Week 10 - Sunday Storylines

WE. ARE. BACK.

Unhappy Valley - Entering the biggest game of the weekend, Ohio State head coach Ryan Day (0-5 against opponents 7-0 or better) and Penn State head coach James Franklin (1-12 against AP Top-5 opponents) desperately needed a signature victory to stave off angsty fanbases.

After a back-and-forth battle for three and a half quarters, the game came down to a crucial sequence of plays on the goal line that were new in real-time but played out in an all too familiar way for Nittany Lion fans.

With roughly six minutes to go, Penn State found themselves down 20-13 with four downs inside the five-yard line. After years of maligned decision-making and late-game execution, the Nittany Lions had a chance to exercise some demons and put the Big Game James Franklin allegations to bed. However, it was not meant to be.

With four chances to score, Penn State and OC Andy Kotelnicki opted for three straight up-the-middle run plays and a meager fourth-down pass in traffic to no avail. The Buckeyes held serve at the goal line and later ran out the clock to wrap up the 20-13 victory and sink the boys from Happy Valley.

Behind the backdrop of a peculiar day game White Out in Happy Valley, No. 3 Penn State started off with a bang. A long, opening drive yielded three quick points. On the next drive, Ohio State (and lifelong Penn State fan) quarterback Will Howard tossed a pick-six on a screen pass. The play was masterfully jumped by Nittany Lion DB Zion Tracy who extended the home team’s lead to 10 early on.

The vibes were off. The crowd was rockin’. Early it looked like it might just finally be Penn State’s day. And yet it didn’t matter for the fourth-ranked Buckeyes.

Soon after the pick-six, Ohio State put its stamp on the ballgame. Entering the game, Howard has had wide-open targets on 42.5% of his pass attempts this season, according to TruMediaSports, which is a testament to OC Chip Kelly’s ability to scheme guys open. Kelly was in his bag once again, as he schemed open backs and receivers en route to a pair of Howard touchdown passes to take a 14-10 lead.

After Howard fumbled the ball out of the back of the endzone on what would’ve been the third touchdown of the half, the Buckeyes defense made a huge stand – intercepting Penn State quarterback Drew Allar on a goal line stand after some signature clock management buffoonery from Big Game James Franklin.

In the lead-up to the game, Will Howard said something along the lines of, “On Saturday, we’ll find out if I was ever good enough for Penn State.” He was certainly better than Drew Allar, and outside of the unfortunate early interception, he more than looked the part for the Buckeyes.

Moving forward, Ohio State has its eyes set on a monster matchup with Indiana soon and a hopeful rematch with top-ranked Oregon in the Big 10 title game. Penn State will lick its wounds but has a favorable stretch to end the season. Despite another lackluster performance in a big game, Penn State will likely join the Buckeyes in a playoff scenario if it can go undefeated the rest of the way.

Cyclones stunned - Fresh off seven straight wins and an undefeated start to the season, No. 11 Iowa State fell to unranked Texas Tech 23-22 after a 12-play, 71-yard game-winning drive from the Red Raiders.

The Red Raiders kept themselves in the ballgame behind big days from quarterback Behren Morton and Tahjk Brooks. Morton finished with 237 yards and a pair of touchdowns, while Brooks chipped in 122 yards and the game-winning score.

This stings if you’re Iowa State. What felt like a fairytale year with a sure-fire playoff berth now feels murky. The Cyclones likely need to win out (including a win in the final week against Kansas State) to have a chance at the Big 12 title game or College Football Playoff.

Make no bones about it, this is a monster shakeup in the Big 12.

Heartbreak in Houston - Speaking of a monster shakeup in the Big 12…a three-win Houston team shocked No. 24-19 Kansas State to essentially end the Wildcats’ bid for a College Football Playoff berth. Perhaps it was too much El Tiempo and Gasolina for the Wildcats to handle.

After being bad to start the season, first-year head coach Willie Fritz has the Cougars humming. Quarterback Zeon Chriss has injected a dual-threat element to this offense that makes the Cougars much more formidable. Tonight, he went 11/11 for 103 yards and a touchdown, while chipping in 25 carries, 75 yards and a touchdown on the ground, too.

What a wild and not-great weekend for the Big 12 Conference as a whole. ISU goes down. So does K-State.

Is the world ready for a BYU-Colorado Big 12 title game?

Jekyll & Hyde Miami - Every 2024 Miami Hurricanes football game feels like watching a drunk guy at a bonfire begging people to dare him to jump over the fire after drinking a fifth of Jack Daniels.

Every few games, the Hurricanes look like the drunk guy destined to fall in the fire and get burned. Correction, at least twice a game it looks like that drunk guy. And yet by hook or by crook, the fifth-ranked Canes just keep winning and that was no different today in its 53-31 win over Duke to move to 9-0.

Quarterbacks are driving forces for their teams. Cam Ward is Mr. Do It All for the boys from Coral Gables. He giveth. He taketh away. Oftentimes, he does both on a given drive or play. Today, he was a bit Jekyll & Hyde, even if he was largely good. He finished with a strong stat line of 25 completions for 400 yards, five touchdowns and one hilarious cross-body interception. Shoutout to wide receiver Xavier Restrepo as well, who finished with eight catches for 146 yards and three touchdowns.

The Hurricanes’ defense is a bit of a joke, but the offense is just carrying the water for the program right now. Good on Duke for a valiant performance. Duke might be the worst six-win team in the country but for a decent chunk of this game, it had Miami on the ropes.

We were thiiiiiiis close to a hilarious ‘Manny Diaz returns to Coral Gables and beats his undefeated, old employer’ joke. Alas.

Ponies pummel Pitt - In a hugely hyped matchup between ACC foes with just one loss between the teams, it was SMU that made a definitive statement.

The Mustangs got hot early and often, blowing out previously undefeated No. 18 Pitt 48-25. Rhett Lashlee’s offense was rolling early and often. Behind the one-two punch of quarterback Kevin Jennings and running back Brashard Smith, the pair combined for nearly 500 yards of offense and four touchdowns.

Pitt’s otherwise savvy and strong play was non-existent. The Nard dog’s defense got exposed big time and Pitt quarterback Eli Holstein had his worst showing of the season.

It’s only one loss for Pitt (and one win for SMU), but this game feels like a clear line of demarcation for the haves and have-nots of the ACC.

Husker heartburn - After a close loss to Ohio State last week, Nebraska head coach Matt Rhule declared that his team exhibited a “championship mentality” for the first time during his tenure in Lincoln.

The Huskers exhibited anything but this Saturday.

After hitting the five-win mark, things have gone downhill in a hurry for Nebraska in recent years. After today’s shock 27-20 loss (the worst in the Rhule era, IMO), the Huskers find themselves at 5-4, still searching for that sixth win with USC, Wisconsin and Iowa remaining.

Despite a late rally from Nebraska, UCLA largely dominated this game. Quarterback Ethan Garbers had some good throws early, and the Bruins used a timely pick-six to open the second half to jump out to a commanding lead.

Nebraska quarterback Dylan Railoa did not have his best game, despite a few trademark impressive throws. The offensive playcalling was abysmal. The offensive line struggled mightily. And the Huskers just never looked like they would pull away against a previously two-win team at home. Woof.

Raiola got hurt late in the fourth quarter, meaning his availability next week could be in doubt. That’s obviously bad news for Nebraska. This type of loss will require lots of soul-searching. Nebraska’s search for a sixth win and bowl eligibility continues.

The World’s Largest Cocktail Party - No. 2 Georgia outlasted rivals Florida 34-20, despite a ho-hum performance from star quarterback Carson Beck.

Beck, once hailed as a potential number-one pick, has not looked the part in recent weeks and his struggles continued today with three interceptions thrown against a less-than-amazing Florida defense.

The Gators should be commended for their efforts. Backup quarterback DJ Lagway got knocked out of the game with a nasty injury, but before that, Florida either led or was hanging around.

Perhaps this is just a weird stretch for Georgia, but I’m not sure this offense is national title-worthy. I suppose we’ll see.

Gamecocks get going - South Carolina has been so close, so many times. And on Saturday night, it finally refused to let go of the rope, knocking off No. 10 Texas A&M 44-20 behind an electric atmosphere in Williams-Brice Stadium.

LaNorris Sellers is a prototypical modern quarterback, boasting elite mobility and a cannon for an arm, and he showed it all off Saturday night. He was the catalyst for what South Carolina wanted to do on offense and finished with 244 passing yards and two touchdowns.

Marcel Reed got the nod for A&M under center and had a bit of an up-and-down game. He did not have the same game-breaking impact he did last week against LSU. Instead, the Gamecocks’ defense got after A&M, resulting in three sacks, three TFLs and one lost fumble.

There’s now a one-loss log jam atop the SEC. The next few weeks will be crucial in deciding who will represent the conference in Atlanta and beyond.

Big Game Brohm - Nobody calls a big game quite like Jeff Brohm.

Entering Saturday’s showdown with Clemson, the Cardinals were 5-3 with a few close losses on their resume. Clemson was on a six-game win streak, post-Georgia beatdown in Week 1.

In a bit of a rarity, Lousiville dominated on the ground and took it to Clemson in a 33-21 victory. Cardinals’ running back Isaac Brown had a monster day, finishing with 151 yards and 1 touchdown on 7.6 yards per carry.

This is a good win for Lousiville but feels like a bit of a demoralizing loss for Clemson. Clemson hasn’t beaten a team with much of a pulse this season. Unserious Dabo Swinney strikes again.

Rebels roll - Ole Miss beat the absolute daylights out of Arkansas 63-31. Scumbag quarterback Jaxson Dart was masterful, finishing with over 500 yards and six touchdowns. That was probably the most complete performance from an Ole Miss team we’ve witnessed in quite some time.

WIndiana keeps winning - Despite an early ten-point deficit at the hands of Michigan State, still undefeated Indiana rallied in a big way, rattling off 47 unanswered points en route to a big road victory.

Indiana quarterback Kurtis Rourke was great once again, finishing with 263 passing yards and four touchdowns. Indiana just keeps winning and we love to see it!

Oregon dominates - Top-ranked Oregon took care of business against a lackluster Michigan team, winning 38-17 in Ann Arbor.

The Ducks pounded Michigan on the ground, finishing with 176 rushing yards and four touchdowns. Oregon stays undefeated, while the Wolverines fall to 5-4 (3-3). Oh, how the mighty have fallen.

Blast off - In an intriguing MAC game with plenty of implications, we were treated to a doozy of a finish between Toledo and Eastern Michigan.

EMU drove the field with just seconds to play and launched a beauty of a Hail Mary pass into the endzone to put the game within one. The home team opted to go for two and the win, but the Rockets broke up a pass play in the endzone.

Toledo moves to 6-3 (3-2) while EMU falls to 5-4 (2-3) on the season. Gotta love a little early afternoon MACtion.

Undefeated Army - Twenty first-ranked Army remains undefeated after knocking off Air Force 20-3. This is a solid win for the Black Knights, considering they were down their starting quarterback. That matchup with Notre Dame looms larger by the week.

Syracuse bounces back - A week after tossing five interceptions in a loss to Pitt, Syracuse bounced back with an impressive OT victory over Virginia Tech 38-31. Nice to see McCord respond after a bad week last time around.

Bowl-eligible Vanderbilt - *cue the jokes about Diego Pavia eternally haunting Auburn head coach Hugh Freeze.*

Good for Vanderbilt! The Commodores are wholeheartedly one of the best stories in college football this year, and it’s great to see the boys reach the six-win threshold. Awesome stuff from Pavia and head coach Clark Lea.

San Antonio shocker - Seven-win Memphis was upset on the road at UTSA 44-36, in what is a pretty big shocker from the American Athletic Conference. That loss likely knocks the Tigers out of the conference title race with Army, Navy and Tulane all ahead of it.

Bounce House - Serious questions needed to be asked about Arizona after allowing a jaw-dropping 56 points to a backup quarterback-led UCF team.

Credit to the Knights for the big 56-12 victory, but man things have really fallen off for a previously promising Arizona team. No bueno.

Sparky up! - Arizona State pushed around a troublingly bad Oklahoma State today, coming out victorious 42-21. That makes six wins for the Sun Devils and ensures bowl eligibility! What a fantastic story for Kenny Dillingham.

Stinkin’ Riley - A few weeks ago, it felt like a given that USC would reach bowl eligibility. Since then, the Trojans have fallen apart, and that trend continued Saturday night in their 26-21 loss at Washington.

USC now falls to 4-5 and 2-5 in Big 10. Woof! That is just almost an unfathomable level of bad for a program this big, that is paying a coach this much. Speaking of…

Turmoil in Tallahassee - I’ve largely stopped writing about Florida State, but how bad can things get? The ‘Noles lost again today, this time to UNC, and fell to 1-7 on the season. Just an unimaginably bad season for Norvell and company. Sweeping changes are on the horizon.

Bowl-eligible Huskies! Hey, how about that? With its win over Georgia State on Friday night, UCONN officially reached the six-win threshold and is going bowling! No more Sad Husky.

No picks this week after being out of the office.

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