College Football is back and better than ever.

#1 Alabama looks as strong as ever after annihilating #14 Miami 44-13 in the Chick-Fil-A kickoff game. QB Bryce Young went 27-38 for 344 yards and 4 TDs on the day with a 94.2 rating. Young looked like a seasoned veteran in his first collegiate start, showing why he should be in consideration for a first-round pick. The Tide showed some weakness while taking down Mercer 48-14. Starting off slow they were forced to punt on their first two drives. On the following Mercer drive, Chris Braswell blocked the punt and Jase McClellan returned it 33 yards for the first score of the game.

Following Hurricane Ida, the Tulane Green Wave were left without a home. Set to host #2 Oklahoma, The Green Wave were looking for a place to play the game. The location was set as Norman, Oklahoma, home of the Sooners. The crowd cheered for Tulane as they came out of the tunnel and the grounds crew painted their logo on both 25-yardlines. The Sooners, however, nearly took their hospitality too far. The #2 team in the country was victorious, but only by a score of 40-35. QB Spencer Rattler looked strong, but as Oklahoma looks to move to the SEC their defense is showing some major flaws. After dropping to #4 in the rankings, The Sooners bounced back with a 76-0 (yes, seventy-six points in a Division I game) victory over Western Carolina the following week.

#3 Clemson. #5 Georgia. 13 combined points. No offensive touchdowns. No one scored for the first 27 minutes of the game. Georgia finally opened up the scoring with a 74 yd Pick-Six by Christopher Smith late in the second. Late in the third, Georgia once again scored, this time with a field goal. Clemson scored in the middle of the fourth with a field goal after being shut out for over the first three quarters. A defensive thrashing by Georgia kept Clemson to under 200 yards for the first time in over two years. The Bulldogs jumped to #2 in the rankings and Clemson fell to #6. Both teams would come out victorious in grand fashion the following week.

Locally, William and Mary opened their season against UVA last Saturday. That is the only highlight from that game for the Tribe as they were shut out 43-0 at Scott Stadium. Punter Will Michael – yes we are using a punter for stats in an article—made his way on the field for 7 punts throughout the night, averaging 38 yards a punt with a long of 45.

Both teams started slow, with a touchdown taking 21 minutes to be scored. The Tribe kept it competitive, only being down 10-0, until QB Brennan Armstrong threw his first touchdown of the game with 0:32 left in the half. The Tribe were finally able to score and took advantage of their home field in a  24-3 beatdown of Lafayette. The game was a defensive battle, and Sam Boyer, student here at LHS and my fellow game attendee said, “Their defense is immaculate but their offense starts off very slow.” The tribe look to continue to ride this wins momentum next week against Colgate.

In Division III, The ODAC saw their conference get off to a strong start with 5 of the 7 teams coming out victorious last Saturday. Shenandoah opened their season with a 28-23 win over Methodist. Randolph-Macon took down Dickinson on the road 31-21. Bridgewater handled Gettysburg with a 31-7 victory. Washington and Lee fell to CNU 28-24 as the captains scored the dagger with under a minute to play. Ferrum opened up their campaign with a 31-24 victory over in state foe Averett. Hampden-Sydney took a loss in their opener to Baldwin Wallace 45-24. Lastly, Guilford picked up their first win over Greensboro in the Gate City Soup Bowl 21-7.

What lies ahead this season is unknown, but one thing that is certain is Football is back and we couldn’t be happier.