Saturday in Review: Week 9

Arizona State was one of many to suffer a heartbreaking loss
last week. Norm Hall/Getty Images

Halloween was heartbreak Saturday for much of the nation's underdogs. Many came close, but few made it in pulling an upset. North Carolina knocked of Pitt in a close game to start the week (despite being unranked, UNC was favored by Vegas). TCU ran over West Virginia on their way to a 40-10 victory. It took a few hours, but Oregon survived Arizona State in triple overtime. Oregon's defense conceded 680 yards in regulation, but nonetheless caught enough breaks to keep their team in the game.

The near-upsets continued on Friday when Wake Forest fell just short of beating Louisville. Then Harvard needed to rally against Dartmouth to keep their winning-streak (now tied with Ohio State for the longest in Division I) in tact. The Big Green were one missed field goal away from ending their 12-year losing streak to the Crimsons. Connecticut scored one win for the underdogs with their shocking rout of East Carolina.

A good third quarter and a stellar performance by quarterback Deshaun Watson elevated Clemson past North Carolina State on Saturday. Florida State's backup Sean Maguire was nearly as impressive in Florida State's blowout of Syracuse. Jacques Patrick stepped up for the Seminoles at running back, rushing for 162 yards, picking up 62 receiving yards, and scoring three touchdowns.

Miami's victory over Duke was less convincing. Throughout the game, and particularly towards the end, Miami was the victim of questionable penalties called by the officials. Aided by several Miami penalties, Duke was able to take a three point lead with just six seconds left in the game. However, Miami proceeded to score the winning touchdown on one of the most improbable, egregiously officiated kickoff returns in the history of major college football. The play lasted over 40 seconds and included eight laterals, while the referees missed several obvious block-in-the-back fouls and one instance where a Miami ballcarrier clearly had a knee down before tossing the lateral. The result of this game, and the botched handling of the final play by ACC officials, could affect the outcome of the ACC Coastal division race.

Houston had little problem handling Vanderbilt and their struggling offense. UCF had a big problem against Cincinnati, falling 52-7. After this week, UCF is one of two remaining winless teams. South Florida performed respectably, but the Navy ground attack was enough for the Midshipmen to win. Temple fought to the end, but ended four points away from upsetting heavily-favored Notre Dame. The Owl defense was stout through most of the contest, but the Irish scored the go-ahead touchdown with 2:09 left. An interception on the succeeding drive sealed the Notre Dame victory.

FAU defeated FIU for the 10th time in 14 meetings and the
Shula Bowl Trophy returns to Palm Beach County.
Jim Rassol / Sun Sentinel

New Mexico State ended the longest losing-streak in the FBS, downing Idaho in overtime. The Aggies clinched the victory with a spectacular game-ending interception. The season hasn't gone well for Florida Atlantic, though last Saturday will surely be remembered as the highlight of the year as the Owls upset rival FIU in Boca Raton. The Owls kept good care of the ball for once, not turning the ball over while converting two Panther turnovers into touchdowns.

In what was, remarkably, a football game and not a basketball game, Oklahoma State outscored Texas Tech 70-53 (42-15 in the second half) in the highest-scoring game of the year. The Iowa State defense dominated Texas, never allowing the Longhorns to cross their 47-yard-line. Oklahoma bowled over Kansas, winning by a score of 62-7; this game is most notable for being the second ever in which I predicted the score exactly (the first was Notre Dame's 17-14 triumph over Stanford last year). Following wins by New Mexico State and North Texas, Kansas is the second remaining winless team in the FBS.

Like so many other teams this last week, Minnesota was heartbroken at home, losing 29-26 to Michigan. The Wolverines held off the Golden Gophers on a last second quarterback sneak on the goal line.

Ole Miss held off Auburn on the road to pick up their seventh win. Texas A&M kept South Carolina at bay in the fourth quarter to preserve their 35-28 victory. Tennessee overwhelmed Kentucky, putting up 52 on the overmatched Wildcats.

Florida demolished Georgia for the second consecutive season, winning 27-3. The rout was sparked after the Gators recovered a muffed punt in the endzone (this followed an interception by Florida that set the Gator punting team in position to pin the Bulldogs deep). Turnovers were critical in Georgia's downfall on Saturday. The second Gator touchdown was scored on a spectacular 66-yard reception by Antonio Callaway. Another interception set up the Gators' third touchdown, and Florida went into halftime with a 20-0 lead.

Florida kept Georgia from scoring a touchdown for the first
time in the series since 1984. Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports

Outside the 66-yard touchdown pass, quarterback Treon Harris was adequate, not playing extremely well but avoiding critical errors. His biggest mistake was as a runner, fumbling the ball early in the second half and setting up Georgia's only points. His counterpart, Faton Bauta, by contrast, struggled tremendously, throwing four interception against the Gator defense. Perhaps most painfully, Bauta threw a pick in the endzone in the fourth quarter, just as the Bulldogs looked to make it a 20-10 game. That interception was made after Bauta's pass was deflected by corner Jalen Tabor and snatched up by Keanu Neal. Florida responded to the interception with a five-play, 80-yard touchdown drive that killed off Georgia's last hopes for a comeback. Florida halfback Kelvin Taylor finished the day with two touchdowns and 121 rushing yards (a season high).

USC beat Cal, picking up their second good win since firing their head coach. UCLA gave up an 18-point lead, but scraped by Colorado in the end. Washington State outplayed Stanford, but ultimately came up short in their upset bid. The Cougars' placekicker hit five field goals in difficult, rainy conditions, but missed his last, would-be game-winner in the final seconds.

State of Florida:

• 17 Florida State (7-1) over Syracuse (3-5), 31-20 45-21
• Navy (6-1) over South Florida (4-4), 31-24 29-17
• Cincinnati (5-3) over UCF (0-9), 45-13 52-7
• FIU (4-5) over Florida Atlantic (2-6), 38-21 31-17
• 11 Florida (7-1) over Georgia (5-3), 24-13 27-3
• 22 Duke (6-2) over Miami (5-3), 31-17 30-27

Southeastern Conference:

• 19 Mississippi (7-2) over Auburn (4-4), 34-27 27-19
• Texas A&M (6-2) over South Carolina (3-5), 31-14 35-28
• Arkansas (4-4) over Tennessee-Martin (4-3), 59-10 63-28
• 18 Houston (8-0) over Vanderbilt (3-5), 24-14 34-0
• Tennessee (4-4) over Kentucky (4-4), 35-28 52-21
• 7 Alabama (7-1), BYE
• 4 LSU (7-0), BYE
• 25 Mississippi State (6-2), BYE
• Missouri (4-4), BYE

Top 25:

• 3 Clemson (8-0) over North Carolina State (5-3), 30-20 56-41
• 5 TCU (8-0) over West Virginia (3-4), 49-42 40-10
• 8 Stanford (7-1) over Washington State (5-3), 38-24 30-28
• 9 Notre Dame (7-1) over 21 Temple (7-1), 27-20 24-20
• 10 Iowa (8-0) over Maryland (2-6), 38-17 31-15
• 12 Oklahoma State (8-0) over Texas Tech (5-4), 45-42 70-53
• 13 Utah (7-1) over Oregon State (2-6), 35-17 27-12
• 14 Oklahoma (7-1) over Kansas (0-8), 62-7 ✓
• 15 Michigan (6-2) over Minnesota (4-4), 31-6 29-26
• 16 Memphis (8-0) over Tulane (2-6), 42-28 41-13
• North Carolina (7-1) over 23 Pittsburgh (6-2), 24-21 26-19
• 24 UCLA (6-2) over Colorado (4-5), 42-20 35-31
• 1 Ohio State (8-0), BYE
• 2 Baylor (7-0), BYE
• 6 Michigan State (8-0), BYE
• 20 Toledo (7-0), BYE

Week 9 Record: 21-2 (91%)
Season Record: 193-47 (80%)