College Football Week 9 Recap

First of all, sorry for the late recap, it took a while to get this post started. Now, let's get down to business. The last week of football wasn't as great as previous weeks. There were no real upsets and not a lot of games between ranked teams. Still, it was a fun week with some great games, exciting finishes, and prolific performances. We'll cover all that and more in this recap. Note: all rankings are AP polls, unless stated.

Notable Games:

One of the best games of the week was #5 Auburn taking on South Carolina. The Gamecocks may be unranked, but they still have talented players like Dylan Thompson and Mike Davis. Steve Spurrier's team pushed the Tigers to the brink, but a late INT by Jonathan Jones (his second of the game) sealed the deal for Auburn. The Tigers are now third in the College Football Playoff Rankings.

Another ranked team that was pushed to the brink by an unranked team was #25 UCLA. They beat Colorado (who is now 2-6) 40-37 in 2OT. Remember, USC beat Colorado 56-28 last week, so this is by no means an impressive win for the Bruins. They still stand at 25 on the polls.

Michigan State and Michigan squared off in their annual rivalry game. The Spartans have dominated the series as of late, and they continued that trend. MSU rolled to a 35-11 win behind Jeremy Langford's three running scores. Michigan State is #8 in both polls and has a great shot at making the playoffs.

Marshall continued its undefeated season by beating Florida Atlantic 35-16. The Thundering Herd trailed for the first time this year, but they managed to come back and keep their playoff dreams alive. They are ranked #23 in the AP Poll but unranked in the CFP.

Marshall, Florida State, and Mississippi State are the only undefeated teams left after #3 Ole Miss failed to leave Death Valley with a win. Bo Wallace threw a last-second interception to seal the deal for #24 LSU. The Tigers are now #16 while Ole Miss is now #7 and less than a hundred points behind #6 Notre Dame.

#13 Ohio State needed two periods of overtime to beat unranked Penn State. OSU is now ranked #16 in the CFP and ranked second in their division, the Big Ten East. The only team ahead of them in the division: Michigan State.

Clemson has been kind of an afterthought this season, but they are now ranked #22. They entered the week at #21, but they struggled against unranked Syracuse. They won 16-6, but they were not very impressive in the win.

The only game between top twenty teams was between #20 USC and #19 Utah. This was one of the best games of the weekend, as these two Pac-12 teams fought it out for Pac-12 supremacy. Utah won 24-21, propelling the Utes to #18 in the AP poll while knocking the Trojans off the rankings completely.

West Virginia wasn't expected to contend for the Big 12 Championship at the beginning of the season, but they are now ranked at 20 in both polls and second in the conference (behind only Kansas State). On Saturday, the Mountaineers beat Oklahoma State 34-10.

As for Kansas State, they struggled against Texas, but managed to win 23-0. The Wildcats are now ranked #9 in the CFP and #11 in the AP Polls. They're 6-1 and undefeated in conference play, making them real contenders for the playoffs.

Notable Performances:

Let's start with Arizona quarterback Anu Solomon, who threw for five touchdowns against Washington State on Saturday. Arizona is now ranked #12 in the CFP and is first in the Pac-12 South.

Alabama QB Blake Sims led the Crimson Tide to a 34-20 win against Tennessee. The senior threw for two scores and ran for another. Alabama is now 6-1, ranked third in the AP Poll, and third in the SEC West.

#14 Arizona State picked up its sixth win of the season by beating Washington 24-10. A big reason was freshman DB Armand Perry, who returned an interception 61 yards for a score. The Sun Devils are now ranked #14.

#1 Mississippi State kept its championship hopes alive by staving off unranked Kentucky. The Bulldogs held on for a 45-31 win. The difference? Josh Robinson, who ran for two scores and had one catch for 11 yards.

Western Kentucky may be 3-4 and sixth in their division, but they had an impressive 66-51 win against Old Dominion. Leading the way for them was quarterback Brandon Doughty, who threw for 371 yards and five touchdowns.

Heisman Watch:

First, let's give some love to some of the guys who missed out on the list, including Nick Marshall, who led Auburn to a 42-35 win over South Carolina. Now, the guys who dropped off the list: Kevin White (who had only 27 receiving yards on Saturday) and Bo Wallace (who threw three picks in a loss to LSU). And now, the updated Heisman watch.

10. Shane Carden, East Carolina- Carden didn't have a perfect game against Connecticut on Thursday, but he did throw for 445 yards and two touchdowns. He still has a shot at making it to New York, especially if ECU keeps winning.

9. Trevone Boykin, TCU- Boykin makes his debut on our list after throwing for an amazing seven touchdowns against Texas Tech and ran for 28 yards as his Horned Frogs accumulated 82 points in a romp.

8. Rakeem Cato, Marshall- Cato stays at #8 after a good, but not great, effort against Florida Atlantic. Marshall is still undefeated and ranked #23, and if they continue this streak, Cato's Heisman candidacy can only strengthen.

7. Amari Cooper, Alabama- Cooper dropped off the rankings on Week 8, but makes a return after a great showing against Tennessee. The WR had nine catches for 224 yards and two scores. It is hard for a wide receiver to win the Heisman. The last receiver to win the award was Desmond Howard in '91.

6. J.T. Barrett, Ohio State- The OSU quarterback didn't have a great showing against Penn State (he accounted for three scores and two interceptions) but he did lead them to a win in a closely contested game.

5. Everett Golson, Notre Dame- The senior QB was out of action this week, but he returns on Saturday to play Navy. Golson will need a great game to continue his Heisman bid, a loss will send him spiraling down the rankings.

4. Ameer Abdullah, Nebraska- Abdullah accounted for 341 all-purpose yards, setting a new Nebraska record. The senior running back has accounted for nineteen total touchdowns this season and has been a big reason Nebraska is ranked #15 in the CFP.

3. Melvin Gordon, Wisconsin- Wisconsin may be unranked, but Melvin Gordon is still putting up great numbers. He accounted for 134 yards and three touchdowns, helping propel Wisconsin to a 52-7 win over Maryland.

2. Marcus Mariota, Oregon- The Ducks QB had a great game against California. He went 18 for 30, threw for 326 yards and five touchdowns, and ran for 36 yards. While he did throw his first interception of the season, he led his team to an impressive victory.

1. Dak Prescott, Mississippi State- His team may still be undefeated and ranked #1, but Prescott is losing his grip after an up-and-down game against Kentucky. He passed for one score and had one pick while his Bulldogs barely won against Kentucky.

Games to Watch Next Week:

Notre Dame beat Navy 43 times straight before the Midshipmen righted the ship (ha). They have won three of the last seven meetings and could throw a wrench into Notre Dame's playoff dreams. The Fighting Irish are expected to win, but don't expect Navy to go down without a fight.

The biggest game is no doubt #4 Auburn visiting #7 Ole Miss. Both of these teams already have one loss, and another loss would almost definitely end playoff dreams. Ole Miss is expected to win, but don't expect the defending SEC champions to lose easily.

One of only two games between ranked Pac-12 teams is between #14 Arizona and #25 UCLA. Both of these teams are still in contention for the conference title, so the loser will most likely be dropped from the Pac-12 race.

#24 Duke is #1 in the ACC Coastal Division and has a great shot at meeting Florida State for the ACC Championship game. However, they have yet to clinch the division. What will help them do that is a win on Saturday against Pittsburgh, who is better than their 4-4 record suggests.

The best Big 12 game of the week will be between #10 Texas Christian University and #20 West Virginia. Both of these teams have dynamic offenses that are capable of putting up big points on the scoreboard.

This has the potential to be a great week, as there are some excellent games on the slate. Be sure to tune in and check out some of the games. 

College Football Week 8 Recap

Another fall weekend has come and gone, and with it came another exciting weekend of college football. Then again, when was the last time a week of football wasn't exciting? There are always notable games and big moments. We started the week with six undefeated teams and greeted the new week with only four. Heisman stocks rose and fell. Playoff hopes were born and crushed. You get the point. Let's get cracking.

Notable Games:

There was no bigger game than #5 Notre Dame and #2 Florida State. Both teams came in at 6-0 and had Heisman contenders who had never lost a regular season game at quarterback. It was a close game throughout, but Florida State squeaked out a win, 31-27. There is still a debate raging as to whether Notre Dame should have won, but a loss is a loss. The Irish are now #7, but their playoff dreams are still very much alive.

The other undefeated team that lost this week was #4 Baylor, and unlike Notre Dame, their game wasn't close. The Bears fell 41-27 to Clint Trickett and unranked West Virginia. Not only does this hurt Baylor's playoff hopes (they are now 12th in the polls and third in the Big 12), but West Virginia now has playoff hopes (though slight). The Mountaineers are now ranked #23 and second in the Big 12.

#3 Ole Miss found themselves down 3-0 to 3-3 Tennessee in the second quarter, but managed to pull it together. They picked up 34 unanswered points (including 14 in the second quarter) to stay undefeated.

The only new team in the top ten is #10 TCU, which started the week at 12. Why the boost? The Horned Frogs manhandled #15 Oklahoma State, sending the Cowboys spiraling out of the rankings. TCU is now 5-1 (their sole loss coming to Baylor last week), fifth in the Big 12 conference, and have a pretty good shot at making the playoffs.

The biggest win of the week was by #7 Alabama over #21 Texas A&M. The last two matches were close, but that was when Johnny Manziel played for the Aggies. Now, they are led by Kenny Hill, and Hill underwhelmed BIG TIME. His Aggies only drummed up 172 yards of total offense and put up a goose egg on the scoreboard.

Auburn didn't play on Saturday, but they still moved up to #5. Right behind them is #6 Oregon, who beat Washington 45-20. Many people had the 5-1 Huskies getting the upset, but the Ducks cruised to a great win. They are now less than 100 points from the top five, but also only nine points ahead of #7 Notre Dame.

The only meeting between two ranked Pac-12 teams this week was between #17 Arizona State and #23 Stanford. ASU lost to UCLA earlier this season, while Stanford picked up losses against USC and Notre Dame. So, both of these teams needed wins to keep their playoff hopes alive. The Sun Devils managed to keep their dream alive by winning 26-10. ASU is now in the top 15 and second in the Pac-12 South.

Taking Stanford's place at 23, is Marshall, who moved up two spots on the polls. They did so after beating Florida International 45-13. The Thundering Herd is now 7-0 and have a great shot at finishing the regular season undefeated. Next week, Marshall QB Rakeem Cato has the chance to become the first QB in NCAAF history to throw for a touchdown in 40 straight games.

LSU jumped back into the top 25 courtesy of their 41-3 win against Kentucky on Saturday. The Tigers had trouble earlier in the season, but are now 6-2 and look to be heading in the right direction. They do have some ground to cover, however. The Tigers are in the bottom half of the SEC West.

#13 Ohio State put on a great display against Rutgers. The Buckeyes won 56-17, giving them their 18th-straight Big Ten regular season win. OSU is behind only #8 Michigan State in their division, the Big Ten East.

Notable Performances:

The week started off in a big way, as #20 Utah took on Oregon State. This was a close game, but the Utes held on to pick up their fifth win of the season. Leading the way for them was running back Devontae Booker, who rushed for 229 yards and three touchdowns. The Utes are now ranked at 19.

When the season started, expectations for USC QB Cody Kessler were mixed. Some expected him to be a dark horse Heisman contender, others thought he would drop the ball. On Saturday, Kessler proved his doubters wrong by throwing for an amazing seven scores and 300+ yards to lead #22 USC over Colorado.

Readers of my blog know I'm a fan of Andrew Hendrix of Miami (OH), but this week it was the QB of the other side of the team that stole the show. Drew Hare of Northern Illinois was 12 for 16 and threw for one touchdown, ran for 180 yards and two scores, and had one catch for 18 yards.

Another guy who had a great day: Jaquez Johnson. The junior quarterback of Florida Atlantic threw for 325 yards and three scores. He also ran for 95 yards and two scores. FAU picked up its second conference win and is now third in its division.

One team that's been completely off the radar this season: Minnesota. This is surprising, seeing as the Golden Gophers are 6-1 and first in the Big Ten West. QB Mitch Leidner has been the leader of this team. He threw for two touchdowns and ran for another one on Saturday against Purdue. Minnesota is now less than 60 points in the polls behind #25 UCLA.

Heisman Watch:

First off, let's give some love to the guys who just missed out on the list, including TCU QB Trevone Boykin, USC QB Cody Kessler, and UCLA QB Brett Hundley. And, let's look at the guys who dropped off: Todd Gurley (looks like he'll be suspended for the rest of the season), Jameis Winston (the public outcry against him has all but derailed his Heisman campiagn), Bryce Petty (he lost to West Virginia on Saturday), and Kenny Hill (he accounted for zero scores on Saturday). Now, to the new top ten list.

10. Shane Carden, East Carolina- Carden's East Carolina Pirates are ranked #18, mainly due to Carden's great work this season. He's accounted for 19 touchdowns and more than 2,200 yards of total offense. If ECU continues to win, expect Carden to move up this list.

9. Kevin White, West Virginia- White makes his debut on the list after a great showing against Baylor this week. He's been great this whole season too, 69 catches and 7 touchdowns. He leads the nation in receiving yards per game and is second in catches per game. It is tough for a wide receiver to win the Heisman, but White certainly has a shot.

8. Rakeem Cato, Marshall- There are only four undefeated teams left, and Cato is the QB of one of them. Furthermore, he has 2,135 yards of total offense and 24 total touchdowns. If Marshall finishes undefeated, which is looking extremely probable, look for Cato to get invited to New York.

7.  J.T. Barrett, Ohio State- When Braxton Miller went down with a season-ending injury, many thought Ohio State was doomed. In came Barrett, who has played sensationally. On Saturday, he threw for 261 yards and ran for 107 more. Barrett has a great shot at becoming the front-runner if he continues to play well and the Buckeyes keep winning.

6. Bo Wallace, Ole Miss- Wallace just misses out on the top five, though he does move up from last week. He didn't have a really great game against Tennessee on Saturday, but he did throw for 199 yards and lead his team to a 34-3 win.

5. Ameer Abdullah, Nebraska- Abdullah makes a huge leap into the top five after a productive weekend. The Nebraska back ran for four touchdowns and caught four passes. His Cornhuskers are now ranked #16.

4. Everett Golson, Notre Dame- He did lose to #2 Florida State on Saturday, but he played quite well. He threw for more than 300 yards and three scores, though he also had two picks. Nonetheless, Notre Dame is still in the top 10 and has a shot at making the playoffs.

3. Melvin Gordon, Wisconsin- Another Big Ten running back who is a true Heisman contender at this point, Gordon ran for 175 yards and four scores against Illinois on Saturday. If any back is going to make it to New York, it's this guy.

2. Marcus Mariota, Oregon- The Oregon QB stays in the second spot after a great showing against Washington. He had a pretty poor ground game, but he did go 24 for 33, 336 yards, and two scores in the win.

1. Dak Prescott, Mississippi State- Prescott stays in the top spot after a week off. He'll be back in action next week on Saturday against Saturday. The real test however, comes in November 15th against Alabama.

Games to Watch Next Week:

The week starts off with a bang, as #18 East Carolina takes on UCONN. The Huskies are huge underdogs, but with former Notre Dame defensive coordinator Bob Diaco as their head coach, they could put up a fight.

There are only four undefeated teams left in the country, and the one most likely to fall on Saturday is #3 Ole Miss. They take on #24 LSU, a team that is very much on the rise. It'll be interesting to see if the Tigers can pull off the upset.

The Great Lakes State will be watching with bated breath as Michigan takes on #8 Michigan State in a big rivalry game. Michigan has been struggling this season, but beating the Spartans would really get their season back on track.

Besides LSU/Ole Miss, the only game between ranked teams is #20 USC and #19 Utah. These two teams need a win to keep their playoff and Pac-12 championship hopes alive. This could potentially be the game of the week.

The best Big 12 game of the week could be between #22 West Virginia and Oklahoma State. The Cowboys just dropped off the rankings recently, but are still a good team. They are definitely capable of picking up the win.

The slate doesn't look great for next week (especially compared to other weeks), but it could surprise us. You never know in college football.

College Football Week 7 Recap

After an absolutely crazy week last Saturday, a lot was expected of this week. Upsets were extremely possible and big games abounded. Week 7 may not have been as crazy as Week 6, but it was still a great week. There were some great games and a nice shake-up on the rankings, including a new top five. We also had a huge Heisman shake-up following the suspension of Todd Gurley (more on that later). As we always do, we'll take a look at the biggest games, individual performances, Heisman rankings, and a quick preview of next week.

Notable Games:

There was no bigger game this week than #2 Auburn and #3 Mississippi State. The Bulldogs came in to this game as the hottest team in the nation and left this game with even more fire. With a huge 38-23 win, the Bulldogs leapfrogged to #1 in the rankings with 45 first-place votes. Are the Bulldogs the new team to beat? It certainly looks that way.

Florida State was #1 at the start of the week, but now finds itself at #2, even though they beat Syracuse 38-20. It was a great win for the team, but the voters found the Bulldogs more worthy of the top spot. The 'Noles have been losing steam steadily over the last few weeks. They'll need to turn that around if they want to remain unbeaten.

Arkansas came into this week with 15 straight SEC losses. No one was really expecting them to challenge Alabama, but that's exactly what they did. They pushed the Crimson Tide to the very brink, but #7 Alabama hung on for the one-point win. It's been a heartbreaking season for the Razorbacks so far. They came so close against Alabama on Saturday and came even closer against Texas A&M last month.

The only other match-up between top ten teams was between #5 Baylor and #9 TCU. The Horned Frogs were coming off a huge win against Oklahoma and were looking to knock off another top Big 12 team, Unfortunately, it wasn't meant to be. Coach Art Briles and Baylor came back for a 24-point deficit to keep their undefeated season going. The Horned Frogs meanwhile, dropped out of the top 10 and into the bottom half of the Big 12.

Taking TCU's place at #9 is Oregon, who entered the week at #12. The Ducks were still hurting from their shocking loss to Arizona last week, but managed to channel that into a statement win over #18 UCLA. The Bruins meanwhile, dropped out of the top 25.

The other new team in the top 10 was Georgia. Even though their top running back (and player) Todd Gurley has been suspended indefinitely, the Bulldogs completely dominated Missouri. Georgia is now ranked tenth and at the top of their division.

#22 Georgia Tech suffered its first loss of the season at the hands of the Duke Blue Devils. Duke won 35-21, sending the Yellow Jackets flying out of the rankings. GT is now second in their division (behind Virginia) and Duke is ranked third.

#6 Notre Dame continued its bid for a second perfect regular season in three years. The Fighting Irish were taken to the edge by unranked North Carolina. The Tar Heels jumped out to a 14-0 lead, but ND won 50-43. The Irish are now ranked fifth and one of only six unbeaten teams left (along with Mississippi State, Florida State, Ole Miss, Baylor, and Marshall).

Speaking of Marshall, the Thundering Herd is now ranked 25th. Their win this week, which made them bowl eligible, came over Middle Tennessee, handing the Blue Raiders their first conference loss of the season.

The Michigan Wolverines have been struggling as of late, but they turned it around with an 18-13 win over the Nittany Lions of Pennsylvania State University. U of M is now 3-4 and ranked fifth in their division. Penn State meanwhile, is ranked right below Michigan.

Notable Performances:

Following their win over Kansas, Oklahoma State is now ranked in the top 15. A big reason they won: junior Tyreek Hill. The WR compiled 280 yards of receiving and returns. Not only did he lead the Cowboys in receiving yards, he returned one kick for 99 yards and six points.

As mentioned before, Ole Miss is one of six teams left that are still undefeated. This week, they beat #14 Texas A&M. A lot of credit goes to #25 Cody Prewitt, who returned an interception for 75 yards and a touchdown.

The second game of the week featured Washington State and #25 Stanford, who was coming off a close loss to Notre Dame. The Cardinals rebounded nicely, beating WSU 34-17. Helping in a big way was Ty Montgomery, who compiled 134 return yards and had seven receptions for 72 yards.

Kenny Hill is getting most of the freshman love right now, but some should also be given to Darius Phillips of Western Michigan. The wide receiver had one catch for 52 yards, 2 carries for 27 yards, and four punt returns for 95 yards. Look for him to be a featured part of the Western Michigan offense for the next few years.

The UAB Blazers picked up their fourth win of the season by beating North Texas 56-21. Leading the way was quarterback Cody Clements, who threw for 316 yards, two scores, and zero picks. UAB is currently ranked fourth in their division and are at 4-2.

Heisman Standings:

As we said before, Todd Gurley has been suspended indefinitely for allegedly receiving payments for signed memorabilia. How does that affect the Heisman standings? Let's check it out. But first, a nod to the two players who fell off of our rankings: Amari Cooper, who had only two catches for 22 yards on Saturday, and Nick Marshall, who threw two picks in a loss to Mississippi State.

10. Ameer Abdullah, Nebraska- The running back was out of action on Saturday, and that keeps him pinned at the ten spot. He'll need a great game against Northwestern in Week 8 if he wants to move up the ladder.

9. Kenny Hill, Texas A&M- The Aggies suffered their second straight loss this week, sending Hill four spots down our rankings. The freshman did put up some solid numbers however, throwing for 401 yards and two scores. He'll need a win and a great outing against Alabama next week to stay in the race.

8. Bo Wallace, Ole Miss- Wallace makes his debut on our list coming off an impressive day against Texas A&M. He accounted for three total touchdowns as Ole Miss stayed unbeaten and in the top three,

7. Bryce Petty, Baylor- In one of the best games of the week, Baylor rallied from a 24-point deficit to beat #9 TCU. Guiding them was Petty, who threw for 510 yards and six TDs. The Bears are now ranked fourth.

6. Melvin Gordon, Wisconsin- Not only did the Badgers win, but Gordon ran for 175 yards and four touchdowns. If Gurley's suspension continues, Gordon might be the only running back invited to New York.

5. Jameis Winston, Florida State- Though the character card is definitely hurting Winston's repeat chances, his on-the-field performances are only helping him. His performance against Syracuse was the best individual performance of the week (according to The Sports Examiner, at least). The sophomore QB went 30 for 36 and had three touchdowns.

4. Everett Golson, Notre Dame- Once again, Golson led his team to a win, but his performance was spotty. He did throw for 300 yards and three touchdowns, but he also had three turnovers. The main reason he's in the top five is because he's kept Notre Dame undefeated. If he can do the same next week (more on that later), he'll be top three on this list for sure.

3. Todd Gurley, Georgia- Yes, Gurley has been suspended indefinitely, but he did practice today with the team. This gives hope to Bulldog fans that he will return soon. Until then, his stock will continue to drop.

2. Marcus Mariota, Oregon- Mariota had the second-best performance of the week (once again, according to The Sports Examiner). He accounted for four total touchdowns as his Oregon Ducks dominated #18 UCLA. His performance was almost good enough to vault him back into the top spot, but not quite.

1. Dak Prescott, Mississippi State- For the first time this season, Prescott takes the top spot in our Heisman countdown. He does so after the Bulldogs picked up their straight win over a top ten team, a truly incredible feat.

Games to Watch Next Week:

The biggest game of the week is undoubtedly #5 Notre Dame at #1 Florida State. Both of these teams are undefeated and are led by Heisman contenders. The Seminoles are expected to win, but don't expect the Irish to just roll over. A win here could push FSU back in the top spot, while a win for ND could push them in the top 4.

Unranked last week, Clemson is now #24. On Saturday, they face conference rival Boston College. Both teams are 4-2, and you know BC would love to take Clemson's place in the rankings. This could potentially be one of the best games of the week.

#19 Nebraska takes on Northwestern in a Big Ten battle. Northwestern is ranked third in their division, just ahead of Nebraska. The Cornuskers need this win if they want to keep their Big Ten title hopes alive.

Games between ranked SEC teams have been some of the biggest stories almost every week, and that trend continues this week, with #7 Alabama and #21 Texas A&M. When Johnny Manziel was at the helm, the Aggies beat the Crimson Tide once and put up a great showing in the other game. Can Kenny Hill lead Texas A&M to the victory, or will 'Bama signal caller Blake Sims keep his team in the playoff hunt?

The first game of the week with a ranked team features #20 Utah and Oregon State. Both teams are 4-1 and in the top four of their divisions (Pac-12 South and North, respectively). A win for either one of these programs would fuel their Pac-12 championship dreams.

Thanks for reading this recap. As always, feel free to comment if you agree or disagree with something.

College Football Week 6 Recap

On last week's recap, I noted that it wasn't a particularly excited week. This week, that completely changed. It was one of the most exciting weeks in recent memory. Almost every exciting possibility that could have happened happened. For the first time in history, five of the top eight teams in the AP poll fell. In total, eleven ranked teams lost on Saturday. This provided for an awesome Saturday of football. In this recap, we'll look at ten big games that took place the day before yesterday, notable performances, an updated look at the Heisman race, and a preview of next week. Let's get going.

Notable Games:

The week of upsets started on Thursday, when #2 Oregon played host to the team that beat them 42-16 last year, Arizona. The Wildcats managed to stun the Ducks for the second year in a row, possibly ending the Ducks' championship hopes. Arizona was rewarded for their efforts by the AP voters, who put them at #10 in the new poll.

Fans didn't have to wait long for the next upset, as it took place on Friday when Utah State knocked off #18 BYU. The 2-2 Aggies won convincingly, dropping the Cougars off the rankings completely. On top of that, BYU lost its star QB Taysom Hill for the season.

One of the biggest upsets of the week was #11 Mississippi taking down #3 Alabama. Before the game, Alabama was considered a near-lock for the playoffs and the Rebels weren't even considered real contenders. Now Ole Miss is ranked #3 and a definite contender.

Ole Miss is not the only team ranked #3, however, They share that distinction with their in-state rivals Mississippi State. The Bulldogs knocked off undefeated #6 Texas A&M, knocking the Aggies down to #14. The Bulldogs also received two first-place votes for their troubles.

The third battle between ranked SEC teams was #15 LSU visiting #5 Auburn. Last year, LSU was #6 and handily beat unranked Auburn. LSU would finish at #14 while Auburn played in the national championship game. This year, Auburn blew out LSU to move to #2 in the polls and send LSU off the top 25. At this point, Auburn is considered a favorite for the playoffs.

One of the best games of the week was #9 Notre Dame and #14 Stanford. These two had one of the best games of the year in 2012 en route to the Fighting Irish competing in the title game. This year's game was just as good. ND ended up with the win thanks to a 23 yard touchdown pass from Everett Golson to Ben Koyack with 61 seconds left.

Notre Dame is now #6, only 72 points behind Baylor. The Bears are now 5-0 after handing Charlie Strong his first career Big 12 conference loss. Texas now has a record of 2-3 and in the bottom half of the Big 12.

There was only one meeting this week between two ranked Big Ten teams. That was between #10 Michigan State and #19 Nebraska. The Spartans jumped out to an early lead, but the Cornhuskers made it interesting in the fourth, only to fall short in the end. MSU is now ranked eighth while Nebraska dropped two spots.

Michigan's woes meanwhile, continued this week. The Wolverines, expected to contend for the Big Ten championship at the beginning of the year, lost 26-24 to the Rutgers. While the Scarlet Knights picked up their first Big Ten win in program history, Michigan dropped to 2-4.

East Carolina played its first game as a ranked team since 2008 when it took on 0-4 Southern Methodist. The Pirates won handily, 41-25, and are now ranked 19 in the polls and are first in their division.

Notable Performances:

Nebraska wasn't the only ranked team from the Big Ten to lose this week. #17 Wisconsin was shocked by 2-2 Northwestern, dropping them from the rankings. A big reason the Wildcats won: safety Godwin Igwebuike picked off QB Joel Stave three times.

#23 Kansas State, smarting off a tough loss to Auburn last week, recovered from their disappointment to beat conference foe Texas Tech by 32. Leading the way for K-State was QB Jake Waters, who threw for four touchdowns and zero interceptions.

Last week, UCLA laid a beat down on the Sun Devils. Still smarting from the loss, Arizona State paid a visit to the Coliseum this week and emerged with a hard-fought victory. Quarterback Mike Bercovici led the way for his team with five touchdown passes, including a Hail Mary to win the game.

Andrew Hendrix isn't a name known my many football fans, but his performance on Saturday definitely increased his fan base. The senior accounted for five total touchdowns as Miami (Ohio) beat Massachusetts 42-41 to get the RedHawks their first win of the season.

Let's also give some love to Devon Johnson of Marshall. The junior running back rushed for 198 yards on 20 carries (a 9.9 average) and scored thrice. His efforts helped the Thundering Herd improve to 5-0.

Heisman Watch:

The Heisman race has really started to heat up now, and it was difficult to limit this list to only ten players, as there are a lot of contenders at this point. Before we get to the top 10, let's acknowledge the two contenders who dropped off the list: Brett Hundley (whose Bruins lost to Utah) and Taysom Hill, who suffered a season-ending injury against Utah State.

10. Ameer Abdullah, Nebraska- The Cornhusker running back slips four spots after a decent outing against Michigan State. He had only 67 total yards for two touchdowns. If he wants to stay in the race, he'll need a great performance against Northwestern in two weeks.

9. Melvin Gordon, Wisconsin- Wisconsin may have lost to Northwestern, but Gordon still played quite well. He ran for 259 yards and one touchdown. His performance should give hope to Abdullah, who hopes to light up the Wildcats next week.

8. Jameis Winston, Florida State- Winston accounted for two total touchdowns in a win against Wake Forest. It wasn't a great performance, but it got the job done. Unless he steps it up dramatically, his dream of back-to-back Heisman trophies will come to an end.

7. Amari Cooper, Alabama- Cooper may still be one of the top receivers in the nation, but it didn't always show on Saturday against the Bulldogs of Ole Miss. The junior had nine catches for 91 yards and zero scores.

6. Nick Marshall, Auburn- Marshall makes his debut on our list after throwing and rushing for two scores each against LSU. The Tigers are now ranked second, and Marshall's stock can only increase if they stay in the top two.

5. Kenny Hill, Texas A&M- Despite throwing for 365 yards and four touchdowns, Hill threw three picks and his Aggies fell to Mississippi State. His eye-popping stats are keeping him in the race for now, but that might change if A&M accumulates more losses.

4. Everett Golson. Notre Dame- Golson's last two games haven't been perfect, but they've gotten the job done. The junior also got a potential Heisman moment with his game-winning TD pass against Stanford on Saturday.

3. Dak Prescott, Mississippi State- Prescott makes a very impressive debut on our rankings. The junior QB was 20/26 for 268 yards and two touchdowns. Add on the fact that he plays for a top three team, and you have the formula for a Heisman front-runner.

2. Marcus Mariota, Oregon- Last week, Mariota was the clear leader for the Heisman Trophy. Now, he finds himself dethroned and feeling a lot of pressure from behind. His performance against Arizona on Thursday was mixed. He did throw for two touchdowns but was sacked five times.

1. Todd Gurley, Georgia- Thanks to his great performance against Vandy on Saturday (163 rushing yards, 24 receiving yards, and 50 passing yards), Gurley is now our Heisman front-runner. If you want outstanding, look no further.

Games to Watch Next Week:

Next week has the potential to be almost as exciting as this week was. One game that has upset alert written all over it is #10 Arizona vs USC. Following a last-second (literally) loss to Arizona State, the Trojans will look to bounce back in a big way.

#2 Auburn at #3 Mississippi State could possibly be the biggest game of the week. These are two undefeated SEC teams that need a win to further their championship dreams. It also has Heisman consequences for both teams' QBs, Nick Marshall and Dak Prescott.

Auburn vs. Mississippi State isn't the only meeting between top 10 teams, however. #5 Baylor plays host to #9 TCU in their biggest test of the season so far. The Horned Frogs are pumped after knocking off Oklahoma, so look for them to push Bryce Petty and co. to the limit.

Oklahoma meanwhile, looks to rebound against the Texas Longhorns. A dominant win against Charlie Strong's team could put the Sooners back in the title picture and top 10 (they're currently ranked #12).

The Duke Blue Devils defense gave Johnny Manziel everything he could handle last season in the Chick-fil-A Bowl. Now, they'll look to upset undefeated Georgia Tech, who is sitting pretty at 22. A win here could put Duke back in the top 25.

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