Week 0 is in the books, and it was pretty uneventful as it is most seasons. A handful of western FBS teams took the field with USC being the most high-profile. Despite a lack of action, there were still some interesting takeaways. Let’s take a look at what we learned from this week’s matchups.
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1) San Jose State are Mountain West contenders, San Diego State not so much
The final score of the San Jose State/USC game wasn’t indicative of the Spartans’ performance overall. They looked good in the first half before the Trojans depth ultimately proved too much to overcome. Chevan Cordeiro showed off why he was named Mountain West Conference Preseason Offensive Player of the Year and Nick Nash was surprisingly dominant as he continues his switch from quarterback to wide receiver.
Boise State and Fresno State are the favorites to win the conference this season, but both have question marks entering the year. There is no reason to think the Spartans can’t mount a challenge given their talent. Conversely, San Diego State doesn’t seem like much of a threat.
The Aztecs didn’t look right on offense last season and that trend carried over into week 0 with another lackluster showing against Ohio. Brady Hoke’s team has a very high floor, but the ceiling is limited if they can’t score more than two touchdowns most weeks.
2) Zachariah Branch is Reggie Bush reincarnated
Yogi Roth said this numerous times on the Pac-12 Network broadcast and he was spot on. Watching Zachariah Branch is like seeing the second coming of Reggie Bush. The way he navigates space in the open field is jaw-dropping.
And while they play different positions, the end result will be the same—a lot of missed tackles, a ton of big plays and touchdowns galore. Branch looked like a player who will win the Heisman Trophy against San Jose State. And possibly as a freshman depending on how Lincoln Riley opts to use him.
This will be something to watch at USC in 2023. If there are no restrictions on Branch, he could put up video game numbers. Especially considering some of the questionable defenses on the Trojan’s early season schedule. And given his usage in the opener, the team wants the ball in his hands early and often.
3) A lot of work still to do at Hawaii
Timmy Chang inherited a mess when he took over as head coach at Hawaii. Last year’s 3-10 showing, which began with a home blowout against Vanderbilt, is proof of that. This year’s start against the Commodores showed improvement. Hell, a victory would have been possible with better execution.
However, the Rainbow Warriors still have a lot of work to do as far as the rebuild goes. The team as a whole is very disjointed. There isn’t a lot of cohesiveness and not everyone seems to know what they are supposed to be doing. Getting to .500 would be a hell of an accomplishment for Hawaii in 2023.
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4) New Mexico State will be entertaining
Many people will point at New Mexico State losing to UMass and laugh. But it is important to note, the Aggies should have won this game. They were extremely sloppy in the fourth quarter with quarterback Diego Pavia barfing up a pick-six and then suffering a strip sack deep inside his own territory over the course of five minutes. That’s a 14-point swing right there.
When New Mexico State wasn’t turning the ball over, their offense had no issues moving up and down the field. This will likely be the case for the entire season. The Aggies are not the best team in the nation, but they will play plenty of entertaining games.
Looking ahead to week 1 of college football in the West
A lot of attention will be paid to Utah hosting Florida in week one as well as Deion Sanders taking his Colorado Buffaloes to TCU. Washington hosting Boise State is an interesting matchup flying under the radar while UCLA hosts Coastal Carolina. Outside FBS, Eastern Washington heads to Minneapolis for a rematch of the 2019 FCS Championship game against North Dakota State. This is the first-ever college football game to be played at U.S. Bank Stadium.
The biggest college football in the West story, at least for me, is the Sunday showdown between Oregon State and San Jose State. This is the opening of the newly renovated Spartan Stadium. For the Beavers, they will want to match what USC did as they look to state their Pac-12 contender credentials.
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