Some blue blood programs had to sweat out victories over unranked opponents in week 3, resulting in some teams falling in the rankings despite picking up victories. UCLA took the largest tumble of the week while 3 previously unranked programs hopped into the top 25 for the first time this season. Here’s what made news in week 3 in the College Football world:
(1)Alabama defeats (11) Florida 31-29
Top Performer: Bryce Young (ALA) 22/35, 240yds, 3TDs
Snapshot: Alabama raced out to a 21-3 lead before watching the Gators come roaring back in the 2nd half. Florida had their chances late, but once again Saban & Co. showed why they’re the prohibitive favourites year in, year out by making key stops when they needed to.
(2) Georgia defeats South Carolina 40-13
Top Performer: JT Daniels (UGA) 23/31, 303yds, 3TDs
Snapshot: This one was even more one sided than the score would indicate. Georgia has another tune up next weekend against Vanderbilt before a big SEC showdown against 16th ranked Arkansas on October 2nd.
(3) Oklahoma defeats Nebraska 23-16
Top Performer: Adrian Martinez (NEB) 19/25, 289yds, 1TD
Snapshot: In a showdown between two storied programs, this one was a bit of a letdown in terms of on field performance. It was a sloppy day for both teams, with neither seemingly able to get in rhythm at any point. In the end OU got the win, and DJ Graham had an interception you need to see to believe:
https://twitter.com/BleacherReport/status/1439300930806161413?s=20
(4) Oregon defeats Stony Brook 48-7
Top Performer: Travis Dye (ORE) 15 touches, 87yds, 1TD
Snapshot: Not much to see here, Oregon ran roughshod over a lesser opponent. The Ducks kick off conference play next week with a date with Arizona.
(5) Iowa defeats Kent State 30-7
Top Performer: Tyler Goodson (IOWA) 22 touches, 153yds, 3TDs
Snapshot: The Hawkeyes had their way with Kent State, with most of the damage coming via their ground game. Iowa out rushed the Golden Flashes to the tune of 206yds to 79 and controlled the tempo, and clock, throughout.
(6) Clemson defeats Georgia Tech 14-8
Top Performer: Will Shipley (CLEM) 21 touches, 88yds, 2TDs
Snapshot: At what point do Tigers fans begin to get concerned? Boosters can understand losing to 2nd ranked Georgia in your season opener, but narrowly squeezing by Georgia Tech? That’s not exactly the kind of Clemson football fans have come to expect out of the team under Dabo Swinney’s reign. The Tigers will try to sort themselves out against NC State next weekend.
(7) Texas A&M defeats New Mexico 34-0
Top Performer: Demond Demas (TA&M) 2 rec, 100yds, 1TD
Snapshot: New Mexico managed only 122 total yards against the Aggies as their offence was merely a formality that occurred before a punt this past weekend.
(8) Cincinnati defeats Indiana 38-24
Top performer: Jerome Ford (CIN) 20 touches, 66yds, 2TDs
Snapshot: Between Michael Penix Jr.’s 3 interceptions and Tim Baldwin Jr.’s lost fumble, turnovers killed any kind of momentum the Hoosiers were able to build up throughout the day. Cincy capitalized on the opportunities and escaped with a victory.
(9) Ohio St. defeats Tulsa 41-20
Top performer: TreVeyon Henderson (OSU) 24 carries, 277yds, 3TDs
Snapshot: Davis Brin threw for 428yds on the day, but Tulsa just had no answers for Henderson on the ground. If the Golden Hurricanes defense had of played even slightly better, this could very well have wound up as an upset.
(10) Penn St. defeats (22) Auburn 28-20
Top Performer: Tank Bigsby (AUB) 23 touches, 102yds, 2TDs
Snapshot: Penn State comes away with a huge win that’s likely to not only vault them up the rankings this week, but also showcased just how special it is to play at PSU during a nationally televised “White Out” game. Put this one in the recruiting packages for sure.
(12) Notre Dame defeats Purdue 27-13
Top Performer: Avery Davis (ND) 5 rec, 120yds, 1TD
Snapshot: Kyle Hamilton was all over the place in this one with 10 tackles and 2 pass deflections, showcasing the kind of skills that will have him selected early in next year’s NFL draft.
Fresno St. defeats (13) UCLA 40-37
Top Performer: Jake Haener (FRES) 39/53, 455yds, 2TDs
Snapshot: Few could believe the start Chip Kelly’s Bruins were off to in 2021. Few also believed it would last the entirety of the season. Fresno State scored a late TD to shock UCLA 40-37 and move to 3-1 on the year.
(14) Iowa St. defeats UNLV 48-3
Top Performer: Xavier Hutchinson (ISU) 10 rec, 133yds, 2TDs
Snapshot: Not much to report here, the scoreboard says it all. Iowa State cruised to victory in this one, moving the ball at will all game long.
West Virginia defeats (15) Virginia Tech 27-21
Top Performer: Leddie Brown (WVU) 19 touches, 161yds, 1TD
Snapshot: Leddie Brown broke free for an 80 yard TD score, and the Hokies suffered their first loss of the year despite not turning the ball over once. VT did however have 3 fumbles on the day (all of which were recovered) which is why “ball security” will be one of the big coaching points at practice this week.
(16) Coastal Carolina defeats Buffalo 28-25
Top Performer: Shermari Jones (CCU) 16 touches, 149yds, 1TD
Snapshot: The Chanticleers posted 228 rushing yards on the day and still lost the ground battle to Buffalo who managed to accumulate 262. Coastal Carolina moves to 3-0 on the year and now have a date with UMass on the docket this weekend.
(17) Ole Miss defeats Tulane 61-21
Top Performer: Matt Corral (MISS) 23/31, 335yds, 3TDs, 68yds, 4TDs
Snapshot: I suppose you could give Ole Miss QB Matt Corral the game ball for piling up 7 total TDs on the day. The Rebels put up 61 points through 3 quarters and then put it in neutral for the 4th.
(23) BYU defeats (19) Arizona St. 27-17
Top Performer: Gunner Romney (BYU) 6rec, 85yds, 1TD
Snapshot: Mitt Romney was likely all smiles after watching distant cousins Gunner and Baylor Romney receive and throw for a TD respectively in BYU’s win over Arizona St. Don’t look now but BYU is suddenly 3-0 in the post Zach Wilson era.
(20) Arkansas defeats Georgia Southern 45-10
Top Performer: Treylon Burks (ARK) 3rec, 127yds, 1TD
Snapshot: Burks had a 91 yard TD reception in this one, and Arkansas cruised to victory.
(21) North Carolina defeats Virginia 59-39
Top Performer: Brennan Armstrong (UVA) 39-54, 554yds, 4TDs
Snapshot: It’s not everyday your QB throws for over 300 yards and 5TDs and isn’t the best QB on the field. But that was the case this weekend as Armstrong outdueled Howell to the tune of 554 yards through the air. In case you were wondering, he accounted for 96% of the Cavaliers offense in the game…
Michigan St. defeats (24) Miami 38-17
Top Performer: Charleston Rambo (MIA) 12rec, 156yds, 2TDs
Snapshot: There was a lot of pre-season hype coming into 2021 for the Hurricanes, but much of that has died down through the first few weeks of the season. After a back and forth first half, Miami crumbled down the stretch giving up 21 points in the 4th quarter to spell their doom.
(25) Michigan defeats Northern Illinois 63-10
Top Performer: Blake Corum (MICH) 13 touches, 125yds, 3TDs
Snapshot: *Yawn* Michigan did what they were supposed to do by dismantling a clearly outmatched opponent. In fact this is what they usually do every season. Unfortunately until they can prove they can hang with the rest of the powerbrokers in the BIG10, their 3-0 start doesn’t hold much weight.