College Football Week Zero Winners and Losers

The college football season kicked off on Saturday with Week zero.  Here are all my favorite winners and losers from College Football Week Zero!

Nebraska.  It is just unbelievable.  While a lot has changed in college football, things stayed the same for Nebraska. In Ireland, Nebraska lost their 7th straight game in a 31-28 defeat to Northwestern. The 7th straight loss is tied for the 2nd-longest losing streak in program history, trailing only a 10-game losing streak from 2017 to 2018.

All 7 losses have been by single-digits, the Cornhuskers are the first major college team in the AP Poll Era, which
goes back to 1936, to lose 7 straight by single-digits.

Since coming back to Lincoln in 2018, Scott Frost’s Nebraska team is 5-21 in one-score games (games decided by 8 points or less). That’s the worst such record in the FBS in that span.

The game turned after Nebraska attempted an onside kick with 9:09 left in the 3rd quarter, right after it held an 11-
point lead. From that point, Northwestern outscored Nebraska 14-0.  Coach Scott Frost, you are going to have to change your last name from Frost to Hot because you are officially on the "hot seat" to get fired.

Florida State snapped a 5-game losing streak in season-openers and had three 100-yard rushers for the first time in
school history in a 47-7 win over Duquesne

North Carolina was able to handle an interesting game,  Florida A&M was down to 25 players due to eligibility issues. On what was Mack Brown’s 71st birthday, the Tar Heels won 56-24 behind Drake Maye’s 5 pass TDs in his first
career start. Those 5 passing scores are the most by a UNC player in their first start.

Illinois had no problem with Wyoming, winning 38-6 thanks to 151 rushing yards from RB Chase Brown. Illinois
is now 11-1 in season-openers since 2011.

For those of you who were down some coin after Nebraska's loss, the "Bail Out" game hits!  Those of you who stayed up to watch Hawaii host Vanderbilt(-9) weren't disappointed.  It took a half, but eventually Vanderbilt dominated on way to a 63-10 victory.

63 points and over 600 yards of offense was one of Vanderbilt's best outings in school history.  Here are some other nuggets from that game on Saturday.

63-10 victory marked their largest win in a non-conference road game since 1941 vs Louisville (68-0)

63 points is their most points vs an FBS opponent since Nov. 11, 1948 vs Marshall (won 56-0)

Vanderbilt had their most points in any game since 1969 vs Davidson (won 63-8)

The 63 points also tied for 5th most points in any game in school history

Finished with 601 total yards – their most in any game since Nov. 26, 2016 vs (17) Tennessee (608 yards)

More on these games and lots more on Shemon and Sheppard later today.

The Miami Hurricanes football program needs a new home. Hard Rock Stadium is a great NFL stadium, but it doesn't feel like The U. The campus is 21 miles away from the stadium, and with traffic it can take an hour for students to get to the Rock. Ever since the Canes left the Orange Bowl, they haven't been able to sustain success on the field. This is not a coincidence. Miami has had a difficult time keeping elite South Florida talent in South Florida. I think a large part of that is due to the lackluster atmosphere at Hard Rock. Imagine being an elite recruit going on official visits. You go to a sold out Swamp, Death Valley, and Samford Stadium only to go to Hard Rock and see the place half empty. Where would you go? The program needs a Miami Hurricanes future home of their own.

Tough times are not entirely due to the home stadium of Miami. However, most of those problems are being addressed. The football facility was just completed in 2020, and is up to the standard of elite programs around the country. Mario Cristobal is an elite coach who understands the culture of Miami football. He has assembled a very good coaching staff as well. And now that NIL is legal, the boosters are doing a great job at getting their players paid. John Ruiz is a billionaire who is splashing cash around the Canes program, and now he's looking to build a football stadium for the program. The Miami Hurricanes future home is getting closer and closer each day. Yesterday we got the first renderings of the stadium, and WOW! This thing looks gorgeous.

The architect is HKS Architects , the same firm that designed SoFi Stadium in Los Angeles where the Super Bowl was held last February. The stadium will fit roughly 65,000, and there are plenty of nods to the Orange Bowl. The open endzone, the ovular shape of the bowl, and the open air design feel like the Orange Bowl, the staduim where Miami experienced their most success.

Tropical Park.

John Ruiz told Miami New Times Tropical Park give his 270-acres of land that can be developed into the new home for Miami Hurricanes football. Great news for students too; the stadium will be less than 3 miles from campus. It would also feature a separate indoor practice area for the Canes.

This is not a done deal by any means. Tropical Park is owned by the City of Miami, and as of this article, the two sides have not discussed the potential build. Ultimately the decision will come down to the voters in Miami, according to Ruiz saying "Obviously, we're going to talk to the commissioners and the mayor, but ultimately it goes out to a vote to the general public." via the Miami New Times. Whether this is the new home of the Miami football program or not, there is real momentum within the program and I have no doubts something will stick eventually.