These college football teams paid how much to face smaller schools? Cost of Week 2 buy games

In Week 1 five Power 4 schools paid a combined $8.9 million to beat the snot out of lesser opponents at home.

Here's a list of the Week 2 matchups with the biggest payouts for small schools and how the Power Conference team fared:

College football buy games in Week 2: How much Power 4 teams paid

1. Western Michigan v. No. 2 Ohio State: $1.8 million

The Buckeyes clearly have not only the cash to build a championship caliber roster but also a championship caliber schedule. Well, if buying a 2-0 start qualifies as such then yes. Shutting out Western Michigan is harder than it looks, the Broncos were able to find the endzone twice against Wisconsin in Week 1. So, maybe dropping nearly $2 million was a reasonable price to take the extra 14 points off the board.

2. Middle Tennessee v. No. 6 Mississippi: $1.6 million

Poor Middle Tennessee (well, not exactly poor anymore). Mississippi ran all over the Blue Raiders, like literally. Running back Henry Parrish Jr. rushed for 165 yards and four touchdowns on Saturday. On top of that, Middle Tennessee couldn't get relief from the air either. Mississippi quarterback Jaxon Dart dropped a casual 377 yards and a touchdown for good measure. Take your $1.6 million and walk it off, Middle Tennessee.

3. Utah State v. No. 13 USC: $1.45 million

The Trojans got the win, pitching a shutout in the process. However, dropping 48 points on lowly Utah State is a slight let down from the dramatics of upsetting LSU in Week 1. Nevertheless, consistency is key in college football and USC showed spending $1.45 million to ensure it stays on track for a shot at the College Football Playoff is money well spent.

4. Northern Illinois v. No. 5 Notre Dame: $1.4 million

This was the lone upset of the group this week. A shock to the college football world, it may be on par with Appalachian State over No. 5 Michigan in 2007. Notre Dame played unorganized and inconsistent compared to Week 1's victory over No. 20 Texas A&M. Northern Illinois got the opportunity to drain clock and kick a go-ahead field goal with 30 seconds remaining, then put an exclamation mark on it with a blocked field goal to break Irish hearts nationwide. The Huskies can provide 1.4 million pieces of paper to help them sop up those tears.

5. Appalachian State v. No. 25 Clemson: $1.25 million

OK, so Clemson head coach Dabo Swinney got to blow off some steam with this one. Dropping 56 points in the first half after being held out of the endzone entirely last week was definitely taking some frustration out on Appalachian State. That should be enough to keep Clemson from dropping out of the rankings like many feared. If you ask Swinney, that $1.25 million check was well worth it.

6. Jacksonville State v. No. 22 Louisville: $1 million

Louisville dominated this game from start to finish but that was to be expected. The closest the game ever got was when it was 0-0 at the start. 610 yards of total offense and seven touchdowns look like $1 million well spent after scheduling the Gamecocks last year. Louisville quarterback Tyler Shough put up 349 yards and two touchdowns including this 48-yard bomb to ice the game in the third quarter.

7. Nicholls State v. No. 18 LSU: $860,000

LSU head coach Brian Kelly really needed this game for his team to lash out and re-find its offensive prowess after Week 1's upset loss to USC. Well, that's not exactly how this went. The Tigers still won but Nicholls frustrated them from the jump, keeping the game within single digits at multiple points throughout. It may have not been the statement win Kelly and LSU were looking for but at least they're only out $860,000 as a result, right?

8. Florida A&M v. No. 12 Miami: $700,000

When Florida A&M decided to accept Miami's proposal to play this year, the Hurricanes had just gone 7-6 and didn't look that threatening. That's probably why the price tag for their on-field talents was this low. Well, the Rattlers have egg on their face after a 56-9 thumping in Coral Gables. Cam Ward enhanced his Heisman candidacy with 304 yards and three touchdowns. Florida A&M should probably be asking for royalties on Ward's highlight tapes, they're going to be featured heavily.

9. Tennessee Tech v. No. 1 Georgia: $550,000

The size of this check is surprisingly small for an FCS team that went 4-7 last season and accepted an invitation to slug it out with No. 1 Georgia between the hedges. Apparently, Tennessee Tech's head coach, Bobby Wilder, wasn't thrilled with it either.

“If I was being honest, I would tell you I’m not thrilled to be headed to Athens, Georgia, this weekend,” Wilder cracked Tuesday to reporters. “So, I’ll be dishonest and say I’m very excited to be playing Georgia at Sanford Stadium in front of 93,000.”

After getting smacked 48-3 and walking away $550,000 richer as a program, at least their kicker can say he scored at Sanford Stadium?

10. South Florida v. No. 4 Alabama: $400,000

South Florida practically played this game for free and it was almost worth it. The Bulls had Alabama within their grasp multiple points throughout the night but the Tide figured out how to pull away late. At least South Florida gets to go home to... South Florida, and $400,000 richer at that. The Bulls can also look forward to a return trip to Tuscaloosa in 2026 with an even bigger pay day in store: $1 million.