College Football Overtime (cont.)

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Riley Dodge led North Texas to an upset win at Ball State on Thursday night. Michael Hickey/Getty Images Stewart Mandel's Mailbag Submit a question or an opinion to Stewart. Name: Email: Hometown: Question: SEND Follow Stewart Mandel on Twitter

Last Thursday night, while most of the country was fixated on Oregon-Boise State, a stunning score popped up from Muncie, Ind.: North Texas 20, Ball State 10. If that doesn't register, this will: Ball State went 12-2 last year; the Mean Green were 1-11.

After going 3-21 his first two seasons, North Texas coach Todd Dodge -- who the school took a decided gamble on by hiring him straight out of Texas prep power Southlake Carroll -- got a much-needed confidence booster. And he did it with a familiar face running his no-huddle spread offense: redshirt freshman QB Riley Dodge, his son. "We're not anything to write home about yet, but [Riley] did a really nice job in his first game getting the ball in a lot of different peoples' hands," said Todd, who previously coached Chase Daniel in high school.

Most remarkably, North Texas' defense -- which ranked dead last nationally last season -- held the Cardinals to 10 points. Granted, Ball State figured to take a dip following the departure of head coach Brady Hoke and star QB Nate Davis. But the Mean Green, helped by the influx of four junior college or freshman defensive linemen -- held the Cardinals to just 309 yards.

Apparently Dick Tomey's seeing things

This was the San Jose State coach's assessment following his team's 56-3 loss to USC: "For a while it looked like we could compete with them. Obviously, it was an illusion."

LeGarrette Blount: A clinical analysis

Still traumatized by Oregon running back LeGarrette Blount's punch-to-the-face last Thursday night? Still puzzled over how a college football player could melt down so explosively on national television? On this week's edition of "The Bubba Counseling Show," Bob Zima, licensed professional counselor and self-proclaimed Boise State fan, uses the Blount punch to teach us all a valuable lesson about hurt and anger ... direct from his RV. (Warning: clip includes brief profanity.)

Lane Kiffin: Master Visual Artist

The Lane Kiffin era got off to a rocking start -- literally. Saturday's 63-7 rout of Western Kentucky doesn't mean Tennessee will win the SEC just yet, but the Vols already take the cake for highest production value of a pre-kickoff Jumbotron segment. It certainly worked this dude into a tizzy (the real fun starts at the 3:42 mark).

Scenes from the road

I'm not sure I've ever endured a stranger game-trip than last week's jaunt to Boise.

It started almost bucolically, my buddy Bruce Feldman and I enjoying lunch at the RAM Restaurant and Brewery across the street from Bronco Stadium, looking out at joggers and dog-walkers strolling the Boise River Greenbelt. With a Rueben in my hand, Journey's Any Way You Want It piping through the restaurant and ESPN Classic replaying the Northwestern-USC Rose Bowl on one of the bar's TVs, life seemed pretty grand.

Of course, the evening ended with my head spinning and my poor editors waiting on me at 4 a.m. EST as I tried to process the fact that a prominent college football player had just punched an opposing player in the face, among other things. In between, Bruce and I somehow got lost on that same river trail for two hours in 94-degree weather, I ate three different brewpub meals in less than 24 hours and I learned that I'd been mispronouncing "Boise" (it's Boi-see, not Boyz-ee) my entire life.

Boise really is a lovely place with a beautiful stadium and a splendid football team, though I do have one criticism (shared, apparently, by Pac-10 commissioner Larry Scott): How does the school not punish Byron Hout? Seriously?

Looking ahead

Mini-previews for three of this week's big games:

• USC at Ohio State (Saturday, 8 p.m. ET):
My, how things change in a week. Back when USC named Matt Barkley its starting quarterback and lost starting WR Ronald Johnson and CB Shareece Wright, many felt the Trojans would be vulnerable heading to Columbus. Now, after watching USC thump San Jose Sate and the Buckeyes barely escape against Navy, many may wonder whether this year's game will be any closer than last year's 35-3 Trojans wipeout.

• Notre Dame at Michigan (Saturday, 3:30 p.m. ET):
Boy, did this one get more interesting in a hurry. The Wolverines looked light years better in their 31-7 rout of Western Michigan, but how will young QB Tate Forcier fare against an ND defense that shut out Nevada? For that matter, can Irish QB Jimmy Clausen continue his recent dominance (37-of-44, 716 yards and nine TDs in his past two games) against the Greg Robinson-led Wolverines defense? I know one thing: I'm intrigued.

• UCLA at Tennessee (Saturday, 4 p.m. ET):
The Vols racked up an impressive 657 yards against Western Kentucky, but I'm not sure that tells us anything. The Bruins only scored three offensive touchdowns against San Diego State, but I'm not sure that tells us anything, either. The only thing we'll know for sure going in is there are going to be a whole lot of freshmen on that field.

Now that you've got your college fix, click here to satisfy your pro football craving with Peter King's Monday Morning Quarterback.