The first week of the 2016 College Football season lived up to every bit of the hype placed upon it. Alabama rolled through USC. Then, the University of Houston showed they would be a great choice for the Big XII. LSU lost its first game of the season to Wisconsin as well. Not to mention, the University of Texas coming through for head coach Charlie Strong and defeating Notre Dame. Texas A&M dropped the hammer on UCLA. Tennessee got a big scare at home and Clemson almost had one on the road. So, much happened in that first week that the first meaningful rankings of the season should be interesting. This is the W2Mnet College Football Top 25: Week 1.
W2Mnet College Football Top 25: Week 1
W2Mnet Staff
Randy Isbelle, (Football Co-Senior Editor, Host of Fantasy Football 2 the MAX, Co-Host of Football 2 the MAX)
Sean Garmer, (Editor-in-Chief, Host of Football 2 the MAX)
Daniel Anderson, (Games Co-Senior Editor, Real Life Gamer Reviews)
#1 Alabama Crimson Tide
Record: 1-0
You could not look more dominant than Alabama did against USC. The Trojans struck first and actually led 3-0 after the first quarter, the Tide ran off a 52-3 run the rest of the game. Alabama gained 465 total yards of offense while holding USC to under 200 yards. The Tide used Jalen Hurts and Blake Barnett, who both threw over 100 yards, and eight different rushers to throw the perfect balance of offense against the Trojans. Alabama has certainly proven they are the team to beat in 2016.- Randy Isbelle
(Next Week: Western Kentucky)
#2 Clemson Tigers
Record: 1-0
It wasn’t pretty, but the Tigers opened the season with a victory. Defeating a Southeastern Conference team on the road is no simple task, and it was no easy task for last season’s runner-ups. Clemson never trailed after taking a 7-3 lead in the 2nd quarter, but two late hail mary attempts were too close for comfort for a team many believe can get back to the National Championship game. Deshaun Watson did not have a great game, but has plenty of time to win over voters for the Heisman Trophy. – Randy Isbelle
(Next Week: Troy)
#3 Florida State Seminoles
Record: 1-0
Everything looked lost for the Florida State Seminoles in their game against Ole Miss, then came the 3rd quarter. Trailing 28-13 at half time, many fans wondered if Ole Miss was the real deal, if Florida State had finally slipped off the mountain. The third quarter changed everything as Florida State scored 23 unanswered points, held the Rebels to negative yards rushing in the quarter and took over the game. In the end, Deondre Francois and the Seminoles sealed an eleven point victory against a top-11 team, and are solid contenders for the playoffs. – Randy Isbelle
(Next Week: Charleston Southern)
#4 Ohio State Buckeyes
Record: 1-0
J.T. Barrett set a school record with six touchdown passes, rushing for one more, in a romp over Bowling Green. Ohio State also set a school record with 776 total yards of offense. The only disappointment was the 2nd quarter, the only quarter the Buckeyes did not score 21 points. – Randy Isbelle
(Next Week: Tulsa)
#5 Michigan Wolverines
Record: 1-0
The University of Hawaii had to travel from Australia all the way to Ann Arbor, Michigan for their match-up with the Michigan Wolverines. Head Coach, Jim Harbaugh and Michigan did not give them much of a warm welcome. The Wolverines used three different quarterbacks who combined for a 17/20 for 206 yards, three touchdown day. Wilton Speight throwing all three. If you had Hawaii plus 59 you still lost your bet. – Randy Isbelle
(Next Week: UCF)
#6 Houston Cougars
Record: 1-0
It was not shocking that Houston beat Oklahoma, it was that they looked like the better team. The Cougars looked vulnerable against Oklahoma on the first drive of the game, but took control soon after. Greg Ward Jr. put his name in the Heisman hat, throwing for over 300 yards and two touchdowns. Houston will have to run the table and get some help to make the playoffs, but you could not ask for a better start than this. – Randy Isbelle
(Next Week: Lamar)
#7 Stanford Cardinal
Record: 1-0
Stanford did exactly what they needed to do against Kansas State. They controlled the ball, they used Christian McCaffrey to beat up the defense and Ryan Burns played a clean game. If Stanford is going to make a run towards the playoffs they are going to need to execute that gameplan and rely on their solid defense to keep the scores low. Stanford will enjoy the week off before facing a USC squad who were embarrassed by Alabama. – Randy Isbelle
(Next Week: OFF)
#8 Georgia Bulldogs
Record: 1-0
The Georgia Bulldogs took on a very game North Carolina Tarheels squad who were looking to make a name for themselves. The game was still in doubt when the returning Nick Chubb broke a 55-yard touchdown run to seal the deal for the Bulldogs. Chubb was the story of the game, returning from injury, rushing for 222 yards on 32 carries and scoring two touchdowns. – Randy Isbelle
(Next Week: Nicholls)
#9 Washington Huskies
Record: 1-0
The Washington Huskies wanted to prove they were for real from the opening whistle. Washington jumped out to a 28-0 lead in the first quarter against Rutgers and didn’t look back. Jake Browning looked great, but Washington is looking a little too one dimensional on offense. It will be interesting to see how they fair against Pac-12 competition. – Randy Isbelle
(Next Week: Idaho)
#10 Texas Longhorns
Record: 1-0
Texas fought their hearts out in a double overtime win at home against Notre Dame. The fighting Irish couldn’t handle the combination of Shane Buechele and Tyrone Swoopes five touchdowns. Charlie Strong could finally have the team to truly compete in the Big XII by the looks of things. – Sean Garmer
(Next Week: UTEP)
#11 Louisville Cardinals
Record: 1-0
The Louisville Cardinals absolutely demolished Charlotte 70-14 thanks in no small part to Lamar Jackson’s eight touchdowns and 405 combined yards. Hard to tell if it’s quality of opponent, or if this team is for real. Perhaps we find out a bit more when they face Syracuse next week. Sean Garmer
(Next Week: Syracuse)
#12 Michigan State Spartans
Record: 1-0
It was not the strongest performance by Michigan State, but at least they got the job done against Furman. The defense bailed out an underwhelming offense. Tyler O’ Conner’s three touchdowns proved to be enough, but it took until midway through the third quarter to put them away due to 120 yards in penalties by Michigan State. – Sean Garmer
(Next Week: OFF)
#13 Wisconsin Badgers
Record: 1-0
Wisconsin pulled off one of the big upsets of the weekend, by edging out LSU 16-14 thanks to a late field goal and a D’Cota Dixon interception with 57 seconds left. Although, most will remember the terrible hit delivered by Josh Boutte. The game should be remembered for a loss that could put a damper in LSU’s national title hopes. Not to mention, Brandon Harris having a pretty bad game and throwing two interceptions, while Leonard Fournette limped off the field. – Sean Garmer
(Next Week: Akron)
#14 Iowa Hawkeyes
Record: 1-0
The Iowa Hawkeyes took care of business early and never looked back with their 45-21 win over Miami-Ohio. The two Running Back tandem of Akrum Wadley and LeShun Daniels each scored twice before half-time. This should really tell people all they need to know. The defense let up a bit in the second half, but the game was well in hand by then. – Sean Garmer
(Next Week: Iowa State)
#15 Tennessee Volunteers
Record: 1-0
Tennessee survived an absolute scare from Appalachian State and it took a lucky bounce to Jalen Hurd in the endzone to prevent overtime. Josh Dobbs did not look like himself, but at least the defense turned it on in the second half to help lead the comeback. Next week is a huge test for the Volunteers as they travel to Bristol to play Virginia Tech at Bristol Motor Speedway. – Sean Garmer
(Next Week: Virginia Tech)
#16 Oklahoma Sooners
Record: 0-1
Oklahoma was involved in one of the marquee matchups over the weekend against a Houston team that certainly came to play. Houston was totally the better team on this day on both sides of the ball. The defense sacked Baker Mayfield numerous times and Greg Ward Jr. passed for 321 yards and two scores. Brandon Wilson’s kick six is really what did in Oklahoma though. Regardless, Oklahoma has Ohio State still in a couple weeks and could recover. Houston now goes into a lighter schedule and hopes to keep to their winning ways. – Sean Garmer
(Next Week: Louisiana Monroe)
#17 TCU Horned Frogs
Record: 1-0
TCU continues to live up to their calling card. Offense all the way and defense be damned. New transfer Kenny Hill threw for 439 yards and two scores, but also threw two interceptions. South Dakota State almost made it a game late, but TCU was able to pull away. TCU may be more vulnerable this year, than they have been in more recent years, and with the Big XII been a bit more even, the Horned Frogs will have a lot more to prove as well. – Sean Garmer
(Next Week: Arkansas)
#18 Oklahoma State Cowboys
Record: 1-0
Oklahoma State was up 31-0 by the time the game was midway through the second quarter. Southeastern Louisiana was every bit of the FCS team you’d expect. Oklahoma State rolled and did the business in Game 1. Can they do the same to a better Central Michigan team next week. – Sean Garmer
(Next Week: Central Michigan)
#19 LSU Tigers
Record: 0-1
Yes, they are 0 – 1. Yes, their coach went from a hot seat to a boiling seat. That all being said, they are still the team we thought they were last week. They still have a decent to good defense and an all-conference running back. They lost to a good Wisconsin team, but will rebound against Mississippi State and they have the talent to go on a run in the SEC. Losses in September are not as bad as losses in November. If they beat Alabama they could win the SEC West and make everyone forget about the loss last week. – Daniel Anderson
(Next Week: Jacksonville State)
#20 Baylor Bears
Record: 1-0
Baylor beat Northwestern State last week and looked good when they did. Unfortunately, that wasn’t exactly a great team they beat. I think we are a few weeks out from getting to see just how for real Baylor is this year. Until then, this is the right place for them in the poll. – Daniel Anderson
(Next Week: SMU)
#21 Texas A&M Aggies
Record: 1-0
The Aggies beat a decent UCLA in overtime team last week and surprised a lot of people by doing so. They also look like they have found their quarterback for the year in Trevor Knight. The team answered some questions people had going into last week, but the real test will come in a couple weeks when they face an Auburn team that looked surprisingly good last week. – Daniel Anderson
(Next Week: Prairie View A&M)
#22 Boise State Broncos
Record: 1-0
Boise State did what they had to do last week by beating Louisiana-LaFayette convincingly. Now they have to move on and face a Washington State team that also shouldn’t present them many problems. Their schedule does not really present them with many challenges so to have any hope of making the playoff they are going to have to go undefeated. – Daniel Anderson
(Next Week: Washington State)
#23 Florida Gators
Record: 1-0
The Florida Gators handled UMass easily last week, and should have similar ease with Kentucky this week. Their big test comes in week 4 against a Tennessee team that they have handled the last several years. Before moving Florida much higher they need to succeed against a better opponent than UMass or UK. – Daniel Anderson
(Next Week: Kentucky)
#24 Oregon Ducks
Record: 1-0
The Oregon Ducks, as expected, ran over UC Davis easily. I am not sure Virginia will give them that much better of a challenge, but at least they will be better than UC Davis. Oregon is in an interesting position in the Pac-12. The conference as a whole didn’t look that great, and with their play style they are always a threat to beat whoever they face. This team could lose four games or run the table. Only time will tell. – Daniel Anderson
(Next Week: Virginia)
#25 Notre Dame Fighting Irish
Record: 0-1
Notre Dame lost a game to a Texas team they really should not have lost to if they were one of the top teams in the nation. Every year it seems like everyone is always asking if Notre Dame is back, and then they lose one or two games and they prove they aren’t (or they make the national championship game and lose.) This looks to be another one of those years. The upside for Notre Dame is that the loss is early in the year, and if Texas plays as well against Big XII teams as they did against Notre Dame, this loss will not hurt them too much in the long run. I do not think that Notre Dame will be able to make the playoff, but they should be in line for a major bowl if they do not stumble again. Nevada probably won’t challenge them this week, but Michigan State next week will give us a better indicator if the Texas game was a fluke, or if it is a more accurate measure of the team this year. – Daniel Anderson
(Next Week: Nevada)
Top 25 polls are always something that creates tons of conversation and controversy about who’s placed where and who’s left out. Do you agree or disagree with our Top 25? Let us know in the comments and be sure to check out the rest of our Football content on the website.
About The Author: Randy Isbelle
Randy Isbelle is a fan of platformers and sports games mostly but enjoys games from almost every genre. He’s also a lifelong New York Jets fan as well. Randy has a history of writing reviews for various websites and has a collection of over 2,000 video games. The dude knows his stuff. When he’s not writing, streaming or playing games, he’s spending time with his girlfriend and two children
On Twitter:@RandyIsbelle