Rivals.com National Recruiting Director Mike Farrell’s thought-provoking Three-Point Stance is here with Saturday Shine and Saturday Shame from the weekend as well as thought on Baker Mayfield’s antics.
MORE FARRELL: Friday's Three-Point Stance
So what is Saturday Shine and Saturday Shame? Essentially, it’s a look at the teams, and sometimes players, who should be proud or ashamed of their performances from the weekend. This includes Thursday and Friday games, of course. So let’s take a look at those that shined first …
SATURDAY SHINE
Wisconsin – The Badgers just keep on winning, despite average quarterback play. They have one of the most underrated defenses in the country - and that running game can’t be stopped.
QB Kelly Bryant, Clemson – I know the Tigers played The Citadel but it’s a very good sign for them that Bryant was as accurate downfield as he has been since his injury.
QB Josh Rosen, UCLA – Rosen won the battle of the potential No. 1 quarterbacks in a big way. Yes, he threw the ball more often, but his offensive line is much worse than Darnold’s, he has one good skill player to work with and he still made some amazing plays.
WR Jordan Lasley, UCLA – Thank goodness for this guy, otherwise Rosen would have no one to throw the ball to. UCLA is so bad on offense and defense that Rosen-to-Lasley was all it had all night.
QB Baker Mayfield, Oklahoma – I’ll give him his deserved props as a great player who had another good week and has clinched the Heisman. He deserves the kudos for his on-the-field play every week. Off the field: I address that below.
QB Kurt Benkert, Virginia – This guy looked like an NFL quarterback before he threw the pick six that turned around the game. He made some amazing reads, went through some great progressions and his accuracy most of the day was amazing as he tried to help his team pull an upset against Miami.
DB Jaquon Johnson, Miami – This kid makes huge plays almost every week, it seems, and his pick for a touchdown turned the game around versus Virginia and helped save the season and playoff hopes for Miami.
RB Kerryon Johnson, Auburn – I mention him despite the awful opponent because he needs to be in New York as a Heisman candidate. He’s that good.
Georgia – They bounced back well offensively and defensively after the Auburn drubbing and destroyed a pretty good Kentucky team.
RB Saquon Barkley, Penn State – He’s finally back to running North-South and had a huge game against a gritty Nebraska team. It’s too late for the Heisman, but it was nice to see him back to dominance. He’s a kid you want to root for.
RB Ronald Jones, USC – The best Trojans player; he doesn’t get the attention that Darnold gets but he should. He’s the key to that offense.
TCU defense – After looking awful against Oklahoma, the Horned Frogs bounced back and shut down a solid Texas Tech offense. The Big 12 still can’t play defense, but TCU had a good recovery game.
QB Skylar Thompson, Kansas State – This kid has a really good future ahead of him, and we liked him a lot out of high school because he can throw and run. He was the reason Kansas State pulled off the upset against Oklahoma State.
RB Bryce Love, Stanford – Playing hurt, he still ran away from the California defense on 1 ½ ankles. That’s impressive.
RB L.J. Scott, Michigan State – The Spartans have been struggling running the ball, but Scott had a great game and looked like the guy I expected to dominate this season.
Northwestern – The Wildcats keep winning after a rough start, and no one seems to notice. The win over Minnesota could have been their best game this season.
QB Lamar Jackson, Louisville – He keeps putting up pinball numbers week in and week out, and needs to be back in the Heisman discussion. He shouldn’t win it, but he should be in New York for the ceremony.
Texas – A nice win for Tom Herman, as the Longhorns are bowl eligible and the offensive and defensive balance is solid in Year One.
Nebraska – The Huskers had nothing to play for yet they kept charging in a game they had no chance of winning. Mike Riley needs to go, but at least his kids are still playing for him.
Oregon – A big win over Arizona in which the Ducks dominated in every aspect, and they held Khalil Tate in check, which isn’t easy to do.
QB Drew Lock, Missouri – He continues to be the best quarterback no one talks about. This guy has 38 touchdown passes for a team that’s sneaky good on offense.
SATURDAY SHAME
QB Baker Mayfield, Oklahoma – I’ll get into this more below, but as a leader of a playoff contender and a 22-year-old senior, you have to show more maturity and represent your team better, despite the circumstances.
Sam Darnold, USC – Everyone keeps saying he’s the No. 1 pick in the draft and talking about how mobile he is, but he keeps turning the ball over and didn’t look that sharp to me in the battle versus Rosen. And he has a lot more help than Rosen does.
Kentucky – If the Wildcats want to step up in the SEC East and be taken seriously they have to show up in big games and be competitive - and the Georgia rout was embarrassing.
Oklahoma State defense – I figured the defense would be a problem, but I guess I didn’t think it would be this bad in certain games. Even the Oklahoma State offense can’t make up for a defense this bad.
Mississippi State – A week after giving Alabama all it can handle, the Bulldogs nearly lost to a horrid Arkansas team. Not good.
Maryland – No bowl game this season after a bowl in the first under D.J. Durkin. Are the Terrapins taking a step back in the toughest division in football?
Washington – Going down to the wire with a very average Utah team isn’t a great look. I know you are eliminated from winning the Pac-12 North, but this should have been an easy win.
N.C. State – Three straight losses and a potentially great season down the drain. What will Dave Doeren complain about this time?
Tennessee – Winless in the SEC and getting ready for a tilt against Vandy to see who ends the season winless. How far have the Vols fallen?
Minnesota – Shut out against Northwestern after putting up more than 50 against Nebraska. Which team will show up each week?
Virginia Tech – The Hokies needed a goal-line stop to beat Pitt. How far have you fallen since the big matchup with Miami?
Georgia Tech – The Yellow Jackets needed a win over Duke to make a bowl game, but now after Georgia drubs them they will be sitting home at 5-6.
Syracuse – Where did any semblance of defense go?
Michigan defense – I expected more, especially with Alex Hornibrook throwing passes. I figured Wisconsin would win with the run, but at times the Wolverines made Hornibrook look like Steve Young.
Rutgers – Head out to Indiana to be shut out 41-0 by a team that is now 2-6 in the Big Ten. That’s embarrassing, even for Rutgers.
Iowa – Remember when Iowa beat Ohio State and looked great? The Hawkeyes just lost to Purdue at home.
Arizona defense – The Wildcats are young, but they looked absolutely clueless against Oregon.
Vanderbilt – The Commodores beat Kansas State to go 3-0 to start the season and have now lost seven of their last eight, with not many being very close.
MAYFIELD AND MATURITY
It's High Horse time, kids.
Baker Mayfield is a great player. Baker Mayfield is a leader on the field and plays with as much passion as anyone in the country. And Baker Mayfield should win the Heisman.
But he also has a problem, and it’s called immaturity.
We saw it in the offseason when he was running from the cops, and we saw a little of it when he planted the OU flag at midfield after a win over Ohio State earlier this season. But we especially saw it this weekend against Kansas. Yes, the Jayhawks' captains were wrong in refusing to shake hands at the start of the game, and yes they took some cheap shots at Mayfield in the game. But Mayfield is a star, and stars have to know one thing – they are always in the spotlight and have to take the high road. That’s what the NFL wants from quarterbacks to whom they plan to pay millions of dollars. It’s what football fans need to see from a player they want to root for simply because of his passion and ability.
So, as a 22-year-old senior captain playing an awful Kansas team, why talk trash to fans? Why grab your crotch on national television? And why scream profanities across the field when all you have to do is point to the scoreboard?
“Heat of the moment” doesn’t cut it for me, and it might not cut it for NFL scouts and GMs already picking apart your resume because of the incident with the cops, your size, your arm strength and whatever else they want to criticize. Now you’ve given them more ammunition. Take it from someone who thinks you are a first-round NFL talent: You acted like a knucklehead this past weekend and it was not necessary.
Be the bigger man Baker, be the bigger man.