ESPN reporters Andrea Adelson, Chris Low, Mark Schlabach and Adam Rittenberg debate the most pressing questions after Week 1.
Which Week 1 breakout player is poised for stardom?
Andrea Adelson: Stanford WR JJ Arcega-Whiteside. Bryce Love came into the season getting all the Heisman hype, so it's no surprise San Diego State decided to do everything in its power to contain him in the season opener.
That decision ultimately cost the Aztecs, as Arcega-Whiteside used his big frame (6-foot-3, 225 pounds) to dominate defenders. His career-high 226 receiving yards and three touchdowns earned him Pac-12 Offensive Player of the Week honors.
Arcega-Whiteside was already a reliable receiver for the Cardinal. But he's put himself in the national conversation and has a chance to stay there if teams continue to focus only on Love.
Chris Low: Ohio State redshirt sophomore quarterback Dwayne Haskins isn't going to pass for five touchdowns every week, but his ability to spread the ball around and fit the ball into tight windows is going to give the Buckeyes a whole different dimension on offense. He's plenty effective scrambling, too, as we saw in the third quarter of Ohio State's 77-31 blowout victory over Oregon State.
Haskins is surrounded by explosive playmakers and will utilize all of them. And as defenses align to stop Ohio State's running game, Haskins has the feel in the pocket, the awareness and the arm strength to do some serious damage through the air.
Mark Schlabach: I've been saying it for months now, but Clemson freshman Trevor Lawrence has a chance to be one of the better quarterbacks in the country -- right now. His combination of size, speed and arm strength is rare, and the Tigers have all the necessary pieces for him to succeed. I'll be very interested to see how Dabo Swinney and his staff handle the quarterback rotation at Texas A&M in Week 2.
Adam Rittenberg: Stanford quarterback K.J. Costello. San Diego State won't be the last defense to load up against Love. It's still the best approach to slow down the Stanford offense. But Costello looks much more comfortable attacking downfield, especially to big targets like Arcega-Whiteside and Colby Parkinson.
USC coach Clay Helton said this week that Costello has improved most in diagnosing one-on-one matchups where his big receivers can win.
"He gives his kids the chances to make plays," Helton said. "That's what really has changed over the last year."
Can Jim Harbaugh turn things around at Michigan?
Adelson: It's difficult to have much faith that he will given the way the offense played in the season-opening loss to Notre Dame. Take away the kickoff return for a touchdown and the Wolverines offense scored 10 points.
The lack of productivity is a direct result of unimaginative playcalling and, once again, quarterback play that left a lot to be desired. Harbaugh has taken heat for failing to win big games, but as somebody who played quarterback and developed Andrew Luck, his inability to get solid, consistent play out of that position remains mystifying. It was just the first game for Shea Patterson, so he has a chance to get better. But the playcalls have to be better, too, and so does the offensive line.
Low: The most frustrating thing for Michigan fans, especially in Harbaugh's fourth season as head coach, is that the Wolverines don't look any closer to figuring things out on offense. Granted, it was just one game, and Notre Dame is stout on defense. But even with Patterson stepping in at quarterback, it looked a lot like it has the past couple of seasons offensively.
It goes without saying that Harbaugh is going to need to win some games that count this season, but doing that will require getting a lot better on offense. Seeing is believing.
Schlabach: We knew the loser of the opener at Notre Dame was going to face a lot uncertainty going forward. Michigan's defense is very good, but its revamped offense was disappointing, to say the least.
The next few weeks, with home games against Western Michigan and SMU, should give Patterson and everyone else some time to work out the problems. I still think Michigan is going to be a factor in the Big Ten East race.
Rittenberg: Yes, if he allows himself and the staff to distill the offense into something that accentuates what Patterson does well. Notre Dame coach Brian Kelly said Sunday that the Fighting Irish crafted their game plan to "condense" the pocket as much as possible. Patterson looked at his best on play-action rollouts. Michigan needs more of those and must address protection issues that go beyond the linemen.
The Wolverines still have a championship-level defense, but they need more of a playmaking presence on offense, even if it means simplifying things.
Should Texas fans be worried about Tom Herman?
Adelson: No, but there's no such thing as patience in college football anymore, especially at a blue blood like Texas. What is interesting, though, is comparing Herman's early career to Charlie Strong's start at Texas. They posted the same regular-season mark in Year 1, then started Year 2 off with an embarrassing loss (at least Strong lost to a ranked team to open his second season). The only difference in their records through 14 games is Herman won his lower-tier bowl game.
So if the past is any indication, Herman's not going to get much time to turn Texas around. There's a perfect opportunity to quiet the masses: Week 3 against USC. We'll know much more then.
Low: When's the last time anybody on the Forty Acres has been happy about anything related to football? The short answer: It's been a while. So making any hard and fast judgments on Herman one game into his second season as head coach would be foolish, but there's certainly reason for concern after watching Texas lose to Maryland, especially when you factor in that the Longhorns were 3-of-15 on third down, turned the ball over three times and committed 10 penalties for 102 yards.
September home games against No. 17 USC and No. 16 TCU already loomed large for Herman and the Longhorns. They just got a lot bigger.
Schlabach: Yes. It's not like the Longhorns lost back-to-back season openers against Alabama. Give Maryland interim coach Matt Canada and his players a lot of credit for being emotionally and mentally prepared to play after enduring such a tragic offseason. But there's no way the Terps have more talent than Texas. It's only Year 2, but I'd be worried if I were a Texas fan.
Rittenberg: They should start to. There's no excuse for the way Texas opened the game against Maryland. Herman's offense should be further along, particularly a run game that shows life only in short spurts. Protection and playcalling remain suspect. I was most surprised how poorly Texas' defense, considered by many Big 12 coaches to be the league's most talented group, struggled with Maryland early in the opener.
There's plenty of time and some key games coming up, but Texas needs to start resembling a team that will challenge Oklahoma and TCU in the Big 12 soon.
Which team is best positioned to challenge Alabama and Clemson for the title?
Adelson: If there's one team that can challenge Clemson and Alabama in the defensive-line department, it's Auburn. Just look at that dominant performance against Pac-12 favorite Washington. The Tigers had nine tackles for loss, five sacks and held the Huskies to 3.1 yards per carry. They are a veteran unit with three starters back, including inside duo Dontavius Russell and Derrick Brown. Though the offense played inconsistently, the defense did not, and if the Tigers are going to contend for a national championship, it will be on the strength of that unit.
Low: Oklahoma was right there a year ago before losing a 54-48 thriller in two overtimes to Georgia in the College Football Playoff semifinal. The Sooners might not have Baker Mayfield anymore at quarterback, but their offense looked as potent as ever in a 63-14 beatdown of Florida Atlantic.
Oklahoma has averaged 47.2 points and 589.2 yards in its past 10 games and is a good bet to roll right through the Big 12 again. Lincoln Riley's offense is going to score points in bunches on everybody, and as Kyler Murray continues to improve, this is a team nobody will want to face come season's end.
Schlabach: It's hard to gauge the teams that played FCS cupcakes in Week 1, so I'll go with Oklahoma, which was arguably the most impressive team. Quarterback Murray played well, and Rodney Anderson might be the country's most underrated running back. He's a grown man. OU's much-maligned defense held up well against FAU, and it's going to have to continue to improve before road games at TCU and West Virginia later this season.
Rittenberg: Ohio State. It's early, but the Buckeyes seem to be handling Urban Meyer's suspension well. From a talent standpoint, Ohio State is one of few teams that can equal Alabama or Clemson.
Plus, Haskins looks like he might have a higher ceiling than J.T. Barrett as a passer, much like Tua Tagovailoa over Jalen Hurts with Bama. Haskins has showed great efficiency early in his career and gets a lot of receivers involved. The defense needs to grow up at several spots, but Ohio State has the recruiting and coaching (with or without Meyer) to beat any opponent.