Week 7 is right here as we glance towards some thrilling convention matchups this weekend that you just will not wish to miss.
The Purple River Rivalry recreation is Saturday as No. 1 Texas will face No. 18 Oklahoma on the Cotton Bowl in Dallas. In simply his second profession begin, Oklahoma’s true freshman quarterback Michael Hawkins Jr. will likely be making historical past. Oklahoma has received 4 of the previous 5 Purple River Rivalry video games, however will Hawkins’ poise be sufficient to take down its top-ranked opponent?
No. 3 Oregon and No. 2 Ohio State will face-off as convention opponents for the primary time this weekend, however this is not their first time enjoying towards one another. Ten years in the past, Ohio State leaned on its third-string quarterback to rally the Buckeyes after accidents rocked the staff on the place. Ohio State and Oregon met within the nationwide championship recreation that 12 months and the Buckeyes’ third-string quarterback did certainly step up.
Our faculty soccer consultants preview large video games and storylines to find out about and share quotes of the week forward of Week 7.
Leap to a bit:
Ohio State-Oregon | Purple River Rivalry
New convention enemy | Quotes of the Week
How Cardale Jones stepped up when the Buckeyes wanted him most
Security Tyvis Powell remembered “all of the oxygen” evaporating from Ohio Stadium when J.T. Barrett could not rise up with a fractured proper ankle. Tailback Ezekiel Elliott referred to as it a “shock” seeing Ohio State’s quarterback get carted off the sphere towards Michigan a decade in the past.
“J.T. was having a loopy season,” Elliott mentioned. “He in all probability would’ve received the Heisman.”
The Buckeyes had already misplaced star quarterback Braxton Miller within the preseason to shoulder surgical procedure. With the season on the road, Barrett was headed for surgical procedure, too.
“It was like, ‘Oh man, right here we go once more,'” Powell mentioned. “We overcame the Braxton [injury], which was exhausting sufficient. We lastly obtained this practice rolling and increase, we get hit by one other quarterback harm.”
Powell, Elliott and the Buckeyes felt devastated. However in addition they knew their third-string quarterback, Cardale Jones, owned a rocket arm.
“I do not know if I’ve performed with a quarterback with a stronger arm,” Elliott mentioned. “We knew he had all of the instruments. We simply hadn’t seen it but.”
Saturday in Eugene, Ohio State visits Oregon of their first showdown as Massive Ten rivals — 10 years after dealing with off for the nationwide title in Arlington, Texas, the place Jones and fourth-seeded Ohio State accomplished an unlikely championship season.
“The closest individual to do what Cardale did was a fictional character by the title of Steamin’ Willie Beamen,” mentioned Powell, referring to the Miami Sharks backup quarterback performed by Jamie Foxx within the 1999 movie “Any Given Sunday.”
With Jones, the Buckeyes did not miss a beat. They completed off Michigan, then annihilated Wisconsin 59-0 for the Massive Ten championship, to slide into the inaugural four-team playoff. They surprised Alabama within the Sugar Bowl semifinal 42-35. Then, they took down Oregon 42-20 for the nationwide championship. Over these three video games, Jones handed for 742 yards, rushed for an additional 90 and totaled six touchdowns.
“I knew the expectations. I knew the tradition we developed,” mentioned Jones, who, till Barrett’s harm, had by no means performed a significant snap. “All people was anticipated to do their job, and that is how they handled me, from the teaching employees on down. Nobody babied me, nobody tried to stroll me into issues. It was, ‘Hey, your f—ing job, let’s do it.”
Powell realized Jones meant enterprise when he obtained residence from class the Monday after the Michigan recreation. Powell often discovered his roommate enjoying Name of Responsibility in the lounge. That night, Jones was on the soccer facility learning movie with then offensive coordinator Tom Herman.
“That was a chilled factor, like ‘Oh, you are locked in,'” Powell mentioned. “At that time, I knew we’ll be positive.”
Later that week, Herman compiled a spotlight tape of Jones’ finest performs from Cleveland Glenville Excessive Faculty and confirmed it to him.
“He wished to ensure I used to be reassured that hey, I belong right here,” Jones mentioned, “and that I’ve all the power on the earth to assist us.”
Barrett saved telling him the identical: “You are right here for a motive.”
After thumping Wisconsin, the Buckeyes did not collect to observe ESPN’s playoff choice present. In truth, Jones was driving residence to Cleveland when he began getting texts and calls from teammates and coaches, telling him Ohio State had jumped TCU and Baylor, to safe the choice committee’s coveted No. 4 seed.
Ohio State fell behind No. 1 Alabama early of their semifinal matchup. However within the second half on third-and-long, Jones lofted a 47-yard landing strike to Devin Smith to offer the Buckeyes the lead. They by no means handed it again.
In opposition to Oregon within the title recreation, Jones saved on finishing large passes, matching the play of Heisman Trophy winner Marcus Mariota. Together with a stingy protection — highlighted by Powell’s fourth-down, goal-line stuff — and Elliott’s relentless speeding, the underdog Buckeyes rolled previous the Geese.
Elliott, who ran for 246 yards and 4 touchdowns, earned offensive MVP title recreation honors. Powell, who additionally had the game-ending interception towards Alabama, was named defensive MVP. And Jones, in just a bit over three video games, cemented an Ohio State legacy. — Jake Trotter
The presence of Oklahoma’s Michael Hawkins Jr.
Dontonio Jordan is the founding father of 940 Elite, a Denton, Texas-based, 7-on-7 program. And earlier than Michael Hawkins Jr. began eluding SEC defenders, Jordan chased the younger quarterback for the higher a part of two years.
It took till the spring of 2023 for Jordan to lastly get Hawkins to hitch his staff for a coaching session. When Hawkins stepped onto the turf, Jordan wanted all of two minutes to establish the younger quarterback’s poise, the identical aura Hawkins has oozed since taking up as No. 18 Oklahoma’s starter towards Tennessee on Sept. 21.
“I noticed it earlier than he even tied his sneakers,” Jordan, who performed extensive receiver at Stanford from 2012 to 2015, instructed ESPN. “I educated with Andrew Luck and I performed with Christian McCaffrey. Guys like which have a sure power. They do not even attempt to do it. It is simply their presence. And Mike Hawkins has that type of presence.”
Hawkins’ composure, in addition to his propensity for hurling himself into and over opposing defenders, has outlined a short, but brilliant begin to life as Oklahoma’s quarterback. On the Cotton Bowl on Saturday, 38 miles from the highschool discipline the place Jordan first labored with Hawkins, the Sooners’ freshman will make Purple River Rivalry historical past towards No. 1 Texas.
Hawkins will grow to be the primary Oklahoma true freshman quarterback to start out towards the Longhorns within the 120-game lore of this bitter rivalry, in the identical Dallas-Fort Value metroplex the place he as soon as tormented opposing highschool defenses and realized to throw underneath the tutelage of Kyler Murray‘s father.
“It means lots simply going to a giant stage,” Hawkins mentioned final week. “It is my first time enjoying on this stadium and towards this staff, too. So this can be a large second for me.”
Murmurs of Hawkins’ rapid promise and maturity flowed out of the Sooners’ spring and fall camps earlier this 12 months. However ESPN’s No. 7 dual-threat quarterback within the 2024 class solely took middle stage after Brent Venables pulled Jackson Arnold earlier than halftime towards Tennessee final month, benching the previous five-star passer simply 5 video games after handing him the reins. Hawkins’s composure confirmed when he steadied Oklahoma in an eventual 25-15 loss to the Volunteers. Per week later, when Hawkins made his first profession begin at Auburn, his poise overflowed throughout an 11-point, fourth-quarter comeback, which Hawkins flourished by careening into the tip zone on a pivotal, late-game 2-point conversion.
“He is a man to wager on simply from a maturity, process-driven, consistency [standpoint],” Venables mentioned of Hawkins this week. “How he handles powerful moments … he is obtained a number of actually good qualities that perhaps typically a youthful participant does not have.”
These qualities rapidly grew to become clear to Jordan. From that preliminary coaching session, Hawkins joined 940 Elite, and shortly, he was a commanding presence inside the 7-on-7 program that has produced gamers akin to Cincinnati quarterback Brendan Sorsby, Texas Tech freshman All-American linebacker Ben Roberts, Arizona State extensive receiver Jordyn Tyson and a handful of Hawkins’ Oklahoma teammates, together with defenders Peyton Bowen and Eli Bowen and tight finish Davon Mitchell.
At Frisco Emerson Excessive Faculty, the place Hawkins transferred for his senior season after three years at Allen Excessive Faculty, head coach Kendall Miller noticed Hawkins’ traits, too. Past the bodily instruments that powered Hawkins’ 4,211 all-purpose yards and 55 touchdowns in 2023, Miller noticed one thing particular within the maturity of the quarterback who led Emerson to the 5A state semifinal in his lone season on the faculty.
“He had the identical demeanor within the semifinal as he did in Sport 1,” Miller mentioned. “I feel he is simply obtained one thing within him. If I may simply discover what he has, I would go get a few of it and provides it to a number of different guys.”
Earlier than he grew to become Oklahoma’s freshman quarterback, Hawkins’ poise was a driving pressure of his recreation. When he steps onto considered one of faculty soccer’s largest levels Saturday, it could be his best asset. — Eli Lederman
Get to know your new convention enemy
These two packages usually are not completely unfamiliar with one another. In 2017, James Franklin and Penn State held a 14-point lead heading into the fourth quarter of the Rose Bowl Sport. USC then scored 17 factors, together with a game-winning discipline aim within the remaining seconds to win some of the thrilling variations of the bowl recreation in recent times.
Now, seven years later, the No. 4 Nittany Lions are headed again to the West Coast to face the Trojans once more, this time as a convention opponent.
The Trojans are 1-0 (beat Wisconsin) in residence video games towards Massive Ten opponents and 0-2 on the street (misplaced to Michigan and Minnesota).
The Nittany Lions have probably the greatest defenses and USC’s offense has regarded overpowered within the trenches when dealing with harder opponents, which has, in flip, requested a number of its improved however not flawless protection. This isn’t precisely the type of get proper recreation that the Trojans wanted after a brutal loss in Minnesota. However it additionally would be the type of lure recreation that Franklin’s staff must keep away from on its quest for a playoff spot.
As Lincoln Riley defined just lately, Massive Ten video games have had fewer possessions and are slower paced than what he and the Trojans are accustomed. Franklin and Penn State, maybe greater than most groups, thrive in such video games.
Riley has argued that the Trojans are two performs away from being 5-0. On one hand, that is not essentially flawed. On the opposite, they’ve allowed themselves to lose two video games due to two performs. Whether or not it is the slower-paced video games with fewer performs, the physicality or just the journey, USC has struggled to carry out. It dropped being ranked No. 11 to unranked after its most up-to-date loss.
This week, the duty will not be any simpler. The Trojans will want a win to maintain any slim playoff or convention hopes alive. — Paolo Uggetti
Quotes of the week
“[They’re] not a measuring stick for myself or for this program. Their success does not have something to do with ours. And their lack of success does not have something to do with ours. So we’re centered on us — the issues that we are able to management. We compete on the sphere as soon as a season, and it is a large recreation, at all times is.” — Oklahoma coach Brent Venables, on whether or not his job is tougher when Texas is using excessive.
“I am buddies with him. He is an excellent man. … Man, he is an excellent participant. He can sling it. Ball comes out of his hand nicely. … He is a dude, for positive. I am excited to go towards him on this large matchup.” — Ohio State quarterback Will Howard, on dealing with former Massive 12 rival and Oregon QB Dillon Gabriel. The 2 beforehand confronted one another when Howard was at Kansas State and Gabriel at Oklahoma.
“One of many issues I feel we have now to debate is rising the dimensions of the runway right here and the dimensions of the airport for lots of causes, for the college, for the neighborhood, for companies, and for the athletic division. You are speaking about including one other two hours on high of your flight. … That is just about a complete day.” — James Franklin, on Penn State having to drive to Harrisburg to have the ability to fly throughout the nation to Los Angeles and face new Massive Ten member USC.
