Winners and Losers from Week 4 of College Football
Week 4 is finally in the books. Don't be fooled by a smaller schedule of games, it was a dramatic day across college football. There were statement wins by Alabama and Mississippi State, a dramatic overtime win by Florida State over Clemson, and a successful Hail Mary for Arizona.
That's not to mention a key Auburn win over Kansas State on Thursday.
It's been a wild weekend, to be sure.
That's why Winners and Losers is here to recap all the highlights and lowlights of another action-packed weekend of college football.
So let's get the conversation going. Which teams, players, coaches and/or moments were the best from Week 4? Which ones struggled?
Loser: Kansas State
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Where do you start?
Kansas State had more than its fair share of opportunities to beat Auburn on Thursday night, but instead fell short, 20-14, in a mistake-riddled game by both sides.
It's easy to focus on the three missed field goals by Wildcats kicker Jack Cantele, but that's hardly the reason the Wildcats lost. (Furthermore, Cantele made 11 of 13 field-goal attempts last season. He had a bad night. It's that simple.)
Quarterback Jake Waters had two interceptions, one of which was a poor decision on his part. The other, a would-be touchdown to Tyler Lockett, bounced off Lockett and into the air. K-State, a team that likes to run the ball, averaged just 1.3 yards per rush.
To be fair, Auburn had its mistakes too. Quarterback Nick Marshall overthrew some wide-open receivers down the field and there were some dropped passes. There were a lot of unforced errors but also plenty of great defense on both sides, especially against the run.
If there are any positives to take away, Kansas State looks like a team that could contend with any Big 12 opponent, though there are concerns about opposing receivers running free.
But as far as the Wildcats' dark-horse playoff chances go, a win against Auburn would have really helped their case.
Winner: Iowa Quarterback C.J. Beathard
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Give it up for Iowa. The Hawkeyes rebounded from a bad loss to Iowa State in Week 3 to get a solid road victory at Pitt, 24-20.
Leading the way was Iowa backup quarterback C.J. Beathard, who entered the game in the third quarter to provide a—don't laugh—spark for the Hawkeyes.
Beathard went 7-of-8 passing for 98 yards, including a beautiful 62-yard pass to Damond Powell, who, in turn, made a beautiful one-handed catch.
It'll be interesting to see what Iowa coach Kirk Ferentz does going forward with Beathard and starter Jake Rudock. Sometimes, a team just needs a change of scenery, even if for one game. Putting Beathard in the game proved to be the right move.
Other times, it's an indication that a long-term change needs to be made. It's not clear yet which route Iowa is going to go.
Loser: Virginia Tech
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How long ago does Virginia Tech's upset at Ohio State seem now?
Frank Beamer's team is on a two-game slide following a 27-24 loss to Georgia Tech. What's worse is that it looked like the Hokies had this game in relative control, but they were outscored 17-8 in the fourth quarter.
Quarterback Michael Brewer, despite being Johnny-on-the-spot during a bizarre fumble recovery for a touchdown, continued making mistakes with three interceptions. Whether Beamer opens the quarterback competition back up in practice remains to be seen, but some of Brewer's mistakes have been costly.
As Stewart Mandel of Fox Sports tweeted, Virginia Tech's fall from national darling to 2-2 has been swift: just 14 days. ESPN's Brett McMurphy adds that the Hokies have lost back-to-back home games for the first time since 1995.
Meanwhile, Georgia Tech is a quiet 4-0 and starts off on the right foot in conference play.
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Winner: Wisconsin Running Back Melvin Gordon
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Heading into Saturday's game against Wisconsin, Bowling Green, er, "boasted" the 107th-best scoring defense and ranked 76th in yards per rush allowed.
As one might've guessed, the Badgers had absolutely no trouble putting Bowling Green away in a 68-17 rout.
Specifically, Badgers running back Melvin Gordon carried the ball 13 times for 253 yards and five touchdowns. For those keeping score, that's a modest 19.5 yards per carry. (It's worth pointing out, too, that quarterback Tanner McEvoy and running back Corey Clement had 158 and 111 yards rushing, respectively. Basically, even you got 100 yards rushing against Bowling Green.)
Those numbers move Gordon's career average to 8.26 yards per carry. According to Wisconsin's Twitter account, that ties an NCAA record set by Army's Glenn Davis back in the 1940s.
Gordon and Wisconsin were expected to have a big day against the Falcons, but those numbers highlight how much of a big-play threat Gordon has been over his career.
Winner: Alabama Quarterback Blake Sims
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Blake Sims isn't a guy. He's the guy for Alabama at quarterback. If there was any doubt at all about that heading into Saturday's game against Florida—and there shouldn't have been—it was eliminated in a 42-21 win.
Sims lit up the Bryant-Denny Stadium scoreboard with 445 yards passing and four touchdowns to one interception—a tipped ball. The redshirt senior wasn't perfect—a fumble ended up with head coach Nick Saban laying into Sims on the sideline—but he showed a lot of progress in the passing game.
The biggest question about Sims was his ability to stretch the field in the vertical passing game. This was considered to be a tough task against the Gators defense. However, Sims was dropping dimes to receivers Amari Cooper (more on him later) and DeAndrew White.
In addition, Sims has showed leadership, control of the offense and the ability to create with his legs. There is no conversation about Sims as it relates to backup and Florida State transfer Jake Coker.
Loser: Florida's Defense
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Before diving into the bad numbers, one thing does deserve to be mentioned: Florida's defense had four takeaways in its loss to Alabama. Even when beat on a route or chasing down Blake Sims, Gators defenders were stripping at the ball and getting their hands up to deflect passes. That's how you do it.
The rest of the numbers, however, aren't so good.
The Gators gave up a school-record 645 yards, according to Brett Edgerton of ESPN.com. That's more than the 629 yards Nebraska put on Florida in the 1995-96 national championship.
Florida's defense also gave up 450 yards in a triple-overtime win over Kentucky in Week 3. The difference is that Will Muschamp's team got the win, and Kentucky's wide-open offense will rack up some yards in 60 minutes plus overtime.
Muschamp is still trying to build the program back up to a championship level. Obviously, based on Saturday's results, he has a ways to go. But even during last year's 4-8 debacle, defense wasn't a problem. Given Muschamp's defensive background, it's the last thing you'd expect from this team.
Winner: Alabama Wide Receiver Amari Cooper
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The Heisman Trophy has become a glorified Davey O'Brien award in recent years, with quarterbacks winning the award 12 of the last 13 years. Two players who could break that trend are Georgia running back Todd Gurley and Alabama wide receiver Amari Cooper.
Cooper was outstanding yet again in Alabama's win over Florida, hauling in 10 catches for 201 yards and three touchdowns. His numbers could have been even better had he not been flagged for an obvious offensive pass interference call.
In four games, Cooper has amassed 43 catches for 655 yards and five touchdowns. By comparison, that basically matches his production from last year's injury-filled season. As much as folks won't want to give him credit, Crimson Tide offensive coordinator Lane Kiffin has been doing an excellent job finding mismatches and putting his players in position to be successful.
"Coach Kiffin is a very smart offensive coordinator," Cooper said via Stewart Mandel of Fox Sports. "He takes advantage of matchups. And he knows exactly what he’s doing."
The Heisman train is full-steam ahead for Cooper, who is getting interest from Kevin Scarbinsky of AL.com, Matt Borcas of Grantland.com and the Heisman pundit himself, Chris Huston.
Cooper has been nothing short of outstanding and is the best player on the Tide offense.
Loser: Michigan
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Things are bad in Ann Arbor. That much was known with Michigan heading into a home game against Utah on Saturday. The question, now that the Utes came away with a 26-10 victory in a game delayed by inclement weather, is how long will things stay bad.
The offense still has yet to find a workable identity. Per Nicole Auerbach of USA Today, the Wolverines have not scored an offensive touchdown against a Power Five opponent in 2014.
First-year offensive coordinator Doug Nussmeier has been successful everywhere he’s been, but the pieces just aren’t clicking for him at Michigan.
There’s also the question about Brady Hoke’s job security. Athletic director David Brandon is fond of Hoke, and Hoke and his staff have recruited well, so this decision comes down to patience. But there’s no doubt this program is not trending in the right direction.
So it becomes a matter of when Hoke can get trending the right way. If he can at all.
Winner: Mississippi State
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To put Mississippi State’s 34-29 win over LSU into perspective, it helps to look at the past—which fans of the Bulldogs will tell you isn’t pretty.
Mississippi State hadn’t defeated LSU since 1999. And, as Fletcher Mackel of WDSU tweeted, head coach Dan Mullen had never defeated LSU or Alabama, with an average margin of defeat of 20 points.
Granted, this is without a doubt Mullen’s best team since he’s arrived in Starkville, but to beat LSU…in Death Valley…at night?
That’s a statement win if there ever was one—even if Mullen’s team allowed it to get interesting at the end.
Quarterback Dak Prescott is living up to the hype, and the Bulldogs’ ground attack ran—relentlessly and punishingly—for 302 yards.
When you look as good as Mississippi State does on both sides of the line of scrimmage, you have a chance to win every game. This definitely looks like a team that can challenge for an SEC West title.
Winner: Indiana
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The Big Ten has rightfully taken its lumps in nonconference play this season, so it’s only right to acknowledge when there’s some success.
No Big Ten team had a bigger win in Week 4 than Indiana after its 31-27 shocker over Missouri—in Columbia, no less.
It would have been easy to think it was the same old Hoosiers when Missouri scored 10 fourth-quarter points, but Indiana responded with a six-play, 75-yard drive that took just 1:58 seconds for the go-ahead score with 22 seconds left.
After losing to Bowling Green in Week 3, this was an incredible rebound to beat a Top 25 team on the road. If Indiana is going to a bowl game, it’s going to have to pull an upset or two like it did today.
The Big Ten went 12-1 in nonconference games on Saturday, but no win came close to touching Indiana’s. That’s a statement victory for head coach Kevin Wilson as he continues to build this program.
Loser: LSU's Quarterbacks
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It took a dramatic comeback and a near miracle for LSU to undo all the work that Mississippi State did in its otherwise convincing victory over the Tigers.
LSU continues to have a big problem: It has a hard time pushing the ball down the field in the passing game.
Sophomore Anthony Jennings was, again, average with a 13-of-26 passing day for 157 yards. Freshman Brandon Harris contributed to a pair of late touchdowns, but the effort fell short.
The quarterback competition—or, whatever it is—doesn't look like it's going to end anytime soon. The Tigers haven't found a reliable option at that position. Jennings' games would lead one to believe that Harris should be the guy going forward. But no one sees what coaches see in practice each week.
In other words, the decision isn't always so simple. But it's a decision that head coach Les Miles will have to make sooner rather than later.
Winner: Holy Offense, East Carolina
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By this point, folks should start to understand that East Carolina is a damn-good football team capable of beating a lot of power conference schools.
The Pirates offense, as Chris B. Brown of Grantland.com eloquently tweeted, is “hot death.”
That might be the nicest thing anyone’s ever said about Ruffin McNeill’s team.
East Carolina piled up 789 yards of offense on 97 plays in a 70-41 win over North Carolina. The Pirates did whatever they wanted to: passing, rushing, whatever.
McNeill has things clicking for East Carolina. Surely he’ll be on the short list if some high-profile jobs open up at season’s end. Offensive coordinator Lincoln Riley may get some attention as well. Whether McNeill would decide to leave his alma mater, though, remains to be seen.
Winner: Oklahoma Running Back Samaje Perine
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With running back Keith Ford out with an ankle injury, Oklahoma needed someone to step up against West Virginia.
Lo and behold, a star has emerged for the Sooners in freshman running back Samaje Perine. In just his fourth college game, Perine rushed 34 times for 242 yards and four scores in a 45-33 win over the Mountaineers. The last Sooners freshman to run for 200 or more yards in a game was Adrian Peterson in 2004.
"He's gonna be special," said head coach Bob Stoops of Perine (h/t David Ubben of Fox Sports Southwest).
Of course, it would be wrong to mention Perine without mentioning Oklahoma’s offensive line and fullbacks/tight ends. The blocking up front allowed big holes all night.
No matter how long Ford is out, Oklahoma has found a stud in Perine. Not to mention he’s found a nickname: Optimus Perine.
Loser: Clemson
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It's not really "Clemsoning" if it's an overtime loss on the road to the No. 1 team in the country, but the Tigers' 23-17 loss to Florida State surely hurts in 1,000 different ways.
Florida State was without quarterback Jameis Winston, who was suspended for the entire game following vulgar comments he made in public this week. His replacement, sophomore quarterback Sean Maguire, had his fair share of deer-in-the-headlight moments in his first start. The Seminoles had absolutely no running game to help take the pressure off of Maguire, either.
Simply put, Clemson's defense cut loose on Maguire and the results weren't great for Florida State.
Still, Clemson had its own share of problems, especially in the red zone. Following a Maguire interception with just 2:14 remaining, Tigers running back C.J. Davidson fumbled the ball and Florida State recovered. In overtime, Florida State stuffed Clemson on a 4th-and-short play.
If there's any silver lining for the Tigers, it's that they appear to have found a reliable quarterback in freshman Deshaun Watson. That may not seem like a consolation right now.
This one is going to sting for a while for the Clemson faithful.
Winner: Florida State Coach Jimbo Fisher
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Florida State never intended for the Jameis Winston situation to become a side show, but it ended up that way.
First, Winston was suspended for the first half of Saturday’s game against Clemson after shouting vulgar comments in public. Then, for reasons that could easily be attributed to media pressure, Florida State suspended Winston for the whole game.
"At the end of the day we felt like the one game made the most sense, and I chose to keep that process internal," head coach Jimbo Fisher said via Dan Wolken of USA Today. "Now he's served that punishment and he's ready to move forward.
Then, there was Winston dressed in pads before the game—and this accompanying look from Fisher.
But, through it all, Florida State found a way to beat Clemson in overtime. It wasn’t pretty. The Noles have a lot to work on with the offense, but it was able to run the ball when it needed to with Karlos Williams and held up against Clemson’s offense when backed into a corner.
Did Florida State win? Did Clemson lose? No matter how you look at it, Florida State remains undefeated. And that’s all that really matters.
Winner: Nebraska Running Back Ameer Abdullah
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Heading into Week 4, Nebraska running back Ameer Abdullah was 10th in the country with 396 rushing yards. In a 41-31 win against Miami, Abdullah accounted for what amounted to a little more than 50 percent of his yards to date.
On 35 carries, Abdullah had 229 yards and two scores. That's twice now that Abdullah has surpassed the 200-yard mark on the ground this season.
Abdullah is clearly one of the best running backs in the country, along with Wisconsin's Melvin Gordon. What Abdullah's Heisman chances are, though, remain to be seen. He's an explosive player with the capability of legitimately scoring on every play, and beating a team that statistically speaking had been good against the run helps.
As Nebraska gets into Big Ten play, the spotlight is going to shine even brighter on Abdullah. If the Huskers are going to have any chance in the Big Ten West, he has to get his touches and stay healthy.
Loser: Oregon
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Oregon escaped a late-night trip at Washington State, 38-31, which is like escaping from an alternate dimension with your extremities still attached in the right places.
But, put simply, the Ducks looked vulnerable. They also got a break on a no-call for defensive pass interference. Sometimes, a team just gets the call to go its way.
Oregon’s offensive line, patched together because of injuries, didn’t always provide quarterback Marcus Mariota with great protection. Still, Mariota was brilliant, completing 21-of-25 passes for 329 yards and five touchdowns.
Another concern was Oregon’s pass defense, which allowed 436 yards from the Cougars. As Stewart Mandel of Fox Sports tweeted, this was easily the bigger concern. Washington State was going to get yards and points, but there were times when Wazzu quarterback Connor Halliday was dicing up Oregon’s secondary.
While the Ducks won’t face a passing team quite like Washington State for the rest of the season, the numbers the Cougars put up are concerning all the same.
Winner: Arizona
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And that, folks, is how you cap off a college football Saturday.
Down 31-13 to an undefeated Cal team at the start of the fourth quarter, Arizona rallied to outscore the Bears 36-14 in the fourth quarter, including a last-second Hail Mary, to come away with a 49-45 win. A highlight of the miraculous play can be viewed here via ESPN.com.
Redshirt freshman quarterback Anu Solomon attempted a whopping 73 passes and threw for 520 yards, five touchdowns and two interceptions. He'll undoubtedly need a day to rest his arm. And head coach Rich Rodriguez may need to take a Bayer to prevent a heart attack.
It's a heartbreaking loss for Cal, but it's obvious the Bears are much-improved from last year's one-win debacle. The Wildcats, meanwhile, are 4-0 and an intriguing team in what could be a wide-open Pac-12 South division.
.jpg?w=480 "Ohio State Team Doctor")
