Week 3 college football winners and losers: Penn State, Oregon get huge wins
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| Image Credit- ABC7 Chicago |
The No. 23 ranked Penn State has taken care of business in September and is on track for nine or more victories during the regular season after two road victories against Power Five opposition through three weeks.
Even beauty points were awarded in Auburn on Saturday in a 41-12 victory. To begin with, defeating an SEC opponent who was even more dejected than the Tigers by a score of 29 speaks for itself.
Include an offense that averaged 10.1 yards per pass attempt and 6.3 yards per carry for a total of 477 yards gained. Nicholas Singleton and Kaytron Allen, two extremely talented freshman running backs, combined for 176 yards and four touchdowns; Singleton's 54-yard touchdown in the fourth quarter seriously challenged the idea of SEC speed.
PSU's defensive play resulted in four turnovers, pressure on Auburn quarterback T.J. Finley, and a 119-yard rushing total on 36 carries for the Tigers.
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| Image Credit: Nittany Lions Wire |
The victory confirms the Nittany Lions' ranking in the USA TODAY Sports AFCA Coaches Poll more than the narrow season-opening victory at Purdue and raises the prospect that PSU might make the New Year's Six.
The Nittany Lions must avoid losing to teams from the third and fourth divisions of the Big Ten, such as Northwestern, Indiana, Maryland, and Rutgers, and split their four games against Michigan, Minnesota, Ohio State, and Michigan State in order to have any chance of competing in one of these important bowl games.
The victory at least confirms that PSU deserves to be listed among the best teams in the conference after two mediocre seasons under James Franklin. There is only one way this situation can end for Auburn, and that is with a coaching change.
Following are the top winners and losers from Week 3 of the 2022 season, including the Nittany Lions, Tigers, and others:
Winners
Oregon
No. 24 After defeating No. 14 Brigham Young 41-20, Oregon will regain some credibility and move up near the top of the Pac-12 power rankings. After starting the year with a humiliating loss to Georgia, Bo Nix and the Ducks' offense produced a second very strong performance in two weeks with 439 yards, 24 first downs, and 11.4 yards per pass attempt. While some voters may still be haunted by that loss, Oregon's victory over the Cougars by a score of three touchdowns should solidify its position as one of the teams to beat in the conference race.
Georgia, Alabama,
The top teams in the FBS won a string of lopsided games this past weekend against overmatched opposition. Four of the top teams competing on Saturday won by a combined score of 219-28: No. 1 Alabama, No. 2 Georgia, No. 5 Michigan, and No. 6 Oklahoma. The Crimson Tide defeated Louisiana-Monroe 63-7, scoring three non-offensive touchdowns a week after having trouble defeating Texas.
Washington
After defeating No. 9 Michigan State 39-28, the Huskies are no longer a closely-guarded secret. Despite slipping under the radar after two inconsistent seasons under former coach Jimmy Lake, UW is destined for this week's Top 25 after easy victories over Kent State and Portland State. In particular, quarterback play has improved under new coach Kalen DeBoer. Indiana transfer Michael Penix Jr. scored four touchdowns against the Spartans to give him 10 for the season with just one interception.
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LSU
It's fascinating to imagine how LSU would have felt if the Tigers had lost to Mississippi State and finished 1-2 in Brian Kelly's first season as head coach. That's bad, right? Instead, Kelly's first SEC victory came from the 2-1 Tigers, who outscored the Bulldogs 31-16 in the fourth quarter. Before playing Tennessee on October 8, LSU should be 4-1 after facing New Mexico and Auburn.
Appropriate State
The Mountaineers pulled off the most incredible finish of the first month of the season on the same day that the school hosted ESPN's "College GameDay." With two seconds left in the game and his team trailing Sun Belt rival Troy 28-26, Appalachian State quarterback Chase Brice threw a desperate pass that was intercepted by a group of Troy defenders and deflected into the arms of wide receiver Christan Horn. Horn caught the pass near the 7-yard line and then sped around the right side to seal the team's incredible victory. The Mountaineers have had a special week after surprising Texas A&M last Saturday.
Kansas
The Jayhawks are college football's most compelling narrative. After defeating Houston 48-30, Kansas is now 3-0 and significantly ahead of schedule under second-year coach Lance Leipold. The Wildcats could earn their first bowl berth since 2008. Third-year quarterback Jalon Daniels, who had 281 yards of total offense, 123 of which came on the ground, and five touchdowns in the upset of the Cougars, has been greatly aided by this coaching staff. Leipold will be on the list for every significant job opening in the Big Ten footprint, starting with Nebraska, thanks to KU's recent success.
Texaco & M
A 17-9 victory over No. 13 Miami (Fla.) by the No. 22 Aggies, who were able to right the ship, gives the season new life after it nearly came to an end with a loss. Although Haynes King, the struggling starting quarterback, was replaced by former LSU transfer Max Johnson, the offense was still hindered by play-calling and design that was frequently conservative and unimaginative. The Aggies only gained 265 yards, despite some credit due to the Hurricanes.
Losers
Auburn
After the Tigers' embarrassing home loss, Bryan Harsin, the coach of Auburn, is the next Power Five coach whose job security is in grave jeopardy. Even though it was Auburn's first loss of the year, the Tigers' performance on Saturday came just seven days after they had trouble defeating San Jose State and as they prepared for SEC play. Next weekend, Auburn plays Missouri in a crucial matchup before playing LSU, Georgia, and Mississippi.
Dame de Paris
The first victory under Marcus Freeman almost didn't happen: Notre Dame edged California 24-17 after intercepting the Golden Bears' potential game-tying heave into the end zone with seconds remaining. Although the victory should lessen some of the stress brought on by the year's extremely poor start, offensive problems continue to be a major worry. Despite playing UC Davis and UNLV to start the year, the Fighting Irish only managed 297 yards on 64 plays against a team that was ranked 50th nationally in yards allowed per play.
Brandon Young
In addition to last week's double-overtime triumph over No. 19 Baylor, defeating Oregon would have given BYU two victories over teams that could ultimately claim a Power Five championship. With high-profile games against Notre Dame and Arkansas still to come, that would have sent the Cougars climbing the Coaches Poll and in position to crash the College Football Playoff with an undefeated regular season. BYU will not play a role in the battle for the top four despite being in range of a nine-win season.
Nebraska
In a non-conference matchup against No. 6 Oklahoma, Nebraska scored the first and final points with interim coach Mickey Joseph in place of Scott Frost on the sidelines. Unfortunately, a 49-point scoring explosion that followed those two touchdowns marked the latest low for this floundering program. The Sooners amassed 580 total yards of offense and had 31 first downs while holding Nebraska to just 4.3 yards per play, led by another 100-yard performance from running back Eric Gray.
Georgia's Fefense
The Bulldogs did concede a touchdown. Georgia's streak of touchdown-free play to begin the year was broken after 179 minutes and 7 seconds when the blowout of South Carolina, which involved the backups to the backups defense, took place in the final seconds of the fourth quarter. In three games, the Bulldogs have now given up 10 points. How humiliating, huh?
