16. TCU – The Horned Frogs didn’t look very good in the first half vs. SMU on Friday night and the weather may have played a factor in that. I don’t know how good they are yet, but they look like the clear-cut second-best team in the Big 12, but there’s a large gap between them and Oklahoma. We’ll see how good this team is next week when they host Ohio State.
17. USC – I’m still really high on the future for quarterback JT Daniels, but he had a rough go vs. Stanford, which isn’t too shocking considering he should be a high school senior and playing on The Farm is a tall order for fifth-year seniors with years of starting experience. Nevertheless, Daniels was 16-of-34 for 215 yards and a pair of interceptions on a night the offense couldn’t get anything going against Stanford. There will be more growing pains, but beginning with Texas next week, the schedule sets up favorably for USC who should be favored in their nine games before their season finale against Notre Dame.
18. Mississippi State – Nick Fitzgerald returned to the starting lineup after missing the opener due to a suspension, but it was running back Kylin Hill who stole the show vs. Kansas State. The sophomore back ran for 211 yards and two touchdowns and looks like the next star runner for the Bulldogs. He’s a perfect fit for what Joe Moorhead wants out of his running backs.
19. UCF – The Knights extended the nation’s longest winning streak to 15 games with a dominating win over South Carolina State. The downside is the Heisman campaign may already be over for quarterback McKenzie Milton. One of the more exciting players in the country, Milton had three interceptions to only one touchdown on 180 yards passing. There is a lot of football left to play, but this is the type of game where Milton needed to pad his stats against an inferior opponent to stay in the Heisman conversation. Three interceptions is a quick way to find himself out.
20. Boise State – 818. No, I’m not talking about the area code for the San Fernando Valley of Los Angeles. That’s how many yards Boise State rolled up against UConn in their 62-7 win. The Broncos look like the best Group of Five team this year after two weeks. The Broncos raced out to a 41-0 halftime lead vs. UConn. Quarterback Brett Rypien is one of the most underrated players at any position across the country and topped 300 yards again and added three more touchdowns. Could Boise State be this year’s UCF?