College Football's All-Week 7 First Team: Top Performers at Every Position
Week 7 was a time for college football fans to keep their eyes on the skies.
A pair of Big 12 offenses continued their back-and-forth battles for the most impressive stat lines of the week with their Heisman-contending quarterbacks leading the way. The all-out air attacks thrived elsewhere in the country, too, with big-name receivers racking up even more yards and touchdowns for their incredible starts to the 2015 campaign.
But plenty of passes didn't always mean success for the offenses. One of the nation's elite defenses got a pair of record-breaking performances from breakout defensive backs, and it seemed like players everywhere were getting in on the pick-six parade.
As the dust settles from an awesome weekend of college football action, here are this week's top performers for each position. These players are chosen for their dominance of the stat sheets, with bonuses going toward those who stepped up their play in high-profile games.
Week 7 featured plenty of tough cuts, so there are sure to be a number of fan favorites who weren't represented on these All-American teams. Tell us your favorite performances of the weekend in the comment section below.
Quarterback: Seth Russell (Baylor)
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20-of-33 passing for 380 yards, five TDs and zero INTs; 14 carries for 160 yards and one TD
Seth Russell and Baylor lit up a West Virginia defense that was one of the nation's best through the first few weeks of the season. The first-year starting quarterback had the best performance of his career against the Mountaineers, racking up 540 yards of total offense and six touchdowns on just 47 plays.
"We felt like coming into the game that he would have to run some, and we schemed a few runs for him," Baylor head coach Art Briles said, per Chuck Carlton of the Dallas Morning News. "That's an X-factor that we haven't had for a couple three years. And he's really good at it."
Russell will continue to sneak up the Heisman leaderboard as the season continues. The high-powered Bears offense hasn't missed a beat with its new signal-caller, and he could easily lead the team to an all-time record for yards per play in a season.
Second Team: Trevone Boykin (TCU)
27-of-33 passing for 436 yards, four TDs and zero INTs; 13 carries for 74 yards and one TD
Not to be completely outdone by his main rival in the Big 12, Trevone Boykin continued his assault on the stat sheets with 510 yards and five touchdowns in TCU's big road win over Iowa State.
Running Backs: Christian McCaffrey (Stanford) and Derrick Henry (Alabama)
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McCaffrey: 25 carries for 243 yards and four TDs
Christian McCaffrey came into Thursday night's showdown against UCLA with only one career touchdown—the score he had last time out in Stanford's blowout win over Arizona.
McCaffrey quadrupled that total in just one evening of work, scoring four touchdowns and rushing for a Week 7 high of 243 yards in a 56-35 win over the Bruins. The sophomore averaged nearly 10 yards per touch on the ground and still posted one of the weekend's best performances on special teams.
"If there’s any single factor that distinguishes this attack from the ones that came before it, it’s the presence of a bona fide home run threat, the likes of which the Cardinal haven’t seen in many years," Matt Hinton of Grantland wrote. "So far, McCaffrey has been every bit as consistent as his predecessors and exponentially more explosive."
Henry: 32 carries for 236 yards and two TDs
Derrick Henry has posted several standout games in the last two seasons, but it only took him a little more than one quarter to set his new career high for rushing yardage Saturday against Texas A&M.
Henry picked up six first downs on just nine carries in the opening quarter and ran 55 yards for a touchdown on another one of his early touches. His 236 yards in total against the Aggies were the second-most by a running back in Week 7.
The bruising Henry now has a dozen touchdowns—tied for third-most nationally—and he's found the end zone in 14 of his last 15 games, dating back to last season. With the way he's running, it's surprising Alabama even has to go to the air that often.
Second Team: Akrum Wadley (Iowa) and Dalvin Cook (Florida State)
Wadley: 26 carries for 204 yards and four TDs
Cook: 22 carries for 163 yards and two TDs; four receptions for 60 yards
With Week 7 hero Jordan Canzeri injured, Akrum Wadley stepped up in a huge way for undefeated Iowa, scoring four touchdowns and averaging nearly eight yards per carry in a blowout win over Northwestern. Dalvin Cook continued to showcase his Heisman-contender credentials with some highlight-reel runs and his fourth game with more than 150 rushing yards this season.
Wide Receivers: Corey Coleman (Baylor) and Zach Pascal (Old Dominion)
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Coleman: 10 receptions for 199 yards and three TDs
After watching his defense get shredded by the 5'11" junior, West Virginia head coach Dana Holgorsen had extremely high praise for Baylor wide receiver Corey Coleman on Saturday afternoon.
"Holgorsen calls Corey Coleman "the best player in college football. You can put me on record with that."
— Allan Taylor (@AllanTaylorWVU) October 17, 2015"
The numbers for Coleman are downright ridiculous after his season-high performance against the Mountaineers. The Baylor star is on pace to shatter the all-time FBS record for receiving touchdowns in a season—he currently has 16 through six games—and he's had more than 100 yards in every single contest for the Bears.
Pascal: 11 receptions for 231 yards and three TDs
As crazy as Coleman's performance was against West Virginia, it wasn't the best statistical one of the weekend for a wide receiver. That would belong to Old Dominion's Zach Pascal, who was the only target to break the 200-yard mark in Week 7.
Pascal also had three touchdowns in Old Dominion's 37-34 victory over Conference USA foe Charlotte. Two of those scores came in the fourth quarter, including a one-handed grab with 2:18 left that gave the Monarchs their first conference win of the season.
"His energy was phenomenal," ODU head coach Bobby Wilder said, per Harry Minium of the Virginian-Pilot. "We tried to pull him off a couple of special teams and he got mad when we do because he wants to play every single play... He just wants to play all of the time and he wants to win."
Second Team: Leonte Carroo (Rutgers) and Josh Doctson (TCU)
Carroo: Seven receptions for 157 yards and three TDs
Doctson: 10 receptions for 190 yards and two TDs
Leonte Carroo had another three-touchdown performance—this time in a victory—as he led the Scarlet Knights passing attack in a wild comeback win over Indiana. Like Trevone Boykin, Josh Doctson wasn't going to let Baylor grab all the stats spotlight in the Big 12 this weekend as he recorded the third-most receiving yards of anyone in Week 7.
.jpg?w=256 "Ohio State Team Doctor")
Tight End: Jake McGee (Florida)
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Five receptions for 43 yards and two TDs
Florida needed its passing game to step up around Treon Harris in the wake of Will Grier's suspension, and a 24-year-old, sixth-year senior tight end came through for the best game of his career.
Jake McGee had two touchdown receptions in the first half of Florida's dramatic 35-28 loss at LSU, including a four-yard score on fourth down early in the first quarter. His second one, a 19-yard connection with Harris, cut LSU's lead in half during the second quarter.
"I like the fight that we played with," McGee said after the loss, per Jerit Roser of NOLA.com. "It was good to see guys who've never really experienced that all year show a no-quit attitude and really playing all out until the end."
Second Team: Jordan Fuchs (Indiana)
Two receptions for nine yards and two TDs
His yardage might have been minuscule, but Jordan Fuchs' impact on Indiana's shootout loss to Rutgers wasn't. The tight end caught a pair of touchdown passes to open up a huge lead for the host Hoosiers, who fell 55-52.
Offensive Line: Stanford
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440 yards of total offense, zero sacks allowed
Stanford's offensive resurgence continued in a big way Thursday night against UCLA when it posted 309 rushing yards and four touchdowns. The Cardinal's strong offensive line took over the matchup with the Bruins from the very beginning.
"Stanford scored 56 points on only 50 plays. Perhaps more remarkably, it only took the Cardinal three quarters and 14 passes to rack up this gaudy total," David Lombardi of ESPN.com wrote. "McCaffrey's play was obviously a major component of this success, but much credit should go to an offensive line that's performing at a dominant level."
The Cardinal have recruited well along the offensive line in recent years, and the front five is now living up to its tremendous hype. If they can continue their dominance in front of McCaffrey and quarterback Kevin Hogan, Stanford could leap into the College Football Playoff race.
Second Team: Ohio State
429 yards of total offense, two sacks allowed
Ohio State's offensive line took one of the nation's best defensive fronts to task Saturday night, allowing only two sacks to a Penn State team that averaged a little more than four per game and paving the way for 315 yards on the ground.
Defensive Ends: Lewis Neal (LSU) and Jonathan Allen (Alabama)
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Neal: 10 tackles (3.5 for loss), three sacks and one pass breakup
Lewis Neal was all over the place for LSU Saturday night, sharing the team lead in tackles with 10 and getting to Florida quarterback Treon Harris on three separate occasions.
"I was already telling my family and everybody that I was going to just play hard and know that I'm going to be from sideline to sideline," Neal said, per Jerit Roser of NOLA.com. "I was going to be everywhere. Whatever happens happens, and obviously, you saw what happened."
When he wasn't dragging Gators down Saturday night, Neal was making an impact in other areas of the stat sheet. He also hurried Harris three separate times and recorded a pass breakup.
Allen: Five tackles (four for loss), two sacks and one forced fumble
Alabama's defense had an incredible performance Saturday in College Station, and Jonathan Allen's constant pressure on the Texas A&M backfield played a huge role in a record-breaking day for the Crimson Tide pass defense.
"#Bama DL Jonathan Allen having another big day: 4 TFLs 2 sacks, 1 FF. He deserves a lot more pub than he gets.
— Bruce Feldman (@BruceFeldmanCFB) October 17, 2015"
Allen now leads Alabama in sacks and tackles for loss this season, which is quite incredible considering he didn't record either stat in three straight games leading up to Saturday's win over the Aggies. He was dominant from the opening drive.
Second Team: Shilique Calhoun (Michigan State) and Joey Bosa (Ohio State)
Calhoun: Five tackles (3.5 for loss) and two sacks
Bosa: Seven tackles (three for loss) and one sack
Shilique Calhoun had another huge day in the backfield for Michigan State, and he saved his best work for the final quarter of the Spartans' unbelievable win over the rival Michigan Wolverines. Ohio State star Joey Bosa had his best game of the season against Penn State by providing relentless pressure on quarterback Christian Hackenberg.
Defensive Tackles: Andrew Billings (Baylor) and Willie Henry (Michigan)
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Billings: Six tackles (three for loss) and one sack
Baylor's eye-popping performances Saturday weren't limited to the offensive side of the ball. Defensive tackle Andrew Billings had a huge day against West Virginia, coming up with three tackles for loss in the impressive victory.
"Named College Football 24/7's strongest player in the game in July, Billings is a junior who has played extremely well this season, even though he's not particularly well-suited to excel against the spread offenses of the Big 12," Chase Goodbread of NFL.com wrote.
Billings left the game in the third quarter with an ankle injury, but he somehow returned and got back into action for one more play. While he didn't even get a full load of snaps Saturday, the star defensive tackle still found a way to stand out above the rest in Week 7.
Henry: Five tackles (3.5 for loss) and two sacks
Sure, Willie Henry had a boneheaded personal foul in Michigan's heartbreaking loss to Michigan State, but don't let that—or the final result—take away from this top-notch tackle's total performance.
"[Henry] created problems for MSU quarterback Connor Cook all night, racking up five tackles—three for a loss—and a pair of sacks, including one late that derailed a Spartans drive and eventually set up a 4th-and-19," Aaron McMann of MLive.com wrote.
Henry now has twice as many sacks this season as the next best player on Michigan's roster, and he also leads the Wolverines in tackles for loss. Jim Harbaugh's team might be on the outside of the playoff race now, but a strong defense spearheaded by Henry will continue to be trouble for all opponents.
Second Team: Orion Jones (Toledo) and Adolphus Washington (Ohio State)
Jones: Six tackles (two for loss) and 0.5 sacks
Washington: Three tackles (two for loss), two sacks and one forced fumble
Orion Jones kept the undefeated Toledo Rockets going with a big-time performance in a rout over Eastern Michigan. Adolphus Washington was a menace alongside Joey Bosa for the Penn State offensive line, and he took down Christian Hackenberg twice Saturday night.
Outside Linebackers: Skai Moore (South Carolina) and Jaylon Smith (Notre Dame)
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Moore: 11 tackles (one for loss), one sack, one forced fumble, one fumble recovery, one INT and one pass breakup
The spotlight on South Carolina's victory over Vanderbilt might have been the absence of resigned head coach Steve Spurrier, but Skai Moore deserves a ton of praise for what he did against the Commodores.
Moore continued to be a tackle machine for the Gamecocks, and he forced back-to-back turnovers to seal the victory. First, he picked off Johnny McCrary for his fourth interception of the season. On the next drive, he sacked and stripped McCrary of the ball, landing on it with less than four minutes left.
Although South Carolina's defense has been a mess this season, Moore has put in tremendous efforts week in and week out. He was a vital stat-sheet stuffer in Saturday's streak-snapping victory under interim coach Shawn Elliott.
Smith: 14 tackles (0.5 for loss)
Jaylon Smith did what he does best Saturday in Notre Dame's rivalry-game victory over USC—make plenty of tackles.
Smith led the Irish with 14 against the Trojans, who led at one point in the fourth quarter of a truly wild matchup. That amount of tackles set a new season high and matched his career-best marks, which he set against Stanford and USC last season.
The star linebacker also had an impressive dive into the student section in the postgame frenzy. It was a deserved celebration after another fantastic game from a player who is one of the nation's finest at his position.
Second Team: Calvin Munson (San Diego State) and Xavier Woodson (Arkansas State)
Munson: 10 tackles (four for loss), three sacks and one forced fumble
Woodson: 13 tackles, one interception and one pass breakup
You may remember Calvin Munson from his pair of pick-sixes in Week 1. While the SDSU linebacker didn't pick off a pass Saturday against San Jose State, he got into the backfield plenty of times in a commanding 30-7 win. Xavier Woodson stood out on Tuesday night by leading the Red Wolves in tackles and recording a key interception in a comeback win over South Alabama.
Middle Linebacker: Nick Vigil (Utah State)
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14 tackles (2.5 for loss), two sacks, one forced fumble and one fumble recovery
Boise State turned the ball over eight times—including seven times in the first half—Friday night against Utah State. Nick Vigil only recorded one of those turnovers, but he was still the leader of a stingy Aggies defense against the ranked Broncos.
"We knew how good they were coming in," Vigil said, per Jason Turner of HJNews.com. "We saw what they did to us last year and they return most of those guys other than the (star) running back. But the D-line did a heck of a job tonight holding the O-line and letting us linebackers scrape off and go make tackles."
Vigil had plenty of those tackles, and he forced a fumble on a sack of quarterback Brett Rypien in the first quarter. His performance set the tone for Utah State's dominant Friday night.
Second Team: T.J. Edwards (Wisconsin)
16 tackles (1.5 for loss) and one forced fumble
T.J. Edwards had one of the biggest tackling performances of any player this season, and he forced a fumble in the fourth quarter of Wisconsin's 24-7 victory over Purdue.
Cornerbacks: Minkah Fitzpatrick (Alabama) and Zack Sanchez (Oklahoma)
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Fitzpatrick: Two tackles, two INTs and two TDs
Alabama freshman cornerback Minkah Fitzpatrick had the breakout game of all breakout games Saturday against Texas A&M. He picked off a pair of passes and returned them both for touchdowns—one to open the scoring, and the other to close it—for the Crimson Tide.
"He ran into the history books," Bleacher Report's Barrett Sallee wrote. "According to the notes emailed by Alabama after the game, Fitzpatrick is the only player in Alabama history since records started being kept in 1948 to return two interceptions for touchdowns in the same game."
As Sallee wrote, that's incredible for anyone—especially a freshman playing in a road game against a Top 10 opponent.
Sanchez: One tackle, two INTs and one TD
Oklahoma blew the doors off a Kansas State team that played it close with undefeated teams TCU and Oklahoma State earlier this season. Zack Sanchez starred in the 55-0 rout by scoring more points on defense than Kansas State had all day on offense.
Sanchez finished the day with two interceptions, shutting down a Wildcats offense that couldn't get anything going against Oklahoma. The star corner showed the best way to bounce back from a loss.
"We had been itching to get back on the field after last week," Sanchez said, per Justin Hite of Scout.com. "Everybody’s fired up and ready to play. We definitely had the edge... People like to talk and act like the season’s over after one bad game. Just for us to get back to know how we can play and should play, it felt really good."
Second Team: Artie Burns (Miami) and Joshua Kalu (Nebraska)
Burns: Two tackles and two INTs
Kalu: Seven tackles, one INT and one TD
Artie Burns frustrated the Virginia Tech offense all day Saturday, recording two crucial picks in the Hurricanes' ACC win over the Hokies. Joshua Kalu was a tackling force for Nebraska before his late pick-six sealed a victory over Minnesota.
Safeties: Shalom Luani (Washington State) and Eddie Jackson (Alabama)
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Luani: 11 tackles, two INTs, one TD and one pass breakup
You wouldn't expect a Washington State defender to make a team like this, but Shalom Luani had a simply fantastic performance in the Cougars' 52-31 win over Oregon State in the Pac-12 North.
Luani tied for the team lead with 11 tackles against the Beavers and picked off a pair of passes in the fourth quarter to help Washington State seal the victory. His first one was returned an incredible 84 yards for a touchdown, and his second came on the very next drive.
While Washington State gets plenty of attention for its Air Raid offense under head coach Mike Leach, the defense is turning things around this season thanks to play of key figures such as Luani.
Jackson: Two tackles, two INTs, one TD and one pass breakup
Eddie Jackson, a cornerback-turned-safety for Alabama, was one-upped by younger teammate Minkah Fitzpatrick on Saturday, but his two-interception day was worthy of an All-American nod this week.
In fact, Jackson's 93-yard interception return for a touchdown against Texas A&M was longer than the combined distance of both of Fitzpatrick's scores. His second interception set up a field goal in the second half that gave the Crimson Tide a two-touchdown lead.
According to Matt Zenitz of AL.com, Jackson's 119 yards in interception returns broke a school record. It's safe to say Jackson, who also had a 50-yard pick-six two weeks ago against Georgia, is excelling in his new role for an improving Crimson Tide secondary.
Second Team: Trent Matthews (Colorado State) and Johnathan Ford (Auburn)
Matthews: 15 tackles (0.5 for loss)
Ford: 14 tackles (one for loss) and one sack
This week's second-team honors go to a pair of tackling machines at safety who came through for their teams in much-needed wins. Trent Matthews had 15 tackles in Colorado State's 38-23 win over Air Force, while Johnathan "Rudy" Ford had a clutch sack to go with his 14 takedowns in Auburn's 30-27 road victory over Kentucky.
Kicker: Chris Blewitt (Pittsburgh)
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1-of-1 on field goals (long of 56); 4-of-4 on extra points
Earlier this season, Pittsburgh could only watch as Iowa kicker Marshall Koehn booted a long field goal as time expired to knock off the Panthers.
But Pittsburgh got its chance to deliver a similar crushing blow to Georgia Tech, and Chris Blewitt delivered. The Panthers kicker drilled a school-record 56-yard field goal—the second-longest of the season, behind Koehn—to give Pittsburgh a 31-28 lead it wouldn't relinquish with 1:11 remaining.
"I was actually under control," Blewitt said, per Jerry DiPaola of TribLive.com. "I was thinking it was going to happen for four or five minutes (before the kick). 'We do this in practice. We've done this in warm-ups. Let's do it now. Don't make a big deal of it.'"
Second Team: Trent Domingue (LSU)
One carry for 16 yards and one TD; 5-of-5 on extra points
Trent Domingue lined up for only one field-goal attempt Saturday night, but he didn't kick it. Domingue caught a lateral from the holder and took it 16 yards for a fourth-quarter touchdown that turned out to be the game-winner for LSU over Florida.
Punter: Jonny Linehan (BYU)
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Five punts for 237 yards (47.4 average)
Jonny Linehan, who has booted the longest FBS punt this season, came up with another big-time performance for BYU in its 38-24 win over Cincinnati.
Of Linehan's five punts against the Bearcats, four of them were downed inside the 20-yard line, including a 58-yarder in the first quarter.
His punting average wasn't one of the biggest of the weekend, but all of the former rugby star's kicks were quite effective for a top-notch BYU special teams unit.
Second Team: Tom Hackett (Utah)
Eight punts for 375 yards (46.9 average) and one tackle
Tom Hackett booted five punts of more than 50 yards Saturday night—a rare shank hurt his average—and five of his kicks were downed inside the 20-yard line. He also prevented a long punt return touchdown with an important tackle in the first quarter.
Returner: Christian Kirk (Texas A&M)
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Four punt returns for 86 yards (21.5 average) and one TD; one kick return for 25 yards
Texas A&M true freshman Christian Kirk gave Kyle Field a tremendous spark in the second quarter of the Aggies' loss to Alabama on Saturday.
Kirk took a punt back 68 yards for a touchdown, cutting into a 22-point Crimson Tide lead before halftime. It was quite the momentum shift, as Texas A&M scored quickly in the third quarter to make it a one-possession game.
The Arizona native, who now leads the nation in punt return average this season, also had a solid 25-yard kick return that gave Texas A&M some much-improved field position against the Crimson Tide. While turnovers kept the Aggies from hanging with the Tide, they got another huge special teams output from their breakout star Saturday afternoon.
Second Team: Tim White (Arizona State)
Four kick returns for 169 yards (42.3 average) and one TD
Several players recorded 100-yard kick return touchdowns in Week 7, but none of them had a better all-around day on special teams than Tim White, who had a few more decent-sized returns in the Sun Devils' loss to Utah.
Unless otherwise noted, statistics courtesy of cfbstats.com.
Justin Ferguson is a college football writer at Bleacher Report. You can follow him on Twitter @JFergusonBR.
.jpg?w=480 "Ohio State Team Doctor")
