Category: College Football

Week 10 got off to a slow start, but things quickly snowballed in the Big 12 and ACC to completely shake up the College Football Playoff picture. Seven ranked teams ultimately fell by the final whistle, leaving only five undefeateds in the FBS ranks.

Perhaps the biggest shockwaves were felt in the Big 12, where two of the top three contenders — Iowa State and Kansas State — fell to unranked opponents. Clemson also lost a shocker against Louisville and SMU crushed Pittsburgh to take control of the ACC championship race. 

Elsewhere, No. 3 Penn State lost its 10th game to Ohio State in 11 tries as the Nittany Lions again proved to be a step behind top contenders. Auburn coach Hugh Freeze lost to a familiar foe to really put himself behind the 8-ball in the Tigers’ rebuild. Nebraska failed to get bowl eligible for yet another week, and now could be at risk of missing out on the postseason again. 

Here are the biggest winners and losers of Week 10, including conference championship contenders dropping like flies. 

Winner: SMU

Welcome to the CFP race, Mustangs. SMU played perhaps the biggest game in the history of Gerald Ford Stadium, hosting undefeated Pittsburgh under the lights. The Mustangs responded with a wholesale 48-25 shellacking of Pitt that wasn’t as close as the final score. The Mustangs took a 23-3 lead early in the third quarter and never looked back to move to 5-0 in ACC play. 

Perhaps just as importantly for SMU, Clemson lost a shocker against Louisville to pick up its first ACC loss, which leaves the Mustangs tied for first place in the ACC with Miami. SMU has games against Boston College, Virginia and California remaining — and the Mustangs should be betting favorites in all of them. SMU has a chance to complete the…

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What looked to be a beautiful day of college football in Happy Valley and after a raucous start to the game turned into a familiar result seen far more often than not. Penn State came up short against Ohio State, 20-13, to take its first loss of the season on Saturday afternoon in Beaver Stadium. Penn State’s offense was held without a touchdown and managed just two field goal drives in the game in yet another reminder of the biggest differences between Penn State and Ohio State. Simply put, Ohio State has players on offense to rely on catching the football in big spots.

Penn State got off to a great start in the first quarter with a field goal on the game’s opening possession on offense and then a defensive touchdown to go up 10-0. Zion Tracey read a third-down pass from Ohio State quarterback Will Howard perfectly and ran 31 yards uncontested for a touchdown as Beaver Stadium erupted.

Ohio State responded on the ensuing possession with a 74-yard touchdown drive capped by a 25-yard touchdown pass from Howard to Emeka Egbuka. Ohio State took a 14-10 lead early in the second quarter on a 21-yard pass from Howard to Brandon Innis moments after a costly unsportsmanlike penalty was called on sophomore cornerback Elliot Washington II for taunting after a third-down stop. An offside call on Abdul Carter earlier in the drive gave Ohio State a free first down as well, on a 3rd and 2 situation at the start of the second quarter.

It looked for a moment as if Ohio State was about to go up 21-10 in the second quarter when Howard took off running to the left side for an apparent touchdown, but an instant replay showed Howard fumbled the football before crossing the goal line and the ball went out of bounds in the end zone to result in a touchback and possession in Penn State’s favor.

Penn State had a chance to go up just…

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One of just two games between ranked teams on the Week 10 schedule happens to also be one of the pivot points in the ACC title race as No. 18 Pitt travels to No. 20 SMU. 

Pitt is off to a 7-0 start, the program’s first since 1982, with a 3-0 mark in ACC play following a thunderous 41-13 win over Syracuse last Thursday night. The Panthers defense picked off Kyle McCord five times and returned three of those interceptions for touchdowns in a runaway win that now has Pat Narduzzi’s squad in thick of the ACC title hunt. Narduzzi led Pitt to a runner-up finish in 2018 and the Panthers won the ACC outright in 2021. As one of four teams with an undefeated conference record heaving into November, Pitt holds the key to the race with two games against other top contenders — the first being SMU. BetMGM currently gives Pitt +1100 betting odds to win the conference, behind only Miami (+110), Clemson (+130) and SMU (+630).  

Rhett Lashlee’s Mustangs were positioned as a possible threat to the likes of a Clemson or Miami back in the offseason, but some early offensive struggles and a loss to BYU cast some doubt on the team’s title hopes. Now, the BYU loss doesn’t look so bad and a quarterback change has sparked the SMU’s offense during a five-game winning streak that has seen the Mustangs average 42 points per game. Getting to 7-1 wasn’t easy, though, with results including a one-score win at Louisville and last week’s overtime epic at Duke. SMU blocked the Blue Devils’ attempt at a game-winning field goal in regulation then got a 2-point conversion stop in overtime to seal the 28-27 win. 

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Ohio State Buckeyes

Ohio State finds itself in a must-win situation. Each week is now effectively a playoff game if the Buckeyes want to control their own destiny. The next test … undefeated Penn State.

The Ohio State football creative team has released its newest edition of game trailers featuring defensive line coach Larry Johnson. It’s very reminiscent of Urban Meyer’s speech about how being average isn’t good enough. Good isn’t good enough if you want to be great. I mean, James Franklin knows that after his pulpit moment preaching about being elite a few years ago after a loss to the Buckeyes.

But I digress.

Take a listen as Ohio State prepares for the Nittany Lions. And don’t forget to take a look at our preview and prediction for game insights.

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This article originally appeared on Buckeyes Wire: Ohio State football releases game trailer for Penn State game

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The QB Power Rankings’ long three-week run with the same No. 1 is over. Cam Ward has fallen, but it was not an easy decision. He is still playing well, and the Hurricanes beat rival Florida State over the weekend.

The problem is Ward didn’t account for a touchdown in the game. In fact, he didn’t account for much of anything, as it was clearly his worst game as a Hurricane. Don’t get me wrong, you aren’t expected to be perfect around here, and we do allow some grace for bad games when you’ve built up credit. But, you know, at least get one touchdown to stay No. 1. Instead, Cam had his lowest completion rate (62.9%) of the year and his worst yards per attempt by far (5.9). It’s one thing if you throw for 350 yards and hand off to your running back for all the touchdowns. It’s another when you don’t score or put up numbers elsewhere.

At least for this week, Ward has been demoted for somebody who is more deserving of that top spot right now. We’ll get to who it is momentarily, but first a reminder of the serious business that is the QB Power Rankings.

This is not a NFL Draft board ranking, nor is it based on any kind of statistical formula. Your numbers matter, sure, but overall, I’m ranking quarterbacks based on the “juice” they have at the current moment in time. It’s a combination of how well you’re playing, what you have accomplished and what you might accomplish in the near future. If you believe a QB I haven’t listed should be listed, I only kept them off the list because I don’t like you. Or, perhaps it’s this second part. I don’t rank any QB the week after a loss……

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STILLWATER — The Oklahoma State football team will dive deep into its history for throwback uniforms honoring the Oklahoma A&M College Tigers as the program commemorates its 125th season.

The Cowboys will face Arizona State at 6 p.m. Saturday at Boone Pickens Stadium as the centerpiece of homecoming weekend.

The throwback uniforms are primarily black but include the earliest known logos and stripes of historical uniforms.

The black helmet has an orange stripe down the middle with an “OA” logo that was the official emblem of the O.A. Association, organized in October 1909 by the athletes of Oklahoma A&M College.

More: Why Oklahoma State football OL Isaia Glass is a ‘perfect fit’ after leaving Arizona State

The logo can be seen in photos of varsity OAMC athletes across various sports from 1909-1913, after which the organization dropped the “A” to become the “O” Association and subsequently began awarding the traditional “O” letter.

This weekend is believed to be the first time the “OA” emblem has been used at the institution since the beginning of World War I.

The front of the helmet includes an “OAMC” emblem, with a “Tigers” decal on the back. It also includes a “125” decal on the back of the helmet to commemorate the team’s 125th season in 2024.

The uniform also includes widely spaced horizontal orange stripes on black sleeves and socks that will be worn with the present-day black uniform. Various versions of horizontal stripes appear in OAMC football photos available from 1901 through 1921, before the team switched to a look with vertical stripes in 1922.

The stripes are a nod to OAMC’s first team name of Tigers, which was the name of the school’s athletic teams until the early 1920s. It was then replaced with Aggies, and later, Cowboys.

This article originally appeared on Oklahoman:…

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Ace Flagg, the twin brother of Duke freshman phenom and projected No. 1 pick in the 2025 NBA Draft Cooper Flagg, announced his commitment to Maine on Tuesday. The 6-foot-7 forward is an unranked prospect in the 2025 recruiting cycle by 247Sports and will return to his home state to play college basketball.

Flagg committed to Maine over West Virginia, Richmond, Florida Gulf Coast, St. Joseph’s, and George Washington. Flagg transferred from Montverde Academy in Florida to Greensboro Day School in North Carolina for his senior season. The twins were in the same high school recruiting class before Cooper reclassified up to the 2024 class to play the 2024-25 season at Duke — making him eligible for this summer’s draft. 

The twins grew up in Newport, Maine, and attended Nokomis Regional High School together before transferring to Montverde Academy. Newport, Maine, is located less than 40 miles from where Ace will play college basketball, starting with the 2025-26 season. The University of Maine is located in Orono, Maine. 

Flagg made the announcement on social media with a graphic with the words “I’m coming home” in the middle.

Coincidentally, Cooper Flagg — the No. 1 recruit in the 2024 class — will make his college debut next weekend against his brother’s future school. 

Duke opens its season on Nov. 4 against Maine at Cameron Indoor Stadium.

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Four-star offensive lineman Zykie Helton is one of the top recruits in the class of 2026. Helton, who was committed to the Alabama Crimson Tide from July 2023 to March 2024, has named his top schools.

The 6-foot-2, 280-pound interior offensive lineman plays high school football for Carrollton High School in Carrollton, Georgia. Helton is ranked as the No. 21 interior offensive lineman in the class of 2026, per 247Sports. The Carrollton star is the No. 30 recruit in Georgia and the No. 259 recruit in the country.

Helton’s top schools are Georgia, Alabama, Florida State, Indiana, Miami, Texas A&M, and Colorado. The four-star announced his top schools via social media.

Head coach Kirby Smart and Georgia have a lot of work to do in the 2026 recruiting cycle. Georgia has only two commitments in the class of 2026 in defensive backs Dominick Kelly and Jontavius Wyman. UGA recently lost a commitment from five-star quarterback recruit Jared Curtis in the 2026 cycle.

This article originally appeared on Bulldogs Wire: Former Alabama commit, 4-star OL names top schools

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