September 25, 2024
CFB InsiderIt Gets Even Better
Lone Star Player of the Week Candidates
Colorado QB Shedeur Sanders - With the game on the line against Baylor in the Big 12 opener, Sanders threw a 50-yard Hail Mary to tie the game at 31. He finished the game 25 of 41 for 341 yards and two touchdowns in the 38-31 overtime win.
Texas RB Jaydon Blue - Even though Longhorn Nation was buzzing about the first start of the season for Arch Manning, Blue dominated the win over UL-Monroe. He ran 25 times for 124 yards and three touchdowns in the 51-3 win.
Utah RB Micah Bernard - 25 carries and 182 yards in a big road win over #19 Oklahoma State.
Utah Weapon X/TE Brant Kuithe - three total touchdowns as a combination wildcat QB/RB/TE against Oklahoma State in the 22-19 win
West Virginia QB Garrett Greene - 382 yards total offense, three total touchdowns, including two passing touchdowns in the last four minutes to upset Kansas 32-28 in Morgantown, WV.
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Week four of the college football season gave us one of the best games of the young season in Ann Arbor as the Wolverines came from behind to beat the #11 USC Trojans 27-24. Perhaps, though, the Game of the Year thus far in the early CFB season? Take your pick from Colorado’s Hail Mary comeback win over Baylor or the scoreboard busting Washington State 54-52 win over San Jose State.
It gets even better this week as two top four teams, a combined five national championships in the last nine seasons between them, lock horns in the SEC. We’ll preview that one in a bit, but first let’s look back at week four in college football.
Texas Bowl Team of the Week - BYU - Kelani Sitaki’s Cougars jumped all over Kansas State on Saturday after most people had gone to bed. That’s a shame because BYU went on a 31-point unanswered run, going from trailing 6-0 to leading 31-6. The Cougars went on to win 38-9 after scoring on two Jake Retzlaff passing touchdowns, a Sione I Moa rushing TD, a 90-yard punt return and a 30-yard fumble return. BYU smoked Kansas State, a top 15 ranked team that was coming off of a blowout win the week prior over Arizona.
Texas Bowl Honorable mention Team of the Week - Cincinnati - The Bearcats just put on a dominant performance at home against the Houston Cougars, winning a Big 12 home game for the first time in two years in the Big 12 Conference. The Bearcat defense held the Cougar offense to 233 total yards and QB Brendan Sorsby accounted for three total touchdowns in Cincinnati’s first shutout win since 2018
Texas Bowl Player of the Week - Colorado WR/DB Travis Hunter - I mean, this dude is just indescribable. He led the Buffaloes with seven magnificent catches for 130 yards in the 38-31 overtime win over Baylor. Then, he forced a Dominic Richardson fumble at the one yard line that went out of the end zone to end the game. It’s one thing to be a star on one side of the ball. It’s another to just line up on both sides of the ball. But, Hunter is a STAR on BOTH sides of the ball, all the time. He’s a legit Heisman candidate if he can continue to play at this level all season long.
Texas Bowl Honorable mention Player of the Week - Utah Weapon X/TE Brant Kuithe - After multiple seasons missed due to injury, the Cinco Ranch HS product came through for his Ute teammates with a mixed media performance, so to speak, for the ages. He lined up in the wildcat a few times, running one time for one yard for one touchdown. He also added four receptions for 74 yards and one TD. Honestly, this could’ve gone to his teammate RB Micah Bernard who ran for 182 yards on 25 carries, but Kuithe gets the nod given all that he’s been through the past three seasons.
National Team of the Week - James Madison - The Dukes set one record after the next. They put up 53 in the first half…on the road…against a Power 5 team (North Carolina). They put up a total of SEVENTY, yes SEVENTY against the North Carolina Tar Heels in Kenan Stadium in Chapel Hill. QB Alonza Barnett was ridiculous in the win. See below for his individual honors as he led the Dukes to their third straight win to start 2024.
Honorable Mention National Team of the Week - Michigan - The Wolverines needed every single ounce of grit to beat USC on Saturday. QB Alex Orji, starting for the first time all year, threw for just 32 yards, but the run game went OFF, including Kalel Mullings who had two massive runs to put Michigan in the driver’s seat. The Wolverines can’t throw the ball, but they can grind teams into submission and they seemingly did that to USC for a massive B1G win.
National Player of the Week - James Madison QB Alonza Barnett - I mean, WHAT?!? All Barnett did on the road at North Carolina was complete 22 of his 34 passes for 388 yards and FIVE TDs. But, he was not done. He also tacked on 99 yards on 13 carries and two tuddies on the ground in James Madison’s 70-50 win over the formerly undefeated Tar Heels in Chapel Hill.
Honorable mention National Player of the Week - Illinois QB Luke Altmyer - Friday College football is one of the most underrated things in all of college football. My man Andre Ware always calls a Friday night game and his game on Friday night was a thriller as Stanford hit a last second field goal to beat Syracuse. This week, though, the other Friday night game was even better. It was a battle of ranked teams in Lincoln, NE. Former Ole Miss QB/current Illinois QB Altmyer put Illinois on his back and carried them to an overtime win over the homestanding Huskers. He completed 77% of his 27 passes for 215 yards and four tuddies to lead the Illini to a fourth straight win.
Quick Kudos
…to BYU punt returner Parker Kingston for his 90-yard punt return touchdown in a decisive 38-9 smashing of #13 ranked Kansas State in Provo.
…to Trent Taylor’s Stanford squad for a cross-country win over Syracuse in the Cardinal’s first ever ACC win. K Emmet Kenney hit a 39-yard field goal to send the Cardinal back to Cali with their first ACC win ever.
…to Washington State QB John Mateer who went NUTS again! 26 of 46 for 390 yards and four tuddies through the air and 18 carries for 111 yards and a rushing TD in a 54-52 win over offensively potent San Jose State. Speaking of…
…to San Jose State WR Nick Nash, the nation’s leading receiver. All he did was catch 16 passes for 152 yards and two touchdowns in the two point loss to WAZZU.
…to Colorado for one heck of a come from behind victory against Baylor in Boulder. Good grief, what a freakin’ game!
…to Michigan RB Kalel Mullings for carrying Michigan on his broad shoulders, rushing for 159 yards on 17 carries, including a 63-yarder that led to his second touchdown, a game winner, against USC.
…to Hawai’i QB Brayden Schager, one tough Texan, for his four TD, 374 yard performance in a 36-7 win over Northern Iowa on the Island.
…to West Virginia for a comeback win in a weather delayed victory over Kansas. QB Garrett Greene brought the Mountaineers back from an 11 point deficit with two TD passes in the last 3:30 of the game.
…to Virginia WR Malachi Fields for his two touchdown performance in a 43-24 win on the road at Coastal Carolina.
…to Boston College, Bill O’Brien, Thomas Castellanos and Lewis Bond for BC’s come behind Red Bandana game in the rain over Michigan State. Castellanos threw a 42-yard bomb to Bond for the game winning TD in the driving rain with just 90 seconds remaining. Pretty emotional scene watching the BC fans storm the field after this win too.
…to SMU RB Brashard Smith for his 151 total yards, three total TDs in a 66-42 win over rival TCU.
…to Heisman favorite Miami, FL QB Cam Ward for a 404 yard, three touchdown performance in a 50-15 win over gritty USF.
…to Army for one of the best first halves I’ve seen this year. QB Bryson Daily ran for two TD and threw for two to give Army a 28-0 lead at half in their 37-14 win over Rice.
…to Buffalo K Upton Bellenfant for his game winning 37-yard field goal to beat previously undefeated Northern Illinois in DeKalb, IL.
Week 5’s Big games
#2 (3-0) Georgia at #4 (3-0) Alabama - These two teams have five national championships over the last nine years (2015, 2017, 2020, 2021 & 2022) and these two teams are as talented as those teams. This game should have as many NFL scouts as any other game in the nation this year. Studs all over the place, including QBs Carson Beck (Georgia) and Jalen Milroe (Alabama).
#15 (3-0) Louisville at #16 (3-1) Notre Dame - Last year, Notre Dame seemed to be on a collision course with the college football playoff until it ran into the Louisville buzzsaw on the road. So, this year, Notre Dame gets a chance to return the favor in South Bend this weekend.
#19 (4-0) Illinois at #9 (3-0) Penn State - The Nittany Lions’ offense has had some moments to start the year, but now they’ll need to have even more firepower to overcome an improved Illinois offense, led by QB Luke Altmyer. This has the potential to be a tricky game for Penn State QB Drew Allar and the Nittany Lions and that makes for a great matchup.