CFB Week 2 Superlatives: Texas’ Comeback, Michigan’s Redemption, Oregon’s Collapse

The second week of the college football season gave us top-25 meltdowns, redemption and a comeback for the ages. Then-No. 4 Texas stunned formerly top-ranked Ohio State by coming back from down 20 points in the fourth quarter to win, Michigan responded to last week’s almost disastrous outcome by beating then-No. 11 Oklahoma at home and then-No. 6 Oregon was outplayed by an Oklahoma State team with a brand-new roster. It was a fun and wild weekend, complete with College Football Playoff and conference title ramifications. And with that, let’s get to it with our college football Week 2 superlatives. Austin was rocking on Saturday night as more than 100,000 fans packed Darrell K Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium in the hot, steamy late-summer air for a top-5 showdown between Texas and Ohio State. The sideline was star-studded, with Texas celebrities ranging from Matthew McConaughey to Kevin Durant. The Buckeyes looked like a team capable of winning the national championship in the first half, racing to a 20-3 halftime lead as the Longhorns turned the ball over early. Quarterback Julian Sayin and wide receiver Jeremiah Smith were unstoppable, and Texas’ revamped defense had no answers for them. Ohio State remained in control until the fourth quarter, up until its 23-3 lead evaporated. Led by quarterback Arch Manning, Texas put together three drives spanning 40 plays and more than 14 minutes, scoring 21 points in the process. It all culminated in an epic 73-yard drive — we’ll get to that later — after a missed Buckeyes field goal that would have essentially sealed the game. Smith was targeted eight times in the first half, racking up 110 receiving yards and a touchdown. In the second, he was held to 54 yards. Sayin finished 17-of-32 for 278 yards with one touchdown and one interception, while Manning went 23-of-37 for a touchdown and an interception. Both quarterbacks, who are in the Heisman Trophy conversation this season, were sacked twice. This was the third meeting between these non-conference opponents in less than two years, with Ohio State winning the first two. “We couldn’t lose to them again,” Manning told the broadcast postgame. “I had nightmares about that game last year.” Ohio State led Texas 23-17 late in the fourth quarter when kicker Connor Hawkins had a chance to all but close things out with a 45-yard field goal. Hawkins had been perfect up to that point, going 3-for-3 on the night, including a 48-yarder he made in the third quarter. But the kick sailed wide left, giving Texas good field position with 4:10 left and an opportunity to go down the field and win. Which is exactly what the Longhorns did. Manning, who had been inconsistent earlier, engineered a 73-yard game-winning drive that ended with NC State transfer running back Hollywood Smothers scoring on a one-yard touchdown run to give the home team a 24-23 victory. Ohio State had 25 seconds to get into field-goal range, but Sayin’s final heave was intercepted. This was undoubtedly one of the biggest wins in Steve Sarkisian’s tenure at Texas, and was the first time a Ryan Day team lost when leading by at least 20 points. In one week, Michigan went from needing one second added back to the clock to beat Western Michigan to stunning No. 11 Oklahoma, 17-10, at the Big House. It was a statement win for Kyle Whittingham in just his second game as the Wolverines’ head coach. Michigan was the underdog entering this game, with Oklahoma viewed as a favorite to make a second straight run to the College Football Playoff. Quarterback Bryce Underwood, who was shaky at best in Week 1, responded by leading the Wolverines with 111 passing yards and 87 rushing yards while adding a 38-yard touchdown run in the first quarter. There had been some awkwardness earlier in the week when Whittingham said that Underwood is “our quarterback right now. It’s not something that’s infinite.” And when the signal-caller was asked about those comments, he said he hadn’t seen that but said, “It’s cool.” Doesn’t matter now — the Wolverines are feeling confident after knocking off Oklahoma and are 2-0. They’ll face UTEP next week before conference play begins. Meet Oklahoma State quarterback Drew Mestemaker, who outplayed Oregon Heisman Trophy contender Dante Moore in a shocking 39-31 upset of No. 6 Oregon on Saturday. Mestemaker, who followed coach Eric Morris from North Texas to Oklahoma State, threw for 317 yards and two touchdowns, while rushing for 109 yards and another score. He opened the game with a 75-yard run on the Cowboys’ first play from scrimmage and later soared into the end zone for a touchdown that quickly went viral. The quarterback, who is emerging as a top 2027 NFL Draft prospect, was swarmed by field stormers after the win. “Someone took my helmet,” Mestemaker said after the game. “I was getting, like, carried off the field by some cops to do some interview or something. It was wild. But I’m so glad we got that done, and I’m so glad the fans got to experience that, too.” Oregon had been a popular pick to win the national championship this season. After two weeks, that seems less likely. In Week 1, the Ducks got what coach Dan Lanning called a “wake-up call” when they needed to rally to beat Boise State in their home opener. In Week 2, the cracks became more apparent when they were outplayed by Oklahoma State in Stillwater and ended up on the wrong side of a field storm celebration. Moore went 14-of-29 for 191 yards and two touchdowns, but the offense managed only 281 total yards. Oregon had 12 first downs and was 5 of 14 on third down. As a team, the Ducks committed seven penalties to the Cowboys’ two. Entering the season, Oregon was considered to have one of the most talented rosters in program history. Oklahoma State, meanwhile, was expected to have more of a transitional year with a new coach in Morris and 92 new players on the roster. Yet that group snapped the Ducks’ 41-game win streak against unranked opponents. It’s not looking great in Eugene right now and Oregon is certainly in danger of missing the playoff if it doesn’t fix things. It’ll have to do it quickly with a Big Ten showdown against USC coming up in two weeks. There’s no question about this one: The biggest storyline entering Week 3 is Lane Kiffin’s return to Oxford where No. 7 LSU visits No. 8 Ole Miss. In case you forgot — though, how could you?! — Kiffin left Ole Miss, where he coached from 2020-25 before last year’s CFP to take the head coaching job at LSU. Now, less than a year later, and in the third week of the season, he’ll take his new team on the road to play his old one. Kiffin isn’t a stranger to these awkward returns. He went back to Tennessee, where he coached for one season, when he was Alabama’s offensive coordinator and again when he was at Ole Miss. So he knows what to expect from angry fans who might shout or even throw things at him. He’ll be facing plenty of former players, too, including Ole Miss quarterback Trinidad Chambliss and running back Kewan Lacy. This is the game of the week. And, by the way, it’s also a top-10 matchup.