Weekend Recap: Teams Playing Season Opener Go 8-2

September 19, 2020 by Staff

A quartet of head-to-head ACC conference games highlighted this week's slate which was ultimately reduced from 26 games to 20 by the end of the week, due to Covid.

In matchup of AP Top 25 teams, Miami improved to 2-0 (1-0, ACC) with a 47-34 win at Louisville (1-1, 0-1 ACC). The Cards outgained the 'Canes 516-485 and had 29 first downs to Miami's 19. But while UofL scored on ball control drives, Miami twice answered a Cardinal score with a single play. Coming out of the hafltime locker room trailing 20-6, Louisville used a 7-play drive to close to within 7, only to allow Cam"ron Harris run 75 yards on Miami's first play. Louisville answered with an 11-play drive to trim the deficit to 27-20, but the Hurricanes responded with a 75-yard touchdown pass from D'Eriq King to Jaylan Knighton.

In Raleigh, N.C. State (1-0, 1-0 ACC) finally opened the season and it was worth the wait for the Wolfpack which outlasted Wake Forest 45-42 (0-2, 0-2 ACC). Wake twice fought back from 14-point deficits to tie the game and finally took a 42-38 lead with 9:12 to play. But Ricky Person Jr.'s 3-yd scoring run with 5:51 to play put N.C. State back in front and proved to be the game-winning points.

Boston College (1-0, 1-0 ACC) opened play with a 26-6 win at Duke (0-2, 0-2). It was the head coaching debut for BC's Jeff Hafley, as well as the debut for Notre Dame transfer QB Phil Jurkovec who was 17-of-23 for 300 yards and a pair of touchdowns with 1 INT.

In another ACC matchup, Pittsburgh (2-0, 1-0 ACC) downed Syracuse (0-2, 0-2 ACC) 21-10.

The Big 12 almost had another stain on its record. After going 0-3 at home last week against Sun Belt teams, Oklahoma State had more than it wanted to handle while still managing to defeat Tulsa 16-7. The Golden Hurricane defense ended Chuba Hubbard's streak of 11 straight 100-plus-yard rushing games, holding him to 93 yards and 1 TD on 27 carries. Injuries played a role in this game as Cowboy starting QB Spence Sanders left the game with an injury late in the first half. Tulsa was without RB Shamari Brooks, a 1,000-yard rusher a year ago, who suffered an ACL injury in practice early in the week.

Joining Boston College, N.C. State and Oklahoma State in playing their season opener were Cincinnati, Central Florida, Georgia State, Liberty, Louisiana Tech, Troy and Tulsa. Those 10 schools went a combined 8-2 on Saturday. The lone losers were the aforementioned Tulsa to Oklahoma State, and Georgia State to Louisiana.

That number was suppose to be 13 but Houston, Baylor, and FAU had their respective games postponed or canceled.

Louisiana nearly became the victim of an upset a week after victimizing Iowa State. Down by as much as 14, the Ragin' Cajuns rallied for the 34-31 overtime win in Atlanta.

Cincinnati romped 55-20 over FCS member Austin Peay; UCF outscored Georgia Tech 21-0 in the 4th quarter for a 49-21 win in Atlanta; Liberty scored a 30-24 victory at Western Kentucky as a 13-point underdog; Troy handed MTSU a second straight whipping with a 47-14 romp in Murfreesboro; and Louisiana Tech rallied from 17 down in the 3rd quarter to edge homestanding Southern Miss 31-30 in interim head coaching debut of Scotty Walden.

Two teams that are expected to make a run at the national championship - Clemson  and Notre Dame - both won with ease.

Clemson took a 49-0 lead at the half on The Citadel and the score stayed that way through the end of the game as the Tigers focused on building depth in the second half. Trevor Lawrence only threw 9 passes, but he completed 8 and 3 went for touchdowns.

Notre Dame also scored early and often in a 52-0 pasting of visiting USF.

Marshall scored a 17-7 upset in Huntington over visiting Appalachian State.

Greatest Wake-Up of the Season

Navy, which lost its opener 55-3 at home to BYU on September 7, found itself trailing 24-0 at Tulane at halftime. Whatever was said at halftime worked as Ken Niumatalolo's team stormed back for the 27-24 win. The final margin was provided by Bijon Nichols' 33-yard field goal as the clock hit :00.

It was a reversal of fortune from one week to the next for Tulane. Last week, the Green Wave trailed South Alabama 24-6 midway through the 3rd and wound up winning 27-24.

FCS vs. FBS

The number of FBS-FCS matchups had increased by 1. Memphis on Saturday agreed to play FCS member Stephen F. Austin on November 21. That addition came about after Memphis, for the second straight week, had to cancel a game due to Covid. The Tigers, who were supposed to have played Houston this past Friday night,m have now also canceled next Saturday's contest at UTSA. The Roadrunners promptly filled the newly-open date with CUSA foe MTSU.

With the addition, 30 FBS teams will play a total of 34 games against FCS schools this season. Army has 3 such games on its schedule.

Five teams played FCS schools on Saturday - Cincinnati, Clemson, Coastal Carolina, UTEP and UTSA - and all 5 won. It was UTEP's second game this season against a FCS program. Arkansas State had to push back its scheduled game with Central Arkansas to October 10.

So far this season, the FBS schools are 15-0 in such matchups.

That makes the FBS teams 1,444-127 (.919) since we began tracking this in 2003.

Last year, FBS teams were 111-3 (.974) in such games.

These were the FCS wins vs. the FBS in the previous 2 seasons:

2019:
August 29: Central Arkansas 35, Western Kentucky 28
September 7: Southern Illinois 45, Massachusetts 20
September 14: The Citadel 27, Georgia Tech 24 (OT)

2018:
August 29: UC Davis 44, San Jose State 31
September 1: Villanova 19, Temple 17
September 1: Northern Arizona 30, UTEP 10
September 1: Nicholls State 26, Kansas 23 (OT)
September 2: North Carolina A&T 28, East Carolina 23
September 8: Maine 31, Western Kentucky 28
September 22: Illinois State 35, Colorado State 19

Streaks

CLEMSON - Won 31 straight regular season games (FBS longest) games. Won 22 straight conference games (FBS longest). Won 23 straight home games (FBS longest). Won 13 straight true road games (FBS longest).
Last: Won 49-0 at home vs. FCS member The Citadel on Saturday, September 19.
Next: Hosts Virginia on Saturday, October 3.

LSU - 16-game over-all winning streak (FBS longest).
Last: Won 42-25 over Clemson in the national championship game in New Orleans on January 13.
Next: Season opener at home vs. Mississippi State on September 26.

ARKANSAS - Lost 9 straight overall (FBS longest among teams playing this Fall).
Last: Lost 24-14 at home to Missouri on November 29, 2019.
Next: Season opener at home vs. Georgia on September 26.

RUTGERS - Lost 21 straight conference games (FBS longest). Lost 13 straight road games (FBS longest)
Last: Lost 27-6 at Penn State on November 30, 2019.
Next: Season opener at Michigan State on Saturday, October 24.

UTEP - Lost 15 straight to FBS schools, but won 2 straight over FCS schools.
Last: Won 17-13 at home vs. Abilene Christian on Saturday September 19.
Next: Visits Louisiana-Monroe on Saturday, September 26.

Streaks (Involving teams NOT playing this fall, but longer than those above)

AKRON - Lost 17 straight overall (FBS longest). Lost 8 straight home games (FBS longest).
Last: Lost 52-3 at home to Ohio on November 26, 2019.
Next: Akron, and all of the MAC, is sitting out the fall season.