B&S Week 1 game-by-game recaps
We go game by game with our thoughts on Week 1.
By: The Waco Kid, The Hammer, Bossman Slim
It was a shocker for Brian Kelly and the college football world in New Orleans on Sunday night (Screencap via ESPN)
Just as we did last season, each week during the season we’ll do our game-by-game recaps with thoughts from Bossman Slim, The Waco Kid, and The Hammer. We’ll also be keeping score of our picks straight up and against the spread. This week, we only picked the top four SEC games as many games did not have lines.
We had some awesome games in Week 1, both in the SEC and out of conference (did anyone see UNC-App State or ECU-NC State? WOW) and learned a lot about many of these teams such as: Georgia are cold-blooded killers and didn’t miss a beat after losing all that talent from last years national championship team.
Let’s see how the B&S crew fared this weekend:
We all had a few hiccups, namely, Bossman and The Hammer didn’t believe in Florida just yet and got burned, and Brian Kelly’s fahmulee burned all of us.
Let’s dig into the recaps.
#6 Texas A&M 31 - Sam Houston State 0
Bossman Slim: The Aggies are known for their traditions, and their latest tradition addition is getting off to slow starts against inferior opponents. The Aggies finally woke up and won 31-0, but it wasn’t always pretty. Overall it was a nice win for the Aggies, especially with a weird mid-game weather delay that made this game extend well into the afternoon. Haynes King threw two bad interceptions but also had some bright spots throwing two nice touchdown passes. It looks like Jimbo Fisher is more willing to take down the field shots this year with the weapons on the outside and King at QB. As for the defense, they’re going to be stout throughout this year. The Aggies better get it in order fast as they have a scrappy Appalachian State coming to Kyle Field next week who just put up 40 POINTS in the 4th quarter alone against UNC.
The Hammer: A slow start to the season is nothing new in Aggieland. Remember Vandy in 2020 and Kent State in 2021? This game played out similarly as the Aggies looked sluggish but handled their business in the end, pitching a 31-0 shutout. Hard to glean much from this game since it's game one, and there was a several-hour weather delay. The Aggie defense played well and we got to see a bunch of young players get reps from their most recent two recruiting classes. The offense was sloppy and inconsistent, but popped several big plays through the air, which was a welcome sight for Aggie fans. Time to move forward and start preparing for Appalachian State.
The Waco Kid: The Aggies had a sluggish start to the season just like pretty much every other year. Haynes King ended up throwing for 364 yards and three touchdowns but added two interceptions to that stat line. And trust me the interceptions were ugly. It almost seemed as though King was trying to attack double and triple coverages throughout the game rather than just finding the check down or an open receiver. Devon Achane also got a slow start to the day rushing for only 42 yards on 18 ATTEMPTS. The backfield will need to step up if the Ags have any shot at glory. First things first though, beat Appalachian State.
#3 Georgia 49 - #11 Oregon 3
Bossman Slim: Dadgone. I thought Georgia might come out a little sluggish breaking in so many new faces on offense and defense, but NOPE. Kirby has built Georgia into an Alabama-level machine - they don’t rebuild, they just reload. Tombstone Bennett puts another headstone in the yard, Bo Nix is who we knew he was, and the Georgia defense is mean again. The Bulldogs will be back in the playoff to defend their title, there’s almost no question about it.
The Hammer: Well, if there were any questions about how Georgia was going to replace the 15 players who were drafted off the 2021 team, those can be put to bed. This is a reload, not a rebuild. The Dawgs murdered the Ducks in broad daylight in front of God and Country. Stetson Bennett looked really comfortable, the offense was explosive and the defense is poised for another top 5 season. Georgia ain’t going nowhere, folks. Prayers up for Dan Lanning and Oregon.
The Waco Kid: Bo Nix is so bad, no matter the color scheme he is wearing. Oregon could make a whole line of new unis just for him and he still would turn the ball over multiple times. If you throw two interceptions to that Georgia defense, you have already lost the game. UGA was probably salivating when they found out they got to face familiar foe Nix. They know his tendencies to turn the ball over and get mad and they were able to exploit him just like he was back in that blue and orange on the plains. Moral of the story, you may be able to put lipstick on a pig, but at the end of the day, it is still going to be a pig.
#19 Arkansas 31 - #23 Cincinnati 24
Bossman Slim: Cincinnati showed they’re still a solid team under Luke Fickell, even after losing many players from last year's playoff team. But so is Arkansas. KJ Jefferson shined with 223 yards and 3 TDs through the air and added one on the ground. He needs to clean up the fumbles and Arkansas has some things to improve on, but this was a good win heading into an interesting matchup against South Carolina next week.
The Hammer: Arkansas was expected to win this game, and they handled their business. Cincinnati had a good showing, especially for a group of five teams that had 9 players drafted a year ago, but the Hogs were too much for the Bearkats. KJ Jefferson was as advertised, throwing for 223 yards, rushing for 62 more yards and totaling four touchdowns. After some injuries in the secondary, the Hogs looked a little vulnerable on the back end, but Cincy could not take advantage. Great start to the year for Sam Pittman and the Hogs.
The Waco Kid: Cincinnati is yesterday’s news and will forever stay there, while Arkansas looks like the team of the future. Can you hear that noise? That is Sam Pittman turning that jukebox up to start the 2022 season.
#21 Ole Miss 28 - Troy 10
Bossman Slim: The Rebels pounded Troy on the ground racking up 201 rushing yards and 3 TDs taking a 21-3 lead into halftime. The second half started with a 13-play, 75-yard drive capped off by a Jaxson Dart 12-yard TD pass to Malik Heath. The offense sputtered after that, turning the ball over twice, but the Ole Miss defense was up to the task and kept Troy contained. The Rebels will need some work in the passing game. They’ve got another tune-up next week against Central Arkansas to work on the passing game.
The Hammer: Similar to Texas A&M, the Rebels got off to a sluggish start before ultimately winning comfortably. Jaxson Dart was inconsistent through the air and only managed 154 yards passing along with one TD and one interception. With Dart showing some growing pains in his first start, the Rebs turned to the ground game and steamrolled Troy for 266 yards rushing. We’ve been beating the Zach Evans drum here at Biscuits & SEC for a while, and he delivered in this one, running for 130 yards on 20 carries. Plenty of things to work on offensively for Ole Miss, but a solid start to the season.
The Waco Kid: Lan may need to focus more on a slow offense than his dog Juice. As cute as the dog is, it will not save his job if he cannot compete in the West on a year-to-year basis. The Rebs let Troy stick around in the game but going forward they will need to step up every week if they have a shot at being a top-tier SEC team.
Florida 29 - #7 Utah 26
Bossman Slim: How about that atmosphere? The Swamp was in midseason form on Saturday night, rocking the entire game. The Gators look like they have some swagger back under Billy Napier after last year’s debacle. Is it too early to start the Anthony Richardson for Heisman campaign? The Gators sealed the victory on an Amari Burney interception in the endzone after Utah looked like they might win the game or tie it with a field goal. A fascinating matchup with Kentucky looms.
The Hammer: I should have never doubted an SEC team at home against a Pac-12 team. Shame on me. Despite being on the wrong side of this game, it did play out about how I expected. Tough, physical game that came down to the wire. I thought Florida with all their new pieces and a new coaching staff would be the team that made a mistake late, but it was Utah’s Cam Rising that threw the game-clinching interception when the Utes were nearing the Gator goal line with under a minute remaining. Give Billy Napier and this Florida team a ton of credit for pulling out a tough win against a very good team. I still think Utah will win the PAC 12, and Florida took them down. Anthony Richardson could be the most important player to his team in the SEC this year. He’s an absolute beast and will give Florida a chance to win every game they play in 2022. Gator fans could not have asked for a better start the Napier era.
The Waco Kid: Pretty sure I called this upset. You don’t just walk into The Swamp and win. I do not care if you are ranked #7, #1, #104 in the nation, if you enter this hostile environment you better be ready to give it your all. I think Utah might have taken this for granted. As I stated in the preview, this team thrives or dives on the back of Anthony Richardson, and the dual-threat QB came alive for this matchup. He only threw for 168 yards but added 106 on the ground and found the endzone 3 times rushing the ball. He truly looked like the next great Florida quarterback and may be the most dynamic since Tim Tebow. He has the talent to take the Gators to Atlanta in December but they must first get past a monster Georgia team. And after what the Dawgs did to Oregon, Richardson will have to find the endzone throwing the ball not just relying on his legs.
#20 Kentucky 37 - Miami (OH) 13
Bossman Slim: The Wildcats limped into halftime with a 13-10 lead but turned it on in the second half to notch a convincing win over the Redhawks. The special teams unit was exceptional and the defense held Miami of OH under 300 total yards on the night. The questions are more on offense. I said in the offseason I’m not sold on the Will Levis hype. He had a solid night overall but threw an INT in the redzone that cost the Wildcats 7 points. The offensive line needs to pick it up as they allowed four sacks on the night get Florida in The Swamp next week. Also - does Chris Rodriguez play? They’ll need him to take down the Gators.
The Hammer: Another SEC team with a slow start as Kentucky was just up 13-10 at half. Then the Wildcats came out hot in the third quarter and put the game away. Will Levis had a solid afternoon throwing for 303 yards, three touchdowns and an interception. The real story to me here was the Kentucky running game and offensive line. Chris Rodriguez is out for an undisclosed amount of time with a suspension, but only managing 50 yards rushing on 26 carries against Miami of Ohio is concerning. Kentucky also surrendered four sacks. That needs to get cleaned up and fast as Mark Stoops and Big Blue Nation head to the Swamp this weekend.
The Waco Kid: Another game that turned out the way it should. No need to go into details about a varsity team beating a JV team.
Auburn 42 - Mercer 16
Bossman Slim: Easy win for the Tigers as they racked up 285 yards on the ground led by Tank Bigsby’s 147 yards and 2 TDs, but the big story coming out is the QB situation. TJ Finley struggled and threw two interceptions and was benched in favor of Robby Ashford in the 3rd quarter. Ashford was effective, going 4/7 for 100 yards and tacking on 68 yards on the ground. Auburn will have another week to see both QBs take reps against San Jose State before a big matchup with Penn State in Week 3.
The Hammer: Not a ton to take away here. Tank Bigsby is really good, TJ Finley is not very good and Auburn could be in for a long season. Robby Ashford looked much better than TJ Finley in his limited time, so maybe that brings Tiger fans some hope. Bryan Harsin and Auburn need to keep stacking up wins early, because the back half of this schedule is brutal.
The Waco Kid: TJ Finley sucks. We found that out when he got his chance to play at LSU and he is re-assuring us of it now at Auburn. The real question in this contest is where was Zach Calzada? The Tigers should have won by this type of margin so no congratulations are in order yet.
Vanderbilt 42 - Elon 31
Bossman Slim: We’re starting the Anothony Richardson for Heisman hype, but how about Mike Wright!? The Vandy QB had 329 yards of total offense and SIX total touchdowns with four through the air and two on the ground. The Commodores have obviously found their leader on offense, now they just need to lock it down on defense. Giving up 495 yards of total offense to freaking Elon is not going to cut it, even if many of the Elon scoring came after the game was well out of hand. Vandy gets Wake Forest next week who will be without star QB Sam Hartman. Don’t sleep on Vandy in this one.
The Hammer: I didn’t know Elon had a football program until this weekend. Credit to Vandy for taking care of business here and picking up win number two on the year. Mike Wright continues to impress in 2022 as he threw for 245 yards, four touchdowns and added 84 yards rushing and two more TDs. The kid is producing, albeit against poor competition but let the Commodores enjoy this. The Vandy defense allowing 31 points and 495 yards of total offense to Elon is a bit concerning but the folks in Nashville will take wins any way they can get them.
The Waco Kid: Not sure if Elon is an institution funded by Mr. Musk but whoever they are, Vanderbilt wasted no time taking care of them on the football field. At halftime, the Commodores were already up 28-10 and at that point, the game was out of reach for the Space X founder’s namesake. Vandy QB Mike Wright seems to be able to do no wrong. On the season Wright has 6 passing scores and 4 rushing TDs. The more impressive statistic is that he has yet to throw an interception all season. If he can sustain this level of play the Black and Gold may not be the laughing stock of the SEC this year.
#1 Alabama 55 - Utah State 0
Bossman Slim: Not much to say here. Roll Tide, these guys aren’t messing around. Texas is next week so Bama should get to 2-0 with another blowout win.
Utah State presser after the Bama game. They let them off the hook at 55-0.
The Hammer: This was a bloodbath. Everything we thought we knew about Alabama coming into the year, seemed to be true in this contest. The defense was stifling and their offense did whatever they wanted. Good luck to the Longhorns next weekend, they are going to need a miracle.
The Waco Kid: 2021 SEC champs take on 2021 Mountain West champs. This wasn’t a Boise State team of the mid-2000s that Bama was playing, so the game went as expected.
Mississippi State 49 - Memphis 23
Bossman Slim: The Pirate gets his revenge. After a questionable loss last year to the Memphis Tigers, the Bulldogs took it to Memphis. I’m high on Cowboy Will Rogers and he delivered last night, posting a 450-yard 5 TD game. I’m looking for this kid to have a big year and he’s off to a hot start. State gets an interesting Arizona team next week who just had a good win over San Diego State, but should improve to 2-0.
The Hammer: If you’ve been following Leach’s career, then you know how much his teams tend to improve from year two to year three under his guidance. Add on a stud QB in Will Rogers, also in his third year under Leach, and this team could be ready to make some noise in 2022. The Bulldogs looked really sharp against Memphis, a team they lost to a year ago. Cowboy Will Rogers looked the part himself, throwing for five touchdowns and 450 yards. That is the kind of stats we’re used to seeing Leach quarterbacks put up. Mississippi State also ran the ball 34 times. They only managed 97 yards on those carries, but some balance is a welcome sight for Bulldog fans. Do not sleep on that team down in Starkville this season.
The Waco Kid: Mississippi State throws the ball more than any other team in the SEC and they put on a clinic on Saturday. While this game had a much different outcome last year, it is year 2 of the Mike Leach era and he seems to have found a quarterback similar to those during his time at Tech, who can run his air raid offense to perfection. If Will Rogers continues to throw for over 400 yards a game, the Bulldogs may just have a Heisman candidate this season.
South Carolina 35 - Georgia State 14
Bossman Slim: Georgia State ain’t no pushover. They showed that last year against Auburn, and they started off this year by taking a 14-12 lead in the 3rd quarter at Williams Brice. Spencer Rattler had an uneven first start throwing 1 TD and 2 INTs. He also added 1 TD on the ground. He’ll need to tighten things up quickly. Shane Beamer also brought back Beamer ball back as the Gamecocks scored on TWO blocked punt scoop-n-scores. It gets real next week against Arkansas - one we will definitely be watching.
The Hammer: Everyone was watching this one to see what Spencer Rattler would look like in his Gamecock debut. He looked as expected if you ask me, throwing for just 227 yards, one touchdown and two interceptions. I don’t think Rattler is a bad QB, but to expect him to put up the numbers he did at times while at OU is foolish. He doesn't have the weapons or weekly talent advantage that he did in Norman. He will be a much better quarterback than what South Carolina had a year ago, but he’s also not going to be an All-SEC type of guy. As I mentioned in our SEC preview show, I was more interested in seeing this run game and offensive line. Unfortunately for Gamecock fans, that unit still needs a ton of improvement. The Gamecocks only managed 79 yards rushing on 32 carries, and the offensive line allowed three sacks and seven tackles for loss. This was against Georgia State, mind you. How will that offensive line fare against Georgia, Florida, Texas A&M, Clemson, etc? That group needs to improve drastically and fast if South Carolina wants to make any noise in the SEC East.
The Waco Kid: Surprise, Surprise Spencer Rattler turned the ball over multiple times against a subpar defense. This was his whole problem at Oklahoma, taking care of the ball. In the six games he started or had significant playing time, Rattler threw 5 interceptions. Three of those INTs went to Big 12 defenses that were far below average, while the other two were thrown to a Tulane team that probably should have been run out of the building by the Sooners. That slithery little snake needs to sharpen his passing game or he will most likely have to find his third school in two years. The rest of SC is a well-rounded group that showed up on defense and scored twice on special teams, proving that with decent QB play they have the building blocks to be a mid-tier team in the SEC.
Florida State 24 - LSU 23
Bossman Slim: What in the Sam Hill did I just watch? What an unbelievable game, it’s hard to put into words what we witnessed. LSU struggled all game, then made a comeback in the 4th quarter and had the chance to tie it up at 24 with 0:00 remaining in regulation but their extra point was blocked, the final nail in a disappointing night for the Tigers. In our Week 1 preview with Steven Willis at Locked on Ole Miss, I said the Tigers would be a more disciplined team from the jump under Brian Kelly. Boy was I wrong. Special teams were a mess, muffing two punts and having a field goal and the game-tying PAT blocked. The offensive line is also in shambles. The overreaction was swift after this loss, but there’s still time to right the ship. Brian Kelly will have a lot of chewing out to do in the film room this week.
The Hammer: Holy smokes what a game! What a way for the Brian Kelly era to begin at LSU, losing a heartbreaker in New Orleans. Honestly, it felt like neither team wanted to win this game. Both were making boneheaded plays all night, and it finally bit LSU in the end. My biggest takeaway here was the total lack of discipline from LSU. I expect FSU to make dumb plays, and I have come to expect it from LSU over the last two seasons, but Brian Kelly was the guy who was supposed to restore order, right? So far, that ain’t happening. LSU had two muffed punts, a 30-yard field goal attempt blocked, and then had the game-tying extra point try blocked, sealing their fate. Add onto that the obvious targeting penalty on Ali Gaye that got him ejected and the sideshow with Kayshon Boutte all night and that’s not the kind of smart, disciplined play LSU fans were expecting from Brian Kelly. It’s a small sample size, but this team looked just as undisciplined as they’ve been the last few years. A concerning trend for Tiger faithful. Aside from undisciplined play, it seems like the offensive line troubles remain in Baton Rouge. Jayden Daniels was running for his life most of the night and would tuck and run after one read because he didn't trust that line to hold. The running backs were never even close to getting much going on the ground either. Very tough loss to open the season for LSU, but they deserved to lose that one. I think Brian Kelly can right the ship, but things might be a little more dire down there than he anticipated when he abandoned Notre Dame for the Bayou.
The Waco Kid: In my preview for LSU, I stated that this game may be an upset alert and it would all depend on the coaching style used during the showdown. Well, the Brian Kelly National Championship system was put on full display and college football fans caught a glimpse of an undisciplined, ill-prepared squad that has quite a bit of growing to do before becoming competitive again. Hopefully, for Tiger fans, this was just a slow start to the season and not indicative of a new regime that is playing out of its league.