College Football: Week 10 Review

Five Headlines of Week 10

  1. Purdue Does it Again- The Boilermakers win their second game against a top-five team this season, upsetting undefeated #5 Michigan State 40-29. 
  2. Tar Heels Complete the Comeback- North Carolina upsets #10 Wake Forest in a shootout similar to last year's clash to end the Demon Deacons undefeated season.
  3. The Aggies Get the Best of Auburn- #13 Texas A&M holds Bo Nix, #12 Auburn to just three points, win the battle of ranked SEC teams 20-3. 
  4. Several Top Teams Survive Scares- #2 Cincinnati, #3 Alabama, #6 Ohio State, and #7 Oregon all come out on top in close games against unranked opponents. 
  5. Boise State Destroys the Bulldogs- The Broncos go on the road and destroy #25 Fresno State 40-14 to make the Mountain West race more interesting.
College Gameday's Game of the Week- #2 Cincinnati 28, Tulsa 20 (Cincinnati, OH)
The Bearcats were ranked #2 in the AP Poll but were at #6 in the College Football Playoff rankings. Many felt they were disrespected as a result of being in a Group of Five conference with the committee always overlooking them when it comes to rankings for the playoffs. At 8-0, they don't have many big wins except for a win over Notre Dame. They were coming off two underwhelming wins over Navy and Tulane, so an emphatic win over Tulsa, who came in just 3-5, would do a lot to help their case. They got off to a good start, taking a 14-0 lead into the second quarter, but allowed 12 unanswered to hold on to a 14-12 halftime lead. Desmond Ridder tossed two touchdowns in the third quarter, but then went silent in the fourth quarter, winning by just one possession, 28-20. This is not the effort the team would've wanted to make a huge statement, proving why they deserve to be in the top four. They were a little fortunate that some other teams ahead of them played in close games and Michigan State lost to Purdue. This likely won't get them into the top four, but it helps them keep pace with the rest of the group with one of the easiest schedules remaining. 

My Game of the Week- North Carolina 58, Wake Forest 55 (Chapel Hill, NC)
Last season, the #18 Tar Heels overcame a 21-point second-half deficit against Wake Forest, scoring 35 straight points to win 59-53 in a quarterback battle between Sam Hartman and Sam Howell. One year later, the script was almost the same with Wake Forest coming into the game undefeated and ranked in the top ten. This was one of those rare ACC v. ACC non-conference games. Like last season, Wake Forest jumped out to a sizeable lead, up 18 midway through the third quarter. Entering the fourth quarter, Wake Forest still had a two-possession lead, but the North Carolina offense seemed to come alive on the back of Ty Chandler. The Tar Heels' running back scored two touchdowns to tie the game just under a minute apart, leaving plenty of time for both teams to get the job done. After trading punts, North Carolina took the lead on a field goal with just over two minutes left. Sam Hartman tried to lead the offense down the field, but he threw a pick and it allowed Chandler to score his third touchdown of the quarter and put the game away. Hartman would throw a touchdown to make it a three-point game again, but it was too late at that point. In the loss, Hartman accounted for seven touchdowns (five passing, two rushing), a new school record. Wake Forest remains perfect in the conference since the loss is a non-conference loss, but it certainly hurts the ACC's chances of making it to the College Football Playoff.

Teams of the Week
  1. Purdue- Undefeated teams need to be aware of the season killers that are the Purdue Boilermakers after they unseated yet another top-five ranked conference opponent.
  2. North Carolina- The Tar Heels have underperformed all season long, so winning this game could serve as a major building block to help them turn things around.
  3. Wisconsin- I've tried to champion the Badgers as a team that hasn't performed as poorly as their record would indicate but with the committee placing them in the top 25, they managed to keep the ball rolling by allowing just three points to Rutgers and winning by seven touchdowns. 
  4. #13 Texas A&M- The Aggies kept Auburn out of the endzone for 60 minutes and allowed just a field goal to keep their momentum going. 
  5. #15 Ole Miss- The spectacle of Matt Corral v. Malik Willis going head-to-head looked great on paper, but the Rebels' defense kept Willis in check all afternoon and allowed just 14 points.
Most Disappointing Teams of the Week
  1. #5 Michigan State- The Spartans just needed to stay perfect for just two weeks before playing Ohio State, but they ran into Purdue and the defense couldn't get the job done.
  2. Mississippi State- The Bulldogs were ranked in the initial CFP rankings but they couldn't run the ball and missed three field goals in a loss to Arkansas.
  3. Minnesota- The Golden Gophers lost to Illinois to drop to three losses in a game where they couldn't generate any offense. 
  4. #14 Baylor- They controlled their own destiny with a game against Oklahoma looming next week, but they were looking too far forward and lost to TCU. 
  5. #25 Fresno State- They were at home and had all the momentum, but laid an absolute egg against Boise State. 
My Top 25 Going into Week 11 (Not the Official AP Top 25 of College Football Playoff Rankings)
  1. Georgia (9-0, W 43-6 Missouri)
  2. Oklahoma (9-0, BYE)
  3. Cincinnati (9-0, W 28-20 Tulsa)
  4. Alabama (8-1, W 20-14 LSU)
  5. Oregon (8-1, W 26-16 Washington)
  6. Ohio State (8-0, W 26-17 Nebraska)
  7. Notre Dame (8-1, W 34-6 Navy)
  8. Michigan (8-1, W 29-7 Indiana)
  9. Oklahoma State (8-1, W 24-3 West Virginia)
  10. Michigan State (8-1, L 40-29 Purdue)
  11. Texas A&M (7-2, W 20-3 #12 Auburn)
  12. Ole Miss (7-2, W 27-14 Liberty)
  13. BYU (8-2, W 59-14 Idaho State)
  14. UTSA (9-0, W 44-23 UTEP)
  15. NC State (7-2, W 28-14 Florida State)
  16. Wake Forest (8-1, L 58-55 North Carolina)
  17. Coastal Carolina (8-2, W 28-8 Georgia Southern)
  18. Iowa (7-2, W 17-12 Northwestern)
  19. Houston (8-1, W 54-42 South Florida)
  20. Auburn (6-3, L 20-3 #13 Texas A&M)
  21. Wisconsin (6-3, W 52-3 Rutgers)
  22. Pittsburgh (7-2, W 54-29 Duke)
  23. Baylor (7-2, L 30-28 TCU)
  24. Purdue (6-3, W 40-29 #5 Michigan State)
  25. Louisiana (8-1, W 21-17 Georgia State)
Week 11 Games to Watch
  1. #9 Michigan v. #23 Penn State
  2. #4 Oklahoma v. #18 Baylor
  3. Purdue v. #6 Ohio State
  4. #21 NC State v. #13 Wake Forest
  5. #11 Texas A&M v. #12 Ole Miss

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