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    • College Football Week 2 Winners and Losers: Michigan and Texas Lead the Way
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    College Football Week 2 Winners and Losers: Michigan and Texas Lead the Way

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    Michigan didn’t stand a chance.

    No. 3 Texas won 31-12 over the No. 9 Wolverines on the strength of 246 yards and three touchdowns from quarterback Quinn Ewers. It was a showcase of the Longhorns’ immense talent and potential, and illustrated how far the reigning champions have fallen since January.

    One of the problems for Michigan is quarterback play. While Ewers polished his Heisman Trophy case, former walk-on Davis Warren went 22 of 33 for 204 yards and two interceptions for the Wolverines, who still haven’t managed 300 yards of offense through the first two games of the season.

    That this team went into the opener with Warren is almost astonishing, considering how easy it has become for programs like Michigan to find plug-and-play quarterbacks in the transfer portal. Through two games, the senior is averaging 5.5 yards per attempt with more interceptions, three, than touchdowns. Most of his yardage Saturday came after Texas had the game in hand.

    The loss snaps the Big Ten record of 29 straight regular-season victories and ends the nation’s longest active winning streak at 16 games. The Wolverines’ last loss, to TCU in the 2022 College Football Playoff, capped last year’s historic run to perfection; it raises some very important questions about how far Michigan can really go in coach Sherrone Moore’s first year.

    The offense is already a mess bordering on disaster, and unless some adjustments or improvements are made during the season, it will be a worry for months with make-or-break games against No. 14 Southern California, No. 6 Oregon and No. 3 Ohio State. It appears that current backup Alex Orji will get a chance to replace Warren, but how much of a difference would that make?

    The Wolverines could stay in the Big Ten and playoff mix with another elite defense. But Texas made that unit look underwhelming, too. The Longhorns became the first regular-season opponent to throw multiple touchdowns without an interception against Michigan since Ohio State on Nov. 27, 2021, and the first non-conference opponent to do so since Colorado on Sept. 17, 2016. Thanks to a 55-yard gain by freshman wide receiver Ryan Wingo, Texas also rushed for 143 yards on 4.5 yards per carry with a touchdown.

    Texas looks like one of the best teams in the country. Michigan looks like a team and program in transition. The Longhorns and Wolverines lead the way for the biggest winners and losers of Week 2:

    Winners

    Quinn Ewers

    Ewers has to be considered the current favorite for the Heisman after his performance in Ann Arbor. It’s a very deep race at this early point: Miami’s Cam Ward has been terrific, Georgia’s Carson Beck continues to excel and Mississippi’s Jaxson Dart is off to a hot start, so Ewers has plenty of company near the top. Ewers already has 506 yards and six scores in two games, and will continue to be in the national spotlight thanks to games against No. 13 Oklahoma (Oct. 12) and No. 1 Georgia (Oct. 19).

    Kansas State

    The No. 16 Wildcats escaped with a 34-27 victory at Tulane after the defense rose to its feet in the fourth quarter, breaking the 27-27 tie with a 60-yard fumble return for a touchdown with eight minutes left and then intercepting the Green Wave in the end zone to secure the win with 12 seconds left. This is not a win to overlook because of Tulane’s spot in the Group of Five: Kansas State should get credit from the playoff selection committee for a solid road win. Running back DJ Giddens had 114 yards on the ground and a team-best 63 receiving yards while safety VJ Payne had seven tackles, one for loss, and the game-winning interception.

    Syracuse

    The Orange moved to 2-0 under rookie coach Fran Brown after a 31-28 win over Georgia Tech, led by Ohio State transfer Kyle McCord’s 381 passing yards and four touchdowns. McCord, who had 24 touchdowns for the Buckeyes last season but left after being told he would have to compete for the starting job, has now thrown eight scores in two games. The win itself keeps Syracuse on track for a third straight bowl game — that would make Brown the third new coach to reach the postseason in school history — but there’s a question about what beating the Yellow Jackets actually means. Tech built an early reputation by beating Florida State in Week 0, but that win has taken some shine off after the Seminoles lost badly to Boston College on Labor Day.

    Losers

    Notre Dame

    Bowling Green 16, #7 Notre Dame 14. Considering last week’s confidence-boosting win at Texas A&M and the hype train that had already painted the Fighting Irish as a near-certainty playoff berth, this debacle qualifies as one of the worst losses in program history. Start with the postseason impact: Notre Dame is coming off a weaker-than-normal schedule and now must run the table to clinch a playoff spot. There’s also the intense pressure on coach Marcus Freeman, who has now suffered home losses to Marshall and the Huskies in his three seasons in charge. Under Freeman, the Irish have consistently degraded their competition; this time, it may cost Notre Dame a shot at a national championship.

    Big freeze

    Considering what he inherited, Freeze deserved a mulligan for last year’s 6-7 finish. We’ll see if that same understanding carries over into 2024 after Auburn’s 21-14 loss at home to new ACC member California, which opened last week with a disappointing 31-13 win over UC Davis. So how do the Tigers lose at home to a team picked to finish 10th in the ACC? Well, those five turnovers didn’t help matters. Four came via interceptions by quarterback Payton Thorne, who has thrown at least one pick in each of his five games against the Power Four. Does Freeze need to make a change to get Auburn back into a bowl?

    Arkansas

    Arkansas’ latest stupid, idiotic, stupid loss spells big trouble for beleaguered head coach Sam Pittman. Leading 21-7 at halftime against No. 17 Oklahoma State — the Cowboys got points on a pick-six in the second quarter — the Razorbacks gave it all away in the second half, losing 39-31 in double overtime. The loss is even harder to comprehend when you look at the box score: Arkansas managed 648 yards of offense and 33 first downs, but was hamstrung by three turnovers and two missed field goals. Given what’s yet to come in SEC competition, this was a game the program had to play to qualify for a bowl; if it didn’t win six, this would be Pittman’s last year.

    Cincinnati

    Another coach in trouble is Cincinnati’s Scott Satterfield, who went 3-9 in his debut last season and now has the Bearcats at 1-1 after a fourth-quarter meltdown against Pittsburgh. Leading 27-6 with just under five minutes left in the third quarter, UC surrendered three touchdowns — the Panthers missed the ensuing two-point try on each score — and a field goal in the closing minutes to lose 28-27 and move to 2-7 at home in Satterfield’s short tenure. His predecessor, Luke Fickell, went 41-10 at home from 2015-22.

    Kent stands

    There should be no question which team is the worst in the FBS. Kent State already sits at No. 134 in the USA TODAY Sports NCAA Re-Rank 1-134 and will remain in last place until further notice after a 23-17 loss to Championship Subdivision team Saint Francis. Saint Francis, owner of just one winning season since 2017, is far from an FCS powerhouse. But the Red Flash were too much for the Golden Flashes, who have lost 13 of 14 under second-year coach Kenni Burnes.

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