ACC front-runners Wake Forest and Miami solidify grips on College Football Playoff
The Atlantic Coast Conference looks like it will get two teams in the College Football Playoff.
No. 11 Wake Forest notched one of the more surprising wins of the season Saturday, thumping SMU 49-7 in Dallas as a slight underdog. It ended the Mustangs’ 10-game winning streak at home and was the kind of lopsided outcome that should vault the Demon Deacons into the 12-team postseason bracket.
Wake Forest (9-1, 6-1 ACC, No. 13 in the CFP) can solidify its grip on a playoff spot next week at Georgia Tech.
No. 5 Miami, meanwhile, bounced back from a 31-24 loss at the Fighting Irish by handling Duke at home and tying a school record with its 11th consecutive ACC victory.
The Hurricanes (9-1, 7-0 ACC, No. 7 CFP) can wrap up a spot in the Dec. 5 ACC title game if North Carolina beats Louisville later Saturday. If Louisville wins, Miami would need to win one of its final two games to clinch.
The ACC landed two teams in the 12-team playoff in the 2024-25 season, with SMU and Clemson securing the final two spots. Miami was the league’s lone representative last year and advanced to the national championship game before losing to unbeaten Indiana.
Ohio State's Jeremiah Smith became the Big Ten’s career receiving yardage leader — the latest record for the uber-talented junior.
Smith finished with 117 yards and a touchdown on 11 receptions in the 21st-ranked Buckeyes' 28-19 victory against Northwestern.
He now has 3,875 yards receiving, passing Purdue’s John Standeford’s previous league record in the second quarter.
“It’s not easy, a lot of work goes into it," Smith told Fox Sports after the game. “I’m blessed to have the record, but today was all about the win. That was the main focus.”
He also tied Purdue’s David Bell and Michigan’s Braylon Edwards with his 17th 100-yard game.
His 2-yard TD catch in the fourth quarter was the 42nd of his career, the most by a college receiver in his first three seasons since 2000, according to Sportradar. Smith was tied with four players going into the game.
Grant Wilson was ready to start a coaching career at Indiana this season. Then the NCAA granted him a seventh year of eligibility.
Now he has a win he’ll never forget.
The 25-year-old Wilson threw for 305 yards, with two touchdowns and an interception, in his first start at Indiana as the sixth-ranked Hoosiers beat No. 15 USC 27-13. Wilson spent three years at Fordham and two at Old Dominion before landing at IU.
Filling in for injured starter Josh Hoover (shoulder), Wilson delivered the play of the game: a 42-yard TD pass to Charlie Becker in the fourth quarter that gave Indiana some breathing room.
“It’s awesome. This brotherhood we have right here, it’s second to none, really,” Wilson said. “These are some of my best friends in the whole entire world. These guys have been nothing but great mentors to me.”
Keelon Russell threw for 217 yards and three touchdowns, including a pair to Lotzeir Brooks, and No. 7 Alabama beat Vanderbilt 21-6 in a game that did little to justify the Crimson Tide’s lofty CFP stock.
Alabama (8-2, 6-2 Southeastern Conference, No. 3 CFP) led 7-3 at halftime but relied on a stingy defense to pull away in the second half and win its third consecutive game. Vanderbilt finished with 235 yards and had more penalties (14) than first downs (10).
Russell played despite a sprained left ankle and could get a week off next week since Alabama hosts lower-division Chattanooga.
“He’s a tough kid. He really didn’t take any snaps all week,” Crimson Tide coach Kalen DeBoer said. “He’s got great heart, went out and made some big plays for us. I know our team loves what he brings to the table as a leader, and it showed today.”
No. 19 Mississippi defended the need to postpone its game at Oklahoma until Sunday. The Federal Aviation Administration grounded flights nationwide for several hours Friday, forcing many schools — including No. 2 Utah, No. 8 Texas and No. 9 Tennessee — to scramble to figure things out. Conferences and TV partners adjusted start times from coast to coast.
But the Rebels were unable to get out of Oxford, Mississippi, on time, and the Southeastern Conference forced Oklahoma to reschedule the game. The decision drew the ire of Sooners athletic director Roger Denny, who said late Friday it was "fair to our athletes" or fans but "we've been given no other choice” after “the wrong outcome was reached."
Ole Miss responded Saturday, pointing to charter issues, flight crew issues and not wanting to bus eight or more hours.
“We regret that the game had to be moved, but we took every reasonable action in our power to avoid this scenario,” the school said.
No. 1 Georgia, No. 3 Notre Dame, ninth-ranked Tennessee and No. 16 Oregon enjoyed comfortable wins.
The Bulldogs led Missouri 31-0 and won 48-21 for their third consecutive lopsided victory. The Fighting Irish beat Boston College 41-7. The Volunteers won 22-7 at reeling Texas A&M. And the Ducks kept alive their slim chances of making the CFP with a 31-7 victory against Michigan.
Unbeaten Utah can continue its run toward the Big 12 championship game with a late-night win at Arizona (7-2), which puts Noah Fifita up against Devon Dampier in a duel of star quarterbacks.
Texas (7-2) will try to extend its win streak to four games and go 5-0 against Top 25 opponents at No. 24 LSU (6-3), which still has faint playoff hopes.
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