Five of the AP Top 7 went down on the same Saturday, and the poll was blown wide open. The result was a brand-new No. 1, a reshuffled top tier, and a few heavyweight programs left to pick up the pieces after one of the wildest weekends the sport has seen in a while.
Miami came through the chaos untouched. It took double overtime and one highly controversial last play, but the Hurricanes did what so many others couldn’t: they survived Florida State. Even without facing a ranked opponent yet this season at the time of play, Miami’s spotless record and the carnage around it pushed the pollsters to give the Hurricanes 40 first-place votes and the No. 1 spot for the first time since 2002.
Right behind them, BYU delivered one of the statement wins of the year. Bear Bachmeier put together a complete night, throwing for a touchdown, running for two more, and even catching a score in No.
8 BYU’s stunning upset of No. 2 Notre Dame.
The Cougars jumped to No. 2 for the first time since the school’s 1984 national championship season, and they also gave the Big 12 a major boost. The league now has a real path to getting two teams into the College Football Playoff, with Texas Tech looking like the other candidate after a confident dismantling of Arizona State.
That sets up a very real possibility of a Big 12 title game between Texas Tech and BYU, with playoff spots more or less in hand.
In the Big Ten’s marquee matchup, Ohio State stopped Indiana’s 22-game winning streak with a 19-15 grind. The Buckeyes entered the day with one loss and badly needed to avoid another in Bloomington, and they managed that.
But the win came with a major concern: quarterback Julian Sayin left with a throwing-shoulder injury, and the timing could hardly be worse with USC and Nebraska on the road and Oregon and Michigan coming to Columbus. Jeremiah Smith can do just about everything a receiver can do, but even he needs a quarterback capable of getting him the ball.
That remains an open question now.
Tennessee also made a loud case to be taken seriously. The Vols leaned on defense, running the ball, and takeaways in a 24-point showing against Alabama that felt like a turning point.
DeSean Bishop ran for 159 yards and two touchdowns, Tennessee forced four turnovers, and the defense held Alabama to just 10 points and 2 yards per carry. The reward was a jump to No. 11, while Alabama fell seven spots to No. 13 after back-to-back losses.
With more production from the quarterback spot, Tennessee suddenly looks capable of making noise in both the SEC and the playoff race.
Florida had a completely different kind of breakthrough. Backup quarterback Tramell Jones Jr., in his first career start, threw two touchdown passes as the Gators erased a 14-point deficit and beat No.
7 Texas 27-24 in Austin. Florida’s defense was just as important.
It sacked Arch Manning five times, forced a late fumble that sealed the win, and held Texas to 173 passing yards in what was a striking turnaround for a secondary that had been the SEC’s worst coming in. The Gators snapped a two-game skid, picked up their first road win over a top-10 opponent since 2012, and returned to the AP poll at No.
- Texas slid 12 spots to No.
Then came the biggest jolt of all: Auburn took down No. 1 Georgia.
Unranked and trailing by two touchdowns early, the Tigers scored 24 straight points and finished the upset with Alex McPherson’s 34-yard field goal as time expired. Byrum Brown rushed for 115 yards and a touchdown, while Georgia coughed it up three times, including a costly late fumble by Gunner Stockton.
The win snapped Georgia’s streaks against Auburn and unranked teams and gave new coach Alex Golesh a major lift. Georgia, which had just climbed to No. 1 after an emotional win at Alabama, looked worn down.
Kirby Smart had admitted the Bulldogs might have been spent, and the performance matched that concern. Favored by more than three touchdowns at home, Georgia tied the game with under three minutes left, then fumbled near midfield and watched Auburn set up the winning kick.
The Bulldogs dropped to No. 5 after one week at the top.
And then there was Texas. The loss to Florida brought the criticism of Arch Manning right back to the surface, the same questions that followed him since he was a high school recruit and people wondered whether his ranking had more to do with the name on the back of the jersey.
Steve Sarkisian made it clear changes could be coming. “Everything is going to be evaluated,” he said.
“Everything means everything.” At this point, Manning has been evaluated.
He looks like a very average quarterback.
In Other News...
Florida's Win At Texas Just Changed The Gators' Postseason Outlook
Floridas win at Texas did more than add another quality result to the rsum, it nudged the Gators into a noticeably better position in ESPNs Football Power Index. After the Week 7 victory, Florida climbed six spots to No. 19, and the model now gives the Gators a projected regular-season finish of 7.7-4.3. It also improved their odds across the board, from running the table to reaching the College Football Playoff and even making a run at the conference title.
For a team still trying to turn a big road win into something bigger, that kind of movement matters. FPI rankings do not guarantee anything, but they do reflect how quickly the perception around Florida has shifted after beating Texas, and they help frame what comes next in a crowded postseason picture. The updated top 25 after Week 7 shows the Gators moving in the right direction, with the path forward looking a little clearer than it did a week ago. [Read more 🡒]
London Montgomery Gave Florida The Spark It Desperately Needed
Florida had been searching for a jolt, and London Montgomery helped provide it in a tense 27-24 win over Texas. The senior running back and kick returner gave the Gators more than just steady touches on offense, finishing with four carries for 20 yards while also becoming a factor in the hidden-yardage battle that can swing a game like this.
His five kick returns produced 105 yards, and several of those chances set Florida up with much better field position than it had earlier in the game. For a team trying to find rhythm and keep drives alive, Montgomerys impact was felt in the kind of moments that do not always jump off the box score but can quietly change the direction of a night. [Read more 🡒]
Florida State Just Made A Rivalry Weekend Even More Painful
Floridas upset of seventh-ranked Texas in Austin should have been the brightest SEC headline in the state, especially with freshman quarterback Tramell Jones Jr. making his first career start in a 27-24 win. Instead, rivalry weekend in Florida turned into a reminder of how crowded the spotlight can get when the states other programs are rolling too, with Miami climbing to No. 1 in the AP Top 25 for the first time since 2002 after its double-overtime win over Florida State.
USF added to the same uneasy backdrop by handling Kent State 29-2 on homecoming and moving to 5-2, giving the Bulls another reason to feel good about their season. For the Gators, the bigger-picture sting is obvious: a signature road win should travel well, but when Miami is celebrating a historic ranking and the in-state conversation keeps drifting elsewhere, Floridas upset suddenly feels like one more part of a weekend that was hard to own outright. [Read more 🡒]