Oklahoma State Shocks the World, Buckeyes Blow 20-Point Lead, Michigan Gets a Legit Win
Dawgbone Jr's Weekend Observations: Born barkin', raised on Kirby's domination of rivals, and fueled by SEC and National championships - Dawgbone Jr recaps the weekend's biggest games all season long.
Oklahoma State Shocks the World, Buckeyes Blow 20-Point Lead, Michigan Gets a Legit Win
#11 Oklahoma 10, Michigan 17
After week one, no one in their right mind thought Michigan would win this game, but Kyle Whittingham had his boys ready. The Wolverines defense struggled against Western Michigan but was unbelievable against the Sooners. OU QB John Mateer went 17/33 for only 189 yards passing and didn't have much time to throw, as the Wolverine pass rush was elite. Michigan's defense also forced two turnovers, one of them an interception by veteran CB Jyaire Hill that set up the game-winning Michigan touchdown. QB Bryce Underwood really struggled in week one but was better on the ground, running for a 38-yard touchdown. The problem with Michigan is it seems like they don't trust Underwood to throw the ball. Oklahoma is in for a long year with the schedule they've got. Mateer is not the guy for the Sooners. In a couple of weeks they head to Athens, and it will be a rough one for OU fans. For Michigan, this win actually counts, but they've got to get better offensively. With Underwood at QB, I'm not sure their offense can be successful.
#6 Oregon 31, Oklahoma State 39
This game was delayed an hour and a half, and that must have affected Dan Lanning and the Ducks, because they came out flat. Oregon's offense was elite last year, but they looked lifeless on Saturday. QB Dante Moore went 14/29, and the Oregon run game averaged just three yards per carry. On the other side, Oklahoma State ran all over Oregon for 237 yards, averaging nearly six yards per carry. The Oregon D-line was considered one of the best, if not the best, coming into the season, but it's looked terrible through the first couple of weeks. What an unbelievable turn of events for the Cowboys after a horrible loss last week to Tulsa. QB Drew Mestemaker came to OSU from North Texas, where he dominated in the American Conference, and on Saturday he was elite, just like last year. Mestemaker had 426 total yards and three total touchdowns. The Cowboys went 1-11 last year, but this win will turn the program around and get it back to being one of the better programs in the Big 12, like they should be. Oregon has too good a roster not to turn this around, but they'll need to do it quickly, because they play at USC in a couple of weeks.
#12 Alabama 45, Kentucky 17
Over the past couple of years, Kalen DeBoer has had some bad losses on the road against unranked opponents (Vandy 2024, FSU 2025), and in the first half it looked like it could be another one. Everything was going wrong for Bama. The pick-six Kentucky got was just insanely unlucky for the Tide, and Bama had too many sloppy penalties in the first half. Bama also struggled to run the ball early. Will Stein and Kentucky looked like they could pull off one of the greatest wins in program history, but the Crimson Tide put the Wildcats in a locker in the second half. RB Daniel Hill started to get rolling for the Tide, and Bama's defense was bullying Kentucky. The Wildcats had no run game at all in the second half, and QB Kenny Minchey had nowhere to throw the football. If Alabama can run the ball like they did in the second half, they could be a very dangerous team, because that defense is one of the best in the country.
Mississippi State 38, Minnesota 13
This matchup pitted two completely different styles of offense against each other. Minnesota runs a pro-style offense, while Mississippi State runs a wide choice, fast-paced attack, and the Bulldogs were moving at a rapid, efficient pace on Saturday. Bulldogs QB Kamario Taylor might just be the best QB in college football. Taylor threw for 227 yards on 16 attempts with 3 touchdowns and ran for 86 yards. The ball just pops out of Taylor's hand like a missile when he throws it. Bulldogs receiver Anthony Evans, a former UGA receiver, had 121 yards receiving and a touchdown. Evans didn't see the field much at Georgia but has lit it up since arriving in Starkville. Mississippi State's run game was also good, alongside its defense. The Bulldogs allowed just 13 rushing yards against a Golden Gophers team that has run the ball well under coach P.J. Fleck. Mississippi State is a very good football team this year, and they will ruin a couple of good SEC teams’ seasons.
#18 Tennessee 45, Georgia Tech 24
Georgia Tech needed to bounce back on Saturday after the brutal loss to Colorado, but Josh Heupel and the Vols offense said heck no. Tennessee freshman QB Faizon Brandon played well but didn't throw much, because the Tennessee run game is that good. RB DeSean Bishop, one of the best RBs in the sport, ran for 147 yards on 20 carries with a couple of touchdowns. Tech's D-line got bullied for the second straight week. Tennessee would have won by a lot more if not for some sloppy penalties. The Yellow Jackets' offense wasn't terrible, but turnovers killed them. QB Alberto Mendoza threw two terrible interceptions, one resulting in a pick-six. The Volunteers could be a great team this year and will face a major test when Texas comes to town in a couple of weeks. Georgia Tech losing QB Haynes King and OC Buster Faulkner completely derailed this team. The only reason they were good the past couple of years was because of those two. It's going to be a very long season for Brent Key and the Yellow Jackets.
#1 Ohio State 23, #4 Texas 24
It's only week 2, but we won't get a game like this the rest of the year. Everything that went wrong for the Longhorns in the first half went right for them in the second half. The Buckeyes were dominating Texas in the first half but were also getting lucky. If the Longhorns receivers had caught their passes, this game would have been tight heading into halftime. Texas had zero answers for Jeremiah Smith. Smith had 8 catches for 164 yards and a touchdown, and he looks like one of the best receivers in college football history. Ohio State couldn't have felt better heading into the locker room, but they looked like a completely different team in the second half. Sayin looked like a different QB in the second half, and the run game was non-existent for Ohio State. On the Texas side, Arch Manning struggled in the first half but looked like his uncles in the second half. The two throws he made on 4th down were elite, and if Ohio State had stopped them on those plays, they would have won the game. The Texas running game was elite in the second half, led by Hollywood Smothers, who ran for the game-winning touchdown. Two things really went wrong for the Buckeyes late in that game. First, the missed field goal that would have won it for them. Ohio State has been bad at field goals over the past few years, and it has cost them in basically every game Ryan Day has lost during his career. Second, why didn't Ohio State let Texas score when they were at the goal line? The Longhorns were going to score anyway from the one-yard line, so why not let them score immediately and give the offense time to win the game? Ryan Day has had a great career in Columbus, but this is one of the worst losses of his tenure. That said, these two teams are both top-three teams and will both make the playoffs.
Dawgs in All White
For the second straight week, the Dawgs played another tomato can and dominated from the start. Georgia scored a touchdown on each of their first seven drives. So far this season, every time Gunner Stockton has been on the field for an offensive drive, the Dawgs have ended up in the end zone. The uniforms looked great, and the starters looked great in them, but not the backups. Kirby Smart was not happy with how some of the backups played on Saturday, and he's not wrong. The Dawgs fumbled the ball way too many times, and the offense struggled in the second half. Even the defense struggled to stop Western Kentucky's QB from running the ball. Still, it was nice to finally see the Dawgs take a kickoff to the house, as true freshman Tyriq Green returned one in the fourth quarter. The Dawgs start SEC play next week on the road against the worst team in the conference, Arkansas, and I've got the Dawgs winning 45-14.
Dawgbone Jr (aka Bennett Wiggins)