TeamFB7 tackles the 10 most compelling topics across college football heading into the Week 5 schedule Saturday.
Is one of the most high-profile coaches in college football coaching for his job the rest of this season?
Are the Florida Gators truly back as a legitimate national title contender, or did the college football world overreact with the AP poll voters moving them up an incredible 13 spots to No. 8 after that emphatic win over Ole Miss?
Can a non-quarterback win the Heisman Trophy this year? What is Deion Sanders doing at Colorado?
We cover that and much more in the weekly First-and-10 column to set up Week 5 of the college football season.
1. Lincoln Riley Out Of Runway At USC
To those who haven’t followed the USC program closely, it may seem overwrought to suggest the Trojans’ loss to Oregon last week was the beginning of the end for the Lincoln Riley Era in Los Angeles.
But for followers of the program, a real sense of hopelessness set in after that 41-27 defeat at home.
If Riley couldn’t beat this Oregon team — one that struggled with Boise State and lost to Oklahoma State — especially after an unfortunate hit to the head of quarterback Dante Moore left the Ducks turning to backup Dylan Raiola on the fly, then when would he ever best Dan Lanning? Or any top Big Ten team (not a Sherrone Moore-led Michigan at home or the occasional home win over a down Notre Dame team)?
Riley’s tenure at USC began with talk of competing for championships and hope that he was the savior for a historically successful program that had fallen way off its perch. But five years in, not only have the Trojans not made a College Football Playoff appearance yet (after Riley reached the playoffs three times at Oklahoma), but he has consistently failed to win the big games.
Riley’s best season at USC was his first one back in 2022, when Caleb Williams won the Heisman Trophy and the Trojans won 11 games, but they lost twice to Utah (including in the Pac-12 championship game) to fall out of playoff consideration. (And then lost to Tulane in the Cotton Bowl.)
There was plenty of hope coming off that season because the first Utah game came down to a 43-42 score on the road with some questionable officiating calls, and the Pac-12 championship game went off the rails only after Williams injured his hamstring early in the game and struggled thereafter.
But Riley’s support within the fan base has progressively eroded in the years since then.
The 2023 team went 8-5, falling apart after a 6-0 start with losses to Notre Dame (a blowout on the road), Utah, Washington, Oregon and even rival UCLA.
The 2024 team was even worse, going 7-6 in USC’s Big Ten debut season while blowing leads week after week and losing every true road game (at Michigan, Minnesota, Maryland and Washington).
USC went 9-4 last season, but after an early loss at Illinois (another crushing road loss in the final seconds after leading late), the Trojans needed to win at Notre Dame or Oregon to have a shot at the playoffs and played sloppy in losing both games by double digits.
So the loss to Oregon last week was just the latest letdown in a big moment for Riley’s USC teams, and at a certain point, it just feels inevitable in those games.
What makes it more frustrating is that Riley consistently makes questionable decisions in the biggest moments of those biggest games.
Take last Saturday night for instance.
USC was trailing 34-27 midway through the fourth quarter, but the Trojans’ offense was cooking at this point, having scored on five straight full possessions. All Riley had to do offensively was keep piling up first downs and moving down the field like his unit had done most of the night. Defense was the Trojans’ actual area of panic and concern.
But then Riley suddenly dialed up a pair of failed deep shots into coverage on the possession midway through the fourth quarter, including on third-and-7 rather than prioritizing a first down, and then was left to go for it on fourth-and-7 from the USC 49.
The Trojans failed on fourth down and Oregon pulled away. The game was over in a blink because of his decision-making — yet again.
Meanwhile, the defense is another story. In this space a few weeks ago, we actually got roped into believing USC might finally have a championship-caliber defense based on the first couple weeks of the season but more so because the defensive line and edge rushers looked stronger than any group Riley has had at USC to this point, and because new defensive coordinator Gary Patterson was an excellent defensive-minded head coach at TCU for a long, long time.
But nope — the Trojans struggled to stop Rutgers two weeks ago and had no answers for Oregon and its backup QB.
All of that rolled together is why USC fans are beyond frustrated and out of patience for the Riley Era.
His comments about the loss don’t help much either.
USC fans don’t care to rejoice about having “a chance to win” against a lower ranked team at home! They want to finally win those games — or at least have any reason to believe they ever will.
2. The Desman Stephens II Hit On Dante Moore And Aftermath …
While we’re on USC, we should at least touch on the unfortunate sequence that ensued last week when Trojans linebacker Desman Stephens II delivered a devastating hit with his shoulder to the helmet of Moore as the Oregon QB slid down.
Stephens then celebrated for quite a while as Moore lay motionless on the turf with palpable concern growing within the stadium and for viewers at home on TV. Stephens then continued to dap up his teammates on the sideline to bask in his hit.
It was all a very (very, very) bad look for Stephens and the Trojans.
Lanning said what needed to be said afterward.
We’ll play Devil’s advocate to a degree — and only a degree. We see those kind of hits often enough where it seems obvious to the viewer but to a linebacker playing full speed who has already made the decision to tackle the charging player there’s not really any way to correct course as the QB goes into a slide.
To agree with Riley’s comments on the matter, it is thoroughly unlikely that Stephens wanted to pummel Moore in the helmet or cause any harm. It’s an unfortunate situation.
It’s also unlikely that his initial celebration came knowing the extent of Moore’s injury or that he’d been knocked out of the game.
But the continued reactions once Stephens returned to the sideline are inexcusable, and USC was right to suspend him for one game.
3. Are The Gators For Real As National Title Contenders?
Most college football analysts and fans alike believed Florida made a good hire in landing head coach Jon Sumrall from Tulane.
Ditto when Sumrall then lured rising star offensive coordinator Buster Faulkner away from Georgia Tech after a breakout season for the Yellow Jackets.
Meanwhile, everyone knew Jadan Baugh was one of the top returning running backs in college football.
So there was a lot of reason to believe better days were indeed ahead for the Gators.
But did anything think it could be this good so soon?
While there are a few other worthy first-year head coaches in the conversation, Sumrall has been the most impactful hire of the last college football coaching carousel, and the only question now is can he really get the Gators to the College Football Playoff in his first season?
As much as Florida’s 52-28 win over then-No. 4 Ole Miss last week was the statement-maker for Sumrall’s squad, the Gators’ road game at No. 25 Missouri (3:30 p.m. Saturday on ABC) will reveal just as much about the team.
First, Florida has to avoid the same sort of let-down on the road it helped execute upon Ole Miss a week ago (when the Rebels were coming off their momentous win over LSU before going on the road to The Swamp).
Second, Missouri has a much stouter defensive front than what Florida faced last week.
The Gators have one of the most prolific rushing attacks in the country led by Baugh (600 yards and 11 TDs on 7.2 YPC) and Duke Clark (259 yards and 3 TDs on 8.1 YPC). They rushed for 243 yards on the road at Auburn and 302 yards vs. the Rebels.
If the Gators keep it rolling at Missouri on Saturday then, yes, they are indeed for real as a CFP contender.
Florida still has some daunting challenges ahead, including a road game at No. 1 Texas and the annual rivalry game with No. 2 Georgia. But the Gators don’t have to win them all to make the playoffs — they just need to keep showing they can win the ones they should win if they’re going to be viewed as a true contender.
4. Can Ohio State WR Jeremiah Smith Win The Heisman?
Ohio State wide receiver Jeremiah Smith now has the best odds to win the Heisman Trophy at +270, per DraftKings Sportsbook.
This after the best game of his career last week as he caught 12 passes for 217 yards and 4 TDs vs. Illinois.
Smith enters Week 5 leading the entire FBS level with 617 receiving yards and tied for the lead with 7 receiving TDs.
He’s on pass to well surpass his career-highs of 87 catches, 1,315 yards and 15 TDs.
Despite Miami’s Malachi Toney (34-564-6) making an incredibly strong case himself, Smith would seem a shoo-in to win his first Biletnikoff Award as college football’s top pass-catcher.
But can he win the Heisman too?
Depending on what parameters are used, only three true wide receivers have ever won the award without playing other positions as well (like Travis Hunter at Colorado in 2024 or Johnny Rodgers at Nebraska in 1972) — Tim Brown at Notre Dame in 1987, Desmond Howard at Michigan in 1991 (yes, both Brown and Howard were also elite return specialists) and DeVonta Smith at Alabama in 2020.
Here’s what those three did to win college football’s top honor:
Brown: 39 receptions for 846 yards (21.7 YPC) and 3 TDs, 144 rushing yards and a TD, 3 punt return TDs
Howard: 61 receptions for 950 yards and FBS-leading 19 TDs, 165 rushing yards and 2 TDs, 1 kick return TD and 1 punt return TD
Smith: 117 receptions for 1,856 yards and 23 TD (leading the FBS level in all three categories), 1 rushing TD, 1 punt return TD
Obviously, Brown and Howard played in a different era for passing offenses and for teams that didn’t air it out by today’s standards. Smith’s Heisman Trophy was the product of being so far ahead of any other receiver in the sport that season as he had 31 more receptions, 663 more yards and 4 more TDs than anyone else at the FBS level.
Can Smith create that kind of separation on the statistical charts?
Probably not, but he may not have to either.
Smith has been regarded as the best receiver in college football for a couple years now, so voters may be inclined to factor some degree of career achievement into their thought process, especially if he clearly surpasses his own career-highs in his third and final season with the Buckeyes.
But if any of the quarterbacks in contention — Miami’s Darian Mensah, Ole Miss’ Trinidad Chambliss, Mississippi State’s Kamario Taylor, Alabama’s Keelon Russell or Notre Dame’s CJ Carr — finish the season on a tear, it will be hard to not give it to the top QB.
5. Keelon Russell vs. Kamario Taylor Headlines Week 5
The game of the week in college football is No. 7 Alabama (4-0, 2-0 SEC) at No. 16 Mississippi State (4-0, 2-0) at noon Saturday (on ABC).
That’s because it features two of the most talented and entertaining quarterbacks in the sport.
Russell, the Alabama redshirt-freshman, and Taylor, the Mississippi State sophomore, are already two of the best dual-threat QBs in college football just a handful of starts into their careers.
Russell is completing 70.9% of his passes for 1,129 yards, 8 TDs and 2 INTs with 168 rushing yards and 3 scores while seemingly getting better by the week.
After struggling in a Week 2 win over Kentucky, Russell then completed 23 of 30 passes for 320 yards, 3 TDs and 0 INTs along with 3 rushes for 56 yards and a score in a 50-36 win over Florida State and went 21 of 27 for 365 yards, 4 TDs and 0 INTs plus another rushing TD in a 49-18 blowout over South Carolina.
Taylor flashed his athleticism and dual-threat potential in two starts at the end of last season, but he’s opened eyes week after week this fall with his passing ability.
Taylor has completed 69.2% of his passes for 1,192 yards, 14 TDs and 2 INTs with 185 rushing yards and a TD.
He’s drawn comparisons to Vince Young, Lamar Jackson and others, which should be enough to entice any college football fan to tune in Saturday for this game.
6. UCLA’s Bob Chesney Deserves Coach Of The Year Consideration Too
Along with Sumrall, UCLA’s Bob Chesney should be right at the top of the list for early consideration for national coach of the year honors.
It’s important to first remember how far the Bruins had fallen under former coach DeShaun Foster, who lasted just three games into his second season. UCLA won 8 games combined over the last two seasons.
So for the Bruins to be 4-0 overall and 2-0 in the Big Ten so far under Chesney is a statement. But what makes it feel real is how UCLA is winning.
Chesney, who came over from James Madison after leading the Dukes on a memorable run to the CFP last year, has immediately transformed the Bruins into one of the most potent rushing attacks in the country.
UCLA ranks fifth nationally with 281.5 rushing yards per game after ranking 85th in that category last season (139.67).
Wayne Knight, who followed Chesney from James Madison, is leading that charge with 445 rushing yard and 9 TDs on 9.1 YPC.
The Bruins rushed for 266 yards and 4 TDs last week in a 54-3 road win over Maryland and 369 yards and 4 TDs in a 52-38 win over Purdue.
They have a bye this week before traveling to Oregon next Saturday.
7. Three Coaches Will Be Offered Bigger Jobs This Winter
Just as Sumrall and Chesney made a career climb last offseason while showing how transformational the right head coach hire can be for a program, here are three coaches who will certainly be pursued for bigger jobs after this season.
Wake Forest HC Jake Dickert: Dickert parlayed a solid three-plus seasons at Washington State into the Wake Forest job (a more secure landing spot given the collapse of the Pac-12), and in taking over a Demon Deacons program coming off back-to-back 4-8 seasons, he delivered a 9-4 finish in Year 1 and now has his team off to a 3-1 start. Wake Forest scored a big 30-27 win over then-No. 16 Louisville last week and has only lost to top-5 Miami so far. Expect some needy Big Ten or SEC program to come calling for Dickert after this season. Whether he leaves or not is another story.
Florida OC Buster Faulkner: We already touched on Faulkner and his impact at Florida, building one of the most unstoppable rushing attacks in college football — again. He did the same thing at Georgia Tech last year when the Yellow Jackets ranked 21st nationally in rushing (197.46 YPG) and 11th in total offense (460.0 YPG). He did it in different ways too, last year building around a dual-threat QB in Haynes King and this year with a more traditional rushing attack.
New Mexico HC Jason Eck: Eck just wins wherever he goes, plain and simple. He took over an Idaho program coming off five straight losing seasons and went 7-5, 9-4 and 10-4 in three seasons with the Vandals. Eck then took over a New Mexico program coming off eight straight losing seasons and went 9-4. This fall, his Lobos are 3-1 with a competitive 14-6 loss to Oklahoma. Eck seems ticketed to a Big Ten or SEC job after this season.
8. Good Gauge For Miami This Week
It may not seem like it on paper, and maybe it will prove not to be much of a challenge, but it seems like No. 4 Miami’s road game at Clemson on Saturday night could be the most revealing gauge yet for the Hurricanes.
They’ve had a pretty light schedule so far in getting to 4-0, blowing out Stanford, Florida A&M, Central Michigan and getting a decent test from Dickert’s Wake Forest team (33-20).
Clemson (3-1, 2-0 ACC) has won three straight since that humbling Week 1 loss to LSU, including ACC wins over North Carolina and Cal while looking better and better by the week. The Tigers’ 24-10 win on the road across the country against the Golden Bears was notable, especially in how the defense shut down a good QB in Jaron-Keawe Sagapolutele (16-of-29 passing for 119 yards, 0 TDs and 2 INTs in arguably the worst game of his young career) while rushing for 257 yards on 5.4 YPC.
Gideon Davidson led the way on the ground for Clemson with 22 carries for 159 yards and 2 TDs.
Can Clemson keep pace with Miami? That depends on how much of an outlier that 51-10 loss to LSU was for Dabo Swinney’s squad, which has since change QBs to freshman Tait Reynolds (who hasn’t been great either while throwing for 521 yards, 1 TD and 2 INTs with 83 rushing yards).
At the least, it will be interesting to see if that Clemson defense can slow down the dominant duo of Miami QB Darian Mensah (1,211 yards, 14 TDs, 0 INTs) and Toney (34 catches for 564 yards and 6 TDs).
9. Are Missouri And Tennessee The Two Most Overrated Programs In College Football?
There has always been the feeling among many college football fans of an SEC bias, be it the conference’s partnership with ESPN or its own projected aura of superiority (“It just means more” and all).
But there is increasing conversation around where SEC teams land or remain in the AP rankings each week, seemingly getting overstated credit for beating other SEC teams (even those that haven’t tangibly accomplished much) or getting excused for losing to other SEC teams (ditto).
Those who feel this way — especially with a whopping 10 SEC teams ranked this week! — point specifically to Tennessee and Missouri, which led to these stats/realities making the rounds on social media this week.
It’s compelling fodder, for sure …
10. What Is Deion Sanders Doing At Colorado?
It surely seems like the Deion Sanders Era at Colorado has run its course, right?
After nobly getting the Buffaloes to 9-4 in his second season, with his son Shedeur Sanders starring at QB and Hunter winning the Heisman as a two-way star, Sanders sent 3-9 last season and is off to a hollow 2-2 start this fall with a last-second win over a bad Georgia Tech team, a win over FCS-level Weber State, a blowout 41-7 loss at Northwestern and a 23-12 loss at Baylor.
With games vs. No. 12 Texas Tech this week, No. 13 Utah after a bye and then a road game against No. 19 Oklahoma State in succession, the Buffs will most likely be 2-5 and headed to another lost season.
Beyond the win-loss column, though, Sanders’ program has been a mess if anyone is paying attention.
He’s on his third offensive coordinator in five seasons, scapegoating Sean Lewis (who became San Diego State’s head coach after the season) and veteran NFL coach Pat Shurmur when the reality since Sanders has led the program is that the Buffs can’t build a functional offensive line (or, therefore, a running game) — which is not the fault of the coordinators.
Sanders is now scapegoating sophomore quarterback Julian Lewis, one of the biggest recruiting wins of his tenure in getting the highly coveted top prospect to flip from his USC commitment (and turn down Curt Cignetti and Indiana).
Lewis has been benched four games into his first season as Colorado’s starting QB, despite passing for 733 yards, 6 TDs and 2 INTs plus a rushing TD. Isaac Wilson will take over this week vs. Texas Tech.
Lewis hasn’t been great in the last two games and was benched during the loss at Baylor despite completing 11 of 16 passes for 75 yards.
Maybe it proves to be the right decision, but more to the point it just seems like Sanders is constantly rearranging deck chairs on the Titanic while ignoring the root issue that the program doesn’t recruit well enough overall out of the high school ranks, which makes it especially hard to build a strong and deep offensive line.
It’s one position a program can’t simply rely on the transfer portal for as any truly good OL transfer available commands a major price tag (like when Colorado lost its one elite offensive tackle Jordan Seaton to LSU this offseason).
What happens when Sanders realizes Wilson is having to play behind the same offensive line as Lewis, and touted Liberty transfer Kaidon Salter last year (who had a career-worst season playing for the Buffs).
Does he bench him too or fire new offensive coordinator Brennan Marion as the next scapegoats when the blame actually belongs to the head coach, who has devalued the importance of high school recruiting while believing he could build his roster each year with an abundance of mostly three-star transfers.
