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  • Ryan McGee, ESPN Senior WriterSep 6, 2024, 09:48 AM ET

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    • Senior writer for ESPN The Magazine and ESPN.com
    • 2-time Sports Emmy winner
    • 2010, 2014 NMPA Writer of the Year

The 2024 NASCAR playoffs are finally here. As the green flag looms at Atlanta Motor Speedway, one question dominates my brain.

What more could you want?

OK, you back there with your hand raised and your threadbare 1998 NASCAR 50th anniversary Chase Authentics T-shirt on, I know what you’re going to say. I want the old championship format back, from when men were men and stock cars were really stock and we determined a champion by nothing more than adding up points!

First, let’s be honest here. The old format wasn’t awesome. Yes, every now and then it was, but there’s a reason we still talk about Alan Kulwicki edging out Bill Elliott in 1992 and Darrell Waltrip upsetting Elliott in 1985 and Richard Petty schooling a much younger DW in 1979. Because most of the other title bouts weren’t bouts at all. Trust me, I was born in Rockingham, and I’ve lost count of the number of times we saw a team celebrating the clinching of a Cup title at The Rock, usually very early in the race — and there were still two whole races left to run!

Second, the old format was last used in 2003. That was four years before the introduction of the iPhone. Beyoncé had just gone solo. Ty Gibbs had just celebrated his first birthday. That system debuted in 1975 and lasted 27 years. The Chase/playoffs era is in its 21st year, so asking for the old system back is like demanding the return of asbestos paneling and downloading songs off of LimeWire. It’s not coming back.

Third, stock cars haven’t been stock since, I dunno, 1966? If ever? Sorry, but it’s true.

And fourthly, can we stop with this idea that today’s racers aren’t tough enough? Martin Truex Jr. grew up being tossed around in the Atlantic while hoisting up gigantic nets full of sea creatures. Daniel Suárez just piloted an exploding fireball down the pit lane at Daytona. Kyle Larson has walked away from more god-awful crashes than Ryan Gosling in “The Fall Guy.” Is that Dale Earnhardt driving bulldozers or Curtis Turner and Joe Weatherly banging airplane wings as they raced to the next track? No, but that’s not fair. That’s like comparing the people who build houses now to the ones who built the pyramids. Also, bad news: I miss Dale, too, but he isn’t coming back, and neither is Pops or the Clown Prince of Racing.

So, instead of bemoaning what we don’t have, how about taking a moment to revel in what we do have? Because that is a smorgasbord of storylines, drama and a collection of racing talent that spans multiple generations.

You want old-school cool? Start with Truex, he who was handpicked by the Chosen One, Dale Jr., more than two decades ago to be the face of his new race team and future teammate at Dale Earnhardt Inc. He’s 44 now and will hang up his full-time NASCAR helmet at season’s end. He damn nearly squandered his playoff spot at the Darlington regular-season finale but still squeezed into the field to set up an into-the-sunset run at a second Cup Series title, a fitting final twist for a career that he has twice saved from the brink of extinction.

The Clam Prince of New Jersey is joined by two other quadragenarians, 44-year-old Denny Hamlin, seeking to finally shed his “Greatest ever to never win the Cup?” shadow, and 40-year-old Brad Keselowski, who has led a revolution that many thought was impossible, the turning around of the team formerly known as Roush Racing. BK’s lone title came back in 2012. A dozen-year title comeback would match Terry Labonte’s 1984 and 1996 Cups for longest span between a driver’s two titles.

You want top-of-their-game modern legends? Look no further than Larson, the No. 1 seed, who seeks his second Cup in four seasons, here in the same season in which he has already won Indianapolis 500 Rookie of the Year. Then there’s his Hendrick Motorsports teammate Chase Elliott, also eyeing his second Cup while he completes his comeback from a disastrous 2023. Ryan Blaney is the defending Cup champ. They are joined by old foe and Blaney’s Penske teammate Joey Logano, who hasn’t missed the postseason field since 2017 and hopes to make a record sixth Championship Four in November. If not for his unbelievable five-overtime win at Nashville, the Artist Formerly Known as Sliced Bread wouldn’t be in line for any of that.

You want scrappy youngsters with ties to racing names you already know who literally raced their way into this postseason? Look no further than Austin Cindric, son of legendary Penske executive Tim Cindric, who finally backed up his 2022 Daytona 500 win with a trophy in St. Louis after teammate Logano ran out of gas in sight of the finish line. Then there’s the past two weeks alone. Harrison Burton, son of Jeff and driver of the iconic Wood Brothers Ford, earned his first win and his team’s 100th at Daytona to earn a playoff spot. Then, just last weekend, Chase Briscoe held off Kyle Busch, who also needed the win to get in, to take the iconic Southern 500. That ensured that his team, co-owned by Tony Stewart, will have a shot at the title before it closes its doors at season’s end. And then there’s Gibbs, grandson of Joe, and one of only two drivers to make the field not via a race win but by consistency (Truex is the other) and desperately seeks his first win to hush those who still say he is only in his ride because of his last name.

You want sleeper picks who actually aren’t sleeper picks? How about Larson and Elliott’s fellow Hendrick Motorsports pilots William Byron and Alex Bowman? Both enter the postseason hoping they had more momentum, but are making their fifth and sixth playoff appearances, respectively. Meanwhile, Christopher Bell continues to be the racer people seem to forget. The Norman, Oklahoma, native has been inconsistent at best — his three wins is second best on the year but his six DNFs is second worst among drivers who started all 36 races — but not only is he in the postseason for third consecutive year but he made the Championship Four in his first two appearances.

“Being under the radar is OK, but only for a while,” Bell, 29, said earlier this year. “I guess the only way to be on the radar is to win the whole thing. That’s my plan.”

Speaking of winning the whole thing, do you want someone who drives for maybe the all-time embodiment for winning the whole thing? How about Tyler Reddick, who won the regular season title by driving the wheels off of his No. 45 Jumpman Toyota that is co-owned by, yes, the Jumpman himself, Michael Jordan? Reddick battled through flu-like symptoms to clinch the title, which reminded a lot of folks of something the boss did back in the 1997 NBA Finals.

You want all of the above? Then take Suárez. At 32, he’s not exactly old, but he’s not young, either. Like Truex, his career appeared to be stalled, but he has revived it. Like Reddick, he drives a car co-owned by a crossover superstar who is legitimately committed to the task, Mr. Worldwide himself, Pitbull. Like those who had to race their way in and also have ties to motorsports royalty, way back in February he earned his second career victory with a three-wide, .003-second photo finish at Atlanta, the track where the postseason begins this weekend. Earlier this summer he married Julia Piquet, daughter of three-time Formula One world champ Nelson Piquet.

So, I have written all of the above in order to write one more sentence. The answer to the question that we started with. What more could you want from the 2024 NASCAR playoffs?

Nothing at all. Racers, start your postseasons.

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Ducks’ Gabriel sets NCAA total TD record with 179

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November 10, 2024

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Ducks' Gabriel sets NCAA total TD record with 179

  • ESPN News Services

Nov 9, 2024, 10:46 PM ET

EUGENE, Ore. — Dillon Gabriel‘s touchdown pass to Gernorris Wilson early in the second half of Oregon‘s 39-18 win over Maryland on Saturday broke Case Keenum‘s NCAA record for total touchdowns.

The 3-yard scoring pass gave Gabriel 179 total touchdowns for his career. Keenum set the previous record for touchdowns responsible for (155 passes, 23 rushes) at Houston from 2007 to 2011.

Gabriel matched Keenum’s record with a 9-yard scoring pass to Terrance Ferguson at the end of the first half against the Terrapins.

It was Gabriel’s 146th passing touchdown overall and his 21st scoring pass this season for No. 1 Oregon. He also has rushed for six scores this season.

Gabriel added another TD pass before the night was over, brining his career total to 180.

A sixth-year transfer from Oklahoma, Gabriel has 59 career starts, two short of the NCAA record held by former Oregon QB Bo Nix.

The Associated Press contributed to this story.

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Shedeur Sanders signing Texas Tech tortilla among the best CFB trolls in Week 11

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November 10, 2024

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Shedeur Sanders signing Texas Tech tortilla among the best CFB trolls in Week 11

  • Kalan Hooks, ESPNNov 9, 2024, 09:54 PM ET

Week 11 in college football not only brought big wins and big upsets. It also brought quality trolls from around the country.

The No. 20-ranked Colorado Buffaloes have undergone a complete turnaround, winning their seventh game of the season — their most victories since 2016 — on Saturday.

Colorado’s latest triumph came against the Texas Tech Red Raiders on the road. The Red Raiders took a 13-0 lead, but the Buffaloes stormed back to win 41-27. Shedeur Sanders threw for 291 yards and three touchdowns, while Travis Hunter continued his Heisman Trophy hopes with nine receptions for 99 yards and a score.

Of course, Texas Tech’s tortilla-throwing tradition continued for this matchup — but it backfired in the end. Sanders performed with the Red Raiders band and signed one of the remaining tortillas.

Here is a look at some of the other best postgame trolls from Week 11 in college football.

Ohio State 45, Purdue 0

No. 2-ranked Ohio State didn’t allow Purdue to get on the board Saturday, shutting out their Big Ten foe in a 45-0 win to move to 8-1 this season.

Ohio State quarterback Will Howard led the way with three touchdown passes and a rushing score. Jeremiah Smith also made history, breaking the Ohio State freshman touchdown record with a 17-yard touchdown in the first half.

The victory led Ohio State to troll its opponent on social media with a graphic that mocked Purdue’s Boilermaker mascot.

Georgia Tech 28, Miami 23

Georgia Tech’s first upset of the season against Florida State wasn’t enough. Against undefeated Miami, Georgia Tech was looking to make a statement that could lead to bowl eligibility.

Georgia Tech trailed only once in the game to the fourth-ranked Hurricanes in the first quarter, but once the Yellow Jackets regained the lead, they kept their foot on the gas to a 28-23 upset victory.

After stunning Miami, Georgia Tech posted a final score graphic with the caption “U better believe it!” mocking the Miami slogan of “U gotta believe.”

Texas State 38, UL Monroe 17

Texas State jumped to an early 28-0 first-half lead over UL Monroe. Led by backup quarterback Brad Jackson‘s 126 rushing yards for two touchdowns, the Bobcats took down the Warhawks 38-17.

Afterward, Texas State’s social media page captioned its final score post “Flight has been canceled,” making fun of their opponents’ avian mascot.

Grambling 25, Alabama State 24

Alabama State held an early 10-point lead over Grambling. However, Grambling regrouped its way back into the game with 14 fourth-quarter points to take a one-point lead in crunch time. Alabama State had a chance to take the lead in the final moments with a 28-yard field goal attempt from kicker Brandon Gilliam, but it was off target.

Grambling ran with the win, trolling the Hornets saying they were “all talk, no sting.”

Prairie View A&M 31, Florida A&M 12

Prairie View A&M had just begun to find its groove with a two-game winning streak. Led by running back Lamagea McDowell‘s two touchdowns, the Panthers found a way to stunt the Rattlers 31-12.

Reciting Samuel L. Jackson’s lines in the movie “Snakes on a Plane,” the Panthers posted a graphic of a zookeeper containing a rattler snake with the caption: “Enough is enough! We’ve had enough with these snakes on this Hill!”

Jackson State 51, Mississippi Valley State 14

In-state rivalries can go only so far. Jackson State is currently sitting atop the SWAC East division, remaining undefeated in conference play after a 51-14 rout over Mississippi Valley State.

Jackson State trolled its fellow SWAC foe and Mississippi rival as its little brother.

Ole Miss 28, Georgia 10

After Georgia struck first with a touchdown in the opening minutes, the only thing Ole Miss needed was an opportunity on which to capitalize. The Rebels continued to widen the gap against Georgia after gaining a slight lead in the fourth quarter. They would amass 199 passing yards led by quarterback Jaxson Dart to a 28-10 upset win.

Georgia, who cryptically made a “final” post on social media, didn’t include the score. Ole Miss retweeted the post with a photo of viral sensation “The Rizzler.”

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CFB’s age of disruptors is here with Deion Sanders, Lane Kiffin and Curt Cignetti

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November 10, 2024

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CFB's age of disruptors is here with Deion Sanders, Lane Kiffin and Curt Cignetti

  • David Hale, ESPN Staff WriterNov 10, 2024, 12:24 AM ET

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    • College football reporter.
    • Joined ESPN in 2012.
    • Graduate of the University of Delaware.

There was a time, not all that long ago, when watching your favorite show meant planting yourself on your couch at some predetermined time; when hitching a ride with a complete stranger driving a 1993 Honda Civic with an industrial-strength air freshener hanging where the rearview mirror used to be would’ve seemed dangerous; when paying $36 for a guy to bring you a beef-and-cheese burrito and a 48-ounce Mountain Dew Baja Blast was little more than some madman’s fever dream.

But thankfully, times have changed. Brave geniuses have disrupted the marketplace, leveled sacred institutions, upended our expectations of what our lives can be.

And so it is that the age of the disruptors has come for college football, too.

There’s Lane Kiffin, who has been thumbing his nose at the powers-that-be, ruffling feathers and breaking the system since a time when we didn’t call people like him “disruptors.” Kiffin has forced his way into the most sacred corridors of power over the years, but he has done it as much through trolling coaches on social media as he has by actually beating them. But Saturday, Kiffin’s Ole Miss team killed one of the last true giants of the old guard, delivering a withering defensive performance that bruised, battered and confounded Georgia in a 28-10 Rebels win.

There’s Deion Sanders, so often viewed as a sideshow to the staid old guard who believed, like fools, that you had to leave your office to recruit and needed five functional offensive linemen to run an offense. Coach Prime has taken the hollowed-out husk of a program and, in less than two seasons, built Colorado into a legitimate playoff contender, one that held off Texas Tech 41-27 on Saturday to assume a commanding position in the crowded Big 12.

There’s Curt Cignetti, overlooked for years as little more than an FCS coach who has won a few games, a cute story hardly worthy of manning the Big Ten sidelines traversed by legends like Tim Beckman, Chris Ash or Darrell Hazell. In Week 11, Cignetti’s Indiana moved to 10-0, thwarting defending champion Michigan 20-15.

Kiffin, Prime, Cignetti — they’re not supposed to be here. For two decades, from Urban Meyer to Nick Saban to Kirby Smart, the blueprint for success at this level was clear. Coaches who won did it the old-fashioned way, ruling with an iron fist, refusing to give an inch in the quest for greatness, tormenting Jimbo Fisher for laughs. Even the few divergences from that blueprint at least had the roots of their DNA in a classical approach to team building, be it Dabo Swinney’s rah-rah optimism or Jim Harbaugh’s investment in a squirrelly underling wearing a fake mustache to steal signals.

But these guys are showing us a new path forward.

Kiffin has invested in the transfer portal like a tech bro buying crypto, stocking a once talent-bereft roster of upstarts with enough stars that Saturday’s win over Georgia barely registers as an upset. Ole Miss has been as explosive as anyone in college football this year, save a loss to Kentucky that we’re now fairly certain was just something we dreamed after eating some expired ham. Should we be surprised that Jaxson Dart out-dueled a flailing Carson Beck, who has been handing out interceptions like Oprah giving away cars? Is it a shock that the Ole Miss defense contained Georgia’s top skill players like Cash Jones, Dillon Bell and Lawson Luckie? Georgia’s depth chart reads like the cast of a teen drama. Meanwhile, Kiffin’s running wildcat with his 325-pound defensive lineman just because he can.

Kiffin’s disruptive impact on Ole Miss has been so profound that the Rebels’ students have even changed the game for goal-post removal.

If Kiffin is the OG of disruptors, however, Coach Prime is running the game today.

When he arrived in Boulder, the premise looked simple: Sanders would coach his two boys, be the center of attention at all turns, and if he won a few games, all the better. When Oregon‘s Dan Lanning lambasted Colorado as a team playing for clicks rather than wins last year, it felt like an appropriate measure of Prime’s priorities. And yet, here are the Buffs at 7-2, a mercenary group of transfers who other coaches dismissed as chasing NIL but who’ve emerged as arguably the hottest team in the country.

Shedeur Sanders threw for 291 yards and three touchdowns in the win over Texas Tech Red Raiders, while Travis Hunter caught nine balls for 99 yards and a touchdown, all with his pants loaded down by tortillas.

Never mind that Colorado has little interest in running the football. Put Coach Prime, his son and Hunter on a field, spread the ball around to a deep cast of receivers and offer to repost a clip of the officiating crew’s side project as a barbershop quartet in exchange for a few soft calls, and the recipe comes out perfectly. And speaking of perfect recipes, try grilling a nice carne asada and pairing it with pickled onions and some fresh tortillas from Hunter’s pants.

And perhaps no one has done the impossible better than Cignetti. From 2021 through 2023, Michigan was 26-1 in Big Ten play. In that same time frame, Indiana was 3-24 against Big Ten competition.

But because Cignetti cares not about precedent, the Hoosiers were a 14.5-point favorite Saturday, and while they didn’t cover, they did walk away with a 10-0 record, the first 10-win season in school history. Kurtis Rourke threw for 206 yards and two touchdowns and the defense held Michigan to just 206 yards, the defense had eight pass breakups and the Hoosiers made Michigan look utterly lost (which, to be fair, is not uncommon for Michigan this year).

Indiana is now in position to reach the Big Ten title game and, likely a playoff bid, despite finishing 3-9 last year, starting a QB who transferred from the MAC and a head coach who brought a handful of starters from a Sun Belt team, which begs the question of why Big Ten football looks so hard for Lincoln Riley.

It’s true, of course, that delivery apps rarely turn a profit, and the biggest disruptors are also often megalomaniacs who are more style than substance, so perhaps it’s still a bit early to laud the conquests of college football’s new money.

But that’s the real takeaway from these disruptors — in Week 11, in 2024. Things we didn’t dream of just a few months ago — a 10-0 Indiana, a playoff-bound Colorado, an Ole Miss team capable of delivering a potentially fatal dagger to Georgia — aren’t just possible. They’re reality.

Who knows what comes next? The fate of a college football season, which for so much of the past two decades felt entirely predictable, now has myriad loose threads, dozens of potential realities, countless options for us to see something genuinely new and innovative and different.

Jump to:
Down goes Miami | Who controls the SEC?
Ewers hunts Gators | Oregon handles business
Gamecocks roll | Another FSU loss | Vibe shifts
Impressive turnarounds | Heisman five | Under the radar

In a rematch of last year’s miserable loss to Georgia Tech, the clock finally ran out on Miami’s undefeated season. The Canes fumbled their way through the first three quarters, and the ultimate 28-23 defeat must’ve felt like taking a knee to the gut.

It’s the second year in a row Georgia Tech has delivered a dagger to Miami, and again, this year’s game turned on a late fumble when the Canes were simply trying to do too much. In this case, Cam Ward engineered one of his patented scrambles, hoping for something to open downfield, only to be caught from behind by Jordan van den Berg, coughing up the football down five with just 1:32 to play. Haynes King then converted a late third down, allowing Georgia Tech to kneel out the clock. Miami’s Mario Cristobal, certain that must be against the rules, challenged the play, but the officials assured him it is perfectly acceptable to take a knee to ensure a win.

Georgia Tech fans then stormed the field and tore down both goalposts, ultimately dumping them into the water, which is different from how this many engineers typically celebrate a big victory — with nachos at Dave & Busters before getting back to the office to code for a while.

Miami had made a habit of falling behind big this season, but because Ward is a Jedi and the ACC review center is still using a 17-inch Zenith with a bunny ear antenna, the Canes were consistently able to escape trouble and emerge with a win. That luck ran out against the Yellow Jackets, who ran for 271 yards although their top three running backs were out with injuries and chewed up enough clock to keep Ward sidelined for long stretches. The maligned Miami D simply couldn’t get off the field — the Jackets were 9-of-14 on third down — and Ward and the offense couldn’t stay on the field (1-of-4 on fourth-down tries).

Georgia Tech, on the other hand, has made a habit of spoiling seasons for good teams. Since Brent Key became head coach before Week 5 in 2022, he’s 6-5 against AP-ranked foes, the most such wins by any ACC coach in that span (and more than all but nine coaches nationally), all while Georgia Tech was unranked.

By Saturday’s end, the SEC had 11 teams bowl eligible and eight with two or fewer conference losses, making for a massive jumble in the standings and a tight race — both for a trip to the title game and a path to the playoff.

Alabama stated its case in emphatic form, marching past LSU 42-13 behind four touchdown runs (and 185 rushing yards) from Jalen Milroe.

Seeing Brian Kelly, stoic and scowling, staring off into the middle distance amid the driving rain, it looked like a scene from a music video for some overly earnest ’90s Emo band. Kelly has always been the Morrissey of college football, but things are looking particularly bleak for the Bayou Bengals after back-to-back losses.

In fairness, this should’ve been expected once LSU opted to bring in an imposter tiger for Saturday’s game.

Frankly, this is a slap in the face to Mike the Tiger. It’s like when they changed Aunt Viv midway through “Fresh Prince” as if we’d just not notice it’s a completely different actor.

Meanwhile, Tennessee remains in control of its SEC destiny after cruising past Mississippi State. The Bulldogs threw for just 92 yards and tossed a pick in the loss, while Dylan Sampson continued his dominance for the Vols, rushing for 149 yards and a score.

The wild card in the SEC might be Missouri, which erased a late deficit then corralled a scoop-and-score in the final seconds Saturday to upend Oklahoma, 30-23. At halftime, the game’s leading passer was Sooners punter Luke Elzinga, but the two teams found their stride after the break, with Drew Pyne throwing three touchdowns in the win.

Missouri is now 4-0 in one-possession games this season, including an overtime win against Vanderbilt, a four-point win against Auburn on a touchdown with 46 seconds to play, and Saturday’s fumble recovery with 22 seconds to go.

Ewers hunts Gators

Texas QB Quinn Ewers put on a clinic in a 49-17 win over Florida on Saturday, throwing for 333 yards and five touchdowns and giving the crowd what it really wanted — a fourth quarter featuring Arch Manning.

Ewers had his best game of the season, averaging better than 12 yards per throw, while the Horns’ ground game rumbled for 210 yards and nearly 7 per touch.

For the Gators, it was a dismal performance that comes just days after head coach Billy Napier was given assurances he’d return in 2025, forcing AD Scott Stricklin to amend his previous support by adding, “Wait, no, you didn’t let us finish. What we were trying to say was Billy will be returning … his office keys, company car and that copy of Tom Petty’s ‘Greatest Hits’ I loaned him,” and indeed the job search begins shortly.

Ducks continue march to Big Ten title game

Since slumbering through the first two weeks of the season, Oregon has since become an unrelenting machine tasked only with delivering misery.

On Saturday, the Ducks demolished Maryland 39-18, as Dillon Gabriel threw three touchdowns and the D scored three takeaways in the win. Oregon is now 7-0 in Big Ten play, putting the Ducks one-quarter of the way to Maryland’s total Big Ten wins since joining the conference in 2014.

Oregon’s remaining schedule includes a trip to Wisconsin and a home game with former Pac-12 rival Washington. Neither figure to be much of an obstacle between the Ducks and their long, angry march toward a conference title. The bigger question may be whether it will be Indiana as the last team standing in their way or if Ohio State will get a rematch after losing by a point last month in Eugene.

Gamecocks roll again

Every guy has that one buddy who exists simply as an agent of chaos. He probably stole a police car in college, brought fireworks to your kid’s baptism and once referred to a hand grenade as “fishing gear.” He is the initiating force between five of your funniest stories and a dozen of your saddest.

In college football, this role is now being played by Shane Beamer.

South Carolina has no certifiable identity in 2024 beyond simply wrecking things. Each week, Beamer’s team is like letting a group of beavers loose in a Hobby Lobby. You have no idea what will happen, but it’s bound to be interesting. One week the Gamecocks are getting trounced by Ole Miss. The next, they’re taking Alabama to the wire. The next, they’re upending a top-10 Texas A&M. And on Saturday, they went to Nashville, became the first program in college football to make Diego Pavia sad, and walked away with a 28-7 win over Vanderbilt.

Is LaNorris Sellers a good quarterback? Who cares? Pass rushers bounce off him like he’s wearing one of those inflatable sumo wrestler suits. So what if the Gamecocks have only one real playmaker at the skill positions. “Rocket” Sanders racked up 178 yards and three touchdowns against Vandy, and if you said he also recorded a country version of “Sandstorm” afterward to celebrate the win, that’d be entirely believable. And the Gamecocks’ defense is so ridiculously frustrating, Hugh Freeze sent it a “thank you” note for trying to convince Pavia not to come back to college football for another year.

South Carolina is bowl eligible now, which surely means some poor team is going to lose the ReliaQuest Bowl after coughing up four safeties and a 98-yard touchdown run by Sellers in which he steamrolls all 11 defenders and two hot-dog vendors en route to the end zone.

South Carolina makes no sense, is palpably dangerous, and is willing to buy Jager shots for everyone who shows up to its Week 14 showdown with Clemson. It’s a thing of beauty.

Notre Dame walloped Florida State 52-3 on Saturday in a game in which the broadcast crew repeatedly used the phrase, “Stop, stop, they’re already dead.”

The Irish threw for 252 yards, ran for 201 yards and sacked FSU quarterbacks eight times. Unfortunately for FSU, those quarterbacks continued to get up and keep playing.

The Seminoles have now gone 12 straight games without topping 21 points, the longest streak by a Power 5 or BCS-conference team in at least 20 years.

Notre Dame is 4-0 against the ACC this year, with a home game against Virginia remaining on the docket. The Irish are now 40-5 against the ACC since the 2017 season. Notre Dame is also well positioned with three games left to make the College Football Playoff, while Florida State remains well positioned to be relegated to whatever conference Bishop Sycamore is in now.

Week 11 vibe check

Each week, big upsets and shocking results reshuffle the top 25, but there are more subtle changes in the college football landscape that we track here.

Trending down: Cyclones’ Big 12 title hopes

Two weeks ago, Iowa State was undefeated and lingering around the top 10. Now, the Cyclones’ Big 12 hopes are on life support, their spot in the top 25 is likely doomed and they’ve slipped into Texas’ old role as the Big 12 favorite who just lost to a bad Kansas team. Somewhere, Charlie Strong is nodding approvingly.

Kansas earned win No. 3 on the season with a 45-36 win over the Cyclones in Week 11 behind 116 yards and two touchdowns by Devin Neal. Kansas led 38-13 late in the third quarter, but Rocco Becht led a furious comeback attempt, finishing with 383 passing yards and three touchdowns, although it was too little, too late.

The Jayhawks, who opened the season in the top 25, started the year 1-5, with four losses by six points or less, but they’ve now won two of three — a two-point loss to Kansas State in between — and get a crack at the top two teams in the conference (BYU in Week 12, Colorado in Week 13) with a chance to be the ultimate spoiler.

Trending down: Multiple drives in a quarter

Army got QB Bryson Daily back from injury for Week 11, and the offense responded by delivering the most undeniably perfect drive of the season.

Up 7-3 midway through the third quarter over North Texas, Army drove 94 yards on 21 plays — 12 of which went for 4 yards or less — that lasted an astonishing 13 minutes, 54 seconds. Including a time out and a penalty, enough time passed before the Knights cashed in the drive for a touchdown that the players on the field for the entirety of the drive actually fulfilled their active duty requirements, and Daily was promoted to master sergeant after converting a third-and-3 early in the fourth quarter.

Baily finished with 36 carries for 153 yards and two touchdowns in the win. For the game, Army held the ball for 41:45, and most of North Texas’ offense left early to grab some BBQ.

Trending down: Gundy apologies

Last week, Oklahoma State coach Mike Gundy apologized for calling fans “weak” amid criticism of a winless season in Big 12 play.

This follows a rich history of Gundy apologies that followed lambasting a reporter when he was 40, wearing a Newsmax t-shirt that angered his star tailback and, of course, that time he tried to hunt wild boar inside a Bed, Bath and Beyond.

Unfortunately, scuttling that controversy with a sincerely worded apology inspired by a fortune cookie he had once read wasn’t enough to turn the Pokes’ fortunes on the field. TCU stormed Oklahoma State 38-13, dropping the Cowboys to 0-7 in Big 12 play.

Trending up: Penn State playing mediocre teams

In a game no Penn State fans cared about after last week’s loss to Ohio State, the Nittany Lions ran for 266 yards and four touchdowns in a 35-6 stomping of Washington.

Drew Allar threw for 220 yards and a score, and the Penn State D held the Huskies to just 193 total yards — none of which does anything to change what happened against Ohio State.

Afterward, James Franklin perfected teleportation, saved several kittens stuck in a tree, and convinced the surviving members of Nirvana to go on tour with Taylor Swift on lead vocals, to which Penn State fans eagerly pointed out that he’d lost to Ohio State again this year.

Trending up: Touchdown records

Jeremiah Smith caught six balls for 87 yards in Ohio State’s 45-0 win over Purdue, including a 17-yard touchdown that set the Buckeyes’ TD record for freshmen, topping Cris Carter (and all he did, according to Buddy Ryan, was catch touchdowns).

The Buckeyes were dominant, throwing for 260 yards, rushing for 173, holding Purdue to 206 total yards and nabbing two takeaways. Will Howard threw for 260 yards and three touchdowns and ran for a fourth in the win.

The Boilermakers fall to 1-8 and 0-6 in Big Ten play, and it’s the fourth time this season they’ve lost by at least 35 points. In the playoff era, the only other teams with four 35-point losses in their first nine games of the year are 2019 Rutgers and three different Kansas teams (2015, 2016, 2020). The last time a team lost five games in a season by at least 35 points was 2022 Colorado, so the lesson here is clear. All Purdue needs to do is hire Deion Sanders, turn over two-thirds of its roster, sign Travis Hunter and — boom — the Boilers will be above average by 2026.

Trending down: Running the ball

Cal QB Fernando Mendoza completed 30 passes in Saturday’s win against Wake Forest — in the first half! That’s more than 95 different teams have completed in a full game this year. Mendoza finished 40-of-56 for 385 yards and two touchdowns in the 46-36 Bears win, taking advantage of the fact that Wake Forest’s pass defense is actually just two scarecrows in the end zone and a sternly worded email insisting the other team stop throwing so much.

Trending up: Maalik Magic

Duke is now 7-3 after knocking off NC State 29-19 on Saturday behind 245 passing yards and three total touchdowns from QB Maalik Murphy.

The Blue Devils won despite mustering just 31 yards on the ground thanks in large part to another dominant defensive performance by Manny Diaz’s crew. Duke held the Wolfpack to just 268 yards of offense, forced two turnovers, recorded a safety and stifled NC State in the red zone, where six drives inside Duke’s 20 resulted in a touchdown, four field goals and a missed kick.

After the game, Duke students celebrated by learning for the first time that football season was still happening even though Cooper Flagg had already started playing.

Don’t look now, but …

Just because a team ends September riding an ugly losing streak with a highlight tape scored to “Yakety Sax” doesn’t mean it’s incapable of finishing on a high note (unless that team is Florida State). Indeed, a number of schools we wrote off after a rough start have engineered impressive turnarounds as we head into the season’s final stretch.

UCLA Bruins

After a 1-5 start to the season in which the Bruins failed to crack 17 points in any game, DeShaun Foster’s crew embraced its new Big Ten identity and learned how to win without an actual offense. On Friday, UCLA pulled out Brian Ferentz’s old playbook to upend Iowa 20-17 in a game that included six turnovers, a 57-yard field goal and a season-low rushing tally from Kaleb Johnson (49 yards on 18 carries). After winning 19 games while scoring 20 or less in the four-team playoff era, Iowa is now 0-4 when failing to crack 20 this year. The Hawkeyes are like when Eddie Murphy decided in the mid-’80s he was going to be a singer, too, and started doing videos with Rick James and hasn’t been nearly as funny since. Never forget what got you to the top, Iowa.

UCLA, meanwhile, has now won three straight, all against Big Ten teams that entered their matchup with a winning record. It’s the first time in at least 20 years that a team with a losing record before each contest beat three straight Power 5 opponents with a winning record.

New Mexico Lobos

Perhaps no coaching job has been less appreciated than what Bronco Mendenhall has managed with the Lobos. Mendenhall had to completely rebuild a roster that added 43 new scholarship players — including 17 after spring ball — and lost its first four games of the year, including the opener to FCS Montana State. But New Mexico has turned a corner and has now won four of six after upending San Diego State 21-16 on Friday night behind 173 yards and two touchdowns from Eli Sanders. The Lobos are still likely a long shot for a bowl bid, but for a program that hasn’t won more than four games in a year since 2016, anything that doesn’t involve the quarterback playing with his hand stuck in a Pringles can feels like a massive step forward.

Jacksonville State Gamecocks

Rich Rodriguez’s crew opened the year 0-3 but has reeled off six straight victories, including a rollicking 44-37 overtime win against Louisiana Tech on Saturday.

Tre Stewart ran for 166 yards and two touchdowns, Cam Vaughn caught seven passes for 130 yards and two scores, and the Gamecocks moved to 5-0 in Conference USA.

Rodriguez is now 15-6 since JSU moved up to FBS, including an 11-2 mark in conference play. Meanwhile, Michigan just texted him with a “Hey, U Up?” note and is willing to suggest maybe it was as much to blame for their breakup as Rich Rod was.

Miami RedHawks

Last year’s MAC champions opened the year 1-4, with their lone win coming against lowly UMass by 3. But the RedHawks figured things out, and they’ve now won four straight, including a 27-21 victory over Ball State on Tuesday. Miami is again tied atop the MAC (4-1 in conference play), which is enough to warrant overlooking the slow start and the fact that its mascot is using an umbrella and a poncho to avoid getting wet.

In fairness, the strange old man who sold Miami the RedHawk costume did warn them not to get it wet or feed it after midnight. Western Kentucky ignored that advice, and now snipers with tranquilizer guns have to monitor Big Red at all times.

Heisman five

It’s largely a four-man race, though Jaxson Dart, Jalen Milroe and Quinn Ewers may be making a late run at things. Still, not much changed in Week 11 in our rankings.

1. Boise State RB Ashton Jeanty

In the past two weeks, Jeanty was held to just 91 yards on 30 carries without a touchdown in the first halves of games, thanks in large part to defenses putting 26 defenders in the box. This week, Jeanty found his groove again, rushing for 93 yards and a touchdown on Boise State’s first two drives. Jeanty finished with 34 carries for 209 yards and three scores. It was his fourth 200-yard rushing performance of the season and his fifth three-touchdown game. Jeanty needs just 266 yards on the ground the rest of the season to crack 2,000 on the year. Assuming Boise State plays for a Mountain West championship and a bowl or playoff game, he would need to average 179 yards per game the rest of the way to top Barry Sanders’ single-season record.

2. Colorado WR/CB Travis Hunter

Hunter caught nine balls for 99 yards, including a nifty touchdown run on a wide receiver screen, while also helping stifle the Texas Tech pass game and running a small Mexican restaurant in his pants. Next week, he’ll be aiming to top 100 receiving yards and while making a nice paella in his helmet.

3. Miami QB Cam Ward

The Canes’ defense finally cost Miami a game, as Georgia Tech dominated the clock and ran for 271 yards. Still, Miami had a chance to win, but for once, Ward’s magic wore off, and he fumbled deep in his own territory, allowing the Yellow Jackets to secure the game. Still, Ward was solid, throwing for 348 yards and three touchdowns, but as many QBs before him have noted, there is no amount of magic that can overcome Miami doing Miami things.

4. Oregon QB Dillon Gabriel

Gabriel only averaged 5.3 yards-per-pass and yet he still threw for three TDs in a blowout win. Gabriel is clearly positioned well to make a run at the Heisman, but the Big Ten doesn’t seem to be offering him enough of a challenge to really pad out the stats. He should be able to go play a few series for Oklahoma again after he finishes his games, just to make it a bit more fair.

5. Indiana QB Kurtis Rourke

Rourke threw two TD passes in Saturday’s win over Michigan, and through 11 weeks, he’s second in the country in Total QBR (88.6), fourth in completion percentage (71.8%) and he’s one of just two QBs (along with Dart) averaging a first down per throw. He’s also asserted himself as the most successful QB in Indiana program history, passing the previous title holder, a coat rack with a Hoosiers jersey hanging on it.

Under-the-radar play of the week

Prior to Saturday, Cade Klubnik‘s elusiveness had been limited to coming up with increasingly lame excuses for why he couldn’t make it to Dabo Swinney’s weekly “Grey’s Anatomy” watch parties. But against Virginia Tech, Klubnik took it to the next level.

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‘What a time to be alive!’ Clemson’s Cade Klubnik works magic for a TD pass

Cade Klubnik makes an impressive 41-yard touchdown pass to T.J. Moore as Clemson takes the lead over Virginia Tech in the third quarter.

Klubnik finished the game with 241 total yards and three touchdowns as Clemson upended Virginia Tech 24-14, but unless he can convince Swinney that he’s the lead in his theater troupe’s reimagining of “Cats” that night, he’s on the hook to bring a casserole for this week’s episode and should refer to his coach as “Swinney McDreamy” throughout the evening.

Under-the-radar game of the week

Marcus Yarns ran for 174 yards and a touchdown, and FCS Delaware upended Rhode Island 24-21.

Why does this game matter so much? Rhode Island is the country’s smallest state. Delaware is the second smallest. It’s basically like watching Spud Webb and Muggsy Bogues play a game of one-on-one.

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