Anyone for Battle at Bristol 2?

It was well past midnight in Bristol, Tennessee. The confetti was still falling, the fireworks were still popping, ears were still ringing, and the postgame traffic was only beginning the first leg of its long, snaking journey into the Smoky Mountains night.

I'm sure Marcus Smith, president and chief operating officer of Speedway Motorsports Inc. (the owner of Bristol Motor Speedway), was soaking in the moment. The Battle at Bristol between Tennessee and Virginia Tech by all measures had been a successful venture. The game had delivered on its promise to attract the largest crowd in college football history, drawing 156,990. I'm sure Smith was quietly reflecting on how, a full two decades after his father, NASCAR Hall of Fame member Bruton Smith, had first reached out to the two schools with the idea (not to mention $1 million checks), the dream of the game had finally been realized. I'm sure it was a great moment that Marcus was having, fully immersed in the magical glow of the here and now.

But hey, he was just standing there and I've known the dude forever, so I asked the question anyway. "Is there going to be a Battle at Bristol 2?"

"We'll see," Smith, 43, said with a smile. "There's a lot of debriefing to do with a lot of people. But I certainly do think there's interest."

There's no doubt about that. Zigzagging between in-game and postgame chats with everyone from ESPN executives to ACC/SEC reps to the family behind the game's title sponsor, the Haslams, there was not a frown to be found. "I think this was the perfect storm," said Big Jim, company founder and an offensive lineman on Tennessee's 1951 national title team coached by Robert Neyland. "These two teams from these two states at this place, that's hard to beat."

Yes, it is. And that might be the problem.

While Butch Jones stood alongside the game's fittingly over-the-top trophy, he said, "This experience ... it'll never be replicated. It'll never be duplicated."

A few minutes later, the Tennessee coach clarified his comments. Jones said he was speaking of the thrill of what he believed would be deemed an inaugural event. The trick will be recreating that inaugural thrill.

"It was always going to be these two teams," said just-retired Virginia Tech coach Frank Beamer. He beamed while sitting on a golf cart shortly after being recognized to the thunderous applause of Hokies fans. When the schools were first approached by the racetrack, Beamer, a NASCAR fan, was immediately on board. But Tennessee required more convincing. "There's no better way to get this area energized than these two teams," Beamer said. "So, do you make this an annual rivalry? You certainly could. But I also bet other schools watching this tonight are probably thinking, man, we'd like to get in on that."

But who else would be as perfect as the marquee programs of the two states that literally split the host town of Bristol in half? Would Alabama fans travel to Thunder Valley, USA, for a game against, say, Clemson? Would Ohio State loyalists come south to see the Buckeyes take on, perhaps, Georgia?

A big chunk of those visitors are gonna need to camp out. With Vols and Hokies fans, all of the above was a given.

The Battle certainly wasn't without its issues. The crush to cram all of those people through the racetrack's gates was downright scary at times. But NASCAR crowds typically arrive in more of a daylong stream, not a football-style "The gates are now open!" type of rush. Before Saturday night's game was over, track employees were already kicking around ideas on how to relieve that pressure. The complaints about sightlines and the distance from the field seemed largely reserved to those at the game in a working capacity. Media members and broadcast crews found it challenging to follow the football from such a distance.

But Speedway Motorsports Inc. has plenty of experience when it comes to dealing with such issues. Over the past quarter-century, it has opened new racetracks, all larger than Bristol, and added new events to those facilities. Some of those inaugural events were flawless. Others were indisputable disasters. Those disasters were all quickly smoothed over. I know. I lived through a couple of them, before and after.

The Battle at Bristol was nowhere near a disaster. It was a smash. Just ask the people who were on the field, even the ones who lost. "I think the event in its entirety was fantastic," said Virginia Tech coach Justin Fuente. "For what it's worth, I thought it was a beautiful setting and beautiful arena to play in."

That's worth a lot. As will be the inevitable discussions about what comes next.

"There's a lot of talk to come about the future," Marcus Smith said before heading out of the infield. "But we've got a lot more to do here tonight first."

Bristol is also good at trolling.  Michigan rightfully tweet-bragged about its attendance Saturday at The Big House, drawing 109,295, its 267th game with 100,000-plus attendees. Then the Battle at Bristol account replied, "That's cute" a few hours before it announced a crowd of 156,990. The single-game record that was broken by the racetrack was 115,109, set at Michigan vs. Notre Dame in 2003.

This week's version of "The SEC is dying!" The Big 12 went 0-2 vs. the MAC over the weekend. In the first two weeks of the season, the Big 12 has been handed Power 5 losses by Stanford, Arkansas, Arizona State and Houston. Wait ... sorry, Houston isn't a Power 5 team yet. That'll change when they join the Big 12.

Ridonculous Stats Department, Part 1. Running back Kalen Ballage of Arizona State scored eight touchdowns against Texas Tech, seven on the ground and one receiving, tying the 26-year-old NCAA record held by Howard Griffith of Illinois. However, Griffith's big day came against FCS (then I-AA) opponent Southern Illinois. Ballange also tied Griffith and five other players for the most points scored in a single game with 48. But again, he was the first FBS player to do it against an FBS opponent. The other players on the list were all from Division II and III programs.

Ridonculous Stats Department, Part Deux. Even with an extra day to process the Friday night performance of Louisville QB Lamar Jackson vs. Syracuse -- 610 yards of offense and the first FBS player with at least 400 yards passing and 175 rushing in one game -- I still can't wrap my mind around it.

Ridonculous Stats Department, one more time. If you've read Flipping The Field all year (and thanks if you have), then you know I have a bit of a San Diego State fixation. Last week, we told you to keep an eye on the Aztecs' home game against Cal. It didn't disappoint. SDSU won a wild one, 45-40, to extend the nation's second-longest winning streak to a dozen games. We've also told you to keep an eye on running back Donnel Pumphrey. He also didn't disappoint, rushing for a 2016 FBS-best 281 yards, moving him past Marshall Faulk to become the school's all-time leading rusher ... and they still have 10 regular-season games to go! Speaking of teams on a roll ...

"We're going streaking!" If you were surprised that Florida whipped Kentucky, then you don't know a ton about SEC football history. The number wizards at ESPN Stats & Info tell me that the 45-7 win was the Gators' 30th consecutive triumph over the Wildcats, the fourth-longest streak in an uninterrupted series in FBS history. The record is Notre Dame's 43-year dominance over Navy, a streak that ended in 2006. Ohio State's 48-3 mugging of Tulsa marked the Buckeyes' fourth consecutive 40-point performance, the fourth time the team has put together such a streak under Urban Meyer. All other coaches in the history of the program have managed only three such streaks ever, one each under John Cooper, Earl Bruce and Woody Hayes. Meanwhile, Michigan's 114 points is the most for the program through two games since 1914. The team record was set in 1892, when the Wolverines scored 142 points in back-to-back games with the Michigan Athletic Association club team from Detroit. Not surprisingly, the Michigan A.A. did not book a rematch in 1893.

"Get in the car, Frank ..." Auburn never punted during its 51-14 win over Arkansas State, the first time the Tigers attempted zero punts in a game since 2005. Last weekend, Cheney University, a D-II school in Pennsylvania, snapped a 43-game losing streak by defeating Lincoln University in overtime. Alas, their winning streak was much shorter. On Saturday, they lost 79-3 to California University of Pennsylvania.

Why the long face? Because it's his game face. My man was hydrating early for Boise State's visit from Washington State.