Ranking the 8 best team performances in Week 2 of college football

Who needs an introduction? There are EIGHT fantastic college football performances worth talking about. So take a lot at our list of the top teams from Week 2 of college football, starting with a legendary evening in the Sunshine State for one AAC program...

1. South Florida

You have to award the teams who win the toughest games, and for Week 2, no squad came away with a more impressive victory than the Bulls. Against a Florida team that protected its quarterback with an offensive line PFF named the OL of the Week, USF still found ways to unsettle DJ Lawgway and a Gator offense that mustered just one touchdown all night long.

Meanwhile, South Florida QB Byrum Brown led the team in every meaningful offensive statistic, including the key categories of heart and guts. Brown powered USF down to the Florida two-yard line as head coach and former Tennessee offensive coordinator Alex Golesh called for a timeout with just a couple of ticks on the clock, allowing South Florida to complete a once-in-a-generation in-state upset with a field goal as the clock expired. Now, the Bulls go for another one of those next weekend at Miami. Win there and the party is on in a way we haven't seen in some time for a G5 school.

2. Baylor

Again, we are all about rewarding great wins on this list. For a Baylor club that was handled by Auburn in a tough Week 1 home loss, bouncing back to win on the road at a 2024 playoff team in SMU, after double overtime, is a heck of an accomplishment. What's even more jaw-dropping: the numbers they achieved en route to victory.

The Bears eclipsed 600 yards of offense as quarterback Sawyer Robertson put together a totally silly 440-yard performance through the air. Receivers Josh Cameron and Ashtyn Hawkins combined to split just under 300 of those yards while Cameron added a pair of touchdowns. In a Big 12 dominated by awesome QB-WR combinations, the Robertson-Cameron-Hawkins triumvirate might take the cake.

3. Oklahoma

Oklahoma might desire more credit for their first massive win on a national stage in a couple of years, but the Sooners took care of business the way they should have. Transfer quarterback John Mateer shot up the Heisman leaderboard by putting the offense on his back, while Brent Venables' defense predictably frustrated true freshman QB Bryce Underwood, who completed just nine passes and hit the mark on well under 50% of his attempts.

College football, or heck, football in general, is dominated by teams who simply take care of business and don't slip up where they shouldn't. A home matchup against a Michigan squad that isn't quite what it was under Harbaugh, with a rookie QB, should be a win for an OU club looking to get to the College Football Playoff, and it was. Credit to not screwing up, because that's a solid resume win and one the Sooners needed to have before turning to the SEC gauntlet.

4. Mississippi State

Another 2024 CFP team went down this weekend, Arizona State, who climbed out of a 17-nothing hole to take a late 20-17 lead against the Bulldogs before blowing the contest in an infuriating display of coverage incompetence for head ASU coach Kenny Dillingham.

With 30 seconds left in the ballgame, MSU wideout Brennen Thompson strutted across the end zone line to give the Bulldogs the lead for good after taking a 58-yard pass all the way to the house on an inexplicable blown defensive play. You just had to keep the offense in front of you for a couple more plays, and ASU just allowed MSU QB Blake Shapen to take their top off with the game-winner. That has to hurt so bad for Arizona State, but credit to the home side for responding late after allowing 20 straight points to initially lose the lead.

5. Vanderbilt

Well, the No. 11 team in the country only beat Virginia Tech by 13 points in a nuetral site Week 1 game, so we have to give out major kudos to a Vanderbilt squad that spanked VT by 24 points in the Hokies' own home stadium to sink them to 0-2. Maybe these ACC teams should pack up and stop messing with SEC foes in the non-conference, ya know?

Vanderbilt's success is no shock this season. Clark Lea's group surprised folks with an upset of Alabama and bowl game appearance (rare at Vandy) in 2024, but with star QB Diego Pavia back and alongside the most experienced roster in power conference football, according to Phil Steele, these Commodores are a legit and feared SEC challenger who just decimated a middling but historically strong ACC program.

6. Missouri

Missouri out-played Kansas by far more than the 11-point margin that was printed on the scoreboard as fans flooded the exits following the first edition of the Border War rivalry matchup since 2011. The actual score was 42-31, but Mizzou out-gained the Jayhawks by more than 300 yards Saturday.

Tiger quarterback Beau Pribula threw for 334 yards, more than Kansas had on offense all day, as Missouri out-gained their opponent 595 to 251 and out-rushed them by a margin of 261 vs. 28. Just dominance across the stat sheet. The only reason Mizzou's performance didn't rank higher is because they still somehow had to make a fourth-quarter comeback despite their immense yardage advantages.

7. Oregon

You could argue no college football team in the cuontry played a better pure football game, from start to finish, than the Oregon Ducks in their 69-3 victory over Oklahoma State. Mike Gundy decided to paint a giant red target symbol on the back of his OSU polo during the weekday press conference leading up to the contest when he lamented Oklahoma State's lack of NIL funds up against Phil Knight and Oregon's operation — and that choice came back to bite the Cowboys like a venomus snake.

Oregon raced out to a 20-0 lead after a quarter and then covered the spread with ease by halftime, leading 41-3. They reached 69 points with a minute left in the third quarter and didn't even add to the 66-point advantage in the final quarter, actually taking some mercy on OSU after 44 minutes of battering them into submission. Didn't Colorado teach everyone this lesson two years ago? You don't poke the Ducks, because Dan Lanning is a maestro when powered by motivation.

8. Army

This is why we all trust the United States military to protect us, because Saturday was a clinic in how to tactically control and win a battle in which one team is thoroughly outmatched. Army does not have as spectacular of players as Kansas State, but thanks to stall ball, stout defense and grit in the ground game, Army squeezed out a huge upset victory just one week after losing to Tarleton State on their home field.

Army came out on top because KSU simply couldn't possess the football. The Wildcats recorded just seven total possessions all game, which would be astoundingly low even for an NFL game. Plus, they only punted twice while Army's leading passer threw just one pass for 52 yards while the other QB only got up 11 attempts for 43 yards.

The Black Knights simply won on the back of complementary football, using an end-of-half score to steal some momentum while also scoring on their final three possessions in the second half prior to the last couple of kneel-outs. Give it up for head coach Jeff Monken.