College Open Thread - Sep. 1, Early Games

Notre Dame v. Navy* (9 a.m., CBS)

* to be played at Aviva Stadium in Dublin, Ireland. Dublin freaking Ireland.

(NOTE: This section was written by friend of TST and 100% Irish person Daniel O'Milligan Doolihan McSheary)

Top o' the mornin' to ya. Oh, we're just here millin' our potatoes an takin a bit of me Irish cream with me coffee. Sure, there be shamrocks and shillelaghs, but I'm joos raydin' me copy of the Táin Bó Cúailnge.

Oh, and the lads from the church are playin' a bit of Stateside footy against the sailors this morn in Dooblin. Now the seafarers, noo. They doon't have mooch NFL-level talent. They're busy out a sailin' and a floatin' and a whatnot. But our boys, well yannoo there's a couple who juss plee their little hearts out.

Manti Te'o a special middle linebacker. Tyler Eifert is as special tight end as well. I wouldn't be surprised if they're both goon by the end of day one in next year's draft. After those tay, Nootre Dame's got a quartet that are looking at the middle rounds right now: DE Kapron Lewis-Moore, SS Jamoris Slaughter, C Braxston Cave and RB Cierre Wood. NT Louis Nix is a biggin. Rams fans will want to keep an eye oot for OT Zack Martin too.

Have a good one, fooks! Enjoy your morn with some footy here on the Emerald Isle! Slainte!

(NOTE: Daniel will never write here again. My apologies.)

Northwestern at Syracuse (12 p.m., ESPN2)

It's week one, so there are bound to be some soft spots. The noon slate is one of them. I settled on this one for Rams fans. You've got fringe offensive line prospects from Northwestern in OT Pat Ward, G Brian Mulroe and C Brandon Vitabile. SS Ibraheim Campbell is worth a look too; I think he's got a shot at creeping into day two discussions, but he's going to have to show a bit more awareness in pass coverage.

Syracuse has two late WRs in Marcus Sales and Alex Lemon. OT Justin Pugh looks the part of an NFL tackle. The LB corps is quality. Shamarko Thomas isn't as impressive as Campbell at SS, but he should make a camp.

Miami at Boston College (3:30 p.m., ABC/ESPN2 - TV coverage map)

You can check my MTD previews for the full rundown (Miami, BC). For BC, Rams fans will want a solid look at Kevin Pierre-Louis, a fluid OLB. He'll need to add some bulk, but they real key for him this year is helping fill in the gap of production left by Luke Kuechly.

Miami, on the other hand, is dealing with an assortment of Miamis. SS Ray Ray Armstrong did a Miami and got dismissed from the team. OLB Ramon Buchanan Miami'ed while resisting a police officer with violence, battery on a police officer, resisting a police officer without violence, disorderly conduct, and trespassing. Oops! He's back on the team, though. Oh, and six other Hurricanes got all Miami'ed up this offseason, so they'll likely sit out, including talented though oft maligned OT Seantrel Henderson. But please, lest you want to take a huge Miami, avert your eyes when QB Stephen Morris throws the ball. Miami.

Other MTD Watch Notes:

Miami (Ohio) at #18 Ohio St. (12:00 p.m., Big Ten Network)

Other prospects worth checking out for Rams fans:

#6 Georgia OLB Jarvis Jones, SS Shawn Williams, FS Bacarri Rambo (v. Buffalo - 12 p.m., ESPN3/SEC Network) - All solid prospects. (UPDATE: I forgot Rambo's going to miss the first four games for a drug-related suspension. In other news, every college player is doing tons of drugs.)

#11 West Virginia WR/ATH Tavon Austin (v. Marshall - 12 p.m., FX) - Impressive playmaker in the mold of Percy Harvin

Illinois OLB Jonathan Brown (v. W. Michigan - 12 p.m., ESPNU/WATCHESPN) - Great speed. Will be sought after early.

Cal WR Keenan Allen (v. Nevada - 3 p.m., Pac-12 Network) - My top WR for the 2013 NFL Draft as of this morning.