tracking as Oregon prepares for its Pac-12 schedule, which begins in Week 4 when the Ducks host Utah (No. 21).
4. Can DeShone Kizer lead Notre Dame (No. 8) over Georgia Tech (No. 14)?
Notre Dame’s offense has taken a few knockout blows already this year. First, starting running back Tarean Folston was lost for the season in Week 1. Then starting quarterback Malik Zaire was lost for the season in Week 2, and then on Tuesday word came out of South Bend that starting tight end Durham Smythe will not play again in 2015 after he underwent surgery to repair a torn MCL.
These devastating losses means the Irish will now rely heavily on Kizer, a sophomore quarterback who has never started at this level of competition before.
Talk about pressure.
Thankfully for Notre Dame, if Kizer’s heroics in Week 2 are any indication, he is immune to pressure. With the game on the line against Virginia last Saturday, Kizer threw a perfect strike to receiver Will Fuller with just nine seconds remaining in regulation to win the game with a 40-yard touchdown.
The Fighting Irish, and Kizer, have a big test on the schedule at home against Georgia Tech this Saturday. The Yellow Jackets feature the nation’s top-ranked rushing offense and No. 2-ranked scoring offense, and there is a chance Notre Dame could be in serious trouble trying to shut down the relentless flood of talented running backs Georgia Tech rotates on a regular basis.
Georgia Tech head coach Paul Johnson hopes his team is up for the challenge of taking down the Irish in South Bend. He also realizes this game could be somewhat of a trap for his program, given the positive media attention to this point.
”Certainly, it’s a huge step up in competition,” Johnson said, per the Associated Press. ”It’s really a tough place to play. They have a great home-field advantage, a lot of tradition, and some really good football players. … Sometimes, when everybody is telling you you’re all this and the cat’s meow, that’s a trap and you better not fall into it.”
This is the first really big game on the Week 3 schedule, and fans should be in for a treat. It can be viewed nationally on NBC starting at 3:30 p.m. ET.
5. Will Jeremy Johnson sink or swim at LSU (No. 13)?
The 2015 season hasn’t gone according to plan for junior quarterback Jeremy Johnson, who was considered a front-runner to contend for the Heisman Trophy in December. With three touchdowns and a whopping five interceptions, he’s been a liability for Auburn (No. 18) thus far.
And now the Tigers enter the belly of the beast on Saturday with a trip to Death Valley and a meeting with LSU.
After missing the season opener, thanks to a particularly active lighting storm, the LSU Tigers escaped with a hard-fought win over Mississippi State last weekend. Utilizing a punishing rushing attack, led by sophomore Leonard Fournette, LSU gained 266 yards, averaged 5.7 yards per attempt and scored three touchdowns on the ground.
Auburn has already allowed 399 rushing yards this season. Between the poor play of Johnson at quarterback and the team’s porous run defense, LSU might breeze to victory at home. This SEC rivalry game is nationally televised, beginning at 3:30 p.m. ET on CBS.
6. Can South Carolina hang with Georgia (No. 7)?
The Gamecocks have a 4-1 record against Georgia the last five times the two SEC programs met, but there isn’t much hope that recent trend of winning will continue this weekend.
Steve Spurrier finds himself with an unknown quantity at quarterback, as starter Connor Mitch is out with a bum shoulder and hip. In Mitch’s place is former walk-on Perry Orth, who will be making his first start. Spurrier talked up his signal-caller during a recent press conference.
“He throws a nice pass when he takes his steps and gets protection and throws it, he can throw a beautiful pass,” coach Steve Spurrier said, via the Associated Press. “He’s been here, what, three years now, earned a scholarship preseason, so if we can protect him and get some guys open he’s very capable.”
Likely, the best shot South Carolina has at winning the game is disrupting the other quarterback on the field this Saturday. Georgia’s Greyson Lambert hasn’t inspired to this point in his first season behind center, and he was downright abysmal against Vanderbilt last weekend. A few key turnovers could provide the Gamecocks with the means to pull off a huge upset.
Realistically, Georgia head coach Mark Richt won’t give him many opportunities to shine, or make mistakes. With Heisman hopeful Nick Chubb living up to expectations, we should expect to see a run-heavy offense featured by the Bulldogs this weekend.
This game is nationally televised on ESPN and is set to begin at 6 p.m. ET.
7. Jared Goff in the national spotlight against troubled Texas
Most of the nation is still blind to the brilliance of Cal quarterback Jared Goff.
The junior out of Novato, Ca. is being compared by some to Aaron Rodgers, who also went to Cal. To date, he’s looked pretty darn good, albeit against poor competition. Accuracy is his hallmark, and he carries a 73.2 percent completion rate into this weekend’s game against the Longhorns.
Speaking of Texas, this program is in trouble. Athletic Director Steve Patterson was just fired by the school after 22 months on the job, and many are speculating brand new head coach Charlie Strong may not have much wiggle room after being hired away from Louisville last January. However, there are others, like Chuck Carlton of the Dallas Morning News, who suggests this could potentially be positive for Strong.
On the football side of things, the Longhorns are highly susceptible to getting torched through the air, as Notre Dame proved in Week 1. Malik Zaire passed for 313 yards and three touchdowns during that contest, and it’s likely Goff will have a field day this Saturday when he and the Golden Bears hit the field.
Fans of both teams can watch this nationally televised game on Fox, beginning at 7:30 p.m. ET.
8. Can Stanford throw cold water on USC (No. 6)?
Rivalry games are extremely unpredictable, so while it seems unlikely Stanford would be able to knock off USC at the Memorial Coliseum, nobody should discount the possibility of a huge upset.
Stanford entered the season ranked No. 21, and expectations were high for the program. The Cardinal were stunned in Week 1 by Northwestern, though, and quarterback Kevin Hogan was horrendous on the road, passing for just 155 yards on 35 attempts. He was held without a touchdown and threw one interception.
Hogan did bounce back against UCF, throwing three touchdowns, but his inaccuracy remains a problem (57.8 percent on the season).
On the other side of the field this Saturday is Cody Kessler, who has opened up his 2015 campaign on an absolute tear. Kessler has completed 78.9 percent of his passes for 650 yards (11.4 yards per attempt) with seven touchdowns and zero interceptions.
Stanford’s defense must be practically perfect to shut down Kessler and his high-powered aerial assault.
The only chance the Cardinal appear to have of beating USC is if Christian McCaffrey and the running game can find a way to keep the chains moving, thus keeping Kessler off the field.
These two Pac-12 rivals will play during prime time, and the game can be viewed nationally on ABC starting at 8 p.m. ET.
9. Can Ole Miss (No. 15) continue offensive fireworks against Alabama (No. 2)?
No team has scored more points through two games than Ole Miss, which has averaged 74.5 points per contest. The Rebels have been getting it done through the air and on the ground, averaging 635 yards per game.
Junior quarterback Chad Kelly has been on fire in the passing game, completing 73.5 percent of his passes, averaging an astounding 13.93 yards per attempt and throwing six touchdowns compared to just one interception. The team has six players who have rushed for at least 76 yards, and six have rushed for a score—including defensive tackle extraordinaire Robert Nkemdiche, who has also hauled in a receiving touchdown.
The Rebels have been spitting fire at the scoreboard, but they haven’t faced anything like what’s coming next. A trip to Bryant-Denny Stadium this Saturday night will prove whether or not Ole Miss is the real deal or if the Rebels are just pretenders.
Alabama once again has the look of a national championship contender under legendary coach Nick Saban. Quarterback Jake Coker has been adequate, and the Crimson Tide have swept away their opponents with a flood of big gains on the ground with the duo of Derrick Henry and Kenyan Drake.
Defensively, ‘Bama has been stifling against the run and on the scoreboard, allowing just 63 yards on the ground and 13.5 points per game. If the Rebels have a chance to pull off the upset, then Kelly will likely need to put the offense on his back and pass his way to victory.
This SEC showdown will be nationally televised on ESPN, beginning at 9:15 p.m. ET.
10. Tanner Mangum vs. Josh Rosen
BYU (No. 19) heads to southern California for a Saturday night showdown against UCLA (No. 10), and anyone who stays up late enough to watch this contest will be in for a treat. Both teams enter Week 3 without losses on their record, and both feature young quarterbacks who can flat-out make big plays.
Freshman Tanner Mangum was pressed into duty in Week 1 when starting quarterback Taysom Hill was lost for the season with a foot injury. He promptly led BYU to a magical, last-second win over Nebraska on a Hail Mary, putting himself, and BYU, on the map. He wasn’t content with just one thrilling win, though, and pulled off another huge upset in Week 2 against Boise State, throwing two touchdowns in the fourth quarter, including the game-winner with just 00:45 left on the clock.
This kid has a bit of Tim Tebow to him, and another huge win will only further cement his status as a college football legend.
But Mangum isn’t the only phenomenal young signal-caller in this game.
UCLA has a freshman phenom is its own in Josh Rosen, who put on a thrilling show of accuracy and poise in his debut in Week 1, throwing three touchdowns and no interceptions at home against a tough Virginia defense. His second performance, on the road against UNLV, wasn’t quite as inspiring, but there is no doubt Rosen is an up-and-coming star.
Needless to say, this nightcap to the Week 3 schedule has the makings of a phenomenal offensive showdown. The game will be available to those who have Fox Sports 1, with opening kickoff scheduled to begin at 10:30 p.m. ET.