Last week was a good reminder to never shrug off a Saturday slate of college football games that appears to be short on marquee matchups. Intrigue arises in odd places even without the obvious “big games.” This week’s schedule pops even less than that.
Kansas improved to 2-0 for the first time in more than a decade by squeezing out a victory at West Virginia, a win highlighted by a clinching pick-six in overtime. Iowa State also went on the road and ended a six-game skid against its biggest rival, Iowa.
HUNTINGTON, W.Va. (AP) — The path to one of Marshall’s greatest victories was forged through scooping up transfer portal talent, magic tricks, and a second-year coach’s belief that a Sun Belt Conference team can be as good as any opponent, especially a storied giant like Notre Dame.
New No. 1 team Georgia opens Southeastern Conference play against South Carolina. Quarterback Stetson Bennett and the defending national champions have been dominant so far. They’ve outscored Oregon and Samford by a combined 82-3. The Gamecocks are led by Oklahoma transfer Spencer Rattler. They’re coming off a loss to No. 10 Arkansas. South Carolina’s challenge got even bigger with the season-ending ACL injuries to linebackers Jordan Strachan and Mo Kaba. In another big SEC game, 24th-ranked Texas A&M tries to rebound against No. 13 Miami.
GUIDONIA MONTECELIO, Italy (AP) — Rory McIlroy’s first competitive round on next year’s Ryder Cup course was a success. The four-time major champion holed out an approach shot for an eagle en route to a 4-under 67 for an early share of the clubhouse lead in the opening round of the Italian Open on Thursday at the Marco Simone club outside Rome.
The basketball-crazed state of North Carolina has something other than college hoops to get excited about. It turns out its football teams are pretty good, too.
Coach Bobby Petrino returns to Arkansas as head coach at rising FCS program Missouri State. He left the Razorbacks after a scandal in 2012.
Two more Sun Belt teams get their shots at ranked teams Saturday, a week after two top-10 teams lost to Group of Five programs on the same day for the first time in the College Football Playoff era. Both winners came from that same fun conference.
STEPHENVILLE — Stephenville running back Tate Maruska did his best Forrest Gump impersonation in the Yellow Jackets’ 52-34 victory over Decatur on Friday night: He kept running and running. A week after rushing for a school-record 311 yards and five TDs in a one-point win over Everman, Maruska carried the ball 28 times for 291 yards and three touchdowns in leading the top-ranked Yellow Jackets to the lopsided victory over the winless Eagles.
Tarleton State University Sports Information Guzman named WAC Special Teams Player of the Week STEPHENVILLE — Tarleton Football kicker Adrian Guzman has had a special start to the 2022 campaign, and got recognized for his efforts this week. On Monday, the Western Athletic Conference named Guzman its Special Teams Player of the Week following his performance at TCU on Saturday.