College football takeaways: Key storylines and performances from Week 13

Did Week 13 clarify any of the Power 4 conference races? Not really. Did it help solidify any part of the College Football Playoff field? Maybe.

In the week's headline game, Oregon hosted USC. The Ducks, ranked No. 7 in the CFP rankings, still hold an outside shot at returning to the Big Ten title game following their 42-27 win over the Trojans. The loss likely knocks USC out of the playoff picture for the season. As Oregon gears up for a playoff run, it might have unlocked another offensive option.

Notre Dame, sitting at No. 9, is now firmly in the style points business. In a 70-7 win over Syracuse, the Fighting Irish scored 70 points for the first time since 1932. It leads to a CFP hypothetical: Does that win separate the Irish any more from Miami, which beat them to start the season?

Our college football experts break down key storylines and takeaways from Week 13.

Jump to:
Kiffin and the CFP | Unlocking Sadiq
ND's stylish win | Penn State's resilience

Ole Miss, Lane Kiffin and the CFP

Ole Miss fans need to exhale. The College Football Playoff selection committee isn't going to drop the Rebels from No. 6 out of the playoff if they lose their head coach to another school -- but they could drop out if they lose the Egg Bowl, regardless of the coaching situation.

If Kiffin is hired at Florida or LSU, and Ole Miss is heading into the postseason with an interim head coach, the selection committee will view Ole Miss similarly to how it looked at Florida State in 2023 when starting quarterback Jordan Travis was injured. The CFP protocol states the committee will consider "other relevant factors such as unavailability of key players and coaches that may have affected a team's performance during the season or likely will affect its postseason performance."

Simply put: Is this a playoff team without Kiffin? The answer for Florida State following the ACC championship game that year, according to the committee, was no. The difference was the four-team field. Although the committee could drop Ole Miss a spot or two without Kiffin, that still wouldn't eliminate the Rebels from the 12-team field -- assuming they win Friday. In fact, they'd probably still be hosting a first-round game as one of the 5-8 seeds. If Ole Miss loses to Mississippi State, though, it could enter a debate with other two-loss teams that it might not win -- and that could happen even with Kiffin on the sideline. -- Heather Dinich

Oregon has another ace up its offensive sleeve: Kenyon Sadiq

Without two of its top receivers -- Dakorien Moore and Gary Bryant Jr. -- due to injury, Oregon's passing offense did not miss a beat in Saturday's 42-27 win over USC.

If anything, quarterback Dante Moore found his comfort zone by targeting tight end Kenyon Sadiq. The junior is no revelation -- he has been slowly building up to this moment (407 yards and six touchdowns this season prior to this game) -- but Saturday's matchup gave him a proper stage to showcase his talents.

By playing him as more of a wide receiver due to injuries, offensive coordinator Will Stein unlocked an even better version of Sadiq, who finished with six catches for 72 yards and two touchdowns. The highlight, however, might have been this display of sheer athleticism:

Kenyon Sadiq 🤝 Hurdles pic.twitter.com/fwlDwPBChv

— CBS Sports College Football 🏈 (@CBSSportsCFB) November 23, 2025

"Kenyon's a special player, man. I think we're lucky to have the best tight end in the nation," Oregon coach Dan Lanning said postgame. "His play has shown that. We're better when he's out there with us. And certainly, he's a tough guy to defend, right? Whether it's him lining up at wideout or if he's blocking in the C area, he does this at a really high level."

Sadiq's breakout could not have come at a better time. Even when Bryant and Moore return for the stretch run, Sadiq figures to be a key cog in the Ducks' offense. -- Paolo Uggetti

For Notre Dame, style equals separation

The equation for Notre Dame is pretty simple: Continue to separate from Miami. College Football Playoff selection committee chair Hunter Yurachek made it clear after the latest ranking that Notre Dame and Miami, which beat the Fighting Irish in the season opener, are not being compared with the same group of candidates.

Whether that's fair or not is certainly debatable, but Yurachek made it clear that the committee doesn't see Notre Dame and Miami through the same lens. The message to Notre Dame was to destroy Syracuse on Saturday and Stanford next week. Otherwise, how can Miami catch up?

The Irish followed through with a historic beating of Syracuse, which they led 70-0 until the Orange scored with seven seconds left. Notre Dame led 21-0 before quarterback CJ Carr even took the field, and finished with 21 more points than Carr had passing yards. Irish running back Jeremiyah Love made his latest Heisman Trophy statement with a mind-bending stat line: 171 rushing yards and three touchdowns on eight (!) carries. Notre Dame recorded its most points since 1932 and its largest victory margin since 1966. And it reached 70 on only 39 offensive plays.

Miami also won rather comfortably at Virginia Tech 34-17, but it's hard to see the Canes closing the gap on Notre Dame, which finishes next week at Stanford. The Irish's schedule can and arguably should be knocked, but they did nothing Saturday to lose their grasp on a CFP spot. -- Adam Rittenberg

Penn State didn't give up

Starting quarterback Drew Allar suffered a season-ending injury. Head coach James Franklin got fired. And Penn State started 0-6 in Big Ten play.

Given the massive preseason expectations -- and the nightmare that followed -- the Nittany Lions could've easily thrown in the towel on this season.

They didn't.