Yahoo Top 10: Oregon’s gutsy win over Ohio State caps Survival Saturday

Welcome to Survival Saturday.

Every season there is at least one of these, a day that makes the collective heart of the college football world beat uncontrollably from brunch to dinner.

Four top 25 teams won in overtime. Another three ranked teams won by a margin of three points or less. It started with Alabama’s (shaky) recovery from the Vanderbilt loss – a two-point win over South Carolina that wasn’t pretty. It ended with Kansas State jumping out to a big lead and then securing the win at Colorado.

In between, LSU, Penn State, Illinois and Tennessee each won in overtime. Our new No. 1 seed, Oregon, beat Ohio State by one point. Pitt remained undefeated with a two-point win over Cal.

Of course there were also punctures. Texas battled around Oklahoma to set up a gigantic matchup against Georgia next week in Austin. Clemson beat Wake Forest. And Notre Dame strangled Stanford.

At the halfway point of the season, 11 teams are still undefeated. This list includes Iowa State, Army, Navy, and Indiana!

Many fan bases did not survive Saturday. Rutgers lost its second straight game after a 4-0 start. North Carolina and Mack Brown lost for the fourth straight year. Billy Napier and Florida managed to pull off an upset on the road in Knoxville.

Did your team survive?

Let’s go to the top 10!

1. Oregon Ducks

This week: Beat Ohio State 32-31

Next week: at Purdue (on Friday)

QB Dillon Gabriel reintroduced himself to the college football world in his sixth college season and at his third school, in case anyone had forgotten him. He tore through Ohio State’s secondary, throwing for 341 yards, two touchdowns and running for a game-changing 27-yard score. This puts the Ducks in the lead in the Big Ten title race and marks the best win of any team so far this season, just ahead of Alabama’s win over Georgia and Georgia’s win over Clemson.

2. Penn State Nittany Lions

This week: Beat USC 33-30 in overtime

Next week: Bye

Who says you can’t take an hour bus and then fly five hours across the country and win a game in overtime? That’s exactly what the Nittany Lions did – they overcame a 20-6 halftime deficit and delivered a slap in the face to third-year coach Lincoln Riley (the Trojans are 3-3 and a mess). The excitement you’re hearing is due to the hype surrounding the Nov. 2 game against Ohio State at Happy Valley (the Buckeyes appear to be vulnerable, especially on defense).

3. Texas Longhorns

This week: Beat Oklahoma 34-3

Next week: vs. Georgia

Returning QB Quinn Ewers started rusty but ended brilliantly. But it was the Longhorns’ defense that really won this game. The Sooners had a single drive of more than 19 yards the entire game and hit a whopping six punts. Steve Sarkisian is preparing the Horns for next week’s high-profile home game against Georgia.

4. Miami Hurricanes

This week: Bye

Next week: in Louisville

After a nice, relaxing week, Cam Ward and the Hurricanes head back on the road next Saturday with a game in Louisville. A look at the second half of the UM schedule shows no top 25 teams (for now). Collision course with Clemson in the ACC championship game? Perhaps.

5. Georgia Bulldogs

This week: Beat Mississippi State 41-31

Next week: in Texas

Kirby Smart’s team has played some surprisingly close games. Another came Saturday against the worst team in the SEC. Remember the one-point win over Kentucky and the loss to Alabama? The Bulldogs aren’t exactly their dominant selves. You have to be there next Saturday.

6. Ohio State Buckeyes

This week: Lost 32-31 to Oregon

Next week: Bye

The Buckeyes slipped two places, but remain in our top 10. At least they went blow for blow with the Ducks on the road. But the defense needs work. Oregon picked on Ohio State’s secondary most of the evening, particularly cornerback Denzel Burke. They have a week to sort things out before hosting Nebraska. Penn State, Michigan and undefeated Indiana remain on the list. Could Ohio State actually miss the College Football Playoff?

7. Clemson Tigers

This week: Beat Wake Forest 49-14

Next week: vs. Virginia

Oh look, another Clemson loss. Since their season-opening loss to Georgia, the Tigers have now won their next five games, outscoring their opponents 243-96. This is an angry bunch. Clemson’s offense is humming. Against Wake, they had a 100-yard rusher, a 100-yard receiver and a 300-yard passer. QB Cade Klubnik hasn’t thrown a pick in ten quarters and has thrown seven touchdowns in that span.

8. Cyclones in the state of Iowa

This week: Beat West Virginia 28-16

Next week: vs. UCF

The Cyclones are 6-0 for only the second time ever, have one of the worst defenses in the country and only have one ranked team (Kansas State) on the schedule for the remainder of the regular season. Should we talk about Matt Campbell’s team in the playoffs? QB Rocco Becht is playing as well as anyone and ISU’s defense hasn’t allowed more than 21 points this season.

9. BYU Cougars

This week: Beat Arizona 41-19

Next week: vs. Oklahoma State

In their second year in the Big 12, the Cougars are at the top of the league and are 6-0 this season with some pretty solid wins at SMU and over Kansas State. They avoid the only other undefeated team in the Big 12 this season (Iowa State). Are we headed for a BYU-Iowa State Big 12 title game? Perhaps!

10. Notre Dame Fighting Irish

This week: Beat Stanford 49-7

Next week: at Georgia Tech

Everything is going as planned for the Irish (aside from the inexplicable home loss to Northern Illinois). God himself (a light delay in the second half) couldn’t stop the Irish from rolling over the Cardinal. Look at Notre Dame’s schedule and tell me where the Irish lose another game. They are on the way to a large berth.