Week 5 // 2025
QUOTE OF THE WEEK
I don’t think I watched it go through the uprights because I knew it was in…I’ve done it my whole life, so it’s just another kick for me.
Arizona State kicker Jesus Gomez on kicking the game-winning field goal in a 27-24 victory over Baylor
TEAM TO WATCH TEAM oF THE WEEK
INDIANA MEMPHIS
No. 11 Indiana moved up eight spots in this week’s AP rankings after opening Big Ten play with a 63-10 rout over then-No. 9 Illinois in front of a home crowd. The Hoosiers defense allowed just 161 total yards in the win, and quarterback Fernando Mendoza threw 21-for-23 with 267 yards.
It was all Hoosiers after Illinois tied the game at 7-7 early in the first quarter, as Indiana held the llini to only one field goal for the rest of the matchup. Indiana recorded its fourth-straight 300-yard rushing game, led by Khobie Martin’s 107 yards and two touchdowns. The Hoosiers’ 53-point win marked the largest margin of victory over an AP top-10 team in program history. Indiana has won a program-record 12-straight home games under head coach Curt Cignetti.
The Hoosiers visit Iowa on Saturday at 1:30 p.m. PHX time on Peacock.
Trailing by 18 points in the second quarter, Memphis stormed back to upset Arkansas, 32-31, and solidify itself as one of the Group of Five’s top contenders. The game extended the Tigers’ win streak to eight, dating back to last season, and cemented their fourth-straight home victory over an SEC opponent.
The Memphis offense piled up 290 rushing yards, with running back Sutton Smith accounting for a career-high 148 yards on the ground. Quarterback Brendon Lewis added 103 rushing yards, the most by a Memphis quarterback in the last 30 years.
The most pivotal play of the game came in the final two minutes, when Arkansas drove inside Memphis’ 15-yard line for the go-ahead field goal. Memphis safety Chris Bracy stripped the ball and recovered the fumble to seal it for the Tigers.
Memphis opens American conference play at Florida Atlantic on Saturday at 4 p.m. PHX on ESPN2.
GAMES WATCH to
For a full schedule of Week 5 games, click here. (All times in PHX)
2025 BOWL PREDICTIONS
CFP SEMIFINAL at Vrbo FIESTA BOWL
ESPN Bonagura – No. 5 LSU vs. No. 1 Ohio State
ESPN Schlabach – No. 3 Georgia vs. No. 2 Miami
On 3 – No. 4 Oregon vs. No. 1 Ohio State
USA Today – Oregon vs. Georgia
College Football News – No. 6 Oregon vs. No. 2 Miami
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GAME OF THE WEEK
#6 OREGON AT #3 PENN STATE
A top-six matchup hits University Park as No. 3 Penn State hosts No. 6 Oregon to open Big Ten play for the Nittany Lions. The showdown will be a rematch of the 2024 Big Ten Championship, where the Ducks defeated the Nittany Lions, 45-37, in their first year in the conference.
Penn State is coming off a bye week heading into its annual White Out game, while Oregon is riding a 41-7 rivalry win over Oregon State last Saturday. Ducks quarterback Dante Moore completed 21-of-31 passes for 305 yards and four touchdowns, with each of his scores going to a different receiver. Oregon’s defense held Oregon State to just 147 total yards.
ESPN’s College GameDay will be in Happy Valley on Saturday, with kickoff set for 4:30 p.m. PHX time on NBC.
RATE BOWL
ESPN Bonagura – Houston vs. Maryland
ESPN Schlabach – Baylor vs. Michigan State
On 3 – UCF vs. Maryland
CBS Sports – West Virginia vs. Minnesota
College Football News – Utah vs. Nebraska
ALUMNI SPOTLIGHT
Travis Etienne Jr.
With the game tied in an AFC South showdown between the Jacksonville Jaguars and Houston Texans, Jaguars running back Travis Etienne Jr. found the end zone inside the two-minute warning, leading Jacksonville to a 17-10 victory.
In addition to that critical touchdown, Etienne Jr. led the running back room with 56 yards on 16 carries. The Jaguars have opened the 2025 season with two home wins and their first win at home over Houston since 2017.
Etienne Jr. is no stranger to big moments, as he and the Clemson Tigers won the 2019 Fiesta Bowl, 29-23, over Ohio State. He connected with his now-NFL teammate Trevor Lawrence for a clutch 34-yard touchdown, Etienne’s third of the game, to reclaim the lead for Clemson as the Tigers advanced to their fifth CFP National Championship game.
notable performances
The TCU offense exploded for 517 yards in a 35-24 win over rival SMU on Saturday, with wide receiver Eric McAlister’s 254 receiving yards and three touchdowns stealing the show.
The Horned Frogs were trailing 24-21 in the fourth quarter before quarterback Josh Hoover found McAlister for two unanswered touchdowns, leading TCU to a double-digit win. McAlister’s 254 single-game receiving yards are the highest in FBS so far this season and the second-most in TCU program history.
In a 49-37 win at Air Force, running back Dylan Riley recorded 255 all-purpose yards and scored five touchdowns in the Broncos’ conference opener.
He rushed for a career-high 171 yards and is the only player in Boise State history to score four rushing touchdowns and one receiving touchdown in a game. He became the first FBS player to accomplish that feat this season and the first Mountain West player to do so in 10 years.
Eric McAlister – TCU
Dylan Riley – Boise State
BIG NEWS
The Rate Bowl will once again feature Bowl Season’s only Big Ten vs. Big 12 matchup at a new time of 2:30 p.m. on Friday, December 26. As we eagerly await kickoff in downtown Phoenix, we’re bringing you weekly game highlights, player reports and other updates from the two conferences. Here’s the BIG news for Week 5:
BIG 12 BIG TEN
• No. 1 Ohio State continues to lead the AP poll with No. 3 Penn State, No. 6 Oregon, No. 11 Indiana, No. 19 Michigan, No. 21 USC and No. 23 Illinois rounding out the seven Big Ten teams ranked in this week’s poll
• Of the 30 teams who remain undefeated, seven reside in the Big Ten: Indiana, Maryland, Ohio State, Oregon, Penn State, USC and Washington
• Maryland quarterback Malik Washington was named Big Ten Freshman of the Week for the second time this season after he threw for 265 yards and three touchdowns in a 27-10 win at Wisconsin. His 1,038 passing yards are the most for any Power Four true freshman quarterback since Jayden Daniels with 1,073 in 2019
• Washington quarterback Demond Williams Jr., a Chandler native and Basha High School alum, was named Big Ten Co-Offensive Player of the Week after having an 84% completion percentage in the Huskies’ 59-24 win over Washington State, the eighth-highest in UW history
• Daniel Wingate led Maryland with 11 tackles, 1.0 sacks and 1.5 tackles for loss in Maryland’s 27-10 win at Wisconsin to earn Big Ten Defensive Player of the Week honors. Wingate has 39 total tackles this season which leads the Big Ten and is fifth nationally
• Four Big 12 teams are ranked in this week’s AP Top 25. Leading is No. 12 Texas Tech followed by No. 14 Iowa State, No. 24 TCU and No. 25 BYU
• The Big 12 has eight wins against Power Four opponents, which ties the 2002 season with the most non-conference wins against major conference opponents in league history
• Arizona State kicker Jesus Gomez drilled a 43-yard field goal as time expired to give the Sun Devils a 27-24 win at Baylor, which was the first walk-off field goal on the road by an ASU kicker in over 60 years
• Red Raiders quarterback Will Hammond earned Big 12 Freshman of the Week and Co-Offensive Player of Week honors after entering in the second half and leading the Texas Tech offense with 13-of-16 passing for 169 yards and two touchdowns while rushing for 61 yards in just his third collegiate appearance
• UCF’s offensive line allowed zero sacks and controlled the game with three drives of 13 plays or more in a 34-9 win over North Carolina. The Golden Knights enter conference play 3-0
news in the foundation
FIESTA BOWL COPPER STATE INVITATIONAL HS FLAG FOOTBALL
TOURNEY SET FOR SEASON
The next step in the evolution of high school flag football in Arizona is here.
The Fiesta Sports Foundation announced the creation of an in-season tournament, the Fiesta Bowl Copper State Invitational, the first of its kind. The state’s top teams across the 6A, 5A and 4A conferences, including both defending state champions, will come together for one tournament.
Chandler Hamilton, the 6A state champions, and Waddell Canyon View, 5A champions, headline the tournament to be played on October 9 and 11 at Arizona State University’s Dorsey Fields.
charity spotlight
FIESTA
SPORTS FOUNDATION MARKS 10 YEARS OF WISHES FOR TEACHERS
This year is the 10th anniversary of Fiesta Sports Foundation’s Palo Verde Wishes for Teachers program, Arizona’s largest direct support initiative for teachers. Seeing that many teachers spent their own money to enhance their classroom experience, Fiesta Sports Foundation and developed a program to aid educators in that effort. This year, the program culminates by granting $2,500 in classroom wishes to a record 540 teachers across Arizona.
Applications for the Wishes for Teachers program are open now and close on September 30. Arizona K-12 public or charter school employees can apply at wishesforteachers.org.
Fiesta Sports Foundation Chief Impact Officer Kristina Chumpol joined “Arizona Horizon” to discuss the program.
Click the graphic below to watch!
