Oh, what a week of college football it was! Week 8 of the college football season not only means that we are now officially past the season’s halfway point, but it was also the beginning of midweek college football! While there were no games involving ranked teams or CFP hopefuls on Tuesday, Wednesday, or Thursday, there’s just something special about being able to watch college football on five straight days. It also creates a natural crescendo, as we had some good games on Friday night and some massive matchups on Saturday! Here’s what we learned in Week 8:
Miami falls from the ranks of the unbeaten
It’s always Louisville. For whatever reason, in the last decade or so of ACC football, it always seems to be Louisville who pulls off the major upset against a top ACC team. It happened with Clemson last year, Notre Dame in 2023, and now Miami in 2025. Carson Beck played his worst game as a Hurricane, and Miami is no longer unbeaten. Oddly enough, this doesn’t really hurt the Canes’ CFP hopes as much as you would think – owning wins over Notre Dame and USF is valuable, and 11-1 with those wins should be enough to get in. However, they no longer control their own destiny to play for an ACC Championship as SMU, Georgia Tech, and Virginia remain unbeaten in conference play. It’s a weird situation where Miami may not need to go to Charlotte to punch a ticket to the CFP. But Carson Beck has to start playing a lot better before Miami should start packing those bags.
Georgia remains among the top dogs in the SEC
It’s a great weekend to be a Georgia fan, as Carson Beck (who has an approval rating of 0.0% among Georgia fans) took a major L and Gunner Stockton (who has an approval rating of around 99% among Georgia fans) made some huge plays with his arm and his legs to outscore Ole Miss in a 43-35 victory. Things are looking good for the Dawgs to return to the CFP, with only difficult games remaining against Texas and Georgia Tech, both of which will be played in the state of Georgia, and likely only needing to win one.
Ole Miss drops from the unbeaten but passes the eye test
I think it may be time to prepare ourselves for seeing Lane Kiffin in a College Football Playoff. Ole Miss may have lost to Georgia 43-35, but it was not until the 4th quarter that the Rebel offense got stopped on any single possession. Trinidad Chambliss was solid the entire game, and it’s really hard for me to envision any of the Rebels’ remaining opponents beating them. An 11-1 SEC team, even if they have an easy SEC draw as Ole Miss has, will make the CFP. Week 8 will go down as a “good loss” for Ole Miss if there ever is such a thing.
The Big 12 still runs through Tempe
I haven’t done all of the permutations yet, but it appears that Arizona State now controls its own destiny in the Big 12 after a huge win over Texas Tech on Saturday. After extending to a 19-7 lead early in the fourth quarter, the Sun Devils allowed Tech to score twice and take the lead with 2 minutes to play. But an equally crazy and clutch drive by Sam Leavitt pulled ASU ahead with 34 seconds to play, and down came the goal posts a few minutes later. Since he arrived at Arizona State, Kenny Dillingham’s Sun Devils have led the country in “somehow find a way to win” games.
The legend of Diego Pavia grows yet again
I am about to turn 31 years old next month. Vanderbilt had never beaten LSU in my lifetime until this Saturday. And a big reason why is the “little QB who could,” Diego Pavia, who accounted for 3 total TDs in Vandy’s 31-24 victory. This win marks the Commodores as legitimate CFP contenders, with a few more opportunities to add to their resume and sneak in the bracket, which would be the ultimate accomplishment for Diego Pavia – just two years ago, the thought of Vanderbilt in a College Football Playoff felt truly impossible.
The Big 3 of the Big Ten continue to roll
It appears that the class of the Big Ten is Ohio State, Indiana, and Oregon. The only conference loss among the three of them right now is Oregon’s loss to Indiana last week. And it appears highly unlikely that anyone in the muddled middle of the Big Ten is going to be able to jump up and beat them on any given week. In Week 8, the Big 3 beat their opponents by a combined 105 points. All 3 appear likely to make return trips to the CFP this season, so long as they continue to remain one step above the rest of the conference.
The Tide rolls on “the third Saturday in October”
It was the Alabama defense, not the offense, that keyed the Tide’s victory over Tennessee in Week 8. An intentional grounding for a safety built an early lead, and then a 100-yard pick-six on the last play of the first half created a deficit that Tennessee could never get out of. I still have question marks about Alabama on the line of scrimmage – they neither run nor stop the run well – but they continue to win and be in the driver’s seat in the SEC.
Texas narrowly escapes Kentucky
Quick side rant here – it will forever be my belief that most college football head coaches could use a person on staff whose sole job is to oversee the team’s clock management decisions. I also venture that I could do this job, as someone who played a lot of NCAA Football and Madden growing up, I am uniquely qualified with a ton of practice in these types of situations. Texas had some baffling clock-management and game-management decisions from Steve Sarkisian in the second half, but used a big punt return from Ryan Niblett and a few big kicks from Mason Shipley to escape Lexington with a win and remain in the hunt for the SEC Championship.
Notre Dame’s dynamic duo lifts the Irish over USC
If there was any debate on who the best RB duo in college football is, Notre Dame put that to rest in Week 8. Jeremiyah Love and Jadarian Price combined for 361 total yards and a 100-yard kickoff return TD in a rainy victory over USC. Both backs averaged over 7 yards per touch. Love might just be the best back in all of college football, and Price is probably top-10. After it felt like the sky was falling after a 0-2 start, the Irish are now halfway to 10-2, which would surely get them back in the College Football Playoff. And this would be a dangerous team to anyone they would be matched up with, thanks to their ability to run the football at an incredible clip.
It is time to take BYU seriously
I had previously had my doubts about BYU. Through 6 games, they had yet to beat what I would consider an above-average FBS opponent. Their quarterback also wears #47, which just looks deeply unserious when you watch them. But after winning the Holy War against Utah, it’s time to take BYU and #47 Bear Bachmeier seriously. The Big 12 is the conference of chaos, but BYU could reach the Championship game in Dallas if it can avoid it. And if there’s any university in the Big 12 that I think could avoid chaos, my money would be on BYU.