mysa
Kentucky and LSU have played their way out of the College Football Playoff picture after suffering consecutive losses. The No. 13 Wildcats and No. 24 Tigers each dropped their third and fourth games of the season, respectively, on Saturday in Southeastern Conference play.
Unranked Florida, known for its inconsistent play, handed Kentucky its second straight defeat, 21-14 in Lexington. The Wildcats had lost at Tennessee the previous week. Meanwhile, LSU fell to No. 8 Texas, 22-21, in Baton Rouge after Arch Manning threw a touchdown pass with three seconds remaining to complete the comeback. The Tigers, coached by Lane Kiffin, had lost to Alabama at home the week before.
Those setbacks are expected to eliminate Kentucky (7-3, 5-3 SEC) and LSU (6-4, 3-4) from CFP contention for good. The Wildcats entered the weekend at No. 11 in the CFP rankings, 10 spots ahead of the Tigers, who would have made a significant jump by beating Texas. The updated rankings will be revealed Tuesday night.
Other Ranked Teams Fall
Several other AP-ranked teams also suffered losses over the weekend: No. 14 Houston (42-32 at Colorado), No. 15 USC (27-13 at No. 6 Indiana), No. 20 South Carolina (34-6 at Arkansas), and No. 22 Arizona (40-39 against No. 2 Utah).
Top Contenders Roll
Meanwhile, several top teams secured comfortable victories in Week 11. No. 1 Georgia scored the first 31 points against Missouri and won 48-21 for its third consecutive lopsided win. Third-ranked Notre Dame beat Boston College 41-7. No. 9 Tennessee won 22-7 at reeling Texas A&M. No. 10 Texas Tech scored the first 21 points and cruised past Oklahoma State, 52-27. No. 12 BYU beat Baylor 28-7, No. 16 Iowa handled Purdue by the same score, and No. 18 Oregon kept its slim CFP hopes alive with a 31-7 victory against Michigan.
Miami and Wake Forest Close In on ACC Title Game Rematch
Miami and Wake Forest are headed for a rematch in the ACC championship game. The conference front-runners are closing in on a second meeting this season; they played in mid-September, with the Hurricanes winning 33-20 in South Florida. No. 5 Miami bounced back from a 31-24 loss at Notre Dame and handled Duke at home on Saturday, tying a school record with its 11th consecutive ACC victory. No. 11 Wake Forest, meanwhile, pulled off one of the season's more surprising wins, thumping SMU 49-7 in Dallas as a slight underdog. The victory ended the Mustangs' 10-game home winning streak and should vault the Demon Deacons into the 12-team College Football Playoff bracket.
Arizona State Overcomes Travel Chaos
Arizona State can celebrate its longest day long into the night. The Sun Devils held a team meeting at 6 a.m. MST in Tempe, Arizona, then boarded a flight to Orlando, Florida. They landed after noon EST, arrived at the Bounce House a few hours later, and dominated UCF from the opening kickoff in a 26-13 win. "There are no excuses," ASU coach Kenny Dillingham said. "Just spot the ball and play your best football game, and our guys responded. I'm so proud of those guys." Cardae Mack led the way for Arizona State, finishing with 111 yards rushing and a touchdown. The Sun Devils faced arguably the most daunting challenge in college football after the Federal Aviation Administration grounded flights nationwide for several hours Friday. Many schools—including Utah, Texas, and Tennessee—scrambled to figure things out, and conferences and TV partners helped by juggling start times. ASU, meanwhile, agreed to travel and play on the same day—a rarity for major college programs. "Our guys just keep bouncing back," Dillingham said. "They keep fighting. They keep punching, and that's what this program is about, and that's what these guys are about. That's what this culture is about." Five other college teams—Baylor, Florida Atlantic, Kansas State, Minnesota, and Utah—also traveled and played Saturday. They were a combined 1-4, with Utah rallying to win at Arizona and remain one of two unbeatens (along with UCLA) in major college football.
Ole Miss Defends Postponement
No. 19 Mississippi defended the need to postpone its game at Oklahoma until Sunday. While numerous teams maneuvered schedules to make games happen, the Rebels were unable to get out of Oxford, Mississippi, on time, and the SEC forced Oklahoma to reschedule the game. The decision drew the ire of Sooners athletic director Roger Denny, who said late Friday it "wasn't fair to our athletes or fans but we've been given no other choice after the wrong outcome was reached." Ole Miss responded Saturday, pointing to charter issues, flight crew issues, and not wanting to bus eight or more hours. "We regret that the game had to be moved, but we took every reasonable action in our power to avoid this scenario," the school said.
Jeremiah Smith Sets Big Ten Record
Ohio State's Jeremiah Smith became the Big Ten's career receiving yardage leader—the latest record for the uber-talented junior. Smith finished with 117 yards and a touchdown on 11 receptions in the 21st-ranked Buckeyes' 28-19 victory against Northwestern. He now has 3,875 yards receiving, passing Purdue's John Standeford's previous league record in the second quarter. He also tied Purdue's David Bell and Michigan's Braylon Edwards with his 17th 100-yard game.
Indiana Backup QB Shines
Grant Wilson was ready to start a coaching career at Indiana this season. Then the NCAA granted him a seventh year of eligibility. Now he has a win he'll never forget. The 25-year-old Wilson threw for 305 yards, with two touchdowns and an interception, in his first start at Indiana as the sixth-ranked Hoosiers beat No. 15 USC 27-13. Wilson spent three years at Fordham and two at Old Dominion before landing at IU. He filled in for injured starter Josh Hoover (shoulder) and delivered the play of the game: a 42-yard TD pass to Charlie Becker in the fourth quarter.
Originally reported by mysa.