You win against Georgia one Saturday and lose to Vanderbilt the next Saturday.
No team has had a week like No. 2 Alabama. After their most impressive September win over the Bulldogs, the Crimson Tide opened October with a loss to Vanderbilt, one of the most shocking upsets in SEC history. It could be counted as.
Led by quarterback Diego Pavia’s near-perfect performance, a ball-control game plan that kept Alabama’s offense on the sidelines, and two big scores, the Commodores beat Alabama 40-35 and advanced to a top-five opponent. It was the first win in program history. opponent. The win was the program’s first over the Tide since 1984.
Alabama coach Karen DeBoer, who toasted the city last week, now has to deal with the aftermath of the debacle. I can hear you Alabama fans from here: No, this would never have happened under Nick Saban.
That’s a fact. Vanderbilt, which had scored 13 points in four games against the Tide during the Saban era, had 13 points at the end of the first quarter on Saturday. Leading 23-14 at the break, the Commodores outscored Alabama’s surge and hit the dagger with a touchdown to make it 40-28 with five minutes left in the fourth quarter.
Forget everything you thought you knew about Alabama. Alabama is an elite team, with an elite offense, an elite quarterback, and an elite head coach, meaning they have a chance to grow every week heading into the SEC Championship. The loss erases all the good vibes from the win against the Bulldogs and threatens to swallow up DeBoer’s first season.
Meanwhile, Vanderbilt conducted a masterclass on how to pull off an upset against an opponent with a huge talent advantage.
The Commodores controlled the clock and held the ball for over 40 minutes. They avoided turnovers. Alabama had 46 plays to the Commodores’ 73, 53 of which came on the ground. They had more carries than the Tide played. They were unique enough offensively to shake up Alabama’s defense. At times, the Commodores got what they wanted against a defense and staff that had no answers.
And they were helped by the obvious fact. Alabama thought they would roll. Would that kind of thinking have happened under Saban? The answer is meaningless. With Saban gone, things aren’t the same.
Because of this, Alabama is the biggest loser in Week 6 of the regular season.
winner
ohio
The No. 3 Buckeyes’ first test of the season went smoothly in the second half. The first match wasn’t great. OSU led just 7-0 against Iowa at intermission after committing two turnovers and another on downs. But in the second half, the offense was revitalized by the Hawkeyes’ own efforts, with freshman wide receiver Jeremiah Smith and veteran Emeka Egbuka providing a boost. Smith made an outrageous one-handed touchdown grab to make it 14-0 five minutes into the third quarter. Quarterback Will Howard ran in a score after an Iowa fumble, and Egbuka scored twice in the second half and three points overall as the Buckeyes pulled away. Won 35-7.
washington
Nearly nine months after losing to Michigan in the 2023 National Championship, Washington declared itself a Big Ten with a 27-17 home victory over the No. 10 Wolverines. Michigan made a necessary quarterback change by adding veteran Jack Tuttle to the lineup after trying out Alex Orge, but Tuttle was the better player until a heartbreaking interception late in the fourth quarter that clinched the Huskies’ victory. it was good. After a bit of a sloppy start with some tough losses to Washington State and Rutgers, the Huskies got the must-win win ahead of some tough Big Ten play.
SMU
SMU has enjoyed unexpected success as a new member of the ACC. The Mustangs improved to 5-1 with a 34-27 win over No. 22 Louisville, joining No. 14 Clemson and Virginia as one of the top three teams at 2-0 in the conference standings. (The Cavaliers had another great story under third-year coach Tony Elliott.) SMU quarterback Kevin Jennings had a career day against the Cardinals, with 281 passing yards and a touchdown. He set a career best with 113 rushing yards on downs. That’s because this team could be an interesting addition to the postseason race. SMU will play Stanford, Duke, Pittsburgh, Boston College, Virginia and California in the second half.
florida
Was the 24-13 win over Central Florida the moment Billy Napier saved his job and booked another season as Florida’s head coach? Let’s think about it seriously. Napier is nearing the end of his tenure after three seasons, and the Gators are likely one year short of the postseason. But let’s give it a little credit here. UCF made the rounds in this game but never got a chance in what was arguably the best performance of the season for the Gators. Winning against the Knights is generally good for business — losing to a program that the university views as an in-state upstart would have been a real tough pill to swallow — and the team’s second straight win means the next They will be facing a grueling seven-game series. Games against Tennessee, Georgia and Texas.
army and navy
The two service academies continue to excel, increasing the possibility of the most hyped meeting in this rivalry in generations. Army put Tulsa to bed early and finished with an impressive 321 yards rushing and 26.7 yards per pass attempt for a 49-7 victory. Navy won Game 3 of the Commander in Chief Trophy, defeating Air Force 34-7 and ending the Falcons’ series winning streak at four. The Black Knights and Midshipmen are now a combined 10-0 for the first time since 1945.
Indiana
No. 24 Indiana has spent plenty of time flying under the radar. This team deserves praise for having one of the best starts in program history and deserves a rightful spot among the playoff contenders. After defeating Northwestern 41-24, the Hoosiers were 6-0 for the first time since 1967 and locked into bowl play for the sixth time since 1993. This offseason was remade with a number of top transfers from the Group of Five, led by former Ohio State. Indiana quarterback Curtis Rourke is averaging 47.5 points per game and has topped the 40-point mark in all three of his Big Ten games.
loser
missouri
Playing against a regular team for the first time on the road, Missouri State lost 41-10 to No. 21 Texas A&M, making it clear that the Tigers are contenders for the College Football Playoff and at the same time under new coach Mike Elko. He emphasized that the Aggies are clearly improving. Missouri was never considered a team that could legitimately win a conference championship, but it was an expansion that could give space to every team in the SEC and Big Ten with fewer than three losses during the regular season. They were expected to benefit from the postseason format. The Tigers, who escaped double overtime against Vanderbilt to start the league game and were sent off the field by A&M, can no longer be taken seriously in playoff discussions.
southern california
Life in the Big Ten won’t be easy. The No. 15 Trojans were expecting tough games of national importance against the likes of Michigan State and Ohio State, but what about Minnesota? This was one of the Big Ten games USC was supposed to be in as well, with USC on its way to finishing in the top third of the conference and playoff contention for the year. That may be the case in the future. Not so in 2024. Despite the Golden Gophers’ stupidity and attempts to give this game back to USC, the Trojans allowed a short fourth touchdown run with less than a minute left and lost 24-17. Losing two of three games in the Big Ten is starting to show USC what it’s like to navigate a conference with less depth and fewer outs than the Pac-12.
florida
Hey, Florida State lost again. This one was a little easier to understand. The Seminoles didn’t suffer a blowout loss to Clemson, 29-13, but their bowl hopes were once again in jeopardy with six games left in the regular season. There was a change at quarterback, but there was no noticeable change from an underperforming offense. Brock Glenn, replacing injured DJ Uiagalelei, averaged 5.6 yards per attempt and held FSU to just 22 yards on 23 carries. The Seminoles, now 1-5, still have to play Miami and Notre Dame, so it will take a near miracle to make it to the postseason.
oklahoma
This season has come to an end too quickly. Two weeks ago, Oklahoma State was ranked No. 15 in the nation heading into its Big 12 opener against then-No. 1 Oklahoma State. 10 Utah. After three games, the Cowboys are at the bottom of the conference standings with three wins and three losses. If losses to the Utes (22-19) and No. 20 Kansas State (42-20) were any indication of how far Oklahoma is from the top of the league, it will be 38-3 at home against West Virginia on Saturday. The fact that they lost by 14 says even worse: With their offense struggling and their defense collapsing, the Cowboys went from a team with potential to make it to the big leagues to a team looking to win six games all the way. It has grown to the point where it is scrambled.
north carolina
Although far from Florida State’s level of disaster, North Carolina State has to rank among the biggest disappointments, sitting at 3-3 in the Power Four and winless in the ACC midway through the regular season. The Wolfpack, ranked No. 22 in the preseason U.S. LBM Coaches Poll, has wins over Western Carolina, Louisiana Tech and Northern Illinois. They lost to Tennessee and Clemson by a total of 65 points. Then on Saturday, they suffered an inexplicable 34-30 loss to Wake Forest. Wake Forest struggled early, but scored two touchdowns in the final eight minutes to snatch the road victory.
Alabama-Birmingham
As coach Trent Dilfer said after last week’s loss to Navy, UAB is not Alabama. Yeah, the Blazers aren’t Alabama A&M either. This, and perhaps the worst coaching hire in a decade, continues to be a disaster for UAB, which fell to 1-4 after a 71-20 loss to Tulane. (Not a typo.) Hired an unqualified, arrogant, unproven former NFL quarterback to run one of the most consistently successful programs in the Group of Five. It actually turned out to be a terrible decision. That’s too nice. Dilfer was handed a winner, pure and simple, and turned this winner into a punchline. UAB’s fan base deserves much better than this.
(This story has been updated with new information and changes to the video.)