They squeezed one more Saturday into the month of September, which was only fitting.
A month that played out in no way according to most preseason forecasts ended with seven Top 25 teams losing to unranked opponents, and three in the top 10 going down.
Most dramatic was the way Mississippi State drowned the No. 3 Florida Gators, prompting Steve Spurrier to exclaim, "Mississippi State ought to be embarrassed tearing down the goal posts after beating this team."
Elsewhere, LSU rebounded from an embarrassing loss to UAB, upsetting No. 11 Tennessee; Northwestern continued its rise from nowhere, demolishing No. 18 Michigan State; Alabama put an end to South Carolina's Cinderella ride, for now; and Oregon State ended a 33-year skid to USC, topping the eighth-ranked Trojans.
All in a day's work.
| Week 6 Recaps |
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| (1) Nebraska 42, Missouri 24 |
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94: Yards on Bobby Newcombe's punt return for a TD, two more than Johnny Rodgers' previous school record. |
| Player of the Game |
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Eric Crouch, QB, Nebraska. Mr. Mobility led the way with 110 yards rushing and a TD, then tossed two more scoring passes.
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| CNNSI.com's Analysis |
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It was unusual to see the Huskers trailing Mizzou late in the first quarter, but the sensation didn't last long for the Tigers. Missouri was rolling right along before QB Kirk Farmer left with a broken collarbone late in the third quarter, and ended up with 494 total yards. Despite some rare defensive struggles for Nebraska, the Huskers had way too much firepower for Mizzou to handle. It was closer than most expected, but the Huskers roll on.
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| (2) Florida State 59, Maryland 7 |
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16: Maryland's passing yards, to 353 for FSU.
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| Player of the Game |
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Robert Morgan, WR, Florida State. One of the Seminoles' many big-play men, Morgan caught three passes for 103 yards and a TD. |
| CNNSI.com's Analysis |
| As usual, Florida State had its way with the Terps. The Seminoles have scored 48 points or more in eight of the last nine meetings, and didn't waste much time extending that stat in this one. Chris Weinke was efficient, picking and choosing his long gains at will before leaving in the third quarter. FSU's backfield tandem of Travis Minor and Jeff Chaney broke off some big runs as well. Despite the issues Bobby Bowden will no doubt have with his team's performance, it was hard to argue with the Seminoles' output on both sides of the ball.
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| Mississippi State 47, (3) Florida 35 |
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-78: Florida rushing yards, compared with 352 for the Bulldogs. |
| Player of the Game |
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Joe Lee Dunn, def. coordinator, Mississippi St. Mastermind's scheme had Florida's quarterbacks absolutely baffled. |
| CNNSI.com's Analysis |
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Steve Spurrier may be a genius to some, but Saturday he only looked like a clown. Yanking QB Jesse Palmer early and shuffling Palmer, Brock Berlin and Rex Grossman the rest of the game kept the Gators from achieving any rhythm offensively. And yet, they still managed to score two quick touchdowns after falling behind 24-10, only to have Jeff Chandler's tying extra-point attempt miss. But the Gators also had a little problem with this thing called defense, as MSU's Dicenzo Miller (167) and Dontae Walker (156) ran wild. |
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| (4) Virginia Tech 48, Boston College 34 |
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420: Hokies' rushing yards. |
| Player of the Game |
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Michael Vick, QB, Virginia Tech
Numbers (210 rushing yards, 61 passing) don't even do him justice -- watch the highlights. |
| CNNSI.com's Analysis |
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It wasn't the greatest day for the Virginia Tech defense, but it didn't matter. Behind Vick's 27, 11 and 82-yard scoring dashes (the latter will be shown on highlight reels for years to come) and tailback Lee Suggs (22 carries, 145 yards), the Hokies moved the ball at will. The only drawback was Vick's two fumbles. William Green was impressive for the Eagles, running for 118 yards and two touchdowns.
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| (5) Kansas State 44, Colorado 21 |
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0: Return yards for Colorado, compared with 117 for K-State.
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| Player of the Game |
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Jonathan Beasley, QB, Kansas State. Threw at will on the Colorado defense, completing 14-of-25 for 288 yards and three TDs. |
| CNNSI.com's Analysis |
| The only good news for 0-4 Colorado is the future looks bright. In his first action, freshman QB Craig Ochs went 15-of-24 for 208 yards and scored on a 17-yard TD run. But he's got a ways to go to catch up with the Wildcats, who showed no signs their early-season dominance was a fluke. When Ochs cut the score to 20-13 with his run, Beasley immediately responded with a long pass to Chris Claybon, followed by Josh Scobey's run from 3 yards out, and the rout was on.
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| (20) Oregon 23, (6) Washington 16 |
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128: Combined yardage of three Oregon punt returns called back by penalty.
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| Player of the Game |
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Maurice Morris, RB, Oregon. Rudi, meet Maurice. This juco running back had another big day, carrying 31 times for 152 yards |
| CNNSI.com's Analysis |
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Death. Taxes. Oregon wins at Autzen Stadium. The Ducks' 18th-straight home win closely resembled the 17th, against UCLA, with the Ducks racing to a quick 20-3 lead and hanging on from there. QB Joey Harrington's numbers weren't pretty (9-of-22), but he controlled the offense wonderfully. More impressive was Oregon's defense, which, until two late touchdown drives, basically stifled Washington's Heisman-chasing quarterback, Marques Tuiasosopo (14-of-37, 229 yards, two INTs).
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| (7) Clemson 52, Duke 22 |
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13: Years since the Tigers started 5-0.
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| Player of the Game |
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Woodrow Dantzler, QB, Clemson. Continued his makeshift Heisman campaign with 134 rushing yards, three TDs and 174 passing yards. |
| CNNSI.com's Analysis |
| This was every bit the expected mismatch, with Clemson dominating on both sides of the ball. Clemson may have the most dangerous offense in the country, and Duke may have the worst team in major football. Danztler, with an assist from RBs Travis Zachery and Keith Kelly , got the ball rolling early. Having to pass to catch up, Duke fill-in QB D. Bryant was flustered into a 6-of-17, one interception, 53-yard first half performance en route to a 35-0 deficit at intermission.
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| Oregon State 31, (8) USC 21 |
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33: Years since Oregon State's last victory against USC.
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| Player of the Game |
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Ken Simonton, RB, Oregon State. Impressed yet? Simonton ran up 234 yards and 3 TDs to carry his team. |
| CNNSI.com's Analysis |
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Another big game, another huge performance from a running back. Simonton showed why those in the Pacific Northwest consider him one of the best runners around with his spectacular day, as his last TD run iced the game with less than two minutes to play. USC couldn't do anything offensively, scoring one of its three touchdowns on defense as Carson Palmer struggled. Maybe the Trojans were overrated, maybe the Pac-10 is just that balanced this year. Either way, the conference race is getting crazier by the game.
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| (9) Michigan 13, (17) Wisconsin 10 |
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4: Wisconsin turnovers, on three interceptions and one fumble. |
| Player of the Game |
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Todd Howard, CB, Michigan. Picked off a pass in the end zone on Wisconsin's first drive, then added another on the game's final play. |
| CNNSI.com's Analysis |
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In a defensive struggle, the difference for Michigan came when Drew Henson's pass into double coverage in the end zone was tipped into the hands of David Terrell. Terrell (five catches, 96 yards) and fellow receiver Marquise Walker (seven for 130) continually hauled in big plays from Henson, but the Wolverines didn't often cash in. Brooks Bollinger struggled all day for the Badgers, who were nearly rescued by Michael Bennett's 123 yards before Vitaly Pisetsky missed a late field goal that would have tied it.
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| (10) Miami 64, Rutgers 6 |
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13: Times Rutgers has lost by 40 or more points in Terry Shea's five years as coach.
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| Player of the Game |
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Ken Dorsey, QB, Miami. Completed 14 of 19 for 215 yards and 3 TDs before departing for the night in the second quarter. |
| CNNSI.com's Analysis |
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The Hurricanes don't look much like the team that was embarrassed at Washington a few weeks back, do they? Sure, Rutgers is terrible, but a 41-0 lead at halftime is a nice way to continue building confidence with a game against Florida State looming next weekend. Want a nice stat? This was the worst loss by Rutgers at home since an 80-0 setback against Princeton in 1888.
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| LSU 38, (11) Tennessee 31, OT |
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37: Completions (on 59 attempts) for Tennessee's A.J. Suggs to tie Peyton Manning's school record. |
| Player of the Game |
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Rohan Davey, QB, LSU. Hobbling around on one leg for most of the game, he threw for 4 TDs. |
| CNNSI.com's Analysis |
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The Tigers' performance was nothing short of astonishing, coming seven days after a 13-10 home loss to UAB. Davey made Nick Saban look like a genius (albeit, a bit of a delayed one) with his gutty performance. Admit it -- after Tennessee came back in the fourth quarter, you expected the Vols to pull it out, right? But even after the disappointment of losing a big lead, then having the potential game-winner blocked at the end of regulation, LSU hung in there for a huge upset. Give some credit to that home crowd for this one, too.
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| (13) Texas 42, Oklahoma State 7 |
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218: Longhorns' rushing yards, their most in seven games. |
| Player of the Game |
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Roy Williams, WR, Texas. Freshman continued his ascent with 175 yards, including a 96-yard TD catch.
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| CNNSI.com's Analysis |
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Mack Brown seems to know the formula: start Chris Simms, let him throw a horrific interception, then bring in Major Applewhite, who proceeds to shred the opposition's secondary. He finished with 291 yards and three TDs. The Cowboys got off to a good start, taking a 7-3 lead behind the legs of Reggie White (110 yards on 15 carries). But Texas' offense had its best game yet, even finding a new rushing threat in sophomore Kenny Hayter, who nearly equaled his career total with 122 yards.
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| (14) Oklahoma 34, Kansas 16 |
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7: Kansas turnovers, six of which OU turned into points.
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| Player of the Game |
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J.T. Thatcher, S, Oklahoma. On the receiving end of three of Dylen Smith's five interceptions. |
| CNNSI.com's Analysis |
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It's hard enough to stop Oklahoma's offense, nevertheless when you hand the Sooners the ball over and over again. Kansas QB Smith did throw for 258 yards, but his line also included 12-of-28, five interceptions and a fumble. The Sooners did not have their greatest day on the ground, but Josh Heupel was happy to oblige after receiving so many Jayhawks turnovers. The senior completed 29 passes to nine different receivers for 346 yards.
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| (15) UCLA 38, Arizona St. 31 |
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963: Total combined yards by UCLA (50) and Arizona State (463).
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| Player of the Game |
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Freddie Mitchell, WR, UCLA. Caught four passes for 126 yards and two touchdowns, including the game-winning 80-yarder late in the third quarter. |
| CNNSI.com's Analysis |
| The Bruins' 3-0 start looked like a very distant memory when they fell behind 21-0 3:06 into the second quarter. But UCLA rallied to score 28 straight points in a 13:07 stretch of the second and third quarters to grab the lead back from Arizona State. UCLA got Corey Paus back in the starting lineup but lost running back DeShaun Foster to a broken hand in the second quarter. The Bruins broke a three-game losing streak to the Sun Devils thanks to impressive performances from their reserve running backs. Senior Jermaine Lewis and freshman Akil Harris filled in for Foster with a combined 204 yards and three touchdowns on 30 carries. All in all, just another wacky, high-scoring Saturday night game.
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| (16) TCU 24, Navy 0 |
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8: Navy passing yards.
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| Player of the Game |
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Casey Printers, QB, TCU. Yes, the Frogs pass, too. Printers completed 14 of 17 for 188 yards and two TDs. |
| CNNSI.com's Analysis |
| LaDainian Tomlinson ran for 121 yards and broke TCU's career rushing record (3,645 yards), but it didn't matter. Printers engineered scoring drives of 81, 85 and 67 yards. And the Horned Frogs' defense, which hasn't allowed a touchdown in eight quarters, only let Navy cross midfield twice. Considering what Northwestern has gone on to do since losing to the Frogs 41-14, how good is TCU?
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| Northwestern 37, (18) Michigan State 17 |
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346: Rushing yards for Northwestern, part of its second-straight game over 500 yards total offense. |
| Player of the Game |
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Damien Anderson, RB, Northwestern. Barry Sanders- like TD runs of 32 and 41 en route to a career-best 219-yard day. |
| CNNSI.com's Analysis |
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You knew Northwestern would have confidence after upsetting Wisconsin. But what was this?! The Spartans simply had no answer for the Wildcats' spread offense, especially Anderson. Jeff Smoker and the offense were able to retaliate early, but once Northwestern opened up its lead, it also neutralized MSU's ability to use T.J. Duckett (19 carries, 71 yards -- mostly in the first half). Smoker was hit relentlessly in the second half, and the Spartans were 0-of-11 on third-down attempts.
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| (19) Auburn 33, Vanderbilt 0 |
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10: Yards for Vandy WR Dan Stricker, who went in averaging 118.5.
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| Player of the Game |
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Ben Leard, QB, Auburn.
SEC pass efficiency leader was 14-of-27 for 202 yards, two TDs and no picks.
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| CNNSI.com's Analysis |
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Vanderbilt's once-promising offense has become woefully anemic, managing only 152 yards against a Tigers team that hadn't exactly gone 4-0 on the merits of its defense. In addition to Leard's performance, which included scoring throws of 48 and 7, Auburn scored 19 points off special teams plays, and got a fifth-straight 100-yard rushing performance from Rudi Johnson (119).
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| (21) Southern Miss 24, Memphis 3 |
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22-2: Southern Miss' all-time record in Conference USA play.
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| Player of the Game |
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Dawayne Woods, RB, Southern Miss. With star Derrick Nix sidelined early by an injury, Woods carried 15 times for 88 yards and a TD. |
| CNNSI.com's Analysis |
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The Golden Eagles never run up the score on anyone, and without Nix, their attack was slowed even more. Still, defense is always the key for Jeff Bower's crew, and against a relatively toothless opponent like Memphis, Southern Miss did what it had to do. Southern Miss has only one loss in 17 meetings with the Tigers at home, and Memphis never really had a chance to halt that skid Saturday.
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| Penn State 22, (22) Purdue 20 |
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2: Botched Purdue punts, bringing the Boilers to six such instances over their last three games. |
| Player of the Game |
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Eric McCoo, RB, Penn State. Gave the Nittany Lions a much-needed 100-yard rushing day (16 carries, 106 yards).
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| CNNSI.com's Analysis |
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Riding a wave of emotion from the paralysis suffered by freshman teammate Adam Taliaferro and their 1-4 start, the Nittany Lions played their best game of the season on defense. Drew Brees was limited to 23-of-50 passing for 281 yards, and found himself having to bail the Boilermakers out from beneath their woeful special teams play. His 39-yard TD pass to Vinny Sutherland cut PSU's 22-13 lead to two, but his attempted last-minute drive fell short. Rashard Casey was unspectacular but benefited from great field position on two TD drives.
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| Alabama 27, (23) South Carolina 17 |
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8.8: Opponents' scoring average against the Gamecocks, fifth nationally.
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| Player of the Game |
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Ahmaad Galloway, RB, Alabama. Tide's inconsistent running game got a 16-carry, 101-yard lift. |
| CNNSI.com's Analysis |
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Uh oh, is Lou Holtz on the hot seat now? Just kidding. You can't count out this year's Gamecocks until the final gun sounds, even when their starting quarterback is hampered by injury. Phil Petty's ankle didn't keep him from entering the game halfway through and go for 141 yards and two TDs. But he also threw two interceptions, one of them with the score at 20-17 that set up Alabama's last touchdown drive. Andrew Zow was solid, completing 14-of-26 and changing direction to score from 8 yards out to ice it.
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| Minnesota 44, (24) Illinois 10 |
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103: Passing yards by Illinois' Kurt Kittner, coming off a career-best 352-yard effort against Michigan. |
| Player of the Game |
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Tellis Redmon, RB, Minnesota. Career day -- ran for 183 yards while gaining 116 on receptions. |
| CNNSI.com's Analysis |
| The Illini apparently lost more than the game on those fumble calls against Michigan. Gone, too, went their confidence. Kittner, under pressure all day, completed only nine of his first 26 passes in easily his worst game in two years. Meanwhile, counterpart Travis Cole, a juco transfer making his first start, instantly ignited the Gophers' previously stagnant offense, with a big assist from Redmon. The Illinois defense was simply stunned.
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| (25) Georgia 38, Arkansas 7 |
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52: Rushing yards for Arkansas in its first game post- Cedric Cobbs.
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| Player of the Game |
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Jasper Sanks, RB, Georgia. In need of a confidence boost, Sanks came through with a pair of touchdown runs to put the Bulldogs up early.
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| CNNSI.com's Analysis |
| Georgia couldn't have asked for a better showing as it heads into next weekend's game with Tennessee, which suddenly isn't looking like a disaster in the making for the Bulldogs. Georgia's defense was the big story, shutting down an Arkansas offense that badly missed top tailback Cobbs. The Razorbacks couldn't sustain any drives, and only managed to punch it in when Georgia put in its reserves in the fourth quarter. Are the Bulldogs back on track? It's too early to tell. Check back next week.
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