After No. 1 Alabama narrowly escaped a big upset loss to Texas, eventually winning 20-19, the most shocking result of the day was one nobody saw coming.
Marshall took down No. 8 Notre Dame in South Bend after Steven Gilmore’s pick six of Irish quarterback Tyler Buchner sealed it with a little more than 5 minutes remaining. It’s a brutal blow for a Notre Dame team that hoped to contend for a playoff spot. Now the team is 0-2 with a lot of questions to answer.
There’s plenty of big games to go on the day, and we’ll be tracking it all as it unfolds.
Here are some of the key matchups we’re watching.
Time: 3:30 p.m. | TV: ABC | Line: UT -6.5 | Total: 66.5
Josh Heupel and his up-tempo offense brought a much-needed jolt of life to the Tennessee program. If the defense can take a step forward from a rough 2021, Tennessee has the chance to make some noise in the SEC. After a season-opening blowout over Ball State, this weekend’s trip to face Pitt, the defending ACC champions, will be a good test for the Vols. Pitt is coming off a thrilling Week 1 win over rival West Virginia.
Time: 7 p.m. | TV: ESPN | Line: UF -5.5 | Total: 52.5
Before 2018, Florida had won 31 consecutive matchups with Kentucky. However, Kentucky has won two of the last four in the series, including a 20-13 win last fall in Lexington. Can the Wildcats do it again? UK fans are full of optimism after the team won 10 games last year and star QB Will Levis returns. The Gators have a star QB of their own in Anthony Richardson, who was instrumental in the team’s impressive season-opening win over Utah.
Time: 7:30 p.m. | TV: ABC | Line: USC -8.5 | Total: 67.5
USC kicked off the Lincoln Riley era with a blowout victory over Rice thanks to a strong defensive performance and a good Trojans debut for transfer QB Caleb Williams. He’ll make his debut in Pac-12 play at Stanford on Saturday. He’ll be opposed by another future NFL quarterback in Tanner McKee. McKee hasn’t gotten much help on offense during his time as the starter, but the Cardinal are hopeful that E.J. Smith, son of NFL legend Emmitt Smith, can become a weapon.
Time: 10:15 p.m. | TV: ESPN | Line: BYU -3.5 | Total: 53.5
After winning a Big 12 title with Gerry Bohanon, Baylor coach Dave Aranda made a quarterback change, naming Blake Shapen the starter over Bohanon in the spring. That decision will be put to the test this week against a good BYU team. While Baylor blew out an FCS team in Week 1, BYU traveled across the country and dominated South Florida, 50-21. The Cougars are trying to make an early season statement for a program with several high-profile games on its schedule this year.
