Week 3 takeaways: Problem for Tide, Penix for Heisman, it’s

Although the matchups for Week 3 did not leap off the page getting in the weekend, there was lots of drama that left us with a great deal of questions as we look forward.What is going on in the SEC? Do we have a full-fledged quarterback controversy in Alabama? Are Michael Penix Jr. and the Washington passing attack really this great? And how high can the hysteria get surrounding Coach Prime and Colorado?Our college football press reporters take a look at those subjects and more with this week’s takeaways. The SEC remains one huge secret It’s probably not wise to offer up a news flash 3 weeks into any college football season. But

here goes absolutely nothing: The SEC looks pretty ordinary. Not to diss Georgia and the Dawgs’ring collection over the last 2 years, however they looked beatable for much of the South Carolina game before rallying in the second half in the house. I’m not sure there are any givens at the top of the league, as has held true with Georgia, Alabama and LSU over the last five or 6 years. We have actually already seen some major gnashing of teeth over the quarterback play, which is to be expected to some degree with so many new starters and others, such as Mississippi State’s Will Rogers, playing in a brand-new offense.Nowhere has actually there been more angst over the quarterback spot than at Alabama. What does Nick Saban do now, after his switch to Tyler Buchner did not go well? Some near to

the program believe Saban will return to Jalen Milroe, which most likely makes one of the most sense at this point.Florida’s upset win over Tennessee at the Swamp cooled a great deal of the offseason hype surrounding Joe Milton III and the Vols, while LSU and Texas A&M get chances in the coming weeks to make amends

for humbling losses to ACC foes in the first 2 weeks. Ole Miss is unbeaten but gets its first SEC test today at Alabama.Some have suggested that the SEC (gasp!)might even be overlooked of the playoff. I don’t see that taking place, however we might see some genuine carnage with schools battering on each other and a great deal of the records looking comparable at season’s

end. It’s what the remainder of the college football world has actually been waiting for.– Chris Low Penix should have more hype Michael Penix Jr. solidified himself as a genuine Heisman prospect who should be getting as much hype as anybody after an unbelievable performance against Michigan State on Saturday. Penix tossed for 473

lawns, five goals and

finished 77%of his passes in just three quarters of UW’s 41-7 win. He became the first quarterback in Washington history to throw for 400 backyards and three or more touchdowns in each of the group’s first 3 games. He has currently tossed for 1,332 yards this season, which is the most through a group’s first three games of a season because 2016, when both Davis Webb and Patrick Mahomes reached that mark. Michael Penix tossed for 473 yards and five touchdowns in 3 quarters versus Michigan State. AP Photo/Al Goldis Penix will have the possibility to display his ability on the national stage when his team plays Oregon, USC and Utah later this season. The game against USC will put him versus last season’s Heisman winner, Caleb Williams, and is sure to be an offending battle worth viewing

.– Tom VanHaaren Washington’s receiver depth revealing Obviously, someone needs to be on the other end of all those Penix passes, and for the 3rd straight week, a pair of Washington wide receivers went over the 100-yard mark in the exact same game. Rome Odunze (8 catches for 180 yards) and Ja’Lynn Polk(five receptions for 118

yards and a TD) turned the trick Saturday.The development of Polk(300 getting yards )and tight end Jack Westover, who had three touchdown catches against the Spartans, behind Jalen McMillan and Odunze will enable coach Kalen DeBoer to keep his foot on the gas and continue to make opposing defenses woozy. A week after 10 Huskies captured passes in a win over Tulsa, nine receivers had receptions

Saturday in East Lansing. That sort of balance, which does not allow defenses a chance to breathe, could prove critical as the Pac-12 gauntlet starts.– Blake Baumgartner The Pac-12 is quickly the nation’s finest league Late Saturday night, I was asked on ESPN radio whether the Pac-12 champion had a chance to make the CFP. A reasonable concern, given the league’s lack from the occasion considering that 2016, but the response plainly is yes. The Pac-12 has supported the offseason buzz and established itself as quickly the leading conference in the FBS. The frustrating starts by both the SEC and Big Ten factor in, and some unsightly Pac-12 outcomes can’t be neglected, but the league should have credit for how its leading teams are performing.For years, the Pac-12 botched the nonleague portion of its schedule, as its better groups– 2019 Oregon, 2022 Utah– would lose to inferior challengers. This season, the Pac-12 mostly has taken care of business, beating Florida( Utah ), Texas Tech (Oregon ), Wisconsin(Washington State), TCU(Colorado), Michigan State(Washington)and others. Although the biggest nonconference test stays– USC at Notre Dame on Oct. 14– the Pac-12 has actually decreased the damage and had

its best teams often look dominant. The league will batter on each other, as always, but wins within the league will resonate more since of what’s taken place beyond conference play.– Adam Rittenberg Don’t panic over sloppy September wins Yes, the CFP selection committee definitely takes notice of how teams win, and it’s clearly much better to handle unranked competition with some style. After a slow Saturday when numerous teams sputtered their method to success, however, it deserves keeping in mind the group likewise acknowledges when contenders merely discover methods to win.Editor’s Picks 2 Related The question is if the battles are more indicative of larger issues (Alabama?), or if maybe a team was looking ahead(Florida State?

), or just faced a gritty little man swinging for the fences(Texas? ). Whatever it was, it appeared to be infectious Saturday, and the final scores didn’t expose how close some of the games were at one point. Georgia was trailing South Carolina by 11 at the half. Texas was connected at 10 with Wyoming late in the 3rd quarter. Michigan quarterback J.J. McCarthy tossed a career-high three interceptions and

was holding on to

a 1-point lead at the half before beating Bowling Green.Sometimes, those efficiencies can be more remarkable than clobbering, state, NC Central, 59-7 (UCLA). This is why the committee does not release its first ranking until Halloween– it’s still prematurely to inform who’s a pretender. But Week 4 will be much more revealing. Ohio State at Notre Dame. Colorado at Oregon. Florida State at Clemson. Those games will help show us who to take seriously.– Heather Dinich It’s Deion Sanders’world, we’re all just living in it Saturday’s win over Colorado State didn’t simply feel like the marquee game of the day. It was the sporting event of the weekend. In between the celebs on hand and

the buzz leading up to the match against a Colorado State group that was neither ranked nor on the radar of most college football fans, Deion Sanders & Co. were the talk of the sport as soon as again. Then the game began and Sanders ‘kid Shilo had an 80-yard pick-six, while his son Shedeur led the game-tying drive late in the fourth quarter that helped the Buffs protect a thrilling win in overtime.Everything was literally showing up Sanders. Three games and three wins into the season, we’re reaching a point where it feels like everything Sanders touches

— from shades to interviews to pregame speeches and his whole roster– relies on gold. The injection of energy Sanders has provided the sport considering that he began his training tenure at Jackson State and now in Boulder isn’t without substance, which makes the coming 2 weeks even more compelling. Matches versus Oregon in Eugene and USC at home will reveal where Colorado truly stands, but no matter the outcome, something is certain: Everybody will be viewing.– Paolo Uggetti