CFW Week 11 Results – Should Aggies be ranked above Buckeyes, Hoosiers?
Was Omar Cooper Jr’s jump, catch
and landing a sissonne or a sauté?
Whatever, the Indiana receiver’s balletic maneuver was amazing. And quarterback Fernando Mendoza’s perfectly placed pass wasn’t bad either.
Late in the third quarter, Indiana led Penn State, 20-7. Aside from an 8-minute, 7-7 tie in the second quarter, the Nittany Lions had trailed the Hoosiers throughout the game. But Penn State mounted a rally, scoring 17 unanswered points. In the fourth quarter, with 6:27 remaining, Penn State took its first and only lead over Indiana. The Lions led the Hoosiers, 24-20.
With 1:51 left to be played, Indiana had a first-and-ten on their own 20. The Hoosiers mounted a 10-play, 80-yard drive that culminated in a 7-yard touchdown pass from Fernado Mendoza to Omar Cooper Jr. The drive took one minute and fifteen seconds. The touchdown was scored with 0:36 remaining. Indiana was up 27-24. The Hoosiers held on to win.
Mendoza’s game-winning pass to Cooper was thrown high into the back of the end zone. Mendoza released the pass with two Penn State defenders in his face. Cooper jumped high to catch the ball. As he was coming down, he managed to toe-touch one foot just inside the white powder before his other foot touched down outside the white powder.
In ballet, a jump from two feet that lands on one foot is a sissonne. A jump from two feet that lands on two feet is a sauté. I don’t know if Cooper performed a sissonne or a sauté, but I do know he’s a natural for the New York City Ballet. It was a sissonne. Cooper’s “en pointe” was pretty good too.
Saturday was full of wild, crazy and unbelievable performances in college football. In Iowa City, Iowa, Oregon and Iowa played a hard-fought game in the pouring rain. Even in the rain, Kinnick Stadium was packed with fans. In a tightly-contested, defensive battle, the players battled like gladiators.
After trailing throughout the close game, Iowa finally went up 16-15 with 1:51 remaining in the fourth quarter. However, Oregon went on a 54-yard drive to kick a game-winning 39-yard field goal with 0:03 on the clock. Oregon survived Iowa, 18-16.
All season, Wisconsin has been struggling to win football games. The Badgers only had two victories and were winless in Big Ten play. Rumors were rampant that head coach Luke Fickell would be fired. However, during the past week, Wisconsin athletic director Chris McIntosh announced that football coach Luke Fickell would be retained for the 2026 season. Saturday, Wisconsin won its first Big Ten game of the season. Playing at home, the Badgers upset Washington, 13-10. When the game ended, Wisconsin fans rushed the field and celebrated.
Wisconsin won its first Big Ten game, but Penn State is still looking for its first Big Ten win. The Nittany Lions are 0-6 in conference play. Michigan State (0-6) and Purdue (0-7) also are still winless in Big Ten action. However, something has to give this weekend. Penn State and Michigan State meet in East Lansing.
In the ACC, Florida State isn’t winless, but the Noles are 1-5 in conference play. Saturday, FSU lost to Clemson, 24-10.
Speaking of the ACC, the conference is having a strange and crazy year. Clemson is no better than 4-5 overall and 3-4 in conference play. Saturday, two ranked ACC teams were both upset at home. Wake Forest stunned Virginia, 16-9 in Charlottesville, and California surprised Louisville in overtime 26-23 (OT).
Two weeks ago, Wake Forest upset SMU. Then Wake Forest lost to Florida State 42-7, while SMU upset Miami, 26-20. Last week, NC State knocked off previously undefeated Georgia Tech, 48-36. And North Carolina (4-5), who was the joke of the conference back in September, just needs to win 2 of its remaining three games to become bowl eligible. Saturday, UNC beat Stanford, 20-15. The Tar Heels’ remaining three games are against Wake Forest, Duke and NC State.
Saturday was such a wacky day that LSU’s Garrett Nussmeier and Florida’s D.J. Lagway were both benched in the third quarter for backup quarterbacks. Alabama beat LSU, 20-9, and Kentucky downed Florida, 38-7.
College football Week 11 resumed Thursday night with a couple of games. In Boone, North Carolina, Georgia Southern held off an Appalachian State rally to beat the Little Mountaineers, 25-23. Late in the third quarter, Georgia Southern led App State, 22-3. App State outscored Georgia Southern 20-3 in the final 20 minutes of the game but came up short. Georgia Southern quarterback J.C. French passed for 352 yards and one touchdown. French ran for another touchdown. App State quarterback A.J. Swann passed for 348 yards and two touchdowns. The teams combined for 919 total yards.
In Tampa, South Florida demolished UTSA, 55-23. USF quarterback Byrum Brown passed for 239 yards and two touchdowns. Brown also ran for 109 yards and another touchdown. USF improved to 7-2.
Week 11’s “Friday Night Lights” edition of college football gave us three good games. In Orlando, Florida, Houston edged UCF 30-27. As the fourth quarter began, UCF led Houston 27-24. But the Cougars kicked two field goals in the fourth quarter to grab the victory. The second field goal came with 2:31 remaining in the game.
In Los Angeles, USC outscored Northwestern 21-3 in the second half to take a 38-17 victory over the Wildcats. USC receiver Makai Lemon had 11 catches for 161 yards and one touchdown. Lemon also ran for another touchdown. And finally, in Memphis, Tennessee, Tulane put a damper on Memphis’ run for a CFP spot. The Green Wave outscored the Tigers 38-32.
In the Big Ten Saturday, Rutgers downed Maryland, 35-20. Rutgers running back Antwan Raymond ran for 240 yards and one touchdown. In the SEC, Vanderbilt edged Auburn, 45-38 (OT). Vandy quarterback Diego Pavia passed for 377 yards and three touchdowns. Pavia also ran for 112 yards and a touchdown. And in the ACC, Miami topped Syracuse, 38-10. Miami quarterback Carson Beck passed for 247 yards and one touchdown.
After you went to bed Saturday night, Utah State walloped Nevada, 51-14. Utah State tallied 522 total yards. Nebraska held off UCLA, 28-21. UNLV downed Colorado State, 42-10. UNLV running back Jai’Den Thomas ran for 131 yards and one touchdown. Hawaii blasted San Diego State, 38-6. Hawaii quarterback Micah Alejado passed for 256 yards and three touchdowns.
And finally, in a game where Oregon State had more first downs (28-8), more total yards (474-157), more passing yards (286-85), more rushing yards (188-72) and a 15-minute edge in time of possession, the Beavers lost to Sam Houston, 21-17. Oregon State also had more turnovers (3-1). In losing, Oregon State running back Anthony Hankerson ran for 166 yards and two touchdowns. The victory was Sam Houston’s first of the season.
Six of the Top-25 teams in last week’s CFP rankings lost Saturday. The three highest-ranked of the losers were 7th BYU, 14th Virginia and 15th Louisville. Those three teams should remain in the rankings, but in a lower position. BYU lost to a ranked team (Texas Tech). Virginia and Louisville lost to unranked teams. The other three losers were 20th Iowa, 22nd Missouri and 23rd Washington. Iowa and Missouri lost to higher-ranked teams – Oregon and Texas A&M, respectively. Washington lost to an unranked team and will most likely fall out of the Top 25.
And who will be the highest-ranked Group of Five team in the CFP rankings this week. Most seem to think it will be either James Madison (8-1) or South Florida (7-2). Last week it was Memphis. But the Tigers lost to Tulane.
Several college football pundits and bloggers think Texas A&M should be ranked No. 1 above Ohio State and Indiana. They think the Aggies have had a tougher schedule than the two Big Ten teams. Each of the three teams has one “good” win. Two of the three had their “good” win on the road. Texas A&M beat Notre Dame in South Bend. Indiana beat Oregon in Eugene. Ohio State’s “good” win was over Texas. That win was a home game in Columbus for the Buckeyes.
Some say Texas A&M had an easier slate in the SEC. The Aggies didn’t play Georgia, Tennessee, Vanderbilt or Alabama. They do have Texas coming up on November 29. Same could be said about Ohio State. The Buckeyes didn’t play Oregon, USC or Iowa. They do have Michigan coming up on November 29. Indiana played both Oregon and Iowa on the road. The Hoosiers have no tough games in its remaining two contests. One thing is apparent. Ohio State, Indiana and Texas A&M will, in all likelihood, be in the CFP. The issue can be settled then.
Speaking of the CFP, why am I not amazed at all the yahoos, rednecks and grit spitters who call into the “Paul Finebaum Show” whining, crying and bemoaning the fact that the CFP selection committee doesn’t have 16 SEC teams seeded in the 12-team playoff. Need I remind those yahoos, rednecks and grit spitters that the SEC has not won the last two championships. Need I remind them that of the three SEC teams in last season’s playoff, one lost its first game by 25 points. Another lost its first game by 13 points. And the third lost its semifinal game by 14 points. There were no SEC teams in the championship game.
Granted, I am a SEC fan. And I think the SEC is the best football conference in the country. But I am a reasonable SEC fan. I am a rational SEC fan. I know that 16 doesn’t go into 12.
Wisconsin athletic director Chris Mcntosh announced last week that Badgers coach Luke Fickell will return for the 2026 season. Translation: “We’ll wait until next season to fire Fickell.”
The Top-5 teams in this week’s AP Poll are 1. Ohio State (9-0), 2. Indiana (10-0), 3. Texas A&M (9-0), 4. Alabama (8-1), and 5. Georgia (8-1). Two Group of Five teams are in the AP Top 25. James Madison (8-1) is 24th and South Florida (7-2) is 25th. Not that the AP Poll is all that meaningful now with the CFP rankings coming out weekly. This week’s CFP rankings will be announced Tuesday evening on ESPN.
Touchdown Tom
November 10, 2025
https://collegefootballweek.blogspot.com
Weekend Recap
GAME OF THE WEEK: Defense in Lubbock – Texas Tech 29, BYU 7 (Touchdown Tom said: Texas Tech 31, BYU 24). Texas Tech’s defense took control early. The Red Raiders shut out BYU until the fourth quarter. Early in the final quarter, Tech led BYU, 26-0. Halfway through the quarter, BYU got its one and only touchdown. The Red Raiders held BYU to 67 yards rushing. Texas Tech quarterback Behren Morton passed for 219 yards and one touchdown. Tech running back Cameron Dickey ran for 112 yards and one touchdown. BYU suffered from three turnovers. Tech had none. Attendance in Lubbock: 60,229
RUNNER-UP: Mizzou was out of gas – Texas A&M 38, Missouri 17 (Touchdown Tom said: Texas A&M 30, Missouri 27). Texas A&M led 14-0 at halftime and 21-0 early in the third quarter. Midway through the fourth quarter, the Aggies led 31-10. Missouri was never in the game. Texas A&M quarterback Marcel Reed passed for 221 yards and two touchdowns. With starting quarterback Beau Pribula out with injury, the Tigers had no passing game. Missouri passed for 77 yards. Texas A&M had an 11-minute edge in time of possession. Attendance in Columbia: 57,321
REST OF THE BEST: Perfect weather for the Ducks – Oregon 18, Iowa 16 (Touchdown Tom said: Oregon 23, Iowa 20). Unbelievable weather – cold and rainy. But the fans were into the game. Oregon had a 9-0 lead early in the second quarter. That was the biggest lead either team had all game. Iowa cut that lead to 9-7 before Oregon extended it to 12-7 where it stood at halftime. In the third quarter, Oregon added a field goal and opened the lead back up to 15-7. Iowa added 9 unanswered points in the fourth quarter and led 16-15. Oregon ended the affair with a 39-yard field goal with 0:03 left in the game. Both quarterbacks passed for less than 140 yards each. Oregon running back Noah Whittington ran for 118 yards. Iowa had two turnovers. Oregon had one. Attendance in Iowa City: 69,250
Benched – Alabama 20, LSU 9 (Touchdown Tom said: Alabama 30, LSU 23). Twenty of the game’s 29 points were scored in the first half. Alabama led 17-3 at halftime. The second half was all field goals – three of them. LSU quarterback Garrett Nussmeier was benched in the third quarter for backup quarterback Michael Van Buren. Neither quarterback could get LSU’s offense going. Alabama quarterback Ty Simpson passed for 277 yards and one touchdown. But Alabama had no running game – only 56 yards rushing. LSU only had 232 total yards. Alabama extended its home winning streak to 17 games – the longest in FBS football. Attendance in Tuscaloosa: 100,077
Dawg-day afternoon – Georgia 41, Mississippi State 21 (Touchdown Tom said: Georgia 28, Mississippi State 20). Miss State scored first and led 7-0 in the first quarter. Then Georgia went on a roll and scored 38 unanswered points. Midway through the third quarter, Georgia led 38-7. Georgia quarterback Gunner Stockton passed for 264 yards and three touchdowns. Georgia rolled up 567 total yards – 303 yards rushing. Uga running back Nate Frazier had 181 yards rushing and one touchdown. Attendance in Starkville: 53,017
The boat wouldn’t float – Notre Dame 49, Navy 10 (Touchdown Tom said: Notre Dame 31, Navy 19). The Irish led 21-10 at halftime and outscored the Middies 28-0 in the second half. Navy played without starting quarterback Blake Horvath, after he was injured last week. Backup quarterback Braxton Woodson was ineffective. Notre Dame quarterback C.J. Carr passed for 218 yards and three touchdowns. Running back Jeremiyah Love ran for 94 yards and two touchdowns. Notre Dame racked up 502 total yards. Navy only had 22 yards passing. The game began in rain and ended in snow. Attendance in South Bend: 77,622
Trojan power – USC 38, Northwestern 17 (Touchdown Tom said: USC 28, Northwestern 20). USC never trailed in the game but there were two first half ties at 7-7 and 14-14. When the Trojans went up 21-14 in the second quarter, they never trailed again. USC quarterback Jayden Maiava passed for 299 yards and two touchdowns. Maiava also ran for another touchdown. Trojans running back King Miller ran for 127 yards and one touchdown. USC racked up 482 total yards. During the game, USC pulled off a remarkable fake punt. Third-string quarterback Sam Hurd, wearing the punter’s number, lined up to punt on 4th down. Instead of punting, Hurd completed a 10-yard pass for a USC first down. On Sunday, the Big Ten said that the officials should have penalized USC for that stunt. Attendance in Los Angeles: 67,179
Green wavers – Tulane 38, Memphis 32 (Touchdown Tom said: Memphis 31, Tulane 23). Going into the game, Memphis was the highest-ranked Group of Five team in the CFP rankings. That is likely to change after Friday’s loss to Tulane. The fourth quarter was scary for Tulane. As the quarter began, the Green Wave had a 38-17 lead over Memphis. But the Tigers scored two back-to-back touchdowns to pull within 38-32 with 7:49 still to go in the game. Tulane held on to win. Tulane quarterback Jake Retzlaff passed for 332 yards and three touchdowns. Retzlaff also ran for 43 yards and another touchdown. Memphis quarterback Brendon Lewis passed for 317 yards and two touchdowns. The teams combined for 893 total yards, but Memphis only had 67 yards rushing. Memphis had a 9-minute edge in time of possession. Attendance in Memphis: 30,384
How did Kansas lose? – Arizona 24, Kanas 20 (Touchdown Tom said: Arizona 30, Kansas 23). Arizona led at the beginning and the end of the game. In between, Kansas led. Trailing Kansas 20-17, Arizona scored its game winning touchdown with 0:39 on the clock in the fourth quarter. Kansas quarterback Jalon Daniels passed for 199 yards and one touchdown. Daniels ran for 74 yards and a touchdown. Kansas dominated the stats, including an 11-minute edge in time of possession. Kansas won everything but the final score. Neither team had a turnover. Attendance in Tucson: 41,115
Losing streak over – Iowa State 20, TCU 17 (Touchdown Tom said: TCU 28, Iowa State 27). Early in the fourth quarter, TCU held a 17-6 lead. Iowa State rallied with 14 unanswered points in the final 8 minutes of the game. TCU quarterback Josh Hoover passed for 319 yards. Hoover also threw two interceptions. Iowa State quarterback Rocco Becht threw two interceptions. TCU dominated the stats, including the turnovers with three. Iowa State had two turnovers. Attendance in Fort Worth: 44,197
YE OLDE STOMPING GROUNDS:
Two-straight wins – West Virginia 29, Colorado 22 (Touchdown Tom said: West Virginia 27, Colorado 26). West Virginia never trailed in the game. The Mounties led 16-3 in the second quarter. Colorado closed the gaps to 22-19 early in the fourth quarter. Ten minutes later, WVU extended its lead to 29-19. Colorado kicked a field goal with 1:19 remaining in the game. WVU recovered Colorado’s ensuing onside kick. Colorado freshman quarterback Ju Ju Lewis passed for 299 yards and two touchdowns. WVU’s defense held Colorado to 51 yards rushing. West Virginia survived in spite of three turnovers. The loss dropped third-year coach Deion Sanders to 16-19 at Colorado. Attendance in Morgantown: 55,510
Curtains for the Gators – Kentucky 38, Florida 7 (Touchdown Tom said: Florida 24, Kentucky 21). This was the worst game Florida has played all season. Both the Florida offense and defense were bad – flat. Kentucky led 24-7 at the half and cruised in the second half. Gators quarterback D.J. Lagway was benched in the third quarter for backup quarterback Tramell Jones. Lagway threw three interceptions. The game was marred with 8 turnovers – 4 by each team. Attendance in Lexington: 56,388
TJ, TJ, he’s our man – Nebraska 28, UCLA 21 (Touchdown Tom said: UCLA 30, Nebraska 28). This game was tight for a while. Then Nebraska opened up a 28-7 lead by early in the third quarter. UCLA rallied, scoring 14 points. The second of their two touchdowns came with about 5 minutes to go in the game. Nebraska led 28-21 and that was as close as UCLA could come. Nebraska quarterback T.J. Lateef started in place of the injured Dylan Raiola. Lateef passed for 205 yards and three touchdowns. Nebraska’s Emmett Johnson ran for 129 yards and one touchdown. UCLA quarterback Nico Iamaleava passed for 191 yards and two touchdowns. Iamaleava ran for 86 yards. The teams were about as even as you can get in the stats. Attendance in Pasadena: 44,481
It wasn’t a Dookie day – Connecticut 37, Duke 34 (Touchdown Tom said: Duke 31, Connecticut 30). Basically, one team couldn’t stop the other team. The lead changed hands no less than 9 times. It kept going back-and-forth. UConn led 20-14 at halftime. Duke led 28-23 after three quarters. Trailing 34-29, UConn scored its winning touchdown with 1:58 to go in the game. Duke quarterback Darian Mensah passed for 222 yards and three touchdowns. Mensah also tossed two interceptions. UConn quarterback Joe Fagnano passed for 311 yards and three touchdowns. The teams were fairly even in the stats, but Duke was hampered by 3 turnovers. UConn had none. Attendance in East Hartford: 38,106
Taking care of business – Ohio State 34, Purdue 10 (Touchdown Tom said: Ohio State 31, Purdue 20). Ohio State broke open the game in the second quarter, scoring 24 points. The Buckeyes led at halftime, 24-3. Ohio State extended its lead to 34-3 midway through the fourth quarter. Ohio State quarterback Julian Sayin passed for 303 yards and one touchdown. Buckeyes receiver Jeremiah Smith had a season-high 10 catches for 137 yards. Purdue was flat on offense. Ohio State led in first downs (30-13), in total yards (473 to 186), in passing yards (303 to 94) and in rushing yards (170 to 92). The Buckeyes had a 21-minute edge in time of possession. Ohio State extended its winning streak to 13 games – the longest in the country. Attendance in West Lafayette: 57,701
Week 11 Results: 10 winners, 5 fumbles (66.7 percent)
For the Season: 105 winners, 48 fumbles (68.6 percent)
ELSEWHERE AROUND FLORIDA:
South Florida 55, UTSA 23 – Attendance in Tampa: 27,437
Houston 30, UCF 27 – Attendance in Orlando: 44,206
Marist 41, Stetson 13 – Attendance in Poughkeepsie: 983
FIU 56, Middle Tennessee 30 – Attendance in Murfreesboro: 12,227
Florida Atlantic 40, Tulsa 21 – Attendance in Boca Raton: 16,170
Grambling State 31, Bethune-Cookman 23 – Attendance in Grambling: 6,237
Florida A&M 31, Arkansas-Pine Bluff 28 – Attendance in Pine Bluff: 6,582
Miami 38, Syracuse 10 – Attendance in Miami Gardens: 60,337
Clemson 24, Florida State 10 – Attendance in Clemson: 81,500
Superlatives
Impressive Passers:
Vanderbilt’s Diego Pavia – 25-33-0 for 377 yards (3TDs); Texas State’s Brad Jackson – 26-33-1-360 (3Tds); Auburn’s Ashton Daniels – 31-44-0-353 (2TDs); Georgia Southern’ J.C. French – 25-37-0-352 (1TD), and Appalachian State’s A.J. Swann – 34-51-1-348 (2TDs).
Impressive Rushers:
Rutgers’ Antwan Raymond – 240 yards (1TD); Georgia’s Nate Frazier 181 yards (1TD); Oregon State’s Anthony Hankerson – 166 yards (2TDs); Maryland’s Malik Washington – 164 yards (1TD), and Akron’s Jordan Gant – 153 yards (2 TDs).
Quotes of the Week
“It’s just a rocking crowd. When you hear that silence when you get hit when you throw, then you know it’s a completion,” Indiana quarterback Fernando Mendoza, after the Penn State game.
“It don’t ever get old beating the Noles,” Clemson coach Dabo Swinney, after Clemson beat Florida state.
Touchdown Tom
https://collegefootballweek.blogspot.com
The net CFW – Week 12 Forecast – will be posted Thursday morning, November 13.
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