Many people, not just the AP voters, considered both OSU and Oregon to be the best, most-talented teams this season. Ohio State wields the best receiver in the sport, and Oregon brought back a ton of draft-eligible players for their senior seasons.
Unfortunately, both teams found themselves on the losing end of their games last weekend, with the Buckeyes falling in their rematch with Texas, and Oregon slipping up in Stillwater against Oklahoma State.
That’s college football for you. Nobody is safe, no matter what the rankings would suggest. Aside from these two teams, Illinois fell to Duke, Minnesota lost a QB battle with Mississippi State, and Purdue couldn’t outlast Wake Forest.
Not a great week for the conference of the reigning champs.
However, Ohio State and Oregon’s losses may have had the most significant impact on the upcoming draft cycle. Yes, it’s still early, but early losses like these can highlight flaws in the games of the losers and bring about new fans of the teams that upset them.
Today, let’s take a look at the two most significant games of the week and how the performances of the players in those games might shift the top of the draft order in April.
Longhorns Rally in the 4th Quarter
It may have been less of a rally and more of an Ohio State collapse, but Texas ultimately got the win, rectifying the horrible game from last season.
After going up 23-3 through the first three quarters, Ohio State allowed Texas to score 21 unanswered points in the 4th, giving Texas a narrow one point victory. This dry spell of scoring also included a missed field goal, setting Texas up for a game-winning drive.
As far as the OSU prospects go, I actually don’t believe that the heavy-hitters had a bad game. Jeremiah Smith totaled a pedestrian (to his standards) 164 yards and a touchdown on eight receptions. His only blemish is not recording a catch in the 4th quarter.
Julian Sayin was also rather decisive as a passer, and only took two sacks against a strong Texas front. Austin Siereveld, perhaps the Buckeye’s best offensive lineman, did his part as well.
So, if the stars performed, how did the Buckeyes squander their lead? Well, it started with a very conservative game plan in the second half, and ended with the Texas players showing out.
Arch Manning, who I would say had an even-keeled performance, made the right plays down the stretch. Early in the game, Manning had two very good throws and not much else. But in the 4th quarter, he came alive with a touchdown and game-winning drive.
Last week, I mentioned Manning as more of a steady performer than the star his name would suggest, and against what is likely to be his toughest opponent of the regular season, I think that point continues.
While his interception was anything but his own fault, there weren’t many superstar plays throughout the course of this game; plays that would demand Manning be at the top of QB1 talks.
On the other side of the ball, star edge rusher Colin Simmons had himself a strong performance. Two tackles for loss and a sack against OSU’s offensive line and a quick thrower like Sayin are impressive, and he his numbers will only look better against worse units.
The last names that deserve being mentioned here are the Longhorn receivers, Cam Coleman and Ryan Wingo. Coleman and Wingo, the numbers 2 and 8 wide receiver recruits in the 2024 class according to 247 Sports industry composite, registered pretty quiet days.
In the first half, both Wingo and Coleman dropped excellent passes from Manning, with Coleman’s turning into one of the most unfortunate interceptions I’ve ever seen.
Wingo’s drop was rough as well, as it would have given Texas their only non-4th quarter touchdown.
Both of these players are very talented, and have the supporting cast to help them thrive. In a draft class full of receivers like Smith, Rutgers’ KJ Duff, Indiana’s star duo of Becker and Marsh, and many more, Coleman and Wingo will have to step their games up in order to avoid sliding out of the top group.
Mestemaker on the Map
During last week’s article on quarterbacks, I mentioned Drew Mestemaker in the “Show Us Some More” tier after a rough Week 1 against Tulsa. I ended that note with the following phrase:
“While it’s only been one game, Mestemaker will have to adjust to more difficult competition - Week 2 brings Dante Moore’s Ducks into town. Hopefully, Mestemaker will be able to bounce back and put himself back into top QB contention.”
It’s safe to say he adjusted. Coming into the game as 23.5 underdogs, Mestemaker left it all out on the field, scoring 3 total touchdowns and rallying the Cowboys to the upset victory.
It certainly wasn’t a perfect passing performance (26/43, 2 INTs), but Mestemaker made the necessary plays when he had to against a veteran-laden Oregon defense. His total of 317 passing yards, 2 passing touchdowns, 109 rushing yards, and 1 rushing touchdown, was punctuated in the 4th quarter with this play.
This rumbling touchdown run would give the Cowboys a 36-31 lead, and they would never look back.
Unlike with Manning’s performance, Mestemaker was going crazy from the start. This run opened the game for Oklahoma State.
While Mestemaker certainly bounced back and put his name back into the QB1 conversation, I think the other team in this game is worth more of a discussion.
Coming into the season, Oregon was talked about as a team on the cusp of winning their first national championship. Not only did they return QB Dante Moore, someone who would’ve likely been a Top 5 pick in last year’s draft, but the defense brought back a lot of talent as well.
Here is the Ducks’ starting defensive front, courtesy of Ourlads.
Not a freshman, sophomore, or junior in sight. All of their main guys on the defensive line are at least seniors, and they were consistently getting moved off of the ball in the run game.
Players like A’Mauri Washington and Matayo Uiagalelei were getting Top 50 projections in the 2026 Draft. Now, back in school, they’re struggling against what was expected to be an average Big 12 team this season.
Mestemaker and Head Coach Eric Morris might change those fortunes now, but the point remains.
On the other side of the ball, Dante Moore had a pretty lackluster outing, throwing 14/29 for 191 yards and only 2 touchdowns. Moore was also sacked four times, compared to Mestemaker’s zero against a senior-filled front.
For someone that has high pick aspirations, Moore will have to improve throughout the rest of the season. Relying upon the overtime win against a passionless Penn State team last season won’t cut it as a signature moment if this level of play continues.
Fortunately, Oregon will get to face off against USC (12), Ohio State (6), and Michigan (19) still this season, each of which could reverse Moore and his teammates’ draft stocks for the better.
Player of the Week
One player that isn’t getting the attention he deserves is Rutgers WR KJ Duff. Duff has been on an absolute tear to start the season, but Rutgers 0-2 record, including a Week 1 loss to UMASS (!) has him a bit under the radar.
Duff’s breakout began last year, where he amassed 1084 receiving yards along with 7 receiving touchdowns. Pretty strong numbers for the 6’6 219lbs receiver, especially without high-end QB play.
To start his junior season, Duff has posted games of 9-196-3 vs. UMASS and 8-137-2 this past week at Boston College.
If these numbers seem insane, that’s because they are. Duff currently leads the B1G conference in receptions (17) and yards (333), while leading all of FBS with 5 touchdowns.
The numbers match the eye test. Duff’s unreal frame and fluid movement ability are a bit reminiscent of Carolina’s own Tetairoa McMillan during his time at Arizona. Both players were special at the catch point and in evading contact after the catch.
Rutgers’ schedule only gets tougher from here, as they are set to host USC (12) this weekend, and have dates with Indiana (4), Michigan (19), and Penn State (14) over the course of the season.
There will be plenty of opportunities for Duff to take his name from a fun player on a bad team to someone in the mix for that WR2 spot next April.
This column won’t only be Big Ten-focused throughout the rest of the season - we have some excellent games going on across the entire league. For Week 3, keep your eyes on the following matchups:
(Friday) (22) Houston vs. (13) Texas Tech
Florida State at (10) Alabama
(16) SMU at (23) Louisville
(7) LSU at (8) Ole Miss