Week 9 College Football Recap

Conference races are heating up and we are gearing up for the November home stretch in college football. Let's get to it!

Best Game

8 LSU at 14 Texas A&M- There may not be a head coach better at managing his quarterbacks than Texas A&M's Mike Elko. After a 76 yard receiving TD by LSU's Aaron Anderson before halftime put the Tigers up 17-7, Elko switched to QB Marcel Reed at halftime. Reed rattled off three straight rushing TD's in the second half in route to a 38-23 win for the Aggies in College Station.

This game was all about quarterback play as LSU's QB Garrett Nussmeier was rolling in the first half before A&M captured momentum and forced three second half interceptions. After the Aggies made the switch to Reed at the half the Tiger defense had trouble stopping the read option run game that led to the 21 point outburst by Reed in the third quarter. The Aggies currently sit on top of the SEC standings at 7-1 (5-0 in conference).

Huge game upcoming in Baton Rouge in two weeks for LSU vs Alabama (hint: you should watch this game).

Honorable Mention:

22 SMU at Duke - This was a wild game in Durham as SMU survived the second 6 turnover game of the day (see Navy) to defeat the Blue Devils 28-27 in OT. The visiting Mustangs led 21-7 in the third quarter before costly turnovers allowed Duke to tie the game. A Brashard Smith 24 yard TD run gave SMU the lead in overtime before a 25 yard passing TD to Eli Pancol from Duke QB Maalik Murphy made the score 28-27 in SMU's favor. Duke then went for the 2 pt conversion and potential win before Murphy's pass fell incomplete.

Closest Games

Kansas at 16 Kansas State- The "Sunflower Showdown" did not disappoint this year between two teams who are opposites in record as Kansas State survived 29-27 in Manhattan against their in-state rival Jayhawks.

The Wildcats took 9 point leads twice in this game but Kansas QB Jalon Daniels kept KU in the game closing the gap to 2 points at halftime and then taking a lead with an 8 yard TD run late in the third quarter. Two Chris Tennant field goals in the fourth quarter including the game winning 51 yarder with 1:42 left to play helped KSU squeak by.

5 Texas at 25 Vanderbilt- Yes, Vandy was ranked this past week and in the spirit of Halloween, Nashville has become a haunted house for visiting teams this season as Texas escaped with a 27-24 win. Tons of credit goes to Vanderbilt QB Diego Pavia this season, the guy is a gamer and the number one reason this team has been so competitive. After Pavia led Vandy to an early 7-0 lead, Texas QB Quinn Ewers responsed to an early interception by rattling off three straight first half TD passes for a 21-7 Longhorn lead.

In the third quarter an Ewers interception led to a touchdown for Vanderbilt as the Commodores cut the Texas lead to 24-17. Down 27-17 late in the fourth, Pavia found Eli Stowers for a TD which led to the final score as Texas recovered the ensuing onside kick.

Nebraska at 4 Ohio State- A much improved Nebraska program led by QB Dylan Raiola gave Ohio State a scare in Columbus on Saturday as the Buckeyes survived 21-17. The air attack was cruising early for OSU as QB Will Howard hit WR's Carnell Tate and Jeremiah Smith for 40 and 60 yard TD's but three John Hohl field goals of 39, 54 and 47 yards for Nebraska kept the score close at 14-9 in the third quarter.

All of a sudden Nebraska took the lead at 17-14 early in the 4th quarter as Ohio State was unable to run the ball and maintain possession. Buckeye running backs Quinshon Judkins and TreVeyon Henderson combined for a mere 54 yards rushing on the day before Howard found Judkins for an 8 yard touchdown to put OSU in front. The Buckeye defense was able to force a 3 and out on the ensuing drive but Ohio State was unable to get a first down on offense. Nebraska had one final drive before OSU's Jordan Hancock intercepted Raiola to preserve the win for the Buckeyes.

Taking Care of Business

20 Illinois at 1 Oregon- This game was never close in Eugene as the Ducks rolled to a 35-3 halftime lead in route to a 38-9 final score against the Illini. Oregon QB Dillon Gabriel went 18 of 26 for 291 yards and 3 TD's on the day leading a balanced offensive attack. WR Tez Johnson had 106 yards and a TD before Oregon leaned on the run game in the second half to close out the game.

3 Penn State at Wisconsin - This was a potential trap game for PSU heading into a massive matchup with Ohio State this coming week who also lost starting QB Drew Allar to injury during the game. The recently upstart Badgers took a 10-7 lead into the half. In the third quarter Penn State retook the lead on a Jaylen Reed interception return for touchdown before a Nathanial Vakos field goal put Wisconsin back in front. Backup QB Beau Pribula found Khalil Dinkins for a TD score in the fourth quarter before a Kaytron Allen 24 yard rushing TD put the finishing touches on the 28-13 road win for Penn State.

Florida State at 6 Miami- This game has been one of the fiercest rivalries in the sport over time but not this season as FSU falls to 1-7 on the year. This was the first game this season that Miami QB Cam Ward did not have a passing TD although he did score on a 7 yard TD pass from Tight End Elijah Arroyo in the 4th quarter. Running back Damian Martinez led the Canes with 148 rushing yards and 2 TD's as Miami won easily 36-14.

12 Notre Dame vs 24 Navy- Navy has had a great season so far and this was a much anticipated matchup for Notre Dame. Six turnovers sunk the Midshipmen in this game as Notre Dame won easily 51-14 behind a 2 TD day from QB Riley Leonard and RB Jeremiyah Love and an opportunistic defense who also scored a fumble return TD.

Washington at 13 Indiana- Indiana is for real in one of the most impressive program turnarounds in history as Head Coach Curt Cignetti has led the Hoosiers to an 8-0 record in his first season on the job. IU was missing their starting QB in this game but a strong defensive and rushing performance took care of the visiting Huskies in a 31-17 victory.

21 Missouri at 15 Alabama- based on rankings this appeared to be a good matchup entering the weekend however injury to Missouri QB Brady Cook led to a 34-0 blowout by Alabama in Tuscaloosa. The Bama defense forced Tigers backup QB Drew Pyne into 3 interceptions in the game. The Alabama offense leaned on the running game as RB's Jam Miller and Justice Haynes combined for 3 rushing TD's while QB Jalen Milroe added another in the landslide win.