Week 10 Recap

Week 10 was dubbed “Separation Saturday” by ESPN, and that’s exactly what it was. Alabama took down LSU and thanks to Arkansas’s crazy win over Ole Miss, Bama is in the driver’s seat of the SEC West. Oklahoma State crushed TCU to remain unbeaten. Clemson finally got over the hump against Florida State and Nebraska stunned previously unbeaten Michigan State. It was a crazy weekend.

How I Fared: (4-3 this week, 36-26 overall)

I didn’t get to watch too much football this weekend, but I guess I went to a pretty good game. I spent Saturday in Oxford, Mississippi. I started off the day in the crowd of SEC Nation (and was on TV multiple times, I was the Arkansas fan by the guy with the Star Wars sign). After SEC Nation, I walked around the Grove for about an hour or so before watching the Walk of Champions. It started raining during SEC Nation and continued until right before the game. It was nice to be dry during the marathon game. What a game. I was there and saw it live and can still barely believe it. The score was tied after each quarter. Though Arkansas’s defense was not-so-great (to put it nicely) at some points of the game, they came up with a few key stops that kept the Hogs in the game. Of course the biggest play of the game was what has been dubbed the “Henry Heave”. If you haven’t seen this play yet, you don’t watch football. Hunter Henry’s lateral to Alex Collins on 4th and 25 in OT and the run for the first down that followed was one of the craziest things I’ve ever seen. Two plays later Brandon Allen threw his 6th TD of the game and his third to Drew Morgan to get within 1. The Hogs decided to go for the win and it seemed as though Ole Miss had stopped Arkansas, but a facemask penalty kept the Hogs’ hopes alive. Brandon Allen then ran the ball into the end zone for the game-winning conversion to upset 18th-ranked Ole Miss 53-52. The Hogs had a chance to win at the end of regulation with a 47-yard FG, but it was blocked and for a moment I was sure the Rebels were going to somehow pick it up and run down the field for the score. But they didn’t. Ole Miss QB Chad Kelly had a great game, completing 24 of 34 passes for 368 yards and 3TDs as well as rushing for 110 yards and 3 more scores. WR Laquon Treadwell had 132 receiving yards and a TD for the Rebels as well. The term “divine (or swine) intervention” has been used to describe the outcome of this game, but that’s not why the Razorbacks won. They won because they never quit. They never gave up. They played their hearts out and left everything they had on the field and it paid off. QB Brandon Allen played the greatest game of his career and showed he is a great QB (something I already knew, but there are many fair-weather fans out there). WR Drew Morgan was amazing yet again, even though he is banged up. I mean, did you see that hurdle for a TD? TE Hunter Henry might not have caught a TD pass, but he kept the game alive for Arkansas. Sr. RB Kody Walker rushed for a TD. WR Dominique Reed caught 2TDs and recovered Alex Collins’ fumble at the end of that 4th and 25 play. WR Jared Cornelius caught a TD in his second game back from a gruesome arm injury he suffered against Texas Tech. I am so proud of this team. Games like this one tell us a lot about the guys on the field. You could tell both teams were all in and were not going to give up. That lateral gave Arkansas just enough momentum to win. What a game. What a play. Don’t you just love college football? (I almost forgot, props to Brandon Allen for winning the coin toss in OT. There was a guy at SEC Nation with a sign that said, “The only thing Arkansas can win is a coin toss.” I guess sometimes winning the coin toss leads to winning the game.)

Conference Overviews
SEC: Mississippi State went on the road on Thursday and beat Missouri 31-13. Dak Prescott threw 4TDs to total 100TDs responsible for in his career. Congrats Dak! Missouri finally found the end zone for their first TD since the 3rd quarter against South Carolina on October 3rd. The TD came on a 14-yard run by Russell Hansbrough. Alabama took down previously undefeated LSU 30-16. The Tide’s strong defense held Leonard Fournette to just 31 yards and a TD. On the other side, ‘Bama RB Derrick Henry rushed for 210 yards and 3TDs and became the Heisman favorite in the eyes of many. This is the 6th straight game that Alabama has held LSU to 17 points or less. Florida clinched the SEC East title, but it wasn’t easy. The Gators beat Vanderbilt 9-7 thanks to a late FG. The Commodores took the lead on a 74-yard TD run by Ralph Webb with less than a minute to go in the first half. Vandy led 7-6 until Florida kicker Austin Hardin hit a 43-yarder with 2:22 remaining. The ‘Dores turned the ball over on downs on the ensuing drive and that secured the Gator’s win. Florida turned the ball over 4 times in the game. Auburn went to Kyle Field and beat Texas A&M 26-10. Aggie QB Kyler Murray threw 3INTs. Jeremy Johnson is back starting at QB for Auburn and threw a TD in the win. RB Javon Robinson rushed for 159 yards and a TD. Kicker Daniel Carlson was 4/4 on FGs to help lift the Tigers over the Aggies. Georgia beat Kentucky 27-3 to bounce back from their loss to rival Florida. The Bulldog offense finally put some points on the board with Sony Michel rushing for 165 yards and a TD and QB Greyson Lambert throwing a TD. Georgia outgained Kentucky 390-180 in total yards and 21-8 in first downs. Tennessee barely got by South Carolina 27-24. The Gamecocks scored 21 points in the 3rd quarter to tie the game after being down 17-3 at the half. Tennessee kicked a 27-yard FG with just under 10 minutes remaining to take the lead. South Carolina fumbled on the Tennessee 25-yard line with less than a minute to play to secure the Tennessee victory. Perry Orth threw 3TDs for SCAR. Next Week: ARK at 9LSU, UGA at AUB, 11UF at SCAR, UNT at UT, 2BAMA at 17MSST, UK at VAN, Western Carolina at TAMU, BYU vs MIZ (Kansas City)

Big 10: Ohio State doubled up Minnesota 28-14. Cardale Jones started (because of JT Barrett’s suspension) and threw a TD and rushed for another. Ezekiel Elliott rushed for 114 yards and a score as well for the Buckeyes. Minnesota got within a TD, but could not recover the ensuing on-side kick and Ohio State got a short field and scored to put the game out of reach. Nebraska stunned Michigan State 39-38. This is Michigan State’s first loss of the season. There was a “controversial” call on the winning TD. The referee ruled that the WR was forced out of bounds before coming back in the field of play to catch the TD. I think it was a good call, but I’m sure if I was a Michigan State fan I might have a different opinion. The Huskers scored 19 points in the 4th quarter to get the win. Tommy Armstrong rushed for 2 of the scores and connected with Brandon Reilly for the game winner. The Spartans had a 31-20 lead going into the 4th quarter. Nebraska drove 91 yards on 4 plays in 38 seconds for the game winning TD. Iowa beat Indiana 35-27 to remain unbeaten. The Hawkeyes rushed for 234 yards and 4TDs in the win. Indiana got within a TD, but couldn’t recover the on-side kick. Iowa was able to run out the clock and get their 5th Big 10 win of the year. QB CJ Beathard was banged up, but still came in clutch for his team. Michigan allowed 16 point to Rutgers in the first half, but ended up winning 49-16. Jake Rudock was 18/25 for 337 yards and 2TDs and added another score on the ground. Rutgers’ only TD came on a 98-yard kickoff return by Janarion Grant. Kicker Kyle Federico was 3/3 for the Scarlet Knights. Northwestern edged Penn State 23-21 but lost their QB in the effort. The game-winning FG came from 35 yards out with just 9 seconds left. The Wildcats scored 20 in the second quarter. Saquon Barkley rushed for 120 yards and 2TDs for the Nittany Lions. Illinois had no trouble going on the road to Purdue, winning 48-14. Wes Lunt threw 3TDs for the Illini. Illinois outgained Purdue 595-263 in total yards. Wisconsin escaped Maryland with a 31-24 win. This game was tied at 17 at the half, but Wisconsin took a 31-17 lead early in the 4th quarter that was just too much for Maryland to overcome. The Terps scored with 2:39 left, but couldn’t recover the onside kick. Wisconsin was able to run out the clock and get the victory. Next Week: 3OSU at ILL, MD at 13MSU, PUR at 18NW, NEB at RUT, 14MICH at IND, MINN at 5Iowa

Pac 12: Stanford got a big win over Colorado 42-10. The Cardinal scored 21 points in the 2nd quarter to put the game out of reach. Kevin Hogan threw 2TDs and rushed for two more. Christian McCaffrey rushed for 147 yards and threw a TD. This win Stanford moves to 7-0 in Pac 12 play. Utah had another close call, this time against Washington. The Utes used a big, 24-point 2nd quarter to win 34-23. Devontae Booker rushed for 150 yards and a TD and Travis Wilson rushed for 2 more. These two teams combined for 7 turnovers. UCLA had no trouble on the road and beat Oregon State 41-0. UCLA outgained the Beavers 674-246 in total yards. Josh Rosen threw for 333 yards and 2TDs. Washington State got another win, this time 38-24 against Arizona State. The Cougars scored 21 in the 4th quarter to get the win. Luke Falk was typical Luke Falk in this game, throwing for 497 yards and 5TDs. Arizona State had a 21-17 lead going into the 4th quarter. ASU’s Mike Bercovici was picked off with 1:21 remaining on the Washington State 28-yard line. Oregon got to bowl eligibility with their 44-28 win over California. The Ducks scored 28 in the second quarter to take a 31-10 lead into the half. Vernon Adams Jr. threw 4TDs and rushed for another. Royce Freeman rushed for 180 yards in this game. The Ducks accumulated 777 yards of total offense. USC rallied from an early 3-14 deficit to beat Arizona 38-30. Cody Kessler trew 2TDs and RB Ronald Jones II rushed for 177 yards, a TD and also caught a TD. USC is now bowl eligible. Next Week: USC at COLO (Fri), WASH at ASU, ORE at 7STAN, 10Utah at ARI, ORST at CAL, WSU at 19UCLA

Big 12: Baylor beat Kansas State 31-24 to remain undefeated. This was QB Jarrett Stidham’s first start and he did well, throwing for 419 yards, 3TDs, and rushed for a TD. WR Corey Coleman had 216 receiving yards and 2TDs in this game as well. This game was closer than usual for Baylor, and Kansas State looked like they might have a chance to tie after Baylor missed a FG late, but the Wildcat QB threw an INT on the next play. One of the biggest upsets of the weekend was Oklahoma State handing TCU its first loss 49-29. Trevone Boykin threw 4INTs in this game. Cowboy QB Mason Rudolph threw 5TDs, 3 of which went to James Washington. Despite losing by 20 points, TCU outgained Oklahoma State 663-456 in total yards. Oklahoma routed another opponent, this time in a 52-16 win over Iowa State. QB Baker Mayfield threw 3TDs and rushed for another for the Sooners. West Virginia outlasted Texas Tech 31-26 to snap a 4-game losing streak. Patrick Mahomes threw 3TDs for the Red Raiders, but the WVU run game was the difference. Wendell Smallwood rushed for 163 yards and a TD, Rushel Shell rushed for 111 yards and 2 scores, and QB Skyler Howard rushed for a TD. Texas Tech scored with 6:47 left, but West Virginia controlled the ball for the rest of the game to secure the win. Texas routed Kansas 59-20 behind 4 rush TDs from Tyrone Swoopes who also threw a TD. The Jayhawks turned the ball over 4 times in this game. Next Week: KU at 15TCU, TEX at WVU, KSU at TTU, 8OKST at ISU, 12OU at 6BAY

ACC: The top-ranked Clemson Tigers used a 10-point 4th quarter to beat Florida State 23-13. This win clinched the Atlantic division for the Tigers, giving them an easy path to the playoffs. Deshaun Watson threw a TD and rushed for 107 yards. Florida State had 3 drives in the 4th quarter and they turned the ball over on downs twice and fumbled on their final drive. Pittsburgh lost to Notre Dame 30-42 at home. The Panthers only scored 3 points in the first half, but managed to get their offense going in the second 30 minutes. The Pitt offensive surge was just a little too late. North Carolina crushed Duke 66-31. Marquise Williams was 23/35 for 494 yards and 4TDs as well as rushing for a TD. RB Elijah Hood rushed for 3TDs on just 69 yards. UNC seems to be on the path to face Clemson in the ACC Championship game. Louisville started slow against Syracuse, but ended up winning 41-17. The Orange had a 10-7 lead after the first quarter, but did not score again until 26 seconds remaining in the game. Kyle Bolin threw for 362 yards and 3TDs for the Cardinals. Louisville outgained Syracuse 579-286 in total yards. NC State beat Boston College 24-8 to get to 6 wins and bowl eligibility. Boston College turned the ball over 4 times in this game to get their 6th straight loss. Miami beat Virginia 27-21. Despite all of the turmoil surrounding Miami, the Hurricanes are now bowl eligible. QB Brad Kaaya threw 2TDs after not playing in the last game. Virginia hit a FG with 35 seconds remaining, but were unable to recover the onside kick. Next Week: VT at GT (Thurs), PITT at Duke, NCST at 16FSU, UVA at LOU, MIA at 23UNC, WF at 4ND, 1CLEM at SYR

Independents: BYU escaped San Jose State 17-16 on Friday. San Jose State scored with 45 left, but they were unable to convert the two-point attempt. BYU recovered the ensuing on-side kick to seal the win. Tanner Mangum threw a TD and broke the record for most TDs thrown by a freshman at BYU in a season. Notre Dame survived a 2nd half rally from Pittsburgh to win 42-30. DeShone Kizer threw 5TDs and rushed for another to lead the Irish to the top 4 according to the committee. Army suffered its seventh loss of the season 3-20 to Air Force. Air Force QB Karson Roberts threw 2TDs and the Falcons outgained the Black Knights 352-169 in offensive yards. Next Week: TUL at Army, WF at 4ND, BYU vs MIZ (Kansas City)

American: Temple took care of business at SMU 60-40 despite having just a 21-17 lead at halftime. SMU even cut the lead to 45-40 with just 8 minutes remaining. PJ Walker threw 4TDs and rushed for another to help his team stay undefeated in conference play. Navy upset 13th-ranked Memphis on the road 45-20. Chris Swain rushed for 108 yards and 3TDs for the Midshipmen. The Tigers turned the ball over 3 times in their first loss of the season. Houston eked out a 33-30 win over Cincinnati. The Bearcats lost despite Gunner Kiel’s 523 passing yards and 4TDs. Cincinnati turned the ball over on downs on their final drive, securing Houston’s win. Houston is now 9-0 and 5-0 in conference play. Tulsa handed UCF their 10th loss of the season with a 45-30 win. The Golden Hurricane scored 21 points in the final 15 minutes. Ramadi Warren rushed for 168 yards and 3TDs for Tulsa. Each team turned the ball over 4 times in this game. Connecticut held off Tulane in a 7-3 win. The only touchdown in the game came on a 67-yard pick 6 by Jamar Summers. USF scored late to beat East Carolina 22-17. The game-winner was a 67-yard pass to Rodney Adams from Quinton Flowers with 4:40 left to play. Next Week: TUL at Army, SMU at 20Navy, 22TEM at USF, 21MEM at 24HOU, TULS at CIN

Mountain West: Despite giving up 16 second quarter points, Nevada beat Fresno State 30-16. Nevada shut out the Bulldogs in the second half and forced 4 turnovers to get the win. San Jose State very nearly upset BYU, but came up short and lost 16-17. The Spartans scored with 45 seconds left but the two-point conversion failed and they were unable to recover the on-side kick that followed. UNLV kept their bowl hopes alive with their 41-21 win over Hawaii. Blake Decker threw 2TDs, Keith Whitely rushed for 124 yards and a TD, and Lexington Thomas rushed for 120 yards and a TD. Star WR Devonte Boyd had 120 receiving yards and a TD for the Rebels. Colorado State didn’t have much trouble going on the road and beating Wyoming 26-7. Wyoming’s only score came at the end of the game. CSU RB Izzy Matthews rushed for 2TDs and QB Nick Stevens rushed for another. Air Force shut down Army’s offense and won 20-3. QB Karson Roberts threw 2TDs for the Falcons. New Mexico pulled a big upset by beating Utah State 14-13. The Aggies missed a FG with 59 seconds left to give the win to the Lobos. Next Week: UNLV at CSU, USU at AF, SJSU at UNR, UNM at BSU, WYO at SDSU, FRES at HAW

MAC: Buffalo scored 12 points in the 4th quarter to beat Kent State 18-17. The game-winning score came with 58 seconds left. Western Michigan crushed Ball State 54-7. The Broncos scored 23 in the 2nd quarter. Zach Terrell threw 3TDs, all to Corey Davis. Jamauri Bogan rushed for 171 yards and 2TDs. WMU is now bowl eligible. Akron rallied in the second half to beat Massachusetts 17-13. The Minute Men turned the ball over on downs twice and also had an INT on their final 3 drives of the game. Miami of Ohio got their first MAC win of the season by beating Eastern Michigan 28-13. The Redhawks outgained the Eagles 441-192 in total yards. Next Week: TOL at CMU (Tues), KENT at Ohio (Tues), NIU at BUFF (Wed), BG at WMU (Wed), AKR at MOH, UMass at EMU

C-USA: UTEP used a late FG to get a 24-21 win over Rice. Both QBs threw 2 touchdowns and each team rushed for another. Rice got the ball back with 48 seconds remaining, but their final pass attempt fell incomplete. Florida International used a big first half to beat Charlotte 48-31. Alex McGough threw 3TDs in the win. Three different players threw touchdowns for Charlotte. Western Kentucky beat FAU 35-19 thanks to QB Brandon Doughty’s 4 passing TDs one receiving TD. Louisiana Tech crushed North Texas 56-13 behind Kenneth Dixon’s monster game. The RB rushed for 195 yards and 6TDs for the Bulldogs. Middle Tennessee took down Marshall in 3OT 27-24. Chase Litton and Brent Stockstill each threw 3TDs for their teams, but Marshall was 1/6 on FGs in this game. The Blue Raiders blocked Marshall’s 39-yard attempt at the end of the 3rd OT to get the win. Old Dominion outlasted UTSA 36-31 on the road. The Monarchs went up 30-21 early in the 4th quarter but allowed 10 unanswered points to the Roadrunners. The game-winner came on a 40-yard TD pass from David Washington to Jonathan Duhart with 5:45 left. Ray Lawry rushed for 103 yards and 2TDs and kicker Chris Kirtley was 3/4 on FGs for Old Dominion. Next Week: UNT at UT, MTSU at FAU, UTEP at ODU, UTSA at CHAR, FIU at MRSH, USM at Rice

Sun Belt: Arkansas State got a big 40-27 win over Appalachian State. The Red Wolves were trailing 21-14 in the 2nd quarter, but they scored 26 straight points to put the game out of reach. App State’s Taylor Lamb threw 4TDs in the game, but it wasn’t enough. Michael Gordon rushed for 136 yards and a TD for Arkansas State and kicker JD Houston was 4/4 on FGs. Louisiana Lafayette escaped with a 23-21 win over Georgia State. The Ragin’ Cajuns took the lead with 6:59 remaining on a 21-yard FG. Panther QB Nick Arbuckle passed for 313 yards and 3TDs, but kicker Wil Lutz was 0/2 when it came to FGs. South Alabama scored 45 points in the second half to beat Idaho 52-45. Both Cody Clements and Matt Lineham threw 2TDs and rushed for 2TDs. Idaho’s Elijhaa Penny rushed for 135 yards and 2TDs. USA’s Xavier Johnson rushed for 148 yards and a TD on just 9 carries. Troy trounced ULM 51-14, scoring 49 points in the first half. Brandon Silvers threw 4TDs for the Trojans. ULM turned the ball over 6 times in this game. New Mexico State rallied to beat Texas State 31-21 on the road. Larry Rose III rushed for 207 yards and 2TDs and also caught a 77-yard TD pass. The Aggies scored the final 14 points of the game and Texas State turned the ball over 3 times, 2 of which were INTs on their final 2 drives. Next Week: ULL at USA (Thurs), ARST at ULM, GASO at Troy, GAST at TXST, APP at Idaho

Top 25
1Clemson 23 16Florida State 13
4Alabama 30 2LSU 16
3Ohio State 28 Minnesota 14
5Notre Dame 42 Pittsburgh 30
6Baylor 31 Kansas State 24
Nebraska 39 7Michigan State 38
14Oklahoma State 49 8TCU 29
9Iowa 35 Indiana 27
10Florida 9 Vanderbilt 7
11Stanford 42 Colorado 10
12Utah 34 Washington 23
Navy 45 13Memphis 20
15Oklahoma 52 Iowa State 16
17Michigan 49 Rutgers 16
Arkansas 53 18Ole Miss 52 OT
Auburn 26 19Texas A&M 10
20Mississippi State 31 Missouri 13
21Northwestern 23 Penn State 21
22Temple 60 SMU 40
23UCLA 41 Oregon State 0
Northern Illinois 32 24Toledo 27
25Houston 33 Cincinnati 30

Stats and Scores from ESPN.com