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B/R's 2025 College Football Winners and Losers from Week 2
The danger of a quiet weekend is the lack of expectation.
Every year, there is a Saturday or two loaded with lopsided matchups. Call them cupcakes, buy games, whatever else—Week 2 had a bunch of Power Four programs taking on Group of Five or lower-division opponents.
Austin Peay stuck with Georgia, and Troy jumped out to a 13-point lead on Clemson. Both put a scare into a powerhouse, but neither could finish the job.
South Florida sure did, though.
Beyond the Bulls' incredible upset at Florida, a few others—Iowa State and Ole Miss, most notably—picked up a valuable win. Those results set the stage for Saturday's marquee clash in which Oklahoma took out Michigan.
We have winners, we have losers and we have more on the way. This piece will be updated throughout the evening.
Winner: Illinois' Defense
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I'm not confident that smacking Duke qualifies as a statement game, but Illinois certainly made some noise in a road demolition of the Blue Devils.
The last 30 minutes? Very impressive.
Illinois turned a 14-13 lead at the break into a 45-19 rout, forcing a fumble, interception or turnover on downs on four of Duke's five second-half possessions. In total, the Illini's five takeaways led to 28 points. Luke Altmyer had a terrific day with 296 passing yards and three touchdowns, too.
As a result, the bandwagon is likely about to grow. Illinois opened the season with CFP-level respect in some corners, and now more people will be paying attention to Bret Bielema's experienced roster.
Maybe you don't buy the hype. That's fine!
Yet if the Illini take out Indiana and USC later this month, they might just set up a battle of unbeatens at home against Ohio State in mid-October.
Loser: SMU
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On one hand, SMU is not panicking.
Exactly one year ago, the Mustangs fell to a Big 12 team in nonconference play. They recovered from the loss to BYU in decent fashion, rattling off nine straight wins and ultimately making the College Football Playoff.
This one, however, hurts a little more.
SMU squandered a 14-point lead in the fourth quarter, and Baylor took advantage of a missed field goal in overtime to secure a dramatic 48-45 win. As if that's not enough, SMU dropped its 14th consecutive game in the rivalry.
After seeing SMU navigate an early loss to accomplish what it did in 2024, there is clear evidence not to overreact here.
Still, the Mustangs—who face a more difficult ACC slate with Clemson and Miami on the docket this season—had a key victory slip away at home.
Winner: Iowa State
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"Exciting" is rarely an accurate way to describe this rivalry, which just brought a fourth straight low-scoring game. Neither Iowa nor Iowa State has surpassed 20 points in any of those matchups.
But the notch in the win column still counts the same.
This year's battle for the Cy-Hawk Trophy went to Iowa State in a 16-13 final. Kyle Konrardy buried a clutch, late 54-yard field goal for a little deja vu, matching the exact yardage of his winning kick in the 2024 showdown.
Most importantly for Iowa State, it improved to 3-0 and escaped a challenging start to the year unscathed.
No, the competition—Kansas State, North Dakota and Iowa—won't be mistaken for a gauntlet. But both K-State and Iowa are rivals, and ISU took on K-State in Ireland. This has been an emotionally and physically taxing three-week stretch.
The rest of the Big 12 is officially on Cyclone watch.
Loser: Mike Gundy
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But, uh, the Big 12 probably isn't so worried about Oklahoma State.
Last year, the Pokes stumbled after a hot start and failed to win a conference game. Then, the staff underwent major changes as OSU tried to patch its roster through the transfer portal in the offseason.
Unfortunately, the early returns are not encouraging, either. The offense sputtered in a 27-7 win over lower-division UT Martin in Week 1 and barely surpassed 200 yards in a lifeless 69-3 obliteration at No. 6 Oregon.
There's no bright side, no moral victory after an embarrassment like that.
Mike Gundy has done an excellent job during a two-decade run in Stillwater. Between last year's nightmare and an uninspiring start to 2025, though, his steadily warming seat is a whole lot hotter today.
Winner: South Florida's CFP Resume
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"Oh, you thought a smackdown of Boise State in Week 1 would be all we could do? That's cute." -USF, probably.
What a two-game outburst for the Bulls.
South Florida dropped a hammer on the reigning Mountain West champs last week and celebrated an upset over Florida in The Swamp on Saturday. Nico Gramatica popped in a 20-yard field goal as time expired in the 18-16 triumph.
In these first two weeks of the campaign, USF has upset a pair of Top 25 teams. And, once again, the Bulls might not be finished.
Next week, USF travels to face another ranked foe in Miami.
Regardless of what happens in that matchup, the Bulls have solidified themselves as a threat in the American—and, by extension, a threat to crash the College Football Playoff party with a conference title.
Loser: Billy Napier's Job Security
6 of 10
Welcome back to the hot seat, Billy Napier. We've been expecting you.
Granted, this result I did not foresee. The troubles seemed more likely to arrive in the coming weeks when Florida headed to rivals LSU and Miami. The rest of the Gators' schedule was no cakewalk, either.
Losing to South Florida, however, has immediately restarted the conversation around Napier and his tenuous job security.
That's simply an unacceptable loss for a fourth-year coach at UF.
If you're a bleeding-heart optimist, the tough remaining schedule means there are no shortage of opportunities for UF to play Napier off the hot seat. The tone of the noise surrounding the program could change in a hurry.
But at some point, enough will be enough. Napier is getting dangerously close to finding that dreaded line.
Winner: Ole Miss' Redemption
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For a casual fan, this contest in Lexington probably didn't register much on your radar. That's perfectly understandable, too.
If you support Ole Miss, however, it might've been a cathartic day. The greatest what-if from the 2024 season is whether the Rebels would have snuck into the Playoff had they avoided an upset loss to Kentucky.
At the very least, a repeat will not happen in 2025.
Austin Simmons tossed two interceptions after a missed field goal, but Ole Miss moved past the early mistakes to win 30-23. The defense forced a pair of turnovers on downs in the fourth quarter to seal the victory, too.
Now, the Rebels don't leave Oxford for more than a month.
While that stretch of Arkansas, Tulane, LSU and Washington State will be a test, Ole Miss no longer has a UK-sized mental block to conquer.
Loser: Kansas State
8 of 10
This situation has formally gone from bad to worse.
Kansas State outgained Iowa State during the Week 0 clash in Dublin, but a series of mistakes led to a 24-21 loss. Although the Wildcats won last Saturday, they needed a last-minute touchdown to beat lower-division North Dakota.
This weekend, as a 17-point favorite at home against Army, K-State lost. Point to an anemic offense, Army's surprise onside kick, a defense that couldn't get third-down stops—whatever your choice, it's all a mess.
An ugly, disappointing mess.
The season is not already a failure. In typical Chris Klieman fashion, K-State will probably recover to finish 8-4 or something. Heck, the 'Cats are only 0-1 in Big 12 play and still can compete for a conference title.
But with every passing week, the trend is only looking worse at a program that entered the season with CFP aspirations.
Winner: Oklahoma's Upside
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In the lone Top 25 showdown of the week, Oklahoma scored a touchdown on its opening drive and never relinquished the lead.
Bryce Underwood seems like a future star, but Michigan's true freshman QB could not solve OU's defense. He finished a meager 9-of-24 for 142 yards, and the Wolverines ended a combined 3-of-15 on third and fourth downs.
And the John Mateer show continued for the Sooners in a 24-13 win.
The transfer from Washington State has provided a much-needed spark to OU's offense. Mateer threw for 274 yards, rushed for 70 and accounted for each of the Sooners' three touchdowns. After two immensely productive games to begin his time in Norman, his impact can hardly be overstated.
Between a stout defense and dynamic Mateer, balanced efforts like this one would make the Sooners a tough out in the SEC.
Loser: Arizona State Hype
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Sheesh, not a fun weekend in the Big 12, huh?
Perhaps lost in the background of OU's triumph, Mississippi State stunned 12th-ranked Arizona State. Blake Shapen hit Brenan Thompson for a 58-yard touchdown in the final minute to give MSU a 24-20 win.
The loss technically doesn't hurt Arizona State much, given that it was a nonconference game. The reigning Big 12 champions have yet to start league play.
Look, college football is weird. Road games are hard. It happens.
Nevertheless, losing to one of the worst SEC teams is an effective, lamentable way for ASU to plummet out of the national picture.
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