Week 4 was the first real Saturday of conference play, and it delivered: a top five team got run over in Gainesville, a last second touchdown in Ann Arbor, a home upset at Penn State and a new Heisman favorite at Ohio State. Here are the winners and losers from Saturday, September 26.
Winners
Florida
The Gators routed Ole Miss 52 to 28 in Gainesville, ran for more than 300 yards against a top five team and jumped 13 spots to No. 8 in the AP poll, their highest ranking since 2020. Jon Sumrall needed four games to make Florida a playoff conversation again.
Jadan Baugh
Florida’s running back scored three touchdowns against Ole Miss for his fifth straight 100 yard game, a streak only Emmitt Smith and Fred Taylor had matched at Florida. He moved into the top six of the Heisman odds.
Jeremiah Smith
Twelve catches, 217 yards and four touchdowns in Ohio State’s 42 to 19 win over Illinois. Smith jumped from about +1000 to the Heisman favorite in one Saturday.
Iowa
Hank Brown hit Reece Vander Zee for a 16 yard touchdown on the final play to beat Michigan 20 to 19 in Ann Arbor. The Hawkeyes are 4-0, and the reward is College GameDay in Iowa City for the first time in 20 years.
Mississippi State
The Bulldogs beat Missouri, entered the polls at No. 16 and made quarterback Kamario Taylor a real Heisman name. Alabama comes to Starkville on Saturday.
Wisconsin
The Badgers scored late and won at Penn State, the kind of road upset that changes a season in Madison and the Big Ten race.
Wake Forest
Jake Dickert’s team won at Louisville and is 3-1, with its only loss to Miami. Dickert is 12-5 since taking over.
UCLA
A road rout of Maryland moved the Bruins to 4-0 and into the Coaches Poll, a 14 spot jump.
The Texas defense
Ten sacks at Tennessee, five from Colin Simmons, carried the No. 1 Longhorns through a 20 to 17 win on a day the offense ran for only 61 yards.
Losers
Ole Miss
A week after beating LSU, the Rebels gave up 52 points and more than 300 rushing yards in Gainesville. Trinidad Chambliss fell from the Heisman favorite to fourth, and a loaded SEC leaves little room for a second loss.
Penn State
A home loss to an unranked Wisconsin to open Big Ten play dropped the Nittany Lions out of the AP poll and eight spots in the Coaches Poll. A bad early moment for the Matt Campbell era.
Michigan
Losing on the final play at home to Iowa drops the Wolverines out of the AP top 25 and puts them behind in the Big Ten race.
Texas A&M
A 35 to 6 loss at LSU leaves the Aggies 0-2 in SEC play and out of both polls, two weeks after they were a top 10 team.
Oklahoma
John Mateer’s turnovers fueled a lopsided loss at Georgia, and the Sooners are 2-2 and out of the polls.
USC and Lincoln Riley
Oregon won 41 to 27 in the Coliseum even after losing Dante Moore to injury, and the Trojans fell six spots. The questions around Riley are getting louder.
Louisville
A home loss to Wake Forest, the Cardinals’ second loss, knocked them out of both polls.
Arch Manning’s Heisman odds
Texas won, but Manning went 14 of 19 for 201 yards and an interception and drifted from about +1000 to +2500.
What It Means for Week 5
Three ranked matchups follow directly from this week: No. 7 Alabama at No. 16 Mississippi State, No. 5 Ohio State at No. 14 Iowa with GameDay on site, and No. 8 Florida at No. 25 Missouri. Every game, time and channel is on the Week 5 TV schedule.
Related
AP Top 25 · Coaches Poll · Heisman odds · Week 3 winners and losers · Where is College GameDay