Cincinnati’s 34-23 was not only the Bearcats first win against the Hurricanes since 1947, snapping an 11-game losing streak, it also might be the start of a renaissance for the American Athletic Conference — a conference that’s trying to get back into the good graces of the Power 5 Conferences that left it behind during expansion.

The AAC has a litany of games against Power 5 conferences this month and other contests against Notre Dame and BYU. It’s the AAC’s opportunity to position itself as the crème of the Group of 5 crop and vie for a New Year’s Six bowl. The highest ranked Group of 5 team earns the right to play in the game. Boise State earned the spot last year.

And Cincinnati’s win over an undefeated Miami team was the perfect way for the AAC to start off its journey toward that achievement.

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Backup quarterback Hayden Moore, who was playing in relief of Gunner Kiel, who hadn’t been cleared by doctors after taking a nasty hit last week against Memphis, shined again by throwing for 279 yards and two touchdowns.

The Bearcats took a 27-20 lead at halftime and never relented.

It was the first non-Power 5 loss for Miami in the coach Al Golden era. The last non-Power 5 loss for the Hurricanes came against South Florida in 2010.

This Cincinnati win wasn’t exactly unexpected considering how well the AAC has played against Power 5 competition so far this season. AAC teams have already toppled the likes of Louisville, Penn State, Virginia Tech and Kansas.

While Cincinnati is 3-2 and likely out of the conversation for the New Years Six Bowl, there are several other AAC teams vying for the honor. Of the 28 remaining undefeated teams in the FBS, four are from the AAC: Memphis (4-0), Temple (3-0), Houston (3-0) and Navy (3-0).

No teams from the Group of 5 conferences were ranked in the polls this week, but with a schedule littered with big-name opponents in the coming month, the opportunity is there.

And Cincinnati just helped the conference take the first step in the right direction.

For more Cincinnati news, visit BearcatReport.com.

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Graham Watson is the editor of Dr. Saturday on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email her at dr.saturday@ymail.com or follow her on Twitter! Follow @YahooDrSaturday

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The Wildcats lost to UCLA in a nationally-televised game on ABC on Saturday night. Video of the haka was seen by people not only in the United States but in New Zealand and other countries. And some familiar with the haka and its origins weren't too happy with it.

They believe Arizona doesn't perform the dance properly. The haka that Arizona performs is the Ka Mate haka, which is nearly 200 years old. From Stuff.co.NZ:

Ka Mate was composed around 1820 by Ngati Toa chief Te Rauparaha.

Ngati Toa runanga chair Taku Parai described the performance as "pathetic" and thought they should stop until they could do the haka justice.

"They certainly don't do it properly," he said. "Just out of courtesy, you would expect them to do it at least 98 per cent properly, if not a hundred per cent."

A petition (what else?) was started by a New Zealander who is currently a professor at California State. A spokesperson for Arizona acknowledged the dissatisfaction when confirming to the New Zealand Herald that the school would no longer be doing the ritual.

"The Arizona football program has a strong lineage of Polynesian student-athletes, and in 2009, a group of players wished to share this aspect of their culture with their teammates and community.

"As a result, the Ka Mate haka, which had been popularized throughout the world by the All Blacks and recognized by other members of the team, became part of the program's on-field pregame preparation starting that year."

He said in sharing the haka with the members of the football programme, the players' intent was to show the pride they have in their Polynesian heritage.

"Even though that intent remains the same today, we've been made aware that a segment of the population is unhappy that the haka is being performed. As a result, we have decided to discontinue the activity."

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The All Blacks are the New Zealand All Blacks rugby team, the team that originally popularized the pregame haka. And as you can see from Arizona's statement or would know if you've followed Arizona closely in recent years, the team's use of the haka is not new. It seems that the honor of being on ABC's Saturday Night Football led to more attention than Arizona was expecting.

The Wildcats aren't the only program that does the haka before games either. BYU and Hawaii, other schools with Polynesian players, have been performing the haka. Plus, the Wildcats also have a "how to" video for the Ka Mate haka widely available on YouTube. It was posted over three years ago.

Parai told Stuff.co that it would be best if Arizona got some tutoring when it came to the dance. Rather than discontinuing the pregame ritual altogether, perhaps the post-Week 4 feedback is an opportunity for Arizona to get some tips from those intimately familiar with the haka and modify it for everyone's benefit.

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For more Arizona news, visit GoAZCats.com.

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North Carolina LB Joe Jackson's playing career is over.

Jackson announced via a team statement Thursday that he was done playing because of a neck injury. He suffered the injury in the team's season-opening loss to South Carolina and hasn't played in 2015 since.

He was a three-star recruit out of Jacksonville in the class of 2012. He was the No. 64 outside linebacker according to Rivals.

North Carolina visits Georgia Tech in Week 5.

For more North Carolina news, visit TarHeelIllustrated.com.

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Former Oregon cornerback Ifo Ekpre-Olomu is reportedly going to collect on the loss-of-value insurance policy he had in place before the NFL draft.

Entering the 2014 college football season, Ekpre-Olomu was considered to be a high NFL draft pick. He had a very good 2014 season but suffered a torn ACL in the middle of December while Oregon was preparing for the College Football Playoff.

He fell all the way to the seventh round of the 2015 NFL draft where he was selected by the Cleveland Browns. He would be the first player to collect on a policy of its nature. According to CBS Sports, he had a $3 million policy.

From CBS Sports:

“That claim is close to getting paid,” said Lerner, the Gainesville, Florida-based head of Total Planning Sports Services.

Lerner added the claim should be paid in the next 30-60 days. Ekpre-Olomu was the 241st player taken in the draft by Cleveland. Loss of draft value claims are paid if a player slips one round lower than projected previously by a panel of draft experts.

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Marcus Mariota also had a loss-of-value insurance policy in place for 2014. As the No. 2 overall pick by the Tennessee Titans, there's clearly no claims being made by the 2014 Heisman winner. Oregon paid for the policies of both players. The money comes out of the school's student assistance fund. The NCAA approved a waiver in October 2014 that allowed schools to pay for the policies.

Former Florida State quarterback Jameis Winston also had a loss-of-value insurance policy and so did Texas A&M OT Cedric Ogbuehi.

Given that players are currently unable to capitalize on their likenesses while in college, the policies serve as a nice hedge in case of a situation like what happened to Ekpre-Olomu. Don't be surprised if more and more star college players (LSU RB Leonard Fournette, anyone?) start ensuring that the policies are in place before their final season of college football.

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The Pac-12 started us off right last week with some pretty great conference contests and now the rest of the FBS joins the fray.

This is when we start to weed out the contenders from the pretenders and inch ever so close to the first release of the College Football Playoff rankings.

Here’s what to what heading into Week 5:

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Game of the week:
No. 13 Alabama at No. 8 Georgia, 3:30 p.m. ET
There are a lot of storylines to this game. Has Alabama fallen from its perch? Is the Georgia offense the best in the SEC? But the one that most will be eyeing on Saturday will be whether Georgia running back Nick Chubb can match Herschel Walker’s record of 13 consecutive games with 100 or more rushing yards. This won’t be a small feat. Alabama hasn’t allowed a team to rush for 100 yards on it this season let alone an individual rusher. There’s a lot of talk about whether Chubb or LSU’s Leonard Fournette is the best running back in the country. This game would go a long way toward making Chubb’s case.

Game to Watch:
No. 23 West Virginia at No. 15 Oklahoma, noon ET
West Virginia leads the nation in scoring defense. Let that sink in for a second. The Mountaineers, who are known for their offense, are allowing just 7.7 points per game. However, that number will be put to the test Saturday against an Oklahoma team that is averaging 41.3 points per game and boasts a Heisman hopeful in quarterback Baker Mayfield, who is completing 67.3 percent of his passes for 1,062 yards and 10 touchdowns.

This is a big game for both teams as they try to assert themselves as contenders for the Big 12 title. To this point, all eyes have been on TCU and Baylor.

Also check out…
No. 6 Notre Dame at No. 12 Clemson, 8 p.m. ET
Clemson hasn’t fared well in these types of program-defining games, but this is a big opportunity for the Tigers to assert themselves as a potential College Football Playoff contender. Notre Dame has played well despite major injuries at the quarterback and running back positions, but its defense was exposed in the first half against UMass. The Irish defense is going to have to be more consistent if it wants to shut down Clemson quarterback Deshaun Watson. Similarly, Watson will need to win one of these signature games if he wants to be considered among the elite quarterbacks in the country.

Channel surf through…

Texas Tech at No. 5 Baylor, 3:30 p.m. ET: Neither of these teams plays much defense, which should make this a fun one to watch. Baylor is trying to keep its perfect record and stay in the race for the College Football Playoff, but getting past the Red Raiders is no easy feat. Just ask TCU.

Washington State at No. 24 Cal, 4 p.m. ET: This is another game for lovers of offense. Last year, these two teams played to a 60-59 slugfest. This year’s game offers a similar promise of offensive fireworks. Also, it will be interesting to see how Cal responds to being ranked for the first time since 2009.

No. 3 Ole Miss at No. 25 Florida, 7 p.m. ET: Florida is 4-0, ranked and on its way to an SEC title. OK, let’s not get ahead of ourselves here. This game against Ole Miss will be a monumental task for turnover-prone quarterback Will Grier. If Grier can keep his composure, Florida might have a chance. If not, Ole Miss will run away with this one.

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Graham Watson is the editor of Dr. Saturday on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email her at dr.saturday@ymail.com or follow her on Twitter! Follow @YahooDrSaturday

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I admit it, I have failed.

I have failed so epically at college football daily fantasy that I’m not even sure why I’m continuing this column. Perhaps I’m a masochist or perhaps I’m just driven to have one winning week. Either way, I’m still trudging on.

This week, I’m looking at Fan Duel’s early slate, the games through the Nebraska-Illinois contest. And really, these picks are just based on gut. After trying to use logic and stats and spreadsheets and everything else under the sun, I’m now just leaning on the play I’ve seen in the last four weeks.

Stick with me, I’m gonna have a winner eventually.

Here’s a quick look at the players I like for this week’s daily fantasy:

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QUARTERBACK

EARLY

Dane Evans, Tulsa ($8,200): Evans’ last performance consisted of 427 yards and four touchdowns against Oklahoma. Coming off a bye, Evans should be ready to put up gaudy numbers against Houston. Evans has not passed for fewer than 320 yards in any game this year.

RUNNING BACK

EARLY

Shock Linwood, Baylor ($8,100): Texas Tech’s rushing defense is one of the worst in the country. TCU’s Aaron Green was able to rush for 168 yards and two touchdowns against the Red Raiders last week. Linwood, who’s coming off a 168 yards and a touchdown against Rice, should be extra motivated in a conference game.

Matt Dayes, N.C. State ($5,100): With Shadrach Thornton dismissed, Dayes is the main rushing attraction for the Wolfpack. He had 104 yards and three touchdowns against South Alabama last week, but will face a tougher task against Louisville. Still, at this price point, Dayes could be an awesome sleeper option at the very least to get touchdowns.

WIDE RECEIVER

EARLY

Taywan Taylor, Western Kentucky ($6,800): Western Kentucky likes to spread the ball around, but Taylor has been the most consistent of the Hilltoppers’ receivers. He’s had nine catches in each of his last two games and three touchdowns in that span. Rice has been susceptible to the pass this season, so this has the potential to be a big matchup for Taylor.

Geronimo Allison, Illinois ($6,200): Allison was targeted a whopping 17 times in last week’s game against Middle Tennessee. He "only" pulled down 10 of those passes, but he did have 128 yards to make it a pretty good fantasy day. The Nebraska secondary is awful. Allison is quarterback Wes Lunt’s favorite option, so he should be able to put up some big numbers in this matchup.

Kenny Lawler, Cal ($6,800): Lawler had seven catches for 112 yards and a touchdown against Washington last week and should be poised for another big game against a porous Washington State defense.

TIGHT END

EARLY

Josiah Price, Michigan State ($3,300): Price has been a consistent touchdown magnet for quarterback Connor Cook. And while he doesn’t put up great target and receiving yard totals, the touchdowns make up the point difference. If you’re not a big fan of this pick, try Northwestern’s Dan Vitale for the same price.

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Graham Watson is the editor of Dr. Saturday on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email her at dr.saturday@ymail.com or follow her on Twitter! Follow @YahooDrSaturday

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Oh, it's getting bad. After a 1-7-2 week in Week 4, our record is now at 15-19-6. Blargh. Let's reverse the two-week trend.

West Virginia at Oklahoma (OVER 59.5), Noon ET: Oklahoma has scored at least 31 points in its first three games of the season. West Virginia has scored at least 41 in its first three games. This is a sneaky candidate to be the highest scoring game in the Big 12 in Week 5. Oklahoma's defense has given up plenty of yards and points so far this season. We think that could continue in one of the 11 a.m. CT games OU coach Bob Stoops loves.

Minnesota at Northwestern (-3.5), Noon ET: The Gophers are the masters of the close game so far in 2015. Every Minnesota game has been within six points. And its three wins have been within three. The Northwestern defense is the best defensive unit Minnesota has faced all year. We can fully envision a scoreline similar to the 23-17 one that TCU beat Minnesota by in Week 1.

Army (+26.5) at Penn State, Noon ET: This line seems ridiculously high, doesn't it? That means Penn State will win by five touchdowns. Penn State did go for 37 against San Diego State in Week 4, the Nittany Lions' highest points total of the year. Army lost to Fordham in Week 1 and its only win came against Eastern Michigan. We think Penn State easily wins, but by three touchdowns rather than four.

Louisville (+4) at N.C. State, 12:30 p.m. ET: Louisville's loss to Auburn in Week 1 doesn't look nearly as good as it once did. But N.C. State is going to be without the services of RB Shadrach Thornton, who was dismissed from the team earlier in the week. The Cardinals should still be a bowl team and face one ranked team the rest of the way. Louisville moves to 2-3.

Texas Tech at Baylor (-17), 3:30 p.m. ET: Texas Tech is better than we expected. However it's tough to get up for another top-five opponent a week after losing a heartbreaker. And that heartbreaker was at home and this game is on the road. We don't want to touch the O/U (88.5), but feel confident in Baylor here. If Tech does keep it within two possessions, the Red Raiders have a real shot at third or fourth in the conference.

Nebraska (-7) at Illinois, 4 p.m. ET: The Cornhuskers have lost to Miami and BYU, but both of those losses came on crushing pass plays late. After starting 2-0, Illinois is struggling to figure itself out. The Illini were rampaged by North Carolina and escaped from Middle Tennessee State at home in Week 4 thanks to a missed field goal. We're going with the better team here and don't think Nebraska QB Tommy Armstrong will make a late game mistake.

Washington State at Cal (OVER 71), 4 p.m. ET: After losing to Portland State in Week 1, Washington State has scored more than 30 in wins over Rutgers and Wyoming. By now you know that the Cal offense, led by QB Jared Goff, is one of the best ones in the country. Goff should be able to throw all over Washington State. But Mike Leach's offense should be able to move the ball on Cal's defense enough to hit the number.

Mississippi State at Texas A&M (-6.5), 7:30 p.m. ET: Last year's Missisippi State game sent Texas A&M's season into a spiral. Kenny (Trill) Hill fell from atop the college football world and ended up transferring to TCU. There won't be a repeat in College Station on Saturday night. While you may think Dak Prescott is a better quarterback than Kyle Allen, we're not sure you can make the same case about Misissippi State overall vs. A&M. 

Notre Dame at Clemson (-1.5), 8 p.m. ET: We picked against Notre Dame two weeks ago and the Fighting Irish dominated Georgia Tech. We're doing it again. Go bet on the Irish, Notre Dame fans. The game in Death Valley is QB DeShone Kizer's first road start and could be the springboard for an ACC Player of the Year campaign for Clemson QB Deshaun Watson. 

Oregon (-7.5) at Colorado, 10 p.m. ET: Over the past five-plus seasons, Oregon has been a favorite in the regular season all but twice. In the 61 games the Ducks have been favored, they have been a single-digit favorite just eight times. Saturday makes nine. And against Colorado of all teams. The Buffaloes are improved and Oregon is trying to find a quarterback. Plus it's without RB Thomas Tyner and WR Byron Marshall. But we think the Ducks bounce back from the Utah embarrassment. 

 LOCKS OF THE WEEK

Nick Bromberg (1-3): Arizona State at UCLA (-14), 7:30 p.m. ET: The Bruins are better than we thought and Arizona State looks much worse than we thought. The Sun Devils were embarrassed against USC at home in Week 4 while UCLA throttled Arizona on the road. A bounceback combined with a letdown? Nope. UCLA dispatches ASU easily.

Sam Cooper (1-3): Minnesota at Northwestern (-4), 12:00 p.m. ET: Northwestern is 4-0 in large part because of a defense that is giving up just 8.7 points per game. With an offensively-challenged Minnesota team coming to Evanston, I like the upstart Wildcats to improve to 5-0. This game has a 17-10 score written all over it. Big Ten football, baby. 

Graham Watson (0-2-2): Mississippi (-7) at Florida, 7:00 p.m. ET : I know it’s been tough to find teams to really believe in this season, but I believe in the Rebels (at least until the final quarter of the season). I think the Ole Miss defensive line will put relentless pressure on quarterback Will Grier and force him into more mistakes than he usually makes. This will be a great test for quarterback Chad Kelly against the Florida secondary, but I think he comes through.

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Nick Bromberg is the assistant editor of Dr. Saturday on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at nickbromberg@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter!

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The Oregon and Oregon State football programs will both honor the victims of Thursday’s mass shooting at Umpqua Community College.

Both programs posted photos of special “UCC” helmet decals on Twitter on Friday afternoon.

The gesture comes in the aftermath of Thursday’s shooting on UCC’s campus in Roseburg, Ore., that left 10 dead and several others injured.

Oregon faces Colorado on the road on Saturday night while Oregon State has a bye this weekend. 

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Oregon wide receiver Darren Carrington was cited for an alcohol violation last week.

According to the Oregonian, Carrington was cited for an open container in the early morning hours of Sept. 26. Police said Carrington was spotted at 2:34 a.m. “holding a cup that appeared to contain alcohol.” Officers confirmed that the cup did contain alcohol and issued Carrington, 20, a citation.

Carrington has been ineligible to suit up for the Ducks this season after failing an NCAA administered drug test prior to last year’s national title game. Because of the failed test, Carrington was suspended for the national championship against Ohio State and for the first five games of the current season.

It is not known if the alcohol citation will impact Carrington’s projected return to the field on Oct. 10 against Washington State.

From The Oregonian:

A team spokesman said punishment will remain internal but didn't indicate whether the citation would affect Carrington's expected return to the field next week against Washington State.

Carrington, a redshirt sophomore, caught 37 passes for 704 yards and four touchdowns for the Ducks last season. His breakout performance came in the College Football Playoff semifinal win over Florida State where he caught seven passes for 165 yards and two touchdowns. Carrington also registered seven receptions for 126 yards and a touchdown in the Pac-12 title game.

The 2-2 Ducks face Colorado on the road on Saturday night.

For more Oregon news, visit DuckSportsAuthority.com.

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Ohio State will wear black uniforms for the first time in program history when it takes on Penn State on Oct. 17 for an 8 p.m. game at Ohio Stadium.

The Buckeyes, in conjunction with Nike, unveiled the new look on Saturday morning. The black uniforms have scarlet-colored numbers that are outlined in gray along with white and scarlet-striped sleeves.

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As you can see, the look is completed with black pants with a scarlet stripe along with a matte black helmet, black socks and red cleats.

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Before OSU breaks out the black uniforms against the Nittany Lions, the top-ranked Buckeyes face Indiana on the road Saturday and host Maryland next weekend.

For more Ohio State news, visit BuckeyeGrove.com.

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It's not often that you can literally dine on your opponent—it's illegal if your rival is Notre Dame or Florida State, ill-advised if your rival is Georgia Tech or USC, impossible if your rival is Tulane or Alabama. But Ole Miss took advantage of the opportunity when Florida loomed on their schedule to gorge on some gator meat:

Gator meat, if you've never had it, is delicious. This particular gator meat looked an awful lot better than it probably really was, and there were no reports of any Ole Miss players choking. Take that as you will.

____
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South Carolina QB Lorenzo Nunez was lucky to not throw an interception on this second-quarter play. And not only did he avoid the pick, he got a touchdown pass out of a bad decision too.

Nunez was escaping pressure as he was rolling right in the second quarter of the Gamecocks' game against Missouri and threw an ill-advised pass into the hands of Mizzou cornerback Aarion Penton. But as Penton jumped for the ball, he didn't catch it. He instead batted it forward into the waiting arms of South Carolina running back Shon Carson.

You can see what Carson did after he caught the ball.

The touchdown tied the game at 10-10 midway through the second quarter. Nunez, a true freshman quarterback, is squaring off against Missouri QB Drew Lock, who is also a true freshman. Lock is making the first start of his career in place of the suspended Maty Mauk. The Tigers entered halftime leading 17-10.

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After Texas was destroyed 37-0 by TCU in the first half Saturday in an eventual 50-7 loss in Fort Worth, Texas defensive back Kris Boyd apparently found a bit of time to check his Twitter feed in the locker room during halftime.

And what did he do? The freshman retweeted a fan saying he and linebacker Malik Jefferson should transfer to Texas A&M. Yikes.

That’s not what Texas fans want to see as the program struggles in Year Two under Charlie Strong. And Strong was not happy when he was asked about Boyd's halftime tweet.

Boyd, a four-star recruit, narrowed his choices down to the Longhorns and Aggies, but committed to Texas before signing day. Despite receiving plenty of playing time early this season, it looks like Boyd is having second thoughts about his decision to play at Texas, which is now 1-4.

For more Texas news, visit Orangebloods.com.

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WVU entered Saturday's showdown against Oklahoma plus-9 in turnovers. The trend did not continue in Norman, as the Sooners defense forced five turnovers en route to a 44-24 win over West Virginia.

Oklahoma had been piling up the points through its first three games. With a new offensive system, a new quarterback in Baker Mayfield and plenty of weapons at the offensive skill positions, the OU offense has been one of the best in the country. The defense, however, still had some question marks. Two weeks ago, Oklahoma gave up 38 points to Tulsa, a team that runs a derivative of Baylor's offense.

Saturday, the Sooners defense wasn't perfect. But it was opportunistic. The clinching turnover was West Virginia's fourth. Eric Striker, the linebacker more famously known so far this season for his words to Tennessee fans after the Sooners' Week 2 win, sacked West Virginia quarterback Skyler Howard and forced a fumble. Jordan Evans picked it up and ran 41 yards for the touchdown for a 41-24 margin.

Oklahoma led 24-7 at halftime but West Virginia got within 27-24 in the third quarter. Facing a fourth-and-short at midfield, Howard kept on an option handoff and the entire Oklahoma defense went with the fake. The right side of the field was wide open for a 50-yard score.

It was the only time the game would be within one score in the second half. A West Virginia defensive breakdown immediately made the margin 10 points three plays later. Oklahoma lined three receivers to the left side of the field.  WVU's defensive backs didn't communicate well and followed the receiver on the short route, leaving WR Durron Neal wide open for a 71-yard touchdown catch and a 34-24 lead.

The winner of Saturday's game moved to "favorite to challenge TCU and Baylor" status in the Big 12. And it's easy to envision how Oklahoma could take the Big 12 title. Mayfield was once again efficient – throwing for 320 yards on 14-of-25 passing – and both Samaje Perine and Joe Mixon made meaningful contributions in the run game.

With Baylor, TCU and Oklahoma State stacked in the final three weeks of the season, it's not crazy to see the Sooners at 9-0 before they meet the Bears in the first of what could be a round-robin battle for the Big 12 title. OU passed its first conference test with flying colors. And if the defense continues to be opportunistic if it can't be stifling, the Big 12 has three teams with legitimate Playoff aspirations.

For more Oklahoma news, visit SoonerScoop.com.

For more West Virginia news, visit WVUSports.com.

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It's impossible to overstate how effective TCU looked and how pathetic the Longhorns played in this alleged "game." TCU ran up 602 yards over the course of the game; Texas had 313, the vast majority of that coming long after the Horned Frogs had stopped worrying. Texas had only a single turnover; TCU piled up its points on good ol' changes of possession.

This wasn't a game that scared anybody early on. TCU's Gary Patterson didn't sound particularly concerned about the Texas offense before the game, coining an instant classic quote:

"We've beaten better with less" would make for good bulletin-board material, but this Texas team would put a thumbtack through a finger trying to tack it up to the bulletin board. 

On the plus side for Texas, special teams didn't cost the Longhorns another game. They didn't get the chance: after snapping a punt out of their end zone early in the first quarter, the Longhorns couldn't even stay within sight of TCU.

TCU won points with both brute force and style. Check out, for instance, this catch by Josh Docston:

 And here's KaVontae Turpin with one of his four (!) touchdowns on the day:

TCU hung 30 points on the Longhorns in the very first quarter, and would go on to amass half a hundred before the Longhorns even got on the board, more than 54 minutes into the game.

How bad was this debacle? So bad that Texas defensive back Kris Boyd was not only on his phone at halftime, but apparently agreeing with those who said he should transfer. And someone in control of the Texas Rangers account tweeted out a "Fire Charlie [Strong]" line. That's not a good look by any stretch.

Texas is now 1-4 and in absolute freefall. TCU was ranked 4th coming into the game, but since this was about as competitive as a no-pads walkthrough, it's tough to give the Horned Frogs a whole lot of credit for this victory. Mark this down as another example of the balance of power shifting in Texas, and move on.

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Two unexpected teams have risen to the top of the Big Ten West.

Both Northwestern and Iowa used stellar defensive efforts to improve to 5-0 with impressive wins on Saturday to kick off Big Ten play.

No. 16 Northwestern was already on the national radar with wins over Stanford and Duke, but Pat Fitzgerald’s team let any doubters know that it is for real with a dominant 27-0 takedown of Minnesota. Sure, Minnesota doesn’t have the greatest offense, but the Wildcats made the Gophers look completely lifeless.

The Northwestern defense held Minnesota to just 173 yards of total offense while forcing two turnovers and stopping Minnesota on all three of its fourth-down attempts.

On the other side of the ball, redshirt freshman quarterback Clayton Thorson continues to improve for the Wildcats. Thorson completed 14-of-19 passes for only 128 yards, but he showed his dual-threat capabilities with two more rushing touchdowns – giving him four on the season. Thorson had plenty of help from his ground game as well, with sophomore Justin Jackson racking up 120 yards on the afternoon.

The Wildcats’ offense is far from explosive, but it doesn’t have to be in order to win games, especially when the defense has given up only three touchdowns in five games.

And while the Northwestern defense displayed its dominance in Evanston, Iowa went on the road to Wisconsin and flexed its defensive muscles. In a game that was fairly sloppy on both sides, Iowa forced four Badgers turnovers to eke out a 10-6 road win.

All four of Wisconsin’s turnovers came from quarterback Joel Stave, who couldn’t get much going against a swarming Hawkeyes defense. Stave was intercepted twice by Desmond King and lost two fumbles, including a crucial botched handoff in the fourth quarter.

Iowa’s offense didn’t put up its most sparkling effort, but running back Jordan Canzeri (26 carries, 125 yards) was a bright spot, providing a boost for a struggling C.J. Beathard (9/21, 77 yards, TD, INT). The Hawkeyes scored their only touchdown when Beathard hit tight end George Kittle on a goal-line play late in the first half.

The Hawkeyes added a field goal before halftime and it was all they would need to pull out the win.

Wisconsin and Nebraska were the perceived favorites in the West coming into the season. But through five weeks, Northwestern and Iowa look like better teams with the Badgers and Huskers already having two losses apiece.

Sure it’s early in the year, but all of a sudden Iowa’s Oct. 17 trip to Northwestern looks like a heck of a matchup.

For more Northwestern news, visit WildcatReport.com.

For more Iowa news, visit HawkeyeReport.com.

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Sam Cooper is a contributor for the Yahoo Sports blogs. Have a tip? Email him or follow him on Twitter!

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Someone on the Texas Rangers’ social media team learned a valuable lesson on Saturday. 

As the Texas Longhorns were trailing TCU big in the second half of their 50-7 loss in Fort Worth, the official Rangers Twitter account tweeted, “Fire Charlie,” referring to Longhorns head coach Charlie Strong.

Yeah, that’s not good, especially since it happened during the Rangers' home game against the Angels.

It was quickly deleted, but a few resourceful Twitter users managed to screenshot the gaffe.

Predictably, those screenshots quickly made the rounds on social media, which led to this:

Yep, the staff member was fired.

“The Texas Rangers wish to apologize to the University of Texas and its head football coach Charlie Strong for the very inappropriate and insensitive message that was briefly posted on the team’s twitter account this afternoon,” the Rangers said in a statement.

“The tweet was posted by a member of the team’s social media department that was neither working for the Rangers nor was at Global Life Park today. Effective immediately, that individual is no longer employed by the Rangers.”

Always think before you tweet, folks.

For more Texas news, visit Orangebloods.com.

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Sam Cooper is a contributor for the Yahoo Sports blogs. Have a tip? Email him or follow him on Twitter!

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Minkah Fitzpatrick will likely never have an easier punt block in his life.

The Alabama freshman defensive back sprinted in from the left side of Alabama's front on a Georgia punt return to block a punt in the second quarter. And not only did he get the block, he picked the ball up and could have crab-walked into the end zone with it for the touchdown.

The punt block put the Tide up 17-3 at Georgia. The Bulldogs got the ball back after the touchdown and promptly punted again. Alabama scored once again to make the lead 24-3.

The Bulldogs started the week as a favorite against the Tide. It was the first time that Alabama wasn't a favorite since 2009, though late money at some sports books pushed the game to a pick-em at kickoff.

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Nick Bromberg is the assistant editor of Dr. Saturday on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at nickbromberg@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter!

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Tulane's Aaron Golub got to make history when he took the field in the fourth quarter Saturday.

Golub, a walk-on long snapper at Tulane, is legally blind. He snapped on Tulane's final extra point of the Green Wave's 45-17 win over Central Florida. He's the first legally blind player to play in an NCAA college football game.

"It was a great opportunity," Golub said via NOLA.com. "I'm happy they gave me a shot. It just felt great."

Golub joined the team in the spring of 2014. He has no vision in his right eye and limited vision in his left eye. A previous coach once described Golub's vision as if you closed one eye and then had tunnel vision the size of a dime in the other eye.

Golub said after the game that he treated his game snap just like the thousands of practice snaps he's made over the years.

"Every morning I'm up, he's up in the weight room and he's working and working and working," Tulane coach Curtis Johnson said. "I would like to play him as much as I can because that's what you do, you reward kids who work. I don't care what they are or how they look. This kid works and he's just like everybody else. I'm going to play him as much as I can."

The win moves Tulane to 2-2 on the season and sends UCF (0-5) into an even bigger spiral. Tulane quarterback Tanner Lee threw four touchdowns vs. the Knights.

According to NOLA.com, Johnson also said that this won't be the only time Golub sees time in a game.

Golub isn't the only legally blind snapper in college football, either. Jake Olson, who lost both of his eyes to a rare type of cancer as a child, has joined the USC football team. He was granted a waiver by the NCAA to join the team as a walk-on and started practicing in September.

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Nick Bromberg is the assistant editor of Dr. Saturday on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at nickbromberg@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter!

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