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Rivals.com National Recruiting Director Mike Farrell’s Three-Point Stance is here with Saturday Shine and Saturday Shame from the weekend, as well as a look at a future No. 1 overall draft pick.
1. SATURDAY SHINE
Here's a look at the teams, units and players that should feel good following their performance in Week 9.
Oklahoma State – The Cowboys came to play and upset the No. 6 team in the country behind good quarterback play. Texas was playing catch-up all game long.
Georgia – The Dawgs pulled away for a huge SEC East win where they showed excellent balance in the passing and running game.
Jake Fromm, Georgia – Fromm was excellent all game, especially on third down, and made some amazing throws to lead Georgia to victory.
Penn State – The Nittany Lions could have folded against Iowa when they fell behind but they showed heart and came back to get a huge win.
Trace McSorley, Penn State – He left with an injury and came back and led his team to the win, showing how he’s one of the toughest players in the country.
Clemson – This was an impressive rout of Florida State in every fashion and the difference in effort between the teams was unbelievably evident.
Oklahoma – The Sooners continue to roll offensively and it becomes harder and harder to believe that they have a loss this season.
Kentucky – The Wildcats haven’t been dominating teams but they have learned how to win tough games and they pulled this one out in dramatic style.
Washington State – This could have been a letdown game against Stanford but the Cougars kept fighting back and won in a shootout.
Gardner Minshew, Washington State – There needs to be more Heisman talk about Minshew, he’s putting up some impressive numbers and is very efficient.
Mississippi State – A good victory here after a horrible performance against LSU, Mississippi State showed a lot of toughness.
Nick Fitzgerald, Mississippi State – He was so bad last week but bounced back and had a great game against Texas A&M, especially throwing the ball.
Arizona State – Herm Edwards and his gang came up with a huge win at USC where they didn’t have the talent edge but seemed to want it more.
Eno Benjamin, Arizona State – He deserves props as one of my favorite running backs to watch as he put up another huge game.
Oregon State – This was a big win for the Beavers, only their second of the year, over a good Colorado team.
Kansas – Win No. 3 for Kansas over a TCU team some thought would challenge in the Big 12.
Northwestern – Quietly, Northwestern has become a force to be reckoned with in the Big Ten West and the win over Wisconsin was the best the Wildcats have played this year.
Michigan State – After a dismal performance against Michigan, the Spartans bounced a tough Purdue team under a first-time starter at quarterback.
Syracuse – The ‘Cuse is 6-2 and having a very good season while NC State fades in the second half of the season yet again.
Boston College – BC, like Syracuse, is 6-2 and quietly one of the best teams in the ACC. .
West Virginia – The win over Baylor was a complete domination as the 'Eers head into an important matchup with Texas.
Virginia – Who leads the ACC Coastal? Virginia does after another important win. North Carolina isn’t impressive but Virginia has been all season.
Iowa State – Texas Tech is a good team but Iowa State once again plays spoiler with a huge win at home.
2. SATURDAY SHAME
Here's a look at the teams, units and players that should be feeling some heat following their performance in Week 9.
Florida State – This was the most embarrassing loss I can remember for Florida State and many players seemed to quit. This team is a long way from being good.
Texas – The Longhorns needed to keep it rolling to have a shot at the playoff but showed they aren’t ready for prime time yet with the loss to Oklahoma State. The defense was just bad.
Florida – The Gators defense hung in for a bit but gave up too many third-down conversions and the offense didn’t do enough in a tough loss.
Iowa – I had Iowa continuing its roll in this game but they blew a good lead and didn’t take advantage of the miscues of Penn State and the McSorley injury.
Kansas State – This team has been bad all season long and the defense just looked lost all game.
Missouri – The Tigers had this game won and let it slip from their grasp. All they needed was a stop and they couldn’t get it despite doing a solid job on defense all day.
Stanford – Washington State was ripe for the picking coming off an emotional win but Stanford didn’t have enough to put them away.
USF – Another overrated AAC team goes down, this time in embarrassing fashion to Houston. The defense was atrocious.
Texas A&M – The Aggies were supposed to take care of a predictable Mississippi State offense but they gave up way too many big plays.
Oregon – The loss to Arizona was such a disaster it could derail the rest of the season for Oregon. This was an absolute embarrassment.
Washington – Jake Browning gets benched, the offense looks horrible and the Huskies lose to a very average Cal team for their third loss of the season.
USC – Clay Helton is on thin ice these days as a banged up USC team can’t seem to beat anyone lately.
TCU – What happened to the team we thought would challenge in this conference? Losing to Kansas is a low point for the program over the last couple of years.
Wisconsin – Remember the preseason playoff contender? Where did they go?
Purdue – Purdue was riding high off a big win over Ohio State and fell flat the very next game.
NC State – The Clemson loss carried on into the Syracuse game and now the Wolfpack are fading badly.
Miami – The ‘Canes were supposed to take the next step this season and now are being dominated by Boston College.
3. TREVOR LAWRENCE WILL BE THE NO. 1 OVERALL PICK
The player that would go No. 1 overall in the 2019 NFL Draft isn’t eligible yet. In fact, he won’t be draft eligible until 2021, which seems like a lifetime away. Yes, Clemson quarterback Trevor Lawrence is that special. There is no doubt in my mind, based on his skillset, that he’d be taken first overall if eligible next April by a team that sees he has the best collection of skill at the position that we’ve seen since perhaps John Elway.
If you haven’t had a chance to watch Lawrence play yet, please do yourself a favor and check him out. I watched him once again this weekend as he picked apart Florida State and made some throws you won’t see on Sundays. His release is impeccable and quick, he’s mobile and can throw on the run, he has great touch downfield and a great arm and his field vision is excellent. In fact, it’s easier to say what he can’t do than it is to go through his intangibles.
I think we are watching the next Peyton Manning at the college and NFL level. It’s lucky for us that the NFL requires three years between high school and NFL draft eligibility so we get to see Lawrence for a few more years. And don’t worry Clemson fans, he won’t be the guy who skips his junior season to save his draft status (and that guy is out there, trust me), he’s also a great competitor. Every time we watch Lawrence play, we are watching a future legend barring injury. Enjoy it.
