Winner: The 2025 NFL Draft WR1 race
Arizona junior wide receiver Tetairoa McMillan and Missouri junior WR Luther Burden III were the presumed favorites to be the first receiver drafted in April, but a new challenger entered the ring with Colorado’s do-it-all junior athlete, Travis Hunter.
Hunter displayed ridiculous ball skills in a three-touchdown performance against North Dakota State while also playing cornerback. McMillan broke the Big 12 record for receiving yards in a single game with 304 and 4 touchdowns and Burden also started the year with a touchdown. It should be a fun subplot to follow this year, especially with a McMillan-Hunter matchup looming on Oct. 19.
Loser: Conference realignment
I flipped on my TV this Friday night excited to see the Stanford Cardinal open their season. I wanted to see star sophomore WR Elic Ayomanor make some plays, but instead, I saw the ACC logo plastered on the Cardinal’s field. Simply inexcusable from the powers that be to have a California school in the Atlantic Coast Conference. It was the first time when I got to see the absurdity play out in real-time and fully realized that the wacky era of Pac-12 After Dark is no more.
Winner: FCS programs making it close
Unfortunately, there were no upsets this week from FCS division opponents, but that doesn’t change the fact that FCS teams gave the FBS teams all they had. FCS powerhouse North Dakota State, the same program that previously produced first-round NFL Draft picks in QBs Carson Wentz and Trey Lance, and its dual-threat senior QB Cam Miller took Colorado to the brink and would have won had it not been for the brilliance of Hunter’s three-touchdown game.
Texas Tech barely held on against Abilene Christian in a 52-51 shootout, stopping the two-point conversion in overtime that would have given the Wildcats the win. Montana State’s win over New Mexico in Week 0 is still the only FCS versus FBS upset of the season, but the fact that they were able to hold their own against bigger, better-funded programs is cause to celebrate.
Loser: Pat McAfee succumbing to peer pressure
McAfee had already proved his point after high school soccer player and current business freshman Lucas Dolibois’ 33-yard field goal attempt landed short of the uprights. This came after Dolibois said he was confident that he could hit a 45-yard kick with no problem. McAfee should’ve stopped there, but the raucous Aggie crowd around him shouted “one more time.” Ever the showman, McAfee obliged, this time doubling the reward from $25,000 to $50,000. Dolibois set his feet, took a deep breath and drilled his second kick right down the center — leaving McAfee’s wallet just a little bit lighter.
Winner: Cam Ward and those who continue to believe in his hype
It’s been a long three years since Miami QB Cam Ward had his 47-touchdown season for Incarnate Word in 2021. After transferring to Washington State, Ward’s time with the Cougars wasn’t a disappointment, but fans thought they would see more. Now in his fifth season of college football and now wearing a Hurricanes jersey, Ward showed out in No. 19 Miami’s season opener against Florida.
Ward looked calm and “cool” as he tore apart the Gators’ defense for a 74% completion percentage on three touchdowns and almost 400 yards. Experts predicted that this game could go either way, but Ward and the Hurricanes went into one of the hardest environments in college football and beat the home team in a 41-17 blowout.
Loser: Coach Dabo Swinney and Clemson’s old-fashioned ways
No. 14 Clemson wasn’t favored to beat No. 1 Georgia, but the Tigers were expected to at least put up a fight. The defense for the Tigers deserves some credit for how well they defended the Bulldogs in the first half, but they completely fell apart because the offense could not get anything going.
Swinney has made it clear for a long time that he is not changing his ways, but the last few seasons have made it clear that Swinney and the Tigers’ program has to make some changes. The roster has continued to be among the most talented in college football, as Swinney and company still bring in top recruiting classes. But recruiting high schoolers isn’t enough anymore in the NIL and transfer portal era. If the Tigers want a chance at having any of their former glory, it’s time to embrace the new ways.
