What we learned from the Week 1 of college football, and three picks for Saturday

Week 1 of the college football season, long known for its noncompetitive, glorified exhibition games, was like a sonic boom. Here's what we learned from the opening week.

Notre Dame is a contender

First, we learned Notre Dame is no fluke. The Irish have an elite defense and only needed to convert some key third-down plays to defeat Ohio State. They may have lost, 21-10, but they acquitted themselves very well. The difference with Ohio State is their defensive coordinator Jim Knowles, who came from Oklahoma State.

While others drop teams in the top-25 polls after a loss, I thought the Irish were the best team outside of the top three and belong at No. 4. No. 1 Alabama, No. 2 Georgia and No. 3 Ohio State are still the gold standard.

RI football: URI football opens season with dominant performance in NY; Bryant falls in OT in Miami

FSU quarterback Jordan Travis is a player to watch

We also learned Florida State may have found its quarterback in Jordan Travis, who showed an ability to escape pressure and make positive plays.

The Seminoles tried everything in their power to give the game away, first by fumbling on the LSU 1-yard line with 80 seconds left, and then watching LSU drive 99 yards for a touchdown on the last play. They breathed a sigh of relief when the extra point was blocked and walked off with a 24-23 victory. It was an inauspicious debut for LSU coach Brian Kelly.  They showed resolve coming back in the final 4:07 down two touchdowns, but there was visible frustration on the faces of the Tigers' players before the comeback. The inference is that Kelly better win or his players will rebel.

College football drama is second to none

We learned why college football is the most popular sport with the most improbable endings. Besides the LSU-FSU fiasco, North Carolina returned an onside kick to go up, 62-54, against Appalachian State only to see the Mountaineers score a touchdown in 31 seconds but miss a game-tying two-point conversion.

App State scored 40 fourth-quarter points but still lost. East Carolina missed a game-tying extra point with three minutes to go against NC State only to get the ball back and miss a last-second field goal to lose, 21-20.  You can't make this up.

Clemson could make a quarterback change from DJ Uiagalelei to Cade Klubnik

We learned No. 4 Clemson, while defeating Georgia Tech, 41-10, does not have the chemistry yet in quarterback DJ Uiagalelei. It says here that if he does not vastly improve soon, coach Dabo Swinney will bench his first stringer and play five-star freshman stud Cade Klubnik.

Remember Swinney benched his first stringer Kelly Bryant five years ago in favor of a guy named Trevor Lawrence and we know how that ended up. Clemson won the national championship and Bryant transferred. Swinney plays to win national championships and if the second stringer gives them the best chance, he's not afraid to bench the incumbent. Remember, you didn't just hear it here first, you only heard it here, period!

In case you missed it, Swinney restructured his contract by signing a new 10-year, $115-million deal.

Don't sleep on Stetson Bennett

We learned Georgia quarterback Stetson Bennett (25-for-31 368 yards) may be special as he manhandled Oregon in the 49-3 rout of the Ducks. It confirmed that Oregon and its new head coach are not ready for prime time.

More: Ken Schreiber analyzes the state of college football as the season gets underway

CFP's expansion devalues the regular season

Ah, the College Football Playoff expanded to 12 teams with a unanimous vote late last Friday.  What does this mean? First, the six highest conference champions will automatically qualify with the next six highest ranked teams. That's a positive for the PAC 12, ACC and Big 12 because they all should be one of those six.  It's also great for the Group of Five leagues which will have at least one guaranteed spot.  The next six should be monopolized by the SEC, Big 10 and of course, Notre Dame. The clear and unavoidable negative is that it will diminish the value of the regular season. Now you will see teams with two or even three losses qualify for the CFP.  The most important factor in its passing is to attempt to implement it as early as 2024 so these games can be televised, and the rich can get richer.

On the field

No. 24 Tennessee at No. 17 Pitt (+6.5):  Both teams come off victories, the Volunteers destroying the Ball State Cardinals, 59-10. Did you know Ball State is named for the five Ball brothers who founded the institution in Muncie, Indiana, in 1918? Their most famous alum? David Letterman. Unfortunately, they have a terrible football team so we can't say much about the Vols. Pitt was fortunate to defeat West Virginia in the backyard brawl, 38-31. This game will come down to which quarterback plays better, Tennessee's Hendon Hooker or Pitt's Kedon Slovis. Both are transfers, Hooker from Virginia Teach and Slovis from USC. I'm picking the Panthers to make a play at the end to win it.

No. 20 Kentucky at No. 12 Florida (-5.5):  Gators quarterback Anthony Richardson is special. Kentucky has aspirations of winning the SEC East but before they even think about Georgia, this is a defining game. The Wildcats must not turn the ball over and contain Richardson. Coach Mark Stoops is trying to get the Wildcat program nationally recognized. A win will put him there. Unfortunately, the game is in Gainesville and as Kentucky basketball coach said just weeks ago, "Kentucky is a basketball school". While this infuriated Stoops, he's right. Gators roll!

No. 1 Alabama (-21) at Texas:  We already know about 'Bama QB Bryce Young. He's just too far ahead of everybody else. Texas is not ranked but these are two of the biggest names in college football. It's in Austin and the Longhorns may have found a quarterback in Quinn Ewers. The Tide are a three-touchdown favorite. Nick Saban vs. Steve Sarkisian, another ex-assistant turned head coach. It says here that 'Bama is too talented and smart to lose. But the real difference is in their discipline. While Young is outstanding, the best player on the field is linebacker Will Anderson, who will disrupt the Longhorn offense and is a real Heisman candidate. Switch the channel at halftime. Roll Tide!

This article originally appeared on The Providence Journal: Ken Schreiber's 5 things learned from Week 1 of college football