Week 5 is in the books, and we're onto week 6. Here is my top 20 following yesterday's games, done AP style including the Big Ten and Pac-12 which will start at the end of the month:
Clemson, 4-0
Georgia, 3-0
Alabama, 3-0
Notre Dame, 3-0
Ohio State, 0-0
North Carolina, 3-0
Oklahoma State, 3-0
Penn State, 0-0
Cincinnati, 4-0
Florida, 2-1
Iowa State, 3-1
Oregon, 0-0
Miami, 3-1
Auburn, 2-1
BYU, 4-0
SMU, 4-0
Kansas State, 3-1
Wisconsin, 0-0
Lousiana-Lafayette, 3-0
UCF, 3-0
FINAL: Alabama, 63 Ole Miss 48
Ole Miss' hopes to defeat Alabama Saturday night ended when the Rebels failed to recover an onside kick, allowing the Tide to run down the clock, add to the lead and secure the road win. However, the Tide looked anything but sharp, as there were bad snaps, and the defense allowed 646 total yards. Bama was carried by RB Najee Harris, who scored his fifth touchdown with just over a minute to play in the fourth quarter. He was a workhouse for the Crimson Tide and was the reason Alabama stayed in this game and earned the win. His final stats: 23 carries, 206 yards, five TD.
UPSET ALERT:
#2 Alabama, 42
Ole Miss, 35
End of Q3
Heading into the fourth quarter, Ole Miss is fighting hard to keep up with the Crimson Tide. Bama QB Mac Jones has thrown for 347 yards and two touchdowns up to this point. Tune in on ESPN to see if the Tide can hold off Ole Miss to secure a win on the road or if Bama becomes the latest ranked SEC team to be upset this season.
FINAL SCORES:
Texas Tech, 15
#24 Iowa State, 31
Iowa State quarterback Brock Purdy showed up once again to give the Cyclones their third straight Big 12 victory of the season. After the huge win over Oklahoma last week, Iowa State played like a Big 12 Championship caliber team against an underrated Texas Tech squad. Purdy threw two touchdowns and totaled 302 yards passing.
Missouri, 45
#17 LSU, 41
This has not been the season LSU wanted coming off a national championship win in January, and the Tigers were dealt another tough blow this week. With Hurricane Delta threatening to strike Louisiana, the game was moved to Columbia, Missouri. While LSU was the designated home team, Missouri brought its fans out in full force, as the Mizzou aimed to upset LSU. Ultimately it came down to one play with 16 seconds to go from the goal line. LSU had the ball and a variety of play at its disposal. However, the "Bayou Bengals" could not get it done, as the Mizzou defense came up with a huge stop. LSU quarterback Myles Brennan rolled to his right and fired a pass to receiver Terrance Marshall Jr,, but the 13-play drive came to an end right then and there, as Missouri's Joshua Bledsoe deflected the ball away.
FINAL SCORES:
Missouri, 45
@ #17 LSU, 41
Game played in Columbia, Missouri due to Tropical Storm
#19 Virginia Tech, 45
@ # 8 North Carolina, 56
#14 Tennesee, 21
#3 Georgia, 44
HALFTIME SCORES
#14 Tennessee, 21
@ # 3 Georgia, 17
UTSA, 3
@ #15 BYU, 14
Texas Tech, 7
@ # 24 Iowa State, 21
FINAL: Oklahoma, 53 Texas, 45
There is one thing you cannot deny about this Texas football team, or Oklahoma's squad either. The fight the both displayed to the finish on Saturday afternoon is a characteristic embodied by few teams. If it takes four quarters, overtime, even four overtimes to win the contest, the enthusiasm and sharp focus never fades. That is why the Longhorns were able to come from behind and earn their first conference win over Texas Tech earlier in the season. That is why, with the nation keeping a close eye on the Red River Showdown between Texas and Oklahoma on Saturday afternoon, the Sooners were able to endure four overtimes, and ultimately head back to Norman with the 53-45 win thanks to an interception by Tre Moore in the end zone.
The Red River Showdown always brings out the best in these two powerhouse programs. Winning the annual meeting between the two is more than just another goal for these squads. Bragging rights are on the line, and in this case, so was each team's Big 12 Championship hopes. Coming in, Oklahoma was 0-2 in Big 12 action, Texas not much better at 1-1.
There are so many plays that one could point to that changed the outcome of this contest. The touchdown reception by Joshua Moore to pull Texas within one score late in the fourth. The Sam Ehlinger rushing touchdown with 14 seconds to go in the game. Or perhaps, the go-ahead touchdown reception by Drake Stoops to put Oklahoma in front...for good, and earn the Sooners their first conference win of the season.
Like all great games, the momentum swung back and forth, right in step with the score. All in all, four overtimes were played and until the final play, nobody had any idea who would come out on top. Oklahoma would pick up a big defensive stop, but could not convert on the offensive end. The same for Texas. One of these such moments came in the third overtime, when Oklahoma blocked a Texas field goal attempt, leaving the game tied at 45. Oklahoma decided to try and win it on a field goal from 31 yards out, however, Gabe Brkic's kick was shanked to the left, and sent it into a fourth overtime.
But the Sooners got right back up, and redshirt freshman quarterback Spencer Rattler delivered a strike early on in the possession to give Oklahoma the lead. A two point conversion, and Texas' offense jogged onto the field, a mission to tie it back up at the forefront of their minds. That could not be accomplished though, as Ehlinger misfired, and Moore was right there for the game-sealing interception.
It was a dogfight by every definition. The final stats are evidence of that. Rattler played his best game of the season for Oklahoma, passing for 209 yards, three touchdowns and an interception. Ehlinger, in 53 pass attempts, threw for 287 yards and two touchdowns. He was also UT's leading rusher with 112 yards on the ground, and four touchdowns.
Kyle Field was not filled to its typical capacity on Saturday afternoon. Texas A&M was 1-1 coming into a home showdown against #4 Florida, the only victory having come in a narrow 17-12 win over Vanderbilt on September 26. Quarterback Kellen Mond had taken his fair share of criticism.
None of that mattered, because The 12th Man showed up in College Station, and gave Texas A&M the crucial advantage in order to secure a key 41-38 win over the Gators.
With the contest swinging back and forth for much of the game, Mond kept his composure and in head coach Jimbo Fisher's was "the reason" why Texas A&M prevailed. He played better than he had all season, and his stats were a reflection of that; 25/38 passing, 338 pass yards, three touchdowns, zero interceptions.
Mond led the offense on a final drive from midfield with two minutes to go in the fourth quarter. The home crowd was already the edge of their seats after the Aggie defense recovered a fumble and set the offense up with prime field position in a tied ballgame.
Behind powerful running back Isaiah Spiller, who finished the day with 174 rushing yards and two touchdowns, Texas A&M picked up multiple first downs, and ran down the clock to two seconds after an 11 yard rush from Spiller.
The always-reliable Seth Small was then given his chance to shine, as the junior kicker connected from 26 yards out as the clock ticked down to 0:00. Within moments, Fisher was given a Gatorade bath and the entire team was sprinting onto the field to celebrate the program's first home victory over a Top-5 opponent since 2002.
Everyone is getting ready for the Red River Showdown in Dallas. Both Texas and Oklahoma badly need a victory. Game kicks off at 11am CT on Fox.
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