Tony Barnhart
By Tony Barnhart
Five things we learned from the first full weekend of college football, 2025:
1--Alabama fans, as we have long known, are not a patient bunch. They do not like losing, period.
But you know what Alabama fans will not tolerate?
They will not tolerate a football team that is not tough. And Alabama, gentle readers, was not a tough football team playing with a sense of urgency in a 31-17 loss to Florida State in Tallahassee.
Now, to be fair, Florida State entered this game coming off a 2-10 season with its backs clearly against the wall. Florida State coach Mike Norvell had spent the entire offseason staring Alabama in the face. He went out and hired his old boss, Gus Malzahn, to call the plays.
And it worked.
Malzahn, who beat Alabama six times (four of those against Nick Saban) tweeted that “It was like old times.”
But the biggest concern at Alabama today has to be, for lack of a better term, the fact that this team did not hustle. And that can NEVER happen at Alabama.
Alabama plays Louisiana-Monroe this Saturday, Wisconsin on Sept. 13, an open date on Sept. 20 and then a trip to Georgia on Sept. 27.
So what else did we learn in the first full weekend of college football?
2--LSU has finally found a defense and that makes the Tigers a dark horse contender for Atlanta.
LSU coach Brian Kelly said before the season started that this was the most talented roster he has had-ever. It is hard to argue after watching LSU beat No. 4 Clemson, the ACC favorite, on the road, 17-10. Clemson quarterback Cade Klubnik, a projected first-round draft choice, completed only 50 percent of his passes and found his running lanes closed off. It was a huge win for Kelly and the Tigers, who host Florida on Sept. 13.
3--It looks like Tennessee is going to be just fine at quarterback. Joey Aguilar, the transfer from Appalachian State/UCLA took over when Nico Iamaleava suddenly left Tennessee for UCLA. There was concern that Tennessee, a playoff team in 2024, might be in trouble.
It looks like Tennessee has gotten the better end of that quarterback swap.
While Nico was struggling in his UCLA debut (a 43-10 loss to Utah), Aguilar threw for 247 yards and three touchdowns in a 45-26 win over Syracuse in Atlanta.
The Vols play ETSU this week and then host Georgia on Sept. 13. They have to feel much better about things than they did when Nico left.
4--Auburn, Freeze get a huge win at Baylor. Lost in the shuffle of so many high-profile games was Auburn’s 38-24 win at Baylor on Friday night. Jackson Arnold, the transfer quarterback from Oklahoma, ran for 137 of Auburn's 307 rushing yards. He had six runs of 10 yards or more.
“I thought it was a solid, solid effort,” said Freeze.
Given what Freeze has been through since the end of last season. It was much more than that. That win gives Auburn hope.
Now Auburn has back-to-back home games with Ball State and South Alabama before going to Oklahoma on Sept. 20.
5--Texas, Arch Manning are going to be just fine. Needless to say Arch Manning’s coming out party at Ohio State, the defending national champions, was painful to watch if you’re a Longhorns fan. The Buckeyes won 14-7 and Manning completed 17 of 30 passes for 170 yards, one touchdown and one interception.
It was certainly less than what we expected from the guy who was picked by many to win the Heisman Trophy.
To his credit, Manning acknowledged in the post-game that he has to play better for his team to win.
Texas has a more comfortable stretch coming up with San Jose State, UTEP, and Sam Houston State in four weeks, all in Austin. The Longhorns go to Florida on Oct. 4. That could be very interesting.
#30