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Road to Atlanta: Week 3 college football highlights

 
Mason Rudolph of the Oklahoma State Cowboys celebrates after a touchdown by Dillon Stoner (not pictured) during the first quarter against the Pittsburgh Panthers at Heinz Field on September 16, 2017 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Joe Sargent/Getty Images)
Mason Rudolph of the Oklahoma State Cowboys celebrates after a touchdown by Dillon Stoner (not pictured) during the first quarter against the Pittsburgh Panthers at Heinz Field on September 16, 2017 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Joe Sargent/Getty Images)
Published Sept. 17, 2017

Star power

Sure, some of Saturday's Power Five matchups were a tad underwhelming, but some stats were still eye popping:

No. 7 Michigan: The Wolverines' 29-13 win over Air Force wasn't pretty, but give Quinn Nordin the game ball. The sophomore connected on five field goals (tying a school mark), including a 49-yarder in the second quarter to give Michigan (3-0) a 9-6 lead. The Wolverines' lone offensive touchdown came with 1:02 left in the game.

No. 9 Oklahoma State: QB Mason Rudolph had 423 yards passing and five TDs — at halftime — as the Cowboys (3-0) dismantled Pitt 59-21. A year ago vs. Pitt, Rudolph had a school-record 540 yards. Maybe the Big 12 will crash the College Football Playoff party.

No. 16 Virginia Tech: The Hokies (3-0) started slowly, then reeled off 57 straight points in a 64-17 rout of East Carolina. Redshirt freshman Josh Jackson threw for 372 yards and five TDs — three to Cam Phillips, who had a program-record 14 catches for 189 yards.

Mississippi State: The Bulldogs beating LSU is pretty rare — they've only done it twice in 18 tries dating to 2000. Mississippi State made up for lost time, thumping No. 12 LSU 37-7, its largest margin of victory in the rivalry. Nick Fitzgerald threw two touchdowns and ran for two more for the Bulldogs (3-0).

Power outage

And then there were these head-scratching performances from "Power" Five teams:

No. 25 UCLA: It's looking like Memphis (2-0) should be the AAC team ranked in the top 25. Riley Ferguson upstaged his UCLA counterpart, Heisman hopeful Josh Rosen, by finishing 23-of-38 for 398 yards and six TDs passing as Memphis won 48-45. The Memphis D harassed Rosen late and forced two interceptions. It's the third straight year that the Tigers have beaten a top-25 team.

Texas A&M: The Aggies (2-1) eventually put away the Ragin' Cajuns 45-21, but no one watching the first half would have been surprised by an upset (Louisiana-Lafayette led 21-14 at the half). The real question: Will coach Kevin Sumlin make it to Week 7, when A&M faces Florida? One last lowlight: Maybe don't flip off your fans at halftime, A&M freshman WR Will Gunnell.

Nebraska: Remember when the Cornhuskers (1-2) were good? Yeah, we don't either. They lost 21-17 — AT HOME — to Northern Illinois. The Huskies (2-1) became the first non-Power Five team or major independent to win in Lincoln since Southern Miss in 2004. Too early for the "Les Miles to Lincoln" chants?

Truth hurts

"We have to prove who we are. We've been, I would say, inconsistent at best. That's not even probably accurate." — Nebraska coach Mike Riley, who, by the way, received a one-year extension through 2020 this week. Oops.

Tweet of the day

If you're a Gators fan, just skip to the next item.

So you're saying there's a chance

USF beat writer Joey Knight ponders this: Did Quinton Flowers' 386-yard, five-touchdown night against Illinois — in front of ESPN cameras, no less — put him back in the Heisman discussion? "It's amazing because the guy can do so much, and he'll probably tell you he left a few yards out on the field," coach Charlie Strong said after Friday's 47-23 win. "But if we can get those numbers and he can continue to improve, then we have a chance to really be a special team."

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By the numbers

1 Victory as Florida Atlantic coach for Lane Kiffin. The Owls beat Bethune-Cookman 45-0 behind QB Daniel Parr's three TDs (two rushing, one passing).

4 100-yard receivers in a game for Oklahoma State. First time that's happened since Texas Tech in 2005 vs. Kansas State, according to ESPN Stats & Info.

5 Turnovers for No. 15 Auburn (2-1) in a 24-10 win vs. mighty Mercer. The Tigers lost three fumbles in the first half, when they led just 10-3.

13 Wins in a row (best streak in the nation) for No. 2 Oklahoma (3-0), which topped Tulane 56-14.

42 Straight road losses by Kansas, longest active streak in the nation.

94.7 Completion percentage (10 of 11) by No. 10 Wisconsin's Alex Hornibrook in 40-6 win vs. BYU.

107 Career TDs for J.T. Barrett, which surpasses Drew Brees' Big Ten record (106). Barrett threw for two scores, ran for another in No. 8 Ohio State's 38-7 win over Army.

33 Career starts for Barrett.

Jersey of the Day

We could have been mean and put Louisville basketball coach Rick Pitino's College GameDay appearance here (seriously, dude, they sell adult jerseys). But, hey, devil is in the details for this Auburn fan.

What might have been

Let's see what former Florida QB Will Grier is up to at West Virginia:

Saturday vs. Delaware State: 59-16 win; 19-of-27 passing; 304 yards; 3 TDs; 1 INT

Sept. 9 vs. East Carolina: 56-20 win; 19-of-25 passing; 352 yards; 5 TDs; 0 INTs

Sept. 3 at Virginia Tech: 31-24 loss; 31-of-53 passing; 371 yards; 3 TDs; 1 INT