Skip to content

Key takeaways from Week 11's biggest games

Kevin C. Cox / Getty Images

theScore breaks down the top storylines from Saturday's college football games and what they might mean moving forward.

For first time since 2011, LSU has dethroned Alabama

Joe Burrow may have just locked up the Heisman Trophy. Ed Orgeron might deserve your vote for national coach of the year.

In the highest-profile game of the season - No. 2 LSU versus No. 3 Alabama - the Tigers controlled the game on the Crimson Tide's turf.

From the 9:15 mark of the first quarter until the end of the game, LSU never trailed, defeating Alabama 46-41 at Bryant-Denny Stadium. The Crimson Tide's 31-game home winning streak dating back to 2015 is over after Burrow completed 31-of-39 passes for 393 yards and three touchdowns.

Clyde Edwards-Helaire ran for 103 yards and three scores, providing one of the game's biggest highlights with a spin-move touchdown before muscling his way into the end zone to expand LSU's lead to 46-34 late. And he iced the game with a move-the-pile run after Alabama cut the lead to five:

The Tigers are now 9-0 with wins over Alabama, Florida, and Auburn. They scored more points on the road at Alabama than any other opposing team during Nick Saban's tenure.

They close the season against three unranked opponents - Ole Miss, Arkansas, and Texas A&M. If LSU wins those games, its resume might be impressive enough to make the playoff no matter what happens in the SEC Championship game (in which LSU would likely play Georgia).

For Alabama, the season is not over. The big question this week: Will the College Football Playoff committee even drop the Crimson Tide out of the top four after a five-point loss to the No. 2 team in the nation? If Alabama wins out, including against Auburn, it will have one of the most interesting resumes in the CFP era.

Food for thought: If Georgia runs the table, the SEC could end the season with a 12-1 Georgia, 12-1 LSU, and 11-1 Alabama. Good luck making a decision there.

Clemson takes care of business and could return to top four

Streeter Lecka / Getty Images

Despite its undefeated record, Clemson was fifth in the season's first College Football Playoff rankings. It marked the first time since the end of the 2014 season that Clemson wasn't top four in a CFP ranking.

But with two of the top four - Penn State and Alabama - losing Saturday, Clemson is poised to climb this week.

The Tigers overwhelmed North Carolina State 55-10, getting 276 yards and three touchdowns through the air from Trevor Lawrence and 112 yards rushing and a pair of scores from Travis Etienne.

Though Clemson looked unimpressive in narrowly defeating North Carolina earlier this year, it appears to be finding a groove. In their last four games against ACC opponents (Florida State, Louisville, Boston College, and NC State), the Tigers have outscored the opposition 204-41.

Appalachian State completes Carolina sweep

One bad Thursday performance is the only thing keeping Appalachian State from being the favorite to represent the Group of 5 at a New Year's Six bowl.

The Mountaineers improved to 2-0 against Power 5 opponents Saturday, taking down South Carolina 20-15 in Columbia. Appalachian State survived a furious final drive by the Gamecocks that saw Ryan Hilinski convert first downs on fourth-and-18 and fourth-and-15. South Carolina drove into the red zone, but a holding penalty on the final play from the Mountaineers' 19-yard line ended the game.

Appalachian State fell from the ranks of the undefeated with last week's loss to Georgia Southern. But at 8-1, the Mountaineers remain the favorites to win the Sun Belt and could win 10-plus games for the fourth time in five seasons.

Hokies' turnaround continues at Wake's expense

Michael Shroyer / Getty Images

At the end of September, Virginia Tech's bowl streak appeared to be in danger.

That was when the Hokies lost 45-10 to Duke to fall to 2-2. Because Virginia Tech plays two FCS opponents this season, it needs to win seven games to clinch bowl eligibility.

But credit Justin Fuente for engineering a turnaround. Virginia Tech got its sixth win of the year Saturday, defeating No. 19 Wake Forest 36-17.

The Hokies trailed 17-13 after Wake Forest quarterback Jamie Newman found Sage Surratt for a 24-yard touchdown in the third quarter. From there, Virginia Tech scored the final 23 points. Quarterback Hendon Hooker threw for 242 yards and rushed for 69 and a touchdown.

Virginia Tech is now Virginia's primary challenger in the ACC Coastal. Though the Cavaliers are already 5-2 in conference play, they're tied in the loss column with Virginia Tech and Pittsburgh, both of which are 3-2.

Illinois is going bowling

Speaking of turnarounds, it was hard to see this one coming.

After a 9-27 record over his first three seasons, Lovie Smith has Illinois headed to a bowl game.

The Fighting Illini, who made waves earlier this season with a win over Wisconsin, erased a 25-point deficit to top Michigan State 37-34 on Saturday in East Lansing.

Trailing 31-10 entering the fourth quarter, Illinois scored 27 points in the final 15 minutes. Former Michigan quarterback Brandon Peters threw for 369 yards and three touchdowns.

It continues an absolutely bizarre season for Smith's team, a season that earlier saw Illinois lose four consecutive games to Eastern Michigan, Nebraska, Minnesota, and Michigan. At 2-4, the outlook seemed bleak.

But Illinois has since reeled off victories over Wisconsin, Purdue, Rutgers, and Michigan State. A win in the final two games of the regular season - against either Iowa or Northwestern - would guarantee its first winning campaign since 2011.

For Michigan State, it marked a fourth consecutive loss - one that drops the Spartans to 4-5. Since Michigan State made the College Football Playoff in 2015, the program is just 24-23.

Gophers stay golden

Hannah Foslien / Getty Images

Minnesota won't be No. 17 this week.

The Golden Gophers made the first statement of Week 11 with a 31-26 victory over No. 4 Penn State, improving to 9-0 and entering the College Football Playoff discussion.

Quarterback Tanner Morgan was terrific, completing 18-of-20 passes for 339 yards and three touchdowns. Rashod Bateman continued to look like one of the best receivers in the Big Ten, making seven catches for 203 yards.

The defense, meanwhile, intercepted Penn State quarterback Sean Clifford three times as Minnesota took a two-score lead into halftime.

The Golden Gophers didn't own a win over a ranked opponent before Saturday. Now they're in the driver's seat in the Big Ten West with a chance to improve their playoff resume next week at Iowa. Minnesota doesn't play Ohio State in the regular season, so it'll have to wait to see the Buckeyes in the Big Ten Championship game.

Baylor survives another close call

Tom Pennington / Getty Images

Baylor overcame a two-score deficit - and one of the more ridiculous catches of the season - to keep its undefeated season alive.

At 9-0, Matt Rhule's Bears are one of the season's biggest surprises, and no win was more improbable than their 29-23, triple-overtime victory over TCU in Fort Worth.

Baylor looked hapless offensively for much of the game and trailed 9-0 at halftime, but the defense kept it in the game. TCU freshman quarterback Max Duggan struggled, completing just 14-of-32 passes for 140 yards with three interceptions.

Bears receiver Denzel Mims hauled in his second touchdown of the game in the third overtime before cornerback Grayland Arnold intercepted Duggan on a fourth-down pass to seal the win.

Baylor, ranked 12th in the first College Football Playoff top 25, hosts Oklahoma next week in a game that could decide first place in the Big 12.

No Chase Young, no problem (this week) for Ohio State

Ohio State didn't need Chase Young to handle Maryland on Saturday.

Instead, the Buckeyes piled 73 points on the Terrapins in a 59-point rout. The No. 1 team in the country ran for 383 yards while holding Maryland to 139 total yards of offense.

ESPN reported Young could face a four-game suspension, so his absence could matter more down the line - especially if the Buckeyes don't have him against Penn State on Nov. 23 or Michigan a week later. But for this week (and likely next week against Rutgers) it didn't make a difference.

Daily Newsletter

Get the latest trending sports news daily in your inbox