Points for each top 25 team - Donnecommebernard

Saturday, October 5, 2024 will be the talk of college football for years to come.

At the start of week six, it would have been fair for fans to describe the fixture list for the first weekend of October as disappointing. At the end of the day, however, you almost had the feeling that it would have been better not to be part of the top team, but rather to be an underdog.

Required reading: After Week 6's upsets, what will the U.S. LBM Coaches Poll top 10 look like in college football?

Although there were eight teams ranked in the top 25 of the LBM USA Coaches' Poll in Week 6, five of the top 11 teams suffered losses, including No. 2 Alabama, while another top 10 team suffered a loss at No. 8 Miami had to close call on the street.

Saturday's college football games will have a big impact on the new national polls scheduled to be released later Sunday.

Here's a recap of college football's biggest surprises in Week 6:

College football caused surprises yesterday

Vanderbilt 40, No. 2 Alabama 35

Diego Pavia ended the Commodores' poor performance against top-five opponents with an impressive home win that resulted in a field storming and a possible SEC fine. Before Saturday's win, Vanderbilt had gone 0-60 against AP top-five opponents. The Crimson Tide were coming off a win over No. 1 Georgia.

Alabama was the -23.5-point favorite over the Commodores, a program it had not lost to since 1984. But the Commodores always seemed to be in control of the win, even leading 20-7 in the first half and responding with Alabama scoring every time the Crimson Tide was just one possession away.

Pavia, a transfer from New Mexico State, completed 16 of 20 passes for 252 yards in the win. According to ESPN, his 80% completion rate against Alabama was the highest since South Carolina's Stephen Garcia completed 85% of his passes against the Crimson Tide in 2010.

Arkansas 19, No. 4 Tennessee 14

The Razorbacks earned another improbable top-five win over an inferior SEC program and then belted out Tennessee's “Rocky Top” at Razorback Stadium to troll Vols fans. It was Tennessee's first loss since November 18, 2023 and the first time two top-five SEC teams lost on the same day.

Replacing the injured Taylen Green, Malachi Singleton scored against a QB keeper with 1:17 left to give the Razorbacks the win. Tennessee, which averaged 60 points in its first three games, was slowed to just two touchdowns and didn't score in the final 20 minutes. Arkansas led 3-0 at halftime.

By overcoming a 14-3 deficit early in the fourth quarter, Arkansas earned its first win over an AP top-five team since 2007, when it defeated No. 1 LSU. The Razorbacks had lost 18 consecutive games during this period.

No. 21 Texas A&M 41, No. 9 Missouri 10

Although the Aggies were considered home favorites in this game, the one-sidedness of the final result was still shocking. The Aggies set the tone with a turnover on downs forced on the defense on the Tigers' very first drive. Then they scored the next 34 points and never looked back against a top-10 opponent that looked like a fraud.

The Aggies had a 24-0 halftime lead and running back Le'Veon added salt to the wound when he opened the second half with a 75-yard touchdown to quell any possible comeback thoughts for Missouri. A&M's defense was on point, allowing just 2.3 yards per carry while posting six sacks and eight tackles for loss.

Redshirt sophomore quarterback Connor Weigman returned to the starting lineup and finished 18 of 22 for 276 passing yards, while Moss had 138 yards and three touchdowns. Missouri quarterback Brady Cook completed 13 of 31 and just 186 passing yards.

Washington 27, No. 10 Michigan 17

The rematch for the national championship lived up to its billing. The Huskies got revenge on the road for the January loss. Despite having new coaches, quarterbacks and other players from last season's matchup, both teams were motivated by the Big Ten Conference matchup.

In the loss, Michigan benched starting quarterback Alex Orji in the second quarter and turned to seventh-year signal-caller Jack Tuttle. After entering the fourth quarter trailing 17-14, the Huskies outscored the Wolverines 13-0 in the fourth quarter. Grady Gross tied the game with a field goal with 13:38 left and added another with 1:36 left to increase the lead to 10.

Jonah Coleman's 1-yard touchdown run with 6:22 left was the Huskies' winning touchdown. Will Rodgers had 271 yards and two touchdowns. The victory marked Washington's 18th consecutive win at Husky Stadium, the second-longest streak in program history.

Minnesota 24, No. 11 USC 17

Max Brosmer scored two touchdowns, including one of 7 yards with 56 seconds left in the fourth quarter, catapulting the Golden Gophers to an impressive upset victory over the Trojans at home. Minnesota coach PJ Fleck deserves credit for using the QB sneak on fourth down and pulling off the upset.

USC quarterback Miller Moss capped the loss with two interceptions, including one with nine seconds left, to secure the victory for Fleck and the Golden Gophers. The victory was Minnesota's first over the Trojans since 1955.

Darius Taylor had 200 yards rushing in the win for Minnesota. The Golden Gophers made a splash at 10th-ranked Michigan last week after scoring 21 points in the fourth quarter. So this was a well-deserved win for the Golden Gophers.

Yesterday's college football results

Aside from the Week 6 upsets, Miami had a close decision in a road game against Cal in Berkeley, California. The Hurricanes trailed by as much as 35-10, but secured a 39-38 win after Heisman hopeful Cam Ward led Miami to a game-winning drive with 26 seconds left.

Miami's victory was not without controversy for the second week in a row. Miami defensive back Wesley Bissainthe was not assessed a targeting penalty on a four-yard run by Cal quarterback Fernando Mendoza on a third-and-12. This infuriated Golden Bear fans as it would have handed Cal yet another loss with 1:52 to play.

SMU edged No. 22 Louisville in a back-and-forth contest in Louisville, Kentucky, following a touchdown run by LJ Johnson with 6:39 remaining. The Mustangs are 2-0 in ACC play in their first season in the conference.

That being said, other top 25 teams handled the business without too much trouble, despite posting relatively narrower-than-expected results. No. 7 Penn State defeated UCLA 27-11 and No. 14 Clemson defeated Florida State 29-13 in Tallahassee. FSU fell to 1-5 as Dabo Swinney picked up win No. 174 and surpassed former Seminole head coach Bobby Bowden for the most career wins by an ACC coach.

That's college football sometimes. Here is the complete scoreboard for each ranked team in Week 6:

Vanderbilt 40No. 1 Alabama 35
No. 3 Ohio State 35Iowa 7
Arkansas 19, No. 4 Tennessee 14
No. 5 Georgia 31, Auburn 13
No. 7 Penn State 27UCLA 11
No. 8 Miami 39Cal 38
No. 21 Texas A&M 41No. 9 Missouri 10
Washington 27, No. 10 Michigan 17
No. 11 Ole Miss 27South Carolina 3
Minnesota 24No. 15 USC 17
No. 14 Clemson 29Florida State 13
No. 16 Iowa State 43, Baylor 21
SMU34No. 22 Louisville 27
No. 24 Indiana 41, Northwest 24

Friday's college football results

No. 6 Oregon 31, Michigan State 10
Syracuse 44, No. 23 UNLV 41