Week 4 of the 2025 college football season is now in the rearview mirror, and we learned a lot about some of the teams in the Top 25, and we were treated to some excellent matchups. And then there was the carnage that went down in Bloomington, Indiana. But I’m saving that one for last.
Forget me talking in the intro, I know what you all are here for! You know the drill by now, let’s jump right into it!
Clemson’s CFP hopes are all but dashed
Considering the circumstances of this entire situation, it’s a bit crazy to say a sentence like that four weeks into the season, isn’t it?
But it now officially rings true, because Clemson, who was already in a world of trouble following last week, are now in a pretty much insurmountable hole after their 34-21 loss to Syracuse on Saturday (the Orange, by the way, are now 3-1. Just something to keep an eye on).
But for the Tigers, there was some that went right, but a lot more that went wrong in this game. Cade Klubnik threw for 363 yards and three touchdowns, but he took 60(!) passing attempts to get to that mark, and he only completed 37 of those passes. He also posted a quite subpar 49.3 QBR and threw a back-breaking interception in the fourth quarter when Clemson was desperately trying to get back into the game.
The Tigers also straight up lost the turnover battle, as aside from Klubnik’s interception, running back Adam Randall also lost a fumble, while Syracuse was clean the entire game.
There isn’t another way to say this: this is really, really bad for Clemson. The College Football Playoff is no longer a possibility barring some sort of miracle at the end of the year. And dare I say, if things keep progressing at this rate throughout the rest of the season, maybe the Tigers’ athletic department should consider a…coaching change.
Yeah. I said it.
Texas Tech should be taken seriously as a national CFP contender
Texas Tech, I apologize. I was not fully familiar with your game.
Shaq memes aside, Texas Tech legitimately played a very solid game and came away with a tough, gratifying win over Big 12 foe Utah on the road in both teams’ first conference game of the season.
Admittedly, things did look a bit dicey through the first half or so, as starting quarterback Behren Morton was struggling. He only threw for 142 yards and two interceptions before leaving the game in the third quarter due to injury.
Enter…backup quarterback Will Hammond? Putting up 24 points the rest of the way without breaking a sweat?
I did not have that one on my bingo card. But once Hammond entered the game for Morton and got into a groove (which did not take long), the Texas Tech offense did basically whatever they wanted against the Utah defense. Hammond only threw one more incompletion than touchdown in this game, as he went 13-for-16 for 169 yards and two touchdowns.
The status of Morton is obviously a big one for the Red Raiders to monitor going forward. But in the meantime, Hammond showed that he can play. He made things happen with both his arm and his legs, and Texas Tech has to feel really, really good about the performance that their backup quarterback put on in the altitude against a tough Utes defense.
Texas Tech is for real. You don’t spend all that money in the NIL market and expect to tread water. And the Red Raiders have done anything but that so far, and they deserve to be taken more seriously as a national College Football Playoff contender.
Jayden Maiava has become one of the most underrated quarterbacks in the country
In a game that didn’t start until 11 p.m. ET since it was being played on the West Coast (like, seriously? Who scheduled that?), USC protected their home turf and beat Michigan State 45-31, and Trojans quarterback Jayden Maiava played what was likely his best game of the year so far.
Maiava has had a few very solid games so far this season, but going into this game, USC was 3-0 while facing the likes of: Missouri State, Georgia Southern, and Purdue. So yeah. No disrespect to any of those teams, but not exactly a powerhouse slate right there.
But finally, USC was going up against a Big Ten opponent, and while their defense left some things to be desired, generally speaking, the offense did not disappoint. Maiava completed 20 of his 26 passes for 234 yards and three scores. He had a hyper-efficient night, and his connection with wide receiver Makai Lemon is legit. Lemon hauled in eight receptions for 127 yards and a 40-yard touchdown in the second quarter.
FOX also referred to this touchdown as “zesty”. Get it, because Makai Lemon…? Lemons are zesty, apparently? Thank you FOX, very cool!
But in all seriousness, Maiava has been producing at a high level through the Trojans’ first four games of the season, and in part because of his play, USC is 4-0. They do still have Illinois, Michigan, and Notre Dame as their next three games coming up, but for now, Maiava and USC have played well.
Miami continues to find ways to win
It hasn’t necessarily been all pretty all the time (cue this weekend’s game and the Notre Dame game), but the Miami Hurricanes are 4-0 and continue to find ways to win games.
Take Saturday’s 26-7 win over Florida for example. Miami was at home and facing a Gators team whose starting quarterback, DJ Lagway, had just thrown five interceptions in a game. The expectation is that the Hurricanes would cruise to victory. And while the final score might indicate a one-sided game throughout, that score is a bit deceiving.
This was a 13-7 game heading into the fourth quarter. Both quarterbacks were severely underwhelming, as Lagway didn’t turn the ball over but he finished with a putrid 24.1 QBR while completing just over half his passes.
Somewhat shockingly, Miami’s Carson Beck was not much better. He completed 17 of his 30 passes for 160 yards and an interception late in the third quarter that almost let Florida back into the game. He also finished with a 51.4 QBR.
But regardless of the play of both quarterbacks, the story of this game was Miami’s defense. They obviously held Florida to just seven points. The Hurricanes’ defense held Florida to just 80 rushing yards as a team. Lagway only threw for 61 yards all game. Put simply, this Florida offense, which has potential when everything is clicking, was stopped cold in its tracks all game long.
Miami just continues to find ways to win even when their offense (or even their defense) doesn’t quite play their best. They may be the most well-rounded team in college football, and they should absolutely be considered a national championship contender until further notice.
Oklahoma also continues to find ways to win
I know how un-creative that title was, but it remains true for Oklahoma so far this season. While they might not be playing the best brand of football that they’re capable of, they continue to find ways to emerge victorious.
This was the case in the Sooners’ 24-17 win over Auburn this past Saturday, which featured former Oklahoma quarterback Jackson Arnold returning to Norman as a member of the Tigers. Both quarterbacks played well, generally speaking, although they made a couple of mistakes over the course of the game.
Oklahoma’s John Mateer, who seems to be garnering some (very) early Heisman buzz, went 24-for-36 for 271 passing yards and a score, while also adding 29 yards and a touchdown on the ground. He did lose a fumble, and the turnovers are starting to add up. But Mateer has done a great job of recovering and bouncing back from his mistakes throughout the year.
Arnold also played well for Auburn, and has generally had a good start to the season. In his former home stadium, he went 21-for-32 with 220 yards and a touchdown. Unlike Mateer, he did not turn the ball over, but he didn’t get a ton of help from his running game, as Auburn only racked up 67 rushing yards as a team on 35 carries.
This game was, in large part, won by Oklahoma through two key plays: an aforementioned touchdown run by Mateer from nine yards out that made the game 22-17, and then a safety to add two points to the Sooners’ lead that ultimately led to a victory.
There are some things that need to be addressed and things that need to be tightened up a bit (Mateer’s turnovers come to mind for me), but through four games, Oklahoma looks to be one of the best teams in the vaunted SEC. And they’ll take 4-0 any day of the week.
And last but not least…
Indiana is here to stay
Last year was not a fluke, people. This may be some breaking, earth-shattering news, but Curt Cignetti and his Hoosiers are once again one of the best teams in the country.
The result that proved this notion is the 63-10 dismantling of then-No. 9 Illinois Saturday night at Merchants Bank Field at Memorial Stadium (yes, I just wanted to use the new field name). Indiana took off in the first quarter, jumping out to a 14-7 lead and never looking back.
By halftime, this game was 35-10. By the end of the third quarter, this game was 49-10. Everything that could go right for the Hoosiers did go right, and seemingly everything that could go wrong for Illinois did go wrong.
Luke Altmyer was extremely mediocre, as he completed 14 of his 22 passes for 146 yards and a touchdown. He was also sacked seven times and continuously had that shell-shocked look on his face every time an Indiana defensive player took him down in the offensive backfield.
You know who wasn’t mediocre? Indiana quarterback Fernando Mendoza, who had more touchdown passes than incompletions. No, I’m not joking. Against a veteran Illinois defense who had played like one of the best units in the conference heading into this game, Mendoza and the Hoosiers’ offense completely gashed the Fighting Illini.
Mendoza completed 21 of his 23 passes for 267 yards and five, yes, five touchdown passes. Indiana ran for a whopping 312 yards as a team, and Khobie Martin and Kaelon Black combined for 196 yards and three touchdowns on the ground. And all that production made for plays like this:
Indiana completely and utterly destroyed and dominated Illinois in every single facet of the game. I’m not saying that Indiana will play like this in every game from here on out, especially considering that they have teams such as Penn State and Oregon on the schedule.
But for now, Curt Cignetti and the Indiana Hoosiers have proven that this season, they are picking up right where they left off in 2024.
Elms' Essentials: Week 3
Elms' Essentials: Week 2
