College Football Saturday: Minnesota Takes the Jug From Michigan, and Other Big Game Takeaways

Minnesota came up with a massive win over Michigan, Alabama flexed against Mississippi State, Ohio State took care of business against Iowa (coming), and Missouri trounced Florida. Below are our thoughts and what’s next for the biggest games.
– Week 5 Scoreboard

Missouri Runs All Over Florida

What Happened? Missouri 45, Florida 17

Missouri ran for 220 yards on a massive 211-yard, three-touchdown day from Jamal Roberts, the Tiger defense bottled up Florida star Jadan Baugh, and the game went from a 10-10 fight to a blowout. Mizzou scored 35 straight with an avalanche of big runs by Roberts and big stops from the defense to all but end the game five seconds into the fourth quarter.

Missouri’s offense showed up, and Florida’s didn’t

• The Florida defense hasn’t been anything great this year, but it hasn’t mattered. Giving up points is just part of the deal – the Gator offense will score more. But the Florida offensive front couldn’t handle the Mizzou defensive line.
• The Tigers finished with three sacks and 11 tackles for loss, and most impressively, held Baugh to 13 yards and the Gators to just 42 rushing yards.
• Missouri was able to get past the disappointment of the Mississippi State loss with one of the best performances yet under Eliah Drinkwitz. Austin Simmons threw for 340 yards and two touchdowns, and the offense cranked out 560 yards.

What it means for Missouri and Florida

The Tigers made a huge statement, but it’s still a wee bit of a stretch to say they’re in the SEC title chase. Texas A&M is up next, and then comes a trip to Ole Miss. There’s still Texas and a date at Georgia to deal with.
This was a bigger deal for Florida. What’s next? At Texas, and the Cocktail Party against Georgia. This loss doesn’t ruin College Football Playoff hopes, but now it has to win one of the next two monster showdowns.

Minnesota Takes the Jug From Michigan

WHAT A DAY 〽️#SkiUMah#Gophers#RTBpic.twitter.com/BJAuZdAbyf

— Minnesota Football (@GopherFootball) October 3, 2026

What Happened? Minnesota 20, Michigan 14

Minnesota overcame a 14-7 first half deficit – Michigan’s Nathaniel Staehling picked off Minnesota quarterback Drake Lindsey for a 79-yard score – with a great defensive performance. Lindsey connected with Darius Taylor for a three-yard touchdown with just under 14 minutes to play, and the defense did the rest. Minnesota won the Little Brown Jug at home for the first time since 1977.

The Gopher defense had itself a day

• The Minnesota defense was amazing, holding Michigan to 11 first downs and just 180 yards of total offense.
• Bryce Underwood isn’t playing well enough. He only completed 10-of-21 passes for 101 yards and two picks. There wasn’t any real thought that he could get the passing game going in a comeback.
• The Gopher defense was all over the Michigan backfield with three sacks and seven tackles for loss.

What it means for Michigan and Minnesota

That isn’t it for Michigan, but it doesn’t have the offense to pull off wins over Indiana or do enough at Oregon or Ohio State. Here’s the scary problem now: getting to six wins could be a fight. It’ll beat Rutgers and Michigan State, but if it doesn’t get by Penn State, this could get ugly.
Minnesota doesn’t get to take it easy. Going to Purdue is dangerous, and then Iowa, at Indiana, UCLA, at Penn State, Northwestern, at Wisconsin. Every game will be a fight.

Alabama Shows Off Against Mississippi State

What Happened? Alabama 56, Mississippi State 23

14-14-14-14 – that was the scoreboard for Alabama as it got up 14-0 right away and didn’t stop. Mississippi State stayed alive in the first half on two Kamario Taylor touchdown passes, but the Tide always had an answer.

Alabama’s offensive stars showed up

• The Crimson Tide’s offensive weapons were relentless. Keelon Russell threw for 285 yards and three touchdowns, and Trae’shawn Brown ran for 66 yards and two scores.
• Kamario Taylor got battered, but he still threw for 258 yards and three touchdowns with two picks. He didn’t get any help from the ground game – the Crimson Tide defensive front held the Bulldogs to 0.6 yards per carry.
• Alabama went full Alabama. Mississippi State is still fantastic, but Alabama is doing this to everyone. Remember, the Bulldogs beat Minnesota and South Carolina. This blowout loss doesn’t change much.

What it means for Alabama and Mississippi State

Alabama keeps looking and playing like a true national title contender, but now it’s really on – Georgia. This was a dangerous test, and it passed. Mississippi State has to refocus fast with a week off before going to LSU