Florida and UCLA pulled off the unthinkable, Miami and Alabama secured massive conference wins, and Purdue football remains cursed by . . . Taylor Swift?
Week 6 in college football saw numerous top 15 teams fall, headlined by stunning upsets of Texas and Penn State, while Ohio State’s defense continued to lead its quest for a second straight national championship.
Texas falters in “The Swamp” as Arch Manning’s struggles continue
Arch Manning played poorly once again on the road as the Longhorns fell to the Gators, 29-21. Texas struggled to get much going offensively as Florida completely dominated the line of scrimmage, scoring six sacks of Manning and outrushing the visitors 159-52.
Manning finished 16-of-29 for 263 passing yards, throwing two touchdown passes but also a pair of interceptions. His counterpart, DJ Lagway, had his most impressive game of the year, throwing for just under 300 yards and finding emerging freshman receiver Dallas Wilson twice for touchdowns.
Arch may be proud of his family name, but his struggles against Florida, much like Peyton’s, were the same, as he did not beat the Gators in his three starts. But to be clear, losing to Florida is no family tradition: Arch’s other uncle, Eli, went 2-0 against Florida and claims the only road win between the three of them.
UCLA runs roughshod over Penn State, stuns Nittany Lions for first win of year
Penn State walked into Pasadena reeling from a devastating overtime loss at home to Oregon. The flight home from Southern California left the Nittany Lions in a worse state, falling to formerly winless UCLA, 42-37.
The Bruins raced out to an early lead thanks to a sequence in which they scored a touchdown, recovered an onside kick and converted a field goal before the Nittany Lions even touched the ball. The visitors rallied to within a score in the third following a blocked punt that was returned for a touchdown by senior Liam Clifford. UCLA promptly responded with an eight-play, 75-yard touchdown drive.
With less than a minute to play, Penn State faced fourth-and-two at the UCLA 9-yard line. The Bruins’ defense then swarmed quarterback Drew Allar in the backfield before he could finish his play fake and ended the play before it even started.
The Bruins finished with 280 rushing yards, by far the most they had put up all year. Conversely, that rushing total was by far the most Penn State had surrendered all year. Further, the defeat led to the Nittany Lions falling from seventh in the AP Poll to completely out of the top 25.
Carson Beck’s four touchdowns lead Miami past Florida State
Miami’s resurgence continued with a massive road win against rival Florida State, 28-22.
The Hurricanes raced out to a 28-3 lead on the back of Beck’s four scores. Malachi Toney and CJ Daniels scored twice apiece as Beck continued his strong play in his new home. The Seminoles scrambled to within a score with seconds to play, but they could not recover the ensuing onside kick to keep their faint hopes alive.
While Florida State outgained Miami 404-339, the Hurricanes’ defense played well. Much of the yardage and points they gave up came in the fourth quarter when the game was well in hand. Further, they forced three turnovers and converted two of them into touchdowns. Their level of play remains hard to ignore, and Miami looks poised to make a deep playoff run.
Best of the rest
Alabama exacted vengeance against Vanderbilt, winning 30-14 in Tuscaloosa. Commodore quarterback Diego Pavia failed to replicate the magic he made from a year ago, throwing for just 198 yards and twice turning the ball over in the red zone.
Ohio State clobbered Minnesota at home, 42-3. Sophomore quarterback Julian Sayin continued his efficient play with three more touchdowns, but the story remains the Buckeye defense. They have allowed an average of just five points a game.
Taylor Swift released her newest album, “Life of Showgirl,” last week. On its surface, this has nothing to do with college football. But to the people of West Lafayette, Indiana, home of the Purdue Boilermakers, such an event is quite a curse: Purdue football is 0-11 all-time when it plays a football game seven days within the release of a new Swift album. With the Boilermakers losing 43-27 on Saturday, such venom might be stealing their sanity.
The Vols are back in action on Oct. 11 in the comfort of Neyland Stadium, taking on Arkansas and seeking to avenge their road loss from last season.
