College football week 9 is in the books. After every week fans can take away things from what happened on the field. Here are 5 things learned from college football week 9.
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Ole Miss lost to Georgia in their last game and had to travel to Oklahoma this week. Both teams entered with one loss and the winner would have a clearer path to the CFP. The Rebels had a back-and-forth game against Oklahoma, but were able to come out on top. Their offense put up 34 points and the defense played a good game after struggling this season.
The Rebels are now 7-1 with their only loss being to Georgia. While the Rebels lost games last season to Kentucky and Florida that they should have won, they look like they can handle the remaining schedule. These are the games left on the schedule: vs. South Carolina, vs. The Citadel, vs. Florida and at Mississippi State. Even if the Rebels go 3-1 in this stretch, they are likely in the CFP, especially as other teams in the mix take losses. This team may not be quite as good statistically as last season, but they could be heading to the CFP.
Texas A&M is known as being a program that goes 8-4. Mike Elko is starting to change that culture. While they were ranked third in the country this week, there was still some sentiment that they may falter down the stretch. That isn’t the case, as the Aggies won another big game in week 9, as they faced a tough environment, but defeated LSU on the road.
Elko has done a great job of having the defense play well most weeks, especially after losing so much talent to the NFL. The offense has really opened up with the offensive line playing well and the wide receivers they netted from the transfer portal stretching the field. The Aggies are almost a lock to make the CFP. They have these games left on the schedule: at Missouri, vs. South Carolina, vs. Samford and at Texas.
Vanderbilt has impressed last season and even more this year. They had just one loss heading into this week, which was at the hands of Alabama. It was a tough matchup against a top-15 Missouri team, but Vanderbilt was able to win 17-10. Their offense may not have produced as much, but their defense stepped up, which is a credit to head coach Clark Lea.
Like other teams already mentioned, Vanderbilt can virtually taste the CFP at this point. It doesn’t mean that they will win every game left on their schedule, but they can even likely afford a loss and still make the CFP. The schedule for the Commodores remaining is: at Texas, vs. Auburn, vs. Kentucky and at Tennessee. A 3-1 record isn’t easy, but if Vandy plays to their potential, they can be a great Cinderella story.
For weeks, it has been known that the winner of the American Conference would likely make the CFP this season. With Boise State losing two games and other group of five conferences not having undefeated teams, the American has taken that spot. While the other conferences not having a marquee team to boast (at this point), the American Conference has played great football this season.
This week, Memphis rebounded from their loss to UAB to beat USF, who was the frontrunner to make the CFP as the group of five representative before the week started. In addition to those two teams, Navy is currently undefeated as well. Tulane and North Texas only have one loss themselves, creating a five-team race for the American Conference Championship, which possibly could punch a ticket to the CFP.
Mark Stoops did a great job building Kentucky’s program. He has two double-digit win seasons at a school more known for basketball. Then, a few seasons ago, it was rumored he took the Texas A&M job before the deal fell through and he returned to Kentucky. Since that point, the program has been on a downward trajectory.
Kentucky’s last 10-win season was in 2021, which was an incredible feat. That was followed by two seven-win seasons. Last season, Kentucky went 4-8, while this season, they have just two wins so far. With a loss to Tennessee in which the team allowed 56 points, it is likely that Kentucky can start getting money together for the buyout, even if it is all supposed to be in one large sum instead of payments over time. Negotiations could start taking place soon, and Kentucky could be another program starting to look for a head coach.
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