it's the most wonderful time of the year

I am officially spoiled. ESPN managed to turn the opening weekend of college football into a 5day event, and I loved every minute of it.  They managed to work it so that there were good games that I actually wanted to watch each of those 5 days.  Add in the watchESPN app, and DVR, and I was able to see everything on my list of games to watch.

Yes I’m that girl who printed out the schedule last Monday,and highlighted the games I wanted to watch.

The biggest surprise of the weekend was how much I enjoyed the Notre Dame v. Navy game in Ireland. The football was good, and I love that they played the game overseas.  It made the game extra special, and I hope it’s something that can be repeated.

The best part of the weekend was that my teams did well.  Tennessee came out and played ball for 4 quarters.  Last year they showed moments of brilliance, but endurance, and the ability to keep it together when opposing teams made halftime adjustments were not on their list of strengths.  QB Tyler Bray looked solid, and I’m cautiously optimistic about this year. Opening against NC State is not going to be anything like playing Alabama, even with a home field advantage, but it’s a start, and an improvement from last year.

Clemson rocked against Auburn.  I expected a close game, and I had my fingers crossed for a win.  There were mistakes,and first game jitters, sure…but every Clemson fan knows that’s going to happen.  I did not expect D’Andre Hopkins to have such a stellar game, or for the Clemson offence to look so balanced.  It was nice.  I mean really nice.  And it means I can’t WAIT for Sammy Watkins to make his presence known against Furman. I’m extremely excited that I will be in Clemson that weekend, and the ticket office has got to be happy that Sammy’s comeback has put that game on everyone’s radar.

And Go Jackets!  I love Georgia Tech, but I did not expect them to win in Blacksburg.  I’ll take forcing the first ever overtime in Blacksburg as a moral victory, and choose to ignore the fact that they gave the game away with a stupid interception. Yes the uniforms are awful, but they’re not Maryland bad.  Georgia Tech is going to play hard this year,but I don’t expect great things.

Which brings me to predictions.  I’m not sure I’ve ever made predictions before, so this is going to be an interesting test to see if I really do know what I’m talking about when it comes to football.

Clemson: I’d love to say 11-1, but Clemson will always have a hiccup, and will probably go 10-2 in the regular season.  The more losses we have in the regular season, the better our shots are in a bowl game.  I know that may sound counter intuitive, but if for some reason Clemson is undefeated going into a bowl game, their heads will be so swollen they will barely be able to snap the ball.  A few losses would go a long way to keeping them focused and actually winning a bowl game.

Tennessee: I'm guessing that Tennessee goes 8-4 in the regular season, but probably loses its bowl game.  Tennessee just isn’t there yet.  Coach Dooley is on the hot seat,and hopefully the pressure will keep him focused and motivated.  I haven’t drank the Dool—aid, but I’m not quite sure it’s poison either.  We’ll just have to see how this season goes.

here

GaTech: I’m going to go with a 7-5 regular season.  I know one game doesn’t decide a season, but the ACC likes to beat up on each other about as much as the SEC does, and GaTech is going to have a few more tough losses.  They will play hard and rally, and could beat one of the service academies in a bowl game, but I have a feeling that this season is going to be tough.

I love football season. And DVR.

PS Thanks wikipedia, for teaching me a little bit about fair use of logos :)