Week 6 preview: Unlikely unbeatens, marquee QB battles and quotes
If you were asked in August to select five groups that would be undefeated at this point, you ‘d probably fast to call the conventional powerhouses: Georgia, Ohio State, Michigan, USC, Alabama. And you ‘d be incorrect on Alabama. But you get the point.Who in the world thought Louisville, Maryland, Kentucky, Missouri and Washington State all would be unbeaten now? Sure, possibly a couple of because of the early-season schedule. But not all the wins were anticipated– who believed Kentucky would wallop Florida?Those groups put
their perfect records on the line in Week 6, which includes the biggest battle of 5-0 groups with No. 12 Oklahoma dealing with No. 3 Texas in Saturday’s Red River Rivalry.Our reporters sneak peek Week 6 with a look at the surprising unbeaten groups and quarterback matches to enjoy, plus some of the week’s finest quotes. Surprise! Look who’s still undefeated Louisville: When Louisville employed native kid Jeff Brohm, you could feel the enjoyment build not only amongst the fan base but amongst the football program. He then upgraded the lineup and brought in several crucial transfers who have paid off in big methods, starting with quarterback Jack Plummer, who played for him at Purdue. Plummer ranks No. 3 in the ACC in passing, not a surprise considering Brohm’s background and history, and transfer Jamari Thrash ranks No. 2 in the league in receiving. Possibly the greatest revelation has actually been the Cardinals’hurrying offense behind Jawhar Jordan, who leads the league with 510 lawns and 6 goals. Defensively, transfers Devin Neal(Baylor)and Cam’Ron Kelly(UNC), tied for 2nd on the group with 24 tackles, have actually been big additions, too. However returner Ashton Gillotte has taken the next action with 5 sacks.Brohm explained his group’s 13-10 win over NC State recently as his defense’s finest performance of the season. However it will take a complete team effort to beat Notre Dame and end the Irish’s 30-game regular-season winning streak versus the ACC.” We’ve done just enough to win five games, “Brohm told ESPN.”And we have actually revealed some strength and some grit to come back and win a few, so that’s been actually great to see, our guys play that hard. To this point, everything’s been good. I know as a coach that our schedule will just continue to get harder and harder, and we’re going to have difficulties ahead, beginning this week. “– Andrea Adelson Maryland: Winners of its very first five games in a season for the very first time because Ralph Friedgen coached the program to the ACC title in 2001, Maryland heads into a significant spotlight Saturday when it visits the Horseshoe to contend No. 4 Ohio State. Taulia Tagovailoa spearheads a Terrapins offense that leads the Big Ten in total offense(454.8 YPG)while sitting behind just Penn State in scoring offense(38.6 PPG). Tagovailoa, who tops the conference with both 1,464 passing lawns and 13 goal passes, has three games of at least 3 touchdown tosses, led by recently’s 352-yard, five-touchdown effort in a 44-17 dispatching of Indiana. Led by Jeshaun Jones’19 receptions, 6 receivers have caught a minimum of 11 passes and 8 players have found completion zone, as Tagovailoa has actually done an outstanding task of spreading out the wealth and not letting opposing defenses crucial on one player. Defensively, Brian Williams ‘system has required 10 turnovers combined over the past three weeks in convincing triumphes over Virginia, Michigan State and Indiana. It faces its stiffest obstacle yet with a Buckeyes offense itching to sustain momentum from their win in South Bend on Sept. 23.– Blake Baumgartner Ray Davis cut loose for Kentucky a week ago, rushing for 280 yards and scoring four goals in a win over Florida. Jeff Moreland/Icon Sportswire Kentucky: The schedule has actually been more than manageable, and even the most blue-hearted Kentucky fan would acknowledge as much. 3 of the Wildcats ‘wins have come over teams (Ball State, Akron and Vanderbilt
)with a combined 4-12 record, and a 4th win came by FCS enemy Eastern Kentucky. That’s not to diminish the fact the Wildcats are doing the important things it requires to win at a high level, in particular running the ball, stopping the run, eliminating explosive plays and requiring turnovers. They’re averaging 6.48 backyards per rush(second nationally) and limiting opponents to 2.54 lawns per rush (8th nationally). Ray Davis, a transfer from Vanderbilt, hurried for 280 yards recently in the 33-14 win over Florida, the most rushing yards by an FBS player this season. Kentucky dominated the line of scrimmage, as quarterback Devin Leary tried just 19 passes, completing nine for 69 yards. He’s a better passer than he’s revealed to this point and will have to make more plays down the field in the death game if the Wildcats are going to keep it going, which begins Saturday against No. 1 Georgia. Leary’s leading 2 getting targets, Tayvion Robinson and Barion Brown, left the Florida game in the second half with injuries. Their status is up in the air. Some younger receivers might need to step up, however the Wildcats are going to need more out of their passing game as they take on an October stretch that consists of Georgia on the road and then Missouri and Tennessee in the house.– Chris Low Missouri: The short variation for why Mizzou is 5-0 is simple: Brady Cook to Luther Concern III. But here’s the longer version. The Tigers began the season with wins over South Dakota and MTSU, but the offense disappointed extremely in the process. The Tigers averaged 4.9 backyards per play versus MTSU, even worse
than Murray State(5.7 )and everyone else on the Blue Raiders ‘schedule, and a number of fourth-and-short punts both revealed Eliah Drinkwitz’s basic lack of confidence and almost proved pricey in the 23-19 win. But the frustration emanating from that seemingly lit a fire. The Tigers scored at least 30 points in wins over Kansas State, Memphis and Vanderbilt– all teams much better than MTSU– in recent weeks. And Cook has been one of the best QBs in the country at the same time, averaging 364 passing lawns per game with eight TDs. He’s set an SEC record for consecutive passes without an interception, and he’s growing both since of Problem, the nation’s leading receiver, and because other targets like Theo Wease(118 yards vs. Vanderbilt )have begun to grow. The Tigers ‘defense is still a top-30 approximately unit, and suddenly the offense is dynamite. And now they return house to host an LSU group that is equivalent parts unsafe and problematic.– Bill Connelly Washington State: With half the Pac-12 ranked in the top 18 of the AP poll, the Cougars remain under the radar in spite of climbing from unranked to No. 13. Yet, when laying out the very best wins by Pac-12 groups, it’s the Cougars– Wisconsin, Oregon State– who stand apart. Both of those win margins were by single digits, but WSU controlled
both games and has actually impressed on both sides of the ball. There is a great deal of credit to spread around, but it starts with quarterback Webcam Ward. In new offensive organizer Ben Arbuckle’s offense, Ward has actually made significant strides to turn into one of the very best quarterbacks in the country. He’s precise, he makes great choices, and he’s playing with a basic sense of calm that evaded him sometimes last year. Plus, the additions of Josh Kelly and Kyle Williams at receiver have provided him a deep, skill group of receivers, joining Lincoln Victor. This is a team without a major issue area, that makes it a hard out every week.– Kyle Bonagura QB fights: Who has the much better day? Louisville quarterback Jack Plummer will try to hand Notre Dame an unusual loss against an ACC team. AP Photo/Karl B DeBlaker< img alt="" src="https://a.espncdn.com/combiner/i?img=/i/teamlogos/ncaa/500/87.png&h=60&w=60 "width="
30 “/ > Sam Hartman(Notre Dame)vs. Jack Plummer (Louisville )It may be easy to choose Plummer based upon what happened last season alone. Hartman, playing for Wake Forest, had the worst game of his career at Louisville– tossing three interceptions, losing 3 fumbles and taking 7 sacks in a 48-21 loss. He
was benched to begin the fourth quarter in a game Wake Forest coach
Dave Clawson called a “catastrophe.”But Hartman is in a different spot now with the Irish– and a various offense that is not asking him to put as much on his shoulders as he did at Wake. His late-game heroics recently versus Duke led Notre Dame to a 21-14 comeback victory. On the other hand, Plummer dealt with all sorts of pressure from the NC State defense a week ago and did not play his finest game, tossing two interceptions and getting sacked four times. Expect Notre Dame to bring the exact same kind of pressure as NC State did, and Hartman to have a much better efficiency than a year ago.– Adelson Quinn Ewers (Texas )vs. Dillon Gabriel (Oklahoma )Gabriel notably missed this game in 2015 due to a concussion, causing disaster for Oklahoma. Five various players attempted a pass, including 2 running backs and a punter, as the Sooners managed just 39 passing yards in a historic 49-0 blowout loss, the worst in any game in school history. But this season, he’s leading the Huge 12 in QBR, with Ewers 2nd. Gabriel is third nationally with eight conclusions of 40 or more lawns, while Ewers has been inconsistent on deep balls, though he’s enhanced because area. Both defenses have actually taken huge actions this season, however Gabriel has actually been more constant and will be asked to do more. In what could end up as another Texas-OU shootout, Gabriel likely will have the better numbers.– Dave Wilson Taulia Tagovailoa(Maryland)vs. Kyle McCord( Ohio State) McCord completed the Notre Dame game on an encouraging note, however Tagovailoa had 5 goal passes recently and eight in his first 2 Huge 10 games. Maryland’s receiving corps does not create the attention Ohio State ‘s does, but there’s real depth with Tai Felton and West Virginia transfer Kaden Prather emerging together with Jeshaun Jones.” Very comparable to
when I was at Alabama, I had [Henry] Ruggs and [Jerry] Jeudy] and [Jaylen] Waddle and Smitty [DeVonta Smith], “Terrapins coach Mike Locksley told me.”Your offense is more dynamic when the ball is spread out around.”– Adam Rittenberg Devin Leary( Kentucky)vs. Carson Beck (Georgia)Leary, who passed for 6,807 backyards during his career at NC State, is due for a breakout game. He’s thrown 10 goal passes and five interceptions in his very first 5 outings for Kentucky, which really hasn’t needed to toss the ball much. The Wildcats could be short-handed at receiver with Tayvion Robinson and Barion Brown both being banged up, and that will not help matters versus a Georgia defense that has actually currently obstructed eight passes
and is tied for 3rd nationally in enabling simply 4.8 backyards per pass effort. Carson Beck, in his first season as Georgia’s starter, is finishing 72 percent of his passes and balancing right at 300 passing lawns per game. The Bulldogs got star tight end Brock Bowers entering the win over Auburn last week, and that’s a connection that gives Beck(and any quarterback)the edge.– Low Notable quotes Billy Napier: The Florida coach was blunt when it came to assessing his group’s 33-14 drubbing by Kentucky.” There is no sugarcoating this thing. We have no excuse. We can coach much better and we can play much better. Hopefully, we will do that.” Deion Sanders: There’s no concern that celebrity has surrounded the Buffaloes, and the coach was more than happy to help Snoop Dogg provide a message to Omarion Miller, who captured 7 passes for 196 backyards in Colorado’s Week 5 loss to USC. “A dear pal called me and summoned me to get him on the phone to FaceTime. [He] wished to talk with him and wished to let him know that he has a significant present. I don’t know what the discussion was, however I know I simply handed him the phone. I stated,’ Someone wishes to speak to you.’He looked at the phone like,’ Oh my god.’Yeah, it was Snoop. Snoop wished to speak to [Miller] He wanted to challenge him. “Dave Clawson: The Wake Forest coach, whose group plays at Clemson on Saturday(3:30 p.m. ET, ACC Network), hasn’t forgotten in 2015’s 2OT loss
to the Tigers.” There are certain games in your career you never ever, ever overcome. That is among them. When I’m on my deathbed, that game will still trouble me. Hopefully, our players feel the very same method.”