Takeaways from College Football Week 1: Mayhem in Michigan, concerns in Clemson

College football is unpredictable and delightful, which is why we live for what happens on Saturdays. And Week 1 absolutely delivered, from an extremely controversial last-second Hail Mary in Ann Arbor to a stunning beatdown in Baton Rouge and everything in between.

Each Sunday, I’ll publish my biggest takeaways from the college football weekend. I’ll highlight the most interesting storylines, track College Football Playoff contenders and specifically shout out individual and team performances that deserve the spotlight.

1. There were no winners from the debacle at the Big House

Michigan didn’t deserve to win on Saturday. It got outplayed and out-physicaled from the start by Western Michigan — and needing that second put back on the clock to throw a second (and, this time, successful) Hail Mary to eke out the win over the Broncos. I don’t think I’ve seen any Michigan fan genuinely happy about that outcome or the state of the Wolverine offense under Bryce Underwood right now.

Western Michigan feels like it got screwed out of what would have been the biggest win in program history. And for general college football fans, there’s now less trust in the officiating and replay processes than there was a week ago. There were truly no winners in Ann Arbor on Saturday night.

2. Dabo Swinney’s time at Clemson feels like it’s running out

A few weeks ago, I made a bold prediction that this would be Dabo Swinney’s last season at Clemson. I didn’t say whether the school would push him out or he’d be the one to leave because of how frustrated the fan and donor base has become. For the record, I do think it would be extremely difficult for the school to fire a coach who won two national championships and turned little ol’ Clemson into a college football power.

Clemson didn’t look like it belonged on the same field as LSU on Saturday night, let alone the same category of serious CFP contender. The Tigers, at one point in the third quarter, had a total of -10 rushing yards. It was astonishing to see how far the mighty Clemson program has fallen in less than a decade, and it makes my bold prediction seem far less bold.

It has been a long time since Clemson actually was Clemson. I know the Tigers made the CFP (albeit as a three-loss ACC champion) in 2024, but the program has not been contending for national titles since the start of the NIL era (in 2021).

Dabo has famously been slow to adapt to the changing landscape of college football, resistant to both the transfer portal and the NIL/revenue-sharing realm. He’s repeatedly made bad hires (and hamstrung potential innovators he did bring in from the outside) while accepting complacency.

How else do you explain losing nine NFL draft picks from a 7-6 team and doing nothing to replenish the roster? Bringing back an old friend to run the offense with a quarterback who clearly isn’t ready for prime time? And you didn’t think to get a different one in the portal instead?

Either the Clemson brass is going to have to make a tough call at the end of the season or Dabo will “go somewhere else and coach,” as he told us last year amid mounting criticism of his disappointing team. But either way, it’s hard to imagine the status quo continuing much longer. It’s unacceptable, inexcusable — and an unserious way to run a major college football program.

3. Indiana sure looks good again

Curt Cignetti knows how to pick ‘em. Quarterback Josh Hoover looked great in his Hoosier debut — blood and all — as did receiver Nick Marsh. For those who didn’t watch a lot of Marsh at Michigan State, welcome to the party. He’s one of the most electric players in the country.

4. Lane Kiffin has fully embraced his role as college football’s biggest villain

Lane Kiffin, like most of us, generally likes to be liked. It clearly bothered him last December when Ole Miss fans hated him for the way he left Oxford, bouncing for LSU instead of coaching the Rebels into the College Football Playoff.

But, after weeks of pushing to try to play ex-NFL players and battling the SEC to do so, Kiffin seemed more at peace with his place in the college football landscape. Up 31-3 on Clemson at the half on Saturday night, Kiffin finished up his ABC interview and muttered, “Imagine if we had pro players.”

After the game — that ended with an even more lopsided 51-10 final score — Kiffin was asked about the quip.

“What’s the difference? Everyone already hates you. They can’t hate you that much more,” he said. “I’m just glad they played the way they did, so that wouldn’t have been the story. Even if we would have won close, it would’ve been how I screwed the team up doing this thing.

“I said this morning [on College Gameday], you can not agree with it. I’ve been criticized heavily this past week, and I get that and understand, but my job is not to please you and worry about what you are going to write. My job is that I believe in what is right. And I believed in fighting for those kids. … That’s what I believe.”

It’s good Lane is ready for whatever comes next — because his return to Oxford is less than two weeks away.

5. A Boise State-ment, even in a loss.

I put Boise State in my preseason CFP bracket because I expected the Broncos to be the highest-ranked Group of 6 champion. That was before Maddux Madsen and Co. nearly upset No. 2 Oregon on the road in their season-opener.

6. Oregon’s too-close-for-comfort September win is nothing new.

We’ve seen the Ducks do this before, most notably two years ago — a 10-point win over Idaho and a three-point win over Boise State — before rolling through the rest of the season, winning a Big Ten title and earning a No. 1 seed in the College Football Playoff.

All that to say, Oregon has a track record of shaky starts and significant in-season improvement. The Ducks were breaking in two new coordinators in this case, too. I’ll reserve my right to worry about Oregon, but I won’t do so just yet.

7. Notre Dame will be just fine.

The first half against Wisconsin was a bit concerning — largely because of how tight the Irish looked, and how physical the Badgers were — but the second half was a totally different story. Notre Dame put on a clinic and showed flashes of the team that can and should be in the mix for a national championship.

I’d like to see more from the Irish run game, but I also recognize that it’s going to be difficult to replace two first-rounders in the backfield, and that may be a work-in-progress for a little while. Notre Dame has time to work out its kinks and figure out how to start games better. I’m really not worried.

8. Baylor got the full DJ Lagway experience

He’ll push his body to the limit. He’ll throw some darts. But he’ll also have some dreadful turnovers and deliver a most painful loss. Woof.

9. The Heisman hopefuls sure look like Heisman Trophy-caliber players.

College football’s biggest stars certainly showed up in Week 1. It didn’t matter the opponent, these players were ready to play and ready to show out — from Darian Mensah and Malachi Toney at Miami to USC’s Jayden Maiava, Ohio State’s Julian Sayin-Jeremiah Smith duo, Oregon’s Dante Moore, CJ Carr at Notre Dame and more.

10. The SEC won its battle against LSU, and it might win the war, too.

Lane Kiffin opted against listing tight end Dae’Quan Wright and defensive tackle Zxavian Harris on the LSU active roster on Friday, despite a Baton Rouge judge clearing the two to return to college football after signing NFL contracts. Kiffin could, theoretically, still add ex-pros later in the fall as long as there are available spots on the 105-man roster (there are) and the players are enrolled in school (they are), but is the juice really worth the squeeze at this point? Does Kiffin really want to risk the severe penalties that the SEC has threatened to levy against a team that rosters ex-pros? Is he willing to risk his own suspension and/or a massive fine?

We’ll see.

Still, it’s notable that the SEC’s new rules and the league’s federal lawsuit filed to support its ability to enforce them was enough to deter Kiffin and Co. for the time being. That’s a win for the concept of conference self-governance, and it’s a good sign that college football can police itself — at least somewhat.