Roses by The Chainsmokers featuring Rozes came out in the Summer of ‘15. This was the music duo’s 2nd Billboard Hit that peaked at #6 in the first week of November. I remember it was on one of those music playlist suggestions around August ‘15 during the syllabus week of my junior year of college and it was an after-party hit. People forget that the Chainsmokers had a bit of a nice run in the mid-teen 2010s, I prefer this song over #SELFIE (their breakthrough hit). Anyway, The Chainsmokers’ duo of Alexander "Alex" Pall and Andrew "Drew" Taggart formed in New York City in ‘12.
I gotta admit that the opening lines of this song always pull me in with the beat. Never gave much thought to the words but it’s almost like a spin on the singer having the Midas gold touch to somebody with a heart of stone, heats up a cold heart, etc.
I swear I didn’t know this previously but the duo admits this song was heavily influenced by one of Week to Week Notes’ favorite artists. “Yeah, we call it future pop. That’s what we’re calling it. I think that it definitely has a Chainsmokers feel to it, but there’s a lot of influences — including Taylor Swift and Max Martin — in the production. But I think that’s what’s cool about it and why people are enjoying it because it doesn’t feel and sound like everything that’s on the radio right now. But it’s catchy and accessible. I think it’s refreshing.” (Idolator) Of course, Blondie inspired this tune, which makes sense.
This is one of those songs that always brings me back to Autumn time of college. That said, anybody who knows me knows that I would NEVER smoke a little weed in the back room, hideaway. Especially in college, ever.
Here is what The Chainsmokers had to say about this song, “We always felt the song was special. When you want to listen to it again and again after you’ve made the song, you know you’ve got something. You’ve really got to put it out and let the public try to decide what it is and what it isn’t. When we put the song out, it was an overwhelmingly positive response. That doesn’t mean it’s a hit but we knew that it was a special song.” (Idolator) It sounds like they preferred it over #SELFIE too.
For the Rebels, Lane Kiffin has plenty of firepower on offense at his disposal. WR Jordan Watkins is a big play threat, averaging nearly 20 yards per reception thus far this season (15 catches for 290 yards). Their dual-threat QB Jaxson Dart leads the team in rushing with 213 yards on the ground and has thrown 7 TDs to just 1 INT. Dart has already thrown 5 TDs to WR Tre Harris, who is questionable with a knee. Harris isn’t the only questionable offensive weapon that might play, the Rebels may also have reinforcement in WR Zakhari Franklin and TE Caden Prieskorn. Both pass catchers have yet to make their debut with Ole Miss after transferring this past offseason but made their way back to the practice field this week. At this very moment, Zakhari Franklin is the active leader in career receptions amongst all college football while Caden Prieskorn is the #95 ranked prospect on the Week to Week Notes ‘24 Draft Board.
For ‘Bama, QB Jalen Milroe is back in the starting lineup after getting benched last week after his performance against Texas in Week 2. Nick Saban told the Roll Tide media, “He’s got nothing to prove…I’ve got confidence in Jalen. I believe in him. The one thing that we’ve always said about is you make enough good plays but you’ve got to eliminate the devasting plays, the ones that are killers. It happened twice in the Texas game, but I think he’s learned from it.” As important as Milroe will be, ‘Bama’s defense will need to be able to stop Ole Miss’ big plays. Expect big games out of their linebackers Dallas Turner (2.5 sacks thus far) and Deontae Lawson (2 sacks thus far). Nick Saban will not want to get into a shootout with Kiffin, but a week after closer than expected Week 3 against South Florida, this feels like a game where ‘Bama rights the ship. #RollTide
Prediction: 31-23 ‘Bama (-7 ‘Bama & Under 57)
Oregon holds a 15-9 record over Colorado is head to head-to-head meetings. The last 3 times these two schools have played, Oregon has won and averaged nearly 49 points per game. That said, with Coach Prime, you can throw all the record books out the window. (Don’t actually throw anything out the window, Week to Week Notes does not support littering.) Both teams are 3-0 in ‘23, with Colorado Buffaloes being ranked #19 and Oregon ranked #10 in the nation.
Last week, Colorado somehow pulled off an insane double-OT win over Colorado State. While they were heavy favorites, things got a bit chippy and there was a lot of emotions in that game. The important thing is they figured out how to win it, with QB Shedeur Sanders leading a 98-yard drive to force overtime. WR Jimmy Horn Jr. caught the 45-yard TD that gave way to Colorado going to OT. Coach Prime got the most out of Jimmy Horn Jr., he told the WR, “Jimmy was having a horrific game. And I said, ‘Jimmy, you’re a dawg. You’re from Florida, man. And guess what? Pop is at the crib, he’s incarcerated, he’s watching you right now. He wants to clap in front of all his different inmates because he believes in his son. We gonna make pops proud tonight. That’s what we gonna do, because his son is a DAWG.” (@TaylorRooks) Colorado will be without WR/CB Travis Hunter, who suffered a lacerated liver after a dirty hit against Colorado State. Oregon will be the best team Colorado has faced thus far.
Oregon’s QB Bo Nix is up there with the likes of Shedeur Sanders as one of the best QBs in College Football. His top target is WR Troy Franklin, who has now caught at least one pass in 20 consecutive games. Franklin has already scored 3 TDs this year with 17 catches and 292 yards. Franklin & Nix in the passing game aren’t the only effective part about the Oregon offense either, they have a great running game as well. Their RBs Bucky Irving, Jordan James, and Noah Whittington each average nearly 8 yards per carry. On the defensive side of the ball, edge rusher Brandon Dorlus said the plan is for the Oregon Ducks, “We have to lock in. Don’t try to do too much, don’t fall into the trap of Shedeur, the watch and stuff, you know, all that hype stuff. We’re gonna make it nasty and gritty. We’re gonna punch them in the mouth all day and just gonna do our job.” Coach Prime’s Colorado will no longer sneak up on teams. Teams like Oregon have been away from the spotlight now will have a target on Colorado’s back and would probably love nothing more than to embarrass them. That said if you’re giving Coach Prime 21 points, I’m taking them no matter who.
Prediction: 34-33 Colorado (+21 Colorado & Under 71.5)
The UCLA Bruins hold a 12-8 lead against Utah in their previous matchups that date back to 1933. The Bruins are coached by Chip Kelly, who has been in LA since ‘18 and has a so-so record of 30–29 at the basketball school. Utah is coached by Kyle Whittingham, who has been the Utes coach since ‘05 when Urban Meyer left Utah for Florida. Utah has won the Pac-12 the past two years and thus has played in the Rose Bowl the past two years. Chip Kelly and UCLA beat Utah last year in Pasadena so the Utes are out for revenge. Utah is ranked #11 in the nation while UCLA is #22.
Chip Kelly always seems to have an elite college QB and he sure found one in true freshman Dante Moore. He was the #3 overall recruit in the country coming out of high school so I guess it shouldn’t come as a huge surprise, but his transition from HS to college has been impressive. PFF College is very high on Moore. They consider a big-time throw to be a pass “with excellent ball location and timing, generally thrown further down the field and/or into a tighter window” and Moore so far this year has made a big-time throw at a 9.4% clip. Only two players have ever recorded a big-time throw percentage above 10% so we’ll see if Dante Moore can get there someday. On the defensive side of the ball for the Bruins, pass rusher Laiatu Latu is the name to know. He enters this game already with 4 sacks on the season after having 10.5 last year.
For the Utes, S Cole Bishop leads the team from the outskirts of the defense. Bishop already has 17 tackles, a forced fumble, 2 sacks, a pass deflection, and an interception on the season. The 2 time PAC-12 Honorable-mention is doing his best to make sure he gets honored with a team selection. As for their offense, Utah’s RB Ja’Quinden Jackson has rushed for over 100 yards 3 times in their last 6 games. They also have a WR named Money Parks who leads the team in receiving TDs with 2. The Utes have a ton of injuries they are currently dealing with. Their QB Cam Rising hasn’t played a down yet recovering from an ACL and is still 50/50 about whether he plays. Coach Whittingham is concerned with the mounting amount of guys sidelined, “We’ve got to get healthy — we have 15 or 16 guys that can help us win that are not available.” I got Chip Kelly stealing this one from the Utes.
Prediction: 24-20 UCLA (+6 UCLA & Under 52.5)
Penn State and Iowa have a very respectable head-to-head record of 17 to 14 in favor of the Nittany Lions. They first played in 1930 and then didn’t match up again until 1971. Iowa has won the last two meetings. Tonight’s game will be a White Out at Beaver Stadium. Since ‘04, Penn State has hosted a White Out Game once a year and the Nittany Lions are 10-8 during these games. They usually wait for a big-time matchup so I guess it makes sense that they are right around .500, but for your information, they are currently on a 3-game win streak during White Outs. Even more importantly, they are 3-0 against the spread in the last 3 White Outs. Penn State is ranked #7 in the country and Iowa is #24.
The Iowa Hawkeyes are attempting to go 4-0 for the 3rd time since ‘19. If you haven’t been paying attention to Iowa football since last fall, they are still a classic Big Ten run-first offense. On defense, they play a ton of zone coverage and are known to eliminate big plays. In the back end of their defense, eliminating those big plays is Cooper DeJean. Week to Week Notes has DeJean as the #24 Prospect in the ‘24 Draft. Last year, DeJean set an Iowa record for Pick-6s with 3. He also is able to return kicks. Cade McNamara, formerly of Michigan, is the signal caller for Iowa. His top target is TE Luke Lachey, the next in line for Iowa TE who will get drafted in the NFL.
For the Nittany Lions, WR KeAndre Lambert-Smith has been their best offensive weapon. His 220 receiving yards are more than double the next closest on the team. It will be his job to find the soft spots in the Iowa Hawkeye zone defense. Penn State’s Drew Allar is the highest PFF-graded college football QB when facing pressure. While he may be limited, almost like a statue in the pocket, Allar has a great arm. What makes Penn State scary this year is their defense. CB Kalen King has only been targeted 13 times so far this year and he calls it the “Joey Porter Jr. treatment” because QBs aren’t looking to throw his way. LB Curtis Jacobs is excited for this game, "They're one of the old school older style offenses. We pride ourselves on stopping them as a defense. Their best stuff vs our best stuff." We’ll see if their highly touted pass rusher, Chop Robinson, can pick up his first sack this year. The over 2 TD spread in a game where Iowa will be milking the clock on the ground is scary, but the Penn State White Out has me chancing it.
Prediction: 31-9 Penn State (-14.5 Penn State & Under 40.5)
THE Ohio State and Notre Dame have only played each other 7 times. That was a bit of a shocker to read. The last time Notre Dame beat Ohio State was 1936 as Ohio State has won the past 5 games (5-2 in favor of Ohio State all-time). This is the biggest game of the weekend as both schools are undefeated with Ohio State ranked #6 and Notre Dame ranked #9.
Ohio State has not yet played any big-time opponents as they have beaten the likes of Indiana, Youngstown State, and Western Kentucky. My only question mark about the Buckeyes is how will their QB Kyle McCord handle the bright lights. This team is loaded. At RB TreVeyon Henderson is 1st Round talent. Marvin Harrison’s son, Marvin Harrison Jr., is unreal and getting compared to the likes of Randy Moss. They also have an elite #2 WR in Emeka Egbuka. The Buckeyes defense is littered with NFL talent as well. JT Tuimoloau, Jack Sawyer, Michael Hall, and Tyleik Williams are some of the fiercest fronts in College Football. LB Tommy Eichenberg leads the team in tackles with 20 and CB Denzel Burke shouldn’t be thrown at, he already has an INT with 4 pass deflections.
This week’s Van Wilder of the Week goes to Notre Dame’s QB Sam Hartman who has been playing his 6th year of College Football. Hartman has been sensational for Notre Dame so far, throwing for 1,061 yards and 13 TDs with no INTs in his first 4 games as the Irish QB after he transferred from 5 years at Wake Forest. While Hartman has been great through the air, he has to thank his tackles Joe Alt and Blake Fisher who will be truly tested by the Buckeye pass rushers. While Notre Dame’s passing game has been awesome, make no mistake, RB Audric Estimé is still the workhorse of the team. The Nyack, New York native who played ball at St. Joe’s in Montvale, New Jersey, has already rushed for 521 yards and 5 TDs in 4 games. The Irish will need Estimé to break a few runs like his 80-yard long against NC State. This will also be a huge game for CB Benjamin Morrison who will be assigned the task of guarding Marvin Harrison Jr. Expect a ton of NFL Scouts and media to be watching this game. I’ll be rooting for the Irish, but I’ve just seen this movie too many times so I gotta pick the Buckeyes.
Prediction: 35-20 Ohio State (-3.5 Ohio State & Over 54.5)
YouTube Rabbithole
The Chainsmokers - Roses (Official Video) ft. ROZES