It sure was nice to sit back and enjoy a Saturday of college football again without having to worry about pro-to-college eligibility rules, temporary restraining orders or other lawsuits. Just football, all day, with actual games to consume. Granted, Week 0 wasn't exactly a full slate, but three of Saturday's eight FBS games were within one score in the fourth quarter, providing enough drama for the opening weekend.
Bill Belichick got his first big win at North Carolina, beating TCU in Dublin in a game that said as much about the Tar Heels' underrated defense as it did about Sonny Dykes' new-look offense and the Horned Frogs being overrated. Unlike TCU, Virginia got a big debut from its new transfer quarterback in Beau Pribula, who had a career game in a blowout win that crushed NC State's hopes of emerging as an ACC dark horse. Meanwhile, Mike Norvell's seat in Tallahassee didn't get any cooler after Florida State needed four quarters to put away New Mexico State.
Those weren't the only Power Four teams in action. No. 14 USC got an early look at how impactful its top-ranked freshman class could be in a win against San Jose State. There were also early College Football Playoff implications in the race for the Group of Six bid.
North Dakota State made its FBS debut by rolling Jacksonville State, while Memphis picked up an important win on the road against UNLV and former five-star quarterback Jackson Arnold. Week 0 gave us plenty of first impressions, surprises and warning signs. Here are the winners and losers from the opening Saturday.
Perhaps a fitting outcome for the way TCU treated the Fort Worth Star-Telegram this week. The Horned Frogs flew to Ireland with a revamped offensive philosophy, a new scheme under offensive coordinator Gordon Sammis and Harvard transfer Jaden Craig replacing Josh Hoover, only to produce one of the most lifeless offensive performances of the Sonny Dykes era. TCU managed just 10 points, the fewest scored in 31 games, while Craig's 175 yards passing were their fewest since the national championship game blowout loss to Georgia at the end of the 2022 season.
TCU's 27% offensive success rate was its lowest since Dykes took over in 2022. Winning the Ireland game hasn't exactly been a springboard over the past four years, but losing it certainly has been a bad omen. Scott Frost was fired 12 days after Nebraska lost to Northwestern in 2022.
Extract — continue reading at the source.
