Week 5 is already shaping up as a pressure point for a handful of quarterbacks whose seasons haven’t matched the preseason buzz. Some have flashed, some have faded, and some are just plain running out of time to make a statement.
LaNorris Sellers is at the top of that list in South Carolina. The Gamecocks are 2-2 overall and 0-2 in SEC play as they head into a Week 5 matchup with No.
24 Kentucky, and Sellers hasn’t been nearly sharp enough to steady things. The 6-foot-3, 240-pound quarterback has thrown for 833 yards with six touchdowns and four interceptions, while posting a 59.1 QBR.
Even with new offensive coordinator Kendal Briles now in place, the inconsistency has stuck around. Sellers needs a real performance this weekend, no matter how the game ends.
Jayden Maiava has put up the kind of raw numbers that usually look good on paper - 1,499 passing yards, 14 touchdowns and just two picks - but the deeper dive tells a different story. USC’s schedule has been soft enough to pad stats, with San Jose State, Fresno State and Louisiana among the early opponents.
Once the Trojans got into conference play, though, things tightened up fast. Rutgers pushed USC to the edge in a 42-35 win, and Maiava finished that one with a 69.1 QBR and a 62.1% completion rate.
Last weekend against Oregon, he was even less efficient, completing only 54.8% of his throws while accounting for two touchdowns and an interception in a home loss. He’s still one of the country’s better pure passers, but USC needs him to rebound when Washington comes to town on Saturday.
Texas A&M has had the kind of opening stretch that puts everybody under a microscope, and Marcel Reed is right in the middle of it. The Aggies are 2-2, and both losses have come in lopsided fashion against SEC opponents LSU and Kentucky.
Reed’s numbers reflect the rough start: a 55.4% completion rate, six touchdowns, four interceptions and a 50.4 QBR. His 5.7 yards per attempt is also a career-low.
Texas A&M responded by promoting former wide receivers coach Holmon Wiggins to offensive coordinator, but the offense still hasn’t found explosive plays or any real rhythm. Reed and the Aggies are more than a touchdown favorite - over two touchdowns, in fact - as they host Arkansas this weekend.
Then there’s Ashton Daniels at Florida State, a transfer quarterback in his final year of eligibility who still hasn’t found his footing. Daniels has thrown for 928 yards, six touchdowns and five interceptions while completing just 59.8% of his passes.
Florida State is 2-2, and both defeats have come against ranked opponents in Alabama and SMU. In those two games, Daniels completed a combined average of 55.4% of his passes and threw three touchdowns against three interceptions.
The Seminoles will turn to him again this weekend against UVA, and the question now is simple: can he raise his level in time to salvage his final college season?
In Other News...
Former Texas A&M Coach Is Back And Fans Will Have Opinions
Kevin Sumlin is back on a sideline again, and for Texas A&M fans that name still carries plenty of baggage and a few old memories that never really faded. The longtime college coach, who led programs at Houston, Texas A&M and Arizona before most recently working with the Houston Gamblers in 2022, has been named head coach of the Dallas Renegades in the UFL.
It is a notable return after Sumlin spent the 2025 season away from football following his stint as associate head coach at Maryland. For Aggies followers, his reappearance in a Texas market is the sort of news that is likely to stir opinions quickly, especially with his past in College Station still part of the conversation every time his name comes up. [Read more 🡒]
Texas A&M Is Betting Big On One OL Change To Stop The Slide
Texas A&Ms slide out of the AP Poll has put even more attention on an offense that has sputtered through back-to-back SEC losses, with protection and run blocking becoming immediate concerns. A big reason for the adjustment has been the overhaul up front, after four offensive linemen from last season were drafted into the NFL and the group has had to be rebuilt almost from scratch.
The latest fix is a notable one: Wilkin Formby, the former Alabama lineman, has been moved from right tackle to guard. It is the kind of reshuffling coaches make when they need a cleaner pocket and a sturdier run game in a hurry, and for A&M it adds another layer of pressure to get the line settled before the seasons frustrations deepen. [Read more 🡒]
Texas A&M Faces A Week 5 Problem It Cant Keep Ignoring
Texas A&M enters week five with more urgency than comfort, carrying a two-game losing streak and still searching for its first conference win of the 2026 season. Mike Elko has already made clear the Aggies need to clean up their play, and the timing is not ideal with Arkansas coming to town. What makes this week especially tricky is that the matchup brings both sides of the ball into focus, from Marcel Reeds play at quarterback to a defense that has to find a way to sharpen up in the red zone.
Arkansas is the kind of opponent that can expose problems quickly if they are still lingering, which is why this feels less like a midseason bump and more like an early test of whether Texas A&M can stop the slide. The Aggies have enough statistical warning signs to justify the concern, and the details point to a team that cannot afford another uneven performance. The bigger question is whether the issues showing up in the numbers translate into fixes on game day, because if they do not, the schedule is only going to get less forgiving. [Read more 🡒]