#21 Missouri 30, Arizona State 37  - Overtime

Arizona State QB Brock Osweiler

Photo via azcentral.com

This game had big shoes to fill after last week’s Friday night thriller between TCU and Baylor but surprisingly it didn’t disappoint. Arizona State won thanks to an 11 yard touchdown pass from Brock Osweiler to wide receiver Jamal Miles in overtime. Osweiler – did you know he’s 6’8″? – threw for 353 yards, 3 TDs, rushed for 34 yards and 1 TD while Missouri QB James Franklin threw for 319 yards, 2 TDs and rushed for 84 yards and 1 TD in an offensive explosion. The Sun Devils have loads of talent but lack discipline which will cause them to lose at least a couple games this year.

#3 Alabama 27, #23 Penn State 11

This was pretty much repeat of last year’s game except that they played in Happy Valley instead of Tuscaloosa. I figured it would be a low scoring, defensive affair and that’s pretty much what we got. The Nittany Lions turned the ball over three times contributing the dismal performance on offense but no doubt Bama has one of the best defenses in the country. Basically this game just reaffirmed what we already knew — the SEC is consistently better than the Big Ten.

#25 TCU 35 , Air Force 19

This result was far from what I expected especially after the Horned Frogs’ performance against Baylor but that’s what I get for doubting Gary Patterson. The game wasn’t as close as the final score suggests — TCU had leads of 21-0 (2nd qtr) and 35-9 (end of 3rd qtr) before giving up ten 4th quarter points. TCU quarterback Casey Pachall seems like a sufficient replacement for Andy Dalton putting together another solid performance completing 20 of 25 passes for 206 yards, 2 touchdowns and 32 yards rushing. I think this was an important win for TCU and their confidence after getting torched by Baylor last week.

#12 South Carolina 45, Georgia 42

I can assure you 0-2 wasn’t the way Mark Richt wanted to start the season but at least the Dawgs showed up and were competitive after the opener against Boise State.  Aaron Murray threw for 248 yards, 4 touchdown, 1 interception and Isaiah Crowell rushed for 118 yards and 1 TD. Marcus Lattimore carried the load for the Gamecocks rushing 27 times for 176 yards and a touchdown but South Carolina got two, yes two, touchdowns from defensive end Melvin Ingram. One was a 68 yard run on a fake punt and the other was a fumble he picked up and carried in from the 5 yard line. Georgia isn’t out of the SEC race yet but they’ll need to be more consistent while South Carolina needs get their offense figured out.

BYU 16, #24 Texas 17

The Cougars dominated the first half taking a 13-3 lead into the intermission holding Longhorns’ starting quarterback Garrett Gilbert to 2 for 8, 8 yards, and 2 interceptions. Texas OC Bryan Harsin changed things up by rotating Case McCoy and David Ash at quarterback in the second half and it seemed to spark the team. The Longhorns got two second half touchdowns and wore BYU down with a power running game they didn’t have last year. The comeback win was a huge step for the new-look Longhorns and no doubt a disappointing loss for the Cougars.

Notre Dame 31, Michigan 35

I didn’t put this on The Triple-Dub because these teams are overhyped every season based of their storied traditions but this was one of the best games between bad teams I’ve seen in a long time. I didn’t really start watching until the end of the third quarter with Notre Dame leading 24-7 and things just got ridiculous from there with 35 points scored in the fourth quarter alone. Michigan scored what appeared to be the game winning touchdown with 1:12 remaining but the Irish answered with a touchdown of their own 42 seconds later taking a 31-28 lead. Game over, right? Not when Denard Robinson is your quarterback. Shoelace completed two passes – a 64 yarder to Jeremy Gallon and then a 16 yard touchdown pass to Roy Roundtree with 2 seconds remaining and Michigan wins. Robinson finished with 11 completions on 24 attempts for 338 yards, 4 TDs, 3 Ints, and 108 yards and 1 TD on 16 carries but it was against Notre Dame..

What are your thoughts on the action from the second week?