College Football

NCAA Football: How the Top 10 Fared In Week 12

In all, six teams ranked in the AP Top 25 in college football had games postponed or outright canceled due to COVID-19-related issues and concerns this week. Two of those programs (Clemson and Texas A&M) currently occupy a ranking within the Top 10.

Another Top 10 program, Notre Dame, had a regularly-scheduled off week coming off last Saturday's win over Boston College and an upcoming Friday tilt with North Carolina the day after Thanksgiving.

It made for a somewhat light schedule across the college football landscape this weekend, but let's take a look at how the rest of the Top 10 teams that were in action fared in Week 12.

Ohio State survives Indiana's comeback bid

The Ohio State Buckeyes entered the week as the third-ranked team in the country and have a chance to move up a slot after Saturday's win over the ninth-ranked Indiana Hoosiers. The Buckeyes led 35-7 at one point, but it wasn't all smooth sailing in the second half.

Indiana fought back valiantly but fell short by a touchdown in the end to take its first loss of the season.

Heisman Trophy candidate Justin Fields totaled 378 yards of total offense but also threw three interceptions in the win. That likely cost him a chance to close the gap on the current front-runner and the quarterback of our next team on the list.

Florida wakes up to take care of business

The Gators sleep-walked through much of the first half against Vanderbilt but left Nashville with a 38-17 win to improve to 6-1 as the sixth-ranked team in the land.

Kyle Trask, who overtook Fields and Clemson's Trevor Lawrence as the odds-on favorite in the Heisman race, threw for nearly 400 yards and three touchdowns. But he'll need to make blowout statements in Florida's remaining three games to keep hold of that status.

Lawrence missing another game likely makes it a three-horse race at this point with Trask, Fields, and the signal-caller of our next highlighted team.

Alabama blasts Kentucky

Alabama, the No. 1 team in the country, destroyed the Kentucky Wildcats on Saturday to the tune of 63-3. Mac Jones only played two and a half quarters, throwing for a tidy 230 yards and two touchdowns to maintain Heisman consideration.

But it may have been DeVonta Smith who stole the show, hauling in nine catches for 144 yards and two scores, breaking the SEC record for most touchdowns by a wide receiver.

The Rest

Kyle Wilson may have created an even tighter race for the Heisman as the BYU quarterback led the eighth-ranked Cougars to a 66-14 win. Wilson threw for four touchdowns despite playing only the first half.

Wisconsin's playoff hopes were dashed as the 10th-ranked Badgers fell to Northwestern in Evanston, Ill. And Cincinnati stayed perfect with a close-call win over UCF, coming from behind to win by three.

The schedule remains somewhat light next week, as the toughest challenge for a top 10 team might come from Auburn, as Alabama hosts the Tigers in the annual Iron Bowl on Saturday.

College Football