Empty the Call Sheet (Sept. 1)
Yogi's weekly Sunday newsletter written each week on the plane home from his game
Hello from 30,000 feet!
Each Sunday this fall, we will bring you some thoughts from above as I fly home from the game I’m covering. Today comes from a familiar flight path, Portland to LAX.
Some big picture thoughts:
Well, we made it! We got through the first full Saturday of college football and while there are still games to be played in Week 1 (hello, LSU/USC & BC/FSU), I'd imagine many of us came out inspired, optimistic and yes, even frustrated.
As “Shout” was blaring through Autzen Stadium, I turned to my play by play partner, Guy Haberman, and said a phrase that has encapsulated college football in my eyes for over a decade, “How Great Is Ball!?” We had a one-score game with the #7 ranked Idaho Vandals in FCS visiting the #3 ranked Oregon Ducks of the new Big Ten. Safe to say none of us saw that coming, but it was an absolute joy to be on the call. It had everything! Idaho’s starting QB was a former walk-on from Portland. Oregon’s starting QB is on his 3rd school in his 6th year playing college football and on the verge of setting multiple records. It was a brilliant reminder that football is the ultimate team game and anything can happen on any given Saturday, as the Ducks won 24-14.
The atmosphere was bonkers, the fans were on their feet for the majority of the game and as Otis Day & the Knights’ most famous song rocked the crowd and your TV screen, the joy of the greatest team sport had touched the majority of college campuses around the nation.
As the night concluded and our first game on the Big Ten Network ended, I remained in the booth to soak in the afterglow in Eugene while watching UCLA exhale after DeShaun Foster’s first win at Hawaii. Scanning the scoreboard many things went through my mind, but what came out above all else was that when the instep meets the leather, the size of a program's collective doesn't matter, realignment no longer leads the conversation and very few fans are thinking about media rights. It’s about the game, or as we like to say at Y-Option, it’s about the ball…
Speaking of, here are a few things that stood out to me in College Football through the lens of the West Coast during Week 1.
Cam Rising to Brandt Kuithe. Just say it out loud, doesn't it feel good? Those two have become legends in “Sack Lake City” and both have navigated the stressors and pressure of recovering from major injuries to shine this past Thursday. I am extremely happy for them. And this team is legit. Look out Big-12, this is your best team and best shot at winning a CFP game. As for games being on ESPN+, I’m going to have to get used to that.
(Photo by Brandon Sloter/Image Of Sport/Getty Images) Speaking of inspiration, how about Davis Warren. Michigan’s former walk-on turned starting QB has one of the best stories in the nation. In March of 2019, Warren was diagnosed with leukemia and went through chemotherapy before returning to play four games during the 2019 season. His 2020 high school season was wiped out by COVID-19 and he ran out in the Big House on Saturday as the defending National Champions starting quarterback. How Great Is Ball indeed!?
Penn State’s found explosive plays on offense and that’s scary as both Washington and UCLA visit Happy Valley and USC hosts Drew Allar’s offense. It’s a vital reminder for all of us who expect huge QB recruits to be special early in their careers. To be a successful signal caller you MUST meet adversity and compete through it. That was Allar last year. I think he becomes a QB who earns praise through his play all season long.
Oregon’s offense: it was efficient but there were few explosive plays and they had some key unforced errors on their offensive line. I expect them to “take their medicine,” as Dan Lanning often references and execute much cleaner in Week 2.
Speaking of Week 2: Boise State visits the Ducks on Peacock. I’m fired up to watch Andrew Siciliano call this one after calling the Nike Kickoff Classic with him last week. The match up to watch: the Ducks loaded front 7 against Boise State back Ashton Jeanty. He had 6, yes 6 TDs on 20 carries and a school record 267 yards. And fun fact, he had his own separate media availability during Mountain West Media Day because he wasn’t 21 and wasn’t allowed to be at the designated casino.
Like Oregon, Ohio State started off slow and had some offensive line concerns before blowing out former Oregon OC Joe Moorhead’s Akron Zips. Random fun fact, my wide receiver coach at Pitt, J.D. Brookhart, is the former head coach at Akron and now back there coaching their wideouts.
T-Mac: we’ve said it many times here that Tetairoa McMillan is the nation’s best wide receiver and he carried Jim Thornby’s Wildcats on Saturday night in Brent Brennan’s debut as Arizona’s head coach. 10 catches and school-record 304 yards, 4 TD. I legitimately can’t think of a high school, college or NFL receiver who last had 300 yards…he’s a beast.
(Photo by Chris Coduto/Getty Images)... Jedd Fisch and UW will be better than we all thought. We referenced it on a Training Camp podcast that the Dawgs were more talented than expected on paper and I still think that’s true. They will grow as the year continues and their scheme and style will have them in the top half of the new look Big Ten – Jonah Coleman will be a huge reason why.
Kenny Dillingham! Picked 18th in the new look Big-12, only a touchdown favorite against Wyoming and dominated 48-7. Marcus Arroyo’s offense was impressive and Brian Ward’s defense had two scores.
“America’s Teams” - we are leading the campaign in an election year for the Cougs and Beavs. While Oregon State was not as dominant as Washington State in their openers both teams got expected wins. Reminder, in 2 weeks they both play their rivals and based on what we saw in Week 1, both should be incredibly competitive games.
My questions entering week 2
Who is Colorado? Their game vs North Dakota State was a gritty win. Who are they vs Nebraska on the road? As mentioned, we saw some highly ranked squads get off to slow starts at times on Saturday, are the Buffs in that camp? We will take a deep dive into Coach Prime’s team later this week on the Y-Option podcast with a special Buff expert.
Who is USC? I’ve been on the record a few times as a believer in the 2024 USC Trojans. They kickoff later today against LSU and both Miller Moss and Garrett Nussmeier should inspire QB rooms across the country. They both have waited their turn and now get to shine on a huge stage. Sidenote: I’ll be on the call for the Utah State vs USC game Saturday night so we will dive into that game on the podcast later this week as well.
How are the Cal Bears and specifically their star RB Jaydn Ott? They face Auburn this weekend after pulling away from UC Davis. We’ll be locked into the Justin Wilcox defense against the Tigers offense that put up 73 points.
Is Miami for real? Cam Ward proved he is. My top phrase for QBs is PACE, which stands for Plays After Critical Errors. He threw an early interception, but did not flinch and thrived on the road.
Is Florida in trouble? Hope not as I am a fan of Billy Napier, the one time ASU OC.
How many AD’s just put Jason Eck on their short list for future head coaches? I know he is already on a few but my hunch says he found his way on a few more this weekend. His Idaho Vandals were ready to play against the Ducks and have met the moment every time they have faced a FBS team. He’s an FBS coach, mark it down.
As always, thank you for the support for Y-Option as it allows us to continue to grow this platform!
Much love,
Yogi
Great recap Yogi. Thank you.
Nice summary with plenty of interesting nuggets. Very much looking forward to the podcast with the “Buffs expert.” Prime certainly generates lots of discussion-worthy interest.
And “Go Cats”!