The craziness never stops in the world of college football, and this weekend hasn't been any differenct to this point. Here are five things we've learned through all of the early and late afternoon games on Saturday's slate.
1) Charlie Strong Might Have Saved His Job
Just one week after Texas suffered perhaps the most embarrassing defeat of the Charlie Strong era to TCU, the Longhorns pulled off the biggest stunner of the college football season to this point with a 24-17 victory over bitter rival, and #10 ranked, Oklahoma. The Longhorns limited one of the nation's most prolific offenses to just 278 yards. That's a more-than-impressive feat, considering this is the same Texas team that got punted 50-7 by TCU last week.
The Longhorns move to 2-4 with this win and, while all may not be right in Austin, Strong can point to this epic Red River Rivalry win as reason enough to be granted a third season with the team.
2) Baylor's Offense Is LEGIT
We had #3 Baylor putting 70 on Kansas today, but a 66-7 win will do just the same. The Bears amassed 644 yards of total offense against the Jayhawks, including 363 combined passing yards and five touchdowns (with no interceptions) by QBs Seth Russell and Jarrett Stidham. After OU's debacle at the Cotton Bowl, it appears it'll once again be the high-wire acts of Baylor and TCU which decide the Big 12 this year.
3) Nebraska Is The Unluckiest Team In The Country
The Cornhuskers fell to Wisconsin on a last second field goal, dropping them to 2-4 on the season and 0-2 in Big Ten play. Those four losses have been by a combined 11 points, and they've all come on (or close to) the last play of the game. Nebraska could make a legitimate case that they could easily be 6-0, and we'd have a much different outlook on them and head coach Mike Riley. However, they've shown an incredible inability to close games.
4) Michigan Is A Legitimate Playoff Contender
There is no denying it -- the #18 Michigan Wolverines are a full-fledged Big Ten (and dark horse College Football Playoff) contender. They showed as much in a 38-0 beatdown of the formerly-undefeated #13 Northwestern Wildcats at the Big House on Saturday behind the play of their historically great defense.
The Wolverines' defense is otherworldly right now. Michigan has shut out three straight opponents, won their last five games by an absolutely daffy 150-14 combined score, and are the first team to record three straight blankings since the 1995 Kansas State Wildcats. In the span of just over a month, UM's defense has gone from really good to insanely great by clamping down in the secondary and forcing opposing QBs to settle for short, underneath routes for minimal gains. Combined with a front seven that has been sealing the edges and pounding opposing O-lines in the trenches, and you've got a recipe for a team on the cusp of something huge.
5) Ohio State Is In Survival Mode
Cardale Jones threw two touchdown passes, J.T. Barrett scored three times and #1 Ohio State stayed unbeaten with a 49-28 home win over Maryland. However, the score line doesn't reveal just how much OSU struggled in this one. Maryland had this game tied at 21-21 in the third quarter before the Buckeyes could shake them off to up the nation's longest winning streak to 19. This is the second straight week that a lesser opponent has tested Ohio State after Indiana put a scare in them last Saturday. However, all that really matters right now is the fact that OSU is still perfect and ups its regular-season conference winning streak to 26.
6) Iowa May Be The Class Of The Big Ten West
#22 Iowa's 29-20 win over the Indiana Hoosiers improves their overall record to 6-0 (2-0 Big Ten). With Nebraska and Wisconsin faltering, Iowa appears to be locked in a battle with Northwestern for Big Ten West supremacy. We wouldn't count out the Hawkeyes in that one, ESPECIALLY with RB Jordan Canzeri on their side. Canzeri rushed a bonkers 43 times for 256 yards and a score on Saturday. When you have a durable ground weapon like that, no game is unwinnable.
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