Luicci's College Football Plus: Recap Of Week 11

Is Trask Now The Heisman Frontrunner? Will Ohio State Finally Face A Test?

Five questions

Q. Is Kyle Trask now the frontrunner for the Heisman Trophy?

With Justin Fields, Trevor Lawrence and Mac Jones idle on Saturday due to COVID-19, the Florida QB turned in another Heisman-caliber performance by throwing for 356 yards and six TDs in a 63-35 rout of Arkansas. That marked Trask’s sixth straight game passing for four or more TDs, including the win over Georgia and the 41-38 loss to Texas A&M. Through six games he has thrown for 2,171 yards with 28 touchdown passes and three interceptions.

But the reality is that his Heisman hopes likely hinge on the SEC championship game and a showdown with Alabama. That game would take place Dec. 19. Because of scheduling adjustments due to COVID-19, Heisman ballots are now due Dec. 21, with the announcement ceremony taking place Jan. 5.

Until then, Trask should keep piling up dazzling stats with Vanderbilt, Kentucky, Tennessee and LSU left for the Gators during the regular season.

Q. With Ohio State’s game last Saturday against improved Maryland canceled due to COVID-19, do we really know how good the Buckeyes are – and when will we know (and don’t give us that “they pass eye-test” BS since they haven’t played or beaten anybody of consequence yet)?

To get to 3-0, Ohio State has beaten 1-2 Nebraska, 0-4 Penn State and 1-3 Rutgers. Still left to play are 1-3 Illinois, 1-3 Michigan State and 1-3 Michigan. That’s a lot of bad opponents that comprise six-sevenths of Ohio State’s regular-season schedule, which makes Saturday’s game against 4-0 Indiana (in Columbus) a showcase game for Ryan Day’s bunch. The Buckeyes can’t just win that game, they need to win it impressively, because their only other chance for another quality win would come in the Big Ten championship game. Justin Fields has been the real deal and Ohio State’s offense can keep pace with any team in the country. But the defense has been leaky at times and there still isn’t a quality win for the Buckeyes to hang their helmets on. Just saying.

Q. Did any playoff hopeful have a better weekend than Cincinnati?

The Bearcats’ place in the Top 10 remained secure following a 55-17 victory over East Carolina, with QB Desmond Ridder turning in another big game (327 passing yards and three TDs, 75 rushing yards and one score). But just as significant as Cincinnati going to 7-0 were two other occurrences: UCF moved to 5-2 with a 38-13 rout of Temple and Tulsa improved to 4-1 by rallying for a 28-24 victory over No. 19-ranked SMU, which was 7-1 entering the game.

That’s important for Luke Fickell’s team because the Bearcats are at UCF on Saturday and then close out the regular season at Tulsa on Dec. 4. Those are opportunities to add significantly to credentials that are already solid. The Playoff Committee has its work cut out trying to figure out if a potential 11-0 Cincinnati belongs as one of the four playoff teams.

Q. Has COVID-19 given some coaches and teams an excuse to abandon sportsmanship?

Minnesota coach P.J. Fleck was trying to avoid a shutout – his team trailed 35-0 – when he called a time out with 20 seconds left and the Golden Gophers at the Iowa four-yard line. In response, Hawkeyes’ coach Kirk Ferentz called three consecutive timeouts just because he could (as if Ferentz didn’t have a bad enough off-season with the perception of him and his program). Minnesota did score and Ferentz came off as petty, even for a rivalry game.

Cincinnati didn’t earn any more playoff support with its behavior at the end of a 55-17 victory over ECU, running a successful fake punt while leading 42-10 in the fourth quarter (coach Luke Fickell insisted the call was not made from the sidelines). That could be excused if the Bearcats had simply taken a knee to run out the clock with 17 seconds left in the rout. Instead they handed off to Cameron Young, who went 75 yards for a touchdown.

Q. Was there a wilder finish to a game last week than Western Michigan-Toledo?

This is why MACaction is great any day of the week.

Toledo held a 38-28 lead with 2:45 to play when Western Michigan QB Kaleb Eleby drove his team 70 yards in 11 plays, capping the drive with a touchdown run with 45 seconds to play. When the extra point was missed, making it 38-34, it meant WMU needed a touchdown to win and not just a field goal to force overtime – if it recovered the ensuing onside kick.

The Broncos did just that, eventually reaching the Toledo nine yard line with 20 seconds left and no timeouts, with Eleby signaling for all to see that he intended to spike the ball. But instead of a clock-killing spike, Eleby pulled a Dan Marino, faking the spike and lofting the game-winning touchdown pass to Jaylen Hall, who didn’t have a defender withing 20 yards of him.

Eleby accounted for five TDs, two in the final 45 seconds, in the improbable win.

On the Rise

Northwestern (4-0)

The Wildcats won’t dazzle you on offense – they had 80 rushing yards and 292 yards of total offense in the 27-20 win over Purdue -- but they can choke the life out of opposing offenses with their defense. The 4-0 start is the program’s best since 1996, when head coach Pat Fitzgerald was playing linebacker for them. Now comes the biggest test yet: Wisconsin on Saturday.

Tulsa (4-1)

Golden Hurricane rallied from a 21-point second quarter deficit for a 28-24 victory over No. 19-ranked SMU, holding the Mustangs without a point in the second half. It’s the third time this year that Tulsa has rallied to win after trailing by double digits in the first half and marked the first time in program history that Tulsa has notched two wins over ranked opponents in the same season.

Miami (7-1)

Credit to the Hurricanes for surviving a trap game against Virginia Tech to stay in the hunt for the ACC championship game with a 25-24 victory – despite missing 13 players due to COVID-19 protocols. QB D’Eriq King is the gift that keeps on giving for Manny Diaz.

On the decline

South Carolina (2-5)

If the swirling rumors are true it looks like the end is near for Gamecocks coach Will Muschamp after a 59-42 loss to Ole Miss, which rolled up a school record 708 yards of offense in an SEC game. USC’s three-game losing streak has seen the defense allow 159 points. 

Akron (0-2)

Yawn, another loss, this one by 24-10 to Ohio. That’s 19 straight losses for the Zips, who have not won a game since Oct. 27, 2018. Coach Tom Arth is off to an 0-14 start since replacing Terry Bowden.

Penn State (0-4)

We get injuries and graduation. But it’s hard to believe that a recruiter extraordinaire like James Franklin – recruiting is his strength as a coach, right? --doesn’t have a reliable running back or a competent quarterback. The 0-4 start is the program’s worst since 2001 and Penn State has never opened 0-5. That could change Saturday against Iowa.

Who’s hot

Ian Book, QB, Notre Dame

Has he inserted himself into the Heisman conversation the way he has played the past two games? It seems that way. The 8-0 Irish sidestepped a potential land mine with a 45-31 victory over BC, with Book throwing for 283 yards and three TDs and rushing for 85 yards and a score.

Sam Howell, QB, North Carolina

The sophomore passed for a school-record 550 yards and six TDs and scrambled 20 yards for the go-ahead touchdown with 4:11 left in a wild 59-53 victory over Wake Forest. Howell rallied the Tar Heels from a 45-24 deficit with 35 unanswered points.

Jonathan Gariby, PK, Texas Tech

The transfer from Riverside Community College, making his first start with the Red Raiders in place of the struggling Tey Wolff, connected on a 25-yard field goal on the game’s final play to give Texas Tech a 24-23 victory over Baylor. It was one of four field goals in the game for Gariby.

Who’s not

Joe Milton, QB, Michigan

It’s hard to believe this is what Jim Harbaugh has at QB these days. Milton was benched in the 49-11 loss to Wisconsin after going 9-of-19 for 98 yards with two interceptions. He managed 15 yards rushing on seven carries.

Rocky Lombardi, QB, Michigan State

Looks as if Rocky’s 60 minutes of fame (the Michigan game) has ended with a thud. He was 3-of-7 for 21 yards with two interceptions and rushed for minus-seven yards before being replaced in the 24-0 loss to Indiana.

Noah Vedral, QB, Rutgers

Three interceptions over the final 18 minutes, two in the fourth quarter -- with the final one leading to Illinois’ game-winning field goal in a 23-20 victory --undermined the Scarlet Knights’ chances of beating the winless, floundering Illini. Vedral now has seven INTs to five TD passes this year.

Playing it forward

Previewing the top games coming up this weekend (All times Eastern)

Indiana at Ohio State, Noon, FOX

A showdown for control of the Big Ten East – go figure. Surprising Hoosiers are 4-0 and represent the only regular-season test for the 3-0 Buckeyes.

Appalachian State at Coastal Carolina, Noon, ESPN2

App State, 6-1, takes on 7-0 Coastal with first place in the Sun Belt East at stake. Mountaineers could be without QB Zac Thomas, injured in the fourth quarter last week against Georgia State. His status remains unknown as of now.

Cincinnati at USF, 3:30 p.m, ESPN

This should be a good one, with the Bearcats’ stout defense put to the test by Dillon Gabriel and UCF’s high-scoring offense. Can Cincy continue to state its case as a playoff candidate?

Wisconsin at Northwestern, 3:30 p.m.

Two unbeatens, both ranked, with first-place in the Big Ten West on the line. Badgers are making noises as a potential playoff team after just two games played. This should tell more.

Liberty at North Carolina State, 7:30 p.m., ESPN3

Flames, 8-0, will look to notch a second victory over an ACC opponent in what has become a breakout season for the program. Wolfpack should have plenty of incentive for this rare non-conference game.

Oklahoma State at Oklahoma, 7:30 p.m., ABC

Not so much bedlam this year as a backyard brawl. Cowboys still have their sights on a Big 12 title game appearance. Sooners look to have recovered from a rocky start and are back on track with one of the country’s most explosive offenses. OSU’s defense has been stubborn all year.

Tom Luicci was the national college football and basketball writer for The Star-Ledger of Newark, N.J. from 1979-2014.