1 – Mississippi QB Jaxson Dart & RB Quinshon Judkins (vs. #13 LSU)
Dart: 26/39 – 389 yards – 4 touchdowns – 7 carries – 50 yards – 1 touchdown
Judkins: 33 carries – 177 yards – 1 touchdown – 1 reception – 4 yards – 1 touchdown
The best game on Saturday was between two Top 25 teams in Mississippi and LSU, where the two SEC teams met for a back-and-forth shootout that saw 104 total points in the Rebels 55-49 win. With 39 seconds left, Dart found wide receiver Tre Harris for what would be the game winning touchdown and capped a career day for the quarterback.
Judkins had gotten off to a slow start in 2023 after star making freshman campaign in 2022, with his highest rushing total being 60 yards in the season opener against Mercer. The sophomore had just 201 yards coming into this matchup and nearly matched it with an impressive 177 yard day.
The Rebels moved to 4-1 thus far and will face a struggling Arkansas team next week before heading into a mid-season bye week.
2 – USC QB Caleb Williams (vs. Colorado)
Stats: 30/40 – 403 yards – 6 touchdowns – 1 interception
The reigning Heisman winner was due to show up in the Five Stars eventually, right? In what was a 10 am local time kickoff, Williams showed no signs of sleepiness as he commanded the Trojan offense behind his best performance of the season thus far. The game was never quite as close as the 48-41 score indicates, as USC held at least a 14 point lead for most of the contest and the Buffalo battled back after a 34-14 halftime deficit.
Through five games, Williams completion percentage sits nearly 8 points higher than last season, he’s averaging 2.3 yards more yards per completion and he’s already at half of his 2022 passing touchdown total (21 so far, 42 last year). Granted, he hasn’t exactly faced any stiff defenses thus far.
Caleb and the Trojans will face Arizona next week before a tough two week stretch against stout defenses in Notre Dame and Utah.
3 – Kentucky RB Ray Davis (vs. #22 Florida)
Stats: 26 carries – 280 yards – 3 touchdowns – 1 reception – 9 yards – 1 touchdown
Kentucky reeled off its third straight win over SEC rival Florida on Saturday behind the wheels of transfer running back Ray Davis. Davis had eight carries that resulted in 10 or more yards, including a 75 yard touchdown run that put the Wildcats up 16-0 and put the game on ice early as the Gators attempted to claw back but never could. It was a top five yardage game in the history of Kentucky football, putting him on a list that includes notable names like Lynn Bowden and Shipwreck Kelly (yes, THAT Shipwreck Kelly).
Davis and the Cats will look to build off this, but it’ll be hard as they head to Athens to face the two-time defending champion Georgia Bulldogs next Saturday.
4 – Texas RB Jonathon Brooks (vs. #24 Kansas)
Stats: 21 carries – 218 yards – 2 touchdowns – 1 reception – 23 yards
Before the season, I pegged incoming freshman C.J. Baxter as the breakout star for the Longhorns, but through five games it has been the other running back, Jonathon Brooks.
The sophomore saw limited action behind current NFL backs Bijan Robinson and Roschon Johnson last season, but has taken the reigns as the lead back and it paid off on Saturday with a dominating effort en route to a Longhorns 40-14 win over the Jayhawks. Brooks busted off a 54 yard run on the Longhorns opening possession of the second half to take a 20-7 lead and thats all they’d need to ultimately win.
The rusher sits at 597 yards thus far, putting him 3rd in the nation through five weeks of play. Next week it’s the Red River Rivalry when the Longhorns take on Oklahoma, and Brooks will be keyed on to have another impressive performance.
5 – Oregon State WR Silas Bolden (vs. #10 Utah)
Stats: 6 receptions – 100 yards – 1 touchdown – 2 carries – 53 yards – 1 touchdown
Oregon State picked up a huge win at home on Friday night against 10th ranked Utah, and it was due in large part to Beaver receiver Silas Bolden. The speedster helped Oregon State take a commanding 21-0 lead in the second half after back-to-back touchdowns, the first on a 27 yard pass from quarterback D.J. Uiagalelei and followed it up with a 45 yard rushing touchdown on 4th and 1 early in the fourth quarter.
The Beavers moved to 4-1 on the season and will travel to face Cal in a Pac-12 After Dark matchup.
