College football winners, losers in Week 13: Arch Manning’s rare feat, another brutal loss for Bill Belichick

Arch Manning completed something akin to the football version of hitting for the cycle in baseball on Saturday as No. 17 Texas throttled Arkansas 52-37. The Longhorns’ redshirt sophomore quarterback scored as a passer, runner and receiver while totaling six touchdowns in what amounted to the best game of his career to date.

Facing the woebegone Arkansas defense is exactly what Manning needed amid an up-and-down season that has seen Texas fall from a No. 1 preseason ranking to the outer fringes of the playoff conversation. Crushing a bad Razorbacks team will likely do little to increase Texas’ chances of reaching the CFP as a three-loss team, but it may give Manning and his team an emotional lift.

With unbeaten No. 3 Texas A&M coming to town next week, the Longhorns still have plenty to play for. Taking down the highly ranked Aggies would mark a meaningful rivalry win and breathe a sliver of life into Texas’ slim CFP hopes. Manning concluded his day against the Razorbacks with a career-high 389 yards on 18 of 30 passing.

Manning was one of Week 13’s big winners from a consequential day of action that brought us one step closer to seeing conference championship game matchups set. Here’s the full rundown of winners and losers.

Winner: Vanderbilt reaches milestone

Vanderbilt tied a program record with its ninth victory as the No. 14 Commodores took down Kentucky 45-17. With one more victory, Vandy will become the final Power Four program to reach 10 wins in a season for the first time. But that’s only the beginning of the Commodores’ aspirations. With a win at Tennessee next week, Vanderbilt would head into Selection Sunday at 10-2 record and a realistic chance at CFP inclusion. For a program that went 9-36 between 2020 and 2023, the turnaround has been historically impressive. Oh, and Diego Pavia’s Heisman chances are looking up after the star quarterback totaled more than 500 yards and six touchdowns.

Loser: Kansas State blows a marquee opportunity

It’s been a frustrating season for Kansas State, but it appeared the Wildcats were closing in on a marquee win at No. 12 Utah. Then came a stunning collapse that encapsulated the agony the Wildcats have dealt with throughout a season of unmet expectations. Utah rallied back from a 10-point deficit in the game’s closing stages for a stunning 51-47 victory behind the wheels of quarterback Devon Dampier. His 59-yard scamper on a decisive 4th-and-1 play set up the go-ahead touchdown that lifted the Utes to an improbable win. 

Winner: Oregon nears CFP lock status

A rash of offensive injuries only worsened for No. 7 Oregon, leaving the Ducks playing three backup offensive linemen at one point. But the shifting unit got the job done in a critical 42-27 win over No. 15 USC. The game’s biggest highlight came on special teams, as Malik Benson’s 85-yard punt return with 9:58 left in the second quarter put the Ducks ahead for good. Benson also made four catches for 67 yards as Oregon navigated a top-15 showdown without the top three receivers on its depth chart.

Winner: Notre Dame looks like a title contender

Notre Dame apparently got the memo that it may need to accumulate style points to impress the College Football Playoff selection committee. The Fighting Irish scored on offense, defense and special teams in the first quarter alone while beating Syracuse to a pulp. The final score was 70-7, but the Fighting Irish realistically could have approached 100 in this game if they’d wanted to. The Orange were a wholly inept opponent — they started a walk-on from the lacrosse team at quarterback — but this was nevertheless an impressive showing from an Irish team with something to prove.

Loser: Louisville’s collapse worsens

It’s hard to believe that Louisville was regarded as an ACC title contender and CFP candidate just a few weeks ago. The Cardinals, who were once 7-1 and No. 15 in the CFP Rankings, have now dropped three straight after taking a 38-6 loss at SMU. The Cards started redshirt freshman Deuce Adams at quarterback amid a foot injury to Miller Moss. But any hope of a QB change bringing a spark to the passing game quickly dissipated as Louisville produced a paltry 228 total yards. SMU also had its way offensively as Kevin Jennings threw for 303 yards and three touchdowns without an interception.

Winner: Oklahoma’s defense delivers again

Oklahoma’s defense delivered once again, as the No. 8 Sooners stayed on track with a suffocating 17-6 win over No. 22 Missouri. The visiting Tigers had a multitude of chances, reaching OU territory six times. However, those six forays across the 50 resulted in just six points. OU picked off Mizzou quarterback Beau Pribula twice in the second half and generated eight tackles for loss for the game. It marked the second week in a row that Oklahoma has defeated a ranked opponent while producing less than 300 yards of offense. 

Loser: Kansas is fading fast

Kansas started 4-2 and looked destined to return to a bowl game. But after falling 38-14 at Iowa State, the Jayhawks have dropped four of their last five, and closing against No. 13 Utah bodes poorly for KU’s hopes of reaching six wins. So does the defense’s inability to get off the field. The Cyclones converted 9 of 16 third downs and 4 of 5 fourth downs while nearly doubling up KU in time of possession. Kansas fell behind 17-0 early. It finally found some offensive momentum, but KU couldn’t rally all the way back against an Iowa State offense that stayed one step ahead all game.

Winner: Shaky JMU keeps CFP hopes alive

James Madison is still holding out hope that it could be one of the five highest-ranked conference champions and earn a spot to the College Football Playoff. But those hopes nearly went up in smoke on Saturday before the Dukes rallied for a 24-20 win over Washington State. Wayne Knight’s 58-yard touchdown run with 6:24 remaining put JMU ahead 24-20. The Dukes then made a defensive stand to emerge with a close win over a Cougars team that also pushed CFP candidates Virginia and Ole Miss to the brink in close losses this season.

Loser: North Carolina’s bowl dreams die painfully

Bill Belichick’s debut campaign in college football won’t end in a bowl appearance after North Carolina fell to 4-7 with a dramatic 32-25 loss to rival Duke. The Blue Devils pulled off a fake field goal while trailing by a point with under three minutes remaining and parlayed the bold call into a touchdown and 2-point conversion. It was a painful way to lose for the Tar Heels, who have become accustomed to pain during what was supposed to be a celebratory season. Hiring Belichick was supposed to signal that North Carolina was serious about football. Instead, it resulted in the program failing to reach the postseason for the first time since 2018.

Winner: Good Carson Beck is back

Miami quarterback Carson Beck has thrown seven touchdowns without an interception over his past two games to get back on track and keep the No. 13 Hurricanes in the playoff hunt. In Saturday’s 34-17 win at Virginia Tech, he totaled 320 yards and four touchdowns. His favorite target was the stud freshman Malachi Toney, who tallied career highs in catches (12) and receiving yards (146). This is the sort of play the ‘Canes became accustomed to from Beck during a 5-0 start against a challenging schedule.

Loser: Baylor falls apart

Baylor suffered an epic meltdown in the second half of a 41-17 loss at Arizona. The Bears led 17-14 at the break but were outscored 27-0 the rest of the way. A trio of second-half turnovers doomed Baylor’s chances and left it needing a win over Houston next week to reach bowl eligibility. The school has already signaled that coach Dave Aranda will return for a seventh season, but after four losses over the past five games, it’s hard to imagine anyone feels great about that decision.

Winner: Tennessee ends Swampy streak

No. 20 Tennessee’s back was against the wall as it crushed Florida 31-11. Because of changes to the SEC’s scheduling structure, the Volunteers won’t be returning to Ben Hill Griffin Stadium until 2029. Thus, if anyone on the current roster wanted to be part of the team that ended the Volunteers’ 10-game road losing streak against the Gators, they needed to get it done Saturday night. The Vols left no doubt as they jumped on their rival early and built a 31-0 lead. At 8-3 (4-3 SEC), Tennessee’s hopes of a return to the CFP are over, but winning in the Swamp for the first time since 2003 marked a meaningful accomplishment from a season otherwise defined by the agony of close losses to Georgia and Oklahoma.

Loser: Georgia Tech squanders a chance

No. 16 Georgia Tech squandered its chance to reach the ACC Championship Game for the first time since 2014 as it was stunned at home by Pitt 42-28. What should have been a celebratory evening inside Bobby Dodd Stadium quickly turned into a nightmare as the Panthers jumped out to a 28-0 lead. Following the dominant early barrage, Pitt held on as the Yellow Jackets tried in vain to rally. Moments of opportunity like this are rare at Georgia Tech, and next week’s rivalry showdown presents another huge moment of potential glory. But it’s hard not to feel like this team let a golden ACC opportunity slip through its fingers during a rare year in which both Clemson and Florida State were down.

Loser: Illinois embarrasses itself

No. 21 Illinois put forth an embarrassing effort in a 27-10 road loss against one of the worst Wisconsin teams in a generation. The good news for the Illini is that they weren’t the only people to embarrass themselves at Camp Randall Stadium. Wisconsin students rushing the field made for a cringe-worthy scene. Badgers (4-7, 2-6 Big Ten) also rushed for a win over Wisconsin earlier this month. That was at least somewhat understandable since it marked the first victory against a Power Four opponent in over a year. But has Wisconsin really sunken so low that beating a barely ranked Illinois team warrants rushing the field?

Winner: BYU surges onward 

No. 11 BYU kept its Big 12 title aspirations on track and added a glimmer of hope for its at-large playoff consideration with a 26-14 win at Cincinnati. LJ Martin led the way with 222 yards rushing and two touchdowns for the Cougars (10-1, 7-1 Big 12), who are likely destined for a Big 12 title game rematch with Texas Tech. The Red Raiders won the first meeting in dominant fashion during Week 12. But the Cougars can secure a high-stakes rematch if they handle business against UCF next week.