CFW Week 13 Results – Alabama, Ole Miss may be out of the playoff
Blowouts, upsets and –
‘Are you kidding me?’
That pretty much sums up Week 13.
All week, everyone was focused on the Indiana-Ohio State and Notre Dame-Army games. They were the two biggest games of the week. Or so we thought. The two biggest games of the week ended in blowouts. They weren’t even close.
Indiana-Ohio State was close for all of one quarter. Indiana led 7-0 after the first 15 minutes. After that it was all Ohio State. The Buckeyes (10-1) scored 38 unanswered points, beating the Hoosiers (10-1), 38-15. Trailing 38-7, Indiana scored a “who cares” touchdown with 1:53 remaining in the game.
Notre Dame-Army wasn’t even close for one quarter. Notre Dame led 14-0 after the first 15 minutes. Army did squeeze in a touchdown early in the second quarter and trailed the Irish, 14-7. After that, Notre Dame (10-1) scored 35 unanswered points, beating the Cadets (9-1), 49-14. Trailing 49-7, Army scored a “who cares” touchdown with 0:22 remaining in the game.
So much for the games of the week.
Not a game of the week, but to add insult to injury, South Florida (6-5) vented its season’s frustrations, blowing out Tulsa (3-8), 63-30. With less than four minutes remaining in the game, South Florida led Tulsa, 63-22. Now that’s a blowout.
How about the upsets of the week? There were three big ones in the SEC and a big upset in the Big 12.
The first of the three upsets in the SEC occurred Saturday afternoon in Gainesville, Florida. Ole Miss and Florida were tied 14-14 at the halftime break. The teams were tied 17-17, as the fourth quarter began. Midway through the final quarter, Florida scored a touchdown to go up by seven. The Gators (6-5) held on for the remaining 7:40 to upset Ole Miss (8-3), 24-17.
The second upset was the biggest of the three. I mean, it was a shocker. No one was expecting it. No one was expecting Alabama to finish the game with only 3 points. The Crimson Tide kicked a field goal in the first quarter and led, 3-0. Alabama never scored again for the remainder of the game. But Oklahoma did. The Sooners (6-5) scored 10 points in the second quarter and 14 points in the third quarter to beat Alabama (8-3), 24-3.
Oklahoma fans were so happy, they rushed the field with 28 seconds still on the clock. The field had to be cleared for Oklahoma to take a final knee. Then the OU fans stormed the field a second time. This time they remained on the field. I’m sure the SEC will fine Oklahoma $100K for the first rush and $250K for the second rush. The conference fined Ole Miss twice for storming the field two times in the Georgia game. And Alabama is making out like a bandit this season with opponents’ fans rushing the field. Earlier in the season, The Crimson Tide got $100K from Vanderbilt and $250K from Tennessee. Add Oklahoma to the list and Alabama makes $700K. Not bad.
The third upset required four overtimes for the game to be settled. It looked ominous for Texas A&M when Auburn went up 21-0 on the Aggies early in the second quarter. But Texas A&M came back and tied the game at 21-21 midway through the third quarter. Auburn wasn’t going to quit. The Tigers went back up 28-21 late in the third quarter. The Aggies said enough of this. Texas A&M took a 31-28 lead with 4:01 remaining in the game. Auburn wasn’t finished. The Tigers kicked a 29-yard field goal with just 0:05 left on the clock. Overtime.
How about four overtimes. In the first overtime, both teams scored a touchdown – 38-38. In the second overtime, both teams kicked a field goal – 41-41. In the third overtime, both teams were scoreless – neither were successful on their two-point conversions from the three-yard line. But in the fourth overtime, Auburn was successful, and Texas A&M wasn’t. Auburn (5-6) upset Texas A&M (8-3), 43-41 (4OT).
Last but not necessarily least in the upsets, there was a shocker in the Midwest. Kansas (5-6) knocked off Shedeur Sanders, Travis Hunter and Colorado (8-3), 37-21. The Jayhawks never trailed in the game, racking up 522 total yards on the Buffaloes.
And then there were the “are you kidding me” games. Three of them.
Arizona State (9-2) knocked off BYU (9-2), 28-23. That in itself wasn’t so much of a shocker. It was the “are you kidding me” ending to the game that was. The Oklahoma fans weren’t the only ones who rushed the field twice. But the Arizona State fans take the prize.
In the closing seconds of the game, Arizona State, up 28-23, had the ball and was running out the clock. On fourth down and what should have been the final play of the game, Arizona State quarterback Sam Leavitt got carried away. Instead of taking a knee, Leavitt threw the football into the stands. The ASU fans thought the game was over and stormed the field. They not only stormed the field, but also, they tore down one of the goal posts. The referees, however, determined that there was still one second on the clock, with the ball turned over to BYU. It took 13 minutes to get the field cleared and the goal post erected.
BYU had one play. Quarterback Jake Retzlaff threw a Hail Mary pass from around midfield. Amazingly, BYU receiver Chase Roberts caught the ball on the two-yard line, but was tackled before he could cross the goal line. The pass, however, was strangely ruled incomplete. Arizona State fans rushed the field for a second time.
Nebraska Huskers, “are you kidding me,” – 44 points? Against Wisconsin. Who or what lit a fire under the Huskers’ butts? Nebraska had not scored 44 points against a Power Four team all season. The Huskers were averaging 23 points a game. They haven’t scored 44 points against a Power Four team for three years. Not since 2021 when Nebraska beat Northwestern 56-7. Saturday, Nebraska (6-5) beat Wisconsin (5-6), 44-25 – “are you kidding me?”
And finally, in the “are you kidding me” games, Illinois (8-3) scored a touchdown and a safety in the final 4 seconds of the game to beat Rutgers (6-5), 38-31. With the ball on the Rutgers 40, and trailing the Scarlet Knights, 31-30, Illinois scored a touchdown on a 40-yard pass play from quarterback Luke Altmeyer to receiver Pat Bryant, with 4 seconds remaining in the game. The two-point conversion attempt failed. On the ensuing kickoff, the Rutgers players, passing the ball around hoping for a miracle, threw the ball out of bounds in the end zone, resulting in a safety for Illinois. Another wild and crazy ending.
Blowouts, upsets and “are you kidding me?”
College football Week 13 began Tuesday night with three Mid-American Conference games. In the first encounter, Akron (3-8) thumped Kent State (0-11), 38-17. Akron quarterback Ben Finley passed for 250 yards and one touchdown, as the Zips racked up 529 yards of total offense.
In the second encounter, Central Michigan (4-7) slipped by Western Michigan (5-6), 16-14. The Chippewa defense held the Broncos to 184 total yards – 50 yards rushing. The nightcap saw Miami (7-4) down Northern Illinois (6-5), 20-9. Miami running back Keyon Mozee rushed for 91 yards. Watching Northern Illinois’ ineptness, I couldn’t help but wonder how NIU ever, ever beat Notre Dame.
Two more MAC games were played on Wednesday night. In Ypsilanti, Michigan, Buffalo (7-4) outscored Eastern Michigan (5-6), 37-20. Buffalo quarterback C.J. Ogbonna passed for 260 yards and three touchdowns. In Toledo, the Bobcats of Ohio (8-3) got the best of Toledo (7-4). 24-7. Ohio running back Anthony Tyus rushed for 125 yards and one touchdown. Quarterback Parker Navarro rushed for 104 yards and two touchdowns. The Bobcats held the Rockets to 194 total yards – 21 yards rushing.
Thursday night, NC State and Georgia Tech gave us a boring first three quarters and an exciting fourth quarter. Georgia Tech (7-4) edged NC State (5-6), 30-29, in a game where 36 of the 59 points were scored in the fourth quarter.
The Yellow Jackets led throughout the game until 1:30 remaining in the fourth quarter. That’s when the Wolfpack took its first lead in the game at 29-23. But Georgia Tech only gave up its lead for about one minute. With just 0:22 left on the clock, Tech scored the winning touchdown on an 18-yard run by quarterback Aaron Philo. Philo passed for 265 yards and rushed for 57 yards.
Under the lights of Friday night, three games were played. In the first of the three encounters, UTSA (6-5) racked up 529 total yards, beating Temple (3-8), 51-27. Roadrunners running back Robert Henry rushed for 178 yards and two touchdowns. Next up, Michigan State (5-6) stubbornly beat Purdue (1-10), 24-17. The Spartans won the first half, 24-3. The Boilermakers won the second half, 14-0. Purdue was held to -4 yards rushing. Boilers quarterback Hudson Card passed for 342 yards and one touchdown.
In the final game under the Friday night lights, UNLV (9-2) kept its MWC championship game hopes alive, beating San Jose State (6-5), 27-16. The UNLV defense held the Spartans to 114 total yards – 33 yards rushing. Rebels running back Jai’Den Thomas rushed for 135 yards and one touchdown.
There were several interesting games Saturday, many of them in the ACC. Duke (8-3) held on to beat Virginia Tech (5-6), 31-28. SMU (10-1) breezed by Virginia (5-6), 33-7. Boston College (6-5) stunned North Carolina (6-5), 41-21. In a good interconference game involving an ACC team, Syracuse (8-3) got by Connecticut (7-4), 32-24. Syracuse quarterback Kyle McCord passed for 470 yards and two touchdowns.
In the Big 12, Iowa State (9-2) held off Utah (4-7), 31-28, while West Virginia (6-5) downed UCF (4-7), 31-21.
In the SEC, LSU (7-4) got by Vanderbilt (6-5), 24-17. LSU quarterback Garrett Nussmeier passed for 332 yards and one touchdown.
Marshall put itself in the driver’s seat for a spot in the Sun Belt Conference championship game. The Herd (8-3) beat Old Dominion (4-7), 42-35.
And in the “Big Game,” California (6-5) rallied to beat Stanford (3-8), 24-21. Trailing Stanford 21-7 late in the third quarter, Cal scored 17 unanswered points to pull out the win.
After you went to bed Saturday night, USC (6-5) beat UCLA (4-7), 19-13, Air Force (4-7) downed Nevada (3-9), 22-19 and Freson State (6-5) got by Colorado State (7-4), 28-22.
The Ivy League wrapped up its season on Saturday. In “The Game,” Yale (7-3) beat Harvard (8-2), 34-29. In the other three final games, Dartmouth (8-2) downed Brown (3-7), 56-28, Columbia (7-3) beat Cornell (4-6), 17-9, and Princeton (3-7) edged Penn (4-6), 20-17. Harvard, Dartmouth and Columbia tied for the Ivy League championship with identical 5-2 conference records.
Tulsa fired head football coach Kevin Wilson yesterday after he fell to 7-16 in his two seasons at the school. Saturday, Tulsa lost to South Florida, 63-30. Wilson’s teams lost nine games by more than 30 points over two seasons. Wide receivers coach Ryan Switzer was named the interim head coach for the remainder of the season. Tulsa is 3-8 (1-6 in AAC play) this season, with one game remaining against Florida Atlantic. Wilson was the sixth AAC coach to be fired this season.
Bootsie was a happy camper Saturday night when Auburn beat Texas A&M. She was so loud and boisterous that Swamp Mama and I could hear her gleeful cheering, shouting and yelling. And we live 15 miles from Bootsie. Rockledge Gator will tell you that Bootsie can be pretty loud and boisterous too when Auburn loses – not that you want to hear the words coming out of her mouth when the Tigers lose.
Yes, it was a blowout, upset and “are you kidding me” weekend!
Touchdown Tom
November 25, 2024
https://collegefootballweek.blogspot.com
Weekend Recap
GAME OF THE WEEK: O-H-I-O – Ohio State 38, Indiana 15 (Touchdown Tom said: Ohio State 28, Indiana 20). Indiana made it exciting for all of one quarter. After the first quarter, the Hoosiers couldn’t keep up with the Buckeyes. Indiana had less than 100 yards rushing and less than 100 yards passing. Ohio State quarterback Will Howard was 22-26-1, passing for 201 yards and two touchdowns. Now the question is: Will Indiana fall out of the 12-team playoff? It will be close – barely in or barely out. Attendance in Columbus: 105,751
RUNNER-UP: The Irish were wearing the Pinstripes – Notre Dame 49, Army 15 (Touchdown Tom said: Notre Dame 30, Army 22). Army controlled the ball – 39:49 to 20:11. But Notre Dame controlled the score – 49-15. Army quarterback Bryson Daily rushed for 139 yards and two touchdowns. Notre Dame quarterback Riley Leonard passed for 148 yards and two touchdowns. Notre Dame running back Jeremiyah Love rushed for 130 yards. Assuming the Irish win next week against USC, Notre Dame is safely in the 12-team playoff. Army still has a shot at being the highest ranked Group of Five team. The Cadets need to win out. Then they have to hope that Boise State stumbles. Attendance in The Bronx: 47,342
REST OF THE BEST: The post-game show was better than the halftime show – Arizona State 28, BYU 23 (Touchdown Tom said: Arizona State 31, BYU 30). Arizona State took charge early and led 21-3 at the half. BYU took charge in the second half, outscoring ASU, 20-7. But BYU’s rally fell short. The fans took charge at the end of the game – not once, but twice. BYU had two turnovers; ASU had one. Arizona State running back Cam Skattebo rushed for 147 yards and three touchdowns. Sun Devils receiver Jordyn Tyson had 9 catches for 125 yards. The Big 12 championship game is still up for grabs between Arizona State, BYU, Colorado and Iowa State. Attendance in Tempe: 55,400
The Lion is breathing a sigh of relief – Penn State 26, Minnesota 25 (Touchdown Tom said: Penn State 30, Minnesota 23). Penn State never led in the game until 3:43 to go in the third quarter when the Nitts went up 23-22. They never relinquished the lead after that. Penn State quarterback Drew Allar was 21-28-0, passing for 244 yards and one touchdown. Minnesota had two turnovers; Penn State had none. Attendance in Minneapolis: 44,266
Ground game – Jacksonville State 21, Sam Houston 11 (Touchdown Tom said: Jacksonville State 33, Sam Houston 28). This was a ground game all the way. Neither team was much in passing. Jax State quarterback Tyler Huff rushed for 177 yards and three touchdowns. Huff only passed for 54 yards. Sam Houston quarterback Hunter Watson rushed for 105 yards and one touchdown. Watson only passed for 84 yards. The win guarantees Jax State a spot in the C-USA championship game. Attendance in Jacksonville: 16,312
Premier team in their premier season – SMU 33. Virginia 7 (Touchdown Tom said: SMU 28, Virginia 21). SMU continues to tear their way through the ACC to the conference title game. On defense, the Mustangs held Virginia to 164 total yards. SMU quarterback Kevin Jennings passed for 323 yards and two touchdowns. If Miami beats Syracuse this week, SMU will play the Canes in the ACC title game. If Miami loses, SMU will play Clemson for the ACC championship. Attendance in Charlottesville: 36,305
Too Swampy for Magnolias – Florida 24, Ole Miss 17 (Touchdown Tom said: Ole Miss 26. Florida 23). Ole Miss quarterback Jaxson Dart passed for 323 yards, but Dart threw two interceptions. Dart was also Ole Miss’s leading rusher with 71 yards. The Gators D.J. Lagway passed for 180 yards and two touchdowns. Florida’s Montrell Johnson rushed for 107 yards. In total, Ole Miss had three turnovers. Florida became bowl eligible with the win. Attendance in Gainesville: 89.942
Pitt-iful – Louisville 37, Pitt 9 (Touchdown Tom said: Louisville 27, Pitt 24). Louisville took charge of this game early and cruised in the second half. The Cardinals led Pitt 27-0 at halftime. Louisville led 34-0 in the third quarter. The Cardinals racked up 507 total yards – 214 rushing and 293 passing. Tyler Shough had two touchdowns passing. Pitt only had 75 yards rushing. The Panthers also had three turnovers. Attendance in Louisville: 49.441
The Rebels knew the way – UNLV 27, San Jose State 16 (Touchdown Tom said: UNLV 34, San Jose State 23). After a scoreless first quarter for San Jose State, the Spartans scored 16 points in the second quarter and the Spartans led UNLV at halftime, 16-10. Then the Spartans went scoreless again in the second half, while UNLV scored 17 points. UNLV dominated all the stats, including ball possession 40:42 to 19:18. Rebels' receiver Rocky White had 7 receptions for 98 yards. Attendance in San Jose: 13,671
Low Tide in Norman – Oklahoma 24, Alabama 3 (Touchdown Tom said: Alabama 28, Oklahoma 19). Hats off to Oklahoma coach Brent Venables. He finally got the victory he’s been looking for and his defense played like a Venables’ defense. The OU defense totally shutdown Alabama. Alabama only had 13 first downs and only 80 yards rushing. Tide quarterback Jalen Milroe threw three interceptions. OU only had 68 yards passing. Sooners’ quarterback Jackson Arnold rushed for 131 yards. OU running back Xavier Robinson rushed for 107 yards and two touchdowns. Attendance in Norman: 84,053
YE OLDE STOMPING GROUNDS:
The Gus bus runs off the road – West Virginia 31, UCF 21 (Touchdown Tom said: West Virginia 31, UCF 30). Sometimes the good WVU team shows up. Sometimes the bad WVU team shows up. Against UCF, the good WVU team showed up. The Mountaineers jumped out to a 14-0 first quarter lead and never trailed throughout the game. UCF running back R.J. Harvey rushed for 130 yards. He was the only bright spot for the Knights. WVU controlled ball possession 37:50 to 22:10. The Mounties became bowl eligible with the win. Attendance in Morgantown: 40,722
What a pleasant surprise – Nebraska 44, Wisconsin 25 (Touchdown Tom said: Wisconsin 20, Nebraska 17). This was a big offensive output for Nebraska – 44 points. Was Dana Holgorsen responsible for this? He may have been. The Huskers had 29 first downs off of 180 rushing yards and 293 passing yards. Nebraska quarterback Dylan Raiola was 28-38-0 passing, with one touchdown. Running back Emmett Johnson rushed for 113 yards. Wisconsin quarterback Braedyn Locke was 20-30-1, passing for 292 yards and three touchdowns. Attendance in Lincoln: 86,923
Lucky to win – Duke 31, Virginia Tech 28 (Touchdown Tom said: Duke 24, Virginia Tech 22). Early in the third quarter, Duke had a 31-17 lead. Then the Hokies scored 11 unanswered points. The Dookies had to scramble to hold onto their lead. Duke quarterback Maalik Murphy passed for 332 yards, but he also threw three interceptions. In total, Duke had four turnovers. The Dookies only possessed the ball for 21:34. The Hokies had the ball for 38:26. Attendance in Durham: N/A
Uga turned the Minutemen into minute men – Georgia 59, Massachusetts 21 (Touchdown Tom said: Georgia 45, Massachusetts 12). Uga racked up 550 total yards and 34 first downs. UMass had 14 first downs. Georgia quarterback Carson Beck was 20-31-0, passing for 297 yards and four touchdowns. Georgia running back Nate Frazier rushed for 136 yards and three touchdowns. Attendance in Athens: 93,033
Routine game for the Horns – Texas 31, Kentucky 14 (Touchdown Tom said: Texas 30, Kentucky 15). Texas had an interesting game with Kentucky. The Longhorns seemed to struggle at times, although they always appeared to have control of the game. Texas led 24-7 at halftime. But only led 24-14 as the fourth quarter began. The Texas defense held the Wildcats to 232 total yards – just 21 yards rushing. Texas had 29 first downs to 14 for Kentucky. Quinn Ewers was 20-31-0, passing for 191 yards and two touchdowns. Running back Quintrevion Wisner rushed for 158 yards and one touchdown. Arch Manning did not play in the game. I think the Horns were keeping it cool for Texas A&M next week. Attendance in Austin: 102.811
Boilers saw green – Michigan State 24, Purdue 17 (Touchdown Tom said: Michigan State 24, Purdue 23). Michigan State had a big first half and then held on in the second half to maintain its lead over Purdue. Two turnovers hurt Purdue’s chances. The Boilermakers lost their 10th-straight game. Attendance in East Lansing: 57,558
Week 13 Results: 13 winners, 3 fumbles (81.3 percent)
For the Season: 129 winners, 54 fumbles (70.5 percent)
ELSEWHERE AROUND FLORIDA:
Miami 42, Wake Forest 14 – Attendance in Miami Gardens: 64,210
Drake 49, Stetson 10 – Attendance in Deland: 1,244
Florida State 41, Charleston Southern 7 – Attendance in Tallahassee: 43,711
Kennesaw State 27, FIU 26 – Attendance in Kennesaw: 6,210
Charlotte 39, Florida Atlantic 27 – Attendance in Boca Raton: 15,066
Florida A&M 41, Bethune-Cookman 38 – Attendance in Orlando: 56,453
South Florida 63, Tulsa 30 – Attendance in Tampa: 27,623
Superlatives
Impressive Passers:
Syracuse’s Kyle McCord – 37-47-0-470 (2TDs); Charlotte’s Deshawn Purdie – 16-30-1-396 (3TDs); Texas Tech’s Behren Morton – 35-50-1-366 (4TDs); Eastern Michigan’s Cole Snyder – 24-33-2-351 (3TDs), and Purdue’s Hudson Card – 26-46-1-342 (1TD).
Also, LSU’s Garrett Nussmeier – 28-37-0 for 332 yards (1TD); Oklahoma State’s Maealiuaki Smith – 26-36-1-326 (2TDs); SMU’s Kevin Jennings – 25-31-1-323 (2TDs); Ole Miss’s Jaxson Dart – 24-41-2-323 (2TDs), and Louisiana’s Chandler Fields – 18-24-0-323 (2TDs).
Impressive Rushers:
Kansas’ Devin Neal – 207 yards (3TDs); ULM’s Ahmad Harvey – 204 yards (2TDs); UTSA’s Robert Henry – 178 yards (2TDs); Jacksonville State’s Tyler Huff – 177 yards (3TDs); Boise State’s Ashton Jeanty – 169 yards (1TD); Liberty’s Quinton Cooley – 166 yards (2TDs), and Iowa’s Kaleb Johnson – 164 yards (1TD).
Also, UAB’s Lee Beebe – 161 yards (2TDs); Texas’ Quintrevion Wisner – 158 yards (1TD); Old Dominion’s Cotton Joseph – 158 yards (2TDs) Oklahoma State’s Ollie Gordon – 156 yards (3TDs); Florida Atlantic’s C. J. Campbell – 150 yards (1TD); Fresno State’s Bryson Donelson – 150 yards (1TD), and Arizona State’s Cam Skattebo – 147 yards (3TDs).
Quotes of the Week
“Is that a serious question? I’m not even going to answer that one. The answer’s so obvious,” Indiana coach Curt Cignetti, when asked if Indiana still belongs in the 12-teraqm playoff, after the Hoosiers lost to Ohio State.
“We’re just getting started. This is part of the big picture journey. Belief is the most powerful thing in the world,” Florida coach Billy Napier, after the Gators beat Ole Miss.
“We started smelling ourselves a little bit. We got intoxicated with the success. We got intoxicated with the multitude of articles and the assumption that we’re this and the assumption that we’re that. Therefore, we got our butts kicked. It is what it is,” Colorado football coach Deion Sanders, after the loss to Kansas.
“Let me cut to the chase. It was simply inexcusable. And you can blame anyone you want, but you would be smart to start at the top. That team did not look prepared. They did not look focused,” ESPN college football analyst Paul Finebaum, on Alabama losing to Oklahoma.
Touchdown Tom
https://collegefootballweek.blogspot.com
(The next CFW – Week 14 Forecast – will be posted Thanksgiving morning, November 28.)
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