Michigan never had a chance.
No. 3 Texas cruised to a 31-12 win over the No. 9 Wolverines thanks to 246 yards and three touchdowns from quarterback Quinn Ewers, showcasing the Longhorns’ tremendous talent and potential and how far the defending national champions have fallen since January.
Among Michigan’s problems is quarterback play. While Ewers polished his chances at the Heisman Trophy, former walk-on Davis Warren completed 22 of 33 passes for 204 yards and two interceptions for the Wolverines, who have yet to reach 300 yards of offense in their first two games this season.
That this team went into its opening game with Warren is almost baffling, 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 has averaged 5.5 yards per attempt while throwing more interceptions (three) than touchdowns. Most of his yards on Saturday came after Texas had the game in hand.
The loss breaks the team’s Big Ten record of 29 consecutive regular-season wins and ends the longest active winning streak in the country at 16 games. The Wolverines’ last loss to TCU in the 2022 College Football Playoff was the start of last year’s historic run to perfection; that loss 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 there are adjustments or improvements during the season, it will remain a problem for months to come, with life-or-death games against No. 14 Southern California, No. 6 Oregon and No. 3 Ohio State coming up. It seems certain that current backup Alex Orji will get the chance to replace Warren, but how much would that matter?
With another elite defense, the Wolverines could stay in the Big Ten and in the playoff mix. But Texas made that unit look disappointing, 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 largely to a 55-yard gain by freshman wide receiver Ryan Wingo, Texas also ran for 143 yards at 4.5 yards per carry and scored a touchdown.
Texas looks to be one of the best teams in the country. Michigan resembles a team and a program in transition. The Longhorns and Wolverines are the biggest winners and losers of week two:
winner
Quinn Ewers
After his performance in Ann Arbor, Ewers is considered the current favorite for the Heisman Trophy. The race is still very exciting at this early stage: Miami’s Cam Ward has been great, Georgia’s Carson Beck continues to shine and Mississippi’s Jaxson Dart is off to a blazing start, so Ewers is in good company near the top. Ewers has already rushed for 506 yards and six scores in two games and will remain in the national spotlight thanks to games against No. 13 Oklahoma (Oct. 12) and No. 1 Georgia (Oct. 19).
State of Kansas
The No. 16 Wildcats pulled away with a 34-27 win at Tulane after the defense stepped up in the fourth quarter and broke the 27-27 tie with a 60-yard fumble return for a touchdown with eight minutes left. It then intercepted the Green Wave in the end zone to seal the win with 12 seconds left. This win is not to be overlooked as Tulane is in the Group of Five: Across the board, 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 63 yards receiving, the team’s best performance, while safety VJ Payne had seven tackles, one for loss, and the game-winning interception.
Syracuse
The Orange moved to 2-0 under new coach Fran Brown after a 31-28 win over Georgia Tech. The victory was keyed by 381 passing yards and four touchdowns from Ohio State transfer Kyle McCord. McCord, who scored 24 touchdowns for the Buckeyes last season but left after being told he had to compete for the starting spot, has now scored eight touchdowns in two games. The win itself keeps Syracuse on track for a third straight bowl game – making Brown the third new coach in school history to reach the postseason – but it begs the question what the victory over the Yellow Jackets actually means. Tech earned an early reputation by defeating Florida State in Week 0, but that victory took some of its luster after the Seminoles’ emphatic loss to Boston College on Labor Day.
loser
Notre-Dame
Bowling Green 16, No. 7 Notre Dame 14. Given last week’s confidence-boosting win at Texas A&M and the hype that already painted the Fighting Irish as a near-certain playoff contender, this debacle ranks as one of the worst losses in program history. Let’s start with the postseason implications: Notre Dame has a weaker than usual schedule and will now have to do everything it can to secure a playoff spot. There’s also now tremendous pressure on coach Marcus Freeman, who has lost at home to Marshall and the Huskies in his three-plus seasons. Time and time again under Freeman, the Irish have played at the level of their competition; this time, it could very well cost Notre Dame a chance at the national championship.
Hugo Freeze
Given what he took over, Freeze deserves a mulligan for last year’s 6-7 finish. We’ll see if that understanding holds in 2024 after Auburn lost 21-14 at home to new ACC member California, which opened last week with a disappointing 31-13 win over UC Davis. So how can the Tigers lose at home to a team projected to finish 10th in the ACC? Well, those five turnovers didn’t help. Four of them came on interceptions by quarterback Payton Thorne, who has thrown at least one interception in each of his five games against the Power Four. Does Freeze need to change anything to get Auburn back to the bowl?
Arkansas
Arkansas’ latest stupid, idiotic, stupid loss spells trouble for beleaguered head coach Sam Pittman. Trailing 21-7 at halftime against No. 17 Oklahoma State — the Cowboys’ points came on a second-quarter pick-six — the Razorbacks gave it their all in the second half, losing 39-31 in the second overtime. The loss is even harder to comprehend when you look at the score: Arkansas gained 648 yards of offense and 33 first downs, but was weakened by three turnovers and two missed field goals. Given what’s to come in the SEC, this was a game the team had to win to qualify for bowl eligibility; if they don’t get to six wins, this will surely be Pittman’s last year.
Cincinnati
Another coach in deep 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 collapse against Pittsburgh. With a 27-6 lead and just under five minutes left in the third quarter, UC surrendered three touchdowns — the Panthers missed the ensuing two-point attempt on each point — and a field goal down the stretch, losing 28-27 and falling to 2-7 at home during Satterfield’s brief tenure. His predecessor, Luke Fickell, was 41-10 at home from 2015-2022.
Kent State
There should be no doubt about which team is the worst in the FBS. Kent State, already ranked No. 134 in the USA TODAY Sports NCAA Re-Rank 1-134, will be in last place for the time being after a 23-17 loss to Saint Francis of the Championship Subdivision. Saint Francis has had just one winning season since 2017 and is far from an FCS stronghold. But the Red Flash were too strong for the Golden Flashes, who lost 13 of 14 games under second-year coach Kenni Burnes.
