Another surprising week of college football is in the books, so it’s time to shine a light on those teams and individuals who distinguished themselves on the gridiron:
Boise State’s defense: the Broncos, who are statistically one of the hardest teams to run on in the entire country, showed that they are equally adept at shutting down opposition passing games, too. On Friday night in Charlottesville, the ball-hawking Bronco defense intercept Cavaliers quarterback Matt Johns three times – including a pick-six on the opening play of the game from scrimmage – and forced two other turnovers and a sack in a 56-14 primetime rout.
Stanford: one week after their run game dominated USC in the Coliseum, they went on the road again, this time to Corvallis to play Oregon State in what was looming as something of a trap game after last week’s victory. No problems for the Cardinal. Despite QB Kevin Hogan appearing to be injured – he was in a moon boot after the game – the offense did enough to secure a 42-24 win. Hogan was 9-14 for 163 and two touchdowns. After an opening weekend loss to Northwestern in Evanston, Stanford has rebounded in astounding fashion.
Utah: the Utes are the real deal, ladies and gentlemen. How do we know for sure? Well, they went up to Eugene – one of the toughest places to go and win in college football – and absolutely dominated Oregon, rolling up 500 yards of total offense to go along with more than sixty points in a 62-20 win. The Ute defense forced three turnovers, and chased Ducks QB Vernon Adams from the game. The Pac-12 south is going to be a serious battleground this year.
Duke: surprised us all beating Georgia Tech 34-20 on the back of a solid defensive effort and a large slice of offense from RB Shaquille Powell, who ran for three touchdowns. The Blue Devils also returned a kick-off one hundred yards the other way. A total team effort, and a big win.
Josh Doctson: the Texas Christian receiver had a massive impact on Saturday, as the Horned Frogs barely outlasted a persistent Texas Tech squad 55-52 win. Doctson snagged eighteen passes for 267 yards and three touchdowns. Not a bad day out!
Michigan: the biggest win of the relatively short Jim Harbaugh came on Saturday in the Big House, where the Wolverines beat Brigham Young 31-0. Not many of us saw that one coming.
Brett Rypien: the Boise State freshman quarterback in his first start threw for three touchdowns and 321 yards as the Broncos went on the road to beat Virginia 56-14. Rypien is a highly-touted prospect out of high school in Spokane, Washington, and, thrust into the starting position after an ankle injury to Ryan Finley last weekend. It’s Rypien’s team now, and he’ll doubtless be glad to have plenty of offensive weapons to target, and a snarling defense, too.
Leonard Fournette: once more, the Louisiana State running back shredded a defense, eclipsing the 200-yard mark. This week, it was Syracuse in the Carrier Dome, and he ripped off 244 yards and two touchdowns. LSU won 34-24.
Indiana: after a 31-24 victory over Wake Forest, the Hoosiers are 4-0, their longest winning streak in twenty-eight years.
UCLA: the Bruins are the real deal, routing Arizona 56-30 on the back of another stellar performance from freshman quarterback Josh Rosen. He was 19-28 for 284 yards and two touchdowns passing, and added one rushing score.
Florida: very quietly, the Gators have opened the season 4-0, thanks to a comeback that featured two touchdowns in the last five minutes of the game. Jim McElwain’s squad deserve more notoriety than they’ve received so far this year.
Kentucky: the Wildcats beat South Carolina earlier in the year, and knocked off another SEC heavy in Missouri, thanks to two touchdowns from QB Patrick Towles. Kentucky, more known for basketball than football, are really surprising people this year. One of the feel-good stories in the SEC.
USC: the Trojans needed a big, statement-type win in Tempe against Arizona State, and they got it, charging to a 35-0 lead at half time – including two touchdowns scored in the last 0:24 seconds of the half – en route to a strong 42-14 victory over the Sun Devils. Both JuJu Smith-Schuster and Adoree’ Jackson had more than a hundred yards receiving. Crucially on Saturday night, the Trojan defense looked as good as it’s offense did. QB Cody Kessler, who had five touchdowns on the night, just keeps rolling along. Surely he’s a serious Heisman candidate now?
Jeremy McNichols: the Boise State running back recorded his FBS-leading tenth touchdown on the year. He’s a key cog in the Bronco offense, and defenses have had all sorts of trouble slowing him down, both on the ground and in the passing game. A dangerous weapon for freshman quarterback Brett Rypien.
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