AP Top 25 Takeaways: A&M’s upset sends season into full tilt

The past clip the No. 1 squad successful the state mislaid to an unranked squad was 2008.

The past clip Alabama mislaid to an unranked squad was 2007.

Texas A&M snapped some those streaks and brought existent chaos to this assemblage shot season.

The Aggies dragged a two-game losing streak into Kyle Field connected Saturday night, looking similar 1 of the astir disappointing teams successful the country.

Then Texas A&M bushed the mighty Crimson Tide, scoring astir arsenic galore points successful a walk-off triumph (41) arsenic the Aggies had successful 3 erstwhile games (42) against Power Five opponents.

“We knew the past 2 weeks that we didn’t play to the champion of our ability,” A&M antiaircraft backmost Antonio Johnson told reporters. “We knew this week was an opportunity.”

A&M’s upset, the biggest triumph of Jimbo Fisher’s tenure successful College Station and the archetypal implicit Nick Saban by 1 of his erstwhile assistants successful 25 tries, capped yet different thrilling Saturday successful a play that is trying hard to marque up for the pandemic-plagued messiness of 2020.

Saturday day featured back-and-forth violative outburst betwixt ranked teams successful the Big 12 (Oklahoma-Texas) and Southeastern Conference (Arkansas-Mississippi), and a top-five slugest (Penn State-Iowa) successful the Big Ten.

At night, No. 14 Notre Dame and No. 9 Michigan needed precocious tract goals to triumph from down earlier Texas A&M topped them each with a stunning upset.

Over the past 2 weeks, 10 teams ranked successful the apical 15 person lost, including 7 successful the apical 10.

A 2021 play that truthful galore fans feared would beryllium agelong march to the aforesaid old, aforesaid old, with ace teams turning the College Football Playoff contention into a foregone conclusion, has present gone afloat tilt.

Defending nationalist champion Alabama succumbed to a shaky defence and an discourtesy that misfired astatine the astir inopportune times. And the Tide was taken down by a backup quarterback.

A&M’s Zach Calzada came successful to the crippled with 5 touchdown passes and 4 interceptions since taking implicit for the injured Haynes King successful Week 2, and past threw 3 TDs with 1 prime against ’Bama.

Toss the Tide connected the heap of rubric contenders whose title hopes person already taken hit. A playoff without Alabama, Ohio State and Clemson is simply a precise existent possibility.

When the caller AP assemblage shot canvass comes retired connected Sunday the apical 3 could precise good look similar this:

No. 1 Georgia

No. 2 Iowa

No. 3 Cincinnati.

QB2

At a clip erstwhile backmost extent has ne'er been harder to accumulate successful assemblage football, respective of the biggest games of Week 6 were decided by backups signal-callers.

No. 6 Oklahoma remained unbeaten down freshman Caleb Williams, who rallied the Sooners from 3 scores down successful the 2nd fractional against No. 21 Texas.

The highest-scoring crippled ever betwixt the Red River rivals mightiness person birthed a caller prima and relegated preseason Heisman Trophy hopeful Spencer Rattler to 2nd string.

In Iowa City, No. 4 Penn State controlled the archetypal fractional against the third-ranked Hawkeyes, but mislaid backmost Sean Clifford to an undisclosed wounded for the full 2nd fractional and couldn’t clasp connected without him.

Notre Dame started Jack Coan, switched to Tyler Buchner, and past went backmost to Coan aft Buchner was wounded to rally for a win astatine Virginia Tech.

And, of course, Calzada, who led 2 precocious scoring drives against Alabama.

Oklahoma’s saga seems similar thing we person ne'er seen earlier successful assemblage football.

Rattler came into the play arsenic the presumptive Heisman favorite, a prospective first-round NFL draught prime and 1 of the astir marketable players successful the state successful this archetypal play that assemblage athletes tin beryllium paid endorsers.

Last month, the third-year sophomore was fixed 2 cars by a section dealership arsenic portion of a woody for usage of his name, representation and likeness.

Rattler has cashed successful disconnected the field, but been lone coagulated connected it. Coming into the Saturday, helium was completing 76% of his passes, with 10 touchdowns and 4 interceptions.

Rattler looked rattled against the Longhorns arsenic Texas raced retired to a 21-point first-quarter lead.

Williams is the five-star enlistee from Washington D.C., who OU fans were chanting for a fewer weeks agone arsenic the discourtesy sputtered successful a low-scoring location triumph implicit West Virginia.

More of a dual-threat, Williams has been utilized to supplement OU’s offense, which has lacked explosive plays with Rattler.

Williams broke a 66-yard touchdown tally the archetypal fractional and past manager Lincoln Riley turned implicit the discourtesy to him successful the 2nd half.

With Williams, the discourtesy abruptly looked similar caller units led by Heisman winners Baker Mayfield and Kyler Murray that enactment up video-game numbers.

Williams passed for 212 yards. He was spectacular astatine times and looked a small similar a freshman successful the biggest crippled of his beingness astatine different times.

But Rattler wasn’t done for the day. He came successful connected a 2-point conversion halfway done the 4th fourth and connected with Drake Stoops to marque it 41-all.

“I had assurance successful some of my guys oregon I wouldn’t person enactment Caleb successful the crippled for agelong stretches and I wouldn’t person enactment Spencer successful connected the astir important play of the game,” Riley said.

It appears Riley has a backmost contention connected his hands for the archetypal clip successful his career. After the game, helium declined to perpetrate to a starter adjacent week against TCU.

He besides declined to fto Williams bash a speedy postgame interrogation with ESPN sideline newsman Holly Rowe. Riley’s argumentation is freshman don’t talk to the media, which seems adjacent much silly successful the time and property of NIL.

Having a backmost susceptible of coming disconnected the seat to triumph a crippled is becoming much uncommon successful assemblage football. Experienced players thin to transportation out, looking for playing clip and leaving a batch of teams with backups that permission a batch to beryllium desired.

Not everyone is arsenic fortunate arsenic Oklahoma to person a subordinate arsenic bully arsenic Williams, who tin marque up for not knowing precisely what helium is doing by being 1 of the astir talented players connected the field.

That was the lawsuit for Penn State. The Nittany Lions mislaid backup Will Levis to the transportation portal successful the offseason. He is present the starter astatine Kentucky.

Penn State manager James Franklin tried to find a postgraduate transportation to capable retired a bladed extent chart, but was near with Ta’Quan Roberson down Clifford.

Roberson is simply a 5-foot-11 sophomore who was a borderline four-star imaginable retired of precocious school. Maybe successful different setting, and not connected the roadworthy against 1 of the champion defenses successful the country, Roberson could person managed the situation.

Against the Hawkeyes, Penn State could hardly get a drawback disconnected cleanly and managed lone 3 points successful the 2nd half.

“We didn’t person an contented with the assemblage sound until we mislaid Sean,” Penn State manager James Franklin said..

Offense continues to beryllium a grind for Iowa, but the Hawkeyes are unbeaten with thing but Big Ten West opponents near connected the schedule. If you haven’t noticed, extracurricular of Iowa, determination is not a ton to get excited astir successful the Big Ten West.

While Oklahoma deciphers which backmost to play, Penn State volition anticipation an unfastened week followed by a travel to Illinois volition beryllium capable to get Clifford backmost to afloat health.

Games against No. 7 Ohio State, No. 9 Michigan and No. 11 Michigan State loom. With Clifford, the Nittany Lions are inactive Big Ten contenders.

Without him … possibly they could marque a commercialized for Rattler?

AROUND THE COUNTRY:

Now that Alabama’s grounds winning streak against unranked teams is over, the longest progressive streak belongs to Notre Dame astatine 36. …

Another accidental for a breakthrough triumph slipped distant from Nebraska against No. 9 Michigan. Scott Frost’s squad is undeniably amended than it has been, but helium is 0-10 against ranked teams successful 4 seasons astatine his alma mater …

There has been a batch of justifiable emotion for Texas’ Bijan Robinson, but Michigan State’s Kenneth Walker III is astir apt the apical Heisman contender among moving backs close now. Walker had 233 yards, including a school-record 94-yard run, arsenic the Spartans improved to 6-0 against Rutgers. …

Among second-year coaches, lone Michigan State’s Mel Tucker has done a amended occupation of turning astir a squad than Baylor’s Dave Aranda. The Bears pounded West Virginia to amended to 5-1. …

Encouraging motion for Tennessee successful Year 1 nether manager Josh Heupel: The Volunteers (4-2) have scored astatine slightest 40 points successful back-to-back SEC games for the archetypal clip since 2016. …

We tin enactment distant each the “What if BYU goes unbeaten?” conversations aft four turnovers against Boise State. … Most disappointing squad successful the country? How astir preseason No. 10 North Carolina? Tar Heels manager Mack Brown is present 0-11 against Florida State. …

On the different extremity of the ACC, No. 19 Wake Forest beat Syracuse successful overtime to improved to 6-0 for the archetypal clip since 1944. …

No. 16 Kentucky is 6-0 for the archetypal clip since 1950, erstwhile Bear Bryant was coach, after beating LSU. Things are moving successful an ominous absorption for Tigers manager Ed Orgeron.