I am going to start a new column which will post each Monday on the Talk of Champions. This is going to center on my overall thoughts from the weekend. The topics can range. It will center mostly on college and NFL football. I'll throw in some recruiting especially if I attend a game on Friday night.
1. Let's start with Alabama football.
It was an tremendous comeback win for the Crimson Tide on the road against a tough Ole Miss team on Saturday. Like many of you, I was very skeptical Alabama could come back with a true freshman at quarterback when the scoreboard was 24-3. Nothing was going right for Alabama, and many thought the same results seen earlier in the Louisville/FSU game was about to take place in Oxford.
The 15-yard block in the back penalty that should have negated the Ole Miss TD on the fumble return turned out to be a blessing. The Rebels kickoff sailed out of bounds and Alabama opened up on the 50-yard line. Three plays later they were in the end zone. Eddie Jackson's punt return for six after Ole Miss went three-and-out changed the momentum of the game.
The second half was wild. There was probably a lot of celebrating (Alabama's side) on the sidelines, in the stands and in homes around the country when Jonathan Allen returned the interception for a touchdown. Alabama went up 48-30, and the game seemed over especially with the way the defense played in the second half.
Chad Kelly is a damn good quarterback. He also has some great receivers. They were going to make plays in this game regardless of Alabama's talented secondary. They made plays early in the game, but it also didn't hurt their chances when starters like Eddie Jackson and Minkah Fitzpatrick were on the sidelines.
Freshman Jonah Williams certainly made one of the best plays of the game when he recovered Bo Scarbrough's fumble on the final drive. I don't think many realized a fumble had taken place until the next play or two. Who knows what would have happened if Ole Miss had recovered. They didn't, and Damien Harris carried Alabama to a final first down for the win.
I've spoken with a few people within the football complex in the last 24 hours. They are happy and excited to get out of Oxford with a win. It's like getting a monkey off your back after two straight years of losing to the SEC-West program. A lot of great things came out of the game especially with the way Jalen Hurts competed after the fumble returned for six. Damien Harris was outstanding. Reuben Foster can still make highlight tackles. Eddie Jackson can deliver in big moments. That's what leaders tend to do. Jackson, Foster and Ryan Anderson are certainly the alpha dogs.
The offensive line opened up lanes for Alabama to rush for more than 300 yards, but there were several mental mistakes and penalties. Just too sloppy right now.
Alabama will win these next two games- Kent State and Kentucky. Both games are at home. It will give injured players an opportunity to recover. It's needed as the meat of the SEC schedule hits - at Arkansas, @Tennessee, home vs. Texas A&M, @LSU and then at home against Mississippi State.
Alabama is 3-0, and No.1 in the country. A place many should be excited about with plenty of room for improvement in all three facets of the game.
2. Eight teams that caught my eye
How can Louisville not be the most talked about team in the country right now? Louisville jumps from the No.10 team to the No.3 team in the country in the newly released AP after giving Florida State it's worse loss in history. They didn't give it to a Seminoles team in a rebuilding mode. This was the No.2 team in the country. Louisville is for real. They have two tough games remaining on their schedule. They play @Clemson on October 1 and @Houston on November 17. Two teams still strongly in the hunt for the college football playoff.
Ohio State was impressive on the road Saturday night against Oklahoma. I thought going into the game the Sooners could pull it off. Yes, they were defeated by Houston three weeks ago, but this was a home game in Norman. The national spotlight. A lot of new faces on the Buckeyes team. Urban Meyer is a lot like Nick Saban. Tough to bet against no matter the circumstance. Ohio State is loaded with athletes.
How about the Mark Richt era in Miami? 3-0. However, it's three wins against Florida A&M, Florida Atlantic and App State. Yes, they should have won all three of these games with ease. Who wouldn't? Well App State took Tennessee to OT three weeks ago. Miami defeated them 45-10 on the road. We'll see how good the Hurricanes are this weekend when they head to Atlanta to face 3-0 Georgia Tech. The Yellow Jackets annihilated Vanderbilt on Saturday. Miami plays at home in two weeks against FSU.
I was definitely impressed with North Dakota State's win against Iowa. The Hawkeyes have just never appealed to me as an elite program. They are always ranked in the top 25. Seem to have decent years, highly paid head coach, but don't think they have the horses to compete against the top tier in the country. North Dakota State is the best team in FCS. Not a major surprise (to me), but still impressive to see the team win against a Power-5 conference team ranked in the top 15.
Has Mike Riley turned the corner in Lincoln? Nebraska got a big win against Oregon in a non-conference match-up on Saturday. The Cornhuskers are 3-0. They schedule is relatively easy. They won't win at Ohio State on November 5, but they are going to have a good record by the end of the year. At least that's how it appears right now.
Is Texas A&M the toughest opponent remaining on Alabama's schedule? Maybe so. The Aggies defense shut down Auburn on the road this past weekend. They have playmakers on both sides of the ball. Alabama's offensive line better improve before the October 22 date in Tuscaloosa.
Houston dismantled Cincinnati in the fourth quarter. It was a close game throughout the night until the Cougars scored 28 unanswered including two pick 6s. Houston won't have a tough game until November 17 when Louisville comes to town. Greg Ward Jr., vs. Lamar Jackson. Can't wait!
Every time I think of Michigan State it's hard not to think about the blood bath at the hands of Alabama not only in the Cotton Bowl last year, but also the Capitol One bowl in 2010. Of course, I now think about the blocked punt for a TD against Michigan last year. Notre Dame isn't a good team this year. Still nice for a team to go on the road and get a big win in South Bend.
My Heisman favorites (as of today)
1. Lamar Jackson (Louisville)
2. Lamar Jackson
3. Lamar Jackson
Coaches on the rise
1. Chris Klieman (North Dakota State)
2. P.J. Fleck (Western Michigan)
3. Jeff Monken (Army)
Coaching Hot seat
1. Derek Mason (Vanderbilt)
2. David Beatty (Kansas)
3. Gus Malzahn (Auburn)
First year head coaches who better turn things around quickly: Clay Helton (USC), Bronco Mendenhall (Virginia), Matt Campbell (Iowa State)
Best games on tap
Arkansas at Texas A&M
Wisconsin at Michigan State
Florida at Tennessee
Georgia at Ole Miss
Georgia Southern at Western Michigan
Stanford at UCLA
Clemson at Georgia Tech (Thursday)
Florida State at South Florida
LSU at Auburn
Best NFL teams after Week 2 (Once again in my opinion)
1. Denver Broncos
2. New England Patriots
3. Arizona Cardinals
4. Pittsburgh Steelers
5. Minnesota Vikings
6. Green Bay Packers
7. Carolina Panthers
8. Houston Texans
9. Cincinnati Bengals
10. New York Jets
Miscellaneous
-I spoke to the St. Clair County Red Elephant Club on Thursday night in Pell City. It was a great turn out. I am fortunate enough to speak to RECs, alumni associations, Touchdown Clubs, Quarterback Clubs and so on throughout the year. This was another fantastic event. I've never been disappointed with the meals. They treated us right on Thursday with a ribeye steak that was bigger than my plate. Great job!
2. I didn't get the opportunity to go to a football game this past week. I had the speaking event on Thursday night. I attended the Zac Brown Band concert on Friday night at Oak Mountain. I was also coaching third grade football. I strongly recommend going to a Zac Brown concert if you have never been to one. I'm not a fan of country music. Some label him as such. I would strongly say Southern Rock. He played some excellent cover songs to go along with his catalog. The songs included Bohemian Rhapsody which had the entire crowd singing. Devil went down to Georgia, Kashmir and Teenage Wasteland. Great, great time. Don't worry guys who know me well- I'm heading to Phish in Nashville next month.
3. My third grade football team is off to a 1-0 start this year. The Cherokee Bend (Mountain Brook) Cowboys look good. Really have enjoyed coaching these kids so far. We have a big game Tuesday night against the Seahawks. I believe we will win.
4. Trivia night at Sky Castle. I posted about the event last week. I host trivia night at Sky Castle in Birmingham (Lakeview district) every Tuesday night at 7:30 p.m. Happy hour specials all night. Great food and atmosphere. The restaurant is owned by the Bajalieh brothers who also own Slice and Sol's in Birmingham. Come out and have a drink and win some great prizes each week.
5. I am a full supporter of the Harambe movement.
6. Aaron Sterling, four-star defensive end from Stephenson High School in Stone Mountain, Georgia, decommitted from Alabama on Sunday. There is typically some concern when a recruit has gone quiet for months. Sterling and his mother called the Alabama coaching staff on Sunday to let them know he would re-open his recruitment. Alabama did not force him out of the class or stop recruiting him, but have heard he is not having a remarkable senior season.
7. Alex Leatherwood, five-star offensive tackle from Washington High School in Pensacola, Florida, likely won't flip his commitment. He's been a big recruiter behind the scenes for Alabama. However, he is going to take all of his official visits. Texas is one to keep an eye on as his mother lives about 45 minutes away from Austin. He also didn't seem pleased with Alabama's offensive performance in the first half against Ole Miss.
8. I was certainly disappointed to see the news coming out of New York on late Saturday night regarding the bomb. Luckily, there were no fatalities. I had a few close friends in the area earlier that day from seeing their snapchat posts. I messaged both immediately to see if they were all good. They were and didn't really know what happened. Hopefully, the authorities can track down the person (s) responsible.
9. If you have yet to watch Stranger Things on Netflix- Do it. Also disappointed with Bloodline not getting renewed for a third season. I was a big fan of the show. I finished season 2 of Narcos last week. That was such a great series. Netflix did a great job all-around.
10. Let me know what you think about this column. I'll deliver it each week. Keep in mind this is not an Insider Report. Just thoughts on any given weekend.
1. Let's start with Alabama football.
It was an tremendous comeback win for the Crimson Tide on the road against a tough Ole Miss team on Saturday. Like many of you, I was very skeptical Alabama could come back with a true freshman at quarterback when the scoreboard was 24-3. Nothing was going right for Alabama, and many thought the same results seen earlier in the Louisville/FSU game was about to take place in Oxford.
The 15-yard block in the back penalty that should have negated the Ole Miss TD on the fumble return turned out to be a blessing. The Rebels kickoff sailed out of bounds and Alabama opened up on the 50-yard line. Three plays later they were in the end zone. Eddie Jackson's punt return for six after Ole Miss went three-and-out changed the momentum of the game.
The second half was wild. There was probably a lot of celebrating (Alabama's side) on the sidelines, in the stands and in homes around the country when Jonathan Allen returned the interception for a touchdown. Alabama went up 48-30, and the game seemed over especially with the way the defense played in the second half.
Chad Kelly is a damn good quarterback. He also has some great receivers. They were going to make plays in this game regardless of Alabama's talented secondary. They made plays early in the game, but it also didn't hurt their chances when starters like Eddie Jackson and Minkah Fitzpatrick were on the sidelines.
Freshman Jonah Williams certainly made one of the best plays of the game when he recovered Bo Scarbrough's fumble on the final drive. I don't think many realized a fumble had taken place until the next play or two. Who knows what would have happened if Ole Miss had recovered. They didn't, and Damien Harris carried Alabama to a final first down for the win.
I've spoken with a few people within the football complex in the last 24 hours. They are happy and excited to get out of Oxford with a win. It's like getting a monkey off your back after two straight years of losing to the SEC-West program. A lot of great things came out of the game especially with the way Jalen Hurts competed after the fumble returned for six. Damien Harris was outstanding. Reuben Foster can still make highlight tackles. Eddie Jackson can deliver in big moments. That's what leaders tend to do. Jackson, Foster and Ryan Anderson are certainly the alpha dogs.
The offensive line opened up lanes for Alabama to rush for more than 300 yards, but there were several mental mistakes and penalties. Just too sloppy right now.
Alabama will win these next two games- Kent State and Kentucky. Both games are at home. It will give injured players an opportunity to recover. It's needed as the meat of the SEC schedule hits - at Arkansas, @Tennessee, home vs. Texas A&M, @LSU and then at home against Mississippi State.
Alabama is 3-0, and No.1 in the country. A place many should be excited about with plenty of room for improvement in all three facets of the game.
2. Eight teams that caught my eye
How can Louisville not be the most talked about team in the country right now? Louisville jumps from the No.10 team to the No.3 team in the country in the newly released AP after giving Florida State it's worse loss in history. They didn't give it to a Seminoles team in a rebuilding mode. This was the No.2 team in the country. Louisville is for real. They have two tough games remaining on their schedule. They play @Clemson on October 1 and @Houston on November 17. Two teams still strongly in the hunt for the college football playoff.
Ohio State was impressive on the road Saturday night against Oklahoma. I thought going into the game the Sooners could pull it off. Yes, they were defeated by Houston three weeks ago, but this was a home game in Norman. The national spotlight. A lot of new faces on the Buckeyes team. Urban Meyer is a lot like Nick Saban. Tough to bet against no matter the circumstance. Ohio State is loaded with athletes.
How about the Mark Richt era in Miami? 3-0. However, it's three wins against Florida A&M, Florida Atlantic and App State. Yes, they should have won all three of these games with ease. Who wouldn't? Well App State took Tennessee to OT three weeks ago. Miami defeated them 45-10 on the road. We'll see how good the Hurricanes are this weekend when they head to Atlanta to face 3-0 Georgia Tech. The Yellow Jackets annihilated Vanderbilt on Saturday. Miami plays at home in two weeks against FSU.
I was definitely impressed with North Dakota State's win against Iowa. The Hawkeyes have just never appealed to me as an elite program. They are always ranked in the top 25. Seem to have decent years, highly paid head coach, but don't think they have the horses to compete against the top tier in the country. North Dakota State is the best team in FCS. Not a major surprise (to me), but still impressive to see the team win against a Power-5 conference team ranked in the top 15.
Has Mike Riley turned the corner in Lincoln? Nebraska got a big win against Oregon in a non-conference match-up on Saturday. The Cornhuskers are 3-0. They schedule is relatively easy. They won't win at Ohio State on November 5, but they are going to have a good record by the end of the year. At least that's how it appears right now.
Is Texas A&M the toughest opponent remaining on Alabama's schedule? Maybe so. The Aggies defense shut down Auburn on the road this past weekend. They have playmakers on both sides of the ball. Alabama's offensive line better improve before the October 22 date in Tuscaloosa.
Houston dismantled Cincinnati in the fourth quarter. It was a close game throughout the night until the Cougars scored 28 unanswered including two pick 6s. Houston won't have a tough game until November 17 when Louisville comes to town. Greg Ward Jr., vs. Lamar Jackson. Can't wait!
Every time I think of Michigan State it's hard not to think about the blood bath at the hands of Alabama not only in the Cotton Bowl last year, but also the Capitol One bowl in 2010. Of course, I now think about the blocked punt for a TD against Michigan last year. Notre Dame isn't a good team this year. Still nice for a team to go on the road and get a big win in South Bend.
My Heisman favorites (as of today)
1. Lamar Jackson (Louisville)
2. Lamar Jackson
3. Lamar Jackson
Coaches on the rise
1. Chris Klieman (North Dakota State)
2. P.J. Fleck (Western Michigan)
3. Jeff Monken (Army)
Coaching Hot seat
1. Derek Mason (Vanderbilt)
2. David Beatty (Kansas)
3. Gus Malzahn (Auburn)
First year head coaches who better turn things around quickly: Clay Helton (USC), Bronco Mendenhall (Virginia), Matt Campbell (Iowa State)
Best games on tap
Arkansas at Texas A&M
Wisconsin at Michigan State
Florida at Tennessee
Georgia at Ole Miss
Georgia Southern at Western Michigan
Stanford at UCLA
Clemson at Georgia Tech (Thursday)
Florida State at South Florida
LSU at Auburn
Best NFL teams after Week 2 (Once again in my opinion)
1. Denver Broncos
2. New England Patriots
3. Arizona Cardinals
4. Pittsburgh Steelers
5. Minnesota Vikings
6. Green Bay Packers
7. Carolina Panthers
8. Houston Texans
9. Cincinnati Bengals
10. New York Jets
Miscellaneous
-I spoke to the St. Clair County Red Elephant Club on Thursday night in Pell City. It was a great turn out. I am fortunate enough to speak to RECs, alumni associations, Touchdown Clubs, Quarterback Clubs and so on throughout the year. This was another fantastic event. I've never been disappointed with the meals. They treated us right on Thursday with a ribeye steak that was bigger than my plate. Great job!
2. I didn't get the opportunity to go to a football game this past week. I had the speaking event on Thursday night. I attended the Zac Brown Band concert on Friday night at Oak Mountain. I was also coaching third grade football. I strongly recommend going to a Zac Brown concert if you have never been to one. I'm not a fan of country music. Some label him as such. I would strongly say Southern Rock. He played some excellent cover songs to go along with his catalog. The songs included Bohemian Rhapsody which had the entire crowd singing. Devil went down to Georgia, Kashmir and Teenage Wasteland. Great, great time. Don't worry guys who know me well- I'm heading to Phish in Nashville next month.
3. My third grade football team is off to a 1-0 start this year. The Cherokee Bend (Mountain Brook) Cowboys look good. Really have enjoyed coaching these kids so far. We have a big game Tuesday night against the Seahawks. I believe we will win.
4. Trivia night at Sky Castle. I posted about the event last week. I host trivia night at Sky Castle in Birmingham (Lakeview district) every Tuesday night at 7:30 p.m. Happy hour specials all night. Great food and atmosphere. The restaurant is owned by the Bajalieh brothers who also own Slice and Sol's in Birmingham. Come out and have a drink and win some great prizes each week.
5. I am a full supporter of the Harambe movement.
6. Aaron Sterling, four-star defensive end from Stephenson High School in Stone Mountain, Georgia, decommitted from Alabama on Sunday. There is typically some concern when a recruit has gone quiet for months. Sterling and his mother called the Alabama coaching staff on Sunday to let them know he would re-open his recruitment. Alabama did not force him out of the class or stop recruiting him, but have heard he is not having a remarkable senior season.
7. Alex Leatherwood, five-star offensive tackle from Washington High School in Pensacola, Florida, likely won't flip his commitment. He's been a big recruiter behind the scenes for Alabama. However, he is going to take all of his official visits. Texas is one to keep an eye on as his mother lives about 45 minutes away from Austin. He also didn't seem pleased with Alabama's offensive performance in the first half against Ole Miss.
8. I was certainly disappointed to see the news coming out of New York on late Saturday night regarding the bomb. Luckily, there were no fatalities. I had a few close friends in the area earlier that day from seeing their snapchat posts. I messaged both immediately to see if they were all good. They were and didn't really know what happened. Hopefully, the authorities can track down the person (s) responsible.
9. If you have yet to watch Stranger Things on Netflix- Do it. Also disappointed with Bloodline not getting renewed for a third season. I was a big fan of the show. I finished season 2 of Narcos last week. That was such a great series. Netflix did a great job all-around.
10. Let me know what you think about this column. I'll deliver it each week. Keep in mind this is not an Insider Report. Just thoughts on any given weekend.
Last edited:
