The very best things in College Football Week 9: J.T. Tuimoloau, Brock Bowers and more

JT Tuimoloau made his mark while Brock Bowers put jaws on the floor while College Football Week 9 brought some huge surprises.

The first College Football Playoff rankings of the season will drop in a few days, so Week 9 was the last chance for each contender to set the stage for that huge announcement.
Some rose to the occasion. Others fell flat on their face.

But a great college football weekend isn’t just about the contenders. It’s about all the great and wild experiences the sport has to offer.

Here’s a look at the best performances, moments and stories of the weekend…

Most impressive team of the week: Resilient Utah Utes

You may have missed it on Thursday but the Utah Utes kept their hunt for the Pac-12 title alive with the toughest of tough wins on the road at Washington State.

Unexpectedly, the Utes were without star quarterback Cam Rising and had to turn to walk-on backup QB Bryson Barnes. They were also without running backs Tavion Thomas and Micah Bernard. During the course of the game they lost standout tight end Dalton Kincaid to injury and safety R.J. Hubert to a targeting ejection.

Those huge absences were felt in the game but the Utes managed to get away with a gritty 21-17 win.

GIF-worthy video of the week

Best performance of the week: JT Tuimoloau

There is no argument. JT Tuimoloau is the player of the week in college football and it’s not close.

The Ohio State defensive lineman put up a historic stat line of with three tackles for loss including two sacks, two interceptions, an interception return for a touchdown, a forced fumble, a fumble recovery and a pass breakup that led to an interception.

In a tight battle with Penn State, Tuimoloau’s Buckeyes needed a spark and he provided it on defense with a monster day to rival all other monster days.

Surprise game of the week: Kansas State stomps Oklahoma State

What the heck happened to Oklahoma State?

The Cowboys came into Saturday’s game at 6-1 and ranked No. 9. They suffered a heartbreaking loss to TCU but bounced back last week with a win over Texas. Their season was still very much on.

Until they ran headfirst into Kansas State.

The Wildcats blasted OSU, leading 35-0. Will Howard scored four first-half touchdowns. Spencer Sanders and the Cowboys had nothing going for them.

It was a truly shocking performance from an offense that ranked No. 3 in scoring at the start of the day.

Most ridiculous things in college football this week

Ridiculous can be good. Ridiculous can be bad. Ridiculous can be outrageous, unbelievable or jaw-dropping.

What gets the ridiculous tag this week?

Brock Bowers’ tipped touchdown catch

There may come a certain point in a game when the opposition realizes it’s just not their day. This was that moment for the Florida Gators facing off with the Georgia Bulldogs.

When the coverage is good and the all-world receiver makes an improbable catch on a tipped ball, what can you do?

And that wasn’t even the only ridiculous play from that game.

Oklahoma’s fantastic fake field goal

It has not been a particularly fun season for Oklahoma but they had a good time beating Iowa this week.

The highlight of the outing was a beautifully executed fake field goal that brought college football Twitter as much joy as it did Sooners fans. What a call.

Wake Forest’s third quarter vs. Louisville

Here is Wake Forest’s third-quarter drive log, presented without comment:

• 3 plays, 13 yards — Interception Touchdown
• 5 plays, 4 yards — Fumble
• 7 plays, 54 yards — Fumble
• 5 plays, 27 yards — Interception
• 2 plays, -3 yards — Fumble
• 3 plays, -5 yards — Punt
• 7 plays, 44 yards — Interception Touchdown

The Demon Deacons had five turnovers coming into the weekend. They had six in the third quarter against Louisville alone and eight in total.

College football Tweet of the Day

Is there really a winner in the battle for the “real” Columbia?

Technically, it’s Mizzou. But after that tweet, neither team will recover.

Unbelievable, and funny, fact of the week

The New Mexico State Aggies will have as many wins in 2022 as the Texas A&M Aggies unless Jimbo Fisher and company upset Ole Miss.

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