Alabama and Clemson top week one performances

It's pretty much unanimous that Clemson and Alabama, or Alabama and Clemson, are the two best teams in college football this year, until proven otherwise. But which teams looked the most impressive in week one?

By answering that question, we can look for those teams most likely to challenge the Dual Dynasty that is the Tigers and Crimson Tide, who together have won all four of the last four national championships.

We look to our power ratings and the scores of last weekend's games for the answers. Though one game doesn't tell us everything, it should point us in the right direction.

And...from this analysis we conclude that the teams that played the best in week one are (drum roll...)

Alabama and Clemson. Here's the rundown of the best performances, and how much better than the "average" FBS team performance it was:

1. Alabama 42, Duke 3 (score: +39.5)
   The Crimson Tide started slow, only leading 14-3 at the half, but when all was said and done they had defeated a solid Duke team (10-3 last year) on a neutral field by 39 points. Which is 39 1/2 points better than most teams would have done. Suggesting, too, that Duke is an average FBS team this year.
2. Clemson 52, Georgia Tech 14 (+37.8)
   It might be harder to quantify this one, as it represents the Yellow Jackets' first post-option-era effort on offense. But on defense they couldn't stop the Tigers, who rang up a 35-0 lead en route to a 38 point win. Georgia Tech was a decent 7-6 team last year and probably would be comparable to Duke if they had continuity from last year; also, the Tigers were playing at home, so this win might be a tiny step down from Alabama's win, though it's well within the "margin of error." Either way, Alabama and Clemson are your top two teams, even when examining a single game so far.
3. LSU 55, Georgia Southern 3 (+32.7)
   The next team up is another SEC team, LSU, who dominated Georgia Southern from the start and led 42-3 at the half. The Eagles were 10-3 last year, though with a weak schedule; they weren't bad, but weren't much above average if at all. Still, LSU excelled on both offense and defense and may have emerged as Alabama's top SEC rival. If it's not the Tigers, maybe it's...
4. Georgia 30, Vanderbilt 6 (+30.5)
   The Georgia Bulldogs played a solid game on Saturday, dismantling Vanderbilt 30-6 on the road. While the Commodores aren't the cream of the SEC crop they definitely aren't a sub-par team. Georgia beat them 41-13 last year, but that was in Athens. Which makes this win similar to last year's, which makes this year's Bulldogs roughly equal to last year's model. Which was pretty good. As usual, they will have to get past Alabama (or maybe LSU) to make the playoff.
5. Penn State 79, Idaho 7 (+29.3)
   Here's the first win over an FCS team that makes the cut. Idaho was an FBS team just last year, however, and they are probably still comparable to the worst FBS team, so they're not a total joke like some of the games played last week. But the Nittany Lions made a joke of the game. They started slow, with two field goals, before running it up to 65-0 in the 4th quarter. The Vandals got on the board but PSU added two more TDs in the last 8 minutes. Is that fair? Who knows, but the end result was an impressive 72-point blowout. Will it translate in play against quality teams? We will find out, but Penn State probably added their name to Michigan and Ohio State among Big Ten front-runners.
6. Wisconsin 49, South Florida 0 (+26.2)
   Another Big Ten contender: Wisconsin. The Badgers shut out the hapless Bulls, who were 7-6 last year: A 7-0 start, followed by 6 losses. The Badger defense proved to be just as solid as their offense, which chugged along as expected. A very convincing road win.
7. Washington 47, Eastern Washington 14 (+24.3)
   The Huskies represented the Pac-12 well, beating in-state FCS power Eastern Washington by 34 when all was said and done. The most impressive part was the defensive performance, as the Eagles are known for their high-powered offenses. Of course, Washington was one of last year's very best defensive team; despite returning just 2 starters, the defense appears sound.
8. Maryland 79, Howard 0 (+22.9)
   Let's get this out of the way: Howard is not a great team. They were 4-6 last year in the FCS, ranking a reasonable #233 out of 791 teams in all of the college football world, but particularly poor on defense. The Terps exploited that to the max, running to a 56-0 lead at half. Their last touchdown was early in the 4th quarter, so it's not like they poured it on unnecessarily, and they held the Bison scoreless. That foreshadows better things ahead for Maryland, who were barely above-average last year in the Big Ten and finished 5-7. Then again, last year's opener (a win vs. Texas) didn't lead to greater things, so maybe don't get too excited yet.
9. Washington State 58, New Mexico State 7 (+19.9)
   The Cougars' offense remained prolific as ever in eviscerating the Aggies, while the defense showed it can at least clamp down on lesser offenses. The real test will come from other Pac-12 offenses, but this effort makes them among the very top candidates as the league looks for a playoff candidate.
10. Utah 30, BYU 12 (+19.5)
    Good news for the Pac-12: despite Oregon's loss, there might be at least three standout squads that could be playoff worthy. Utah's road win at BYU—where the defense helped the Utes pull ahead in the 2nd half—bodes well for their hopes for a conference title, or more, this year. 

The upshot? Despite the SEC's struggles by mid-to-lower rung teams last week (losses by Missouri, Tennessee, and South Carolina), three teams looked to be among the top four in the nation—which is by definition playoff-worthy, even though probably only one of Alabama, LSU, or Georgia will make it from the conference.

The Big Ten looked good, too, with three teams winning big, and two of them scoring 79 points. But stronger competition will determine whether Penn State, Wisconsin, and especially darkhorse Maryland can unseat Ohio State or Michigan as the conference favorite.

The Pac-12 suffered a setback with Oregon's loss to Auburn, so they may have to count on Washington, Washington State, or Utah to carry the hopeful playoff banner.

And then there's Clemson. Quite frankly, it doesn't look like there is any ACC team that can challenge them right now. Their toughest opponent appears to be Texas A&M, next week.