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So, opening night. That was pretty awesome. Saturday should be even better, even though I'll be on my couch in Dallas. See you all in Lubbock on Sunday. Wyatt in Nebraska asks: If Nebraska were to lose would this be a bigger upset then the Appalachian St. Vs michigan?
David Ubben: Different circumstances, different teams. To answer your question in short -- yes. Much bigger. But Appalachian State was a top-level FCS team who ended up winning the national championship that year. Western Kentucky is an FBS team that hasn't won a game in 20 tries. It's pretty obvious that Armanti Edwards and Co. would beat the Hilltoppers pretty solidly.
I don't expect Saturday's game to be close at all in the second half.
David in Austin, Texas asks: With the Longhorns naming Cody Johnson as their lead running back, I'm significantly more confident that Texas will devote themselves to a somewhat solid running game. Keeping that in mind, I find it exceedingly difficult for Gilbert to produce "Heisman-esque" numbers. If I recall, it's been a few years since a pro-style, non-spread QB has won the award. Your thoughts?
DU: First off, I don't think the name or size of the starting running back means anything in relation to Texas' commitment to the run. Mack Brown wants balance to make life easier for Garrett Gilbert, a guy who has loads of potential but doesn't have a single start. They may throw the ball a little more later in the season, but Brown knows they'll beat elite teams with more ease if they can run the ball. So, no matter how well Gilbert plays, I still don't see them giving him more than 35-40 attempts in a game unless the running game is getting absolutely stuffed.
As for the Heisman, the last pro-style QB to win it was Matt Leinart, but he had Lendale White and Reggie Bush on his team. Gilbert doesn't have the receivers Leinart did, of course, but let's take it easy with the Gilbert Heisman talk. We've seen him play one game, albeit against a great team. That said, if Texas is 12-0 heading into December, Gilbert's name will be in the conversation if he puts up reasonably good numbers.
JimmyBoar in Amazing Ames asks: DU, I'm thrilled for the victory over northern Illinois , but I can't help but feel like we left some points on the field. Should I shut up and enjoy the win or fear an inability to move the ball against conference foe?
DU: I'd shut up for now. Iowa State looked great in the first quarter and pretty good in the fourth. There's probably some validity to the idea that they relaxed up 17-0. From my perspective, it all of a sudden looked like the Cyclones were going to make this look easy. Once Northern Illinois pushed them to 17-10, they responded about as well as you can ask. For Iowa State fans, that has to be comforting. There was a lot of pressure on that drive that made it 24-10, and they really put together a fantastic 10 plays.
They left some points on the board, but Northern Illinois has a solid defense. They led the MAC last year in total defense. Take from that what you want, but the MAC is not a bad league.
Michael in Brooklyn, NY asks: Sorry if this was previously explained, but I think (and I could be wrong about the source) an awful lot of yacht rock quotes have been popping up. What's that all about?
DU: The smooth, clearly.
Scott in Huskerland asks: I gotta ask. Are you taller than Rittenberg or are the players from the Big 10 taller so it seems that way?
DU: Ha, he's a little bit taller than me, but the discrepancy between us and players is heightened (!) when we're trying to hold a microphone up to Adrian Clayborn or another 6-foot-9 lineman.
To speak in absolutes, I'm about 5-foot-8.
Christopher G. Luce in Columbus, Neb asks: Lets say Robert Griffin 3 was playing for Nebraska right now. Could he be the next Tommie Frazier if not mabie even better? Or could even the team be as good as that 95 team with him?
DU: Intriguing question. I'd pick the Huskers as the runaway favorite for the Big 12 if they had RG3, but with that would come all kinds of variables that probably aren't worth discussing. Sounds like good fodder for others, though.
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