The Rundown: Wisconsin Drops While Others Rise in the Top 10 After a Wild Week 8
Butch Dill-USA TODAY Sports
Any weekend of college football that includes Kansas nearly winning at Texas, Illinois downing a top-10 team and a game going into six overtimes is a good weekend.
In one of the wildest Saturdays yet, all of that happened. So did a bunch of other crazy stuff. Alabama QB Tua Tagovailoa sprained his ankle, three weeks away from a titanic meeting with LSU. Baylor and Minnesota—Baylor and Minnesota!—remained undefeated, and a squirrel—a squirrel!—got loose at Beaver Stadium.
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Top 10… Teams
1. Alabama
Last week: 1
Last game: Beat Tennessee 35–13
Next game: Saturday vs. Arkansas
The Tide will have to manage without injured starter Tua Tagovailoa against the 2–5 Razorbacks. They’ll be fine.
2. LSU
Last week: 2
Last game: Beat Mississippi State 36–13
Next game: Saturday vs. Auburn
The Tigers were sleepy early, but they woke up late. They can’t be sleepy next weekend in a home game against Auburn. They’re one win away from setting up that unbeaten, No. 1-verse-No. 2 showdown against Alabama.
3. Ohio State
Last week: 3
Last game: Beat Northwestern 52–3
Next game: Saturday vs. Wisconsin
The Badgers’ stunning loss at Illinois really puts a damper on what we all thought would be a top-10 clash between unbeaten teams next weekend in Columbus. So much for that.
4. Clemson
Last week: 4
Last game: Beat Louisville 45–10
Next game: Saturday vs. Boston College
Trevor Lawrence threw two more interceptions—he’s now got eight on the season, double what he had all of last season—but the Tigers' defense and RB Travis Etienne delivered the win.
5. Oklahoma
Last week: 5
Last game: Beat West Virginia 52–14
Next game: Saturday at Kansas State
Is there any team you’re more certain will make the College Football Playoff than Oklahoma? They have one ranked team left on the schedule.
6. Penn State
Last week: 7
Last game: Beat Michigan 28–21
Next game: Saturday at Michigan State
KJ Hamler is Penn State’s gasoline and without it the Nittany Lions sputter. They’ll need to find a more consistent offense to hang with the likes of Ohio State.
7. Oregon
Last week: 8
Last game: Beat Washington 35–31
Next game: Saturday vs. Washington State
The Pac-12 is still alive! The Ducks appear to be the best chance the conference has at squeaking into the playoff. On Saturday, they were down by 14 and 10 in the third quarter before marching to a comeback.
8. Florida
Last week: 9
Last game: Beat South Carolina 38–27
Next game: Nov. 2 vs. Georgia
The Gators are not into making things real pretty, and this one wasn’t. The Gamecocks took a 20–17 lead late in the third quarter before Gators QB Kyle Trask threw touchdowns on three consecutive fourth-quarter drives.
9. Notre Dame
Last week: 10
Last game: Beat USC 30–27 in Week 7
Next game: Saturday at Michigan
Georgia’s loss last week didn’t help the Irish’s football RPI, but they’re still in this playoff chase.
10. Auburn
Last week: NR
Last game: Beat Arkansas 51–10
Next game: Saturday at LSU
The Tigers hop back into our top 10 after a week outside of it. It might be a short stay.
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Top 9… Videos You Should Watch
1. Husky trickeration
Washington’s razzle-dazzle play on this kickoff is really something else. One of its returners lies flat on his stomach before the kick and eventually gets the ball on a lateral. Officials flagged the Huskies. Dang refs ruin everything.
2. It’s a (not good) fake!
This is either the worst or the best thing that happened on Saturday. Arkansas faked a punt on a play in which its punter threw a wobbly chest pass into the arms of an Auburn player.
3.‘Vanderbilt men!’
You want to see a fired-up football coach? Check out Vanderbilt’s Derek Mason following the Commodores’ win over Missouri on Saturday.
4.Hands: one
You know what never gets old? One-handed catches. LSU safety JaCoby Stevens had one of the best of Saturday. It was, of course, an interception. Behold:
5. Sooners down
The Sooner Schooner took a spill in the second quarter of Oklahoma’s win over West Virginia, and it wasn’t pretty. In a statement, OU cited a weight imbalance on the schooner. There were no serious injuries, the school said.
6. Jump Around
Kudos to the Illinois public address announcer, who selected “Jump Around” as the post-game celebration music for the Illini’s win over Wisconsin. What a barb!
If you’re unaware, the Badgers’ tradition at home is to play the song between the third and fourth quarters.
7. For two
Kansas took the lead in the final 80 seconds in the game against Texas on a two-point try. The Jayhawks would lose on a field goal moments later, but you should watch this and be happy that they came so close.
8. Cold BYU lady
BYU upset Boise 28–25, but in even bigger news, this woman in the stands has invented a new warming technique
9. Rogue squirrel
A squirrel made its way into Beaver Stadium and onto the field during warmups before Penn State played Michigan. Stadium personnel caught the poor, scared thing.
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Top 8… Dazzling Digits
1. 24
That’s what Baylor QB Charlie Brewer averaged per completion during the Bears’ win at Oklahoma State. He completed 13 passes for 312 yards.
2. 7
That’s the number of games it took LSU quarterback Joe Burrow to break the school’s single-season touchdown record. He tossed No. 29 during the Tigers’ 36–13 win over Mississippi State.
3. 50
The number of total points that Kansas and Texas scored in the fourth quarter.
4. 1
The point differential between Pitt and its opponents this season. The Panthers, who are 5–2, have scored 156 points and their opponents have scored 155.
5. 235
It had been that many minutes since UConn held any kind of lead in a football game. The Huskies lead against Houston in the second quarter lasted about nine minutes. The Cougars eventually won 24–17.
6. 292
The point differential between Ohio State and its opponents this season. The Buckeyes have scored 348 points and their opponents have scored 56. The slimmest win for Ryan Day’s group came by 24 points.
7. 5–2
That’s the record of the Liberty Flames, who are coached by Hugh Freeze and are on a five-game winning streak.
8. 10
The number of undefeated teams remaining in the FBS after Wisconsin and Boise State lost.
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Top 7… Random Things You Mighta Missed
1. ‘Gutless’
When you flag Will Muschamp, you’d better do it to his face. The South Carolina coach bemoaned an official calling an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty against him. “The guy ran 40 yards away and dropped a flag. I have no idea. I’d rather him drop it on my feet. Drop it on my feet next time. I’m not going to comment on anything else. Don’t go 40 yards away and drop a flag. Gutless.”
2. Never bet
This seemed like a home run parlay bet. Oklahoma, Wisconsin and Clemson all just needed to win. Welp. Never trust college football with your money.
3. Upset special
The biggest upset—at least according to the Vegas line—happened in, of all places, Champaign, Illinois. The Illini, mired in a four-game losing streak, stormed back to beat Wisconsin on a 39-yard field goal from kicker James McCourt. They were 30.5-point favorites, marking the largest upset in a Big Ten conference game since 1982.
4. No, Manny
Miami coach Manny Diaz enraged much of social media for his comments after the Hurricanes dropped a fourth game this season to woeful Georgia Tech at home. "You can see the promise of the future and the ugliness of the present. This is a rebuild,” he said of a program that two years ago won 10 games.
5. Kyle says quiet
There is a tradition developing among Florida quarterbacks, and Kyle Trask continued it Saturday, silencing the South Carolina crowd during the Gators’ win. You’ll remember Feleipe Franks did this last year—only, to his home crowd. Go Gata!
6. New rules
It took eight weeks but we finally saw college football’s new overtime rules in action, when Virginia Tech beat North Carolina 43–41 in six overtimes. Triggered by LSU and Texas A&M’s seven-overtime game last year, the NCAA passed legislation this offseason forcing teams to trade two-point conversion attempts starting in the fifth OT.
7. USC’s standing in the division
The Trojans, left for dead with three overall losses, are tied for the lead in the Pac-12 South at 3–1. In a pounding few saw coming, Clay Helton’s group ran Arizona out of the Coliseum on Saturday, 41–14.
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Top 6… Heisman-Contending QBs
1. Joe Burrow, LSU
Outside of having his pants yanked down—and subsequently showing the world his right cheek—Burrow was near perfect in a win at Mississippi State. He was 25-for-32 for 327 yards and four touchdowns.
2. Jalen Hurts, Oklahoma
He accounted for five touchdowns and 391 yards in a win over West Virginia. Hurts has really been putting the dual in dual threat.
3. Tua Tagovailoa, Alabama
The Crimson Tide junior suffered a high ankle sprain will likely miss next week’s game against Arkansas. He says he’ll be back for the top-five clash against LSU. He went 11 for 12 during his time in the game.
4. Justin Fields, Ohio State
Fields shredded Northwestern for four touchdowns, completing 725 of his attempts.
5. Trevor Lawrence, Clemson
He threw two more interceptions, but finished with 233 yards on 20-for-29 passing.
6. Jake Fromm, Georgia
The Bulldogs QB threw for just 35 yards in a driving rainstorm against Kentucky. Between Saturday and UGA’s loss to South Carolina, his stock is at an all-time low.
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Top 5… Worst Team in Each Power 5 Conference (From Worst to Best)
1. Rutgers (Big Ten)
The Scarlet Knights have 78 points through seven games. If you’re bad at math, that’s less than 12 points a game.
2. Arkansas (SEC)
The Razorbacks lost at home to San Jose State. That’s it. That’s the reason.
3. Kansas (Big 12)
The Jayhawks nearly knocked off Texas this weekend, but they’ve still got a loss to Coastal Carolina.
4. Miami (ACC)
This space was reserved for Georgia Tech—and then the Hurricanes lost to GT at home.
5. UCLA (Pac-12)
The Bruins have shown life in spurts, but they can’t erase losses to San Diego State and Oregon State.
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Top 4… How Are They Still Undefeated?!
1. Baylor
Because the Bears scored the final 21 points of the game to overcome a deficit and beat Oklahoma State.
2. Minnesota
Because the Gophers played Rutgers.
3. SMU
Because QB Shane Buechele, the same former Texas QB Shane Buechele, threw six touchdowns.
4. Appalachian State
Because App State’s defense gave up 213 yards of offense.
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Top 3… Eggs Laid
1. Missouri losing at Vanderbilt
The Tigers had won five straight games after a season-opening loss at Wyoming. They were a 21-point favorite at a 1–5 Vanderbilt team. QB Kelly Bryant completed just half of his passes for 140 yards, and Vandy’s defense kept MU under 300 yards of offense.
2. Cal losing to Oregon State
Remember when the Bears were 4–0? They’ve lost three straight and the latest one is a dang doozy, losing at home to the 2–4 Beavers.
3. Miami losing to Georgia Tech
The Hurricanes lost at home to the worst team in the ACC. There is nothing else to really add.
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Top 2… Most Bizarre Resumes
1. BYU
The Cougars eliminated another team from the unbeaten ranks by downing Boise State on Saturday night. That means they have wins over Boise, at Tennessee and against USC while have losses at Toledo and at South Florida. Yeah, I know—we don’t get it.
2. Missouri
The Tigers have beaten South Carolina, Ole Miss and West Virginia. They have lost to Vanderbilt and Wyoming. Go figure.
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Top 1… Les Miles Quotes
1. He’s baaaaaack!
After Kansas’ 50–48 loss at Texas, the KU coach delivered this gem: “You think that people that leave the stadium will know Kansas? I think they will know that phrase. Kansas. It seems a little bit more now to me. Kansas.”
