ACC—The Tar Heels beat the Cavaliers at Scott Stadium for the first time since 1981. The Tar Heels had lost the previous fourteen away games versus Virginia. T.J. Yates passed for 325 yards and three touchdowns. North Carolina picked off three different Cavalier quarterbacks for a total of five interceptions. The Tar Heels are 4-2 despite still having five players still banned from playing this season.
Big 12—The Texas Longhorns came away with an upset Saturday against No. 5 Nebraska. Up until now, Nebraska looked unstoppable. The Texas defense shut down Nebraska Heisman hopeful Taylor Martinez. They only allowed him to run for 21 yards on thirteen carries and 63 yards passing. Texas has beaten Nebraska 9 out of 10 meetings since the inception of the Big 12. The 20-13 victory prevented the Longhorns from losing three straight games, something that has never happened during the Mack Brown era.
Big East—Rutgers got the best of an improved Army team in overtime. Army dominated the opening half gaining 287 yards to the Scarlet Knights’ 65 yards. The Black Knights’ held a 17-3 lead through the third quarter, until the Scarlet Knights finally got their offense going in the fourth, led by freshman quarterback Chas Dodd. Two long drives (74 and 93 yards) had the game tied at 17-17 by the end of regulation. Army scored a field goal in overtime; Rutgers answered with a touchdown to get a 23-20 win.
Big Ten—No. 18 Wisconsin knocked off No. 1 Ohio State with a 31-18 victory. Wisconsin ran for 184 yards on a porous Buckeye defense. The Badger defense prevented a dangerous Buckeye offense from getting anything done outside of the third quarter. Heisman hopeful Terrelle Pryor’s passing efficiency was stymied at 50%. This was Ohio State’s worst offensive and defensive performances of the 2010 season. Wisconsin’s head coach, Bret Bielema, got his first victory over a Top 10 team.
C-USA—East Carolina upset red hot North Carolina State in an overtime thriller. Despite opening the game 21-0 and eroding a big lead, East Carolina was able to recover and force overtime when Michael Barbour hit a 31-yard field goal with 1:04 left in the game to make the score 27-27. During the Pirate’s overtime possession, quarterback Dominique Davis scored on a 1-yard run. The point after touchdown failed. On the Wolfpack’s possession, NC State quarterback Russell Wilson was intercepted over the middle by East Carolina cornerback Damon Magazu. The Pirates won 33-27.
MAC—Eastern Michigan gets the MAC helmet sticker for snapping an eighteen-game losing streak and getting their first win of the season. The Eagles beat the Ball State Cardinals 41-38 in overtime. The Cardinals got a field goal during their overtime possession. Eastern Michigan quarterback Alex Gillett connected with tight end Ben Thayer on a 12-yard pass to seal the victory. The Eagles’ last win came on November 28, 2008.
MWC—San Diego State did enough to slow down Air Force’s high-octane run game. San Diego State’s defense held Air Force below their season rushing average of 353 yards per game. Aztec running back Ronnie Hillman rushed for 191 yards and two touchdowns off of twenty-four carries. San Diego State is 4-2 for the first time since 1996. 1996 was also the last time the Aztecs beat a ranked team.
Pac-10—USC rebounded from a two-game skid by blasting rival California by a score of 48-14. The Trojans accumulated 602 yards of offense, while holding California to 245 yards. USC’s Matt Barkley threw for 352 yards and five touchdowns. Southern California was 50% on third downs and 75% on fourth downs. The Trojans have beat California seven straight times.
SEC—No. 10 South Carolina looked like the team to beat in the SEC East, coming off their win last week against Alabama. Kentucky rose to the challenge and beat South Carolina, 31-28. Kentucky was down 28-10 at the half, but they scored 21 unanswered points in the second half. South Carolina drove to the Kentucky 21 yard line in the final minute of the game. Stephen Garcia tried a touchdown pass to Lamar Scruggs with four seconds left, but the ball was intercepted by Kentucky’s Anthony Mosley. The Wildcats had no turnovers, while the Gamecocks had four.
Sun Belt—In the best Sun Belt matchup of the week, conference leader Troy bested the Louisiana-Lafayette by a touchdown, 31-24. As usual, Troy spread the ball around, making completions to nine different receivers. The Trojans were finally able to put away the Ragin’ Cajuns after Troy wide receiver Jerrel Jernigan caught a 12-yard touchdown pass with 4:43 left in the game. Troy is in the driver’s seat for the Sun Belt title with a 3-0 conference record.
WAC—Hawaii gave Nevada its first loss of the season Saturday. Hawaii won the turnover battle 4-1. Nevada quarterback Colin Kaepernick was intercepted twice and fumbled twice, thanks to the much-improved Warriors defense. Former pizza deliveryman, and Hawaii quarterback, Bryant Moniz completed 26 passes on 36 attempts. He had three touchdowns and no interceptions. Hawaii has never lost to Nevada in Honolulu since the Wolf Pack joined the WAC in 2000. Hawaii is 3-0 in WAC play.
ACC—No. 21 Georgia Tech is off to its best start since it won the national championship in 1990. The Yellow Jackets are 5-0 after pasting North Carolina State 45-35 on Saturday. Georgia Tech opened the game 21-0, but let the Wolfpack climb back to within a touchdown. In the fourth quarter, the Yellow Jackets scored three touchdowns in a span of 2 minutes and 22 seconds and later a field goal. Georgia Tech safety Isaiah Johnson returned an interception for 34 yards and a touchdown.
Big 10—Michigan State came into Ohio Stadium with the No. 1 defense in the nation and played like it. The Spartans defeated the Buckeyes 10-7 and came close to shutting the Buckeyes out at home for the first time since October 2, 1982. The Spartans finally allowed Ohio State to score with 10 seconds left in the game. Michigan State tallied nine sacks and held Ohio State to 35 yards rushing on 39 attempts. The Spartans beat the Buckeyes for the first time since 1999.
Big 12—Kansas State cherry-popped No. 15 Baylor 36-35 in Manhattan Saturday. Trailing Baylor 35-33, K-State linebacker Arthur Brown dealt Robert Griffin III his first interception of the season to set up a 31-yard field goal to get the lead. Baylor had one more shot, but the Wildcats defense made them go four-and-out. Arthur Brown led the K-State defense with 8 tackles and 2 sacks in the game. The Wildcats are now 4-0 and will probably enter the Top 25.
Big East—On Thursday night, Pittsburgh gave a 4-0 No. 16 South Florida team its first loss of the season in a 44-17 decision. Pitt got a much needed win after losses to Iowa and Notre Dame, and beat a ranked opponent for the first time since 2008. Panthers running back Ray Graham ran for 226 yards and two touchdowns in a breakout performance. Pitt’s conversion of 9 out of 15 third downs kept the Bulls’ defense on the field and wore South Florida out.
C-USA—The Thundering Herd came into Papa John’s Cardinal Stadium and beat the Cardinals 17-13. With less than 5 minutes left in the fourth quarter, Marshall linebacker Tyson Gale intercepted Louisville’s Teddy Bridgewater on the Louisville 30-yard line. With good field position, Marshall took the lead with 1:49 left in the game on a 4-yard touchdown pass from Rakeem Cato to tight end C.J. Crawford. On Louisville’s ensuing drive, safety Omar Brown intercepted Louisville’s Teddy Bridgewater to seal the win for the Thundering Herd. Marshall outgained Louisville 353 yards to 281 yards.
MAC—Western Michigan beat UConn 38-31 in East Hartford, Connecticut. Broncos quarterback Alex Carder threw for a career-high 479 yards and five touchdowns. Three Broncos receivers had over 100-yards receiving: Jordan White (173 yards), Chleb Ravenell (123 yards), and Robert Arnheim (113 yards). Western Michigan overcame fifteen penalties for 119 yards; the Broncos had more penalty yards than offensive yards in the first quarter. Western Michigan got its first win over Connecticut, evening the all-time series to 1-1.
MWC—Air Force beat fellow service academy Navy by a score of 35-34 in overtime. The Midshipmen scored six in overtime and then had their extra point attempt blocked by the Falcons. The Falcons proceeded to score a touchdown and an extra point to get a one-point win over their rival. Air Force linebacker Brady Amack had 23 tackles in the game. If Air Force can beat Army on November 5th, it will retain the Commander-in-Chief’s trophy for another year.
Pac-12—Southern California outlasted Arizona in a shootout. The Trojans won 48 to 41 in a game that did not see much defense from either team. Matt Barkley set a school-record passing for 468 yards. Barkley threw four touchdowns and rushed for another. Robert Woods had 255 yards receiving and two touchdowns. Trojan safety T.J. McDonald had two interceptions. The Trojans are undefeated in the Los Angeles Coliseum this year (4 games). USC has beaten the Wildcats in 9 of the two teams last 10 meetings.
SEC—No. 18 Arkansas erased an 18-point deficit at halftime and beat No. 14 Texas A&M by a score of 42-38. The Razorback defense regrouped and only allowed a field goal in the second half. Quarterback Tyler Wilson passed for a school-record 510 yards. Wide receiver Jarius Wright set a school-record for receiving yards with 281 yards. The Razorbacks proved the Aggies are not ready for the SEC. The Aggies have not beaten an SEC team in sixteen years.
Sun Belt—Troy got by UAB 24-23 in Troy, Alabama Saturday. Going into the fourth quarter, Troy was losing by 9 points. After hitting a field goal with 5:18 left, Troy cornerback Jimmie Anderson intercepted a pass on the next series and took it to UAB’s 12 yard line. Troy’s D.J. Taylor ran in the ball from 2 yard out with 4:07 remaining to get the go-ahead score for Troy. D.J. Taylor rushed for a total of three touchdowns in the win over the Blazers.
WAC—New Mexico State beat in-state rival New Mexico in Albuquerque Saturday by a score of 42-28. The Aggies beat the Lobos by their largest margin of victory since 1968. NMSU quarterback Matt Christian threw for 296 yards and four touchdowns. He also rushed for 101 yards and a touchdown. NMSU running back Kenny Turner rushed for 109 yards and a touchdown. The Aggies have now beat the Lobos three straight times, which the program has not done in over forty years.
Independents—Army routed Tulane 45-6 in West Point. Tulane scored a touchdown on its first possession of the game, followed by Army scoring 45 unanswered points. Eleven different Black Knights had rushing touches in the game. Army punter Chris Boldt averaged 55 yards per punt. Army has now beaten Tulane in four of the last five meetings between the schools. Army left Conference USA after the 2004 season.
