WEEK 1: Thoughts on Auburn, General Overview of the Week

I know that we got a little taste of football last week with the week zero games, but yesterday felt like the true "opening day" of college football. I cannot even begin to describe the adrenaline rush that pumped through me when the College Gameday intro began playing. Week one as a whole was pretty uneventful, but it undeniably added anticipation for the upcoming weeks.

I will start by discussing my team, the Auburn Tigers.

Auburn handled business on Saturday against UMass. It was very important that we do so, as we have a tougher test next week at Cal. I was happy with our performance. There are things that we did well, and there are things that we need to work on.

Let's start with what we did well. Our running game was spectacular. We had a very balanced attack, and everyone got in on the action. Robby Ashford was a major factor running the ball in the red zone, scoring three times from inside the twenty. Damari Alston had some tough runs, Sean Jackson broke away for a big run, and Jeremiah Cobb gave us a glimpse of what we can expect out of him in the future. We finished with 289 rushing yards, which is about what I expected. Everyone knew that we would be able to run the ball on UMass. The speed and size advantage was very evident. I also thought that we executed our gameplan as a whole very well. The first drive of the game was gorgeous. It was executed perfectly, and the combination of attacks on the ground and through the air was beautiful. I loved the pace of play. There were times we were back on the ball less than ten seconds after the previous play. It reminded me of the pace that the 2013 team played at, and I really hope we are able to continue our success with this speed. On defense, I was pleased with our pass rush. We tallied four sacks and had some other hurries that impacted UMass's passing attack. Our special teams units were flawless. McPherson buried his only field goal attempt, and Keionte Scott and Brian Battie had some pretty impressive returns. Special teams often falls under the radar, but they can make or break a game. All it takes is one big return or one missed kick to completely shift momentum. Luckily for us Auburn fans, we have usually been able to enjoy being on the positive side of those momentum shifts. I would also like to give a shoutout to the offensive line. I don't want to get ahead of myself since we were playing a much less physical team, but the O-line appears to be lightyears ahead of where we were last year. Overall, Auburn dominated, and I believe this confidence booster will serve us well in the next few weeks.

Now, let's talk about some concerns. We were successful with our two-quarterback attack, but the transition between the packages was far from seamless. We had to waste two timeouts in the first half trying to sub Ashford in and out. If we are going to continue to use him in packages mid-drive, we are going to have to work on getting the right guys on and off the field quicker. We cannot be using valuable timeouts to try and sub a new quarterback in for two plays. I was also concerned with our ability to contain the outside run. UMass went down the field effortlessly on their first drive, and they busted away for some pretty big plays around the outside. Had their starting quarterback not gotten shaken up on this drive, I'm worried that they may have put up more points. After we no longer had to worry about him running, we focused in on their backs and slowed the run down, but that first drive haunts me a bit. The outside run was the main concern with this defense coming into week one, and it remains my primary concern heading into week two. I was also disappointed that Rivaldo Fairweather didn't get any action. I thought that he would be one of our bigger threats, especially in the red zone. He didn't catch a single ball, and I don't even remember any targets. I hope that we were just gatekeeping some of our offensive gameplan. I would like to see him get involved in the next few weeks.

We travel to California next week. Auburn opened up as a 5.5 point favorite, which may seem pretty slim, but I think it's a solid line. California displayed a very explosive offense against North Texas, putting up 669 total yards of offense. They have a very solid run game, and our defense is going to have to play very well to slow them down. I am predicting a high-scoring offensive shootout. I still think Auburn will come out on top, but it is certainly not going to be a walk in the park.

Most of the week one matchups turned out to be blowouts, but there were a few games that stood out. How about Coach Deion Sanders and Colorado traveling to TCU and pulling out a win in his debut? Shedeur Sanders looked incredible, throwing for over 500 yards. And where do I even start with Travis Hunter. He played over 100 snaps, shining on both sides of the ball. He finished with an interception, over 100 yards receiving, and a receiving touchdown. I haven't heard of anyone putting up a combined offensive and defensive performance like that since Primetime himself. I've also got to give a shoutout to former Auburn quarterback T.J. Finley and Texas State pulling off an upset against Baylor. T.J. never found his rhythm in Auburn, but I am happy to see that he is doing good things at Texas State. I love to see people succeed, even if they transferred from Auburn. Speaking of former Auburn QB's, Bo Nix looked solid for Oregon yesterday, putting up a whopping 81 points against Portland State. I think these two shining at other schools attests to how important a quality coaching staff is. Some kids perform at a lower level than they could because they are thrown into a scheme that is unfit for them. It is important for coaches to plan their scheme around the talent that they have rather than the talent that they want.

That's all I've got for this week. I am looking forward to watching the LSU and Florida State game tonight, and I will then begin preparing for the emotional rollercoaster I'm sure I will be put through next Saturday.