Answer clear for Tide
Tagovailoa shines in easy victory for defending champs
Tagovailoa ’Bama’s best option: Tua Tagovailoa picked up where he left off last season, directing the Crimson Tide offense on five touchdowns drives during a 51-14 win over Louisville. Naming him the permanent starter at quarterback would quiet the questions about the position and prevent future outbursts like the one coach Nick Saban directed at ESPN’s Mara Taylor when she asked about the performance of the signal callers during the season opener. Saban reportedly called Taylor to apologize. Michigan shrinks in spotlight: The Wolverines can’t find a way to win big games under Jim Harbaugh. The program lost its third consecutive contest against a ranked foe, falling 24-17 to Notre Dame. An ineffective offense continues to plague Harbaugh’s teams. House of horrors no longer: The new Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta had carried bad memories for Auburn after back-to-back losses in the 2017 SEC championship game and Peach Bowl, but this year’s team put those behind them with the help of a solid defensive performance, stifling a loaded Washington offense during a 21-16 win. Pac-12 takes hit with Washington loss: A strong showing by Washington could have helped repair the Pac-12’s image after being shut out of last year’s College Football Playoff semifinals. Instead, the loss forces the conference to chase more QB Tua Tagovailoa led Alabama on five TD drives Saturday. quality nonconference wins to prove it deserves to have a representative. Maryland’s big win big lift: The Terrapins have suffered through a lot following the death of offensive lineman Jordan McNair and the subsequent indefinite suspension of coach DJ Durkin. But at least for one day, the Maryland players put that behind them with an impressive 34-29 victory over Texas. Deja vu for Texas: Longhorns fans must have thought they were caught in a bad dream as they watched their team struggle on offense while making miscues that resulted in another opening loss. Tom Herman was hired to bring the program out of irrelevance and, so far, he has fallen short. Ohio State tries to move on: The Buckeyes were playing their first game without coach Urban Meyer, who is currently serving a three-game suspension, but it didn’t see to cause any problems on the field. Dwayne Haskins tossed five touchdown passes and the team amassed more than 700 yards during a 77-33 blowout win over Oregon State. Bryant still the guy for Clemson: Trevor Lawrence may be the future, but Kelly Bryant gives the Tigers the best chance t o win now. Lawrence was certainly impressive during his collegiate debut, tossing three touchdown passes against Furman, but let’s pump the brakes on penciling him in as the Tigers’ starter. Bryant is 13-2 as Clemson’s starting quarterback. Oklahoma will be fine: If anyone was worried how the Sooners would perform after losing Baker Mayfield to the NFL, those concerns went out the window after watching Kyler Murray direct the offense during a 63-14 win over FAU. Bad starts for Sumlin, Kelly: Four new coaches made their debuts in the Pac-12 on Saturday, but perhaps the two biggest offseason hires were Kevin Sumlin at Arizona and Chip Kelly at UCLA. Both stumbled in their debuts. BYU beat Sumlin’s Arizona team 28-23, while Cincinnati upended the Kelly’s Bruins 26-17.