We Speak College Football

College Football Roundup: Texas Tech Survives Shootout, Boise State Rolls as Playoff Picture Tightens

Thomas Castellanos accounted for five touchdowns as No. 15 Texas Tech outlasted West Virginia 53-48, Dylan Riley piled up 300 all-purpose yards in No. 25 Boise State’s 64-38 rout of Colorado State, and UCLA stayed perfect at 9-0 in a Saturday that reshaped the College Football Playoff picture.

Published

2 hours ago

November 8, 2026

We Speak Media

Colorado State defensive lineman Stephon Wright (9) battles a Boise State tackle during the Rams' game against the Broncos on Saturday in Fort Collins, Colo. (C. Roche/The Rocky Mountain Collegian)

Week 10 of the college football season delivered upsets at the top of the rankings and a reshuffled playoff picture on Saturday, and the ranked action beyond the headline games was just as wild, led by No. 15 Texas Tech’s 53-48 shootout win over West Virginia and No. 25 Boise State’s record road outburst at Colorado State.

No. 15 Texas Tech 53, West Virginia 48: Thomas Castellanos turned in a career night in Lubbock, completing 18 of 27 passes for 362 yards and five total touchdowns while rushing for 102 yards, and scored the go-ahead touchdown with 2:44 remaining. J’Koby Williams added 160 rushing yards as the Red Raiders (8-1, 5-1 Big 12) piled up 638 total yards. Michael Hawkins Jr. threw for 303 yards and ran for 88 for West Virginia (5-4), and Cam Cook rushed for 149 yards, but Hawkins was sacked in the end zone for a safety with 1:24 left to end the Mountaineers’ final chance.

No. 25 Boise State 64, Colorado State 38: Dylan Riley finished with 300 all-purpose yards and three touchdowns, one yard short of Doug Martin’s school record, as the Broncos scored their most points in a road game in 74 years. Riley rushed 19 times for 192 yards and two touchdowns and caught two passes for 88 yards and a score. Max Cutforth, starting for the injured Maddux Madsen, completed 16 of 19 passes for 317 yards and four touchdowns and ran for another score as Boise State (8-1, 5-0) won its eighth straight and strengthened its hold on the Group of Six playoff spot.

No. 8 UCLA 34, Minnesota 20: Ty Dieffenbach threw for 303 yards and three touchdowns on just eight completions, including two 75-yard touchdown passes in the fourth quarter, and the Bruins (9-0, 6-0 Big Ten) posted their first 9-0 start since 1998. Wayne Knight rushed for 109 yards and a touchdown and Aidan Mizell caught two passes for 150 yards and two scores. Drake Lindsey threw for 205 yards for Minnesota (5-4).

No. 16 Wake Forest 77, Merrimack 0: Backup quarterback Steele Pizzella, making his first career start for the injured Gio Lopez, accounted for 495 yards in one half, completing 23 of 28 passes for 432 yards and three touchdowns and rushing for 63 yards and a score, as the Demon Deacons (8-1) won their sixth straight.

No. 17 Houston 31, Cincinnati 24: Re’Shaun Sanford II rushed for 126 yards and broke a tie with a 51-yard touchdown run with 5:10 remaining as the Cougars (7-2, 4-2 Big 12) held off the Bearcats. Conner Weigman threw two touchdown passes and ran for a score, and Makhi Hughes added 90 rushing yards. JC French IV threw two touchdown passes and ran for the tying score for Cincinnati (5-4) with 6:21 left.

No. 19 Iowa 24, Northwestern 10: Hank Brown threw a touchdown pass and ran for a score and Braeden Jackson returned a kickoff for a touchdown as the Hawkeyes (7-2, 4-2 Big Ten) won in Evanston. L.J. Phillips Jr. rushed for 128 yards, and Iowa held Northwestern (6-3) to 1 of 11 on third down.

No. 21 South Carolina 17, Texas A&M 9: LaNorris Sellers threw for 251 yards and a touchdown and sealed the win with a 41-yard touchdown run with 1:19 left, after leaving the game in the second quarter with a left ankle injury and returning, as the Gamecocks (6-3, 4-3 SEC) scored 10 fourth-quarter points to rally past the Aggies. Malik Orsan’s 43-yard field goal with 8:14 left put South Carolina ahead for good. Texas A&M (4-5) piled up 457 yards but settled for three field goals and no touchdowns.

Around the country: Michigan State stunned rival Michigan 15-6. Duke routed NC State 41-3. UCF scored on a 73-yard drive in the final minute to edge Kansas 33-32. Auburn held off Arkansas 26-23 and Vanderbilt edged Mississippi State 25-23. Florida State beat Boston College 31-24 in interim coach Rick Stockstill’s debut, the Seminoles’ first road win since November 2023.

Covered in full on We Speak Media: Notre Dame 31, No. 1 Miami 24; No. 2 Georgia 42, No. 10 Ole Miss 7; No. 3 Utah 28, No. 9 BYU 20; No. 5 Alabama 31, No. 14 LSU 13; No. 13 Tennessee 34, No. 6 Kentucky 6; No. 7 Texas 34, No. 18 Missouri 20; No. 23 Oregon 41, No. 12 Ohio State 28; Oklahoma 23, No. 24 Florida 7.

Playoff picture: Miami’s first loss opens the race for the No. 1 seed, with Georgia and unbeaten Utah holding the strongest cases heading into the second College Football Playoff rankings on Tuesday. Tennessee’s rout of Kentucky strengthens the Volunteers’ position, Texas continues to climb, and Ohio State’s second straight loss leaves the Buckeyes a long shot. Boise State remains the Group of Six leader as the projected No. 12 seed.

Devon Dampier Does It All as Utah Wins a Holy War Classic Over BYU, 28-20

Georgia Runs Ole Miss Out of Oxford, 42-7, Behind Five Touchdowns From Gunner Stockton

We Speak College Football

Statement In Beaumont: No. 12 Lamar Knocks Off No. 2 Stephen F. Austin 45-28 In The FCS Game Of The Week

Published

54 minutes ago

November 8, 2026

Julie Isbell

Lamar quarterback Aiden McCown hands the ball off to running back Parker Jenkins against Stephen F. Austin at Provost Umphrey Stadium

Lamar quarterback Aiden McCown hands off to Parker Jenkins against Stephen F. Austin at Provost Umphrey Stadium in Beaumont. Photo by Julie Isbell.

This was the biggest game in the FCS this weekend, and it played like it. On Saturday at Provost Umphrey Stadium in Beaumont, No. 12 Lamar beat No. 2 Stephen F. Austin 45-28 in the STATS Perform FCS Game of the Week, a showdown between the top two teams in the Southland Conference. The Cardinals never trailed, answered every Lumberjacks comeback, and pulled into a tie for first place in the Southland with two weeks left in the regular season. Photographer Julie Isbell was on the sideline for We Speak Media.

The Fast Start

Lamar opened the game like a team that had been waiting for it. Andres Sandoval kicked a 27 yard field goal, Aiden McCown found Davin Driskell for a 7 yard touchdown late in the first quarter, and Parker Jenkins added a 3 yard touchdown run in the second quarter to build a 17-0 lead. Stephen F. Austin finally answered just before halftime, when Gavin Rutherford hit Clayton Wayland for a 22 yard touchdown with 25 seconds left in the half.

Every Answer

*Stephen F. Austin quarterback Gavin Rutherford throws against Lamar. Photo by Julie Isbell.*

The second half turned into a heavyweight exchange. Stephen F. Austin cut the Lamar lead to three points three separate times, and every time the Cardinals answered with a touchdown of their own. Jenkins capped an eight play, 75 yard drive with a 13 yard touchdown run, and McCown connected with Driskell again to push the lead back to ten. The loudest moment came late: JT Kitna found Bugs Mortimer for a 71 yard touchdown that pulled the Lumberjacks within 31-28. On the next Lamar possession, McCown hit Blake Thomas for a 62 yard touchdown strike with 4:45 remaining to make it 38-28.

The Close

The defense finished it. Alexandre Dedieu strip sacked the quarterback on Stephen F. Austin’s next play and Lamar recovered, setting up Jenkins’ third rushing touchdown of the night, a 4 yard run that sealed the 45-28 final.

By The Numbers

*The Stephen F. Austin offense huddles its ground game against Lamar. Photo by Julie Isbell.*

McCown completed 17 of 29 passes for 307 yards and three touchdowns. Jenkins carried 30 times for 138 yards and three touchdowns in a career night. Lamar rolled up 488 total yards, including 181 on the ground, scored on all five of its red zone trips, and held the ball for 12 minutes longer than the Lumberjacks. Stephen F. Austin turned the ball over four times, two fumbles and two interceptions, including picks by Bryce McDonald and Mar Mar Evans, and Lamar turned those mistakes into 17 points. For the Lumberjacks, Wayland caught nine passes for 173 yards and two touchdowns. Quarter by quarter: Lamar led 10-0 after the first, 17-7 at the half, and the teams traded 14 points each in the third before Lamar closed the fourth quarter 14-7.

What It Means

The loss is Stephen F. Austin’s first of the season, ending a 19 game regular season winning streak that was the longest active run across the FBS and FCS. The Lumberjacks fall to 9-1 overall and 6-1 in the Southland. Lamar improves to 8-2 and 6-1, and now owns the head to head tiebreaker in the race for the Southland’s automatic playoff bid. The Cardinals are home again on Saturday, November 14, hosting East Texas A&M, while Stephen F. Austin travels to UT Rio Grande Valley.