College Football Week 5: Winners and losers

It’s starting to feel a bit more like a normal college football season, with ups and downs and upsets and even some #WeirdFootball. Let’s take a look at the ups and downs of Week 5 of the 2020 college football season.

Winner: The Magnolia State is going to make The Egg Bowl fun

Mississippi gets their first win under Lane Kiffin, a dramatic win 42-41 OT win in Lexington. Matt Ruffolo’s missed PAT in overtime was the difference, but a Matt Corral 24/29 for 320 yards and four TD’s with 0 INT’s means he’s got someone to work with. The SEC will be more fun with the both Ole Miss and Mississippi State being interesting and engaging. It’s a rivalry that can use some personality, and with Kiffin and Mike Leach brings plenty of that.

Loser: The Big 12 has one undefeated team left

Every single team in the conference has at least one loss, and in most seasons that’s been enough to keep them out of the College Football Playoff. The only unscathed team so far is the Oklahoma State Cowboys, and they certainly don’t look like world beaters with a blowout win today over Kansas, but a 16-7 win over Tulsa that won’t rank well in the power ratings.

With the Pac-12 and Big Ten playing far few games this season, there was never a better window for the Big 12 to ensure their place in the final show. But that’ll be an uphill battle from here.

But this: This is bad, Bob Bowlsby.

Winner: Woo, Pig Sooie!

Call the hogs! The Arkansas Razorbacks finally get their first SEC wins in 21 tries, over the same Mississippi State team that knocked off the defending national champion LSU Tigers last week. A muffed punt by the Bulldogs with just a few minutes left took away any chance of a comeback.

Florida transfer quarterback Feleipe Franks (20/28, 212 yards, 2 TD’s) and new head coach Sam Pittman both accomplished something in their second game in Fayetteville that previous head coach Chad Morris never did in two seasons: win an SEC conference game.

Loser: Central Florida throws the slipper away

This was their year! With all the chaos in college football, there was a more legitimate path for a team from the Group of Five to the College Football Playoff than we’ve ever seen. But that doesn’t apply when you lose by eight points at home to Tulsa (Tulsa!) at home as a three-touchdown favorite. The Knights can still win a conference title, but 18 penalties for 124 yards (most of them presnap) were an absolute killer, and Cinderella heard the clock strike midnight already.

Winner: Us, for Clemson-Miami next Saturday night

Trevor Lawrence vs. D’Eriq King on national TV. Travis Etienne vs. Brevin Jordan. Appointment television, and it should be a classic. A fun, competitive game in the ACC with the eyes of the nation on them. The last time the league had this... well, they didn’t because Notre Dame was technically an independent.