With college football kicking off this weekend, Notre Dame wasn’t the only program that got to see what their team was made of. With a schedule that looked to be one of the most daunting slates in the country, I did my best to keep tabs on all the future Irish opponents.
Here’s a quick rundown of the opposition and how they looked in their respective season openers.
PURDUE -- Just hours before the game, coach Danny Hope suspended quarterback Caleb TerBush for the game, citing a violation of team rules. That opened the door for sixth year quarterback Robert Marve, who overcame an early interception to breeze by Eastern Kentucky 48-6.
Purdue threw the ball 47 times against the Colonels, but also turned the ball over five times, something the Boilermakers will have to clean up as they move to a considerably more legitimate opponent.
Trending: They were what we thought they were, though the suspension of TerBush, who had just won the starting job, makes things interest.
MICHIGAN STATE -- The Spartans probably had the most impressive performance of any team in the Big Ten, holding Boise State to only 206 yards of total offense as they rode running back Le’Veon Bell to a 17-13 victory.
If there’s a concern for Michigan State fans, it’s the passing game, with Andrew Maxwell throwing three interceptions in his first start after replacing Kirk Cousins. Linebacker Max Bullough led the defense in tackles and added 1.5 TFLs as the Spartans defense kept an entirely rebuilt Boise State roster in check.
Trending: The defense sounded to be as good as advertised, though they didn’t get a sack on the Broncos. If Mark Dantonio thinks he can give Le’Veon Bell 50 touches an afternoon, that might be saying more about his trust in the passing game than his love for Bell.
MICHIGAN -- It appears one top-ten program in the state of Michigan has been exposed as paper lions. In what was supposed to be the premiere match-up of the college football weekend, Alabama absolutely dominated the Wolverines, neutralizing quarterback Denard Robinson while dominating the line of scrimmage.
Losing to Alabama is nothing to be ashamed of, but the 41-14 defeat never even seemed close. Making things more troubling is an injury to left tackle Taylor Lewan. Cornerback Blake Countess also was injured.
Trending: After a season where everything went right, the opening game couldn’t have gone more wrong for Michigan. The Wolverines will have a chance to right the ship with back-to-back dates with Air Force and Charley Molnar’s UMass squad before they head to South Bend.
MIAMI -- After a slow start, the Hurricanes ran away from Boston College 41-32. Touted freshman Duke Johnson ran for 135 yards on just seven carries as Miami battled back from an early 14-point hole. Quarterback Shane Morris completed 28 of his 45 throws for 207 yards with both a TD and interception.
Trending: Eh. Not sure what to make of this game, though young Johnson, one of the most highly touted running backs to come out of Florida, could be worth keeping an eye on.
STANFORD -- Life after Andrew Luck might not be so easy after all. Quarterback Josh Nunes played well enough in his debut, but a year after rolling over San Jose State by 54 points, the Cardinal needed to hold on and win 20-17. Stepfan Taylor ran for 116 yards in the win.
Trending: A win is a win. But this is far from impressive.
BYU -- It was a pretty resounding victory for Bronco Mendenhall’s squad, spoiling Mike Leach’s debut at Washington State and rolling to an easy victory 30-6. Riley Nelson threw two touchdowns and for 285 yards and the the BYU defense held Wazzu to minus-five yards of rushing.
Trending: This will be an interesting test for the Irish, especially if the BYU passing attack is rounding into form.
OKLAHOMA -- It was far from an impressive opening statement for the Sooners, who needed 14 fourth quarter points to pull away from UTEP. Landry Jones started slow before rallying his squad, but UTEP doomed itself after missing three field goals and failing on a fake punt.
Trending: The Sooners were a horrendous 5 of 16 on third down and struggling with efficiency. It’s certainly too soon to panic, but a mediocre debut for sure.
PITTSBURGH -- It was a total calamity for new head coach Paul Chryst, who lost his debut to Youngstown State in rather convincing fashion 31-17. Ray Graham returned from an ACL injury, but had a critical fumble. Pitt also gave up over 200 yards on the ground and let the Penguins convert 11 of 16 third downs as Youngstown won their first game against a BCS school.
Trending: This could be an ugly season for Pitt, who might secretly be wishing they never fired Dave Wannstedt.
BOSTON COLLEGE -- See above. Lost to Miami. That said, there were signs of life in the Eagles’ offense, a unit that’s been horrendous the past few seasons. Chase Rettig had a big day and hit Alex Amidon ten times for 149 yards.
Trending: Better than expected. But that’s not saying much.
WAKE FOREST -- The Demon Deacons just barely scratched by Liberty, a FCS opponent that was tied with the Jim Grobe’s team heading into the fourth quarter. The offense struggled for much of the afternoon after replacing four starters up front. Tanner Price completed 16 of 28 passes, though the Deacs couldn’t reach 100 yards rushing.
Trending: Wake is going to go through some serious growing pains.
USC -- The Trojans look every bit the offensive juggernaut expected as they raced off to a 35-point halftime lead over Hawaii and then cruised to a 49-10 win. Marquise Lee had a ridiculous 10 catches for 197 yards and also ran back a kickoff 100 yards for good measure. Matt Barkley completed 23 of 38 throws for 372 yards and four touchdowns.
Trending: Yikes. The Irish secondary has plenty of time to prepare for the dynamic passing offense of the Trojans. They’ll potentially be susceptible on defense but it might not matter with Barkley running the show.