Winners and Losers from Week 5 of College Football
The Week 5 slate of college football games was destined to be thrilling. It featured three Top 10 matchups in the same week for the first time since October 12, 2002, with the Washington-Stanford, Michigan-Wisconsin and Clemson-Louisville games certain to shake up the sport's upper echelon and continue forming the College Football Playoff picture.
They lived up to the hype.
There were plenty of other fascinating games, with some coaches justifying their hires and others edging closer to the hot seat.
What did we learn? Well, let’s take a look, shall we?
Winner: Clemson QB Deshaun Watson's Heisman Trophy Hopes
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Clemson junior quarterback Deshaun Watson had an exceptional sophomore season. He led Clemson’s charge to a national runner-up finish, became the first FBS player ever to pass for 4,000 yards and rush for 1,000 in a single season and finished as 2015's third-place Heisman Trophy finisher.
But even though the Tigers were 4-0 entering a Top Five showdown against No. 3 Louisville, 2016 felt a bit hollow for Watson. His game was a bit off; he’d thrown nine touchdowns against four interceptions and had only one 300-yard passing game.
Saturday, the Watson of 2015 showed up. While Watson threw three interceptions, he was clutch when Clemson needed him most after blowing a 28-10 halftime lead and falling behind Louisville 36-28 in the fourth quarter. With help from a long kickoff return by Artavis Scott, Watson led two touchdown drives, throwing the game-winning 31-yard touchdown pass to Jordan Leggett with 3:14 left for a 42-36 win.
Watson finished with 306 passing yards, five touchdowns tosses and added 91 yards on the ground. The Tigers are the favorites to win the ACC and make another College Football Playoff appearance, and Watson is a strong candidate to make another trip to New York for the Heisman Trophy ceremony.
Loser: Louisville's ACC Title Hopes
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Clemson-Louisville more than lived up to the hype surrounding the Top Five clash in Death Valley. It’s a shame that one team had to lose, but that team was Louisville after receiver James Quick stepped out of bounds just short of a first down at the Clemson 3 with 33 seconds to play, sealing a wild 42-36 defeat.
The Cardinals had Clemson on the ropes after a 26-0 second-half run turned a 28-10 halftime deficit into a 36-28 fourth-quarter lead, but they couldn’t seal the deal and allowed two touchdown drives that pushed the Tigers over the top.
It’s odd, but with Florida State’s two losses, this was the de facto ACC Atlantic title game. Clemson would now have to lose twice for the Cardinals to win the Atlantic, and while a trip to Tallahassee will be challenging, the Tigers are firmly in the driver’s seat to win the division.
Louisville is unlikely to make it to Orlando to the ACC title game, but the Cardinals and electric quarterback Lamar Jackson aren’t out of the playoff discussion. Far from it. If Clemson runs the table and this is the Cardinals’ only loss, they should receive serious playoff consideration as a one-defeat team.
Winner: Washington's College Football Playoff Hopes
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This was supposed to be the year where everything came together for Washington and coach Chris Petersen. The Huskies had just 15 wins in Petersen’s first two seasons in Seattle, but they brought back a loaded roster and made so many “sleeper team” lists that they really weren’t a sleeper team. And after a 4-0 start against less than stellar competition, Friday’s showdown with No. 7 Stanford had a “prove it” feel.
Prove it the Huskies did in a 44-6 rout of the Cardinal. Washington dominated Stanford on both sides of the ball, jumped out to a 23-0 halftime lead and was never challenged. The Huskies outgained Stanford 424-213 and completely held 2015 Heisman Trophy runner-up Christian McCaffrey in check.
Jake Browning was efficient, completing 15 of 21 passes for 210 yards and three touchdowns, and tailback Myles Gaskin added 100 yards and two touchdowns on 18 carries. This was very impressive; after all, the Cardinal have won three of the last four Pac-12 titles. Washington established itself as the league favorite and the Pac-12’s strongest College Football Playoff contender. The Huskies should be a Top Five team in the polls.
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Loser: Stanford RB Christian McCaffrey's Heisman Hopes
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Christian McCaffrey had an incredible sophomore season, setting the NCAA single-season record for all-purpose yards and breaking out as one of college football’s best players. He finished as the Heisman Trophy runner-up, but Stanford fans argued that the Cardinal’s frequent late-night kickoffs limited his visibility to national voters.
Well, McCaffrey and No. 7 Stanford had a major spotlight Friday night at No. 10 Washington. What they did with it was not impressive. Washington belted the Cardinal 44-6, and McCaffrey was largely a non-factor. He did have five kick returns for 144 yards, but he managed just 49 rushing yards on 12 carries and 30 yards on five catches.
The Cardinal have been the best team in the Pac-12 with three league titles in the last four seasons, but Friday was a major blow to their supremacy in the Pac-12 North and beyond. And Heisman Trophy voters who tuned in to watch McCaffrey surely weren’t impressed with what they saw.
Winner: Iowa Coach Kirk Ferentz's Agent
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On Sept. 6, Iowa announced a contract extension for head coach Kirk Ferentz that will tie him to the Hawkeyes through 2025 and pay him $4.5 million per season. Although Iowa was coming off a 12-2 season and Big Ten West Division title, the deal raised a few eyebrows in the Hawkeye State and beyond.
It is now, too. Since signing the deal, Iowa is 2-2, with the wins a 42-3 rout of Iowa State and a narrow 14-7 win at Rutgers. The Hawks are 1-2 at home since, with a loss to FCS power North Dakota State (the program’s first-ever loss to an FCS team) and Saturday’s 38-31 loss to a Northwestern team that entered 1-3 with losses to Western Michigan and Illinois State. The Wildcats came in averaging just 16.3 points per game, No. 125 nationally, but did whatever they wanted to Iowa’s defense.
With Wisconsin, Michigan and Nebraska still remaining on the schedule, Iowa doesn’t look like a factor in the West. Ferentz’s contract extension had been in the works for a while, but it doesn’t look like a good deal for anyone but Ferentz and his agent.
Loser: Texas Coach Charlie Strong's Job Security
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When Texas opened the season with a 50-47 double-overtime win over Notre Dame, it was hailed as a huge win for Charlie Strong’s future at Texas. The Longhorns rocketed to No. 10 in the Associated Press poll and looked like a Big 12 contender.
As the calendar turns to October, we know better. Two weeks after allowing 50 points to Cal, Texas nearly allowed that many to Oklahoma State in a 49-31 loss. The Longhorns couldn’t contain OSU quarterback Mason Rudolph, who threw for 392 yards and three touchdowns, and struggled on special teams, with kicker Trent Domingue making just one of four extra points and missing the only field goal he tried.
New offensive coordinator Sterlin Gilbert’s Air Raid offense has been successful, and freshman quarterback Shane Buechele looks like a keeper. But the defense has been woeful, allowing at least 47 points to three of the first four opponents and yielding 38.3 points per game. And Baylor, Oklahoma, Texas Tech and TCU are all still left on the schedule.
Following the loss, Anwar Richardson of Orangeblooods.com asked Texas athletic director Mike Perrin about Strong’s job security. His response? “We need to evaluate what happened here.” Ouch. That’s not good. Not good at all for Strong.
Winner: Big 12's College Football Playoff Hopes
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It was not a good September for Big 12 fans. The league’s will-they-or-won’t-they expansion drama dragged on with no end in sight, and Baylor and West Virginia were the only unbeaten teams. Oklahoma dropped out of the College Football Playoff chase after losses to Houston and Ohio State, and TCU’s hopes took a big blow with an overtime loss to Arkansas (the Horned Frogs also lost to Oklahoma on Saturday).
As the fourth quarter began in Ames on Saturday afternoon, those hopes looked even more perilous. Iowa State, which hadn’t defeated a ranked team since 2012, led the No. 13 Bears 42-28 and appeared poised to pull off a big home upset.
The Bears proved their mettle, however, by rallying for 17 fourth-quarter points to take a 45-42 win on Chris Callahan’s 19-yard field goal as time expired. It was Baylor’s only lead of the game. Tailback Shock Linwood provided a major pick-me-up with 237 yards and a touchdown on 25 carries.
The 5-0 Bears have a tough stretch ahead with TCU on Nov. 5 and a trip to Oklahoma on Nov. 12. But they should be 7-0 when the Horned Frogs visit, with Kansas, Texas and a pair of open dates ahead. They’re the league’s only legit playoff hope, but that’s far better than what league officials were staring at early Saturday afternoon.
Winner: North Carolina's ACC Hopes
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A year ago, North Carolina lost a neutral-site opener to SEC foe South Carolina but rebounded to win 11 consecutive games and the ACC Coastal Division. 2016 didn’t start the way Larry Fedora and Co. would have hoped with a 33-24 loss to Georgia, but once again, the Tar Heels have shown that it doesn’t affect them.
North Carolina built an early 21-0 lead at No. 12 Florida State and lost every bit of it, with Deondre Francois’ rushing touchdown and the ensuing extra point giving FSU a 35-34 lead with 23 seconds left. But Mitch Trubisky and the Heels weren’t fazed.
Trubisky got his team in position, and Nick Weiler nailed a 54-yard field goal on the game’s final play for a shocking 37-35 win, snapping Florida State’s 22-game home winning streak. Trubisky completed 31 of 38 passes for 405 yards and three touchdowns. Miami and North Carolina are the class of the ACC Coastal, and their meeting Oct. 15 at Miami should be a lot of fun.
Loser: Florida State's College Football Playoff Hopes
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With 15 starters returning from 2015’s 10-3 team, Florida State was expected to take a step forward and regain its status as a College Football Playoff contender. Instead, the Seminoles have regressed. An ugly 63-20 loss to Louisville marked the program’s most points yielded in a single game, and Saturday, their hopes of making the College Football Playoff likely evaporated.
The Seminoles dug themselves a 21-point hole to North Carolina that they couldn’t dig their way out of in a 37-35 defeat, sealed by UNC's 54-yard field goal on the game's final play. Charles Kelly’s defense is missing star safety Derwin James, who is recovering from knee surgery, but that doesn’t totally explain its inability to stop talented offenses.
If not for an opening-game rally from a 28-6 hole against Ole Miss, the Seminoles would be 2-3. As is, they’re all but out of the ACC Atlantic Division race four weeks before their annual showdown with Clemson.
Winner: Maryland's Hire of D.J. Durkin
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Maryland hired coach D.J. Durkin to inject some energy and life into a program that had little of it under former coach Randy Edsall. So far, so good. The Terrapins look like a different team under Durkin’s watch. Saturday’s 50-7 rout of hapless Purdue improved Maryland to 4-0, and the Terrapins appear to be a legit bowl contender.
The schedule hasn’t been too challenging (Howard, Florida International, Central Florida and the awful Boilermakers), but Maryland has answered every test while scoring at least 30 points in each game. The toughest part is ahead, with Michigan, Michigan State, Ohio State and Nebraska still on the slate, but Durkin should be able to find two more wins, which would be a huge boost for his first season in College Park.
Winner: Tennessee's Second-Half Skills
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Entering Saturday’s game at Georgia, Tennessee had established itself as a second-half team, seemingly at its best when it had been backed into a corner. In the opener against Appalachian State, the Volunteers trailed 13-3 at halftime before rallying for a 20-13 overtime win. Virginia Tech built a 14-0 first-quarter lead, but the Vols owned the final three quarters en route to a 45-24 win.
Last week against Florida, the Gators looked dominant in rolling to a 21-0 second-quarter lead. Tennessee was unfazed, reeling off 38 consecutive points to beat Florida 38-28 and end its 11-game losing streak to its rival.
Saturday against Georgia looked like much of the same. The Bulldogs built a 17-0 second-quarter lead, but Tennessee had been here before. The Vols rallied and took a 28-24 lead on a Derek Barnett strip-sack and Corey Vereen fumble recovery of quarterback Jacob Eason in the end zone with 2:56 left, but Eason came back with a 47-yard laser of a touchdown with 10 seconds left.
That gave Joshua Dobbs one more chance. It was all he needed, tossing a 43-yard Hail Mary touchdown pass to Jauan Jennings on the game’s final play for a stunning 34-31 win.
Those doubts about Tennessee’s ability to win big games? They’re gone, and with good reason.
Loser: Georgia's Pass Defense
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New coaching regimes typically aren’t without their stops and starts. While Georgia fans had high expectations for new head coach Kirby Smart, they’ve found that out the hard way over the past two weeks.
Following a 3-0 start, the Bulldogs were thoroughly outclassed by Ole Miss in a 45-14 defeat. They were much sharper against No. 11 Tennessee, building a 17-0 first-half lead and retaking the lead on Jacob Eason’s 47-yard touchdown pass to Riley Ridley with 10 seconds left. But an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty and good kick return gave Tennessee one more opportunity from the UGA 43.
Quarterback Joshua Dobbs connected with Jauan Jennings for a stunning Hail Mary touchdown through a sea of Bulldogs defenders on the game’s final play for a crushing 34-31 defeat. The Bulldogs have a keeper of a quarterback in Eason, but they’ll rue this game’s ending for a long time.
Winner: Mark Richt's Miami Honeymoon
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Mark Richt made a nice landing after parting ways with Georgia, quickly agreeing to take over Miami’s program. Four games in, it looks like a smart move. The No. 14 Hurricanes are 4-0 after winning Richt’s ACC debut, a 35-21 victory over Georgia Tech.
They could crack the Top 10 this week ahead of a rivalry showdown with reeling Florida State. Saturday, the ‘Canes excelled in all phases, scoring a pair of defensive touchdowns while quarterback Brad Kaaya threw for 241 yards and a score.
The Hurricanes look like a legit ACC Coastal Division title contender, and it appears Richt is unlocking the potential that Al Golden couldn’t in a disappointing tenure.
Winner: Michigan's Defense
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Michigan entered Saturday’s Top 10 showdown against Wisconsin 4-0, but the No. 4 Wolverines hadn’t been challenged in wins over Hawaii, Central Florida, Colorado and Penn State. That changed when the No. 8 Badgers came to town. Wisconsin’s defense was as good as advertised, holding Michigan’s offense in check.
But the Wolverines’ D was even better. Wilton Speight gave Michigan a 14-7 fourth-quarter lead with a 46-yard strike to Amara Darboh, and Jourdan Lewis sealed the win with a spectacular one-handed interception of Alex Hornibrook.
Michigan will have big tests ahead with Michigan State and Ohio State, but at 5-0, the Wolverines remain strongly in the College Football Playoff conversation in Jim Harbaugh’s second season.
Loser: Wisconsin's Offense
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Wisconsin was one of the more pleasant surprises of the early college football season. Picked for the middle of the pack in the Big Ten West, the Badgers upset then-No. 5 LSU 16-14 in the season opener and showed it wasn’t a fluke with a 30-6 whipping of then-No. 12 Michigan State last week, pushing them to No. 8 for a trip to the Big House against No. 4 Michigan.
Wisconsin’s defense, which entered the game No. 6 nationally in scoring, allowing 11.8 points per game, wasn’t the issue. But you’re not going to win many games tallying seven points. Quarterback Alex Hornibrook completed just nine of 25 passes for 88 yards with three interceptions. If the Badgers are to successfully survive a stretch that still includes a visit from Ohio State, a trip to Iowa and a visit from Nebraska, they’ll need more from their offense. Period.
Winner: Cal's Defense
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After an eight-win season in 2015, it would have been fair to expect Cal to regress a bit this fall. After all, the Bears lost not only top overall NFL draft pick Jared Goff, but also the players who made up 86.6 percent of their receiving yards, a huge amount for the Air Raid offense.
However, thanks in part to graduate transfer quarterback Davis Webb, the Bears are hanging in just fine. Following Saturday’s wild 28-23 win over previously unbeaten Utah, they’re 3-2. Webb threw for 306 yards and four touchdowns, but defense was the real hero.
Cal stopped Utah’s offense three times inside the 2-yard line in the last eight seconds of the game, with James Looney stuffing Zach Moss on the game’s final play to seal the victory. If Webb can keep connecting with standout receiver Chad Hansen (who entered the game as the FBS leader in receptions and second in receiving yards) and the defense can carry over its strong effort, a second consecutive bowl bid should be in the offing.
Winner: Southern California QB Sam Darnold
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Clay Helton’s tenure as Southern California’s full-time head coach has not unfolded quite as Trojans fans had hoped. Entering Saturday’s meeting with Arizona State, the Trojans were 1-3 with their only win coming over Utah State.
Freshman Sam Darnold nearly won the starting quarterback role in preseason over junior Max Browne, and he claimed the role three games into the season. Saturday, he showed why. Darnold was impressive, completing 23 of 33 passes for 352 yards and three touchdowns in a 41-20 rout of the previously unbeaten Sun Devils.
He also connected with JuJu Smith-Schuster, who made seven catches for 123 yards and three touchdowns. It was a positive night for both Darnold and the Trojans, who needed this badly.
Winner: LSU RB Derrius Guice
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It was a rough week at LSU. Following a heartbreaking 18-13 loss at Auburn that dropped the Tigers to 2-2, longtime coach Les Miles and offensive coordinator Cam Cameron were fired, with Ed Orgeron becoming interim head coach. Coach O faced more difficulties in his first game at Missouri, as star tailback Leonard Fournette sat out to rest a nagging ankle injury.
As it turned out, LSU didn’t need him in a 42-7 rout.
Derrius Guice gashed Missouri’s defense for 163 yards and three touchdowns on 17 carries, averaging 9.6 yards per attempt. Darrel Williams pitched in 130 yards and three more scores on 21 carries. As a team, the Tigers gained 418 yards on the ground. LSU outgained Missouri 634-265, setting a team record for total yardage in an SEC game.
This was just the confidence-booster that LSU needed as it begins the Orgeron Era.
Winner: Southern Miss QB Nick Mullens
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Southern Miss doesn’t get much attention in national circles, but the Eagles quietly have a prolific passing game. Senior quarterback Nick Mullens threw for 4,476 yards as a junior, but he had struggled a bit this fall, with no 300-yard passing efforts in four games.
That changed in a big way Saturday versus Rice. Mullens completed 25 of 36 passes for 591 yards and four touchdowns against one interception in a 44-28 victory. Receiver Allenzae Staggers was his best target, making six catches for 292 yards and three touchdowns (including touchdown receptions of 75, 81 and 93 yards).
The 4-1 Eagles won Conference USA’s West Division last fall, and with Mullens at the controls, they’re the favorite to do so again this year.
Winner: Indiana's Bowl Hopes
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Indiana ended an eight-year bowl drought last season, but the Hoosiers faced a challenge in building on that trip and a 6-7 record. If Saturday is any indication, they are in position to do so after a 24-21 overtime win over No. 17 Michigan State.
The Hoosiers defeated the Spartans for the first time since 2006 and also scored their first win over a ranked team at home since 2006, thanks to Griffin Oakes’ 20-yard field goal. Michigan State kicker Michael Geiger started overtime by missing a 49-yard field goal. Oakes then missed a 33-yard try, but MSU was whistled for a player leaping to try to block the kick.
With a second chance, Oakes nailed the game-winning try. It was a stunning loss for MSU, which is now 0-2 in Big Ten play, but a huge win for Kevin Wilson and the Hoosiers. Another bowl bid is well within reach.
Winner: Colorado's Bowl Hopes
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Mike MacIntyre entered his fourth season at Colorado needing some tangible results. He was just 10-27 as the Buffs’ coach, and it’s fair to wonder if the locals were getting a little restless. Well, they should be feeling better now.
Colorado raised some eyebrows with a 41-38 win at Oregon, and it backed it up with a 47-6 rout of hapless Oregon State, its most lopsided win in a conference game since 1992. Backup quarterback Steven Montez proved capable, throwing for 293 yards and three touchdowns, and receiver Shay Fields made seven catches for 169 yards and three touchdowns.
With seven games left, a bowl game is well within Colorado’s grasp, which would be huge for a once-proud program that has struggled in recent years.
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