Rastall Ramblings: Badgers blank RedHawks, Corso’s perfect farewell & other Week 1 reactions

Luke Fickell and the Wisconsin football team were never going to completely alter their perception among fans based on beating a MAC opponent in a Thursday season opener, but a shutout win is never a bad way to start the year.

In their 17-0 victory against Miami (OH) last week, the Badger defense held an opponent to a goose egg for the first time since 2022 — a 33-0 win over FCS Illinois State in Paul Chryst’s final season opener in Madison.

Wisconsin safety Preston Zachman was named the Big Ten Defensive Player of the Week after hauling in two interceptions. As a unit, the Wisconsin defense held Miami to only 117 yards of total offense and a 0-for-9 mark on third downs.

The RedHawks, though they are consistently one of the MAC’s better teams under head coach Chuck Martin, are typically stout defensively and rather anemic on offense, so there’s only so much one can take from last Thursday’s win. That said, you’ve got to start somewhere and that was a strong way to begin for a defense that’s hoping to be much more formidable up front this fall.

Less positive was the debut performance by the Badger offense under new coordinator Jeff Grimes.

Redshirt freshman Dilin Jones looked like a worthy lead back with 73 yards while averaging 5.2 yards per carry. But outside of Jones and wide receiver Vinny Anthony II (four catches for 57 yards and a TD), there wasn’t much remarkable happening on offense.

The offensive line was pedestrian, with left tackle Davis Heinzen in particular looking out of his element enough to where it’s hard to imagine the coaching staff sticking with him going forward.

Starting quarterback Billy Edwards Jr. went out in the second quarter with a non-contact leg injury, though the Badgers avoided disaster as Edwards only suffered a sprained knee and is week-to-week rather than being out possibly the whole season.

Backup QB Danny O’Neil was a bit shaky in relief of Edwards, but he at least looked more competent than Braedyn Locke did when he had to assume the starting role following Tyler Van Dyke’s torn ACL last fall.

Lee Corso’s perfect farewell

For nearly four decades, Lee Corso was the greatest ambassador college football could’ve ever asked for in his role on ESPN’s “College Gameday”. Corso’s charisma, catchphrases and headgear picks made him a beloved icon in the sport. Even if you might not tune in for the entirety of Gameday, a Saturday of college football didn’t truly start until Corso donned a mascot head for his pick in the biggest game of the day.

Even after a stroke in 2009, Corso worked his tail off to recover well enough to return to Gameday and stayed on the show for another 15 years. His willingness to put himself out there and sometimes have to fight through the effects of his stroke on national TV was inspirational, and co-panelist Kirk Herbstreit helping him along if he was having difficulties was truly touching.

Corso’s final appearance before retiring from “College Gameday” came last Saturday in what would up being the most-viewed episode in the show’s history. Just like he did in his first headgear pick way back in 1996, Corso donned the mascot head of Brutus Buckeye to pick Ohio State.

Corso went out with a bang, going 6-0 in his final Gameday picks by correctly taking the Buckeyes, LSU over Clemson, Miami over Notre Dame, Florida State over Alabama, South Carolina over Virginia Tech and Tennessee over Syracuse. Additionally, every school Corso played or coached at (Florida State, Maryland, Navy, Louisville, Indiana and Northern Illinois) won last week.

Fall Saturdays won’t feel quite the same without Lee Corso, but it was so wonderful to see him get his flowers from so many people before heading off into retirement.

Kalen DeBoer’s $60 million buyout

One game into his second season as Alabama’s head coach and the pressure is already ramping up on Kalen DeBoer.

Whatever poor rube decided to follow Nick Saban in Tuscaloosa was always going to be putting themselves in an almost impossible situation, but DeBoer Bama’s penchant for struggling in games as double-digit favorites has cranked up the heat extraordinarily quickly.

The Crimson Tide’s 31-17 loss to Florida State, the latter coming off a 2-10 season in 2024, marked DeBoer’s fourth loss as a 14-point favorite in just 14 games as Alabama’s head coach. As The Athletic’s Chris Vannini pointed out, Saban had three such losses in 139 games during his Tuscaloosa tenure.

This Bama roster is still loaded with talent and DeBoer’s not a dead man walking yet, but his seat’s temperature is rising. If the Tide go 8-4 or worse, there might not be a buyout high enough to keep him around for a third season.

Manning, Belichick hype trains derailed

No two individuals in college football were going to be under a bigger microscope this Labor Day weekend than Texas quarterback Arch Manning and North Carolina head coach Bill Belichick.

By virtue of his last name, Manning was always destined to have too high of expectations placed on him, and his first start as the Longhorns’ full-time starting QB coming against defending national champion Ohio State in one of the most hyped Week 1 games ever added to that pressure cooker.

Manning struggled on that big stage against new OSU coordinator Matt Patricia’s defense, completing only 17 of 30 passes for 170 yards, a touchdown and an interception while missing far too many easy throws in a 14-7 loss. He did flash some of his arm talent and I imagine he’ll be fine in the long run, but the brakes have rightfully been slammed on any premature Heisman buzz for him.

It still felt strange to see Belichick coaching college football, but after an offseason sideshow focused on Bill and his relationship with a girlfriend young enough to be his granddaughter, at least we finally got a glimpse of the on-field product that UNC signed up for.

The extremely early returns: rancid.

Despite ESPN barely acknowledging TCU’s existence in the game going in, the Horned Frogs steamrolled the Tar Heels 48-14 — the most points scored against a Belichick defense in his entire career as a head coach or defensive coordinator. It was honestly pretty funny to see a bunch of celebrities turn out for the game just to see Sonny Dykes give Belichick a three-hour swirly.

Obviously a loss in the season opener, no matter how lopsided, doesn’t doom Belichick to assured failure in Chappel Hill. But seeing the stands emptying in the third quarter after all that offseason buzz? Not a promising start, to say the least.

Misery business

Led by Heisman finalist Ashton Jeanty, Boise State earned the distinction of being the first Group of 5 representative of the 12-team playoff era in 2024. They entered the new season ranked and hoping for a repeat bid to the CFP but saw those dreams all but dashed in Week 1 with a 34-7 thrashing at the hands of South Florida.

FCS Austin Peay not only beat an FBS team for the first time since 1987 in a win over Middle Tennessee last Saturday — they annihilated the Blue Raiders. In their 34-14 win, the Governors held a decisive 341-153 advantage in total offensive yardage.

Army has become a model of consistency under head coach Jeff Monken, including winning the American Athletic Conference title and finishing ranked in the final AP poll last fall. But 2025 got off to a rough start for the Black Knights, who lost in double overtime as 14-point favorites in their season opener to FCS Tarleton State.

Northwestern went 4-8 last season and might be in for an even rougher fall if their season opener was any indication. The Wildcats were pummeled 23-3 on the road by Tulane, which included Northwestern QB Preston Stone getting picked off four times. Making matters worse: Tulane head coach Jon Sumrall accused the Wildcats of disrespecting New Orleans by denying the Green Wave’s request to wear all-white uniforms in commemoration of the 20th anniversary of Hurricane Katrina.

There was no inherent shame in Colorado losing 27-20 to Georgia Tech in Boulder last Friday. But Colorado head coach Deion Sanders inexplicably not using either of his two remaining timeouts as the Buffaloes tried to drive for a touchdown with 1:07 left? Tough to figure that one out.

Stray thoughts

• Maybe a little Lee Corso magic is what LSU needed to finally end their season opener curse. After Corso picked the Tigers as his predicted national champion for this season, they went on the road and beat Clemson for their first win in a season opener since 2019.
• Miami’s hopes of a breakthrough in Year 4 under Mario Cristobal got off to a solid start with a 27-24 win over Notre Dame. Georgia transfer Carson Beck threw for 205 yards and a pair of TDs in his debut with the Hurricanes. Miami did nearly blow a 10-point fourth-quarter lead before Carter Davis hit a 47-yard field goal with a minute left to put them back ahead for good.
• South Carolina head coach Shane Beamer and his Gamecocks enter 2025 with College Football Playoff aspirations. The start of that journey saw Beamer reunited with the school where his dad was a Hall of Fame coach: Virginia Tech. The Gamecocks won 24-11 in a game that, in classic Beamerball fashion, featured a safety and a punt return touchdown.
• Those who stayed up late Saturday night for the final window of games were treated to some sublime QB play in former Pac-12 games. Utah’s Devon Dampier completed 84 percent of his passes for 206 yards and a pair of touchdowns while running for an additional 87 yards and a TD as the Utes crushed UCLA. Meanwhile, Cal’s Jaron-Keawe Sagapolutele threw for 234 yards a hat trick of touchdowns as the Golden Bears bested Oregon State.
• The longest losing streak in the FBS is over thanks to Kent State’s 21-17 win over FCS foe Merrimack. The Golden Flashes went ahead for good with a little over five minutes to play in the fourth quarter thanks to a 100-yard kickoff return by Da’Realyst Clark.