College Football Week 6 helmet stickers: 10 best players of the week

Tua Tagovailoa, Dwayne Haskins and a trio of Big 12 quarterbacks headline this week’s players of the week in college football.

Brock Purdy was a hero to all third-string quarterbacks on Saturday. He along with several others around college football earned helmet stickers in Week 6. It was a great week for quarterbacks, a time for blowouts and also a time for rallies, as some new faces stepped in and led their programs to huge wins over conference rivals.

It was more of the same from Tua Tagovailoa this week, as he once again dominated. The quarterback led the Crimson Tide to a huge win over Arkansas and the Crimson Tide continue to roll.

While quarterbacks continued to have their say on the year, running backs stepped up huge. Dexter Williams pounded the rock consistently for Notre Dame while Jonathan Taylor and Travis Etienne remained the workhorses their programs can rely upon.

With the midpoint of the season here, players are making their case for awards at the end of the year. Here are the players that earned helmet stickers this week.

10. Dexter Williams, RB, Notre Dame

• 17 car, 178 yds, 3 TD

The Notre Dame Fighting Irish had an impressive showcase of offense on the road against Virginia Tech. Williams was the catalyst for a win on the road with a 98-yard run to the end zone, as the Irish continue to roll toward a potential top-5 ranking.

9. Nick Fitzgerald, QB, Mississippi State

• 9/17, 69 yards, 0 TD, 1 INT
• 28 car, 195 yds, 2 TD

The Mississippi State quarterback didn’t have a nice night throwing the ball, but it didn’t really matter because he put up huge numbers running the ball. His near 200 yards helped lead the Bulldogs to a win over Auburn. Fitzgerald past Tim Tebow as the SEC’s all-time rushing leader among quarterbacks in the win.

8. Travis Etienne, RB, Clemson

• 10 car, 167 yds, 3 TD

Etienne has put up numbers in back-to-back weeks that hasn’t been seen since the 90’s from the Tigers’ rushing attack. It was another three-touchdown performance on the ground for the second week in a row as Clemson has a great complement to freshman phenom Trevor Lawrence at quarterback.

7. Clayton Thorson, QB, Northwestern

• 31/47 att, 373 yds, 4 TD (3 passing, 1 rushing), 2 INT

Thorson had a big day passing and managed to sneak in for one touchdown on the ground as well. Northwestern flexed their muscles in an incredibly impressive win on the road against Michigan State as Pat Fitzgerald’s team rebounded after a string of disheartening losses. Thorson, meanwhile, helped his cause in the eyes of NFL scouts with his performance.

6. Jonathan Taylor, RB, Wisconsin

• 24 car, 221 yds, 3 TD

Taylor continued to bolster his case as perhaps the best running back in college football. On Saturday, Taylor carved up the Nebraska Cornhuskers with 221 yards and three touchdowns on the afternoon running behind the big holes created by the Badgers offensive line.

5. Brock Purdy, QB, Iowa State

• 18/23 att, 318 yds, 4 TD, 1 INT
• 19 car, 84 yds, 1 TD

Purdy had to step in as a true freshman against Oklahoma State on the road. The third-string quarterback showed that he is the future with four touchdowns through the air and one on the ground.

4. Kyler Murray, QB, Oklahoma

• 19/26 att, 304 yds, 4 TD, 1 INT
• 11 car, 92 yds, 1 TD

The Oklahoma Sooners suffered the first loss of the season on Saturday. Kyler Murray suffered an interception, but he still put up quite the performance with nearly 400 total yards and five total touchdowns in the loss to Texas. Murray did have two turnovers that led to 10 Texas points in the three-point loss, but it’s hard to blame him when he was the only reason they had a chance to win late.

3. Sam Ehlinger, QB, Texas

• 24/35 att, 314 yds, 2 TD
• 19 car, 72 yds, 3 TD

Ehlinger had the biggest win of his career yet at quarterback for the Longhorns. He led his program to a victory in the Red River Rivalry over Oklahoma and had five total touchdowns in a huge performance.

2. Dwayne Haskins, QB, Ohio State

• 33/45 att, 455 yds, 6 TD, 2 INT

It was a record-setting day for Haskins against Ohio State on Saturday. He helped lead the Buckeyes to a win over Indiana. Haskins set a Big Ten record with his third game of five passing touchdowns or more.

1. Tua Tagovailoa, QB, Alabama

• 10/13 att, 334 yds, 4 TD

What else is there to say about Tagovailoa at this point. He should be considered the lead horse for the Heisman Trophy right now. He threw more touchdowns than incomplete passes as Alabama destroyed Arkansas.