Another week is in the books and we saw a handful of top teams struggle against lower-level competition, including a couple of big upsets. There were also two top-25 matchups as conference competition truly starts to fire up. So, let’s jump into the performances of the week…
No. 7 Texas A&M (3-0) @ No. 16 Arkansas (3-0)
Result: Texas A&M: 10 – Arkansas: 20
One of the high-profile top-25 matchups of the week came in the SEC West, as the red-hot Razorbacks took on Jimbo Fisher’s Aggies. Texas A&M came into the season with high hopes, but the Aggies have failed to prove anything yet this season and are already without starting QB Haynes King. The loss of King was apparent for the A&M offense on Saturday, as backup QB Zach Calzada completed just 20 of 36 passes for 151 yards and an interception. Meanwhile, the ground game was able to get some things going, RB Isaiah Spillerracked up 95 yards and a score on just 12 carries, but falling behind early forced A&M to abandon the rushing attack.
However, Sam Pittman’s Arkansas squad came to play. QB K.J. Jefferson went just 7/15, but he averaged 30.29 yards per completion, racking up 212 passing yards total alongside two touchdowns. While Jefferson played well, a large portion of his stat line came because of the play of standout WR Treylon Burks, who caught 6 passes for 167 yards and a score while tacking on a 14-yard rush. Meanwhile, the rushing attack saw 6 players run for positive yardage, including RB Trelon Smith, who contributed 82 yards on the ground, and K.J. Jefferson, who racked up 50 yards on the ground.
Arkansas now has two big wins this season against Texas and Texas A&M. However, the Razorbacks face an incredibly challenging schedule, but they could truly compete for the SEC title if they keep up their strong play. Arkansas did see both Jefferson and Burks leave this game early, but Pittman said both should be ready for a huge game against #2 Georgia next weekend.
No. 12 Notre Dame vs No. 18 Wisconsin
Result: Notre Dame: 41 – Wisconsin: 13
While the final score may look like a blowout, this was a very competitive game for most of the contest as both teams were tied at 10 points going into the final quarter. However, Badgers’ QB Graham Mertz turned the ball over four times in the fourth quarter, including two Fighting Irish pick-sixes. In total, Mertz’ four picks and 18/41 statline led to a putrid QBR of just 17.6. With this subpar QB play, the rest of the Wisconsin offense also struggled even though their defense kept them in the game early. RB Chez Mellusi gained just 54 yards on 18 carries while Jalen Berger saw just one carry, where he gained 8 yards.
Notre Dame’s offense also struggled mightily, as QB Jack Coan went 15/29 for 158 yards and 1 TD before he went down with an injury and Drew Pyne stepped in, completing 6 of his 8 passes for 81 yards and a score. While the two QBs made some plays in the passing attack, Wisconsin’s defense absolutely stifled the Irish rushing attack, as Kyren Williams gained just 33 yards on 18 carries and the team’s longest run of the day came on an 8-yard scramble by Coan. The bright spots for Brian Kelly and his staff have to be the pass-catchers, as Kevin Austin Jr. caught 6 passes for 71 yards and 2 scores while star TE Michael Mayer added 7 receptions for 61 yards.
Both squads will have to prepare for tough contests this week, as Wisconsin hosts #14 Michigan and their high-powered rushing attack while Notre Dame hosts #7 Cincinnati and QB Desmond Ridder.
No. 14 Iowa State (2-1) @ Baylor (3-0)
Result: Iowa State: 29 – Baylor: 31
One of the big upsets of this week came in Texas, as Dave Aranda’s Bears took on an in-conference opponent in Iowa State. Nobody expected Baylor to open the season with four wins, and very few expected this squad to win four games in total. Just last season, Aranda and the Bears won just 2 of their 9 games after former HC Matt Rhule left for the Panthers.
This year’s Baylor squad is led by Redshirt-Junior QB Gerry Bohanon, who has completed 73% of his passes and thrown for 7 TDs on the season. In this game, Bohanon went 14/19 for 159 yards and 2 TDs. Meanwhile, the Baylor rushing attack chimed in with 123 yards of their own, with Bohanon accounting for 36 of them, while senior RBs Abram Smith and Trestan Ebner added 47 and 31 yards, respectively. Ebner also added this fantastic kickoff return TD:
Trestan Ebner’s speed boost didn’t get enough coverage yesterday: pic.twitter.com/sslooIpoqD
— Pick Six Previews (@PickSixPreviews) September 26, 2021
On the other side, QB Brock Purdy‘s disappointing season continued, as the senior went 22/33 for 263 yards, 1 TD, and an interception. Meanwhile, standout RB Breece Hall racked up 190 yards rushing and 2 TDs on 27 attempts, alongside 5 receptions for 51 yards and another score.
As the season moves on, Baylor will get a couple more chances to prove their mettle, as they face #19 Oklahoma State and #13 BYU in the next three weeks.
Meanwhile, Iowa State has to be disappointed with their 2-2 start, but they have a couple of bounceback opportunities on the schedule coming up in Kansas and Kansas State.
No. 9 Clemson (2-1) @ North Carolina St (2-1)
Result (2OT):Clemson: 21 – NC State: 27
Clemson has had a million times as many questions this season as they have answers, and that trend continued in week 4. Former 5-star QB D.J. Uiagalelei has struggled all season, and he and the Tigers came up short once again. Uiagalelei completed just 12 of his 26 passes for a paltry 111 yards, 2 TDs, and an interception. Meanwhile, the rest of the Tigers offense has been laid into the hands of just three players: WR Justyn Ross, WR Joseph Ngata, and freshman RB Will Shipley. The latter of which suffered an injury in this game and is now out for 3-4 weeks. Meanwhile, Ross caught 8 of DJU’s 12 completions for 77 yards and 2 scores.
That footwork tho 👀@ClemsonFB strikes first as D.J. Uiagalelei finds Justyn Ross for the TD 🚀 pic.twitter.com/Nc222tX5nf
— ACC Network (@accnetwork) September 25, 2021
For the wolfpack, it was a balanced offensive attack that led them to a win, as they put up 238 passing yards alongside 148 rushing yards. QB Devin Leary completed 32 of his 44 attempts for 238 yards and a staggering four touchdowns. His WRs showed up as well, with sophomore Devin Carter racking up 54 yards and 2 scores and senior Emeka Emezie added 14 receptions, 116 yards, and another score. In the rushing attack, NC State’s 2-headed backfield put together a solid game, with Redshirt-Junior RB Ricky Person Jr rushing for 91 yards on 21 attempts and Redshirt-Sophomore RB Zonovan Knight adding another 79 yards on 23 attempts of his own.
With Clemson struggling, it’s extremely unlikely the Tigers crack the CFB Playoff once again, and NC State now finds themselves in a wide-open ACC Atlantic division if Clemson continues to struggle.
Alongside Clemson, fellow ACC favorite North Carolina has also already dropped two games, including a big loss to Georgia Tech this weekend. Now, the ACC is fair game for a handful of teams, and it seems very, very unlikely that the conference is represented in the final four.
Missouri (2-1) @ Boston College (3-0)
Result (OT): Missouri: 34 – Boston College: 41
Boston College came into the season with high hopes, but their 3 wins so far this year have been offset by a season-ending injury to QB Phil Jurkovec, who was fantastic in his ten games for the Eagles last year. However, backup Dennis Grosel has played well enough to let the BC run game lead the way. Redshirt-Sophomore RB Pat Garwo III rushed 25 times in this game, gaining 175 yards while scoring two touchdowns. Standout WR Zay Flowers caught 8 passes for 62 yards and a score as well.
Pat Garwo 67 yard touchdown! 🏈
Boston College (-1) still down 14-7 to Mizzou pic.twitter.com/j3IQubyYYw
— PointsBet Sportsbook (@PointsBetUSA) September 25, 2021
Missouri hasn’t done well thus far this season, and it’s mostly due to their defense. The Tigers are 129th of 130 FBS teams in terms of rush defense and they’ve been shredded by both of the Power-5 opponents they’ve played so far. QB Connor Bazelak and RB Tyler Badie had done well on offense before this game, but both struggled against BC. Bazelak went 30 for 41 and racked up 303 passing yards. However, his 1 touchdown pass was offset by two interceptions. Meanwhile, Badie only mustered 72 yards on 18 attempts.
As mentioned before, the ACC is wide-open and Boston College, already at 4-0, should be looking to make a run at the conference championship, and they’ll have a massive opportunity to prove they’re true contenders against Clemson next weekend. Meanwhile, Missouri is 0-2 in SEC play and will face-off against Tennessee this coming Saturday.
Individual Performances
Passing
Pittsburgh QB Kenny Pickett vs New Hampshire (W 77-7): 24/28, 403 yards, 5 TDs
The fifth-year Senior QB has had a solid season this year, but he definitely took full advantage of a weak opponent in this game. He’s been the Panthers’ starter for years now, but he hasn’t been able to turn that opportunity into legitimate appeal for NFL scouts.
Maryland QB Taulia Tagovailoa vs Kent State (W 37-16): 31/41, 384 yards, 3 TDs, 1 INT
Taulia has been one of my biggest risers in the 2021 class over the course of the season, as he’s been playing great for Mike Locksley’s Terrapins. Although he lived in his brother’s shadow at Alabama, I think we’ll be talking about the younger Tagovailoa when draft season rolls around.
Fresno St QB Jake Haener vs UNLV (W 38-30): 30/42, 378 yards, 5 TDs, 1 INT
Just like Tagovailoa, Haener has been a massive riser for the upcoming draft, as he’s led the Bulldogs to a fantastic 4-1 start. The Washington transfer lacks prototypical NFL size at just 6’1″, but he’s got intangibles that could easily make him a highly coveted backup in the late rounds of the upcoming draft.
Rushing
Northwestern RB Evan Hull vs Ohio (W 35-6): 22 attempts, 216 yards, 2 TDs
Hull wasn’t a great back over his past two seasons at Northwestern, but he’s been great in 2021, racking up 478 rushing yards en route to an 85.3 PFF grade. If he can keep up these types of performances against the Wildcats’ upcoming conference schedule, he could catapult himself into this year’s draft conversation.
Army QB Christian Anderson vs Miami(Ohio) (W 23-10): 15 attempts, 237 yards, 2 TDs
While Quarterbacks aren’t usually rushing leaders, Army’s triple-option attack lends itself to strong rushing performances from the position. In fact, Anderson went 0/5 passing in this game but still led the Golden Knights to a win with his legs. Army has now started the season with 4 consecutive wins, but they’ve yet to face a quality opponent outside of Western Kentucky.
Syracuse RB Sean Tucker vs Liberty (W 24-21): 32 attempts, 169 yards, 1 TD
While Tucker wasn’t extremely efficient in this game, he’s been a very pleasant surprise for the Orangeman so far this season. The Redshirt-Freshman has 536 yards on the season with 7 TDs and a solid receiving line – 9 receptions, 175 yards, and a TD.
Receiving
USC WR Drake London vs Oregon St (L 27-45): 10 receptions, 165 yards
While London wasn’t exactly electric in his first two seasons for the Trojans, he’s taken off this year and now leads the FBS in receiving yards. He should definitely re-join the conversation amongst the top WRs in the 2021 class.
Penn St WR Parker Washington vs Villanova (W 38-17): 5 receptions, 148 yards, 2 TDs
The sophomore standout has been a great player for the Nittany Lions since he stepped on campus, and he looks to be one of the top options at WR for the 2022 NFL Draft. At just 5’10”, he’s a little smaller than the prototypical alpha build, but he has excellent athleticism similar to a couple of other recent, short prospects at the position.
UTEP WR Jacob Cowing vs New Mexico (W 20-13): 7 receptions, 174 yards, 1 TD
Cowing has been fantastic for a small school WR this season, as he’s currently fourth in the nation in receiving yards and tied for 11th in receiving TDs. Alongside QB Gavin Hardison, he has helped lead the Miners to a 3-1 start, and he’ll be eligible for the 2021 NFL Draft he so chooses.
