Here we are in Week 3 of our new Sunday tradition where we look back at the weekend that was and lick our wounds. See Week 1 and Week 2 before moving into the latest adventure.

College football makes dummies of us all.

Now three weeks into this delight of a season and we’re getting all the way weird. Old norms are out the window, Colorado vs. Colorado State is suddenly the star-studded after prime time game that kept America up past midnight, and gravity’s come for Alabama.

All told, this has the ingredients for some real shenanigans.

It’s barely pumpkin-spice season and we’re in the thick of looking dumb.

Just consider the following.

• The SEC is 5-7 in non-conference games against fellow Power 5 schools. That includes dropping a few marquee games like LSU losing to FSU opening weekend, and Texas handing Alabama a 10-point loss the same day Miami thumped Texas A&M by 15.
• Florida, a dog in a season-opening loss at Utah, turned around and spanked Tennessee on Saturday night. The two programs on seemingly different trajectories traded roles and made the SEC East more confusing.
• Speaking of that, Georgia didn’t look quite like itself in a 24-14 win over South Carolina. It trailed 14-3 at halftime before remembering they were Georgia.
• The Florida State machine that consumed LSU on Labor Day weekend escaped Boston College a 31-29 winner. This is a BC team that’s among the worst in Power 5 that barely beat Holy Cross (FCS) a week earlier, 31-28. It was a Golden Eagle squad that committed a school-record 18 penalties (for 131 yards) and the Seminoles needed that 18th to seal the win.
• Iowa scored 41 points Saturday.

We could go on, but that should be enough to prove the college football universe can’t quite decide on a center of gravity.

It feels as wide open as ever and that’s exciting from a 30,000-foot view.

Casagrande: Texas loss was bad for Alabama, South Florida win was worse

Look no further than the balloting for this week’s Associated Press poll. Georgia remains No. 1 but almost by default. Four voters had them No. 2, one had them third and another fourth.

No. 3 Texas has an even wider range of perspectives. The Longhorns’ hangover from Tuscaloosa was evident in an uninspiring win over Wyoming. The fourth quarter began with the game tied 10-10 before Texas scored three straight touchdowns to win 31-10.

That said, the Longhorns appeared anywhere from No. 1 on three AP ballots to No. 10 on another. This time last year, Ohio State was No. 3 and the variations of rankings ran from No. 1 to No. 4.

Bottom line: Who knows?

Nobody, really.

No. 2 Michigan pounded three inferiors while martyr Jim Harbaugh did something else serving that self-imposed three-game suspension. Who knows what they’re really about or when we’ll learn that since the Wolverines’ most immanent meeting with a currently-ranked opponent is Nov. 11 against No. 7 Penn State.

Goodman: Auburn football feels like a mystery by design

Top-ranked Georgia has the pleasure of welcoming 1-2 UAB to Athens this week before getting what could be a tricky trip to Auburn on Sept. Kirby Smart lost two straight to Hugh Freeze when he was Alabama’s defensive coordinator and the Auburn coach was at Ole Miss, so there’s history there.

There’s just nothing overly attractive about the teams atop the hierarchy right now.

The fact the No. 19 Colorado, ranked one spot behind Duke, has us so captivated. All three games of the Deion Sanders era have been must-watch events. Last week’s 11 a.m. CT Central visit from Nebraska drew 8.73 million viewers — the most-watched Pac-12 game ever on Fox.

Last night’s rivalry game with Colorado State kicked off at 10 p.m. on the east coast and ended close to 2:30 and the ESPN ratings will no doubt impress. Sanders’ turned convention on its head and hasn’t disappointed. The Rocky Mountain rivalry was as physical and well-played as any game Saturday. The A-list names on the sideline and the fact the Buffs came back from down 28-17 in the fourth quarter to win 43-35 in overtime kept this party going.

Quick hits

Getting feisty: The aforementioned battle in Boulder wasn’t quite as docile as most evening gatherings in Colorado. The scenic Folsom Field took the feel of a gladiator ring, at least on TV, as stars of stage, screen and WWE ring brought the star power.

Getting even more feisty: The end of Florida’s 29-16 beating of Tennessee had more of that rivalry spirit. A final kneel down saw a Vol defender cheap shot the Gator QB, emptying benches and compelling two linemen to go full dukes-up boxing. Eventually, they separated for what was the most demoralizing moment of a rough night for the Vols. Florida players practically taunted the full Tennessee sideline all the way to their locker room in the corner of The Swamp. The SEC will probably have something to say about that whole scene.

Speaking of the SEC rules: It looks like we have our first offender of the new SEC field-storming regulations. Missouri’s student section dumped onto the turf after Tiger Mevis Harrison broke a 40-year old SEC record with a 61-yard walk-off field goal. That beat No. 15 Kansas State, 30-27. That’s the same Mevis Harrison who missed what would have been a game-winning 26-yarder last year at Auburn but will be remembered for triggering the first field-storming since the SEC enhanced penalties at the spring meetings in Destin.

Biggest dummy: Full disclosure, the crux of this column came from my own shame. After going 11-9 the first two weeks picking against the spread, this big dummy went 2-8 in this week’s AL.com staff picks. Sorry.

Michael Casagrande is a reporter for the Alabama Media Group. Follow him on Twitter @ByCasagrande or on Facebook.