College Football Weekend Recap: Nov 28, 2020

Each week we will have our recap of the weekend that was in college football. A quick look at the teams who impressed, the players who starred, some takeaways and final thoughts. There was a solid group of games that were played, despite several cancellations and postponements. Here is our recap of the weekend that was in college football.

Teams That Impressed

Alabama

As good as Alabama has been over the past decade, Auburn has been the team that has given them the most trouble. Coming into the Iron Bowl match-up on Saturday, Auburn had won four of the last ten contest between the two teams. Rivalry or not, Auburn never had a chance in this one as Alabama thoroughly dismantled the Tigers 42 – 13.

The Alabama offense continued to be as explosive as ever. The Crimson Tide scored touchdowns on two 50+ yard pass plays and on a 39 yard run. They averaged a whopping 8.4 yards per play, moving the ball up and down the field with ease. Mac Jones threw for 302 yards and 5 touchdowns without an interception, playing a cleaner game than he did a year ago in the Iron Bowl. Najee Harris was effective on the ground averaging 8.7 yards per carry and DeVonta Smith was an impossible cover at receiver with 7 catches for 171 yards and 2 touchdowns. There were few negative plays for the Alabama offense. Their only turnover came on a fumble when the game was already decided in the fourth quarter and they only had three plays that went for a loss in the entire game. Alabama was efficient for most of the game and hit the big plays when the opportunity presented itself, leading to another dominant performance for the offense.

While the offense has been incredible all season, the defense has also come on over the past several games. The Crimson Tide gave up 48 points to Mississippi and 24 in the first half against Georgia, but ever since then the defense has been lights out. They shutout Georgia in the second half and have allowed 33 points in the four games since. On Saturday, Auburn ran 80 plays but only managed 4.3 yards per play and 347 yards of offense for the game. Alabama held the Tigers to 13 points with their lone touchdown coming in the last five minutes of the game. Alabama was effective against the run, limiting Auburn to 2.9 yards per carry and did a good job of rushing the passer to force mistakes in the passing game, recording three sacks, nine hurries and two interceptions. The defense has cleaned up the issues from earlier in the season and is in prime shape for the College Football Playoff.

Alabama has been the gold standard in college football over the past decade, but Auburn has given their Rival trouble winning four of the previous ten match-ups between the teams. The Crimson Tide were on top of their game Saturday, even with Nick Saban missing the game due to Covid, and made easy work of the Tigers.

Notre Dame

Notre Dame cleared the biggest hurdle remaining between them and the ACC Championship game with a 31 – 17 win over North Carolina. The game was close early as the two teams traded scores, but the Fighting Irish clamped down defensively and pulled away for the win.

Defensively, Notre Dame didn’t start the game the way they would have liked, but settled in and made life miserable for North Carolina. The Tar Heels scored touchdowns on their first two drives of the game, covering 125 yards on 14 plays. Notre Dame adjusted and held the Tar Heels to less than 25 yards on eight of their nine remaining possessions in the game. North Carolina would score three points on those nine possessions and was never able to get back in rhythm. Notre Dame sacked Sam Howell six times, pestering the North Carolina quarterback and keeping the Tar Heels offense off schedule. They also stymied a strong North Carolina run game that came into the game averaging well over 200 yards per game, holding them to 87 rushing yards. Notre Dame’s defense had given up 71 points the last two games but fixed their issues and dominated against North Carolina.

The offense was not as successful as it had been the last few weeks, but still controlled the game and scored an efficient 31 points. Notre Dame was balanced, running for 199 yards on 5.5 yards per carry and passing for 279 yards on 8.5 yards per attempt. They moved the ball methodically, controlling the clock and tempo of the game, leading to a ten minute time of possession advantage. The Fighting Irish scored in every quarter and had six of their 12 drives cover over 50 yards. The balance and consistent play allowed Notre Dame to continue to add on to their lead and pull away for the win. Kyren Williams led the way again for the Irish with 144 yards of offense and three touchdowns. Notre Dame was without two starting offensive linemen but continued their strong play up front.

Notre Dame is one win away from clinching a spot in the ACC title game. With Syracuse and Wake Forest remaining on the schedule, Notre Dame will be a heavy favorite in both games and should be able to rest up and get healthy for the post season.

Stars From The Weekend

QB – Trevor Lawrence, Clemson

Trevor Lawrence missed two weeks due to Covid and then had his return to action postponed another week with the bizarre situation with Florida State last weekend. The delay did little to slow down the prolific quarterback who hit the ground running against Pittsburgh this weekend. Lawrence completed 26 of 37 passes for 403 yards and 2 touchdowns and gained another 23 yards on 8 rushing attempts. He led Clemson to an easy win over Pittsburgh 52 – 17 in a game where the Tigers led 31 – 0 after the first quarter. Lawrence is the top quarterback in the 2021 NFL draft and looked as good as ever against the Panthers. Performances like this are the norm for Lawrence, but that doesn’t make them any less impressive.

RB – Jaret Patterson – Buffalo

Jaret Patterson was dominant against Bowling Green a week ago running for 301 yards and 4 touchdowns but he outdid that performance this weekend. Patterson was on another level against Kent State, running for 409 yards and 8 touchdowns on 36 carries. He had four touchdown runs over 30 yards and was a big play threat every time he touched the ball. The eight touchdowns tied an NCAA record, a record that Patterson could have broken if he was left in the game on Buffalo’s last score. His exceptional performance led the way for a 70 – 41 win for Buffalo this weekend. Patterson is clearly the best player in the MAC and could be one of the best in the country.

RB – Dezmon Jackson, Oklahoma State

The Cowboys were without star running back Chuba Hubbard and his backup LD Brown for Saturday’s game against Texas Tech. Dezmon Jackson got the nod at running back and made the most of it. Jackson carried the ball 36 times for 235 yards and 3 touchdowns and also added 2 catches for 10 yards as a receiver. Jackson was a workhorse for Oklahoma State receiving all but 2 of the carries at the running back position. He showed good vision, quickness to the hole and toughness when fighting through contact. Jackson was steady in the running game, consistently grinding out yardage over the course of the game. Oklahoma State needed him to step up and Jackson came through in a big way.

LB/DE – Zion Tupuola-Fetui, Washington

Washington came back from a 21 – 0 halftime deficit to defeat Utah 24 – 21 on Saturday night. Tupuola-Fetui was a big part of the Huskies defensive effort that held Utah scoreless in the second half and made the comeback possible. He accounted for 6 tackles, 3 tackles for loss, all 3 of which were sacks, forced a fumble and recovered a fumble as well. Two of those sacks came on Utah’s second to last possession of the game when the Utes had just crossed midfield. Tupuola-Fetui’s back to back sacks turned back the Utah threat and forced a punt. Utah would not threaten the rest of the game.

DB – Shakur Brown, Michigan State

Michigan State pulled off a big upset on Saturday, beating Northwestern 29 – 20. Brown was instrumental in slowing down Patrick Ramsey and the Northwestern offense. He recorded 2 tackles, 2 interceptions and had a quarterback hurry in the game. Both of Brown’s interceptions and the ensuing returns set up the Michigan State offense for two scores. Brown played a key role in holding Patrick Ramsey under fifty percent passing and limiting him to just 210 passing yards. Brown has been excellent in coverage this season and continued his strong play in Saturday’s big win.

Iowa State Comes Back To Continue Big 12 Run

The Cyclones came into Saturday’s game in first place in the Big 12 standings and in excellent shape to reach the conference championship game. The Texas defense played well and Sam Ehlinger made a few big plays to help Texas build a 20 – 10 lead midway through the third quarter. It looked as though the Iowa State season was slipping away, but Charlie Kolar and his friends had other plans.

Iowa State immediately went on a 63 yard field goal drive that cut the lead to one score. Kolar caught three passes for 54 yards on the drive to get the team in field goal range. On the next Iowa State possession, Brock Purdy only completed one pass, but it was for 44 yards to Kolar, setting up another Cyclones’ field goal. Iowa State could not get anything going their next possession but got the ball back with 3:09 left to play still trailing 20 – 16. Breece Hall finally got room to run and had a good drive with a little help from Kolar who made a 17 yard catch on this drive as well. Hall ran for 30 yards on the drive and punched in the game winning touchdown with 1:20 to play. Iowa State capped a remarkable comeback led by their star tight end who made 5 catches for 115 yards in the final quarter and a half of the game.

With the win Iowa State is on the verge of clinching a spot in the Big 12 championship game. Their likely opponent will be Oklahoma who has not lost since Iowa State defeated them 37 – 30 early in the season. These are the two best teams in the conference and should provide an entertaining rematch. Of course Iowa State needs to take care of business Saturday to ensure that happens, otherwise they may be headed into tie breaker territory. The Cyclones may not have had a great opening to the season, but they have elevated their game since and are headed for an exciting finish.

Iowa Is Back On Track

Iowa opened the season with back to back losses by a combined five points. The Hawkeyes did not allow the tough start to the ruin their season and have run off four straight wins. Friday’s rivalry game win against Nebraska was not pretty, but as they always do Iowa played tough and made the plays they needed to win.

Kirk Ferentz’ teams have always been a tough out, even when they don’t play their best or are in the midst of a transition year, Iowa competes and wins more games than the stats would indicate they should. Friday was one of those games, Nebraska outgained Iowa and averaged 5.4 yards per play to Iowa’s 4.3 yards per play. The Hawkeyes played physical, controlled the clock and forced enough negative plays to make Nebraska kick two short field goals. Iowa wore down Nebraska and made enough plays down the stretch to turn a 20 – 13 deficit into a 26 – 20 victory. The offense struggled for much of the game but kept hammering away and collecting points any way they could. The defense was tough as usual, led by junior defensive tackle Daviyon Nixom who had 8 tackles and 3 tackles for loss in the game. Iowa was true to their identity on Friday, they were a blue collar team that out worked their opponent. In the end, Nebraska couldn’t trade body blows with Iowa any longer and stumbled down the stretch.

This is par for the course for Iowa. They rarely have many top recruits on the roster but identify players who fit their identity. Iowa plays tough in the trenches and wears opponents down over the course of a 60 minute game. As the season progresses, the team matures and learns to play as a unit. By the end of the season, no one in the Big Ten wants to play Iowa. 2020 has been an odd year, but Iowa has been Iowa and that’s not likely to change as long as Kirk Ferentz is at the helm.

Closing Stats

• Clemson held Pittsburgh to 16 rushing yards on 24 carries (0.7 yards per carry).

• Indiana held Maryland to 59 rushing yards on 25 carries (2.4 yards per carry).

• Maryland held Indiana to 115 passing yards.

• Florida held Kentucky to 62 passing yards.

• Missouri limited Vanderbilt to 103 passing yards.

• Penn State allowed just 112 passing yards against Michigan.

• North Carolina State held Syracuse to three rushing yards on 25 carries (0.1 yards per carry).

• Rutgers and Purdue both gained exactly 412 yards of offense. Rutgers had more rushing yards 176 – 175 and Purdue had more passing yard 237 – 236.

• Georgia Tech had 377 rushing yards on 48 carries against Duke (7.9 yards per carry).

• Baylor held Kansas State to 88 passing yards.

• Kansas State recorded 13 tackles for loss and 7 sacks against Baylor.

• Texas A&M held LSU to 36 rushing yards on 25 carries (1.4 yards per carry).

• LSU held Texas A&M to 105 passing yards.

• LSU and Texas A&M both had 267 yards of offense in their game.

• Georgia ran for 332 yards on 46 carries against South Carolina (7.2 yards per carry).

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Notre Dame Pregame Image taken by Chad Kainz is licensed under CC BY 2.0.