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  • Greg Wyshynski, ESPNOct 31, 2024, 07:00 AM ET

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      Greg Wyshynski is ESPN’s senior NHL writer.

TAMPA — Everywhere Steven Stamkos looked, there was another memory.

The Tampa waterfront where he and his teammates celebrated two Stanley Cup championships on jet skis and party boats. The arena ice where he tallied so many of his goals (555) and points (1,137) in 1,082 games, all of them the most in Tampa Bay Lightning history. The long concourse he’d walk down on countless gamedays, past a narrow concrete rink where his son Carter would practice slapshots like his dad’s. The Zamboni entrance where Carter would gleefully obsess over the ice resurfacing machines in his father’s arms.

“Most of my life has been here,” Stamkos said, glancing around a lounge inside Amalie Arena. “This is where it all began as an 18-year-old kid. Where I grew up from a boy to a man to a Stanley Cup champion. Where I became a husband and a father.”

It still felt like home, but now he was a visitor. Stamkos stepped on the ice for warmups on Monday in a No. 91 Nashville Predators jersey: His new team, the one that handed him a four-year free-agent contract after a very public, very contentious negotiation with the Lightning failed to produce a new deal.

After 16 seasons, Steven Stamkos is no longer a member of the Lightning; and for the first time in 16 seasons, the Lightning didn’t have Steven Stamkos as their star on and off the ice.

“Steven Stamkos and the Tampa Bay Lightning are going to be synonymous with each other until the end of time. He did everything we asked of him for many, many years,” coach Jon Cooper said.

That is, until the Lightning asked something of Stamkos that he refused to do: Sign a significantly discounted contract extension to give them salary-cap flexibility.

Entering the final year of an eight-year, $68 million contract in 2023-24, Stamkos indicated he wanted to extend that deal and finish his career with the Lightning. But at training camp last year, Stamkos told the media he was “disappointed” to not have engaged in meaningful contract talks with GM Julien BriseBois.

At the time, BriseBois said he also wanted Stamkos to retire with the Lightning and that they shared a mutual goal of winning another Stanley Cup. But he said there wouldn’t be a blank check for this star captain when the team had other roster considerations. “In order for us to [contend] in future years, we’re going to need to spend our cap dollars as wisely as possible,” the GM said.

Stamkos had 40 goals — his seventh season with 40-plus tallies — and 81 points in 79 games last season, a strong final argument to keep him around. What he didn’t have was a contract offer to his liking, with multiple reports stating that Tampa Bay had offered just $3 million annually to the 34-year-old star.

Even after BriseBois traded defenseman Mikhail Sergachev ($8.5 million average annual value) to Utah and forward Tanner Jeannot ($2.665 million AAV) to the Los Angeles Kings in the offseason, their offer to Stamkos didn’t increase ahead of free agency.

“You didn’t really know what’s going on. Stammer wasn’t talking about it. Obviously, the team’s not talking about it,” Lightning forward Nick Paul said. “So we were watching like everyone else and just kind of like, ‘Is it going to happen? Are they going to do it?’ And then things went the way they went.”

BriseBois told Stamkos’ agent they were letting him explore the free-agent market. “We have to see what’s best for the Lightning organization and Steven has to do what’s best for him, his career and his family,” he said.

What was best for the Lightning: Signing free-agent winger Jake Guentzel, four years younger than their captain, to a seven-year, $63 million contract to take Stamkos’ spot on the team’s top line with Brayden Point and Nikita Kucherov.

What Stamkos had to do for him and his family: Inking a four-year deal with the Predators, ending his time with the only NHL team he’d known.

“It’s not for a lack of effort on my side to make things work out in Tampa, but it’s not fair to Nashville for me to sit here and say I really wanted to be in Tampa,” Stamkos told TSN at the time. “Everyone knows I did. It didn’t work out, and I’m just as thrilled to be joining the Nashville Predators, for a multitude of reasons.”

Monday was the awkward, heartfelt and somewhat cathartic reunion between a homegrown superstar going to his former home. It was a chance to celebrate a singular legacy in Tampa sports history. It was a moment for Steven Stamkos to turn the page on his past, as he struggles to forge a new legacy in Nashville.

“Breakups are hard. It’s the soap opera of sports. It’s why we watch it,” Cooper said. “It’s for moments like this. To see how the drama of life is going to unfold.”

AMID THE SEA of No. 91 jerseys mulling around Amalie Arena on Monday was a man in a vintage T-shirt that read “Seen Stamkos?”

That was the team’s marketing campaign leading up to his selection as first overall pick in the 2008 draft. There were shirts and bumper stickers and a lo-fi website that chronicled his accomplishments with the OHL Sarnia Sting and Canada’s junior national team.

The Lightning were in a weird place in 2008. They were four years removed from their first and only Stanley Cup win. They had franchise icons Vincent Lecavalier and Martin St. Louis highlighting an otherwise underwhelming roster. Oren Koules, most famous for producing the “Saw” films, and former NHL player Len Barrie purchased the team for what would be a tumultuous ownership run until Jeff Vinik purchased the Lightning in 2010.

After a 46-point rookie season as an 18-year-old center, Stamkos put together three straight 90-point seasons, scoring 51, 45, and 60 goals during that run. Gradually, reinforcements arrived: Defenseman Victor Hedman was the No. 2 overall pick in 2009; star winger Nikita Kucherov was a second-round pick in 2011; goalie Andrei Vasilevskiy was taken 19th overall in 2012; and Brayden Point was a third-round pick in 2014. Jon Cooper moved up from the AHL to become head coach in 2013.

“The first time I addressed the team, I remember seeing what I knew was going to be multiple Hall of Famers in that room — including our general manager at the time,” Cooper said, referencing former Lightning architect Steve Yzerman.

There are many reasons why the Lightning became perhaps the NHL’s greatest “non-traditional market” success story over the last two decades. There was Vinik’s incredible investment in the team and the area surrounding their downtown arena. There was a run of 10 playoff appearances in 11 seasons, including six trips to the conference finals, four trips to the Stanley Cup Final and two Cup wins.

“I know how amazing the fan base is here. To be able to grow up with them, and to see the transition of this whole market into such a hockey-crazed place … it wasn’t always that way,” Stamkos said. “But with the success the organization has had, it’s a pretty, pretty special place.”

Stamkos was the franchise player — the third best goal-scorer of his generation behind Alex Ovechkin and Sidney Crosby, and an undeniable draw.

“If people sit here and say, ‘What was the greatest thing about Steven Stamkos?’ it’s like, ‘You know what? You can take his goals and all those things he did on the ice, but he was an unbelievable ambassador for our team and for our league,'” Cooper said. “Those are the things that you just sit there and you marvel about.”

He wasn’t just the face on a billboard or the name on the back of a best-selling jersey. Stamkos was a part of the community. He partnered with Ronald McDonald House Charities of Tampa Bay early in his career, raising funds and awareness for the non-profit organization that supports families with sick children. When he married his wife Sandra, they asked for donations to Ronald McDonald House of Tampa and Canada in lieu of gifts.

On the ice, Stamkos had a quantifiable influence on the Lightning’s success. But behind the scenes, the Tampa Bay captain — taking the C from St. Louis in 2014 — was a leader and a remarkable influence on his teammates.

“He’s always one of the hardest working guys in practice. He sets the example,” said Hedman, who took over as captain when Stamkos left. “He knows when to talk and when to get on guys and get on us as a team. He was just really good at finding ways to push guys’ buttons to increase our chances of winning games. But he’s a genuinely nice guy that makes everyone feel welcome to the team that was new.”

When the Lightning acquired Paul from Ottawa in 2022, he also saw that side of Stamkos.

“Everything he did, he always did with the person in mind first,” he said. “It was obviously about the team, but it was how he managed the people and how he managed personalities and how he made you feel like he was always there for you first over everything.

“That’s a big deal when you have a captain that cares about everyone in the room, whether you’re a rookie or 10 years in, and you’re going through something, he’s there for you and he knows how to bring everyone together and play at their best.”

Analyst Brian Engblom, who has been a part of Lightning broadcasts since 2015, sees Stamkos as a towering presence in team history.

“I don’t know that there’s been anybody bigger than him. He’s been Mr. Everything here,” Engblom said. “The two Cups. Leadership. Impact in big situations on and off the ice. Personality in the room. He’s as big as it gets here in town.”

That established, Engblom wasn’t surprised to see Stamkos end up playing for a team other than the Lightning.

“I gave up thinking about stuff like that after Gretz got traded,” he said, in reference to the 1988 blockbuster that saw the Edmonton Oilers trade icon Wayne Gretzky to the Los Angeles Kings. “Gordie Howe left Detroit. Bryan Trottier left the Islanders. And now this.”

THE MEMORIES REMAINED for Steven Stamkos when he walked through the arena on Monday.

Everything else was different. “It’s a little weird going in through the other door,” he said of the visitors’ dressing room.

Engblom, a former NHL goaltender, said it can be disorienting for a player returning to his longtime home on another team.

“You’re on the wrong side of the ice. You’re going down the wrong hallway. Everything is backwards,” he said. “You don’t feel good. You know you’re in a familiar place but it’s like somebody turned it all upside down.”

It’s also disorienting to have friends all of a sudden become foes.

“It’s tough. Not just for the player coming back, but for the players that played with him,” Engblom said. “Victor Hedman and Stammer are blood brothers. It’s a tough game for him to go out and play.”

Hedman and Stamkos hung out last weekend at Hedman’s house, where Stamkos’ wife Sandra stayed for the game in a guest bedroom. (Their two sons remained back in Nashville for school.)

“We’ve been together for a very long time. We can still get on each other and try to push each other to be better,” Hedman said.

Does Hedman have a healthy text relationship with Stamkos?

“Healthy?” he responded, grinning.

OK, what about a frequent text relationship?

“Yeah, I mean, we are still friends and that’s never gonna change,” he said. “It’s been weird not having him around, but we know we’re just a phone call away or a text away. We’re there for each other whenever it’s needed.”

Stamkos had dinner with a large number of former teammates on Sunday night.

“It’s weird. I have dinner with some of the guys last night and it’s like I never left, right? That’s just the bond that you have. And then you get on the ice, there’s the competitive nature in both sides that comes out, so there’s not much chit-chat. Then you see each other right after the game and it’s like we were just back to last night,” he said. “So that’s the life of an athlete. It’s cliché that there’s no friends on the ice, and you’re obviously not looking to kill anyone out there, but you want to win just as bad as they want to win.”

When Stamkos skated out for warmups, Lightning fans had crowded the lower bowl around the visitors’ tunnel. They cheered him loudly. Many had signs in support of their former captain. Some protested management about not bringing him back, including one woman near the glass who prominently displayed a “My GM Sucks” shirt.

Stamkos was in the starting lineup for Nashville on Monday night against the Lightning.

“It was weird to see him standing on the blue line, not in our jersey, for the anthem and that opening faceoff,” Cooper said. “But then all of a sudden it turns into a hockey game.”

Early in the game, Stamkos and Hedman skated back to chase a loose puck, awkwardly bumping into each other, neither really looking all that comfortable with their new roles as rivals. There was tension for the first few minutes of the game, as everyone anticipated the tribute video that loomed in the first period.

Around seven minutes into the game, the scoreboard lit up with photos of a young Stamkos in his hockey gear. Lightning fans rose to their feet as the tribute began: a two-minute montage of Stamkos’ journey, filled with highlights, clutch moments, his brotherhood with teammates and relationship with fans.

The electronic scoreboards around the rink lit up with his career stats, awards and accomplishments, along with the slogan “Forever 91” and thank you messages.

“I was thinking about how soft I’ve gone in my elder years. I just started welling up,” Cooper said as he watched the video. “How do you fit 16 years into a two-minute video? It almost doesn’t feel right. It was extremely well done. But in the end, it doesn’t matter how well you do it. You’ll never do it justice.”

At the conclusion of the video, the spotlights hit Stamkos, who skated from the Predators bench — where Nashville players were engrossed by the video tribute — to the middle of the rink, raising his stick to the fans as the arena projected his No. 91 on the ice, as has become tradition when former Lightning stars return to Tampa on new teams.

When play began again, Lightning fans loudly chanted “Ste-ven Stamkos” in honor of their former captain.

“I don’t think it’s goodbye. I think it’s more of a ‘thank you, see you later’ type of thing,” Stamkos said.

Stamkos helped the Predators hit the scoreboard in the second period after the Lightning built a 2-0 lead on goals by Brayden Point and Mitchell Chaffee in the first. The Tampa fans went from booing the announcement of the goal to cheering Stamkos’ name for having helped create it.

The cheers were a little more muted when Stamkos set up the tying goal by Gustav Nyquist just over eight minutes later, although many Lightning fans still cheered loudly when his name was announced. The only boos Stamkos received during the game came in overtime, when the Predators patiently controlled the puck rather than attacking offensively.

Overtime ended on a goal by Paul that was assisted by Guentzel, who matched Stamkos’ output with two assists of his own in the game. It was an emotional night for everyone. That undoubtedly included the player who ostensibly replaced Stamkos, too.

“Whenever a captain goes, it’s a big surprise,” Paul said. “But obviously these are changes that management is making because they think it’s the best thing for us to go and win the Stanley Cup. So we’ve got to trust in that.”

Both Cooper and Hedman said they were confident Guentzel understood the dynamics on Stamkos Night — and was OK with them.

“The one thing that I try to impart to him and everybody else is that is he’s not replacing Stamkos, because Stamkos created his own legacy here and Guentzel’s got seven years to create his own legacy,” Cooper said. “We weren’t necessarily looking for a right-handed shooter on the power play. We got a playmaking lefty winger that brings different attributes to the game. “So yeah, the next seven years are Jake Guentzel nights. Tonight is Steven Stamkos’ night.”

For the next four seasons, it’s Nashville that will witness Steven Stamkos nights, as he tries to forge a new legacy with a new team.

It hasn’t been easy for him or the Predators so far.

THE MOST SURPRISING ASPECT of Stamkos’ move to Nashville? His family has handled it much better than he has.

“I probably thought that the family transition was going to be more difficult than the hockey one, and it’s kind of been the opposite,” he said. “But I’d rather have it that way, where my wife and kids are making the transition and then I can figure it out myself.”

Children are adaptable. Stamkos said the “new normal” for Carter and Chase Stamkos is being part of the Nashville Predators family, despite their Tampa roots.

“The mascot came over to our new place the second day we were there and they flipped pretty quickly,” he said. “It’s funny how that works.”

The transition has been much rockier for Stamkos. His two assists against Tampa Bay tripled his point total on the season after nine games, having gone scoreless in his first four games of the season before a goal against Detroit on Oct. 19. His lack of production came during a rough start for the Predators, who were 3-5-1 in their first nine games — a .389 points percentage that ranked 28th in the NHL — despite heavy preseason hype.

Stamkos was one of three high-profile free agent signings for GM Barry Trotz. The Predators also added forward Jonathan Marchessault, a Conn Smythe winner for the Vegas Golden Knights, and Brady Skjei, a standout defenseman from the Carolina Hurricanes.

Predators center Ryan O’Reilly was in their skates two years ago when he was the big-ticket free agent signing in Nashville. Although the Predators made the playoffs in his first season, O’Reilly said finding chemistry between the imports and those already on the roster is tricky.

“It’s always a challenge, especially bringing three incredible players that are significant free agents,” he said. “It’s not just plugging them into some small roles. They have huge roles here and it takes time to get used to the system and what we’re doing here.”

That’s been especially true for Skjei, who went from a man-on-man defensive system under Carolina coach Rod Brind’Amour to a more zone-oriented structure under Andrew Brunette in Nashville.

“Sometimes you catch yourself like, ‘Oh, we’re not doing man-on-man anymore,'” he said. “I mean, at the start, it’s definitely just a different system and you’ve got little habits from the old system that you’ve got to try to break quickly.”

Marchessault had six points in his first nine games in Nashville, and feels that adjustment time is over.

“New environment, new team, new linemates … there’s a period of adjustment. But we’re 10 games into the season, and it’s time for me to step up,” Marchessault said. “I came here not to change a whole lot. There’s a good base here. I wanted to jump into their boat and help them win.”

Stamkos said he’s putting significant pressure on himself to perform better. That’s something Hedman remembers seeing during their days together in Tampa.

“He was very hard on himself at times as well. Maybe too hard,” the defenseman said. “But he wants to be the best every single night, so he puts a lot of that pressure on himself.”

But more than what’s on the stat sheet, Stamkos is struggling with his second act. He was a 16-year veteran in Tampa, surrounded by close friends and wearing the captain’s C on his chest. Now he’s hit the reset button for all of that.

“It’s not only a new organization, but a new group of guys and you have to find your way a little bit. There’s some good days and some days where you’re still figuring things out,” Stamkos said. “I was [in Tampa] for so long. I was the guy everyone was coming up to with questions and concerns, and I’d have all the answers. Now I’m the guy asking the questions.”

Brunette acknowledged that it’s still quite early for everyone involved.

“We’re still in the period of getting to know him,” he said. “He works extremely hard in his craft. I’m really impressed with his work ethic and practice and what he’s brought every day. You can tell the leadership skills he has by just being there.”

Stamkos admits the transition from Bolt to Pred has been taxing on him mentally.

“There is a transitional period. I’m certainly working through that right now. Controlling the mental aspect isn’t something I’ve really ever had to worry about in terms of just being in that comfort zone — it was almost just like [feeling] that Zen all the time because of the chemistry you build with guys over numerous years,” Stamkos explained. “Now you start from scratch.”

New city, new challenges and a new legacy for Stamos to create. This week helped him move on from the emotions tied to Tampa — from the friends and memories he left behind to the lingering bitterness about his departure. But as much as Stamkos has his eyes on the future in Nashville, he admits he hasn’t turned the page on the Lightning.

“I don’t know when that moment comes. If it comes, if it doesn’t come,” he said. “When you’re in this place for so long and have those memories, I mean … I don’t think you can ever really completely turn the page. That’s probably the reality.

“I dunno. We’ll see. I’ll let you know if that day comes.”

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With Skubal up next, Tigers notch ‘huge’ G1 win

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October 5, 2025

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With Skubal up next, Tigers notch 'huge' G1 win

  • Alden GonzalezOct 5, 2025, 12:30 AM ET

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      ESPN baseball reporter. Covered the L.A. Rams for ESPN from 2016 to 2018 and the L.A. Angels for MLB.com from 2012 to 2016.

SEATTLE — Zach McKinstry came to bat against Seattle Mariners right-hander Carlos Vargas with two outs, the score tied and the winning run on second base in Saturday’s 11th inning. A right-handed hitter, the free-swinging Javier Baez, loomed on deck, a much better matchup for Vargas than the left-handed-hitting McKinstry. The Mariners could have elected to intentionally walk him with first base open.

“We talked about it,” Mariners manager Dan Wilson said. “Obviously, Vargy gets the ball on the ground, and that’s what he does best, righty or lefty and, you know, he got the ball on the ground.”

That grounder bounced four times before finding the outfield grass at T-Mobile Park, hit just hard enough to evade a diving J.P. Crawford, plate Spencer Torkelson and send the Detroit Tigers — marked for dead with their season unraveling in epic fashion near the end of September — to a 3-2, extra-inning victory. After winning two of three in Cleveland to overcome the wild-card round, a Tigers team that has spent the last two weeks on the road has taken a 1-0 lead in the best-of-five American League Division Series.

A.J. Hinch, the fifth-year-manager, called these Tigers the “sum-of-the-parts team,” and it showed once again.

It began with Troy Melton, a rookie right-hander used mostly in relief this season, providing four quality innings. Seven relievers — including Keider Montero, a starting pitcher who was called on for a save — followed by holding the Mariners to one run in seven innings. In between, Kerry Carpenter hit a two-run homer and McKinstry provided the clutch single. Now, with ace Tarik Skubal lined up for Game 2, the Tigers have a chance to take a commanding lead in a series few saw them winning.

“It’s huge,” Carpenter said. “To get a win before the best pitcher in the world pitches is pretty special, and I feel like Skubal is made for these moments.”

The last time Melton took the ball, he recorded one out and was charged with four earned runs in the eighth inning of the second wild-card game on Wednesday. Hinch informed him via text on the plane ride to Seattle on Thursday night that he would start Game 1. He described the decision as a reflection of Melton’s stuff and poise, but really, with Skubal, Casey Mize and Jack Flaherty already used this week, Hinch had few other options.

Melton responded with four innings of one-run ball in what amounted to his fifth major league start all year, allowing only a Julio Rodriguez solo homer.

“It was kind of normal for me,” Melton, 24, said. “My parents were here. I got dinner with them last night, breakfast with them today. It was like the same routine as when I pitched in college. That kind of made it a little bit more normal. Obviously this environment is a little bit different, and it means a little bit more than my college games did, but I tried to make it as normal as possible. Once I got out there, it was just about executing pitches.”

Mariners starter George Kirby didn’t just execute early; he dialed up his fastball, using the adrenaline of a home playoff start to throw his fastball consistently in the upper 90s early on, roughly two ticks faster than his season average. Kirby navigated some trouble but kept the Tigers scoreless through the first four innings while striking out eight.

In the fifth, he allowed a one-out single to Parker Meadows and got Gleyber Torres to ground out, bring up Meadows, the left-handed-hitting outfielder who was 4-for-10 with four home runs lifetime against him. Wilson had lefty Gabe Speier warming up in the bullpen, a move that would have prompted Hinch to pinch-hit with the right-handed-hitting Jahmai Jones. But Wilson decided to let Kirby face Carpenter a third time.

“It’s a tough one,” Wilson said, “and you do the best you can and try to take the information that you have and what you’re seeing. And we thought George continued to throw the ball pretty well there and still had pretty good stuff and a lot left in the tank.”

Kirby just missed inside with an 0-2 sinker. He then went to the sinker for a third straight time, but it traveled middle-up, about chest high, and Carpenter sent it 409 feet to give the Tigers a lead.

“I was seeing him well tonight, especially after that first at-bat,” Carpenter said. “I feel like I got my timing back a little bit. And I just wanted to make sure to get a good pitch to hit that at-bat, because they had a base open, and I didn’t know how they were going to pitch me. And so I felt like I was on time and had a good approach there.”

Rodriguez tied the game with an opposite-field single in the sixth, but the Mariners couldn’t do further damage in a half-inning that saw each of their first three hitters reach. Tyler Holton relieved a struggling Rafael Montero and recorded three quick outs. Tommy Kahnle, Kyle Finnegan and Will Vest followed by allowing one baserunner in four innings, setting up the game-winning sequence in the top of the 11th.

Spencer Torkelson drew a leadoff walk against Vargas, a lanky right-hander who can reach triple-digits. Wenceel Perez and Dillon Dingler struck out, but McKinstry turned on a first-pitch, 99.6-mph sinker near the middle of the zone and came up with a base-hit up the middle, deflating a sold-out crowd that has waited 24 years for the Mariners to win a home playoff game.

In the bottom half, Montero faced the top of the Mariners’ lineup and navigated it without much issue, allowing a two-out single to Rodriguez and then coming back to strike out Josh Naylor to record the first save of his pro career.

It was the realization of a dream.

“When I was in little league, they would use me like that,” Montero, a 25-year-old from Venezuela, said in Spanish, “and I always told my teammates in the minor leagues that my dream was to close out a game.”

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Projecting the CFP top 12 after Week 6: Canes clearly No. 1

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October 5, 2025

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Projecting the CFP top 12 after Week 6: Canes clearly No. 1

Following his second touchdown of the night, Miami receiver CJ Daniels looked directly into the ESPN camera and sang the FSU war chant.

The U isn’t just back — so is its swagger.

Miami owns the state of Florida, having knocked down South Florida, Florida and Florida State, further cementing its case for the top team in the country. Penn State’s stunning loss at UCLA doesn’t help Oregon. Texas losing in The Swamp doesn’t help Ohio State.

Miami earning its first road win — against an FSU team that beat a now-surging Alabama — helped the Canes further legitimize what could be their first No. 1 ranking in the CFP era. The 13-member selection committee doesn’t release its first ranking until Nov. 4, but this is the latest projection of what the group’s top 12 would look like if it were released today.

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Projecting the top 12

Why they could be here: The Canes have the best combination of eye test and résumé, with wins against Notre Dame, South Florida, Florida and now Florida State. The Canes earned their first road win of the season, and they did it against their in-state rival, officially claiming the unofficial state title. Miami also entered Week 6 ranked No. 10 in the country in total efficiency and No. 4 in ESPN’s strength of record metric. The Canes are checking all of the boxes for the committee’s No. 1 team, including star power with quarterback Carson Beck and defensive lineman Rueben Bain Jr.

Why they could be lower: Undefeated Ohio State won at Minnesota, but it’s hard to imagine the committee members giving the Buckeyes the nod for the top spot given Miami’s résumé — unless they truly believed Ohio State is more talented.

Need to know: That was likely Miami’s last chance to impress the selection committee against a ranked opponent. It won’t matter if the Canes continue to play like this. Miami can clinch a spot in the playoff if it wins the ACC — which it’s on track to do — but even a runner-up finish should cement a spot.

Toughest remaining game: Nov. 1 at SMU. Miami should win this game — it’s the more talented team — but it’s not an easy trip. And it will be the first time all season that Miami leaves its home state.

Why they could be here: The season-opening win against Texas is good — but not great — after Texas lost at Florida on Saturday. The Buckeyes’ place in the pecking order is less about one standout win and more about the steady consistency expected from a national title contender. They’ve won on the road against a decent Washington team that just rallied for a road win at Maryland, and at home against Texas and Minnesota. The committee doesn’t look just for wins against top-25 teams; it also values wins against opponents over .500, and Ohio State now has three Power 4 wins against such teams.

Why they could be higher: Miami hasn’t left its home state yet, and Ohio State entered this week No. 3 in the country in defensive efficiency, No. 12 in offensive efficiency and No. 3 overall — ahead of the Canes in each category.

Need to know: Saturday’s game at Illinois suddenly looks more daunting than the Nov. 1 home game against Penn State. The reality is that Ohio State should win both, but Illinois is coming off back-to-back Big Ten wins against USC and Purdue, whereas the Nittany Lions were stunned at UCLA.

Toughest remaining game: Nov. 29 at Michigan. Sound familiar? Ohio State has lost to its rival four straight times, and the Wolverines are starting to find their identity with freshman quarterback Bryce Underwood. Michigan beat Wisconsin on Saturday for its third straight win since losing in Week 2 at Oklahoma.

Why they could be here: The Ducks had a bye week to recover following their double-overtime road win at Penn State, and both teams above them won. Oregon’s win against the Nittany Lions was diminished following Penn State’s loss at winless UCLA, and it was also the Ducks’ first win against an FBS opponent above .500.

Why they could be higher: Oregon has been dominant against the weaker teams and found a way to beat Penn State on the road in a hostile whiteout environment. The committee could be more impressed with Oregon’s cross-country win against two-loss PSU than Ohio State’s home win against Texas now that both have two losses. The Ducks have two road wins compared with Miami’s one.

Need to know: If Oregon doesn’t beat Indiana next week, and it finishes 11-1, it would still be in the playoff, but it might not be in the Big Ten title game. Oregon doesn’t play Ohio State or Michigan during the regular season. If Ohio State is undefeated, and Indiana and Oregon are the league’s only other one-loss teams, IU would have the head-to-head tiebreaker (Penn State would have two losses, to Oregon and Ohio State). Because of the change in seeding this year, Oregon can still earn one of the top four seeds and a first-round bye even if it doesn’t win the Big Ten. This year, the top four seeds go to the committee’s top four teams — regardless of if they are conference champs.

Toughest remaining game: Oct. 11 vs. Indiana. This might be the last ranked opponent the Ducks face during the regular season following USC’s loss to Illinois last week.

Why they could be here: The Aggies have won three straight games against strong opponents, further proving that the Sept. 13 win at Notre Dame wasn’t an anomaly. Saturday’s win was against a Mississippi State team that has looked much improved from a year ago, and the Sept. 27 home win against Auburn is still against an SEC team above .500. The nonconference road win against the Irish, though, remains one of the best in the country and will continue to separate the Aggies as long as the Irish keep winning, which they did again on Saturday against Boise State.

Why they could be lower: Ole Miss has a case to be ranked above the Aggies because of its impressive performance in the win against LSU and its overall body of work, which includes three SEC wins and a win against Tulane.

Need to know: The Aggies entered Saturday ranked No. 1 in ESPN’s strength of record metric, which means the average top 25 opponent would have just a 20.1% chance of achieving the same undefeated record against the same opponents.

Toughest remaining game: Oct. 25 at LSU. This is the middle game in three straight road trips, and although LSU’s offense has been average, its defense will be one of the best the Aggies face this season.

Why they could be here: The Rebels had a bye week but earned their first statement win on Sept. 27 against LSU. They have now won four straight games against respectable opponents, including three SEC teams (LSU, Arkansas and Kentucky). The Sept. 20 win against Tulane will also be valued by the committee, as the Green Wave remain in contention for a playoff spot if they can win the American Conference. Overall, this is one of the stronger résumés of the contenders, but Ole Miss is also passing the eye test as a complete team.

Why they could be lower: Kentucky and Arkansas are a combined 4-6, and Georgia State is 1-4 in the Sun Belt.

Need to know: The Rebels have one of the more winnable remaining SEC schedules among the contenders, with back-to-back trips to Georgia and Oklahoma their biggest looming obstacles. The undefeated Rebels also have something key to impressing the selection committee: two quarterbacks capable of starting. The play of backup quarterbacks is critical to the selection process (it kept undefeated ACC champ Florida State out of the CFP in 2023 but helped Ohio State in during the 2014 season). With Austin Simmons injured, it’s clear backup Trinidad Chambliss is more than capable of leading a team toward an SEC title run.

Toughest remaining game: Oct. 18 at Georgia. The Rebels also have an Oct. 25 trip to Oklahoma, but it’s unclear if the Sooners will have injured starting quarterback John Mateer back by then (unlikely).

Why they could be here: The Tide beat Vanderbilt and continued to show measurable improvement since a season-opening loss at Florida State. Alabama has now earned back-to-back wins against ranked opponents, including on the road against Georgia. Because Florida State lost to Miami and now has two losses, the Noles’ season-opening win against Alabama will be less of a factor in the committee meeting room. Their records are no longer comparable, which opens the door for the committee members to disregard that tiebreaker in their protocol.

Why they could be higher: Every team ranked ahead of Alabama is undefeated, so if the committee is going to push the Tide ahead of one of them, it would be because it values wins against Georgia and Vandy more than it does some of the contenders above Alabama — which is possible. But FSU losing to Miami on Saturday doesn’t help the Tide’s case. A lot of it would depend on where the committee had Georgia, Vandy and FSU ranked.

Need to know: Heading into Saturday, Alabama had the best chance of any team in the SEC to reach the conference title game (53.4%) and win it (34.5%).

Toughest remaining game: Oct. 11 at Missouri. The undefeated Tigers had a bye week to prepare, they’ll have home-field advantage, and they will be the third straight ranked opponent Alabama faces. The Tide at least get Tennessee, LSU and Oklahoma at home.

Why they could be here: The undefeated Sooners beat Kent State with backup quarterback Michael Hawkins Jr., who was playing for injured starter John Mateer. Beating a 1-4 Mid-American team isn’t going to earn the Sooners any points with committee members, but the group will respect the play of OU’s backup quarterback and the fact the Sooners still left no doubt they were the better team. Oklahoma’s Week 2 win against Michigan remains one of the better nonconference wins, as the Wolverines beat Wisconsin and have won three straight.

Why they could be higher: The Sooners are undefeated, and Alabama’s loss to Florida State took another hit on Saturday night when the Noles lost to the Canes. The win against Michigan is a nonconference boost Alabama doesn’t have. This will settle itself on the field on Nov. 15 in Tuscaloosa if it doesn’t before then.

Need to know: Six of Oklahoma’s next seven opponents are ranked, and it’s still unclear if Mateer will be cleared to play in time for Saturday’s Red River Rivalry game. The committee’s protocol requires consideration of factors such as injuries to key players. As long as Mateer is out of the lineup, the committee will rank the Sooners based on if they look like a top-12 team with Hawkins in the lineup. OU has some margin for error, and it has plenty of opportunities to compensate for a loss or two.

Toughest remaining game: Take your pick. The Sooners could be facing rival Texas on Saturday without Mateer, but the best team they’ll face right now looks like Ole Miss on Oct. 25. OU will have home-field advantage, but the Rebels might be the most complete and consistent team in the SEC.

Why they could be here: The Bulldogs did what they were expected to do: They beat an unranked Kentucky team that remains winless in SEC play. The Sept. 13 overtime win at Tennessee is the highlight of Georgia’s playoff résumé so far. The close loss to Alabama on Sept. 27 will keep the Dawgs behind the Tide in the ranking because of the head-to-head result as long as the records are comparable, which they still are after Alabama beat Vanderbilt on Saturday. That same tiebreaker will keep Georgia ahead of the Vols.

Why they could be lower: The committee could have the Hoosiers ranked higher because they’re undefeated. Wins against Austin Peay and Marshall also aren’t doing anything to help Georgia’s résumé.

Need to know: ESPN’s FPI projects Georgia will win each of its remaining games. The regular-season finale against rival Georgia Tech could impact seeding because the Yellow Jackets are in position to play for the ACC championship. If Georgia gets a win against the ACC champs or runner-up, Georgia could earn the higher seed at the Jackets’ expense because of the head-to-head result. That could mean the difference between a home game and a first-round bye.

Toughest remaining game: Oct. 18 vs. Ole Miss. The Rebels, who had a bye week before hosting Washington State on Oct. 11, should be undefeated heading into Athens.

Why they could be here: The Hoosiers had a bye week before a tricky trip to Oregon, and they’re coming off back-to-back Big Ten wins against Illinois and Iowa. The jaw-dropping performance in the 63-10 beatdown of the Illini is the most impressive win on IU’s résumé, but most of the teams ranked higher have defeated a more elite opponent. The committee members would know, though, that it’s notoriously difficult to win at Iowa.

Why they could be higher: Unlike several teams listed above, Indiana hasn’t lost — and for the most part, it has looked good in the process. The committee would also note that the Hoosiers entered Saturday No. 5 in defensive efficiency and No. 17 in offensive efficiency.

Need to know: Indiana doesn’t play Ohio State or Michigan during the regular season, but it has a more difficult path to the playoff with trips to Oregon and Penn State. If the Hoosiers finish 10-2, they will be in a precarious playoff position because of their nonconference schedule (Old Dominion, Kennesaw State and Indiana State).

Toughest remaining game: Oct. 11 at Oregon. The Hoosiers could earn one of the best wins in the country, and the program could reach a new level with an upset on Saturday.

Why they could be here: The undefeated Red Raiders earned a road win against previously undefeated Houston, and they also have a convincing 34-10 road win against Utah. The committee would consider that Texas Tech asserted itself against two respectable conference opponents and did it on the road. The Red Raiders also got starting quarterback Behren Morton back on Saturday from injury. Texas Tech got a boost in the ranking this week at the expense of Penn State, which fell out entirely after its road loss to UCLA.

Why they could be lower: Kent State is 1-4, Oregon State is 0-6 and Arkansas-Pine Bluff is an FCS team. The committee also tracks opponents’ opponents — and Houston doesn’t have any impressive wins. Even though the Vols have one loss, the committee could deem them the better team and give them the edge for beating Syracuse and Mississippi State.

Need to know: Heading into Week 6, Texas Tech had the best chance of reaching the Big 12 title game (52.3%) and the best chance to win it (31.5%), according to ESPN Analytics.

Toughest remaining game: Nov. 8 vs. BYU. With Friday night’s win against West Virginia, BYU remains undefeated, leaving Texas Tech and BYU as the only Big 12 teams still undefeated overall.

Why they could be here: The Vols had a bye week, but the overtime road win at Mississippi State and the season-opening win against Syracuse are keeping them in contention right now. The 45-26 win against the Orange is better than some other contenders’ nonconference wins — and the committee will know it came against a healthy starting quarterback, Steve Angeli. With Angeli out and injured, though, Syracuse has fallen to 3-3. The overtime loss to Georgia is hardly a “bad loss,” but the Vols could use some true statement wins in the second half of the season to move into a safer spot.

Why they could be higher: The committee has ranked one-loss teams ahead of undefeated teams before, and it could simply be a matter of the group believing Tennessee has a better combination of wins and talent.

Need to know: Entering Week 6, ESPN’s FPI projected the Vols will win each of their remaining games except the Oct. 18 trip to Alabama. If that were to hold true, the Vols would have a strong case to return to the playoff at 10-2 but wouldn’t be a lock. What if Notre Dame finishes 10-2? They’d both have good losses, but the Vols might win the résumé battle. Eye test will matter, too.

Toughest remaining game: Oct. 18 at Alabama. The Tide are getting better each week, but they will be coming home from a tough road trip to Mizzou. If Alabama loses that game, it will be under tremendous pressure against the Vols to avoid a third loss. If the Tide win, they will be bringing some major playoff momentum home.

Why they could be here: The committee would also probably consider undefeated Georgia Tech for this spot, but its protocol also asks it to compare common opponents without incentivizing margin of victory. Georgia Tech beat Clemson at home by three points, and LSU beat the Tigers at Clemson by a touchdown. The fact that LSU had to go on the road would give it a slight edge, but the committee would also know that Georgia Tech needed overtime to beat Wake Forest, and the ACC conceded an officiating mistake in that game that would have given the Demon Deacons a critical first down. The missed call allowed Georgia Tech to extend its drive and win in overtime.

Why they could be lower: LSU didn’t look much like a playoff team in its 24-19 loss at Ole Miss on Sept. 27. The offense struggled, and the defense gave up too many big plays. The committee could favor Georgia Tech more because it hasn’t lost and quarterback Haynes King has been one of the toughest in the country.

Need to know: If the playoff were today, LSU would get bumped out of the CFP during the seeding process to make room for the fifth-highest-ranked conference champion, which is guaranteed a spot in the field.

Toughest remaining game: Nov. 8 at Alabama. LSU is entering a season-defining stretch, with three of its next four games against ranked opponents. The Oct. 18 trip to Vandy won’t be easy, but Bama just wrote the blueprint to beat the Commodores. LSU gets Texas A&M at home.

Bracket

Based on the rankings above, the seeding would be:

First-round byes

No. 1 Miami (ACC champ)
No. 2 Ohio State (Big Ten champ)
No. 3 Oregon
No. 4 Texas A&M (SEC champ)

First-round games

On campus, Dec. 19 and 20

No. 12 Memphis (American champ) at No. 5 Ole Miss
No. 11 Tennessee at No. 6 Alabama
No. 10 Texas Tech (Big 12 champ) at No. 7 Oklahoma
No. 9 Indiana at No. 8 Georgia

Quarterfinal games

At the Goodyear Cotton Bowl, Capital One Orange Bowl, Rose Bowl Presented by Prudential and Allstate Sugar Bowl on Dec. 31 and Jan. 1.

No. 12 Memphis/No. 5 Ole Miss winner vs. No. 4 Texas A&M
No. 11 Tennessee/No. 6 Alabama winner vs. No. 3 Oregon
No. 10 Texas Tech/No. 7 Oklahoma winner vs. No. 2 Ohio State
No. 9 Indiana/No. 8 Georgia winner vs. No. 1 Miami

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Miami dominance and a UCLA stunner: Recapping a chaotic Week 6

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October 5, 2025

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Miami dominance and a UCLA stunner: Recapping a chaotic Week 6

  • David HaleOct 4, 2025, 11:55 PM ET

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

It might seem hard to believe, but a quarter century ago, there was no more fearsome program in college football than Miami.

Those were strange days. Most people’s phones were tethered to a wall, the internet was strictly for arguing over “Star Trek,” and Bill Belichick was considered a wildly disappointing head coach.

Only one of those things is true today. And yet, for all that has changed over these past decades, for all the misery Miami has endured, Saturday marked an inflection point.

The Canes are back.

Let’s look at the résumé. Miami opened the season with a win over Notre Dame, and the Irish now look like a true contender again, after beating Boise State in emphatic fashion 28-7 on Saturday. Miami dominated USF, one of the Group of 6’s best teams. Miami thumped Florida, which showed signs of life in Week 6 by stunning Texas. And in Tallahassee on Saturday, Miami made a statement in dismantling Florida State 28-19.

And while Miami soared, No. 7 Penn State and No. 9 Texas endured mosaics of laughter and cocktails of tears in Week 6. Oh, sorry, we’re being told that’s actually the Mad Libs description Taylor Swift used for her new album. But it’s still fitting.

Six weeks into the season, it’s probably worth taking a step back and recalibrating, reevaluating and, frankly, regretting so much of what we thought to be true before the 2025 campaign kicked off.

We’ve seen how far preseason assumptions have gotten us. Clemson, Arizona State and Illinois were all supposed to be playoff favorites, only for September to shatter that illusion.

In Week 5, we saw four top-10 teams lose — Florida State, Penn State, LSU and Georgia.

And in Week 6, the grim reaper came for the Nittany Lions (again) and the Longhorns, courtesy of two teams who had yet to win a Power 4 game.

That Florida upended Texas is a surprise, to be sure, but not like realizing the guy from “White Lotus” also played Uncle Rico in “Napoleon Dynamite.” We could, after all, have seen this coming. Billy Napier is college football’s Jason Voorhees — drown, hacked, flambéed and forced to watch all the entire DVD collection of “According to Jim,” and yet he keeps coming back. Napier cannot be felled by conventional weapons. Florida will only be able to fire him after enlisting the help of witch doctors, paranormal psychologists and Auburn boosters. Napier is like “Grey’s Anatomy,” a thing you’re shocked to learn is somehow still going each new college football season.

Napier’s latest revival came in a 29-21 win over Texas in which the Gators’ defense racked up six sacks, picked off Arch Manning twice and held the Longhorns to 52 yards on the ground. The only highlight for Texas was a late-game sack in which Manning’s helmet popped off, and his mop of disheveled hair forced all of America to swoon just long enough to forget Texas was the preseason No. 1 team in the country. Manning and the Horns have been this season’s version of an “Avatar” sequel — a massive endeavor earning millions of dollars based on a legacy franchise, while no one’s quite sure why we’re still supposed to care.

Meanwhile, we might have reached even more desperate times for the preseason No. 2 team. A week after falling to Oregon in overtime, Penn State looked utterly shell-shocked against UCLA. The Nittany Lions fell behind 27-7 at the half, had a chance to get back into the game, then on a crucial fourth-down play, did the football equivalent of splitting your pants while bending over to pick up a nickel.

After the game, James Franklin reeled off a litany of excuses, from travel to injuries to, of course, the hangover from the Oregon game.

“Obviously we didn’t handle last week’s loss well,” Franklin said, and that feels like the obvious answer because it means Franklin actually lost twice to a top-10 Oregon team, more befitting his reputation.

In reality, it was woeful UCLA, 0-4 entering the game, a team that had fired its head coach and had turned to Jerry Neuheisel for offensive playcalling — a man who had never so much as worn the headset on the sideline before and who had tragically lost the finals of the All Valley Karate Tournament to Daniel LaRusso.

That Florida and UCLA — two of the most frustratingly awful teams of the first month of the season — could open October by knocking off the teams ranked first and second to open the season speaks volumes. This season has no prewritten script. There is no favorite, no dominant team, no safe bet for the playoffs.

Except for, maybe, Miami.

The Canes do not have a clear weakness. They have a QB who is playing angry, an offensive and defensive line that are mean, big and powerful, and skill guys who not only make plays but offer the type of swagger that had once been Miami’s calling card.

Are we comfortable unironically pronouncing Miami as the king of the college football world again? Of course not. We remember what it was like for Jacory Harris to toy with our emotions like a cat with a ball of yarn. We remember Al Golden prowling the sideline dressed as an Enterprise Rental Car agent. We remember when Mark Richt came to the cold realization that 15 years of forgetting to run the ball in Athens was still far less exasperating than trying to figure out what to do with N’Kosi Perry.

Miami spent 20 years being feared by everyone in college football.

Anyone who has watched Miami over the past 20 years is still plenty scared of buying the hype this time around.

And yet, here we are, nearly midway through a year in which nothing seems certain, and somehow the biggest surprise of all is that the safest bet in the sport might be the Canes.

More:
UNC blown out
Trends | Under the radar
Heisman five

Heels down

The dream of recreating the Deion Sanders experience in Chapel Hill took its first major step forward Saturday, when a world-famous rapper finally showed up for a game. Unfortunately, this was because Ludacris was contractually obligated to play the pregame concert, and due to the miserable September unfurled by both of Saturday’s participants, he was forced to (ahem) roll out of bed bright and early for a 9:45 a.m. set. It’s rare for Carolina’s usually staid wine-and-cheese crowd to dig into the Chicken-n-Beer (we know) before lunch, but in fairness, they would’ve otherwise been 2 Furious 2 Fast (seriously, we’re sorry).

This was supposed to be one of the season’s great matchups — Belichick vs. Dabo Swinney, the first college football game between a coach with a Super Bowl ring and one with a natty since Bill Walsh and Joe Paterno faced off in the famed 1993 Blockbuster Bowl, which feels a little like saying The Beatles and The Rolling Stones once got together to play a show at a RadioShack. With North Carolina and Clemson a combined 0-5 against Power 4 competition entering play, Saturday’s matchup might well have been dubbed The Disappointment Bowl.

The game started well enough for UNC, with the Heels down 28-3 after the first quarter. Unfortunately, Belichick wasn’t coaching against the Atlanta Falcons in this one.

If losses to TCU and UCF were embarrassing for UNC, Saturday’s first half was something altogether different — like a septuagenarian posing for a 20-something’s Halloween photos on Instagram.

Clemson scored touchdowns on five of its first six drives, and Cade Klubnik had twice as many TD throws (four) as incompletions (two), before the Tigers called off the dogs, and the surviving members of the 1916 Cumberland team could celebrate, knowing their legacy of a 222-0 loss was safe for another week.

Earlier in the week, Heels GM Michael Lombardi wrote a letter to donors that bordered on a manifesto, suggesting this is all part of Belichick’s rebuilding plan, though it had more of the feel of the guys who started Fyre Festival saying the porta potties would be delivered any minute now. For a team that is already having this much trouble scoring points, moving the goal posts seemed a bad idea, but Lombardi’s analogizing Belichick’s plan for UNC to the Philadelphia 76ers’ famed “process” might be fitting. After all, throughout all of the Sixers losing, management continued to invest in bad personnel, and the end result, a decade later, is still nothing close to a title.

Week 6 vibe shifts

Each week, the biggest games, biggest plays and biggest wins help shape the course of the season. Beneath the surface, however, dozens of smaller shifts can have an even more profound effect. We try to capture those here.

Trending up: Tide revenge games

Alabama‘s resurgence continued in Week 6, as the Tide got a little revenge against Vanderbilt after last year’s shocker in Nashville.

Jam Miller ran for 136 yards and a touchdown, Ty Simpson threw for 340 and two scores, and Alabama rolled to a 30-14 win. The Tide fans, who had spent a full year hearing about last year’s loss to Vandy, were happy to celebrate, much to Diego Pavia‘s chagrin.

On one hand, we have to wonder why the security guard and lead vocalist for Tuscaloosa’s finest ZZ Top cover band (He’s Got Bangs) didn’t intervene. Regardless, it’s a shame to see fans like this yelling at Pavia. They should know it’s not polite to talk that way to their elders.

Trending down: Hiring the hot coach

After the 2022 season, Luke Fickell left Cincinnati, where he had become one of the most respected coaches in the country, for Wisconsin. The Bearcats then turned to Scott Satterfield, who was already on his way out at Louisville, to replace him. This all seemed like getting your Lamborghini stolen and then buying a pickup truck, but we’re not here to talk about Carson Beck right now.

In any case, turns out the truck was a pretty good buy.

Satterfield has the Bearcats at 4-1 after Saturday’s 38-30 win over No. 14 Iowa State, with a ground game that ran for 260 yards and another stellar performance from QB Brendan Sorsby.

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Cincinnati snaps Iowa State’s perfect record

Cincinnati jumps out to a big early lead and holds on late to knock off No. 11-ranked Iowa State at home.

Fickell, meanwhile, couldn’t have been a worse fit in Wisconsin if he had been lactose intolerant, as the Badgers fell to Michigan 24-10. Wisconsin has failed to crack 20 points in eight of its past 10 games vs. FBS competition, and Fickell’s explanation that the offensive line just overindulged at Culver’s simply isn’t going to fly with the boosters much longer.

In the wild Big 12, Cincinnati’s win announces the Bearcats as a genuine contender in the conference, thus setting up the fine people of Cincinnati for another round of disappointment that will continue to be dished out by the sports gods until they all admit cinnamon doesn’t belong in chili.

Trending up: Frog retribution

Sonny Dykes and TCU got some long-awaited revenge on Coach Prime and Colorado with a 35-21 win Saturday, their first meeting since the Horned Frogs, fresh off a trip to the national championship game, lost to Deion Sanders in his Buffaloes debut.

Colorado led 14-0, but TCU dominated the second half, scoring twice in the final six minutes, as Josh Hoover threw four touchdown passes.

Under Sanders, Colorado is now 15-16 overall with more retired jerseys (2) than wins over ranked foes (1). On the flip side, Sanders has reasonably argued that if the Jacksonville Jaguars aren’t going to use Travis Hunter more, then Colorado should get to have him back for the rest of the year.

Trending down: Sweater weather in College Park

Stop us if you’ve heard this story before: Maryland was off to a great start. Maryland had a sizable lead over a better team. Maryland blew that lead, then drove off a cliff.

Yes, the calendar has turned to October, which means it’s time for Terps fans to find a stool at Cornerstone and not recognize reality again until basketball season is over.

Maryland, which opened the year 4-0, had a 20-0 lead on Washington midway through the third quarter, but the Huskies scored three touchdowns in the fourth quarter and emerged with a 24-20 win.

This was entirely predictable, of course. Since 2013, Maryland is 40-10 (.800) in August and September and 28-70 (.286) after that. While those splits could be confounding to some, we can’t help but think Mike Locksley’s decision to begin using the school’s pumpkin spice helmets each October might be part of the problem.

Trending down: The life of a Boilermaker

Illinois dominated Purdue 43-27 Saturday behind 390 passing yards from Luke Altmyer, and this might seem like something of a trend for the Boilermakers.

Now, it would be easy enough to blame Ms. Swift for this coincidence, but it’s also worth remembering that Purdue is also, like all of America, winless when Creed releases a new album.

Trending up: Navy‘s air game

Navy wasn’t simply satisfied beating Air Force in Week 6. The Midshipmen needed to throw a little salt in the wound by proving which service academy owns the air.

Navy QB Blake Horvath completed 20 of 26 throws for 339 yards and three touchdowns Saturday to go with 130 yards and a score on the ground. According to ESPN Research, Horvath is just the second player in Navy history with 300 passing yards and 100 rushing yards in a game, joining the incredibly appropriately named Brian Broadwater, who did it in 2000 vs. Tulane.

After the game, Horvath humbly congratulated Air Force on a well-played game and wished each of the Falcons the best of luck in their future career flying the Raleigh-to-Newark route for Southwest Airlines.

Trending down: Elite memes

It has been 11 years since Frank Beamer bestowed upon the college football world one of the truly great memes in social media history as he celebrated a missed Wake Forest field goal that sent a 0-0 game to overtime.

On Saturday, the two teams renewed their rivalry, and this time, Virginia Tech managed to score a whopping 23 points despite not even having Wake’s playbook this time.

And yet, it still wasn’t enough for the Hokies, who fell 30-23 as Robbie Ashford led the way for the Deacons with 256 passing yards and a touchdown.

Afterward, interim Virginia Tech coach Phillip Montgomery sat on the bench and shook his head solemnly before finally affirming the outcome, stared down Ashford as Virginia Tech’s Kyron Drones looked on angrily, then retired to his kitchen, which also happened to be on fire, to enjoy a warm cup of coffee.

Trending up: Points for Pitt

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Mason Heintschel airs it out for 18-yard touchdown pass

Mason Heintschel airs it out for 18-yard touchdown pass

The Panthers benched starting QB Eli Holstein after back-to-back losses, turning the reins over to freshman Mason Heintschel, as Pittsburgh-sounding a name as you can get short of “Yinzy FitzCornedbeef.” It proved a stroke of genius.

Heintschel ignited the Pitt offense, which steamrolled Boston College 48-7. The freshman threw for 323 yards, four touchdowns and no picks — the first ACC freshman to hit those marks in their first career start since Deshaun Watson did it in 2014 against UNC.

After the stellar debut, Heintschel further proved his Pittsburgh bona fides by crushing a can of Rolling Rock on his forehead, donated his NIL check to the local pipe fitters union and added french fries to his salad.

Under-the-radar play of the week

Kudos to Colorado Mesa for playing good situational football, eschewing the more traditional nickel or dime defensive coverage schemes in favor of the far less utilized “all the change in your couch cushions” set to stop Colorado School of Mines’ final hook-and-lateral attempt to secure a win.

Mines was in last-gasp mode, with one lateral after another to keep the final play alive, when the entirety of the Mesa sideline spilled onto the field, and a player who hadn’t even been in the game made the final tackle.

Yes, it was a penalty, but that just forced Mines to run the play again, which Mesa snuffed out more easily the second time around.

Under-the-radar game of the week

Western Kentucky moved to 5-1 on the season after narrowly escaping Delaware, 27-24 on Friday. The Hilltoppers were down 7 at the half but battled back thanks to a pick-six and a Nick Minicucci fumble going into the end zone that produced a 14-point swing. WKU led by 3 when the Hens got the ball back at their own 5-yard line with just 54 seconds to play and no timeouts.

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Koron Hayward gets a pick-six for Western Kentucky

Koron Hayward gets a pick-six for Western Kentucky

That’s when Minicucci led the Hens on Delaware’s most heralded drive since Caesar Rodney’s famed midnight ride to vote for the Declaration of Independence. The Hens drove 70 yards on five plays, spiked the ball at the 25 and set up a potential game-tying kick from 42 yards out.

Unfortunately, like Rodney’s slightly less famous midnight ride to return “Weekend at Bernie’s II” before incurring any late fees, this quest was doomed to failure, as UD’s kick sailed wide, and Western Kentucky walked off with the win.

Heisman five

Six weeks into the season, we’re really starting to worry that Arch Manning‘s Heisman campaign isn’t going to come to fruition. In fairness, we also didn’t think we would ever use the term “Senator Paul Finebaum” and yet, here we are.

1 (tie). Indiana QB Fernando Mendoza, Oregon QB Dante Moore and Ole Miss QB Trinidad Chambliss

They all had off in Week 6, which, unlike Manning, was fitting since their teams were off, too. Anyway, that’s boring, so let’s make the rest of the list guys who actually played.

2. Alabama QB Ty Simpson

Yes, he lost to Florida State in Week 1. But who remembers Week 1? That was like a month ago! If we all had to continue to be defined by what happened in August, South Carolina would still be a top-15 team, Javen would still be deeply in love in his “Love is Blind” pod and Dabo Swinney would still be selling counterfeit Cade Klubnik jerseys to raise money for his transfer additions .

3. Notre Dame QB CJ Carr

In the past three games, Carr has eight TDs, no picks and has won three straight. Five of his past seven games will be against the ACC. He might throw for 900 touchdowns.

4. Ohio State WR Jeremiah Smith

He had seven catches and two touchdowns in a 42-3 win over Minnesota. More importantly, he helped sneak Julian Sayin into an R-rated movie.

5. Cincinnati QB Brendan Sorsby

Is there a more underrated player in the country than Sorsby, who has posted an 87.2 Total QBR, 12 passing TDs and a single pick so far this season as the Bearcats have emerged as Big 12 contenders? Of course, the Bengals have already inquired about the possibility of him foregoing the remainder of the season, donning some Chad Powers makeup and filling in for Joe Burrow, so there’s no saying whether his Heisman campaign will have real legs.

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