18A - The Michigan Daily - Thursday, September 8, 2005 Week two follows wild opener By H. Jose Bosch Daily Sports Writer Oklahoma found out that life without Jason White would be much, much harder. The Notre Dame fans are very close to replacing "Touch- down Jesus" with a picture of Charlie Weis in a robe. And the Miami-Florida State game was once again decided by the field goal team - this time it was the Hurricanes that Cg0S contrived a way to lose a game by messing up a field' goal attempt (Note to punter Brian Monroe: LOOK the ball into your hands). Yes, it was another wild and wacky weekend of college football, and we're only heading into week two. Here's a look at some of this weekend's action. Southern Mississippi (0-0) at Alabama (1-0) - Saturday, 7:45 p.m., ESPN 2 Last season, Alabama was poised to challenge for the SEC West title and return to the top of the conference food chain. But injuries to its start- ing quarterback and running back hurt its con- ference title hopes. This year, running back Ray Hudson doesn't return, but junior Ken Darby does. And he will line up behind senior quarter- back Brodie Croyle, who is also back. Darby and Croyle looked good in their first game against Middle Tennessee State. The Rainbow City, Ala.-native Croyle went 16-for-24 for 210 yards, a touchdown and an interception and Darby ran for 90 yards on 17 carries. Alabama's defense is just as strong as last year and refuses to be embarrassed in front of a home crowd. Hur- ricane Katrina forced Southern Mississippi to postpone its opening game and the lack of a first game will hurt the Eagles. Alabama 20, Southern Mississippi 10 No. 16 California (1-0) at Washington (0-1) - Saturday, 3:30 p.m., ABC Gameplan The hunt for Aaron Rodgers' replacement couldn't possibly go worse for the Golden Bears. First, redshirt freshman Nate Longshore broke his leg. Then backup Joe Ayoob threw 10 straight incompletions. Now, California might have to start junior Steve Levy, who switched to fullback last season because he wanted more playing time - only to sit on the bench. Sophomore Mar- shawn Lynch was a bright spot with his 147 yards and a touchdown on 24 carries and should be the workhorse for the team in week two. Tyrone Willingham's squad looked to break its six-game losing steak last week, but the defense allowed a 14-play, 83-yard game-winning touchdown drive with less than three minutes remaining in the game, showing the same intestinal fortitude as the Buffalo Bills circa early '90s'. Despite Levy, "the little fullback that could," starting behind center, Lynch should have a big game, and California should run away with this easily. California 31, Washington 13 South Carolina (1-0) at No. 9 Georgia (1-0) - Saturday, 5:30 p.m., ESPN At Florida, Steve Spurrier's offense was known as the "Fun 'n Gun." Now his offense is being dubbed the "Cock 'n Fire." Whether or not you understand the play on words or have the maturity level of a junior high student, it's clear that the offense is pretty good. Quarterback Blake Mitch- ell went .18-for-23 for 330 yards and three touch- downs in the nationally televised season opener against doormat Central Florida. But the defense allowed a team with a 16-game losing streak to come back into the game with a 12-point fourth quarter and needed a goal line stand to prevent the upset. This week, the defense will have a tougher time against Bulldogs senior D.J. Shockley who threw for 289 yards and five touchdowns against Boise State while leading the team in rushing with 85 yards and a touchdown. Spurrier's return to the SEC should be interesting. The Bulldogs will want to stick it to Spurrier for that embarrass- ing 1995 loss against Florida. (Was it necessary to score 52 at Georgia, Steve?) Georgia 37, South Carolina 17 No.5 LSU (0-0) at No. 15 Arizona State (1- 0) - Saturday 8:45 p.m., ESPN New LSU coach Les Miles is thought to have the easiest job in the county. The former Oklaho- ma State coach is joining a team that needs almost nothing more than a coach to push the auto pilot button. This LSU squad is supposed to be even better than the 2003 national championship team. Unfortunately, its first home game was postponed due to Hurricane Katrina, and its second one is now a road game. Arizona State may not be "The Swamp" but anytime you have to go on the road against a top-25 team, that's tough. Plus, Miles must also make sure his team stays.focused since many of them have families directly affected by the storm. Sophomore JaMarcus Russell is back and will be dangerous behind center. The defense will once again be dominant. The Sun Devils answer back with redshirt freshman phe- nom Keegan Herring - whose 134 yards broke the school record for a debut game - and junior quarterback Sam Keller who passed for 208 yards and four touchdowns last week. Arizona State 16, LSU 10 01 AP PH( After Georgia dispatched Boise State 48-13 in week one, quarterback D.J. Shockley will lead the Bulldogs against Steve Spurrier's South Carolina squad. Ohio State-Texas headlines Big Ten slate By Dan Ketchel Daily Sports Writer Now that opening weekend has come and gone, it's time for college football to get down to the nitty-gritty. Last Satur- day, Michigan's defense struggled against a savvy Northern Illinois running game while the Iowa Hawkeyes acted as the birds of prey - striking down the lesser foul in a 56-0 romp of the Ball State Cardi- nals. The Big Ten NYQO this season, and some foresee them atop the Big Ten when the season closes. Rid- ing a wave of emotion after embarrassing Ball State, expect Iowa's stellar offense to continue. Led by standout quarterback Drew Tate, the Hawkeyes should have no problem putting points on the board and extending their home winning streak to an even 20 games. But the Iowa defense is young and may have a few more issues with Iowa State's more complete offensive package. Iowa 31, Iowa State 13 Hawaii (0-1) at Michigan State (1-0) - 3:30 p.m., ESPN Plus The first football game of the season is an exciting and invigorating time for most college teams. Not for Hawaii - the only bigger buzz-kill for a team than having to face Southern Cal in week one is succumb- ing to predictions and getting clobbered. This week, the Warriors roll into East Lansing looking to make amends. In what appears to be a fairly evenly matched bat- tle, the Spartans will welcome the chance for revenge for the season-ending loss they suffered at the hands of Hawaii less than a year ago. Keep an eye out for Michigan State quarterback Drew Stanton to have a good game. He had almost 300 yards in the air and 60 yards on the ground in just three quarters last week. Stanton can also put together some impressive late game drives. Expect one of those to seal the deal. Michigan State 24, Hawaii 20 Northern Illinois (0-1) at Northwest- ern (1-0) - 4 p.m., ESPN Classic Northern Illinois certainly proved it could hang with a Big Ten team last week, making things moderately interesting with the Wolverines. Huskies miniatureo running back Garret Wolfe packs a lot of punch for a guy who looks like a mis- placed 12-year-old in the huddle. Wolfe's 148 yards - including a 76-yard touch- down run - gave the Michigan defense a run for its money. But Northern Illinois has some turnover issues to resolve after it gave the ball up five times last week - unchar- acterjstic for a team who turned the ball over only once last season. The Huskies undoubtedly have to protect the ball much more effectively this Saturday against a lesser but still decent Northwestern team. The Wildcats will push the ball down field with an effective passing game propelled by wide receivers Kim Thompson and Shaun Herbert. The Huskies will travel to nearby Evanston to meet the Wildcats in what should be an offensive showdown. Northern Illinois 41, Northwestern 31 No. 2 Texas (1-0) at No. 6 Ohio State (1-0) - 8 p.m., ABC Testicular fortitude. That's the technical term for what it takes to schedule an early season game against No. 2 Texas. The Longhorns - who furthered the Big 12's dominance over the Big Ten with their win in last year's Rose Bowl - look to take the wind out of the Buckeyes' sails before conference play even begins. Ohio State features arguably one of the most talented players in the country, wide receiver Ted Ginn, Jr., who started the season off with 86 all-purpose yards and a touchdown in the Buckeyes' 34-14 win over Miami (Ohio). Texas answered skeptics last week when it found a healthy replacement for Cedric Benson in running back Jamaal Charles. The freshman had 135 yards (a Longhorns freshman opening day record) in last week's 60-3 trouncing of Lousiana- Lafayette. This promises to be the game of the week,, not just for the Big Ten, but also for all of college football. Look for a tight one throughout and possibly even for Ohio State coach Jim Tressel to pull off an unexpected upset thanks to the home field advantage. Ohio State 24, Texas 17 as a whole began with an auspicious 10-0 weekend but some nonconference rivalries this coming game day could bring a few teams back down to earth and back to a .500 record. No. 11 Iowa (1-0) at Iowa State (1-0) - 3:30 p.m., ABC Iowa State came out looking flat last week, barely salvaging a victory against a weaker Illinois State team. This week, they'll be in for a rude awakening if their mediocre play continues because now they stand toe-to-toe with cross-state rival Iowa. The Hawkeyes have high hopes for RYAN WEINER/Daily Texas Quarterback Vince Young ran all over Michigan's defense in last year's Rose Bowl. I i WANT TO JOIN THE MOST-READ SECTION OF THE DAILY? MASS MEETING, TONIGHT, 7 P.M. if 0