Last Saturday, Tennessee finally defeated Alabama in a tight game, ending a 15-year run. As the clock ran out, Tennessee converted a 40-yard field goal to win 52-49. Not just for Tennessee, but also for some of their offensive weapons, this game was a massive coming-out celebration. Jalin Hyatt established a Tennessee record with five touchdown catches for 207 yards on six throws. Hendon Hooker gained 385 yards and 5 touchdowns as well, solidifying his Heisman Trophy contention. Tennessee has declared themselves a national title contender with this victory. However, they still have to play Georgia and perhaps Alabama again in the conference final if they want to advance. After falling down early, Bryce Young, who returned from injury two weeks ago, passed for 455 yards and two touchdowns to keep Alabama in the game. The game's main narrative was how carelessly Alabama played. The Tide committed the most penalties during the Saban era with 17. Alabama still has power over its own fate despite the defeat. They should still have a chance to go to the conference championship if they don't lose any more SEC West games.

On Saturday night, Utah quarterback Cam Rising put on one of most gritty performances of his career as Utah defeated seventh-ranked USC on a two-point conversion. He scored 5 touchdowns in total, 2 via the air and 3 on the ground, for a total of 475 yards. Having the appearance of a man in command who would not fail his side. USC came close to winning the game thanks to Caleb Williams. The USC quarterback had five touchdowns while completing over 400 yards of throws. Dalton Kincaid, a TE with the Utes, had the best performance of the game. For a tight end, he had 16 catches, which is nearly unheard of, and 234 yards, which is even stranger. USC now has its first Pac-12 loss in addition to being eliminated off the list of the unbeaten teams. Although the Trojans may not have the advantage in the tiebreaker with the Utes, Lincoln Riley's squad still has a strong chance of earning a position in the Pac-12 Championship Game and will have the opportunity to face UCLA at the end of the regular season.

In a game that Michigan's offense controlled, Penn State gave up 563 yards to them. To PSU's 10, Michigan had 28 first downs. The majority of their work was done on the ground, not so much in the air. During the course of the game, both Blake Corum and his backup Donovan Edwards ran for touchdowns of at least 60 yards. PSU had no solutions for how to halt the 418 total yards of ground gained by Michigan's running offense. According to the analytics, this contest was Michigan's biggest test of the year thus far and is likely to be their only significant test before playing Ohio State in late November. They continued to do what they do best, which is to run the ball and out-muscle their opponents. They have never needed to rely on their quarterback to win a game. Penn State appeared to have overcome its rushing problems from the previous season, but in the year's biggest game, they reared their ugly heads once more. They only gained 111 yards on the ground, and quarterback Sean Clifford was the team's top rusher. With this victory, Michigan appears to have solidified their position as one of the top 5 teams in the nation and will compete for the Big 10 crown.

After falling behind by 17 points in the second quarter, Max Duggan and TCU battled back to defeat Oklahoma State 43-40 in double overtime. For Duggan, this win couldn't have been more satisfying because TCU lost 63-17 the last time these two teams met because he was injured. Quentin Johnston, a wide receiver, had eight catches for 180 yards and two touchdowns as Duggan completed 23 of his 40 throws for 286 yards. After not practicing all week, Oklahoma State's injured Spencer Sanders was just 16 of 36 for 245 yards, a score, and an interception. In his five starts this year, Duggan has now passed for a Big 12-best 16 touchdowns. Max Duggan, who lost his starting position at the beginning of the season, "continues to play as excellent a football as any quarterback I've ever been around," according to Dykes. Next week's showdown between TCU and Kansas State will be crucial, although they currently have the lead in the Big 12. The Pokes, on the other hand, are still in it, but they must host Texas the following Saturday, which should be a difficult match.

Syracuse controlled their game against NC State and won 24-9. Clemson held off a fourth-quarter Florida State push to win 34-28. This sets up a significant ACC clash between these two teams the following Saturday. Syracuse's sixth victory eliminates any uncertainty over the postseason. The club from the previous season lost its final three games to finish 5-7. DJ Uiagalelei as quarterback for Clemson continued their winning ways. DJ only passed for 200 yards, but he also ran for three touchdowns. Will Shipley, their breakthrough star running back, had a strong day as well, gaining 121 yards and averaging 6.1 yards per carry. Clemson (7-0, 5-0 Atlantic Coast Conference) opened the season with a 30-point game for the eighth time in a row after scoring on six straight possessions. Although they are a far more skilled team than Syracuse, if Clemson falters the next weekend, it may cause some playoff predictions to change. The ACC is weaker than other conferences, therefore a one-loss conference champion might be overtaken by a one-loss non-conference champion from another league.