We had laughter, and we had rivalry tears. We had a second-and-59. We had what felt like record-setting levels of chippiness and yellow flags -- FBS teams averaged 59.5 penalty yards per team (most since Week 5 of 2022), with 15 teams topping 100 penalty yards. We nearly had the No. 1 team falling to an unranked opponent.
Both Tennessee and South Alabama put us on 100-point watch until mercy set in. A MAC team blew out an SEC team. Texas lost its Heisman-favorite quarterback to minor injury, and his backup looked even better. Indiana (???) looked incredible again (!!!).
Week 3 of the college football season had its share of unique moments. And it left us with 43 unbeaten teams. With everyone having had a chance to leave a couple of different impressions, it's time to do what I do: rank all 43. How do you do that? With the eye test? By leaning on metrics? By determining who has the better résumé? By declaring "Ain't played nobody!" and punishing teams arbitrarily?
All of the above, of course! A little bit of everything! Let's get to it.
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Ranking unbeatens | Biggest surprises
Heisman of week | 10 favorite games
1. Texas Longhorns (3-0)
SP+ and FPI rankings: third and first, respectively
SP+ strength of schedule to date: 34th
Odds of reaching 12-0, per SP+: 23.1%
What they did in Week 3: def. UTSA 56-7
The Longhorns smoked the (admittedly flawed) defending national champions last week, and their backup quarterback would immediately become a Heisman favorite (like the starter) if he became the starter. This is a pretty scary team at the moment.
2. Tennessee Volunteers (3-0)
SP+ and FPI rankings: sixth and fourth
SP+ strength of schedule to date: 102nd
Odds of reaching 12-0, per SP+: 7.4%
What they did in Week 3: def. Kent State 71-0
I always talk about how it's how you play that matters, not whom. If you're treating bad opponents like high school teams, that probably means something. And with a combined scoring margin of 191-13 so far, the Vols have treated three opponents, including NC State, like high school teams.
3. Alabama Crimson Tide (3-0)
SP+ and FPI rankings: second and second
SP+ strength of schedule to date: 70th
Odds of reaching 12-0, per SP+: 10.3%
What they did in Week 3: def. Wisconsin 42-10
The offense is still all or nothing (63rd in success rate but eighth in yards per successful play), and that looked like it might backfire a bit in Week 2 against South Florida, but the Crimson Tide have looked the part of a national title contender for about eight of 12 quarters thus far.
4. Ohio State Buckeyes (2-0)
SP+ and FPI rankings: first and third
SP+ strength of schedule to date: 126th
Odds of reaching 12-0, per SP+: 25.7%
What they did in Week 3: bye
The Buckeyes get one more tuneup this week (vs. Marshall) before the schedule starts ramping up. Besides a slow start against Akron (in an eventual 46-point win), it's hard to find much to complain about at the moment. SP+ certainly can't find anything.
5. Georgia Bulldogs (3-0)
SP+ and FPI rankings: fifth and fifth
SP+ strength of schedule to date: 27th
Odds of reaching 12-0, per SP+: 3.5%
What they did in Week 3: def. Kentucky 13-12
The differences between the top six (or maybe even seven) teams on this list are pretty marginal. So the fact that Georgia has played one dismal game -- and the teams above the Dawgs have not -- makes a difference for now. The defense allows no big plays whatsoever, but I need to see more from this offense. (And I probably will.)
6. Ole Miss Rebels (3-0)
SP+ and FPI rankings: fourth and sixth
SP+ strength of schedule to date: 122nd
Odds of reaching 12-0, per SP+: 19.8%
What they did in Week 3: def. Wake Forest 40-6
Only Tennessee has more thoroughly destroyed a (mostly weak) schedule than Lane Kiffin's Rebels have. Against three teams ranked 86th or worse in SP+, they've scored 162 points and allowed just 9. The schedule ramps up pretty quickly after next week, though.
7. Miami Hurricanes (3-0)
SP+ and FPI rankings: ninth and eighth
SP+ strength of schedule to date: 81st
Odds of reaching 12-0, per SP+: 15.3%
What they did in Week 3: def. Ball State 62-0
There are tricky road trips on the horizon -- including visits to three teams on this list (Cal, Louisville and Syracuse) -- but it would be almost impossible for Miami to prove more than it has this year. The Hurricanes' attention span has barely drifted since their opening romp over Florida.
8. USC Trojans (2-0)
SP+ and FPI rankings: 17th and 12th
SP+ strength of schedule to date: 31st
Odds of reaching 12-0, per SP+: 0.6%
What they did in Week 3: bye
Over the next month, USC will both visit Michigan and host Penn State. We'll see soon enough if the Trojans deserve a ranking like this, but the defense certainly has shown up so far, and quarterback Miller Moss pilots an awfully exciting passing game.
9. Missouri Tigers (3-0)
SP+ and FPI rankings: seventh and 10th
SP+ strength of schedule to date: 112th
Odds of reaching 12-0, per SP+: 5.0%
What they did in Week 3: def. Boston College 27-21
Who's got the nation's longest winning streak? Not Georgia, Alabama or any other blueblood. It's Eliah Drinkwitz's Tigers, who won their seventh in a row Saturday despite some stutters and broken assignments. Their Week 6 trip to Texas A&M will tell us a lot.
10. Penn State Nittany Lions (2-0)
SP+ and FPI rankings: 11th and ninth
SP+ strength of schedule to date: 73rd
Odds of reaching 12-0, per SP+: 4.3%
What they did in Week 3: bye
The Nittany Lions have left two drastically different impressions thus far, crushing West Virginia and getting taken the distance by Bowling Green. An explosive offense should assure that they're 5-0 when they head to USC in Week 7.
11. Indiana Hoosiers (3-0)
SP+ and FPI rankings: 40th and 19th
SP+ strength of schedule to date: 118th
Odds of reaching 12-0, per SP+: 1.8%
What they did in Week 3: def. UCLA 42-13
Only Louisiana-Monroe has overachieved against SP+ projections more than Curt Cignetti's Hoosiers through three games. The combination of ruthlessly efficient offense and opportunistic defense has taken them a long way in a short time. And they're projected favorites in the next three games too!
12. Oregon Ducks (3-0)
SP+ and FPI rankings: eighth and 11th
SP+ strength of schedule to date: 62nd
Odds of reaching 12-0, per SP+: 8.6%
What they did in Week 3: def. Oregon State 49-14
That's what we were waiting for, Ducks. Oregon sped past Oregon State in the second half in Corvallis, finally looking like a team interested in living up to its preseason top-five hype. The Ducks should be 5-0 when they welcome Ohio State to Eugene in Week 7.
13. Kansas State Wildcats (3-0)
SP+ and FPI rankings: 14th and 17th
SP+ strength of schedule to date: 69th
Odds of reaching 12-0, per SP+: 8.3%
What they did in Week 3: def. Arizona 31-7
I'm a little worried about the Wildcats' proficiency in both passing (73rd in yards per dropback) and stopping the pass (69th in yards allowed per dropback). But they'll win a lot of games with rushing, physical line play and a terrifying return game.
14. Oklahoma State Cowboys (3-0)
SP+ and FPI rankings: 19th and 20th
SP+ strength of schedule to date: 63rd
Odds of reaching 12-0, per SP+: 1.9%
What they did in Week 3: def. Tulsa 45-10
The Pokes cruised against Tulsa and now have a huge pair of battles: Utah comes to Stillwater on Saturday, then OSU visits Kansas State. Now would be a great time for star back Ollie Gordon II to finally get rolling.
15. Louisville Cardinals (2-0)
SP+ and FPI rankings: 16th and 13th
SP+ strength of schedule to date: 127th
Odds of reaching 12-0, per SP+: 1.3%
What they did in Week 3: bye
The Cardinals are fifth in both points and points allowed per possession after throttling Austin Peay and Jacksonville State. Their next two games are against Georgia Tech (home) and Notre Dame (away). Safe to say, we're about to learn a lot more about Louisville.
16. UCF Knights (3-0)
SP+ and FPI rankings: 26th and 18th
SP+ strength of schedule to date: 71st
Odds of reaching 12-0, per SP+: 1.2%
What they did in Week 3: def. TCU 35-34
You never know about your resilience until it's tested, and I would say that outscoring TCU 28-6 over the game's final 25 minutes to erase a 21-point deficit gives you an A+ on that test. I haven't learned to trust the defense yet. I'm trying.
17. Rutgers Scarlet Knights (2-0)
SP+ and FPI rankings: 41st and 47th
SP+ strength of schedule to date: 132nd
Odds of reaching 12-0, per SP+: 0.9%
What they did in Week 3: bye
The combination of Howard and Akron has not taught us much about Rutgers. But a lot of previous Scarlet Knights teams wouldn't have beaten the Bison and Zips by a combined 93-24, right? And we already knew that running back Kyle Monangai was awesome, right?
18. Utah Utes (3-0)
SP+ and FPI rankings: 13th and 24th
SP+ strength of schedule to date: 97th
Odds of reaching 12-0, per SP+: 5.7%
What they did in Week 3: def. Utah State 38-21
Honestly, this is probably too low, but without injured quarterback Cam Rising, Utah struggled to put away a poor Utah State team, and ... well ... trusting Rising will be healthy in key games is hard at the moment. The defense is fun and aggressive, though.
19. Nebraska Cornhuskers (3-0)
SP+ and FPI rankings: 24th and 25th
SP+ strength of schedule to date: 115th
Odds of reaching 12-0, per SP+: 3.2%
What they did in Week 3: def. Northern Iowa 34-3
Projected 42nd in SP+, second-year leap specialist Matt Rhule's Huskers have already leaped to 24th. I don't quite trust Dylan Raiola and the offense yet, but the defense is awesome, and they'll be favored in at least their next three games.
20. Memphis Tigers (3-0)
SP+ and FPI rankings: 37th and 49th
SP+ strength of schedule to date: 64th
Odds of reaching 12-0, per SP+: 20.2%
What they did in Week 3: def. Florida State 20-12
They couldn't quite land the knockout blow and watched a 20-3 lead nearly turn into danger, but the Tigers still scored a lovely win in Tallahassee. They're dominating in the big-plays-and-turnovers department, and that could give them an excellent shot at a CFP bid.
21. Oklahoma Sooners (3-0)
SP+ and FPI rankings: 15th and 14th
SP+ strength of schedule to date: 107th
Odds of reaching 12-0, per SP+: 2.9%
What they did in Week 3: def. Tulane 34-19
It's looking like Oklahoma might have its best defense in more than a decade. But the offense ranks just 116th in yards per play and 117th in success rate and hasn't played a good defense yet. That's troublesome.
22. Iowa State Cyclones (2-0)
SP+ and FPI rankings: 33rd and 44th
SP+ strength of schedule to date: 44th
Odds of reaching 12-0, per SP+: 2.1%
What they did in Week 3: bye
The offense has done as little as possible thus far, but the Cyclones were resourceful in coming back to beat Iowa in Iowa City, and they've got a particularly effective "Just make fewer mistakes than your opponent and wait them out" approach going this year.
23. Washington State Cougars (3-0)
SP+ and FPI rankings: 48th and 34th
SP+ strength of schedule to date: 47th
Odds of reaching 12-0, per SP+: 6.7%
What they did in Week 3: def. Washington, 24-19
For the second straight year, Wazzu has come firing out of the gates, overachieving against projections and scoring a big, early Big Ten win (Wisconsin last year, Washington this year). The Cougs hope their staying power is better this time around.
24. California Golden Bears (3-0)
SP+ and FPI rankings: 42nd and 40th
SP+ strength of schedule to date: 50th
Odds of reaching 12-0, per SP+: 3.0%
What they did in Week 3: def. San Diego State 31-10
After two years of regression, the Cal defense is back! The Golden Bears haven't allowed more than 14 points in a game yet, and with a visit to Florida State up next, they have a chance to go 2-for-2 on cross-country road trips.
25. UNLV Rebels (3-0)
SP+ and FPI rankings: 61st and 50th
SP+ strength of schedule to date: 55th
Odds of reaching 12-0, per SP+: 2.2%
What they did in Week 3: def. Kansas 23-20
The Rebels' win over Kansas on Friday night was wild and statistically unlikely (we'll get to that below). But aside from Boise State, Kansas might have been the best team on UNLV's schedule. This is a CFP contender until proved otherwise.
26. Toledo Rockets (3-0)
SP+ and FPI rankings: 63rd and 68th
SP+ strength of schedule to date: 117th
Odds of reaching 12-0, per SP+: 8.0%
What they did in Week 3: def. Mississippi State 41-17
The Rockets' offense is super-efficient, their defense feasts on sacks and turnovers, and their win in Starkville was the MAC's second-largest ever over an SEC team. Trips to Western Kentucky and Northern Illinois won't be easy, but this is another CFP contender as far as I'm concerned.
27. Northern Illinois Huskies (2-0)
SP+ and FPI rankings: 85th and 72nd
SP+ strength of schedule to date: 17th
Odds of reaching 12-0, per SP+: 0.9%
What they did in Week 3: bye
The Huskies scored maybe the program's best-ever win over Notre Dame in Week 2, and in Week 4 they'll get a shot at a dreadfully underachieving NC State team in Raleigh. No one in the Group of 5 has higher résumé potential.
28. Illinois Fighting Illini (3-0)
SP+ and FPI rankings: 46th and 46th
SP+ strength of schedule to date: 76th
Odds of reaching 12-0, per SP+: 2.0%
What they did in Week 3: def. Central Michigan 30-9
I don't even slightly trust the offense -- this is Illinois, after all -- but after a retooling year, the defense looks like it's back to dominating against the pass as it did in 2022. The Illini won't be unbeaten much longer, but they're going to be very annoying to play.
29. Syracuse Orange (2-0)
SP+ and FPI rankings: 64th and 59th
SP+ strength of schedule to date: 61st
Odds of reaching 12-0, per SP+: 2.1%
What they did in Week 3: bye
Quarterback Kyle McCord looks awesome. So does the receiving duo of Oronde Gadsden II and Trebor Pena. The defense isn't even slightly trustworthy, but the Orange will have a good shot at a 4-0 start before the schedule starts ramping up.
30. Arizona State Sun Devils (3-0)
SP+ and FPI rankings: 59th and 41st
SP+ strength of schedule to date: 104th
Odds of reaching 12-0, per SP+: 3.0%
What they did in Week 3: def. Texas State 31-28
Granted, Toledo made ASU's 7-point win over Mississippi State look less impressive, but I had the Sun Devils projected last in the Big 12 this season, and now they've crept into the top 60 with a 63% chance of bowling. Progress for Kenny Dillingham!
31. BYU Cougars (3-0)
SP+ and FPI rankings: 53rd and 56th
SP+ strength of schedule to date: 92nd
Odds of reaching 12-0, per SP+: 1.8%
What they did in Week 3: def. Wyoming 34-14
In 2023, BYU allowed 29.8 points per game, 99th in FBS. Three games into 2024, they're allowing less than half that: 14.0. And they've played at least one theoretically decent offense (SMU)! The run game needs to help quarterback Jake Retzlaff out, but the Cougars are ahead of where I expected this year.
32. North Carolina Tar Heels (3-0)
SP+ and FPI rankings: 29th and 58th
SP+ strength of schedule to date: 85th
Odds of reaching 12-0, per SP+: 2.2%
What they did in Week 3: def. NC Central 45-10
SP+ bumping UNC to 29th this week was the oddest ranking of the year to date, in my opinion. But coordinator Geoff Collins might have found something with this aggressive, havoc-heavy defense, and running back Omarion Hampton remains Omarion Hampton.
33. Pittsburgh Panthers (3-0)
SP+ and FPI rankings: 56th and 55th
SP+ strength of schedule to date: 83rd
Odds of reaching 12-0, per SP+: 0.6%
What they did in Week 3: def. West Virginia 38-34
Early in the third quarter against Cincinnati last week, Pitt was down three scores and had a 1.4% chance of winning, according to ESPN Analytics. With less than four minutes left against West Virginia, the Panthers were down two scores and had a 3.3% chance of winning. And yet ... they're on this list. Never tell Pat Narduzzi and quarterback Eli Holstein the odds.
34. Michigan State Spartans (3-0)
SP+ and FPI rankings: 68th and 62nd
SP+ strength of schedule to date: 75th
Odds of reaching 12-0, per SP+: 1.3%
What they did in Week 3: def. Prairie View A&M 40-0
The Spartans are trending in the right direction, at least. They offset a dire, narrow win over Florida Atlantic in Week 1 (the same FAU that got throttled by Navy) with a road win over Maryland and an easy cruise through Prairie View A&M.
35. Duke Blue Devils (3-0)
SP+ and FPI rankings: 52nd and 71st
SP+ strength of schedule to date: 120th
Odds of reaching 12-0, per SP+: 1.0%
What they did in Week 3: def. UConn 26-21
I really liked what I saw from Manny Diaz's Blue Devils in their overtime win over Northwestern last week. I was ... less impressed with a weird win over UConn in which they won the yardage and turnover battles but still narrowly skated through.
36. Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns (2-0)
SP+ and FPI rankings: 60th and 82nd
SP+ strength of schedule to date: 134th
Odds of reaching 12-0, per SP+: 2.6%
What they did in Week 3: bye
I'm not going to lie: I was a bit confused by SP+ projecting the Ragin' Cajuns an ambitious 72nd this year, and I was thrown by them rising to 60th after wins over Grambling and Kennesaw State. But the offense looks awfully good so far.
37. Army Black Knights (2-0)
SP+ and FPI rankings: 87th and 84th
SP+ strength of schedule to date: 128th
Odds of reaching 12-0, per SP+: 2.7%
What they did in Week 3: bye
The offense is hogging the ball, and the defense is both (a) facing the fewest drives in the country (7.5 per game) and (b) 23rd in points allowed per drive (0.9). That's a winning combo. It was against Lehigh and FAU, at least.
38. Navy Midshipmen (2-0)
SP+ and FPI rankings: 90th and 102nd
SP+ strength of schedule to date: 133rd
Odds of reaching 12-0, per SP+: 1.3%
What they did in Week 3: bye
Granted, everyone on this list could have beaten Bucknell and Temple, but the Midshipmen did look pretty good in outscoring them by a combined 87-32. With a Week 4 visit from Memphis, though, their stay on this list might not be a long one.
39. Louisiana-Monroe Warhawks (2-0)
SP+ and FPI rankings: 112th and 111th
SP+ strength of schedule to date: 124th
Odds of reaching 12-0, per SP+: 0.9%
What they did in Week 3: bye
The numbers don't share my enthusiasm here, but what do they know? Bryant Vincent's Warhawks have overachieved against projections in both games and walloped the UAB team that probably should have hired Vincent last year.
40. James Madison Dukes (2-0)
SP+ and FPI rankings: 65th and 78th
SP+ strength of schedule to date: 130th
Odds of reaching 12-0, per SP+: 1.8%
What they did in Week 3: bye
The defense has been better than expected, the offense worse. Bob Chesney's Dukes have a chance to jump quite a few spots (or vanish from the list entirely) with this Saturday's trip to Chapel Hill, North Carolina.
41. Liberty Flames (3-0)
SP+ and FPI rankings: 58th and 95th
SP+ strength of schedule to date: 131st
Odds of reaching 12-0, per SP+: 15.5%
What they did in Week 3: def. UTEP 28-10
Jamey Chadwell's Flames are a quarter of the way to a second straight unbeaten regular season, but they have underachieved against projections in every game, and they might need to raise their level to get through the next two games (East Carolina, at App State) unscathed.
42. San José State Spartans (3-0)
SP+ and FPI rankings: 82nd and 75th
SP+ strength of schedule to date: 125th
Odds of reaching 12-0, per SP+: 1.3%
What they did in Week 3: def. Kennesaw State 31-10
They've gotten here playing nothing but teams ranked in the SP+ triple digits, but hey, the Spartans started out among that group too! Thus far, the Ken Niumatalolo era has started out beautifully.
43. Coastal Carolina Chanticleers (3-0)
SP+ and FPI rankings: 75th and 77th
SP+ strength of schedule to date: 129th
Odds of reaching 12-0, per SP+: 0.9%
What they did in Week 3: def. Temple 28-20
The Chanticleers messed around and nearly lost to Temple, the last-place team in SP+ heading into last week. That will earn you last place on this list. They'll still have a solid shot at beating Virginia this Saturday, though.
The five most surprising results
Here are the five results that were furthest away from their respective SP+ projections in Week 3. Call them either surprises or bad projections, I guess.
Notre Dame 66, Purdue 7 (projection: Irish by 11.2). I feel like we learned more about Purdue in this one than Notre Dame -- and woof, what we learned was not good -- but playing angry and physical certainly looked good on the Fighting Irish. We'll have to wait a bit longer to see if they can throw the ball better.
Texas Tech 66, North Texas 21 (projection: Red Raiders by 7.9). Welcome to 2024, Texas Tech! The Red Raiders underachieved against projections by more than six touchdowns in the first two games and therefore fell more than 30 spots from their preseason SP+ rank. Now they're back up to 55th, at least.
Fresno State 48, New Mexico State 0 (projection: Bulldogs by 12.6). Twenty-four teams have overachieved against projections in all three games thus far. The on-the-rise Bulldogs are one of them.
Toledo 41, Mississippi State 17 (projection: MSU by 8.3). It feels like Toledo always has the most upside of any MAC school; it's good to see the Rockets back that impression up every so often. (Also: Good gracious, Mississippi State.)
Indiana 42, UCLA 13 (projection: UCLA by 2.6). I already thought Curt Cignetti was one of the 10 or so best FBS coaches before he moved to Bloomington. Now I'm starting to think he's top five.
Who won the Heisman this week?
I am once again awarding the Heisman every single week of the season and doling out weekly points, F1-style (in this case, 10 points for first place, 9 for second, and so on). How will this Heisman race play out, and how different will the result be from the actual Heisman voting?
Here is this week's Heisman top 10:
1. Arch Manning, Texas (9-of-12 for 223 yards and 4 touchdowns, plus 63 yards and a touchdown against UTSA)
2. Dillon Gabriel, Oregon (20-of-24 for 291 yards and 2 touchdowns, plus 64 rushing yards and a touchdown against Oregon State)
3. Jaxson Dart, Ole Miss (26-of-34 for 377 yards, 2 TDs and an INT, plus 43 rushing yards and a touchdown against Wake Forest)
4. Kurtis Rourke, Indiana (25-of-33 for 307 yards and 4 touchdowns against UCLA)
5. RJ Harvey, UCF (29 carries for 180 yards and 2 touchdowns, plus a 29-yard touchdown catch against TCU)
6. Antwaun Powell-Ryland, Virginia Tech (7 tackles, 4 sacks, 2 forced fumbles and a fumble recovery against Old Dominion)
7. Jalen Milroe, Alabama (12-of-17 for 196 yards and 3 touchdowns, plus 76 rushing yards and 2 touchdowns against Wisconsin)
8. Cam Ward, Miami (19-of-28 for 346 yards and 5 touchdowns against Ball State)
9. Nick Nash, San Jose State (17 catches for 225 yards and 3 TDs against Kennesaw State)
10. R Mason Thomas, Oklahoma (3 tackles, 3 sacks, a forced fumble, a fumble recovery and a pass breakup against Tulane)
I have to figure this is a first: A week after a Texas quarterback made this list (Quinn Ewers was sixth for his awesome performance against Michigan last week), a different Texas quarterback not only made the list but topped it. I really wasn't interested in contributing to the Arch hype, but good lord. In just 12 passes and two rushes, Manning, filling in for an injured Ewers, produced 286 yards and five touchdowns. That's 20.4 yards per action play. That's a touchdown for every three action plays. Yes, it was against UTSA. Yes, the game was already on its way to being a blowout when he came in. But this was damn near perfect. How could I not make him No. 1 this week?
Honorable mention:
* Alan Bowman, Oklahoma State (24-of-31 for 396 yards, 5 TDs and 1 INT against Tulsa)
* Tyler Grubbs, Tulane (6 tackles, a sack and a pick-six against Oklahoma)
* Omari Kelly, Middle Tennessee State (9 catches for 239 yards and 3 TDs against Western Kentucky)
* Behren Morton, Texas Tech (15-of-19 for 273 yards and 4 touchdowns, plus a rushing touchdown against North Texas)
* Bradyn Swinson, LSU (5 tackles, 3 sacks and a forced fumble against South Carolina)
* Caden Veltkamp, Western Kentucky (27-of-30 for 398 yards and 5 touchdowns, plus a rushing touchdown against MTSU)
Through three weeks, here are your points leaders:
1. Ashton Jeanty, Boise State (15 points)
2T. Jaxson Dart, Ole Miss (13 points)
2T. Cam Ward, Miami (13 points)
4T. Cade Klubnik, Clemson (10 points)
4T. Arch Manning, Texas (10 points)
6T. Antario Brown, Northern Illinois (9 points)
6T. Dillon Gabriel, Oregon (9 points)
6T. Miller Moss, USC (9 points)
9T. Kyle McCord, Syracuse (8 points)
9T. Jalen Milroe, Alabama (8 points)
Jeanty holds on to his lead despite Boise State's bye, while the Week 1 Heisman winner (Ward) and the only player to appear in the top 10 all three weeks (Dart) are tied for second. That feels about right.
My 10 favorite games of the weekend
1. Pitt 38, West Virginia 34. In the last three drives of the Cincinnati game in Week 2 and the last two against West Virginia, Pitt's Eli Holstein completed 14 of 16 passes for 280 yards and three touchdowns with one sack and rushed seven times for 75 yards. Personally, I would recommend just starting games that hot, but if he'd done that, the Backyard Brawl might not have ranked No. 1 on this list, huh?
2. No. 16 LSU 36, South Carolina 33. It's almost impossible to figure out how good LSU is, and I would certainly recommend the Tigers also not wait until the second half to get rolling, but their resilience levels are off the charts. After spotting a fiery home team a 17-0 lead 20 minutes into the game, LSU outscored the Gamecocks 36-16 from there, just enough to get the job done.
3. Washington State 24, Washington 19. I could focus on the fact that, on fourth-and-goal with the ballgame on the line, Washington called timeout, thought long and hard about what play to call and came up with "short-side speed option that has absolutely no chance," but instead I'll just focus on Jake Dickert. Dickert, his staff and his players earned this joyous rivalry win.
Washington State head coach Jake Dickert is almost moved to tears after his team captured the 2024 Apple Cup. pic.twitter.com/gb5Jk3GGEN
— NBC Sports (@NBCSports) September 15, 2024
4. Charlotte 27, Gardner-Webb 26. With 17 minutes left, Gardner-Webb -- which also scared the hell out of James Madison last week and is now 0-3 with losses by a combined 9 points -- led 20-3. But the 49ers rallied, scoring three TDs in just more than four minutes to go up 27-20. The Runnin' Bulldogs responded with a 75-yard TD drive of their own, but after Carson Gresock's touchdown with 1:55 left, the 2-pointer failed.
Gardner-Webb Bulldogs vs. Charlotte 49ers: Full Highlights
5. FCS: No. 2 North Dakota State 38, East Tennessee State 35. ETSU rebooted its football program in 2015, and in the Buccaneers' 10th season back, they found themselves two minutes from an all-time win over mighty North Dakota State. But TK Marshall scored with 1:59 left to get the Bison to within 35-30, and for the first time in nearly two decades, NDSU recovered an onside kick. The ending was pretty scripted at that point: Cam Miller scored from 11 yards out, Jaylen King picked off a pass with 17 seconds left, and the upset bid had vanished.
6. UCF 35, TCU 34. I had high silliness expectations for this game, and I would say that UCF overcoming a three-touchdown second-half deficit in a game that featured 979 total yards and one of the top five "Heisman finishers of the week" met those expectations. Delightful Saturday night content.
7. Eastern Michigan 37, Jacksonville State 34 (2OT). Rich Rodriguez's Gamecocks asked Garrison Rippa to save them one too many times. Rippa hit field goals of 35, 48 and, with 34 seconds left in regulation, 51 yards to help JSU overcome an 11-point second-half deficit and send the game to overtime. He made a 40-yarder to send it to a second OT, too, but he failed on his fifth attempt of the day, a 38-yarder, and Jesús Gómez won the game for EMU with a 34-yarder. That's the 13th win in the past 18 one-score finishes for Chris Creighton's Cardiac Eagles.
8. UNLV 23, Kansas 20 (Friday). The Rebels were outgained by nearly 100 yards, but thanks to a long touchdown on the final play of the first half (which followed terribly botched clock management), two interceptions and one of the strangest game-winning drives you'll ever see -- 18 plays, nearly 10 minutes of clock, a fumble that they somehow recovered despite the ball seeming to touch all 11 KU players' hands at one point and a favorable fourth-down spot -- the visitors won.
9. Georgia State 36, Vanderbilt 32. WHEEEEEEEEEE!
Georgia State led by 12 with 2:30 left, Vanderbilt scored twice in just 75 seconds ... and then GSU won the game anyway on a perfect 25-yard pass from Christian Veilleux to Ted Hurst with 15 seconds remaining.
10. Div. II: Minnesota State-Moorhead 30, No. 19 Minnesota Duluth 29. There were quite a few epic games in the Division II ranks this weekend, from Fort Lewis ending a 40-game losing streak with a 17-12 win over Arizona Christian, to No. 16 Indianapolis beating Truman State in a 41-34 track meet that featured back-to-back kick return touchdowns, to No. 21 Emporia State's upset of No. 4 Pittsburg State. But we'll go with this one. MSU-Moorhead hadn't beaten Minnesota Duluth since 1999 and trailed by 15 with three minutes left, but Jack Strand completed a touchdown pass to Brady Perryman with 3:01 left and nailed the 2-point conversion to make it 29-22.
Duluth missed a field goal with 1:33 left, giving the Dragons one last chance. Never give the Dragons one last chance! Strand converted a third-and-19, a fourth-and-5 and a fourth-and-10, and with time expiring he found Luke Imdieke for a touchdown. Of course they went for 2 points and the win ... and they got that too.
For those wondering what happened in Duluth on 9/14/24
— The Flag Sports (@TheFlagSports) September 15, 2024
Yes, @msum_football won🐉
Yes, the @MSUMDragons have an incredible fan base🔥
Yes, the broadcasters (@hamesM6 + @jjdacotah) are fine🗣
Now onto McKendree on Sat, Sept 21 w coverage on @theflagwzfg. #Firedup #RollDragons pic.twitter.com/Equvveybwe
Absolutely glorious. Small-school football never, ever lets you down.