There's plenty of coverage of Kentucky here at Cats Illustrated, but tracking the rest of the sport outside of what's happening in Lexington is part of the deal because it's all related.

The second week of college football games is in the books, though we're calling it Week 1, and CI publisher Justin Rowland offers takeaways from the action.

Sobering to watch the Dawgs ... Georgia has the look of a program that's prepared to continue this stretch of dominance for some period of time. Stetson Bennett was fantastic in the Dawgs' 49-3 thrashing of No. 11 Oregon.

It was a terrible way for the Dan Lanning era to start and, coupled with Florida's win against Utah, a bad weekend for the Pac-12 against the SEC.

Bennett isn't really an NFL prospect but he makes this offense go in a way other quarterbacks did not last year. It was amazing to see the amount of talent and toughness Georgia displayed one game after losing so much talent to the NFL, and it probably doesn't bode well for the chances others might have in the East this year.

ESPN's FPI gives Kentucky a 3% chance to win the division, but the Cats just have to take it one game at a time.

Going into the season I didn't give UGA much of a chance against Alabama this year, because you have to figure the Tide will be angry, they have an elite player at quarterback, and it should be another very strong Bama defense. But how can you not believe UGA has a very real chance to repeat as national champs after that showing?

You have to have UGA/Bama 1/2 after the first week.

Impressed by Arkansas ... I'm not sure if I would have the Razorbacks third in a power poll of SEC teams but they're in the conversation. I was impressed with Arkansas' 31-24 home win against Cincinnati.

You're not going to beat the brakes off Cincinnati. Alabama beat them 27-6 in the playoff last year, and while the Bearcats didn't have enough firepower to challenge a team with so much talent, they made the Tide earn everything more than usual.

Beating Cincinnati means beating the Bearcats methodically and that's what the Hogs did. KJ Jefferson was an ultra efficient 18/26 for 223 yards, three touchdowns, and no interceptions. Arkansas rushed for 224 yards. They held UC to 3.6 yards per carry and were pretty much in control of the game with the exception of the third quarter when Cincinnati scored 17 points.

I love what Sam Pittman has done here in Fayetteville. They're no flash in the pan but a team that plays and wins the right way.

Louisville laid a complete dud ... And Scott Satterfield is certainly taking a lot of deserved criticism for that. The Cardinals were absolutely dominated by Syracuse, which was expected to be one of the teams in the lower portion of that division in the ACC. Dan Mullen recently picked Louisville to finish last on that side and I think it was met with a round of jeers especially from Louisville fans, but after that showing, that pick might not be too bad. Laying down and losing 31-7 to a Syracuse team that hasn't been even consistently decent in a while is a big egg to start the season.

One reason I've always tapped the brakes a bit on the excitement over Louisville's recruiting class is there is a lot that will happen before those guys enter the program and have enough opportunity to change it. For a coach who hasn't been very successful, there's probably a lot more pain in store between now and the time when this class could start to change things.

LSU's offense is anemic ... Brian Kelly has a lot of work to do with that LSU offense this season. It could barely get off the ground in a loss to Florida State, in New Orleans. I wasn't expecting too much from either team this season, so maybe this just gives the Noles the inside track to an 8-win season. It's a nice win for Norvell.

Florida State looked like a team that will at least be interesting on that side of the ACC. With NC State looking iffy and Boston College losing to Rutgers maybe the Noles can make a little noise on that side.

The Billy Napier era starts in style, and that's a good thing for Kentucky ... It's a good thing for Kentucky that Florida knocked off No. 7 Utah. Perhaps the absolute best result for UK would have been Utah beating the brakes off the Gators 30-0 because that would mean UK is decidedly the better team, but I can get on board with how things played out. Kentucky's coaches and players will believe they have a lot to improve on, while Florida will be ranked. If Florida wins, the story will be Florida beating two top-20 teams to start the season. It won't be Kentucky losing, at least in terms of the narrative. If Kentucky wins, that's beating a legit top-25 team that just knocked off a top-10 squad.

What a great way for the Billy Napier era to start in Gainesville. Their fan base has to be very energized, the only downside being the crowd is going to be crazy.

Florida rushed for nearly 300 yards against that Ute defense and while I have liked the way UK's defense matches up against the Florida offense, I would be a bit concerned about the Gator run game after watching that. I don't think UK should be worried about Anthony Richardson the way some other teams should be, because the curse of the dual-threat quarterback seems to have died in recent years.

But there's a reason UK is a 5-7 point underdog here. It's on the road, Florida's riding big momentum, and Kentucky's offensive line was suspect.

Spencer Rattler underwhelming in South Carolina win ...South Carolina eventually beat Georgia State 35-14 but the game was in doubt for a long time. Spencer Rattler was 23/37 for 227 yards, a touchdown and two picks in his debut for the Gamecocks. He did make some very impressive throws in that game so the talent is definitely there. I probably stake out a middle ground position on Rattler and South Carolina this season. I expect real improvement from their offense into a respectable unit and don't believe it's going to be an easy game for Kentucky, but would still put them a notch behind four teams in the East.

Buckeyes grind out win against Notre Dame ... It wasn't pretty, but Ohio State's 21-10 win against No. 5 Notre Dame in Columbus looks a lot better than recent early season home losses to Oregon or Oklahoma before that. The Irish played very respectably on the road and carried a lead for a large part of the game.

OSU did outgain the Irish by quite a bit. CJ Stroud was 24/34 for 223 yards and two touchdowns. It's a good win for Ohio State, but from what I saw, they're going to have to grow a lot to have a chance to compete with Georgia or Alabama this year.

Tap the brakes on NC State ... I think the Wolfpack will have a good year and maybe a really good year, but that No. 13 ranking looks suspect after East Carolina almost pulled the upset in Greenville. Their kicker missed a game-tying PAT and then on the very next drive missed a field goal that would have won it. You have to really feel for him. Anything can happen in a road game against an in-state FBS foe because it's one of the biggest games in their program's history. I'd just drop them a bit in the rankings. I can go for them as a Top-25 team for sure, but they haven't fared well against the SEC in recent years and I doubt they'd be more than a 7-5 or 8-4 team in the SEC this year.

Sidenote: Why are NC State and UNC playing road games against Group of Five programs in their home state? Not much to gain there.

Drake Maye is going to be a really good quarterback ... Actually, he already is. UNC's signal caller, who transferred from Alabama, is the younger brother of Luke Maye and he has been excellent in both games this season. I think in some ways I like him more than Sam Howell. He has good pocket presence and feel for pressure but also where all of his receivers are and he gets it to them quickly. He's ultimately going to be a three year starter and will put up big numbers as a freshman this year.

Having said that, UNC gave up 40 points late in the game to App State and a 63-61 win in Boone is embarrassing in giving up that many points. Gene Chizik was hired to fix that defense and it doesn't look fixed at all. They'll outscore enough teams to play an extra game at the end of the year, but it seems like Big XII football warped Mack Brown's ability to build a defense. They have too much talent to be that bad on the defensive side of the ball.

Brutal loss for Jeff Hafley ... I've been a fan of Jeff Hafley since he became the coach at Boston College more than two seasons ago. He's really sharp and breaks down the game in an impressive way. He's a young up and comer who has a tough job. But losing to Rutgers to start the season is a brutal beat.

Speaking of bad beats ... Illinois has played pretty good football two weeks in a row. I thought they looked like the better team compared to Indiana, but they squandered opportunities to put the game away and the Hoosiers stuck around, eventually winning 23-20. Brett Bielema just seems like a better fit in the Big Ten for some reason. They play a physical brand of football, which is exactly what you'd expect from his teams.

Sumrall's squad scraps in Oxford ... Jon Sumrall's fiery side came out in drawing a 15 yard penalty protesting a call and his Troy Trojans battled respectably to a 28-10 loss against Ole Miss in Oxford. At one point the game was 21-3, so his team dug their heels in and competed to the end. Gunnar Watson was 34-47 against the Ole Miss defense but the offense didn't quite have enough firepower. Troy slowed down the Ole Miss passing game very well but didn't have quite enough horses in the trenches to stop the run. Five-star TCU transfer Zach Evans, who was targeted by Kentucky at one point, had 130 yards on 20 carries.

Strong start for MSU's Will Rogers ... If the Air Raid starts clicking, watch out. It was for Mississippi State's Will Rogers in a 43-23 win against Memphis that was not as close as the final score seems to indicate. Memphis scored 13 fourth quarter points in a game that had long been out of reach due to Rogers going 38/49 for 450 yards and five touchdowns.