College football is unpredictable and delightful, which is why we live for what happens on Saturdays. And Week 9 absolutely delivered, from USC knocking off No. 2 Ohio State at the Coliseum to a pair of 60-yard field goals (!) in Bloomington and so much more. It’s just the second time in college football history that an AP top-two team has lost to an unranked opponent in four straight weeks.

Each Sunday, I’ll publish my biggest takeaways from the college football weekend. I’ll highlight the most interesting storylines, track College Football Playoff contenders and specifically shout out individual and team performances that deserve the spotlight.

1. Lincoln Riley finally won A Big One at USC.

Riley finally got his signature win at USC on Saturday, a 30-18 victory over No. 2 Ohio State in Buckeyes backup quarterback Luke Fahey’s first career start. It took five seasons to get to this point for Riley, which made it even more satisfying for a coach who had won a lot of games but not the biggest ones. Until now.

Riley believed all year that he’d constructed a roster capable of beating the best college football teams. But he can only say that so many times without it showing up in the win-loss column. There’s a difference between a good roster that should be able to beat teams with elite talent — and a good team that proves it on the field. On Saturday, Riley’s Trojans did the latter. They responded to one of the worst performances of Riley’s tenure in Madison with an early offensive explosion and an aggressive defensive front. Ohio State’s defense was disappointing, and it was starting a freshman quarterback. But this was a statement nonetheless from a USC team that wants to make a run to the College Football Playoff and a coach whose seat had been uncomfortably warm.

2. Can Indiana keep getting away with this?!

For the second consecutive week, it took the Hoosiers until overtime to dispatch an overmatched opponent. Against first Michigan and then Minnesota, the Indiana offense simply sputtered. Same thing happened against Nebraska and Ohio State. When healthy, Josh Hoover was nowhere near the quarterback that Fernando Mendoza was. When hurt, it was even worse. It made a lot of sense that Curt Cignetti went to backup quarterback Grant Wilson in the second half on Saturday, but it does beg the question of where this offense goes next. The defense is reliable, which should keep Indiana in every game it plays. But the offense? Everything looks a lot harder than it did a year ago.

The Indiana Hoosiers in 2026 pic.twitter.com/zWcLaUnTX2

— Ella Brockway (@ellabrockway) October 31, 2026

And yet! They keep winning! Winning is a skill, and Cignetti remains very good at it.

3. Georgia’s defense sure looks like a Georgia defense.

Florida’s four turnovers and its 1.9 yards per carry would agree. This is the SEC’s No. 1 scoring defense.

4. College kickers are so, so back.

A lot of college football kickers might have trouble with short field goals. There’s always the risk of a bad snap or two. But how about those back-to-back 60-yard field goals at the end of regulation in Bloomington? Minnesota’s Luke Drzewiecki's nailed his career-long first, and Indiana’s Paddy McAteer matched it to send the game to overtime. Throw in a 54-yarder from USC and a 53-yarder from Missouri, and it was quite a day for the #collegekickers hashtag. But in a serious way!

5. The Big Ten is a mess this season.

A week ago, Iowa lost to Minnesota, while Wisconsin blew out USC. A week later, the Hawkeyes blanked the Badgers, while USC stunned the second-ranked Buckeyes. Northwestern, one of the nation’s biggest surprise teams, seemed to have a path to CFP contention … until the Wildcats blew a 14-point lead in Eugene and lost to a reeling Oregon. Meanwhile, Indiana has looked shaky in almost every outing, and both Michigan and Penn State are trudging through wildly disappointing seasons with new head coaches. Who is any good? Which teams would you even trust right now?

UCLA? Sure. For now. But who knows!

Source: Yahoo Sports