By Matt Coffelt

Durham, NC – The UNC Tarheels held off Duke who had clawed back from a 17 point deficit to reclaim the Victory Bell in Durham with a 24 to 20 final on Saturday.

Bill Belichick’s boys in Carolina Blue had the Blue Devils’ offense in a chokehold for the first half of this game.

Duke’s offense managed a whopping zero points in the first half of the game with a series of drives that went; punt, punt, downs, punt, end of half.

Their only points in the first two quarters came when UNC receiver Jordan Shipp fumbled along the sideline that Duke free safety Andrew Pellicciota recovered and ran back for a touchdown.

That recovery was the start to the Blue Devil’s comeback.

Going into halftime with the main positive being defense, the Devils came into the third and doubled down on their defensive identity.

They largely limited the Heels offense and forced a turnover in the one redzone trip UNC made in the third.

Defense held up its end of the deal, right up until they didn’t at critical time in the 4th quarter.

The Duke offense found the endzone with 4:39 left in the game on a drive that boiled down to giving star running back Nate Sheppard the ball in any way possible and letting him create.

Going up 20 to 17 with that score, all Duke needed to do to keep the Victory Bell in Durham was keep holding off the struggling UNC offense.

On the following possession UNC found themselves with a 4th down and 4 yards to go from their own 28 and they decided against punting with a bold go call.

It worked.

“I wasn’t punting it,” said UNC head coach Bill Belichick said after the game. “I didn’t want to give the ball back.”

The play kept the drive alive and the Tarheels would march the rest of the way down the field and get the touchdown they needed to reclaim the lead.

This gave Duke the ball back with just enough time to run their 2-minute drill and try to answer.

Spamming the ‘give the ball to Sheppard’ option was the plan again but they were running out of time which forced them to look to options through the air with quarterback Walker Eget.

Unfortunately for the Blue Devils, the offensive line couldn’t quite hold up and Tarheel pressure lead to an intentional grounding call putting them well behind the sticks on the drive.

On 3rd and have-to-have-it Eget put the ball up and UNC cornerback Kenton Dopson III came down with it effectively ending the game ahead of them kneeling it out.

“Oh yah, I did ring it, absolutely,” Coach Belichick said when asked about the Victory Bell in the post-game interviews.

Next week Duke travels to Virginia and UNC hosts Syracuse as both teams continue in their ACC slate.

I can’t believe all this happened in a seven-day span.

Oct. 17 storylines

Auburn stuns No. 1 Georgia 27-24 in Athens on Alex McPherson’s walk-off field goal

No. 8 BYU holds off No. 2 Notre Dame 28-24 with red zone stand on final play

No. 4 Ohio State edges No. 5 Indiana 19-15, snapping Hoosiers’ 22-game win streak

Florida, led by backup QB, rallies from 17-3 down to beat No. 7 Texas 27-24 in Austin

No. 14 Tennessee rolls No. 6 Alabama 26-10

No. 20 Houston outlasts No. 18 Oklahoma State 35-32

Oct. 10 storylines

No. 2 Georgia holds off No. 6 Alabama 20-17

Oklahoma topples No. 1 Texas 27-24 in Red River Rivalry

Kentucky beats No. 10 LSU 35-34 in OT, its second straight overtime win on 2-point try

No. 21 UCLA wins at No. 13 Oregon 17-15, its first win in Eugene since 2004

South Carolina snaps eight-game SEC skid, routing No. 16 Florida 38-19 in the Swamp

No. 7 Indiana erases 11-point deficit with two fourth-quarter TDs to beat Nebraska 20-17

Awful predictions aside, this was carnage for the SEC. There was AssGate in Athens, Cigares D’Orange in Tennessee and a Sark Soiling in Austin. The Grove is no laughing matter, while LSU roared while taking care of business. If we stand up and salute A&M for beating The Citadel, then what do we do for Arkansas after they beat Vandy? Throw a party?

Anyway, here’s the rankings:

1. Ole Miss: Oh wait, did Ole Miss actually find a defense? What they did against Missouri suggests they did.
   
2. Georgia: An ass-backwards loss to Auburn was a shocker. As was Georgia’s performance. But they are still great.
   
3. Tennessee: Cigars in The Land Of The Buttchug after comfortable beating Alabama. Jim Knowles might actually be a DC after all.
   
4. Kentucky: The loss to Alabama is in the rear window. The Cats could legit make the playoffs.
   
5. Alabama: No RCW hurts the Crimson Tide. Now on tenterhooks with 2 losses.
   
6. LSU: Business taken care of against a Mississippi State game sans weapons, as they say in the Bayou.
   
7. Missouri: This team is fine. By which I mean is OK, but will get found out ever so often. Ole Miss was the ‘ever so often’.
   
8. South Carolina: Shane Beamer’s job is safe, and I feel bad for being nasty about the Cocks, particularly after they thrashed Bye Week.
   
9. Florida: **** knows what to think of them. My friend was bipolar last night, telling me one minute to scrap the program and at the end of the game telling me a Natty in 2028 was a ‘good bet’.
   
10. Auburn: Superb performance at Georgia. Is this the start of a renaissance?
    11.Oklahoma: Unbelievably mediocre team. If they had a worse defense, Brett Venables’ seat would be blasting hot.
    
11. Texas A&M: They beat The Citadel! A&M’s back, baby!
    
12. Texas: The fish rots from the head, and that head is Sark. He needs to bench Arch now, or himself as a OC. This is horrible. Which is OK by a lot of people.
    
13. Mississippi State: No Kamario.
    No Fluff. Big problem. If they both don’t play for the rest of the season, the Cowbell might miss a Bowbell.
    
14. Arkansas: What a win! What a win! What a win!
    
15. Doing this list.
    
16. Arch Manning’s Heisman hopes
    
17. My chances with Heidi Klum.
    
18. Vanderbilt.

Player 247 profile page

Source

Made with the /r/CFB Recruiting Post Generator

A week after being on the receiving end of the FBS Cobra Kai award (66-14 loss to Oregon State) the Aztecs put together their best performance of the season to beat Fresno State, 26-23, in a battle for the Old Oil Can trophy.

"Aztecs fast" showed up early and for the 1st time in 2026 as starting QB Jayden Denegal came out of the gate hot. Denegal was 7 of 10 for 112 yards, including a 52 yard touchdown pass to Jaylon Hawkins. The Aztecs offense was also benefited with the return of RB Lucky Sutton who had missed the previous 3 and half games with injury. Together they had a early 2nd qtr lead of 13-0.

Just as the Aztecs offense seemed to finally putting everything together, QB Jayden Denegal went down with a lower leg injury midway through the 2nd qtr. In came backup QB Stone Saunders, who had just returned from a injury himself. Coming into the moment, Saunders had 2 career completions against a FCS team and his 1st meaningful snap of FBS football didn't go well. The shotgun snap hit the man in motion and resulted in a fumble and turnover.

Fresno would capitalize on the turnover, going 38 yards on 5 plays, capped with a Bryson Donelson 4 yard TD run and a score of 13-10 with 4 minutes to go in the 1st half.

The Aztecs would go 3 and out but a punt pinned the Bulldogs, who would also go 3 and out. A short punt and a 24 yard punt return by Javion Kinnard and the Aztecs would end the half in FG position and capitalizing with a 40 yard FG. Giving us a halftime score of 16-10.

In the 3rd quarter the Bulldogs methodically went down the field for a 75 yard, 11-play TD drive that was capped by a Julius Gillick 7 yard TD run. Giving the Bulldogs their 1st lead at 17-16.

The Aztecs answered early in the 4th when Lucky Sutton broke off a 67 yard run and a trick play with a pass by WR Bert Emanuel Jr. to Jordan Napier for 7 yards and a TD. With 12:00 left coach Sean Lewis took the extra point and the Aztecs had a 6 point lead. 23-17.

Once again Fresno State had a 75 yard TD drive that was highlighted by a spectacular Ezekiel Avit catch in triple coverage that got the Bulldogs inside the 3 yard line, and they would punch it in on the next play. However, a missed extra point gave us a tie game at 23 with 5:02 left.

Aztecs backup QB, Stone Saunders, finally looked settled in and was key in the Aztecs getting into deep FG range and with 1:02 left, San Diego State kicker Cooper DiLeva, who had never made a 50+ yard FG in any game previously (including high school) lined up from 53 yard's and on the hash. His kick was good and the Aztecs celebrated retaking the late lead.

Fresno's no timeout desperation drive would immediately be in trouble when QB Jayden Mandal was sacked by the Aztecs defense. San Diego State's defense would get the stop that lead to the Old Oil Can trophy staying on The Mesa in San Diego.

Final Score 26 - 23 Aztecs

Yesterday, the #1 ranked Georgia Bulldogs lost 27-24 vs. Auburn. The FCS #1 ranked South Dakota State Jackrabbits lost 21-10 @ #11 North Dakota.

This is the only time both number one teams have lost the same day in the regular season since the 1990s.

The only other near case was 2008 week 5, when #1 ranked USC lost to Oregon State and FCS #1 ranked Richmond lost to Villanova, but the USC game was played on Thursday, so the losses did not occur on the same day.

I'm not absolutely 100% sure that's correct- my methodology was rather crude, I went year by year and found every upset of the FBS #1 team, and then checked that against the history of the FCS rankings to see if the FCS #1 moved the same week. That said, I'd say I'm about 97% confident I didn't miss any.

by Joe Smith

MORGANTOWN, W.VA – West Virginia kicker Jack Cassidy is just a Derry man who had a dream of coming to America to play college football. On Saturday, the Irishman kicker parlayed that into the moment of a lifetime in front of nearly 50,000 fans at Milan Puskar Stadium.

After 58 minutes of football, the Mountaineers and the Cincinnati Bearcats were tied 42-42, and West Virginia had the opportunity for a game-winning drive – but a Cincinnati punt pinned them at their own 1-yard line, leaving little time to make magic happen. 

But West Virginia quarterback Mike Hawkins Jr. didn’t need a ton of time to be the conduit for such magic, connecting with wide receiver Prince Strachan on passes of 41 yards and 39 yards to move the ball into field goal range. Suddenly, with three seconds remaining, Cassidy was faced with a walk-off, game-winning field goal opportunity from 35 yards out. 

“I was definitely [nervous]. Nerves are an important part of the game,” Cassidy said. “Pressure shows you care about what you’re doing, so you have to recognize that they are there, first and foremost, but overcome them.”

Cassidy had already missed 49-yarder in the first half, but with head coach Rich Rodriguez opting to try for the field goal, it reassured Cassidy of the trust his coach had in him. The Bearcats called a timeout to ice him, but in the end, it wouldn’t matter.

Just a couple minutes later, his kick sailed through the uprights, the Mountaineer mascot’s musket fired, and West Virginia ended a three-game losing streak to nab their first league victory of the season 45-42, earning the chance to celebrate their Homecoming game by singing “Take Me Home, Country Roads” with their home fans.

“Hitting a game-winning field goal, that’s probably one of the best feelings I’ve ever had in my entire life,” Cassidy said. “Yeah, you dream of it, but you don’t want to make too much of the moment. But a dream is a dream, and I’m living my dream.”

For Cassidy’s head coach, the win was less a dream and more an opportunity to put to bed a difficult month that has been practically nightmarish since beginning the year 3-0 with two home wins and a marquee non-conference neutral-site win over Virginia.

Since that fateful game against the Cavaliers on September 19, the Mountaineers have lost three consecutive games to Oklahoma State, Iowa State, and Arizona, dropping to an 0-3 record in conference play and sending the vibes plummeting in Morgantown.

“I told the sideline reporter, I think I’ve been physically ill for three-and-a-half weeks,” Rodriguez said. “But no, it's really been three-and-a-half weeks and three-and-a-half quarters. But I’m just tickled to death to sneak one out of there, and it looked against all kinds of odds, and we’re going to really enjoy this win.”

The crucial component in those losses was the team’s defensive performance, as the Mountaineers gave up 1,669 yards and 138 points over that winless stretch in late September and early October.

Personnel changes were made, with Jacorey Thomas replacing Kamari Wilson at safety, Andrew Powdrell shifting to cornerback and starting, and David Afogho getting his first start on the defensive line. But that didn’t seem to fix the problems, as West Virginia gave up 622 yards (a season-high), 28 first downs, and 42 points to the Bearcats.

“It looked like the same story,” Rodriguez said. “They scored, and we couldn’t get over the hump. We tie it up, and then they’d score. We’d tie it up, and then they’d score. It looked like the same old thing.”

What was the difference this time? Well, one might say that it came down to West Virginia getting the ball last. But truthfully, it felt like West Virginia starting quarterback Mike Hawkins Jr. was just tired of losing, and decided to make something happen.

Those two passes to Strachan on the final drive capped a performance that saw him go 25-for-33 passing for 464 yards and three touchdowns, while also adding 77 rushing yards and two touchdowns. With his performance, he etched his name into West Virginia’s record books for the second time this season.

His performance marked the first time a West Virginia quarterback has ever thrown for 450-or-more yards while rushing for 75-or-more rushing yards in a single game, and also set the program record for the most passing yards with the least amount of completions in a single game. He’s also the only player to pass for at least two touchdowns and run for at least two touchdowns in four games in a season in program history.

He also passed for the most yards in a game by a West Virginia quarterback since Will Grier’s 539 passing yards against Oklahoma in 2018. It was the fifth-most single-game passing yards in school history, and he joined Grier, Geno Smith, Skyler Howard, and Clint Trickett as the only West Virginia quarterbacks to pass for more than 460 yards and three touchdowns in a game.

His 14 rushing touchdowns on the season leads all FBS players (including running backs), and he has the most rushing touchdowns by a quarterback through the first seven games in the season in program history. He also became the first player for the program to hit 14 rushing touchdowns in a season since Pat White (14) and Steve Slaton (17) in 2007.

“How about Mike Hawkins – he was phenomenal,” Rodriguez said.

“It was crazy. For the offense, we just have to keep scoring,” Hawkins Jr. said. “That’s the goal every week. It doesn’t matter what’s going on in the game, don’t look at the scoreboard. Just take it play-by-play. It was an unreal game to be in and execute with my guys.”

Vote here Voting closes Monday, October 19 at 11:59 PM Pacific, with results planned for Tuesday.

Ranking 25 teams is hard. Comparing four at a time is much easier. That’s the idea behind this revival of one of r/CFB’s great community polls. Each screen shows four teams: choose the strongest and weakest resume based on games played so far. This is about what teams have earned on the field, not who would win on a neutral field or where you expect them to finish. You’ll see 20 screens and different voters receive different balanced ballots drawn from the same fixed 50-team field. Don’t know enough about a group? You can skip it.

Why participate? Because the results can tell us more than a numbered list. MaxDiff combines those smaller comparisons into a community ranking and groups teams into tiers. In last week's results Georgia ran it up (and broke the chart), while Alabama remained in the top tier according to the voters. We now have 5 tiers in the top 30. Week 7's Saturday took a wrecking ball to what we thought we knew. Five AP top-10 teams lost. Two more survived games that were far closer than expected. It's more evidence, but maybe harder choices? How far should Alabama fall? Should Indiana fall at all after winning a game that became much more stressful than expected? What do we do with Oregon and LSU after another weekend complicated their resumes? Those are exactly the arguments this poll is designed to capture, and they have already produced some excellent discussions.

Record Guide Now we have more football to judge. Which teams are thriving, surviving, looking forward to roundball season? I made a helpful table to assist you all with record keeping. The table might surprise a few of you. Records are through Week 7. Teams are ordered by wins against the fixed 50-team field, then winning percentage, then fewer losses; exact ties are alphabetical. Teams with no fixed-field games appear between teams with a fixed-field win and teams with a fixed-field loss. A dash indicates no games in that category.

Records are through Saturday, October 17, 2026 at 11:59 PM Pacific. Teams are ordered by wins against the fixed 50-team field, then winning percentage, then fewer losses; exact ties are alphabetical. Teams with no fixed-field games appear between teams with a fixed-field win and teams with a fixed-field loss. A dash indicates no games in that category.

None of us can watch every game. The more fans who participate, the broader the perspectives we bring together. Whether you followed every snap or caught the highlights, your informed comparisons help.

As always my special thanks to u/The_SecretSauce for originating this idea and sharing it with this community. I am glad to be able to bring this very similar poll back and its ensuing conversations here.

Vote here Voting closes Monday, October 19 at 11:59 PM Pacific, with results planned for Tuesday.

This might be a dumb question but why can’t we put like “trackers” in the ball & pylon cams to determine if they cross the endzone line? Kinda like goal line technology for soccer. I know everyone has different fields so it’d be hard for line trackers but couldn’t you standardize the ball & pylons?

1. BYU

2. Kentucky

3. UCLA

4. Ohio State

5. Miami

6. Indiana

7. Tennessee

8. Texas Tech

9. Ole Miss

10. Georgia

11. Wake Forest

12. Alabama

13. Utah

14. Notre Dame

15. Iowa

16. Houston

17. Florida

18. USC

19. Northwestern

20. Mississippi State

21. Texas

22. Auburn

23. James Madison

24. SMU

25. Boise State

https://www.espn.com/college-football/fpi/_/view/resume

Florida beat Ole Miss by 24

Missouri beat Florida by 28

Ole Miss beat Missouri by 28

Obviously this is unlikely, I'm wondering if anyone knows of any examples of a round robin as bad or worse?