Week 9 of the 2024 College Football season did not meet the level of excitement and drama we’ve come to expect from this year’s absolutely mad campaign. The College Football gods must have felt spited, as they filled Week 10 with so much tension and intrigue you could have cut it with a knife.
Buckeyes continue streak of dominance in Happy Valley
The Ohio State Buckeyes may not have had the offense this year that coach Ryan Day expected after bringing in highly touted recruits and expensive transfer portal players, but their knack for winning tough, gritty games showed against Penn State Saturday. The Bucks would shut out the Nittany Lions’ offense in a 20-13 win with Big Ten championship implications where Penn State’s only points came off of a turnover and field goals.
Defensive coordinator Jim Knowles called his best defense since taking over the OSU defense in 2022, as the Buckeyes sacked Penn State quarterback Drew Allar twice and picked him off on a crucial redzone opportunity that OSU corner Davison Igbinosun capitalized on. The Bucks defense has allowed less than 20 points against all opponents this season except for Oregon.
For Penn State coach James Franklin, it’s more of the same. Franklin is 1-10 against the World Famous since becoming the head coach of the Nittany Lions, and has also failed to deliver in big games as Penn State has gone 1-13 against top-five ranked teams under coach Franklin.
Texas Tech travels to Aimes and hands ISU first loss
Iowa State had been absolutely rolling heading into a home game against an unranked Texas Tech team that the Cyclones were favored to beat by 13.5 points. ISU had taken care of five straight unranked opponents, and most pundits agreed the streak would go to six against the Red Raiders.
In a low scoring affair that saw Texas Tech hold a ranked offense to just 22 points, the Red Raiders won their first road game against a ranked opponent since week 10 of 2023 against Kansas in a 23-22 result. Red Raider running back Tahj Brooks sealed the win for TTU on a five yard rushing touchdown late in the fourth quarter.
The Cyclones, who were the front runners of the Big 12, have now fallen behind the undefeated ninth-ranked BYU Cougars for conference supremacy at this point in the season. ISU would have to win out, including beating 22nd-ranked Kansas State, to reclaim a spot in the conference championship game.
SCAR finally breaks through against ranked opponent
The Gamecocks of South Carolina have always been the bridesmaid historically, not quite the bride. This tradition has carried into 2024 with close losses to ranked teams such as LSU and Alabama – the 10th-ranked Texas A&M Aggies must have felt confident approaching a team that just hasn’t gotten it done this season.
In a 44-20 SCAR victory that must have felt like avenging demons for fans, the Gamecocks roared to an impressive 14-3 lead after the end of the first quarter. The Aggies would come back to tie it at 20 before SCAR absolutely dominated the second half outscoring TAMU 24-0 with the Gamecocks running for nearly 300 yards as a team.
The Aggies will get a break to start November by playing two unranked teams before a decisive game on Nov. 30, against the 5th-ranked Texas Longhorns. The match will prove significant come conference championship season.
Louisville gives Clemson possible final blow to Tigers playoff chances
The Louisville Cardinals have been looking to play spoiler all season long. Similarly to South Carolina, the Cards have also lost close games to ranked teams dating back to September when L’Ville lost to Notre Dame by one score. In eight matchups prior to Saturday, the Clemson Tigers had won all games against Louisville.
The Cardinals won 33-21 led by a staunch defense in conjunction with kicker Brock Travelstead who banged home four crucial field goals. Clemson quarterback Cade Klubnik was sacked two times by the Cards, who allowed just 228 passing yards and one touchdown from Klubnik.
The Tigers, who opened the year with a blowout loss against Georgia, have now seemingly fallen out of the Atlantic Coast Conference picture. The 13th-ranked SMU Mustangs and fifth-ranked Miami Hurricanes have better conference records than 19th-ranked Clemson and have easier schedules to end the year.
SMU hands Pitt Panthers first loss via blowout
Speaking of SMU, the Mustangs have won six straight games and earned the 13th spot in the AP poll. Captained by a strong running game, SMU has been playing better than any ACC team not named Miami and gave the undefeated Pittsburgh Panthers its first loss, 48-25.
Running back Brashard Smith continued his season-long dominance against Pitt, rushing for 163 yards and two touchdowns. SMU quarterback Kevin Jennings also attributed 306 passing yards and a pair of scores through the air.
The Panthers, who had aspirations of securing their second ACC title of the decade, no longer control their own destiny and must hope for Miami and or SMU to lose. It doesn’t get any easier for Pittsburgh as they take on two ranked teams to end the season, Clemson and Louisville.
Deep cuts and what’s next
The Boise State Broncos are 7-1 on the year and find themselves 12th in the AP poll. The Broncos have been led by Hesiman candidate and overall superhuman running back Ashton Jeanty and have only lost to first-ranked Oregon.
In the first College Football Playoff poll of the year, no surprises were brought. Interesting matchups such as Tennessee and Indiana, as well as BYU playing the winner of Ohio State and Boise State would occur if the season ended today.
Week ten certainly brought booming spectacle in the wake of a calmer week nine. Upset bids were cashed in, trap games were set and triggered and the 12-team playoff bracket spoke its first words since being introduced.
Gage Wellman is a reporter. Contact him at [email protected] or @GageWellmanKSTV on X.
