Week 6 of the college football season was the most exciting thus far, and it wasn’t particularly close.
We saw Alabama and Nick Saban fall to 26-1 when he faced former assistants after a shocking loss on the road to Texas A&M. The Aggies didn’t look like a competent football team after losing quarterback Haynes King to an injury. But they hung 41 points against the nation’s No. 1 team and snapped the longest winning streak in college football.
Even before that game, Iowa and Penn State played a thriller at Kinnick Stadium. Neither of those games, despite their prominence, make this week’s most exciting stories.
The Red River Showdown might ultimately be the game of the year. Texas jumped out to a 28-7 lead in the first quarter and led 41-23 late in the third against undefeated Oklahoma. It looked like all the Sooners’ close wins in previous weeks were finally coming back to bite them.
Enter Caleb Williams. The freshman replaced one-time Heisman candidate Spencer Rattler and sparked OU to a fourth-quarter comeback win. One year after breaking the record for most points in a rivalry game, the 55-48 result topped it. Texas might not be back, but Steve Sarkisian has the team headed in the right direction.
If you don’t have Matt Corral near or atop your Heisman leaderboard, now would be the time to get on board. The Lane Train topped Arkansas in a 52-51 thriller, which was somehow only the second best game in the 11 a.m. time slot. The win, Mississippi’s first over a ranked conference opponent since 2017, was secured when the Razorbacks were stopped on a two-point conversion with no time on the clock. They had scored on a 9-yard touchdown as time expired.
One minute earlier, Corral found wide receiver Braylon Sanders for a 68-yard bomb down the sideline to give Mississippi the lead. Corral has yet to throw an interception on the season and has rushed for eight touchdowns along with throwing 12 through the air. Despite the loss against Alabama, the team’s only of the season, Corral wasn’t to blame. Mississippi averages the second-most yards per game and are No. 7 in total offensive touchdowns. With a favorable schedule down the stretch, look for Kiffin’s squad to post ridiculous offensive numbers in the second half of the season.
Despite taking a 34-10 thumping by Georgia this week, Auburn did something that only one team had done against the Bulldogs all year. They scored an offensive touchdown. Yes, that’s right. Through five games, UGA had only allowed one touchdown, a garbage-time TD to South Carolina with the game out of hand. In back-to-back games, the Bulldogs will face ranked SEC East foes, but finish the regular season with four games against unranked opponents. If all goes right, the Bulldogs will enter the conference championship game unbeaten. It’s time to write down Georgia as early National Championship favorites.
College football is better when Michigan is good. However that makes you feel, it’s true. The Wolverines went 2-4 in a COVID-19-shortened season last year, but are off to a 6-0 start this season. The Maize and Blue haven’t defeated any ranked opponents and the latter part of the season will be more telling with games against Michigan State, Penn State and Ohio State. Nonetheless, the team’s 32-29 win against Nebraska Saturday night brought a familiar feeling back to college football.
CN+R Intern Max Baker can be reached at max@chathamnr.com or on Twitter at @Maxbaker_15.