B/R's 2025 College Football Winners and Losers from Week 6

At first blush, Saturday didn't look like a day full of marquee matchups. But, oh, college football, you sneaky devil, you; you always find a way to bring us joy and consternation.

Week 6 was no different as two preseason favorites saw their championship hopes die slow, painful deaths.

Texas traveled to the Swamp and encountered a Florida team we haven't seen all year in a one-score loss that never really was that close.

After last week's overtime loss to Oregon, Penn State traveled to Los Angeles to take on UCLA. But somebody forgot to tell the Nittany Lions it was a business trip rather than a sight-seeing trip as the Bruins shocked everybody with a win that almost certainly kicks PSU from the conversation.

Alabama exacted a ton of revenge on Diego Pavia and the Vanderbilt Commodores, and Virginia kept its Halloween disguise as a "Cardiac Kid" out for another week in October.

Texas Tech continued its roll through the Big 12 as the night wore on, and Ohio State had no trouble with Minnesota, either. Meanwhile, Miami sweated out a late rally to beat Florida State in Tallahassee to cap a jam-packed weekend of action.

Let's take a look at winners and losers from Week 6.

As UCLA's players carried off new offensive coordinator Jerry Neuheisel on their shoulders following an improbable 42-37 win over No. 7 Penn State in the Rose Bowl, all the early-season frustration was momentarily erased.

This is a program that was 0-4 with losses to Utah, UNLV, New Mexico and Northwestern. They'd fired head coach DeShaun Foster then, just this week, they let go offensive coordinator Tino Sunseri. 

They'd heard the wisecracks over Nico Iamaleava's transfer to Westwood and how Tennessee got the better end of the quarterback switch-a-roo with Joey Aguilar, and they were 24.5-point underdogs to the Nittany Lions.

None of that mattered, however, as Neuheisel—who replaced Sunseri this week—called a brilliant game, utilizing Iamaleava's arm and legs to perfection and dialing up an offensive outburst nobody could have predicted.

A team that had scored 20 first-half points all year led 27-7 at the break. Though PSU roared back late, UCLA had offensive answer after answer. Iamaleava had 294 all-purpose yards, two passing touchdowns and three rushing touchdowns in his best college game ever.

The Bruins finished with 269 rushing yards and pushed the Lions around throughout the game.

How long the good vibes last is anybody's guess, but UCLA looked like a rejuvenated team that had put everything behind them, went out, had fun, executed and pulled off one of the biggest upsets of the season.

There's nothing wrong with Vanderbilt quarterback Diego Pavia having confidence and swagger and all that jazz, especially considering how his play has elevated the Commodores' entire program.

But if you don't back up all the smack, it's hollow words. Then, you have to face the college football world when you fail.

That's essentially what happened to Pavia in Saturday's 30-14 loss to Alabama in Tuscaloosa. The brash star Vanderbilt quarterback lost a fumble inside the UA 20-yard line driving to put VU up two touchdowns and also threw a pick, accounting for just 256 total yards and an interception.

He just wasn't the difference-maker he's been all season or that he was in last year's monumental upset of the Tide in Nashville. Earlier this week, Pavia told the media, "If we play our game, it won't be close."

That put a proverbial target on his back in a game that already was going to be a battle with a hungry, quality Tide team looking for revenge. Bama quarterback Ty Simspon—who far outplayed Pavia in the game—told the ABC television crew afterward that Alabama's defense had extra fire this week.

"All week, all week they were so motivated," Simpson said.

This was an excellent football game where the final score looks worse than what it actually was considering a late, tack-on Tide touchdown. But Pavia didn't bring his "A" game in a contest where the 'Dores needed it.

When Virginia rode a wave of Friday night momentum in a raucous home environment to stun Florida State and rush the field in Charlottesville last week, it didn't feel like a one-night show. It felt like the beginning of something stunning.

On Saturday, the Cavaliers' fun run through the first part of the season continued on Saturday, and there was nothing fluky about their thrilling 30-27 win over Louisville.

They shrugged off last week's heroics, got back down to business, went on the road to a good, unbeaten ACC foe and walked away with a win over coach Jeff Brohm's team. Now, the Hoos look like a potential spoiler at least and contender at best in the league.

Of course, Georgia Tech is the feel-good story from that conference everybody is talking about, but Tony Elliott's team is not far behind. They'd be unbeaten if not for a wacky four-point loss at North Carolina State during Week 2.

That setback seems like a memory from long ago now, though. On Saturday, Virginia built a 24-14 win late on the strength of a pair of defensive touchdowns, but the Cardinals stormed back to force overtime at home.

After Louisville kicked a field goal, Chandler Morris and Co. stormed back and J'Mari Taylor barreled in from 2 yards out on third down to give UVA another heart-pounding victory.

"We found a way to win," Elliott told ESPN2. "We proved that we've got the heart of a champion."

All that preseason hype with a No. 1 ranking, all that buzzing about talent on both sides of the ball and all the excitement surrounding the Arch Manning era are long in the rear-view mirror.

After Saturday's 29-21 loss to previously 1-3 and reeling Florida in Gainesville, the Texas Longhorns' championship aspirations are on life support.

After a season-opening, offensively inept loss to Ohio State in Columbus, many wrote that off to the Buckeyes just outplaying the Longhorns in a battle of two great teams. But, since then, Manning has been mediocre, the Horns' offensive line has struggled to block anybody, and there just aren't that many electrifying weapons on the perimeter.

All that rang true in the Swamp, as Florida—with true freshman star receiver Dallas Wilson playing for the first time and quarterback DJ Lagway somehow rejuvenated after looking lost throughout the first four games—was the aggressor from the outset.

Texas played catch-up from the outset, and Manning couldn't hang. He seemingly ran for his life on play after play as the Gators defense pursued. He finished with 263 passing yards, a pair of touchdowns and a pair of interceptions but also led the team with 37 rushing yards.

A defense that had been elite so far this season was gashed by 159 Florida rushing yards and pummeled by a formerly nonexistent Gators passing game.

There may be an outside chance this team can get championship-capable, but this doesn't look like a team worthy of the playoffs. It looks like one whose hopes are on life support.

Over the first couple of seasons of the Big Ten expanding to a coast-to-coast league, we've seen how difficult it is for programs to travel cross-country and play well. Just ask Penn State.

But even though it took the Washington Huskies nearly three quarters to wake up in College Park, Maryland, against the unbeaten Terrapins, once they did, they came all the way back for a 24-20 win.

Washington was left-for-dead down by 20 points until 3:44 remaining in the third quarter when it got on the board with a field goal. Explosive quarterback Demond Williams Jr. led three touchdown drives after that, though, as U-Dub stunned Maryland.

Touchdown passes to Denzel Boston and Dezmen Roebuck stormed them back, then an epic 11-play, 80-yard drive that took off more than five minutes culminated with Jonah Coleman's touchdown run with 3:17 left to win it.

Coach Jedd Fisch's team hung with top-ranked Ohio State for a while at home last week before losing 24-6, so it would have been deflating to lose to the Terps, though they are much-improved with true freshman Malik Washington playing quarterback and some young playmakers on defense.

Williams wound up with 275 passing yards, 54 rushing yards and a pair of touchdowns, as Washington survived what would have been a huge letdown to get a big road win—exactly the kind of rugged victory you have to grind out in the Big Ten.

The perfect way for Florida State to wash out the taste of last week's overtime loss to Virginia would have been to spoil Miami's unbeaten season in Tallahassee on Saturday night.

That didn't happen. 

Instead, the Seminoles failed to find any way to defend the Hurricanes' top two playmakers—freshman receiver Malachi Toney and fellow pass-catcher CJ Daniels—early as Miami built a 25-point lead, and their comeback fell short in a 28-22 loss.

Toney caught seven passes for 107 yards and scored twice, and Daniels added 78 yards and another pair of touchdowns as the 'Noles had no answers in the defensive backfield for a vibrant passing game.

It was almost like FSU had to fall so far behind to remember what it had to play for, and coach Mike Norvell's team couldn't climb all the way back. Miami, meanwhile, sleep-walked and played far too conservatively after pulling way ahead. Still, they got the win in the end.

Now, a Florida State team that was the toast of college football after a Week 1 handling of Alabama has tumbled back down to earth and faded into the footnotes of the season and even in the ACC with a pair of conference losses.

On one hand, we maybe should have expected this from a team that went just 2-10 a season ago, but that torrid start elevated the ceiling for a bounce-back season. Instead, they'll just have to settle for a cup of coffee in the championship conversation.

When Jeremiah Smith is basically college football's version of Superman, it's hard to wedge your way into the headlines.

But Smith's wide receiver mate at Ohio State—Carnell Tate—keeps proving he is a sidekick worthy of super hero status himself.

In the Buckeyes' lopsided 42-3 win over Minnesota, the junior shredded the Golden Gophers' passing defense that came into the game ranked 23rd nationally, catching nine passes for 183 yards and scoring a touchdown.

Smith wasn't too shabby himself, scoring a pair of times and catching seven passes for 67 yards, but this was Tate's big game to shine. It appears that redshirt freshman quarterback Julian Sayin is getting comfortable with both of his perimeter playmakers, which is huge news for the top-ranked Buckeyes.

Tate is now neck-and-neck statistically with Smith on the season. Tate has 24 catches for 435 yards and four scores, while Smith has 35 grabs for 463 yards and six touchdowns.

The Chicago native was hotly pursued by teams around the nation and lured with big NIL checks to come be WR1 for top teams around the country. Instead, he chose to stay in Columbus.

Now, he's just as big a piece of the Buckeyes' offensive puzzle as anybody, and as the Big Ten season progresses, he's going to be even more relied upon. This was Tate's breakout game of '25, but don't look for it to be his last.

After starting their season with consecutive losses, the Notre Dame Fighting Irish are staring at an uphill battle to make it to the College Football Playoff.

Every game and every razzle-dazzle or blowout helps.

For a while, it didn't look like Saturday's game against Boise State was going to provide either. But the explosive offense the Irish have been displaying throughout this young season finally got going in the second half, pushing ND to a 28-7 win.

Considering the Irish don't just need to win but win impressively moving forward, the second-half surge was necessary.

There's no shame in beating a quality Group of Five opponent like the Broncos by this margin. This was a team that made the playoffs a season ago, and even though they opened the season with a lopsided loss at USF, Boise can play. 

The Irish made them look mediocre, forcing Maddux Madsen into four touchdowns. In a game where ND signal-caller CJ Carr didn't have his best showing with just 189 passing yards and a pair of interceptions, the Irish needed something positive to show the committee down the road.

It was the defense that has failed them so much in the early-going in losses to Miami and Texas A&M that bailed them out on Saturday, and this team needs to continue stacking wins. The Irish aren't out of the race quite yet.

The revolving door of contenders in the wide-open Big 12 we watch every week may land on a different team that looks impressive.

But the one consistent juggernaut we've seen so far is the Texas Tech Red Raiders.

A season after suffering through mediocrity, the program locked into investing into a roster overhaul with the top-ranked transfer portal class and added some quality recruits to go along with an already young-and-improving roster.

The results are a team that looks like the class of the conference and the league's top contender for the national championship. Coach Joey McGuire's team looked that way again Saturday night, easily dispatching previously unbeaten Houston 35-11, despite not playing their best.

The defense was dynamic, getting pressure on the quarterback, flying around the field and making plays. Offensively, Behren Morton was back at the helm leading the charge of a group that had very little issue cutting through the Cougars.

Willie Fritz's second year at Houston is going well, but TTU is a buzz saw of a different level. The 11th-ranked Red Raiders continue to play like one of the top five teams in the country. The pieces of the puzzle they added are jelling together, and they're getting better every week.

This is a team everybody needs to pay attention to.

When the service academies face off, you can throw out the records. But you can't discard the talent.

Navy put its football weaponry on full display a season ago, stacking up 10 wins. On Saturday, the Midshipmen were in a dogfight with Air Force to remain unbeaten this year.

Quarterback Blake Horvath found multi-faceted running back Eli Heidenreich on downfield passes time and time again, and Navy made just a couple more big plays in a tenuous 34-31 win.

Navy linebacker Jaxson Campbell got his hand in the way of a Liam Szarka pitch around midfield, causing a crucial fumble the Midshipmen recovered inside of 4 minutes. Then, Horvath completed a fourth-down pass to wind out the clock.

Heidenreich had a school-record 243 receiving yards and three receiving touchdowns, and Horvath threw for a career-high 324 yards as Navy outlasted Air Force. Horvath also churned out 130 yards on the ground.

Shockingly, it was a heavyweight passing fest. Szarka was brilliant in the dual with Horvath, accounting for 364 total yards (212 passing), becoming the first collegiate player since Lamar Jackson to throw for at least 200 yards and run for 100 in three consecutive games. 

In the end, though, Navy got it done.

The Midshipmen now are in the driver's seat for the Commander-in-Chief's Trophy, but just as importantly, they remain unbeaten and will be right in the thick of the AAC race and a potential College Football Playoff berth.

The logjam at the top of the Big 12 didn't get any clearer with Cincinnati's 38-30 win over No. 14-ranked Iowa State. If anything, things got a lot murkier.

Now, coach Scott Satterfield's Bearcats showed they need to be reckoned with after jumping out to a big lead and sweating out the second half.

Iowa State had been one of the most battle-tested unbeaten teams in the nation, already with a close win over Kansas State in Ireland during Week Zero, a three-point win over hated rival Iowa and a lopsided victory over Arizona.

But they weren't any match for a Cincy team that lost to open the year against Nebraska but has found its footing with star quarterback Brendan Sorsby. On Saturday, though, it was a rushing attack piling up 260 yards for which Iowa State had no answer.

This is consecutive wins over quality Big 12 teams (Kansas and Iowa State) for Cincinnati, and while many probably entered this game thinking the Cyclones were a big threat to Arizona State and Texas Tech at the top of the conference, they leave it wondering about Cincinnati. 

The Big 12 has plenty of intriguing teams. It's not time to write off the Cyclones, but add the Bearcats to the list.

If you're looking for perfection out of Michigan true freshman megastar Bryce Underwood this year, you'd better not watch the Wolverines play.

The former top-ranked recruit in the nation is having to grow up not only under the heat of the national spotlight but in the weekly furnace that is the Big Ten.

In Saturday's 24-10 home win over a bad Wisconsin team, there were a lot of ugly moments, failed third-down conversions, three-and-outs and even a play where a fiery Underwood lobbied for Sherrone Moore to go for it on 4th-and-2, and, when he did, Underwood failed to handle a low snap for a turnover on downs.

But there were also moments of brilliance. He still needs to learn to dial down the heat on his close-range passes, but Underwood's arm flashed. There were plays where he dropped passes over outstretched arms of defenders, and with the Badgers focusing on defending the run, Underwood made plays.

He wound up with a career-high 270 passing yards on 19-of-28 passing with a touchdown pass. Those numbers would have been much better if not for some crucial drops.

Underwood isn't ready to carry the Wolverines to Big Ten contention, but Moore has to take the training wheels off if they're going to win big games (and The Big Game) later this season, so this was a big step for the true freshman handed the keys to a regal program.

He's getting there.

Unfortunately for North Carolina, first-year head coach Bill Belichick makes more headlines off the field than his team does on it.

The legendary coach has flipped the roster in Chapel Hill, and while nobody really expected things to go swimmingly in Year 1, the Tar Heels are horrifically bad against Power Four teams, and that continued Saturday in a 38-10 home annihilation at the hands of Clemson.

The Tigers had been 1-3 going into the game against UNC but met little resistance in piling up points. It continued a terrible trend for the Heels against top-tier competition—though none of this will appear in the tabloids. 

After a 48-14 season-opening loss to TCU on national television, Belichick's Heels beat Charlotte and Richmond, but last week against UCF, they again were embarrassed 34-9. This is not a team ready for ACC play—especially against the underachieving-but-talented Tigers.

Clemson piled up 488 total yards, led by 32 at halftime and played backups most of the second half.

Belichick is unquestionably a legendary coach with six Super Bowl rings as head coach of the New England Patriots and a couple more as an assistant with the New York Giants, but none of that has translated in the early-going so far in Chapel Hill.