Week 7 // 2023
Week 7
COLLEGE FOOTBALL INSIDER // 2023
QUOTE OF THE WEEK “I looked back and saw Haynes (King) roll right, that’s when I flipped my hips and went to the back pylon. The ball was already in the air and I knew I had to catch this one.” -- Georgia Tech wide receiver Christian Leary on his game-winning catch against Miami, 23-20 TEAM OF THE WEEK
LOUISVILLE The No. 14 Cardinals, previously ranked No. 25, are on the rise after upsetting thenNo. 10 Notre Dame, 33-20, in front of their largest crowd ever at L&N Stadium. Currently off to its best start in 10 years, Louisville was named the Cheez-It National Team of the Week after claiming its first ranked win of the season.
T E A M T O W AT C H
OKLAHOMA
The Sooners reclaimed the Golden Hat in the Red River Rivalry after a nail-biting 34-30 win over the No. 3 Longhorns. No. 5 Oklahoma – now the only undefeated Big 12 team – moved up seven spots in the latest AP Poll and Texas dropped to No. 9. Dillon Gabriel threw for 285 yards, rushed for 113 yards and accounted for two touchdowns in the back-and-forth battle that saw seven lead changes and three ties. Texas snagged a 30-27 lead after a field goal with 1:17 left to play before Oklahoma’s offense moved 75 yards in five plays for the winning score. As the pocket collapsed around him with :15 left, Gabriel connected on a 3-yard touchdown pass to Nic Anderson, sealing the Sooners victory.
Louisville put on a strong defensive performance, forcing five turnovers and holding Notre Dame to 298 total yards. At the forefront of the defensive effort were a pair of ACC Players of the Week: Mason Reiger and Devin Neal. Neal recorded eight tackles, two interceptions, and a pass breakup while Reiger accounted for four tackles, a quarterback hurry and a forced fumble. The Cardinals (6-0, 3-0 ACC) continue action visiting Pittsburgh on Saturday, October 14, at 3:30 p.m. PHX on CW Network.
Oklahoma (6-0, 3-0 Big 12) will enjoy a bye week before it meets UCF for the first time in program history on Saturday, October 21, in Norman, at 9 a.m. PHX on ABC. COLLEGE FOOTBALL INSIDER // 2023
Week 7
GAMES OF THE WEEK SYRACUSE AT #4 FLORIDA STATE 10.14 // 9 AM // ABC
TEXAS A&M AT #19 TENNESSEE 10.14 // 12:30 PM // CBS
#10 USC AT #21 NOTRE DAME 10.14 // 4:30 PM // NBC
#25 MIAMI AT #12 NORTH CAROLINA 10.14 // 4:30 PM // ABC
#18 UCLA AT #15 OREGON STATE 10.14 // 5 PM // FOX For a full schedule of Week 7 games, click here. (All times in PHX)
AP WEEK 7 RANKINGS 1. 2. 3. 4. 5.
Georgia Michigan Ohio State Florida State Oklahoma
6. Penn State 7. Washington 8. Oregon 9. Texas 10. USC
For a full AP Top 25 Rankings, click here.
GAME OF THE WEEK #8 OREGON AT #7 WASHINGTON In their 115th all-time contest, the Ducks and the Huskies face off for the first time ever as Top 10 opponents with ESPN College GameDay reporting on-site. Both teams are coming off a bye week and remain undefeated with identical 5-0 records (2-0 Pac-12). The Huskies lead the nation in total offense and passing offense with 569.4 yards and 446.4 yards per game, respectively. They are also No. 3 with 46.0 points per game. Meanwhile, the Ducks are right on their tails in total offense at No. 2 (557.8) and slot above the Huskies with 51.6 points per game. It will be a statement day for quarterbacks Bo Nix (Oregon) and Michael Penix Jr. (Washington), both Heisman contenders, in this Pac-12 showdown.
2023 BOWL PREDICTIONS
Find out who will maintain a perfect record and push forward in College Football Playoff contention on Saturday, October 14, at 12:30 p.m. PHX on ABC.
Vrbo FIESTA BOWL
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ESPN Bonagura – Oregon vs. Penn State ESPN Schlabach – Oregon vs. Air Force College Football News – Louisville vs. Penn State College Football Network - Ohio State vs. Oregon USA Today – Oregon vs. Texas On3 – Washington vs. Wyoming
Week 7
ESPN Bonagura – BYU vs. Purdue 247 Sports – Texas Tech vs. Illinois College Football News – TCU vs. Minnesota College Football Network – Oklahoma State vs. Nebraska Action Network – BYU vs. Nebraska CBS – Texas Tech vs. Michigan State
COLLEGE FOOTBALL INSIDER // 2023
ALUMNI HIGHLIGHT
JA’MARR CHASE In his return to State Farm Stadium where he burst onto the scene in the 2019 Fiesta Bowl, Bengals wide receiver Ja’Marr Chase put on a record-setting performance with a franchise-record 15 receptions for 192 yards and three touchdowns. The 34-20 win marked Cincinnati’s first road victory and second overall win this season. Chase was drafted fifth overall by the Bengals in 2021, reuniting with his former LSU teammate Joe Burrow in the NFL. The duo were Fiesta Bowl champions in 2019 after LSU defeated UCF 40-32 with Chase, in his debut collegiate season, recording six receptions for 93 yards and one touchdown. He went on to win the Fred Biletnikoff Award as a sophomore in his final year at LSU when he led the nation in both receiving yards (1,780) and touchdowns (20). The Bengals will host the Seahawks in Cincinnati on Sunday, October 15, at 10 a.m. PHX on CBS.
BIG NEWS The Guaranteed Rate Bowl will once again feature Bowl Season’s only Big 12 vs. Big Ten matchup. As we eagerly await the Dec. 26 kickoff, we’re bringing you weekly game highlights, player reports and other updates from the two conferences. Here’s the BIG news from Week 7:
BIG TEN
BIG 12
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No. 2 Michigan leads the Big Ten conference in the latest AP Top 10 for the seventh consecutive week, followed by No. 3 Ohio State and No. 6 Penn State. This is the first time that the Big Ten has had three teams ranked in the top six since October 2017 when Penn State (No. 2), Wisconsin (No. 5) and Ohio State (No. 6) were among the nation’s best. Michigan and Penn State lead the nation in scoring defense at No. 1 and No. 2 respectively. The Wolverines are allowing 6.7 points per game on average followed by the Nittany Lions at 9.6. After a 24-14 victory against Rutgers, Luke Fickell became the first Wisconsin head coach to win five of his first six games since Bret Bielema in 2006. Twelve Big Ten athletes are semifinalists for the 2023 William V. Campbell Trophy, awarded to the nation’s top football scholar-athlete. Zak Zinter (Michigan) and Maema Njongmeta (Wisconsin) are 2022-23 Vrbo Fiesta Bowl and Guaranteed Rate Bowl alumni.
COLLEGE FOOTBALL INSIDER // 2023
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No. 5 Oklahoma, No. 9 Texas and No. 23 Kansas represent the Big 12 in the latest AP Poll. West Virginia and BYU are also receiving votes. The Sooners lead the nation with 12 interceptions after recording two in their win over Texas. It’s the first time in 23 years Oklahoma has registered at least 12 interceptions through the first six games. Kansas’ 51 points against UCF were its most in a Big 12 home game since 2010 and the Jayhawks have scored 171 points though their first four games, second-best in program history after their 214 points in 2007. The Big 12 has the fewest turnovers of any league (90) and are tied for the second-most nonoffensive-touchdowns (18). Among conferences, the Big 12 is first in rushing yards per game (171.1), with 425.2 total yards and third in passing yards (254.1) and scoring (31.2).
Week 7
MORE THAN A GAME EMPLOYEE SPOTLIGHT
BEHIND THE BOWL: CELEBRATING HISPANIC HERITAGE MONTH WITH SANDRA AVILA A Mexico City native, Sandra Avila leads the Fiesta Bowl Charities team as the organization’s Director of Community Relations. The Fiesta Bowl highlights her in a featured piece in honor of Hispanic Heritage Month.
FIESTA BOWL FRIDAY NIGHT SHOWDOWN PRESENTED BY SUPER STAR CAR WASH The Fiesta Bowl Organization is elevating youth and scholastic football in the state of Arizona with its Fiesta Bowl Friday Night Showdown presented by Super Star Car Wash strategic initiative. This week’s game will feature Higley at Notre Dame Preparatory on Friday, October 13 at 7 p.m. The program features on-site fan events, experiences and engagement, in addition to student-athlete and student-section highlights and recognition across non-linear and social media platforms. The Fiesta Bowl Friday Night Showdown presented by Super Star Car Wash will run through November 3, with weekly Friday night matchups across the Valley of the Sun. The full schedule can be found by clicking here.
“It’s an opportunity to celebrate Hispanic heritage cultures. As big as that encompasses, for me, it’s being Mexican and being able to celebrate that and celebrating other cultures. Being able to recognize differences, celebrate our heritage, share and elevate our culture, our food, our music — all of these elements of who we are, that’s what Hispanic Heritage Month means to me.” Read the full story here.
Week 7
COLLEGE FOOTBALL INSIDER // 2023
JA NUA RY 1, 2024
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COLLEGE FOOTBALL INSIDER // 2023
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Week 7