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CFB madness: Alabama, Tennessee, USC and Michigan fall victim to chaos on Saturday


CFB madness: Alabama, Tennessee, USC and Michigan fall victim to chaos on Saturday

I know some of you all thought Saturday was going to be a dud because there are no top 25 matchups in all of college football. But my goodness, we had a crazy day of football thanks to losses by Alabama, Tennessee, USC, Michigan and Missouri.

Usually they are the games you least expect. Such was the case on a wild day that ended on the West Coast as Miami and California squared off in the ACC Challenge, where the Hurricanes erased a 25-point deficit to beat the Bears.

The chaos began in College Station, made a pit stop in Nashville, spread across Washington state and ended in Minnesota.

For the first time in SEC history, we saw two top-five teams lose to unranked opponents on the same day.

You didn't think we'd make it through the weekend without chaos, did you?

Vanderbilt shocks No. 1 Alabama as chaos erupts in Nashville

It may have been the wildest upset of the season, and I remember Northern Illinois' win over Notre Dame, but what Vanderbilt did in Nashville on Saturday afternoon will stay with me for a long time.

For the first time in forty years, Vanderbilt defeated Alabama, and in front of what looked like a Crimson crowd. This play belonged to Diego Pavia, who overran the entire Alabama defense and made them pay from the air, too. The Vanderbilt QB has now beaten the Tide and Auburn in two years with two different teams after winning with New Mexico State on the Plains last season.

This night belonged to the Commodores as they forced Jalen Milroe into numerous errors and frustrated the Alabama defense into a series of stunning plays. As the clock reached zero, cheering Vandy fans stormed the field, tore down the goal posts and carried it all the way to the Cumberland River in downtown Nashville.

Next up: Alabama will host South Carolina while Vanderbilt will play at Kentucky.

Arkansas surprises No. 4 Tennessee with another big upset

Oh, so you thought Vanderbilt was the only team causing havoc in the top five this weekend? No, Arkansas decided to join in, defeating No. 4 Tennessee 19-14 in a dramatic defensive play.

There was nothing about Tennessee's play that made them look like a team prepared for a trip to Fayetteville. I don't know what happened to Josh Heupel's explosive offense, but the offensive line hasn't done them any favors the last few weeks. Credit goes to Sam Pittman and the Razorbacks for taking advantage of the Vols' mistakes, considering things could have gone sideways when QB Taylen Green took a bad blow to his knee in the fourth quarter.

The longer Arkansas stayed, the more it felt that Tennessee was in trouble. And now the Vols are in a very interesting situation, almost exactly like Ole Miss was in last weekend after the loss to Kentucky. The next two weeks could define Tennessee's season as Florida and Alabama will travel to Knoxville. I'm not saying the Vols have to win both, but if they lose, it better not be at the hands of the Gators since the playoffs are only two months away.

Big win for the Hogs, while it was a bad night in Fayettville to hear “Rocky Top.”

Next up, Tennessee hosts Florida in a game that now I have no idea what to expect. Arkansas gets a week off before hosting LSU.

What's wrong, Missouri? Texas A&M pounces on No. 9 Tigers

This was actually the game that started college football madness on Saturday. But this wasn't just any loss, it was a 41-10 loss to Texas A&M. While the Tigers entered this game elated with an offense that looked like a problem, they left College Station with more questions than answers.

Credit goes to Aggies QB Conner Weigman for winning the Missouri secondary and making Texas A&M look like a team that will compete for a spot in the College Football Playoff. Just like we all expected, right?

Eli Drinkwitz said during the week that Mike Elko has the potential for Conner Weigman to take over as the starting quarterback for Marcel Reed. But the only people laughing after the game were the Aggies, embarrassing the Tigers and sending them into a panic.

Missouri plays UMass next, while Texas A&M has a week off before playing Mississippi State.

What happened in the Big Ten? USC and Michigan lose thriller

No, the SEC wasn't the only conference eating itself on Saturday. I know Washington was the favorite to beat Michigan, but it's still a surprise when the No. 10 Wolverines were beaten by the Huskies. Let's talk about a tough game for Michigan that saw them pass for a total of 429 yards to 287.

This was a brutal defeat for Michigan as they had already been beaten by Texas. With two losses at the end of the first weekend in October, the chances of making it into the College Football Playoff are almost exhausted. Of course, anything could happen, but the loss to Washington will cost them.

But it was USC that suffered the worst loss, just in terms of the way it played out. The trip to Minnesota always looked strange in the schedule, and the outcome of this trip lived up to the craziness of the day.

Yes, that was the Gophers going for the touchdown instead of kicking the field goal to take the lead. I give PJ Fleck a lot of credit for making these games worth watching, especially with his choice of opportunities to take the lead. It could have easily backfired, but Miller Moss got into big trouble on the final drive.

For USC, the second loss of the season will be painful for a while. Given that this is a team struggling to find an attacking identity, there are still a number of games remaining that look like potential defeats. Next week's game against Penn State has lost some of its luster, but nothing this season would surprise me anymore.

Other notable games, future prospects to question

How about these SMU Mustangs? Going on the road and beating Louisville With Rhet Lashlee leading his team to 5-1 this season, things are looking good in the ACC right now.

Aside from the good teams in college football, it's time for UAB to move on from Trent Dilfer. What was once a proud G-5 team that rose from the ashes after the closure of its football program is now a disgrace with the Blazers rebuilding through Bill Clark and Bryan Vincent, who helped stay on track. It's time for the team in my home state to make the move and pay for the acquisition. They shouldn't have hired Dilfer in the first place because his high school resume was worthless.

Just a wild weekend of college football that started with an exciting game between UNLV and Syracuse on Friday night. This is what this beautiful sport will offer us when you least expect it.

Take a deep breath, regroup if your team loses, and prepare for another week of trash talk before a crucial football weekend.

Man, that was a fun Saturday.

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