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In case you missed Friday night’s late college football game, Brigham Young waited until the final ten seconds to secure a 38-35 victory over Big 12 rival Oklahoma State.
With the win, BYU improved to 7-0 and maintained the top spot in the SwampSwamiSports.com College Football Top 25 for the week ending Saturday, October 19, 2024.
OSU All-American running back Ollie Gordon II was simply incredible in defeat for the visiting Cowboys. He hurtled over one tackler on his way to the end zone in the first half and tallied three touchdowns as the energetic Oklahoma State squad fell to 3-4 with the loss.
After OSU took the lead with an eight minute drive leaving just 1:25 on the clock, Brigham Young quarterback Jake Retzlaff drove the Cougars 75 yards in the final minute to grab the victory.
BYU is now 7-0 in the school’s 40th year since their 1984 13-0 perfect season and only national championship title. A road trip to 3-4 UCF awaits the top-ranked Cougars this Saturday at 2:30 CDT on ESPN.
Hoosier Big Ten Daddy?
Thankfully, the Big Ten is not just about the same two teams anymore. Defending national champion Michigan is fading fast at 4-3 and Ohio State is now 5-1.
Indiana and Big Ten newcomer Oregon are now 7-0 to start the college football season. Penn State had a bye week and is lurking at 6-0.
Most sportswriters expected Oregon and Penn State to have a good start to their seasons.
It’s the 7-0 Indiana Hoosiers which have forced their way into the title discussion, too. An emphatic 56-7 Cornhusker “thrashing” of 5-2 Nebraska on Saturday was the largest Big Ten victory ever for Indiana University.
If you’re old enough to remember the 1967 Indiana Hoosiers, that team started 8-0 and went to the Rose Bowl game representing the Big Ten. It’s been 57 years since IU started a season this hot.
Indiana’s new head coach Curt Cignetti arrived on campus last winter after putting James Madison on the college football map in the last three seasons. The 62-year old offensive-minded coach witnessed ten of his former JMU players transfer to Indiana to join him his year.
This football team was picked to finish 17th out of 18 teams this year by the Big Ten media (Go ahead and boo them!).
The Indiana football Hoosiers are for real.
SEC’s Rock ‘em Sock ‘em Robots KO the league’s final unbeaten team!
And then there were none.
Texas was 6-0 and the only remaining SEC team with an unblemished record heading into last weekend.
On Saturday night in Austin, the Longhorns were bitten by a riled-up Georgia Bulldog squad 30-15 to create a six-pack of 6-1 SEC teams.
The “6-1” SEC club now includes Georgia, Texas A&M, Texas, Tennessee, LSU, and Missouri. Three 5-2 teams (Alabama, Ole Miss, and the surprising Vanderbilt Commodores) must win their remaining games to have any chance to make the new 12-team College Football Playoffs.
This Saturday night at 6:30PM CDT in AggieLand, the 6-1 LSU Tigers (who have finally discovered a defense in recent weeks!) will visit 6-1 Texas A&M in a nationally televised game on ABC.
Iowa State is off to a record start!
Much like Indiana, fans of the Iowa State Cyclones aren’t expecting to see their team at 7-0 to start the football season. The last time ISU started with seven straight wins was 86 years ago in 1938.
After a last minute 38-35 comeback thriller over UCF on Saturday, Coach Matt Campbell’s Iowa State team is now 4-0 in Big 12 conference play for the first time in school history!
The Cylones won’t play again until Saturday, November 2 when the 5-2 Texas Tech Red Raiders visit Ames, Iowa.
On Saturday, Appalachian State plays its first home football game since Hurricane Helene
Boone, North Carolina is a very scenic city of about 20,000 people located in the foothills of the Appalachian Mountains. The home city and region for the aptly named Appalachian State Mountaineers was devastated by the massive flooding of Hurricane Helene starting on September 27.
The campus of App State had a few buildings which were damaged during last month’s floods. However, the school’s electricity and student services have been restored. Classes on campus resumed last Wednesday.
According to a report last week, the university will require over $30 million to cover ongoing debris removal and work to repair or replace structural damage on the school campus.
This Saturday, the first home football game for Appalachian State University will be played since the tragic floods hit this region. The Georgia State Panthers (2-4) from Atlanta will visit Boone, North Carolina to play App State in a 12 Noon CDT kickoff on ESPN+.
The Mountaineers’ Director of Athletics, Doug Gillen, is happy that the school and region will enjoy a few hours of positive energy after nearly a month of very difficult and emotional recovery work.
“App State Football is an important part of the culture and economy of our university community, the High Country, and the western North Carolina region,” said Gillen. “We hope this event will further rally our community and help support all those who are recovering.”
Who’s in and who’s out of this week’s Top 25 rankings?
The SwampSwamiSports.com rankings say, “Howdy” to newcomer 6-1 teams such as Memphis (#18), UL-Lafayette (#22), SMU (#23), UNLV (#24), and Clemson (#25).
Falling out of this week’s Top 25 were Texas Tech and Arizona State (both teams lost). A trio of 5-1 teams (Boise State, UL-Monroe, and Syracuse) also dropped out due to having a bye week. Having the week off caused them to temporarily fall behind some of the 6-1 teams now ranked ahead of them.
In the long-term, just keep on winning! Your favorite team’s ranking will rise soon enough. See you next week!
