Finebaum: Alabama has separated itself in the SEC (1:17)Paul Finebaum and Heather Dinich share why they have Alabama as their top team in the SEC. (1:17)
Trailing Ole Miss after halftime, Georgia quarterback Gunner Stockton delivered in a big moment once again in the Bulldogs’ come-from-behind win over the fifth-ranked Rebels on Saturday.
“He’s wired for these tight moments because he’s tough,” Georgia coach Kirby Smart said afterward of the Bulldogs’ quarterback. “His team believes in him.”
Week 8 featured statement wins in the SEC from Alabama, Georgia and Vanderbilt and gut-check defeats for CFP favorites Miami, Ole Miss and Texas Tech. Quarterbacks Diego Pavia (Vanderbilt) and Fernando Mendoza (Indiana) padded their Heisman Trophy résumés, while Carson Beck’s candidacy suffered a blow in Miami’s defeat to Louisville. At Notre Dame, we saw just how dangerous the Fighting Irish can be when, you know, they simply hand the ball off to Jeremiyah Love.
The Rebels scored enough points to win at Georgia on Saturday, but their defense couldn’t get the Bulldogs off the field, especially in the fourth quarter when it mattered most. Georgia had 510 yards of offense and 34 first downs. The Bulldogs ran for 221 yards, converted 6 of 11 third-down conversions and controlled the clock for 37:39. Even worse, the Bulldogs scored on each of their first eight possessions and never punted.
“It really wasn’t one thing,” Ole Miss coach Lane Kiffin said. “They really kind of did everything there. We did limit explosive plays, but it was a slow death. Thirty-four first downs, that’s hard to do against the [scout] team.”
Can the Rebels make enough corrections on that side of the ball to remain a legitimate CFP contender? After their upcoming trip to Oklahoma, they have a very favorable schedule the rest of the way with three straight road games against South Carolina, The Citadel and Florida before closing the regular season at Mississippi State in the Egg Bowl on Nov. 28. — Schlabach
The Buckeyes brought back a pair of star defenders from last year’s national championship team in safety Caleb Downs and linebacker Sonny Styles. Yet there might not be a defender playing better in college football than Styles’ cohort at linebacker, Arvell Reese. The junior from Cleveland has been an absolute game-wrecker, compiling a team-high 42 tackles and 5.5 sacks for a defense that has given up just 41 points all season. Reese is establishing himself as a first-round NFL draft talent while teaming up with Styles to give the Buckeyes the best linebacking duo in the country. Ohio State had the No. 1-ranked defense last year. Reese is a big reason the Buckeyes are suffocating the opposition once again. — Jake Trotter
The Hoosiers have another star at quarterback in Fernando Mendoza, who not only has emerged as a Heisman front-runner but is rocketing up 2026 NFL draft boards as potentially the top quarterback prospect. The Cal transfer has completed 73.5% of his passes and tossed a national-best 21 touchdowns with only two interceptions. Mendoza is also fifth nationally with a QBR of 87.7 and fourth in yards per passing attempt (9.7). Indiana won 10 games for the first time in school history and made it to the playoff last year behind the arm of Ohio transfer quarterback Kurtis Rourke. The second-ranked Hoosiers are getting even better quarterback play this season. — Trotter
The last remaining unbeaten team in the ACC? That would be the Yellow Jackets, just as we all predicted back in August, right? Saturday’s win at Duke was hardly emphatic, but Tech got the breaks it needed, and Haynes King was outstanding once again, throwing for 205 yards, running for 120 and scoring once. The fact Duke tested Georgia Tech’s secondary isn’t a surprise. The Blue Devils’ passing attack is ferocious. And any red flags raised aren’t likely to be serious concerns against the next few opponents. But awaiting at year’s end is Georgia, and the Bulldogs will test Georgia Tech’s defense significantly. The Jackets need to be ready. — David Hale
Carson Beck’s four interceptions doomed Miami in a loss to Louisville that felt like another check mark in the “How to blow your postseason expectations” playbook the Canes have run for a while now. Instead, it was probably more of a warning sign that some things need to be fixed ASAP if Miami still has title hopes — namely a stagnating run game and a lack of a third weapon in the passing game. Malachi Toney and, to a lesser degree, CJ Daniels, are threats at receiver. No one else has contributed much of anything in the past month. Can Miami develop a threat — Elija Lofton? Keelan Marion? — and open a few more holes at the line of scrimmage for the backs? If not, this season could go south on the back half of the schedule just as it did last year. — Hale
Coach Clark Lea said before the Week 8 game that his team didn’t play Vanderbilt football all the way to the finish against Alabama and that he hoped to see a more resilient response against LSU. The Commodores pulled off a 31-24 win Saturday, their first victory over LSU in 35 years, with poised play in all three phases of the game. Quarterback Diego Pavia was a magician as usual, but his defense deserves a ton of credit for how it fought back to stop drives and forced LSU to settle for four field goal attempts, including a 23-yarder after the Tigers got down to the 1-yard line. This is not the same team that lost four of its last five in SEC play last year after a hot start. Vandy is 6-1 and will be a contender in the SEC (and CFP) race the rest of the way. — Max Olson
Unlike a year ago, the Sooners have a formula for winning games in 2025. Oklahoma’s smothering defense once again led the way in Saturday’s 26-7 win over South Carolina, limiting the Gamecocks to 54 rushing yards and sacking quarterback LaNorris Sellers six times, while the John Mateer-powered offense provided just enough scoring for the Sooners. Encouragingly, a previously sleepy Oklahoma run game showed life in Week 8; the 171 rushing yards, led by freshman Tory Blaylock (101 yards), marked the program’s most productive rushing performance against a power-conference opponent this fall. The same formula Oklahoma relied upon during its hot start in September did the job again Saturday in a critical post-Texas rebound. The question now: Will the combination of elite defense and timely playmaking from Mateer & Co. hold up against stiffer competition? Time will tell as the Sooners open a run of five consecutive ranked matchups to close the regular season, with a visit from Ole Miss in Week 9. — Lederman
Giving the ball to Jeremiyah Love — and fellow star running back Jadarian Price — in as many ways as possible is always a good idea. Love, who infamously received only 14 touches in a season-opening loss to Miami, ran for 228 yards and a touchdown on 24 carries in Saturday’s win against USC and added five receptions for 37 yards. Price, who had only six carries in the Miami loss, had 87 rushing yards and a touchdown on 13 carries, with a 100-yard kick return touchdown after Notre Dame had fallen behind. “We start with the run game,” Price said. The Irish also learned they’re gradually making strides on defense, especially up front, but also with a secondary that made enough plays against the potent USC passing attack. — Adam Rittenberg
If there is one key difference between the Vols this year and last year, it is their defense. Simply put, Tennessee is not as consistent on that side of the ball as it needs to be — ranking among the worst in the SEC in a host of categories. While the Vols held Alabama to under 400 yards of offense in a 37-20 loss, there were also too many big plays given up — particularly on key downs. Joey Aguilar has been steady, but he has also had turnovers at crucial moments in games. It happened again Saturday — Alabama got him to intentionally ground the ball for a safety, and then a 99-yard pick-sick at the end of the first half ultimately doomed them. The run game is not nearly as productive as a year ago either, and the combination of all three has hurt the Vols in some big-time moments. Having said that, this is still one of the best offenses in the country. If the defense can find ways to be more productive, Tennessee could be in the mix for an at-large CFP berth down the stretch. — Adelson
Don’t sleep on the Bearcats. They’ve won six in a row since their last-minute loss to Nebraska in Kansas City to open the season. They took care of business on the road Saturday with a 49-17 rout of Oklahoma State and remain tied with BYU atop the Big 12 standings. Quarterback Brendan Sorsby continues to play with consistency and ranks seventh in the FBS in QBR (85.0), and the Bearcats’ defense finally grabbed its first interception of the season with cornerback Matthew McDoom snagging a goal-line pick and racing 100 yards for a touchdown. This team keeps getting better as it goes and will be ready for the tough tests ahead against Utah and BYU. — Olson
The Trojans have one of the nation’s best quarterbacks in Jayden Maiava and a passing attack that should strike fear in most opponents. But their inability to finish games on the road, especially when opportunities present themselves, remains a major drawback for coach Lincoln Riley. USC could have stolen a game at Illinois but was unable to get a final defensive stop. The Trojans took a third quarter lead at Notre Dame, only to give it right back after allowing a 100-yard kick return touchdown to Jadarian Price. After converting a third-and-9 to enter Notre Dame territory, Riley inexplicably called for a wide receiver option, which resulted in a turnover that swung momentum for good. Riley called it “a stupid call,” and he was right. USC has improved from last year but still needs to figure out how to play better on the road. — Rittenberg
The Illini learned they have a big-time quarterback in Luke Altmyer and an improved downfield passing attack, highlighted by wide receiver Hank Beatty, which averages 9.4 yards per attempt and has recorded 23 completions of 20 yards or longer. Illinois also knows it must play better along the line of scrimmage, and avoid critical breakdowns, to hang with the better opponents left on its schedule. The Illini have as many sacks allowed as 20-yard completions and are averaging just 3.5 yards per rush with only one run longer than 26 yards all season. Their defense held up decently against top-ranked Ohio State, but they have struggled against the pass rush and rank near the bottom of the FBS in third-down defense (45.1% conversions). Those areas must improve after a much needed open week as Illinois visits Washington. — Rittenberg