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Playoff previews and star-making performances: Ushering in the new Big Ten in Week 7

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Playoff previews and star-making performances: Ushering in the new Big Ten in Week 7


  • David Hale, ESPN Staff WriterOct 13, 2024, 12:29 AM ET

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    • College football reporter.
    • Joined ESPN in 2012.
    • Graduate of the University of Delaware.

Change can be scary. It’s easy to look around at the college football landscape in 2024 — realignment, playoff expansion, NIL, the portal, lawsuits, Michigan’s offense — and think the whole thing’s gone haywire. The sport certainly looks little like it did 25 years ago or, really, 25 months ago.

And yet, Saturday offered us a vivid reminder that change can be a good thing. It can be refreshing and rewarding and exhilarating. It can show us a path forward we never would’ve imagined but, once it exists, we wonder how we ever lived another way.

It can give us the absolute fireworks of Oregon 32, Ohio State 31.

It can give us the dizzying back-and-forth of Penn State 33, USC 30.

It can give us playoff previews, star-making performances and Big Ten football that looks more like Pac-12 After Dark.

Let’s face it, the Big Ten has a track record of easing into most seasons like an old man into a warm bath. The traditional powers of Ohio State, Penn State and Michigan tend to backload the slate in favor of MAC showdowns, Rutgers beatdowns and the occasional slugfest against Notre Dame. So many of the league’s recent seasons have played out like the “Surf Dracula” meme about prestige TV. The whole season is spent explaining how Dracula bought his surfboard before we ever see him catch a wave. So it is with the Big Ten — a long slog of pointless diversions before The Game.

Not in 2024, though. Not with Oregon, Washington, USC and UCLA joining the conference.

Now, we have real stakes before the ground freezes in Ann Arbor.

Now, we have epic battles that look less like the traditional heavyweight slugfests between two aging boxers plodding their way toward a 12-round decision and more like a toddler’s birthday party — controlled chaos, where every moment requires some entertainment lest someone set the curtains on fire and a parent eventually has to step in when a game of pin the tail on the donkey goes awry.

How different is the Big Ten this year? Iowa put up 40 points, Wisconsin seems to have figured out the Air Raid and Purdue showed signs of life in Week 7. Heck, Michigan had the week off but still threw for 50 yards more than its season average. But the main events came in Los Angeles and Eugene, Oregon, and boy did they deliver.

For the opener Saturday, Penn State erased a 13-point second-half deficit, delivered a drive for the ages to tie the game at 30, then connected on a kick to win it in overtime.

Drew Allar threw three picks, but that’s not what anyone in Happy Valley will remember. Instead, it’ll be the two magical completions he made on fourth down on that game-tying drive — 17 yards to Julian Fleming on fourth-and-7 at his own 44, then a nifty escape from a collapsing pocket to hit Fleming again on fourth-and-10 at the USC 39.

Tyler Warren caught 17 balls for 224 yards, a thing receivers in Michigan didn’t think was possible in a full season. He was somehow always open throughout the first three quarters, forcing USC to adjust just enough to leave Fleming free for those big grabs down the stretch.

It was a game in which Penn State showed more offensive creativity than it had during the entirety of Allar’s first season at the helm in 2023.

That it all fell apart for USC because of Lincoln Riley’s brutal clock management on the final drive — somehow getting off just five plays in the final two minutes, possibly because the Trojans are on Pacific time while the Big Ten refs only operate on Central time — and a missed kick in overtime does nothing to make it less of an epic.

But then there was the headlining act at Autzen Stadium, where both Oregon and Ohio State absolutely looked the part of top-five teams, there were seven lead changes in the final 40 minutes of action, and in a running theme that must’ve completely baffled any Florida State fans watching, a player named Uiagalelei made one critical play after another down the stretch.

The game had its share of ridiculousness: a missed PAT, an onside kick that resembled an NBA out-of-bounds play, a player ejected for spitting, and, again, some brutal late clock management.

More than anything, though, it had two of the best teams in the sport playing at their peak.

Freshman Jeremiah Smith looked like a superstar once again, catching nine balls for 100 yards and a score. Emeka Egbuka was just as good. And QB Will Howard threw for 326 yards, but his lack of clock awareness in the final 30 seconds of the game proved Ohio State’s undoing.

Dillon Gabriel had 373 yards and three touchdowns. Evan Stewart, oft criticized for his lack of physicality, absolutely devoured Ohio State’s secondary to the tune of 149 yards. With star edge rusher Jordan Burch out with an injury, Matayo Uiagalelei had 5 tackles, a sack, 2 TFLs and 2 QB hurries in the win.

None of this is to suggest there’s no need to complain about this new era of college football. For every Ohio State-Oregon we’ll get this season, there will be a Rutgers-UCLA. And for all the excitement in Autzen on Saturday, the game likely meant little beyond flip-flopping spots in the top 25 for Oregon and Ohio State. Odds are, these two will see each other again — in the Big Ten title game or the College Football Playoff or at Chip Kelly’s annual above-ground pool party.

That’s the thing about change. It’s never all good or all bad. It’s just different — sometimes fun, sometimes frustrating, and always just another step on an ever-evolving ride. The point is to enjoy it all while it lasts because, if the past year has taught us anything, it’s that nothing lasts forever, but there are still so many memories to be made in those amazing moments, like Week 7, when the world slows down just long enough for us to realize how good we have it.

Jump to:
Alabama survives | Red River | Midseason awards
Vibe shifts | Under the radar

Alabama survives — barely

It’s been a long week in Tuscaloosa. After the loss to Vanderbilt, the Tide faithful have been left shell-shocked — parting their bangs at a reasonable point, dipping sourdough into their Dreamland BBQ sauce, utterly melting down when calling in to Finebaum.

But what was essentially a “sad middle-aged dad considers life after divorce” week came oh-so-close to melting down into a full-blown “We’re getting hair plugs and a Cybertruck” scenario as Alabama saw a 14-0 lead evaporate against South Carolina, then struggled deep into the second half.

Want a truly wild stat to fully grasp how different this season has been at Alabama? The Gamecocks took a 19-14 lead midway through the third quarter after a 16-play, 85-yard touchdown drive, capped by a 1-yard run from Raheim Sanders. It was the third touchdown drive of 16 plays or more against Alabama this year, after Wisconsin and Vanderbilt both had 17-play TD drives. From 2014 through 2023, Alabama’s defense surrendered exactly one such drive (against Ole Miss in 2020).

But set aside the esoteric stats and concentrate on something more troubling: After the Tide couldn’t get off the field late against Vandy last week, they had the same struggles against South Carolina on Saturday. Leading 27-19 with just 1:54 to play, Alabama allowed the Gamecocks to march the length of the field on six plays for the score. Only a failed two-point try kept the game from being tied.

The Gamecocks weren’t done, though. They perfectly executed an onside kick with 43 seconds left for a chance to win, but poor clock management and a passing game that resembles a roomful of toddlers running into the walls for fun doomed the effort.

So, Alabama survived 27-19, which staved off full-blown anarchy for now. But a week after its defense imploded against the Commodores, its offense mustered just 313 yards — the Tide’s fewest against an unranked SEC foe since facing LSU in 2021 — and its special teams nearly cost the game.

In other words, Finebaum should be good again on Monday.

Texas owns the Red River

Coming off the field at halftime, Oklahoma coach Brent Venables was stopped for his TV interview and was asked a simple question: With his Sooners trailing 21-3, would Venables make a QB change away from Michael Hawkins Jr.?

Venables answered instinctively: “No, he’s been — ” then caught himself, thought about it for a second, and concluded, “He’s been — OK.”

It was like when a coworker says, “How’s it going,” and you reply, “Good,” even if your car is currently on fire.

So yes, Hawkins was OK, insofar as he did not set Venables’ car on fire, but by virtually any other standard, the Sooners’ offense remains an unmitigated disaster. Oklahoma mustered just 237 yards of offense in a 34-3 loss, averaging less than 5 yards per pass and less than 3 yards per rush.

On the other side of the Red River Rivalry, Texas benched Arch Manning in favor of some guy it found selling deep-fried Beef-N-Cheddars at the state fair. It was like going to see Taylor Swift and instead getting Katy Perry. One is a goddess. The other was upstaged at the Super Bowl by a felt shark.

Anyway, Quinn Ewers played well, completing 20 of 29 passes for 199 yards and accounting for two touchdowns. It almost seems unfair for Texas to have two good QBs when Oklahoma is forced to use three toddlers in a trench coat.

Regardless, Texas is now 6-0 with two dominant wins against top-25 opponents and has totally upended any “Texas is back” jokes, which now seem completely anachronistic. Gen Z ruins everything.

Midseason awards

Seven weeks of the college football season are in the books, which means it’s time to hand out some midseason hardware. So, put on your best evening gown or tuxedo T-shirt and get ready for the red carpet.

Best actor in a drama or football game: Ole Miss

No team in the country has the acting chops of the Rebels. They’re the Meryl Streep of college football. Or, at least the Vin Diesel.

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Ole Miss’ Matt Jones fakes injury

Ole Miss quarterback Jaxson Dart tells running back Matt Jones to go down with an injury.

Already this season, Ole Miss has seen players require an injury stoppage due to narcolepsy, the meat sweats and every side effect listed in the Jardiance commercial.

Indeed, the fake injuries have caused a bit of a stir, and this week, the Rebels admitted fault, releasing a statement noting they would “conduct ourselves properly” moving forward.

It’s sad to see such expert thespians retire from the profession, but as Lane Kiffin noted, Ole Miss is still big. It’s the game that got small.

On the field Saturday, Ole Miss led LSU until the final 23 seconds, when Aaron Anderson drilled a 23-yard kick to send the game to overtime in spite of several Rebels players falling to their knees before the snap, fanning themselves dramatically and declaring, “I do believe I have a case of the vapors!”

Nevertheless, Ole Miss settled for a long field goal in overtime, while Garrett Nussmeier hit Kyren Lacy for a 25-yard game-winning touchdown.

The win moves LSU to 5-1 on the year, ensuring Brian Kelly’s meeting with his anger management counselor on Monday will involve far less screaming into a pillow than usual.

Best Plucky Underdog (player): Desmond Reid

The Pitt tailback is 5-foot-6, 170 pounds and somehow is the most electric all-purpose player west of Travis Hunter.

On Saturday, Reid ran 16 times for 120 yards and two touchdowns, added a 19-yard catch and also lifted a 1983 Chevy Malibu over his head to entertain the crowd at halftime.

Reid keyed Pitt’s 17-15 win over Cal with a 72-yard touchdown run, moving the Panthers to 6-0 on the season.

But Reid and Pitt aren’t the only amazing underdog stories this season.

Pitt, BYU, Arizona State and Indiana were a combined 14-34 last year. Through Week 7, they’re a combined 23-1 and absolutely drenched in Banana Boat.

Best Plucky Underdog (team): Louisiana-Monroe

ULM upended Southern Miss 38-21 on Saturday, moving to 5-1 on the season.

Ahmad Hardy ran for 121 yards and two touchdowns in the win, marking the first time ULM has won five games in a season since 2019.

In the Book of Revelation, this start for the Warhawks comes just after the locusts but just before the horsemen, so the good news is we’ve all got some time to put our affairs in order.

Best idea whose time has come: Goalpost lasers

Washington pulled to within a touchdown late in the first half courtesy of a controversial made field goal.

The kick certainly looked wide right, but that’s hardly the point. The bigger issue is why, in 2024, we’re still arguing about this. After all, didn’t Jimbo Fisher advocate for goalpost lasers a decade ago? Somewhere Saturday, Fisher was pointing at his TV like DiCaprio in “Once Upon a Time … In Hollywood” before sitting back down onto his couch made out of money and lighting a cigar with a $100 bill.

Regardless, Iowa went on to win 40-16, which is yet another reminder that, if the Hawkeyes can hang 40 on someone, surely we can figure out a way to measure if a field goal above the uprights is good or not.

Best performance in a superhero movie: Army‘s Bryson Daily

The Black Knights moved to 6-0 with an emphatic 44-10 win over Trent Dilfer’s flaming husk of a UAB football program Saturday, and Daily was the indisputable star. He ran for 136 yards and four touchdowns and threw for 102 yards and a score and also delivered a truck stick that was the equivalent of Thor’s hammer.

For the season, Baily has racked up 20 touchdowns without a turnover, while also saving several infinity stones and successfully halting that pipeline project set to run through his fortress of solitude.

But still, danger lurks in the distance. Blake Horvath and Navy are also undefeated, setting up a showdown between these two bitter enemies in Commander In Chief Cup: Endgame. Coming this December.

Week 7 vibe shifts

Each week, the college football ecosystem sustains its share of seismic disruptions, but plenty of other, more subtle stories fly beneath the radar. We try to capture them here.

Trending up: Vanderbilt‘s bowl odds

Diego Pavia threw for two touchdowns, and Vandy went 8-of-13 on third down to escape Kentucky 20-13 on Saturday.

It was a woeful offensive game all around, with Pavia throwing for just 143 yards and Kentucky QB and noted Foghat enthusiast Brock Vandagriff throwing for just 158.

Nevertheless, Vandy is 4-2 through six games for the first time since 2008 and now needs to just beat Ball State and win one of its final five SEC games (Texas, at Auburn, South Carolina, at LSU and Tennessee) to make its first bowl since 2018.

Trending down: Florida‘s bowl odds

The Gators had their shots against Tennessee on Saturday, but after five possessions in Vols territory in the first half — including four in the red zone — they managed just three points. Still, Tennessee’s own offensive struggles continued after last week’s ugly loss to Arkansas, with sophomore Nico Iamaleava effectively offering up the QB equivalent of that sound ketchup makes when you squeeze a nearly empty bottle.

The upshot of it all: Florida scored with 29 seconds to play to send the game to overtime but missed a field goal try and ultimately fell 23-17.

Afterward, Billy Napier said it was for the best the game didn’t go to additional overtime periods, because he’s working the overnight shift at a convenience store and his boss docks his pay if he shows up more than 15 minutes late.

The loss is particularly problematic for the Gators, who are now 3-3 with only two remaining games against teams currently unranked. That makes getting to a bowl game an uphill battle that will require beating both Kentucky and Florida State and pulling an upset somewhere along the way against Georgia, Texas, LSU or Ole Miss.

Trending up: Our AARP membership

In the fall of 2005, a time we’re pretty sure was, like, six months ago, the QB depth chart for the Arizona Cardinals included starter Kurt Warner and backup Josh McCown.

On Saturday night, the QB matchup in the UTSA–Rice showdown: E.J. Warner (Kurt’s son) and Owen McCown (Josh’s son).

Both QBs were exceptional. McCown threw for 260 yards and three touchdowns. Warner threw for 347 and accounted for three scores of his own.

But it was ultimately Warner who stole the show, engineering an eight-play, 65-yard drive in the final two minutes, capping it with an 18-yard TD to Matt Sykes for the game winner with 4 seconds to play. Rice prevailed 29-27, and we’re going to just go ahead and cover our furniture with plastic and start yelling at kids to get off our lawn.

Trending down: Maryland and Rutgers

The Terps and Knights are essentially the Big Ten’s version of the Philadelphia Phillies — much more enjoyable before the calendar turns to October.

On Friday, Maryland was whitewashed by Northwestern, 37-10, thanks to four turnovers.

On Saturday, Rutgers was demolished 42-7 by Wisconsin, allowing more than 300 rushing yards to the Badgers.

Maryland had started 3-1 but has now lost two straight. Rutgers started 4-0 but has also lost its past two.

And this is all part of a far longer trend line. In the past five seasons, those two have opened 3-1 or better nine times. In August and September games since 2020, they’re a combined 29-6. And if they could spend the rest of the season playing Akron and Temple, there’d be a lot to like about both teams. Unfortunately, October begins conference play, and the Terps and Knights fall off a cliff. From Oct. 1 on, the two are a combined 22-46. The story goes all the way back to Maryland and Rutgers joining the Big Ten in 2014. Before Oct. 1, their win percentage is .687. After Oct. 1, it’s .258.

On the upside, Greg Schiano loves pumpkin spice season, so he’s got that going for him.

Trending up: Interesting road trips

On Saturday, Missouri — once the No. 6 team in the country — played on the road at UMass.

Yes, that UMass.

This is the rough equivalent of Gordon Ramsay shoveling fistfuls of nachos grandes into his face while sitting in his 1994 Ford Tempo at the Taco Bell drive-through. In other words, utterly great.

And true to form, UMass didn’t disappoint the home fans who showed up for the big game, making it through almost an entire 10 minutes of football before the game was sufficiently out of hand. The fans also got to see Missouri head coach Eli Drinkwitz showcase the SEC’s latest technology, which sadly became sentient at halftime, realized it was watching UMass football and immediately activated its self-destruct mode.

Missouri ultimately won 45-3, while the bulk of the team hit the road midway through the third quarter so it could enjoy some of the majestic New England foliage.

Trending up: Frontiersmen on the sideline

Jacksonville State downed New Mexico State 54-13 on Wednesday, moving to 2-0 in Conference USA play. More importantly, however, this member of the Gamecocks staff raised a barn, enjoyed a raucous Rumspringa and churned some of the best butter south of Lancaster, Pennsylvania.

Trending down: The Calgorithm

The vibes around Cal were off the charts for the first month of the season, thanks in large part to a brilliant social media presence that involved an esoteric mix of politics, Photoshop and some stuff they found in one of Jerry Garcia’s old coats.

But what Cal has learned in these past three games is that there is no positive counterpoint to the power of #goacc.

After a 3-0 start, including a win at Auburn, Cal has lost three straight ACC games.

A recap:

Outgained Florida State by 126 yards but lost by five. It’s still FSU’s lone win of the year.

Led Miami by 20 with 14 minutes to go but lost by one.

And on Saturday, held Pitt to just 277 yards of offense, gaining seven more first downs than the Panthers, and lost by two.

The ACC life ain’t for the faint of heart, but just remember, Cal: You’re also not getting any TV money for this.

Under-the-radar game of the week

On Saturday, Illinois survived a scare from Purdue, taking home the prized trophy of a cannon of some sort.

The Illini led 27-3 early in the second half and 40-28 with just 5:05 to play, but Purdue roared back in the final 2 minutes of play to take a 43-40 lead. Devin Mockobee scored on a 2-yard rush with 1:35 to play, Illinois recovered the onside kick, then Mockobee scored again on a 13-yard pass with 46 seconds to go.

But Purdue has firmly established it can’t have nice things, and promptly allowed Illinois to set up a 38-yard kick to send the game to overtime. The two teams traded touchdowns in OT, but Purdue’s 2-point try fell incomplete, giving Illinois the 50-49 win.

Purdue is now 1-5 overall and 0-3 in Big Ten play this year, and now the only trophies the Boilermakers currently retain are the Old Oaken Bucket (vs. Indiana), the Golden Deep-Dish Pizza (vs. Minnesota) and a dead pigeon (vs. Rutgers).

Under-the-radar play of the week

Georgia head coach Kirby Smart delivered an emphatic blow against Mississippi State QB Michael Van Buren Jr. while trying to get defensive coordinator Glenn Schumann’s attention during the Bulldogs’ 41-31 win Saturday.

The form is solid. Smart takes off his hat before contact, so he can’t be called for leading with the crown of his helmet. He hits Van Buren square and knocks the QB back. And the hit sends a clear message that Smart isn’t going to take no for an answer.

It was actually some of the best defense shown by the Dawgs, who never were in any real danger, but also never quite could put Mississippi State away.

Scouts from the Eagles are rumored to be interested in selecting Smart on Day 2 of next year’s draft.





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