CFB’s Three Up and Three Down

Yeah, we know “Three up and three down” sounds like a baseball announcer at the end of an inning. But for our purposes, it is about tracking the weekly trajectory of teams, some of whom much was expected from, and others who are surprising in a positive way. Now that we have passed the four-week mark in the season, we can see who is going in which direction. So here is our first look of the season at college football’s three up and three down, with the selections presented in no particular order.

CFB’s Three Up and Three Down

Three Up

Texas Tech;

Yes, the team got a huge financial boost in facilities and players from booster Cody Campbell. But you still have to play the game.  The Red Raiders had blown out their first three opponents. But their first three opponents were Arkansas Pine-Bluff, Kent State, and Oregon State. Not exactly the Murderer’s Row of college football. But Texas Tech went to Salt Lake City over the weekend and manhandled a well-coached Utah team, 34-10.

Starting quarterback Behren Morton left the game after taking a blow to the head. No problem for Texas Tech. Will Hammond went in and was 13 of 16 passing for 169 yards and two touchdowns. The Red Raiders now share first place in the wide-open Big 12.

Oklahoma;

Just a season removed from the wolves circling for head coach Brent Venables, Oklahoma is reborn for the time being. The Sooners were the beneficiary of a blown official’s call, or no-call in this case, that led to an early touchdown in the win over Auburn. But win they did, and the Sooners are a legitimate top-10 team after wins over Michigan and Auburn (and Temple).

They now have a bye week and then a home game against Kent State before facing a Texas team that is struggling with its identity on offense. Quarterback John Mateer is getting plenty of Heisman love, despite being in the top-10 nationally in only one quarterback category (ninth in the country in passing yards per game).

Indiana;

Last season, the Hoosiers caught everyone by surprise. New head coach Curt Cignetti loaded up his roster with players he knew from his previous job at James Madison. It worked as Indiana made the College Football Playoff. But was it a fluke? Could he do it again with new players?

The Hoosiers opened against Kennesaw State and Indiana State. No big deal. But then the Hoosiers beat up on Illinois this last weekend, 63-10. And in case you hadn’t noticed, quarterback Fernando Mendoza, the transfer from Cal, is leading the country in touchdown passes with 14.

Three Down

Clemson;

The most obvious one on the list. The Tigers were an overwhelming choice to win the ACC. Quarterback Cade Klubnik was an early-season Heisman candidate. But the meltdown is in full effect now. Clemson is 1-3 with the only win coming over Troy. Saturday’s loss at home against Syracuse was the straw that broke the proverbial camel’s back.

The stats from Saturday would confound you. The Tigers racked up 503 yards of offense and 29 first downs. But on the season, Clemson is 112th in the country in rushing offense. And the red zone offense is merely 91^st in the country. A defense stacked with pre-season All-Americans gave up 300 yards of offense to Syracuse in the first half.

Losing to a 17.5-point underdog has the pontificators reminding us of head coach Dabo Swinney’s disdain for the modern elements of the game, like the transfer portal. But that is a relatively cheap and easy angle. Swinney uses the portal for only a few players a year, in part because he loses so few players off his roster every year. He would have to go the Deion Sanders route and cast off dozens from his roster, and Dabo is just never going to do that.

Florida;

The four-game winning streak at the end of the season misled us all. We started to think that head coach Billy Napier had improved the team and that DJ Lagway was a good quarterback. It now appears neither is true.

The Gators beat Long Island University in the season opener. That was the high point of the season. They have since lost consecutive games to South Florida, LSU, and Miami. They have a much-needed bye week before playing Texas and Texas A&M in consecutive weeks.

And while Lagway’s athleticism is entertaining to watch, he is 100^th in the country in passing yards per game and 109^th in the country in passing efficiency. Napier is finding himself back on the coaching job hot seat.

Wisconsin;

We didn’t expect the Badgers to be competing for the Big Ten title. But after losing by 17 points to Maryland over the weekend, it is becoming clear just how bad they are. Wins over Miami (OH) and Middle Tennessee are not compelling. Head coach Luke Fickell, finding his seat also to be warming up, fired offensive coordinator Phil Longo in the off-season as a scapegoat for last year’s failures. Wisconsin’s offense is now a paltry 113^th in the country.

The next four games for Wisconsin are Michigan, Iowa, Ohio State, and Oregon. The bottom could be within sight.