College Football 2012 – Week Two Recap

There were no games between ranked teams this week, but that didn’t keep this Saturday from being an exciting one. Four ranked teams went down to upsets and several others survived big scares. It was a bad night to be the Big Ten, a good one to be the PAC-12 and a really, really bad one to be an Arkansas fan.

Here are all the highlights from this week in college football.

#1 Alabama 35, Western Kentucky 0

A.J. McCarron threw four touchdowns and the Crimson Tide showed no signs of letting up as Alabama rolled over the overmatched Hilltoppers. Western Kentucky turned the ball over four times and only crossed midfield twice in a game in which they never really had a chance. The Crimson Tide held Western Kentucky to just 46 rushing yards.

#2 Southern Cal 42, Syracuse 29

Matt Barkley threw for just 182 yards in the game, but made the most of them as he recorded a school-record six touchdown passes in the Trojans’ victory. Receiver Robert Woods recorded 93 yards and two touchdowns on 10 catches while also rushing for 76 yards. Syracuse actually outgained the Trojans 455 to 445, but were unable to find the end zone until less than six minutes were left in the third quarter. The Orange actually pulled within five points going into the fourth quarter before USC scored 14 unanswered points in a three-minute span to ice the game.

#3 Louisiana State 41, Washington 3

Washington got a field goal less than a minute into the game, but from that point on it was all Tigers. LSU recorded 242 rushing yards on the night, while the Tigers’ defense was as ferocious as ever, holding Washington to just three points and 183 total yards (46 rushing). LSU running back Alfred Blue rushed for 101 yards and a touchdown in the win. The Tigers are now 29-0 in non-conference games under coach Les Miles.

#4 Oregon 42, Fresno State 25

Kenjon Barner rushed for 201 yards and four touchdowns and De’Anthony Thomas added another 102 yards and two scores as the Ducks ran all over Fresno State. Oregon rolled up 532 yards, including 366 on the ground—one more than the Bulldogs had in total yards. The Bulldogs have not beaten Oregon since 1982, with Saturday being their eighth straight loss to the Ducks.

#5 Oklahoma 69, Florida A&M 13

After struggling last week at UTEP, the Sooners had no such troubles this week against a mismatched FCS opponent. Juco transfer running back Damien Williams set a school record for a home debut game with 156 yards and four touchdowns. He is one of just four Sooners in history to rush for 100+ yards in each of his first two games (Adrian Peterson was the last to do it in 2004). Oklahoma took a 35-10 lead into halftime and didn’t let up, rolling up 21 points and 217 yards in the third quarter.

#6 Florida State 55, Savannah State 0

Even Mother Nature didn’t want to see this game. With Florida State, a 70.5 point favorite, jumping out to a 35-0 lead in the first quarter, the outcome was never in doubt. Fortunately for probably everybody involved, the game was mercifully called in the third quarter due to lightning in the area. The Seminoles outgained Savannah State 413 to 28.

#7 Georgia 41, Missouri 20

Missouri's first SEC conference game got off to a solid start as the Tigers led for most of the first three quarters. But Georgia spoiled the party, rolling up 24 unanswered points in the game's final 16 minutes to hand the Tigers their first SEC loss. Georgia quarterback Aaron Murray threw for 242 yards and three touchdowns. Bulldogs linebacker Jarvis Jones really turned the tide in the second half, intercepting Missouri quarterback on one possession and forcing a fumble three plays later. Both turnovers led to quick Georgia scores that put the Bulldogs up by 21.

Louisiana-Monroe 41, #8 Arkansas 38 (OT)

Warhawks quarterback Kolton Browning accounted for 481 total yards and four scores as Louisiana-Monroe pulled off the biggest upset (so far) of the college football season in Little Rock. Arkansas led 21-7 at halftime, but was forced to play the second half without quarterback Tyler Wilson, who left the game with a concussion. Louisiana-Monroe’s offense showed no fear of an SEC defense, rolling up 557 total yards and almost doubling the Razorbacks in time of possession. In overtime, Louisiana-Monroe faced a 4th-and-1 at the Arkansas 16 yard line. They passed on a tying field goal and Browning ran it in for the game-winning touchdown. Prior to this game, the Razorbacks had outscored Louisiana-Monroe by an average of 28 points per game in nine previous meetings.

#9 (tie) South Carolina 48, East Carolina 10

Starting in place of the injured Connor Shaw, South Carolina quarterback Dylan Thompson threw for 330 yards and four touchdowns as the Gamecocks had no problems with East Carolina. His success through the air allowed coach Steve Spurrier to give star running back Marcus Lattimore a restful day. Lattimore carried the ball just 13 times for 40 yards and a touchdown. South Carolina’s defense held East Carolina to just 70 rushing yards and forced five Pirate turnovers.

#9(Tie) West Virginia Bye

The Mountaineers had a week off before taking on James Madison and Maryland the next two weeks.

#11 Michigan State 41, Central Michigan 7

Michigan State’s bruising running back Le’Veon Bell rushed for 70 yards and two touchdowns as the Spartans had no problems with their in-state opponents. MSU more than doubled the Chippewas in total yardage, outgaining them 495 to 245. The Spartans defense held Central Michigan to just 72 rushing yards, forced three turnovers and kept CMU off the scoreboard (the Chippewas only score came on an interception return for a touchdown with less than two minutes to go in the game).

#12 Clemson 52, Ball State 27

Clemson quarterback Tajh Boyd threw for 229 yards and three touchdowns in one half of play as the Tigers rolled to an easy victory. Receiver DeAndre Hopkins caught 6 passes for 105 yards and all three of Boyd’s touchdowns while running back Andre Ellington added two scores on the ground. Clemson kicker Spencer Barton kicked a 61-yard field goal as time expired in the first half to send the Tigers up 45-10 and leave most of the Clemson starters on the sideline for the second half.

Oregon State 10, #13 Wisconsin 7

Oregon State’s defense held the Badgers to just 61 rushing yards as the Beavers ended Wisconsin’s 33-game non-conference winning streak. Heisman finalist Montee Ball finished with just 61 yards (his lowest total in almost two years) and saw his streak of 21 straight games with a score come to an end. Oregon State quarterback Sean Mannion threw for 276 yards and a touchdown in the win. But the game ball goes to the Beavers’ defense, which not just shut down Ball but forced the Badgers into five three-and-outs and two turnovers. This was Oregon State’s season opener after Hurricane Isaac forced the postponement of their Week One matchup with Nicholls State.

#14 Ohio State 31, Central Florida 16

Braxton Miller became the first Ohio State quarterback in 34 years to rush for three touchdowns as the Buckeyes moved to 2-0 under coach Urban Meyer. Miller rushed for 141 yards and three scores while adding 155 yards and a touchdown through the air. Despite the impressive performance by his sophomore quarterback, Meyer still found plenty of flaws on which to work, including three turnovers and 79 yards in penalties.

#15 Virginia Tech 42, Austin Peay 7

After struggling in a Week One overtime win over Georgia Tech, the Hokies had an easier time of things this week against an overmatched FCS opponent. Virginia Tech got off to a slow offensive start, but got big plays from their special teams (a big return and a blocked punt) to set up the Hokies’ first two scores. Virginia Tech outgained the Governors 419 to 221. To Austin Peay’s credit, they put together a 78-yard drive in the third quarter to extend their streak of consecutive games without being shut out to 75.

UCLA 36, #16 Nebraska 30

Making his Rose Bowl debut, freshman quarterback Brett Hundley threw for 306 yards and four touchdowns as UCLA moved to 2-0 with an upset of the Cornhuskers, who had no answers for the Bruins offense. Johnathan Franklin rushed for 217 yards as UCLA rolled up 653 yards of total offense, the most yards Nebraska had given up since 1956. But the big story might be UCLA’s defense, which held Nebraska to just three second half points, recorded a safety and held the Cornhuskers (playing without power back Rex Burkhead) to 1-of-11 on third-down conversions. UCLA has ten sacks already this year after recording just 14 all of last season. Taylor Martinez’s 92-yard touchdown run in the first quarter was the longest run by a Nebraska player since Eric Crouch’s Heisman highlight 95-yarder against Missouri in 2001.

#17 Texas 45, New Mexico 0

Texas quarterback David Ash threw for a career-high 221 yards and two touchdowns and added another score on the ground as the Longhorns had no trouble dispatching the Lobos. New Mexico’s triple option offense had some success on the ground, putting up 206 rushing yards, but saw all four drives into Texas territory end without points.

Arizona 59, #18 Oklahoma State 38

Meeting for the third time in less than two years, Arizona finally got into the win column against Oklahoma State with the first big win of Rich Rodriguez's tenure with the Wildcats. The Cowboys jumped out to an early 14-0 lead before Arizona exploded for 30 unanswered points. Oklahoma State pulled to within 37-31 at the end of the third quarter, but Arizona answered with 15 straight points to put the game away in the fourth quarter. In his first game against real opposition, Cowboys freshman quarterback Wes Lunt threw for 436 yards and four touchdowns, but also threw three costly interceptions, including a pick-six early in the fourth quarter. Arizona running back Ka'Deem Carey had 154 total yards and four touchdowns in the win. This was an offensive shootout all night, and Oklahoma State actually outgained the Wildcats 636 to 501. But the Cowboys repeatedly shot themselves in the foot with four costly turnovers that led to 18 Wildcat points and 15 penalties for 167 yards.

#19 Michigan 31, Air Force 25

Michigan needed every one of Denard Robinson’s 208 passing yards and 218 on the ground as the Wolverines overcame a post-Alabama hangover to hang on for a tough win over upset-minded Air Force. The Falcons rolled up 417 total yards and pulled within three points early in the fourth quarter. But Robinson threw two touchdowns and ran for two more to lead the Wolverines to their first victory of the year. How much of a one-man show was Robinson? Thanks to some lost yardage by other players, Robinson actually finished with more total yards (426) than Michigan had total offense (422).

#20 Texas Christian 56, Grambling State 0

TCU’s first game of the season couldn’t have been more flawless. The Horned Frog defense kept Grambling off the scoreboard while TCU quarterbacks Casey Paschall Trevone Boykin combined to go 17-for-17, an FBS record for most passes in a game without an incompletion. TCU outgained the Tigers 531 to 70. This was coach Gary Patterson’s 110^th win with the school, more than any previous TCU coach.

#21 Kansas State 52, Miami 13

Most preseason polls had either Oklahoma or West Virginia picked to win the Big 12 this year. But the Wildcats are certainly making a strong case that at least one more team deserves serious consideration. Quarterback Collin Klein had 274 total yards and four scores as Kansas State routed the visitors from South Beach. The Wildcats’ defense held Miami to just 40 yards on the ground, forced three Miami turnovers and kept the Canes out of the end zone until less than four minutes were left in the game. This was just the fifth time in history—and first since 1998—that the Hurricanes gave up 50 or more points in a game.

#22 Notre Dame 20, Purdue 17

Coming off of a one-game suspension, backup quarterback (and former starter) Tommy Rees came off the bench to replace an injured Everett Golson and lead the Fighting Irish to a win in the final seconds of the game. Purdue scored 10 unanswered points in the fourth quarter to tie the game before Rees came into the game with just 2:12 left. He quickly led Notre Dame on a 12 play, 55-yard drive that led to the winning field goal with just seven seconds left. The Irish have given up just two turnovers this season, compared to 10 turnovers they committed in the first two games last year.

#23 Louisville 35, Missouri State 7

Louisville quarterback Teddy Bridgewater threw for a career-high 344 yards and two touchdowns as the Cardinals started the season 2-0 for the first time since 2007. The Louisville defense held Missouri State’s spread offense in check, limiting the Bears to just 249 yards and forcing two turnovers.

#24 Florida 20, Texas A&M 17

Texas A&M had a problem holding on to halftime leads in the Big 12, and things don’t appear to have changed now that they’re in the SEC. The Aggies jumped out to a 17-7 lead midway through the second quarter before watching the Gators score 13 unanswered to spoil the Aggies’ SEC debut. Florida running back Mike Gillislee ran for 83 yards and coach Will Muschamp got his first win when trailing at halftime (0-5 previously). Florida quarterback Jeff Driskel was sacked eight times, but made the big play when he had to, a 39-yard completion in the fourth quarter that kept the game-winning drive alive.

#25 Stanford 50, Duke 13

Stanford receiver Drew Terrell caught 15 passes for 78 yards and a touchdown and returned a punt 75 yards for a score as the Cardinal avoided the slow start that plagued them last week. Josh Nunes, in his second game as Andrew Luck's replacement, threw for 275 yards and three touchdowns. The Cardinal defense had Duke on lockdown, holding the Blue Devils to just 29 rushing yards, forcing four turnovers and keeping Duke out of the end zone until late in the third quarter.