It’s the morning after in college football, and I’ve got you covered with my top-line takeaways from Week 6.
Be sure to check out The McShay Show twice weekly for deep-dive tape breakdowns and all of my latest scouting intel from around the league. You can find it on Spotify and YouTube or wherever else you get your podcasts.
Penn State’s Leadership Problem: Why the blame for the UCLA loss rests squarely at the feet of HC James Franklin.
Bama’s Back On Track: QB Ty Simpson and DC Kane Wommack have this program headed in the right direction.
Prospect Watch: My stream-of-consciousness scouting notes on the players who popped from yesterday’s games.
My CFP Top 10: Who’s in the title bubble? Who’s on the outside looking in? I share my tiers heading into Week 7.
What Went Wrong For Penn State In Collapse Against UCLA?
People’s first instinct in a loss like the one Penn State suffered at the Rose Bowl on Saturday—against an 0-3 UCLA team that hadn’t led for a second all season—is to blame the quarterback. While Drew Allar isn't a perfect prospect, he finished the game 19-of-26 with 200 passing yards and two touchdowns while leading the Nittany Lions with 78 yards on the ground. He wasn’t the problem on Saturday afternoon—it was the defense. The Nittany Lions gave up 435 yards and 42 points to an offense that scored just one touchdown against Northwestern last week. How does that happen?
I’m not going to blame defensive coordinator Jim Knowles, who comes from Ohio State and has a proven track record of success in big games. To me, this comes down to the leadership of the head coach. You look slow when you don’t prepare properly, and the buck stops with James Franklin.
Franklin’s postgame press conference told me everything I needed to know. He went up to the microphone and made excuses, citing injuries from last week’s loss against Oregon and the emotional comedown from that game, as well as the inconvenience of a cross-country trip for his team. Let me get this straight: He lost a few guys against Oregon, so he couldn’t beat UCLA, a team that scored just 10 points against New Mexico and 14 against Northwestern? And on the travel front, did Ohio State not make a similar cross-country trip last week yet still dominate a talented Washington team on the road?
It rubs me the wrong way that Franklin is more concerned about the optics of the loss than he is taking accountability for it. And no, saying “but I take accountability” as he did toward the end of the media session doesn’t carry any weight. It may be good PR, but it’s bad leadership.
Eventually, flaws in leadership always come to the surface. I think the nation has started to see the cracks in Penn State’s foundation over the past two weeks.
Alabama Exorcised Its Demons With Vandy Win
The main character during Alabama’s heyday was rarely the quarterback. Nick Saban’s teams were built through the trenches and were typically led by a talented RB like Derrick Henry, Trent Richardson, or Najee Harris. Under Kalen DeBoer, we’re seeing a paradigm shift—and Ty Simpson is at the center of it.
I was the first person to question whether the Simpson experience would be successful after Alabama’s Week 1 loss against Florida State, but he’s been nails ever since. Over his last four games, Simpson is completing 75.6 percent of his passes and has thrown for 1,224 yards, 11 touchdowns, and just one interception. What I love most about Simpson is that he’s not a finished product. There are areas he can improve (sack-taking, for example) and I expect him to in short order.
On the defensive side of the ball, coordinator Kane Wommack made last season’s loss to Vanderbilt and Diego Pavia feel like a lifetime ago. Going back to the Saban era, Alabama’s defense has struggled mightily with mobile quarterbacks like Pavia. They gave up 40 points against this Vandy team last season and there was reason to wonder whether there’d be some leftover emotional baggage from that loss entering Saturday.
And it didn’t look great early as Pavia and Co. marched down the field to begin the game with a 93-yard, six-play scoring drive. But then Alabama started to settle in. They started showing discipline. Linebackers were trusting their coaching and waiting a quarter-count longer to break on Vandy’s sleight-of-hand offense. Then confidence started to build, the defense began playing faster, and the Commodores had no counterpunch.
If I’m an Alabama fan, I’m actually more encouraged by this win than the Crimson Tide’s win over Georgia last week. That’s not to say this is a bigger win, but I do think it signals that this culture under DeBoer is going to be one of resilience, and ultimately, excellence.
Prospects That Popped In Week 6
Florida WR Dallas Wilson: Wilson finished the Texas game with six receptions for 111 yards and two touchdowns. He’s just so damn physical (listed at 6-foot-3 and 220 pounds) and already looks like an NFL WR. I see shades of Jeremiah Smith here.
Florida RB Jadan Baugh: 27 carries for 107 yards and a TD against Texas! He allowed Florida to control the ball for 34-plus minutes, which is something I’ve been hoping they’d do for weeks. His usage and effectiveness made a huge difference for the Gators on Saturday.
Miami DS Jakobe Thomas: The Tennessee transfer is coming on STRONG! He’s so versatile and fast. He’s been awesome over the past two games, tallying 10 tackles, two sacks, a forced fumble, and an interception.
Cincinnati QB Brendan Sorsby, TE Joe Royer, NT Dontay Corleone, and LB/Edge Jake Golday: The Bearcats have some dudes! Sorsby is completing nearly 70 percent of his passes with a 10-to-1 TD-INT ratio. Royer is the highest-graded of the group and is a productive TE with a good size/speed profile. Corleone is an absolute unit and made some big short-yardage stops in Cincy’s win over Iowa State. And Golday leads the team in tackles and has an ideal NFL frame, plus elite experience and production at the position.
Ohio State WR Carnell Tate: The Buckeyes’ No. 2 receiver went for eight receptions, 179 yards, and a touchdown on Saturday … in the first half alone. That’s a really good sign for Tate, given how conservative this OSU offense has been with first-year QB Julian Sayin at the helm.
Michigan RB Justice Haynes: He just keeps getting better. Haynes has run for 100-plus yards and at least one touchdown in every game for the Wolverines this season.
Michigan WR Donaven McCulley: McCulley went for six receptions, 112 yards, and a touchdown against Wisconsin. He has a 6-foot-4 frame and a great connection with QB Bryce Underwood. His stock is rising!
Michigan WR Andrew Marsh: Marsh is just a freshman, but he doesn’t look like one. He finished Saturday’s win over Wisconsin with four receptions for 80 yards. Keep an eye on him.
My Updated CFP Top 10
Tier 1: Title Contenders
1. Ohio State (5-0, at Illinois in Week 7)
2. Oregon (5-0, vs. Indiana in Week 7)
3. Miami (5-0, BYE in Week 7)
4. Ole Miss (5-0, vs. Washington State in Week 7)
Tier 2: A Piece (Or Two) Away
5. Oklahoma (5-0, vs. Texas in Week 7)
6. Texas A&M (5-0, vs. Florida in Week 7)
7. Alabama (4-1, at Missouri in Week 7)
8. Indiana (5-0, at Oregon in Week 7)
9. Texas Tech (5-0, vs. Kansas in Week 7)
10. Georgia (4-1, at Auburn in Week 7)
Tier 3: Bubble Teams
LSU (4-1, vs. South Carolina in Week 7)
Michigan (4-1, at USC in Week 7)
Notre Dame (3-2, vs. NC State in Week 7)
Tennessee (4-1, vs. Arkansas in Week 7)
