Each week I'll be posting some thoughts on the college football season in a couple of different content pieces.

I'll preview the next weekend's action from the point of view of why it matters to Kentucky, and I'll also - as here below - share some thoughts based on action that has already passed.

Let's get to it.

... Kentucky-Florida is going to be a huge showcase for the Wildcat football program. The game will get national attention. The atmosphere is going to be rowdy. If Kentucky wins, it serves notice the country that the program is here to stay. The recruiting impact could be off the charts with the 'Cats already putting together one of their best classes ever. Losing the game doesn't undo all the gains of the last few years, but winning it would be another signature achievement.

... If Kentucky beats Florida, the 'Cats will instantly become the trendy pick to finish second in the East and potentially mount a challenge to Georgia, although winning in Athens would be very difficult.

... I can't wait to watch the matchup between Kentucky's offensive line, and tackles Landon Young and Darian Kinnard in particular, and guys like Jabari Zuniga and Jonathan Greenard over on the Gator side.

... If the 'Cats beat the Gators there's a real chance Kentucky could vault all the way into the Top-20, let alone the Top-25. UK is right outside the bottom of the poll at No. 27, and beating a Top-10 team at home would move the needle especially this early in the season while people are still forming their opinions.

... In the ACC, how can you not be impressed with Clemson? They handled Texas A&M 24-10 in a game that wasn't really that close. Trevor Lawrence's numbers haven't been off the charts this year but he's still the best pro prospect in college football. Even with all that turnover on the defensive line the Tigers absolutely shut down the A&M offense. The Aggies did slow the Clemson ground game. It's just very hard to see Clemson losing a game before the College Football Playoff. They don't have any ranked teams still on their schedule.

... Maybe the most impressive win of last week belonged to Justin Fields and Ohio State, with the quarterback finishing 20/25 for 224 yards and two touchdowns plus another two scores on the ground. 42-0 against a Cincinnati team that could win 11 games again just tells me that OSU is absolutely a playoff contender.

... But so is LSU. The Tigers' skill talent was on full display in Austin, Tex., and Joe Burrow is the best quarterback LSU has had in a very long time. Remember all the years when we wondered what LSU might be like if they got quarterback play? This could be that year. I will predict them to win the West, though I readily admit I may live to regret that pick.

... Michigan nearly lost at home to Army, which in context isn't as bad as it seems (Army nearly beat Oklahoma last year). I'm starting to believe Jim Harbaugh is the worst possible coach Michigan could have. He's never lost less than three games in a season with the Wolverines, gets destroyed by Ohio State on a regular basis, says things that just embarrass the university, but isn't doing a bad job so they seem stuck in a place of "almost" relevant.

... I was not surprised to see North Carolina defeat Miami in Chapel Hill on Saturday. Those two teams are not very different. And it makes my bold prediction of UNC in the ACC title game after a 2-9 season look a little better. It also makes you wonder how good Miami really is, and the Hurricanes played Florida very tough in Week 1.

... However, Virginia is looking really good. That 52-17 win against William & Mary coupled with the easy win at Pitt means the Cavaliers should definitely be regarded as the favorites over there.

... Maybe the surprise of the last weekend for me was California going into Seattle and knocking off Top-20 Washington. Justin Wilcox is doing a very nice job with the Bears, taking over a program that Sonny Dykes didn't leave in the best shape and going 5-7 then 7-6 last year. Now the Bears are 2-0 with an excellent road win.

... You mean Nebraska isn't really a Top-25 caliber team? Who could have guessed that? One year removed from a 4-8 record in Scott Frost's first year, the Cornhuskers dropped their first road game of 2019 to Colorado, 34-31, just a week after performing worse than expected against South Alabama. I'm not predicting Frost will fail, but he's far from the sure-fire success story that a lot of Nebraska fans probably hoped he would be.

... Missouri bounced back from a season-opening loss to Wyoming with a 38-7 win against West Virginia, and in so doing they looked a lot more like the team I expected them to be before the season than the one they did in Week 1. I think this will be the Missouri that we see for most of the rest of the season. Not a Top-10 team, but a Top-25 caliber squad. Neal Brown really has his work cut out for him. Dana Holgorsen does not seem to have left much in the cupboard.

... After defeating Vanderbilt 42-24, Purdue is back in the winning column and Elijah Sindelar is on track to shatter passing records this year. Of course, two games isn't much to draw conclusions based on.

... In his first game as a starter following Jake Bentley's injury new South Carolina quarterback Ryan Hilinski was 24/30 for 282 yards, two touchdowns and a pick in a 72-10 win against Charleston Southern. But that Charleston Southern team got drilled by Furman in its first game so lets see how things go from here.

... Losing at Cincinnati in a tough opener was one thing. Losing to San Diego State at home 23-14 is another for Chip Kelly's UCLA Bruins. Are they actually making progress? UCLA isn't even recruiting well.

... ... Florida State is apparently an awful second half team. In Week 1 the Seminoles built a big lead only to watch as Boise State rallied to score all the points late and defeat the 'Noles in a game rescheduled and moved to Tallahassee. Last Saturday, FSU jumped out 24-7 against UL Monroe at halftime only to watch the Warhawks win the second half 31-14. It could be another ugly season in Tallahassee. Clemson's half of the ACC doesn't look nearly as strong as it did before the season. Boston College and NC State may be better than Syracuse and FSU.

... What can you say about Tennessee at this point? Jeremy Pruitt will have to work a miracle to get this team out of an early season 0-2 rut. After crumbling against BYU at home, it's tough to find more than a few (and that might be pushing it) wins on UT's schedule. But again, I would caution UK fans not to count this as a win just yet.

... Speaking of miracles, Les Miles is not a miracle worker. He's a good coach, but Kansas' problems are bigger than he is at least for now. Coastal Carolina extended the Jayhawks' football misery with a 12-7 victory in Lawrence. KU is trying to play power football in the Big XII and that could be a rocky transition.

... Good news for Kentucky: Arkansas appears to be a bad team. After barely surviving Portland State in its opener, the Razorbacks lost to the SEC West's other bottom feeder, Ole Miss, 31-17. Arkansas appears incapable of running the ball and stopping the run. That's a bad combination in the SEC.