Around The North | Week #1

As Planned?

Sam Keller didn't fall off the Heisman list, but he certainly didn't move up the list. He did go from recently untested to at least capable of handing the ball off. It's interesting that despite all of the "West Coast" Callahan talk, Nebraska looks best when they pound the ball with the running game, sort of like they did for a hundred years prior to BC ... Mizzou got the win and although you may want to giggle at their defensive struggles, it's still an opening game. Everybody thinks they are good in week one and Illinois gave it their best shot. Plus they are a Big 10 team. Most concerning factor would be Chase Daniels not getting down to the ground five yards past the first down marker and taking the kind of hit that can end a career ... Kansas State avoided the worst case scenario, but it never feels good to lose. Eventually, the Cats will feel better about this one, but it looks like they are on a three-game losing streak. The defense played well, but what do we make of the running game (27 yards) ... With some new players on defense and a new coaching staff at Central Michigan, it seem liked Kansas might have a shot at a comfortable game, but not many predicted a rout. The answers on offense were all favorable. We'll want to see improvement from the pass rush versus Toledo in two weeks .... Hey, Colorado has an offense and picked up what ranks as the highest quality win for the North this weeked (at least according to Sagarin -- CSU #70, Nevada #75, CMU #88, Illinois #94). Suddenly, the Buffs look like a division contender ... It looks like it won't be a quick turnaround for Iowa State, but Kent State is predicted to make some noise in the MAC. Clones fans can start analyzing games for improvement.