BY: COLIN BISH, SPORTS DEPARTMENT
A lot of crazy, awful stuff has happened in the last week. All I can say is I hope everyone reading this is physically and mentally safe and sound. But if anything can bring us together, it’s sports! Uniting people from all different walks of life and unique experiences under a banner of competition and action.
Whether we’re rooting for our team against another, or we’re just appreciating the players going at it, or praying that parlay hits, sports are a reflection of how we can come together and find camaraderie and solace in each other. Some call it a distraction; I consider it a coping mechanism. And I’m sure that so many people appreciated this week of college football, whether your team won or lost. Let’s dive into Week 3!
The Good:
Texas A&M Gets Revenge in South Bend
How am I supposed to pick a Game of the Year between this, and Georgia-Tennessee? Both squads were desperate for a win, in different ways: Aggies want to prove themselves, meanwhile the Irish try to avoid an 0-2 start. And both teams came out swinging for the fences. O
ver 900 total yards of offense combined, this matchup became a pendulum swinging, back and forth, total chaos. The Aggies responded to a 24-14 deficit in the second quarter with two Le’Veon Moss rushing touchdowns to take a 28-24 halftime lead. Notre Dame and Texas A&M would trade scores, neither breaking faith. Notre Dame grabbed a 40-34 lead on a Jeremiyah Love touchdown, but placekicking holder Tyler Buchner fumbled the snap, which kept the game at a six-point advantage. Aggies quarterback Marcel Reed drove the team down the field, finding tight end Nate Boerkircher for the touchdown on fourth-and-goal with 13 seconds left. Kicker Randy Bond gave Texas A&M the lead, 41-40, before the defense secured the victory.
An amazing game and incredible effort by Mike Elko’s squad, especially after their starting safety, Bryce Anderson, left the game on a stretcher with a head injury. Thankfully, Anderson is doing better, regaining feeling in his limbs soon after he was taken to a hospital. And I’m sure he was ecstatic to learn that his boys came through.
Georgia Still SEC’s Top Dawgs
With Joey Aguilar lighting it up in Knoxville, much hype flooded the Tennessee faithful that THIS was the year they beat Georgia. They had not beaten the Bulldogs since 2016, and with Georgia looking weak offensively, surely they would finally break this curse. You must’ve forgotten who these Dawgs were. This is Kirby Smart we’re talking about; one way or another, his team finds a way. And the offense found its way.
Gunner Stockton finally came out of his passing slump, completing 23/31 passes for 304 yards and two touchdowns. One of them coming on fourth down and six to go, in the fourth quarter, connecting with London Humphreys for the touchdown and later Zachariah Branch for the tying two-point conversion. One missed game-winning field goal later (we’ll get there) and another made field goal in the first overtime, and Georgia found themselves down 41-38 in overtime. But the run game pulled through, thrashing the Vols defense in overtime as Josh McCray scored the winning touchdown. The UT misery prolonged, Georgia remains unbeaten and still the team to beat in the SEC.
DeBoer and Alabama Clicking at the Right Time
A lot’s been made about the Tide so far this year, especially after their horrible loss to Florida State to start the year. But, if they play like they have the past two weeks, they can easily pull themselves back up. Alabama welcomed Wisconsin into Tuscaloosa, and then proudly bounced them back to Madison. The Tide won 38-14, totaling 454 yards of offense compared to the Badgers’ 209. Quarterback Ty Simpson completed 24 of 29 passes for 382 yards and four touchdowns. Ryan Williams finally seems to be catching his stride after a poor game against FSU, catching five passes for 165 yards and two touchdowns. The defense also showed great signs, as mentioned, holding Wisconsin to 209 yards of offense and forcing two turnovers on the day.
These past two weeks have been a huge boost for DeBoer’s team, who go into a bye week before traveling to Athens to take on Georgia. What happens in said game is yet to be seen. But, with how Alabama has rebounded after Week 1, they showed that, at their best, they’ll be a tough team for anyone to best.
West Virginia Rebounds in Backyard Brawl
Last week, I discussed the Mountaineers’ 17-10 loss to Ohio, which gave me a bad feeling moving forward for West Virginia. But Rich Rodriguez’ squad must’ve heard the noise (if you heard it from me, it’s not personal, I swear), as they came out angry and determined to get the best of their most hated rival, Pitt.
After going down 24-14 with under 10 minutes left in the fourth quarter, West Virginia tied the game with a field goal at 5:03 before Nicco Marchiol found Grayson Barnes for the two-yard touchdown to nod it up at 24 a piece. Tye Edwards gave WVU the lead in overtime with a one-yard rushing score, and the defense forced an errant pass from Panthers quarterback Eli Holstein on fourth down to secure the victory. Edwards finished the game with 25 rushes for 141 yards and three touchdowns, helping the Mountaineers improve to 2-1.
What once looked like another disappointing season has turned into one of subtle optimism; a comeback win against your bitter rival can work wonders for team morale. However, we’ll see if the turnaround is for real when West Virginia travels to Lawrence next week to take on the Kansas Jayhawks.
The Bad:
Tennessee’s Mistakes Undo a Surefire Win
As I mentioned previously, Tennessee and Georgia went to war in Knoxville, and it looked like the Vols could finally pull through. They shined offensively, racking up almost 500 yards of total offense. However, rampant mistakes down the stretch undid so much good. Joey Aguilar, despite his brilliance with five total touchdowns on the day, threw two interceptions, one of which led to three points for the Bulldogs. Not to mention the Vols defense falling flat, surrendering 502 yards of offense to Georgia, whose passing offense woke up from their nap last week. But the biggest came at the most inopportune time.
With the fourth quarter winding down, Aguilar would drive the ball to the 20-yard line, setting up a chip-shot field goal for the win. But a false start by a Vols offensive lineman drove them back five yards, making the kick much harder for Max Gilbert. He was practically automatic from 30-39 yards, this would have been 38. But he struggled more in the 40-yard range, where the penalty backed him up to a 43-yarder.
Can you guess what happens next? Gilbert misses the field goal, Georgia takes advantage in overtime, the loss streak continues. In no way does the Vols’ season crumble; it’s a valiant effort. They can compete with the best, as they just proved. But competing with the best means nothing in the CFP, where not only do you have to compete with the best, but you also have to beat them sometimes, too.
Florida In Crisis Mode Heading Into Hellish Schedule
Someone at the Florida athletic department has to be paying ABC big bucks. How can Florida play like that and get a second straight primetime slot against Miami next week? Keep those Gators off my screen, please! In what could have been a bounce-back effort from Billy Napier’s team, they fell flatter than my roommate’s pong table Saturday night.
Offensively, they looked atrocious. Granted, they are playing a top-of-the-line defense in LSU. That unit is legit. But five interceptions from DJ Lagway? That’s more than one bargained for. Especially when such interceptions were drive-killers. A third-quarter interception led to a pick-six from LSU’s Dashawn Spears. In the fourth quarter, with Florida grabbing a big interception of their own, a drive that could’ve led to points ended with another interception. When it’s all said and done, LSU would close out the 20-10 victory over their rival. They’ll take on Miami on the road next week, then Texas at home, then the Aggies in College Station. Good luck, boys!
South Florida Finally Loses
It was bound to happen, my fellow dreamers. As much as we wanted to go all the way back to 2007, when the Bulls peaked at #2 in the BCS rankings, that timeline has long passed. South Florida went into Miami and got stomped, 49-12. Carson Beck shows that he’s completely changed since his Georgia days, completing 23/28 passes for 340 yards and three touchdowns, while Mark Fletcher Jr. added 120 yards on 16 carries for two touchdowns on the ground.
That vaunted Bulls defense finally snapped, surrendering nearly 600 yards of offense to the Hurricanes. While it’s an awful loss, and South Florida fell out of the rankings, this in no way means their season is over. But the road ahead is tough. Four undefeated teams remain in the AAC; three of them (Navy, Memphis and North Texas) the Bulls will be on the road for. USF could certainly still run their gauntlet and make the CFP, as proven by their performances against Boise State and Florida, but this Miami game was no doubt a major setback.
Cyclones Escape Scare In Jonesboro
Iowa State has been a team I haven’t talked about too much, but I haven’t forgotten them. Their defense has been stellar, shutting down opposing offenses while quarterback Rocco Becht has done a solid job leading the offense. But they’ve been in many close matchups, including Iowa and Kansas State. And that once again became the case, this time on the road against the Sun Belt’s Arkansas State.
The Red Wolves even took the lead in the second quarter before Iowa State took it right back with a Dominic Overby touchdown catch. Arkansas State would pull within one before ISU’s Abu Sama III padded the lead to 24-16, which ultimately ended up being the final score. As they say, a win is a win, but that has to leave a bad taste in the team’s mouth. Even a favorable Big 12 schedule, where ISU avoids both Texas Tech and Utah, shouldn’t be a given that the Cyclones will make the CFP. Crazier things have happened, but Iowa State could certainly be upended by a trap game. Look no further than what transpired last year at home against Texas Tech.
The Ugly:
Clemson Down Hard After Last-Second Heartbreak
Things just get worse, and worse, and worse, and worse about six more times for Clemson. What was thought to be one of the nation’s most prolific offenses is a victim of constant slow starts that doom them later on. We saw Week 1 against LSU. And then the next week against Troy, though they won that game, as they should have. Yet again, the offense couldn’t get it going on the road against Georgia Tech, and they left the Yellow Jackets in for too long.
Despite Adam Randall tying the game with a touchdown, Georgia Tech got the football just far enough to help Aidan Birr kick the game-winning field goal from 55 yards. Clemson now falls to 1-2, the first time since 2014, and the future isn’t looking much better. Then again, with the new 12-team format, they could run the table and get a playoff spot. But the way they’re playing makes it hard to believe. The defense is great, but the offense has been atrocious. Dabo needs to fix something before things go way off the rails and Clemson falls out of the Playoff race entirely.
Arch Isn’t Clicking, and the Fans Let Him Know It
The Arch Manning roller coaster continues to go up and down, but not that fun roller coaster. The kind of roller coaster that’s unnecessarily topsy-turvy, leaves you feeling sick and regretting that you should’ve just gone on the merry-go-round with your little cousin instead.
After a nice game last week against San Jose State, Manning went cold against the UTEP Miners. Despite two rushing touchdowns, Arch finished 11/25 in completions for 114 yards, one touchdown and one interception. At one point he threw ten straight incompletions up until late in the second quarter where the Longhorn faithful rained down boos. Paul Finebaum calls out Manning’s “privilege” after the boos, but I’m not sure what he’s talking about. Nobody is holding Arch to this “one above all” standard that Finebaum is creating in his head, at least not from what I’ve seen.
I get it, expectation is a lofty ordeal, especially for a young kid like Manning, regardless of his social status and wealth. But I do agree that he needs to be better. If Texas has any hopes of rebounding after the Week 1 loss and winning the national title, Manning has to take that next step forward. And he of all people knows that.
Gamecocks Lose Sellers as Vanderbilt Rolls
To quote the legendary Seth “Freakin” Rollins, “I am a visionary!” And I envisioned a Vanderbilt upset on the road over South Carolina. Well, I didn’t exactly call it, only just said it was possible. It still counts! Anyways, the conversation needs to be made about the job Vandy coach Clark Lea has done to turn around this program. They are rolling at the right time right as the gauntlet of SEC play begins.
As for South Carolina, Shane Beamer’s team is in a bad spot. Quarterback LaNorris Sellers was knocked out of the game with a head injury after Vandy’s Langston Patterson delivered a helmet-to-helmet hit. While Patterson was ejected, it could not make up for the loss of their Heisman-contending signal caller. The Gamecocks committed four turnovers in the 31-7 loss and, even worse, there’s no time on Sellers’ immediate status, as he was confirmed to suffer a concussion. Backup Luke Doty didn’t exactly create any optimism with his play last Saturday, which spells big worry for South Carolina as they head on the road to face a surging Missouri squad.
Our First Coach Firings of 2025
I knew coach firings would be inbound for programs, but this early? Didn’t see that coming. Maybe it’s the sign of the tides changing in college football; every athletic department is in a “win-now” mindset. However, a more likely explanation is that both UCLA and Virginia Tech looked horrendous. The Hokies let go of Brent Pry after back-to-back stinkers at home against Vanderbilt and Old Dominion, which saw a streak of over four quarters of play where Tech was outscored 65-0 between the Commodores and Monarchs. As for UCLA, they let go of DeShaun Foster, which honestly was expected.
Across an 0-3 start, the Bruins were outscored 108-43 against Utah, UNLV and New Mexico. The offense and defense are both absolute garbage. Too harsh? I can’t describe it in any other way. They are BAD. So Foster being let go is understandable, as was Pry’s firing, but I thought it’d come later on. Guess both departments saw enough. Hokies and Bruins nations, it’s time to think about 2026.
Questions for Week 4:
How Will Indiana Show Up Against Real Competition?
So far, the Hoosiers have been a well-oiled machine that’s run through a weak non-conference schedule. Outside of Old Dominion in Week 1, as we saw how they played Virginia Tech, I can’t say the same for Kennesaw State and Indiana State. But this will easily be the biggest challenge for Curt Cignetti so far in 2025. #9 Illinois is on a roll, having won seven straight games heading back to last season. Luke Altmyer has been superb so far, while the Illini defense under Bret Bielema is lock-down. This will be a whole different beast that this Indiana team will face, but you know quarterback Fernando Mendoza will be ready.
My only gripe is that this should be College GameDay; nobody wants to see Miami drag Florida through the mud. This isn’t the early 2000s anymore. Makes even less sense considering FSU-Miami is coming soon, this being the first matchup in a long time where both teams are towards the top. I don’t get it. You can’t even make the excuse that it’s SEC bias, but this is not an SEC team worth watching. Maybe they want to ramp up the anti-Billy Naper propaganda. Regardless, it’ll be a fun matchup between the Illini and Hoosiers in a pivotal Big Ten matchup.
Who Will Get an Early Leg-Up in the Big 12?
Another game that’s worthy of a College GameDay visit, as undefeated Texas Tech travels to Salt Lake City to take on Utah. The Utes are 3-0 after their dominant defensive performance at Wyoming in a 31-6 win. Devon Dampier, the transfer quarterback from New Mexico, has revitalized the offense, leading the team in passing and rushing yards. But the biggest battle to watch will be Texas Tech’s offense against the Utes defense. The 3-0 Red Raiders have scored 174 points across their first three games, thanks in part to Behren Morton. The senior signal caller has thrown for 923 passing yards, 11 touchdowns and one interception.
He’ll have a tough challenge against Kyle Whittingham’s defense; led by John Henry Daley, who has 13 tackles and five sacks in three games, the Utes have held their opponents to 25 points combined. With the Big 12 wide open early on, especially after Iowa State’s scare, this matchup will be pivotal in a potential CFP berth for the winning team.
Will Retzlaff and Tulane Challenge Ole Miss?
In the aftermath of his wild offseason, Jake Retzlaff has become one of the most underrated players in the country. The BYU transfer has completed 46 of 78 passes for 522 yards and two passing touchdowns, but he’s been elite on the ground, rushing 40 times for 288 yards and six touchdowns.
So far, Jon Sumrall’s team is 2-0 this season against the Power 4, beating Northwestern to open the season and taking down Duke last Saturday. However, both were at home, and the Green Wave face their toughest challenge yet against #13 Ole Miss in Oxford.
While the Rebels started slow under Austin Simmons, they exploded for a thrilling 41-35 win over Arkansas under new starting quarterback Trinidad Chambliss. Formerly at Division-II powerhouse Ferris State, Chambliss came into Week 3 and lit up the Razorbacks for 415 total yards and three total touchdowns. Tulane will have their hands full this weekend, but if they pull off the upset, or even if they just play well and barely lose, they’ll be a strong contender for the Group of Five’s Playoff bid.
Is USC Finally Where They Need to Be?
Everything that’s happened post-2022 Pac-12 Championship, USC fans would love to forget. They were one win away from the CFP in Caleb Williams’ Heisman season before Utah smoked them and dashed their dreams. They fell short of expectations in both 2023 and 2024, with the temperature turning up on Lincoln Riley’s job security. However, this year has finally seemed to be a turnaround for the Trojans. The offense has been electric, finally finding its once lost fervor after Williams’ departure and the Miller Moss experiment’s failure.
UNLV transfer Jayden Maiava, last year’s initial backup to Moss, stuck around for 2025 and has been excellent with 989 passing yards and six touchdowns. He’s backed up by running back Waymond Jordan, with 286 rushing yards and three touchdowns, and receiver Makai Lemon, who’s caught 16 passes for 311 yards and two touchdowns. The defense has been solid, too, led by linebacker Eric Gentry, amassing 21 tackles and three sacks; both lead the team.
Riley has done a good job thus far reestablishing USC, but this next month-long stretch will show if they’re for real. It will start with Michigan State at home on Saturday before playing at Illinois, home against Michigan and then in South Bend against rival Notre Dame.
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