Published Oct 9, 2017
Three-Point Stance: Week 6 shine and shame, Big 12's playoff hopes
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Mike Farrell  •  Rivals.com
Rivals National Columnist

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 thoughts on the Big 12, which is on the verge of College Football Playoff elimination.

MORE: Week 6 CFB breakout stars | Examining starting QBs for top programs

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1. SATURDAY SHINE

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…

Malik Rosier: It was ugly, but he showed a lot of heart and some ice in his veins as Miami broke the FSU winning streak.

Khalil Tate: What an amazing game – 142 yards passing and a score and 327 yards rushing and four scores in a win over Colorado. That’s a one-man win there.

Iowa State: The biggest upset in school history? The biggest upset we will see all season as far as how it affects the college football playoff? Could be a yes to both, as the Cyclones planted their flag and might have killed the Sooners' chances of making the playoff.

Joel Lanning: Eight tackles, a sack, a fumble recovery, 25 passing yards and 35 rushing yards in a huge win for Iowa State. The two-way player lives on.

LSU: It wasn’t pretty, but you have to give LSU credit after the loss to Troy. The offense still looked bad, but the defense held up its end of the bargain for a huge win for Ed Orgeron.

Bryce Love: I missed the nation’s leading rusher last week when he went for over 300, so I will make sure to include him as he led his team to a win on the road against a top-25 team. He’s making me question how great Christian McCaffrey was, as it looks like it could be a system thing.

N.C. State: The Wolfpack continue to impress on defense and took down Lamar Jackson and Louisville with all eyes on them Thursday night. They are one of the surprises of the season.

Damien Harris: In a crowded Alabama backfield, Harris is emerging as the guy and is showing more breakaway speed than I expected.

Michigan State defensive line: The Spartans dominated the action in the road win against Michigan, and that victory in the trenches is what keyed the upset.

Penn State: The Nittany Lions continue to dominate teams from the first kickoff and never look back. This team is playing with as much confidence as anyone in the country.

Georgia's dynamic duo: Sony Michel and Nick Chubb continue to allow Jake Fromm to slowly adjust to college football and seem to feed off each other when it comes to improvement.

David Sills: He continues to amaze me, as I knew him as the 13-year-old quarterback with the USC offer and have trouble adjusting to seeing him become one of the best wide receivers in the Big 12.

TCU: The Horned Frogs carry the flag for the Big 12 now and continue to show solid defense and a versatile offense led by ex-Texas A&M quarterback Kenny Hill and many other transfers.

Sam Ehlinger: Moxie and skill, a dangerous combination as the game does not look too big for the true freshman. Kansas State gives Texas fits but this kid figured out a way all game long.

Kellen Mond: Another true freshman quarterback from Texas impressed. Despite the loss, Mond showed his poise and ability to extend the play against a Bama defense and front seven that was in his face right off every snap.

Jonathan Taylor: He rushed for 200-plus yards as the true freshman from Wisconsin wore down Nebraska on the road. This kid could push to break some amazing team records if he stays healthy (and all four years).

J.T. Barrett: Maryland isn’t a great team, but Barrett is starting to look a bit more comfortable in the passing game and improves each week, or so it seems. Ohio State is still very much in this thing.

Washington State: The defense is the key here as the Cougars swarm and show effort on every play, while the offense continues to get enough done. The balance is surprising.

Kerryon Johnson: This is the second week in a row that Johnson gets recognized; he has changed the entire Auburn offense by himself.

Notre Dame defense: This is a different unit than a year ago – quicker to the ball, more physical and athletic, and playing together. It has been the key to the Irish's success.

Virginia: The Cavs are 4-1 and 1-0 in the ACC after the win over Duke. I know nobody really notices or cares nationally, but this is a nice turnaround.

Purdue: How cool is it that Purdue is actually fun to watch now? Now the Boilermakers just need to keep their new coach as suitors come in at the end of the season.

Kentucky: The Wildcats are two blown coverages away from being 6-0 and 3-0 in the SEC – think about that.

2. SATURDAY SHAME

Oklahoma defense: The offense wasn’t the problem; the awful coverage and tackling were the problem in the loss to Iowa State. The Baylor game might have been a warning and maybe we should have heeded it This defense has issues.

Florida offense: We knew Florida’s offense was bad, but when a true freshman (Malik Davis) is by far your best player and another true freshman (Kadarius Toney) is your most exciting player, you're in trouble.

Michigan offensive line: It got worked by the Michigan State defensive front as the running game went nowhere. The defense did its part, but the offensive line let the team down.

Florida State defense: This defense, loaded with five-stars, just doesn’t make enough big plays to help the offense. And the single coverage on the last play was not only weak, but the defensive call overall was awful.

Cal offense: Compiled just 93 total yards against Washington, a team that gave up more than 300 to Rutgers. That’s bad.

Kansas State defense: One of the few teams in the conference that was supposed to play defense gave up 546 yards to a team led by a true freshman quarterback. Not good.

Louisville secondary: The weak spot on a generally sub-par defense let it down again.

Arkansas: Wow, this is not a good football team at all. This has to be the end of the line for Bret Bielema, right?

Northwestern: Remember when the Wildcats were picked by some to win the Big Ten West? They are 2-3 now and 0-2 in the Big Ten.

UConn: Allowing 70 points to Memphis? The Huskies have one win this season over Holy Cross in a game they should have lost. Randy Edsall isn’t bringing magic back.

North Carolina offense: It’s bad, really bad, to watch. Larry Fedora used to be an offensive genius. Remember that?

Pat Narduzzi: How do you burn the redshirt of a freshman quarterback (Kenny Pickett) on the last play of the game at your own 15 with zero chance to win? Put in a Wildcat offensive play or something, my goodness.

3. THE BIG 12'S SLIM PLAYOFF HOPES

Is the Big 12 done? Not quite, but things are already dicey when it comes to having a playoff representative. Heading into the season, Oklahoma and Oklahoma State were clearly the two best chances for the conference to avoid getting shut out of the playoff, and a conference championship game was expected to help. But now with the Cowboys losing to TCU and Oklahoma's awful loss to Iowa State, TCU has to run the table or the Cowboys and Sooners might need some help.

Alabama and Clemson could easily go undefeated, and with three top-10 teams, you have to assume the Big Ten will get someone in. That means the Big 12 needs Washington and Washington State to lose in the Pac-12 while hoping a second team from the Big Ten or SEC isn't selected over a Big 12 representative. Right now I’d put the Big 12’s chances of having a playoff representative at about 10 percent with that Sooners loss. That’s not good.