by Mackenzie Sibello, Staff Writer
College football delivered another exciting week. Filled with upsets, OT wins, and thrilling performances. These games gave fans an early look at championship contenders and with the stakes getting higher, each game needs to be played like it’s the last.
Starting off in Baton Rouge, the Florida Gators took on the #3 LSU Tigers resulting in a 20-10 Tigers victory in their SEC opening game. In just 52 plays compared to Florida’s 76, they managed to take the victory.
Sophomore quarterback DJ Lagway threw five interceptions to the LSU defense, one which was returned for a touchdown by sophomore cornerback Dashshawn Spears. Additionally, Florida had five offensive penalties, four of them being holding calls.
Even though the Gators held LSU to just 316 yards and 10 first downs it was not enough to secure the victory.
Eric Gardner, sophomore Business Administration major and fellow football player, feels that “After being ranked 15 in the nation to begin the season Florida’s season is becoming a disaster their Heisman quarterback has thrown 15 picks and they have lost two games they were not supposed to so far.”
In another SEC showdown, the #6 Georgia Bulldogs came out on top in a 44-41 OT victory against #15 Tennessee Volunteers. The Vols had an early lead of 21-7, 6 of these points coming from a 72 yard touchdown scored by junior wide receiver Chris Brazell. The Bulldogs came back with the help of their junior quarterback Gunner Stockton, who threw for 304 yards and two touchdowns.
As for upsets, #16 Texas A&M came out on top against #8 Notre Dame in South Bend with a nail biting 41-40 win. Late in the game, the Aggies were down, but after putting together a 74 yard drive ending with an 11 yard touchdown pass thrown by sophomore quarterback Marcel Reed to senior tight end Nate Boerkircher with just 13 seconds left.
A&M’s quarterback was a crucial part of the win throwing for 360 yards and two touchdowns. A missed extra-point snap by Notre Dame was costly in this game, even with a strong performance from freshman quarterback CJ Carr (20/32, 293yds,TD and INT) it was not good enough. This loss put the Fighting Irish at a now 0-2 record.
Week three showed the fans even more upset matchups in the noon ACC matchup between unranked Georgia Tech and #12 Clemson. This 24-21 loss ending with a field goal by Aidan Barr was a shock to many. The Yellow Jackets were up 13-0 before Clemson came back making the score 21-21 but in the final seconds GT was able to put game winning points on the board.
Missing early scoring opportunities and turning over the ball in crucial moments were Clemson’s ultimate downfall this game.
A final upset came from New Mexico as the Lobos beat UCLA 35-10 in Pasadena. The Bruins offense had issues getting it together as they kept on putting themselves in countless situations including turnovers and missed scoring opportunities. The Lobos took advantage of these mistakes, producing big plays to lead them to victory.
Although UCLA had some strong moments they couldn’t seem to turn this game around for themselves. The Bruins will need to dial into these mistakes if they want to perform against tougher competition throughout their season.
Students on LIU-Post campus had input on this weekend’s match ups. In the eyes of football player, junior Sports Management Major Jeremie McGurn said “UCLA has not been living up to expectations.”
As for one of the most prestigious awards in college football, that being the Heisman trophy, early contenders are starting to shine. Miami’s senior quarterback Carson Beck has been a standout performer as he has been very consistent for the Hurricanes.
Another naturally spoken about name is Texas Longhorns quarterback Arch Manning. Used to the spotlight due to his family name, if he can put up some good numbers and make a statement for himself as a longhorn he may very likely have a shot at the trophy.
Week 3 wrapped up with upsets, OT wins, and overall exciting football. These games are a crucial look for fans to see who is likely to be named champion at the end of the season. As the stakes keep rising teams will need to put their best going into every game if they want a shot at the college football championship in January.
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