Welcome to this week’s College Football Recap. Week 9 of College Football was a somewhat calmer week than Week 8, but it was nonetheless exciting. Let’s begin.
#2 Indiana won its next game against an unranked UCLA, a team that had upset a ranked team earlier this year. QB Fernando Mendoza threw three touchdowns for Indiana, while Roman Hemby ran for two touchdowns and EJ Williams Jr. caught two touchdowns. Indiana rolled past UCLA 56-6, improving their record to 8-0.
In what should have been one of the closer games of the week, #3 Texas A&M instead continued its undefeated season with a dominant win against #20 LSU. Texas A&M’s offense was strong and benefited from an outstanding performance from QB Marcel Reed who thr,ew for two touchdowns, ran for two touchdowns, and had over 300 yards. Texas A&M would win this one 49-25, improving to 8-0. Meanwhile, LSU dropped to 5-3 and out of the Top 25.
#4 Alabama had a close call against unranked South Carolina, but ultimately survived to get the win. QB Ty Simpson led the Alabama offense to another win with 253 yards and two touchdowns, winning the game 29-22. Alabama improves to 7-1 on the season, while South Carolina drops to 3-5.
#6 Oregon’s defense carried them to a 21-7 victory over Wisconsin, while running back Jordon Davison rushed for 102 yards and two touchdowns. Oregon is now 7-1 while Wisconsin falls to 2-6, still unable to get a win in the tough Big Ten Conference.
#7 Georgia Tech remains undefeated after a blowout victory against Syracuse, 41-16. QB Haynes King had over 300 passing yards and three touchdowns, while running for 91 yards and two touchdowns. Georgia Tech is now 8-0, while Syracuse is 3-5.
#8 Ole Miss defeated SEC Rival #13 Oklahoma, thanks to a clutch fourth quarter. Ole Miss scored nine unanswered fourth-quarter points, winning the game 34-26, despite Oklahoma’s 16-point third quarter. Ole Miss kicker Lucas Carneiro had a strong game for the Rebels, going 4/4 on Field Goals and making both extra point attempts. Ole Miss moves up to 7-1, while Oklahoma drops to 6-2.
#9 Miami improved to 6-1 by crushing Stanford 42-7, thanks to three rushing touchdowns from running back Mark Fletcher Jr.
#10 Vanderbilt outlasted #15 Missouri in a low-scoring, intense battle. Vanderbilt won 17-10 thanks to a strong defensive performance against a Missouri team that averaged roughly 35 points a game before Saturday’s matchup. Vanderbilt progresses to 7-1, while Missouri loses its second game of the season to be 6-2.
#11 BYU is still undefeated after winning 41- 27 against Iowa State. Wide receiver Parker Kingston caught seven passes for 133 yards and two touchdowns for BYU. BYU is now 8-0 and first in the Big 12, while Iowa State drops to 5-3.
#14 Texas Tech had a strong all-around performance, scoring 42 points while allowing zero in their shutout win over Oklahoma State. Their 42-0 win makes them 7-1 this season. Unfortunately, QB Will Hammond tore his ACL and is out for the season, as the Red Raiders’ QB health struggles persist.
#16 Virginia survived North Carolina in an overtime thriller. The score was 10-10 going into OT; Virginia scored a touchdown, and then UNC did, but a failed 2-point conversion by the Tar Heels gave the Cavaliers a 17-16 victory.
#17 Tennessee scored 56 points on Saturday, tied for the most in week 9. Their 56-34 win over Kentucky was in part due to QB Joey Aguilar having 396 passing yards and three touchdowns. Tennessee becomes 6-2 with this win, while Kentucky drops to 2-5, still looking for its first SEC victory.
#18 South Florida lost to now-ranked Memphis by a score of 34-31. Memphis scored 17 unanswered points in the fourth quarter to come back and win the game. This win makes Memphis 7-1 and ranked, while South Florida is 6-2 and unranked.
#19 Louisville defeated Boston College 38-24 to improve to 6-1. RB Isaac Brown was the dominant force for Louisville with over 200 rushing yards and a touchdown.
#21 Cincinnati defeated Baylor 41-20 in a commanding victory that saw them improve to 7-1.
In another overtime thriller, #22 Texas took down Mississippi State, 45-38. Texas QB Arch Manning got injured during overtime, but that didn’t stop the Longhorns from completing the comeback. Texas outscored Mississippi State 24-7 in the fourth quarter, then scored a winning touchdown in overtime. Texas becomes 6-2 with the win.
Washington wins a big game against a Big Ten opponent, and this opponent was #23 Illinois. Washington QB Demond Williams Jr. had four touchdowns in the 42-25 win. The Fighting Illini drop from the Top 25 after two straight losses, and Washington improves to 6-2.
#24 Arizona State was unable to complete the fourth-quarter comeback and lost to Houston, 24-16. Arizona State scored all sixteen points in the fourth quarter, but it wasn’t enough to beat Houston, which improved to 7-1 and jumped into the Top 25 rankings. Arizona State is now 5-3 and has fallen out of the Top 25.
#25 Michigan defeated its big rival, Michigan State, by a score of 31-20. RB Justice Haynes ran for 152 yards and two touchdowns for Michigan in the victory. Michigan wins its sixth game of the year to become 6-2.
In a relatively quiet week by College Football standards, the top 6 spots remained unchanged. Oklahoma and Missouri saw big drops, while Michigan and Cincinnati had the biggest rises. Houston, USC, Utah, and Memphis jump into the rankings while South Florida, LSU, Illinois, and Arizona State fall out of the rankings.
In coaching news, LSU fired its head coach, Brian Kelly, after the team’s loss to Texas A&M. Kelly compiled a 34-14 record in nearly four seasons at LSU, after being hired to replace Ed Orgeron following the 2021-22 season. Offensive Coordinator Joe Sloan was also relieved of his duties. RB Coach Frank Wilson has been named interim head coach.
Next week, notable games include the classic rivalry between Penn State and #1 Ohio State, #9 Vanderbilt vs #20 Texas, #18 Oklahoma vs #14 Tennessee, and #17 Cincinnati vs #24 Utah.
