What in the world was this week?
Week six of the 2024 college football season was far and away the most chaotic week of the year thus far. We had so many upsets of Top 25 it seemed like by the time the day was done, we couldn’t even keep count anymore. I, for one, was absolutely stunned at some of these results, including one in particular involving a certain team from the SEC, but that deserves its own category. Speaking of which…
Let’s dive right in! And boy, do we have a lot to cover.
Texas A&M may have to be seriously respected as a contender
For a while, it seemed like Texas A&M had flown under the radar when considering teams who were legitimate contenders for the College Football Playoff. I mean, that notion isn’t completely out of the blue. I was apprehensive about them following their loss to Notre Dame. That was a winnable game all things considered.
Well, now we might actually have to start taking them seriously.
This is a take that occurred to me following their domination of the then-No. 9 Missouri Tigers. In order to sum up this game in the appropriate context, Mizzou didn’t just lose to the Aggies. They got their proverbial butts whooped. This was, in every sense of the word, a good old-fashioned butt-kicking from Texas A&M.
There was virtually nothing that didn’t go right for the Aggies in this game. Quarterback Connor Weigman’s stats don’t jump off the page or anything like that, but he threw for over 250 yards and didn’t turn the ball over. He mostly let the rushing attack handle most of the heavy lifting. Running back Le’Veon Moss carved up Missouri’s defense to the tune of 138 yards and a whopping three touchdowns on twelve carries. Amari Daniels also found the end zone twice on the ground as well just for good measure.
Going into this game, I expected a close battle that would ultimately end up in a classic finish because I thought this was going to be hard-fought on both sides. Clearly, I was sorely mistaken. There were a lot of calls and 50/50 occurrences that didn’t go the Tigers’ way, so some of this could possibly be attributed to some bad luck.
But there wasn’t much. Texas A&M dominated. And my take that Missouri was going to be one of the final four teams remaining in the CFP at the end of the season is aging like milk at this point.
USC cannot be fully trusted at this point
What even happened for the Trojans in this game?
When they beat LSU in the season opener at a neutral site in Las Vegas in what was a great game to cap off the opening weekend, I was higher on USC than ever. I thought Miller Moss was going to be the next great Trojan quarterback. I thought their defense had done a complete 180 from last season. I thought they just might be candidates to make a deep postseason run.
Yeah, never mind all of that after this game on the road against Minnesota.
In this monstrosity of a contest, this was a pretty ugly game for USC. The running game was good, as Woody Marks ran for 134 yards on 20 carries, but that was about as good as it got for the Trojans’ offense. On the other side of the ball, that USC defense reared its ugly head and reverted back to its 2022 and 2023 form in this one, as they were thrashed on the ground by Darius Taylor, who ran for 144 yards on 25 carries. Quarterback Max Brosmer also hit paydirt not once, not twice, but three times throughout the night.
Oh, and Miller Moss? The guy who was supposed to be the heir apparent to Caleb Williams? The guy who I thought was going to be the next great USC quarterback? The guy who I thought had a chance to be in contention for the Heisman Trophy after his game against LSU? Oh, he only threw the game-losing interception in the fourth quarter. He did throw a touchdown, yes, but his turnovers were incredibly costly.
All of these reasons are why the Trojans, and head coach Lincoln Riley, cannot be fully trusted. I did, and if this game is any indication (along with last week’s bout with Michigan), I paid the price for it.
Washington may be an underrated team in the Big Ten this season
I am one of the (apparently) few people who believes that this Washington team could be sneaky good in their new conference this season.
Make no mistake, this win over Michigan is absolutely one to hang your hat on if you’re the Huskies. It is clear that Washington was not going to reach the heights they reached in 2023 this season. A good chunk of that core was gone and there were a lot of unknowns. And while they’ve been a bit up-and-down to start the year, this win could be a stepping point.
Against a vaunted Wolverines defense, Washington quarterback Will Rogers, for the most part, looked quite good. He completed over 65% of his passes, and he threw for 271 yards and two touchdown passes along with an interception. Running back Jonah Coleman also had a very solid outing, as he ran for 80 yards and a score on 18 carries, that score being a one-yard plunge over the top of the defense that essentially iced the game for the Huskies. Wideouts Denzel Boston and Giles Jackson also had good games, as they both had over 75 receiving yards and both of them found the end zone.
I feel as though at this point in the season, there are not a lot of people who believe that this Washington squad can be something in the Big Ten this year. What this game showed me is that this team can make some noise in a loaded conference. Will Rogers has quietly been one of the best quarterbacks in the country. And even though it’s their first season in the Big Ten, it very well could be a really good first impression.
Ohio State’s collection of stars on one team is unfair
Shifting away from the chaos for a second, the Buckeyes made their first Big Ten game of the 2024 season look comically easy.
In their game against Iowa in Columbus, Ohio State was utterly dominant for practically the entire game. They rolled past the Hawkeyes 35-7, and there really wasn’t much that didn’t go right for them in this game. Will Howard was laser-sharp and efficient, as he went 21-for-25 with 209 yards and four touchdown passes. Quinshon Judkins and TreVeyon Henderson continued to prove why they are the scariest one-two running punch in the entire country. And the receiving core was on point, hauling in everything and having their way with a pretty darn good Hawkeyes secondary.
Simply put, this collection of stars and the amount of pure talent on one team is just unfair. There are teams in the Big Ten that are definitely going to make some noise as the season goes on (see the previous section), but Ohio State just looks like they are on a completely different level at this point in time. I thought they had a good argument for the top spot in the newest AP Poll, but they were slotted in second just behind Texas, who had a bye week this week.
But the Buckeyes just might roll through the rest of the Big Ten, and I’m not so sure that their upcoming game next week against Oregon in primetime will be as close as so many people think it will be. Ohio State has just looked that good. Oh, and this catch from Jeremiah Smith is just nasty. I mean, that’s just stupid good. That’s some video-game, CFB 25-level stuff right there. I’m running out of words to describe this guy.
Pump the brakes a bit on the Tennessee hype
So close, yet so far in Fayetteville.
The weird part about this game was the way it ended. It was a very winnable game for the Volunteers right up until the final whistle sounded and the fourth quarter clock hit triple zeroes. Tennessee had the ball at their own 25-yard-line with just over a minute to go in regulation. The Volunteers got down to Arkansas’ 25-yard-line thanks in part from a 42-yard connection from Nico Iamaleava to Dont’e Thornton Jr.
They then got to said 25-yard-line, and Iamaleava threw an incompletion before the Tennessee coaching staff opted to call a run play for Dylan Sampson, who proceeded to pick up five yards to the 20-yard-line. The kicker (not literally) is that there were 13 seconds left in the game when that play was called. Tennessee then called a timeout, and then the game ended with Iamaleava running for four yards to the Arkansas 16-yard-line with no time remaining.
Forgive me if there’s something I’m missing, but that looks to me like some porous clock management if you’re on Tennessee’s side. Time is clearly not on your side in that situation, so why are you even considering running? And I am aware that Iamaleava had to get something out of that situation on the final play, but I am a bit confused as to why he didn’t take a shot at the end zone. Better to pray for a miracle than do nothing at all, isn’t it?
But that was the way this game ended for the Volunteers, and they now head home coming off a five-point defeat and the first blemish on their otherwise perfect record. And as the Razorback faithful celebrated their upset victory accordingly, this game showed that they still have to iron out a few things before they can be considered a legitimate contender for the national championship. Am I panicking? Absolutely not. This is still a really great team.
But this was one that will leave a bad taste in your mouth if you’re a Volunteer.
And last but not least…
ALABAMA?!?!?!
And unlike last week, it’s in the worst way possible this time around.
What even happened for the Crimson Tide to possibly lose this game? Maybe they were on an emotional high after that absurd victory last weekend over Georgia, but there was a lot that went wrong in this one for head coach Kalen DeBoer and company.
First, Jalen Milroe’s turnovers were a problem throughout the game. He did go 18-for-24 for 310 passing yards and two total touchdowns, but he also threw a pick-six and lost a costly fumble late in the fourth quarter. The running game was okay, as Jam Miller scored twice but only ran for 45 yards. Ryan Williams scored a touchdown, and he had a rather efficient day overall as he caught three passes for 82 yards and the aforementioned score.
However, the biggest problem that stood out about this one was the defense. Or, perhaps more accurately, the lack thereof. This unit gave up 40 points to a Vanderbilt team that was previously 2-2. I will give props to the Commodores, as they did play quite well all game long. Quarterback Diego Pavia was really darn good. He completed 80% of his passes, threw for over 250 yards and threw two touchdowns. His connection with wide receiver Eli Stowers was also on point, as he hauled in six receptions for 113 yards. Running back Sedrick Alexander also found paydirt twice on the ground.
But above all the stats and everything of that nature, it looked like Vanderbilt just wanted this game more than Alabama did. Whenever Alabama threw a punch, the Commodores seemed like they always had one ready to fire right back. And when it did, it was harder and more forceful than the Tide’s blow.
I believe Alabama will be fine in the long run, and they should still be in the running for a spot in the College Football Playoff. However, similar to the previous section, this will absolutely leave a bad taste in DeBoer and company’s mouths for a little while.
Elms' Essentials: Week 12
