In College Football Week 4, we saw some remarkable performances from defenses in ranked-versus-ranked matchups and several marquee quarterbacks delivered clutch performances in crucial victories for their teams. On the other side of that coin, though, there were truly some awful performances by a few key starters and some notable coaches.
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Let’s examine some of the worst performances in college football today.
Devon Dampier, QB, Utah Utes
Coming into Week 4, it finally appeared like the Utah Utes had found their top quarterback. Devon Dampier was completing 73 percent of his 89 pass attempts, posting a 7-0 TD-INT ratio with only 2 sacks taken the entire season. Everything unraveled on Saturday. While he was only sacked once, the Texas Tech Red Raiders didn’t need to take him down, since he gave the football away (4 interceptions) and averaged just 4.3 yards per attempt. With BYU’s defense still looming (Oct 18), another brutal showing from this Utes’ passing attack is likely on the horizon.
- Devon Dampier stats vs Texas Tech: 25-for-38, 162 passing yards, 4.3 ypa, 0-2 TD-INT, 51.0 ESPN QBR, 27 rushing yards, 2.5 ypc
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Nebraska Cornhuskers’ Run Defense
One big key to beating the Michigan Wolverines is making true freshman quarterback Bryce Underwood beat you through the air. The Nebraska Cornhuskers never managed to do that in Week 4. Justice Haynes (149 yards, 1 touchdown on 17 carries) and Jordan Marshall (69 yards, 1 touchdown on 4 carries) ripped through the wide-open lanes in the Cornhuskers’ run defense, with each of them erupting for scores from 50-plus yards out. Even Duane Underwood (37-yard rushing touchdown) burned Nebraska on the ground. Michigan finished the day with 290 rushing yards, averaging 9.4 yards per carry, before kneel-downs in the 30-27 road victory.
- Justice Haynes and Jordan Marshall vs Nebraska: 229 rushing yards, 2 touchdowns, 9.96 ypc
Dabo Swinney, HC, Clemson Tigers
“Hey, listen, if Clemson’s tired of winning, they can send me on my way.” That’s what Clemson Tigers head coach Dabo Swinney told the fan base after a 1-2 start. Many were at least a little willing to get over the season-opening loss to LSU. Barely surviving against Temple the following week raised some doubt. Then, Clemson went to Georgia Tech and looked like the inferior team. It seemed like it couldn’t get worse.
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The Tigers found a new low in Week 4. Hosting Syracuse, Clemson went 3-for-13 on third-down attempts, turned it over twice, and had 8 penalties for 75 yards. When your team is making that many mental mistakes and not executing, it’s a reflection on the coaching staff. Swinney felt like a Clemson lifer coming into the season, but if he isn’t willing to adapt to modern college football, he probably shouldn’t be a Power 4 coach.
Auburn Tigers Offensive Line and QB Jackson Arnold
When the Oklahoma Sooners‘ defense took the field in Week 4, the entire team had 7 sacks and ranked 25th in sack rate (8.93 percent). In the first half alone, the Auburn Tigers‘ offensive line allowed 7 sacks. Now, it’s true that a quarterback holds plenty of responsibility for sacks taken. Arnold held onto the football far too long, resulting in several sacks. He also had some alarming errant throws late in the third quarter, turning a potential go-ahead touchdown drive into a stalled series near midfield. Oklahoma’s pass rush came alive again on the game-sealing drive, breaking the single-game program record for sacks (10).
- Oklahoma Sooners defense: 10 sacks (program record), 14 tackles for loss
Jake Retzlaff, QB, Tulane Green Wave
There’s bad quarterback play and then there’s what Tulane Green Wave quarterback Jake Retzlaff put on tape today. Truly, the only bright side for the team is that he didn’t throw an interception. Then again, it’s harder for an opponent to pick you off when the quarterback throwing a catchable pass is a rarity. Retzlaff’s day was over after he completed just 5-of-17 attempts for 57 yards, an unfathomably bad 3.3 yards per attempt. No one would fault Tulane coach Jon Sumrall for thinking about what he could do for a bigger program right now.
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Taylen Green and Mike Washington Jr, QB and RB, Arkansas
It took a team effort to blow a 28-10 halftime lead on Saturday against the Memphis Tigers. After putting up four first-half touchdowns, the Arkansas Razorbacks offense went belly-up in the second half. Arkansas put up 198 total yards on its five second-half drives, with three of those series getting into the Tigers’ 30-yard line. Razorbacks quarterback Taylen Green was picked off on 3rd-and-6 at the 17-yard line. He rebounded from it two series later, leading a drive that set up Arkansas at the 9-yard line down by 1 with under 90 seconds remaining. Then, running back Mike Washington Jr. fumbled, giving the win away.
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Florida Gators HC Billy Napier’s Offense
Don’t blame the weather for how the Florida Gators’ offense looked on Saturday night. Just days after he confirmed he would remain the play-caller, head coach Billy Napier served as the architect of an offense that went 0-for-7 on third down and averaged 1.5 yards per play in the first half. By comparison, Miami went 5-for-9 on third downs, averaged 4.8 yards per play, and had 12 first downs to the Gators’ one. Napier has left the athletic department with no choice. Whether it’s in the next few days, during the bye, or in a few weeks after losing in The Swamp to Texas, Florida needs to fire its head coach.
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Illinois Fighting Illini’s Defense
It’s difficult to pick a single player when a defense allows 200-plus yards both through the air and on the ground, so we chose the entire Illinois Fighting Illini defense. Illinois couldn’t generate much pressure, and even when it did, Indiana quarterback Fernando Mendoza (21-of-23 passes completed with 5 touchdowns) diced up the secondary. When the Hoosiers weren’t picking apart the secondary, they dominated the line of scrimmage. In the end, the Hoosiers put up over 500 total yards and 63 points. Coming into Week 4, Illinois was allowing just 268.3 total yards and 7.3 points per game.
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