The biggest surprises in every conference at the 2019 midseason are …
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Midseason Surprises
ACC | Big Ten | Big 12 | Pac-12 | SEC
American Athletic
SMU Mustangs
The Mustangs have won more than six games just once against 2012, and haven’t won more than eight since 1984. The last time they started out a season 6-0? 1982. This year’s version is 6-0 under head coach Sonny Dykes, has the quarterback in Texas transfer Shane Buechele, and has beaten teams like Arkansas State, North Texas and TCU on the way to the great start. HOWEVER … the second half? Temple, at Houston, at Memphis, East Carolina, at Navy, Tulane.
Conference USA
WKU Hilltoppers
The Hilltoppers won three games last season with a defense that struggled with its consistency and an offense that couldn’t seem to get more than 17 points without pulling teeth. This year, the O is still sputtering, but the D is 17th in the nation in yards allowed, 20th in scoring defense, and is getting better as the year is going on with a 4-2 start after starting out with a loss to Central Arkansas from the FCS world.
Independents
BYU 30, USC 27
It’s been a rough run for BYU overall to start the season, but against a USC team that’s not all that bad, the Cougar defense came up with three picks, held on in the fourth quarter, and came up with a 43-yard field goal in overtime – and a defensive stop – to pull off one of the biggest wins in the Kalani Sitake era.
MAC
Kent State Golden Flashes
No one’s talking MAC championship yet, and beating Bowling Green and Akron isn’t that big a deal, but for a program that hasn’t won more than three games since 2013, and hasn’t won more than four since 2012, being 3-3 is fantastic. Head coach Sean Lewis and his FlashFast style of offense are at least beating the teams they’re supposed to.
Mountain West
Hawaii Rainbow Warriors
Would you be stunned if Hawaii started out at 2-4 with losses to Arizona, Oregon State and Washington from the Pac-12 world, and at Boise State? It wouldn’t even be crazy to have suggested the Rainbow Warriors were going to start out 1-5 with a trip to Nevada, too. Instead, they’re 4-2, the defense has been shockingly good, and they’ve been a whole lot of fun.
Sun Belt
Georgia State 38, Tennessee 30
As it turned out, Georgia State was a whole lot better than it got credit for. There was a blowout loss to Western Michigan, and losing to Texas State wasn’t great, but the Panthers are 4-2, starting out with a stunning win in Knoxville to put the team – and the Sun Belt – on the map.
NEXT: Power Five conference surprises
ACC
Louisville Cardinals
Last year, Louisville started out 2-1 before falling off the map with a brutal nine-game losing streak that led to the firing of Bobby Petrino. Call it a step back to possibly take a monster step forward, as Scott Satterfield is looking like a keeper. The Cardinals lost to Notre Dame – no shame there – and lost on the road to FSU, but they’re 4-2, gave Wake Forest its only loss, and is now in the mix for a bowl game.
Mack Brown
There was a loss to Appalachian State, and the team is just 3-3, but Brown has injected a new energy and some life into the program after a 2-9 season and with five victories in the last two years. His team came within a two-point conversion of beating Clemson, it beat South Carolina and Miami, and its three losses were by a total of ten points.
Wake Forest Demon Deacons
Yeah, they lost in a blast of a 62-59 shootout to Louisville, but they’ve been able to win several close battles, took out a strong Utah State team to start the season, and have shown just enough to maybe, potentially, possibly be the one team on the Clemson schedule with a puncher’s chance at push the defending national champ.
Midseason Surprises
ACC | Big 12 | Pac-12 | SEC | Power 5
NEXT: Big Ten
Big Ten
Justin Fields and Ohio State being that good
Fields was a superstar recruit for Georgia, and he wasn’t expected to be anything less than solid, but he’s been better than anyone could’ve imagined. He threw an interception. One. Along with that, he completed 70% of his throws for close to 1,300 yards and 18 touchdowns, and he ran for 283 yards and eight scores as the Buckeyes destroyed everyone in their path.
Jack Coan and Wisconsin being that good
It’s not a total stunner that Wisconsin is 6-0 with five home games in the first six, but to come up with four shutouts in the first six games, and beat Michigan and Michigan State by a combined score of 73-14?
The offseason quarterback talk focused on whether or not super-recruit Graham Mertz would be ready to take over right away. Instead, Jack Coan emerged, and he’s been brilliant, hitting 76% of his passes for 1,119 yards and eight touchdown with a pick.
Minnesota’s passing game
Of course Minnesota was going to run the ball with its tremendous backfield depth, but the ground game has been inconsistent and just okay. However, QB Tanner Morgan has been fantastic for the nation’s fourth-most efficient passing attack.
The receiving trio of Rashod Bateman, Tyler Johnson and Chris Autman-Bell have made big play after big play, and Morgan hit 69% of his throws for more than 11 yards per pass with 14 touchdowns and three picks.
Midseason Surprises
ACC | Big Ten | Pac-12 | SEC | Power 5
NEXT: Big 12
Big 12
Jalen Hurts & the Oklahoma D
Everyone sort of knew Hurts would be good, but to take what Baker Mayfield and Kyler Murray were able to do and be even stronger? Mayfield and Murray never started out 6-0, and neither one was quite as amazing as Hurts has been. The Alabama transfer stepped in and is completing 72% of his passes with 17 touchdowns and three picks, and he has rushed for 630 yards and six touchdowns.
The Sooner defense? Under new defensive coordinator Alex Grinch, it’s 31st in the nation in scoring D, 41st in total D, and ninth in the nation in third down defense. Yes, that Oklahoma.
Undefeated Baylor Bears
It’s a fun team, but in a far different way from the past. The offense is coming through in the clutch. the team is winning tight games, and it’s still unbeaten going 6-0 with a 3-0 start in the Big 12. There aren’t any good non-conference wins – Stephen F. Austin, UTSA and Rice? – but Baylor is 6-0. The fan base isn’t going to complain.
Kansas 48, Boston College 24
It wasn’t just a strange performance in bad weather, and it didn’t happen after BC turned the ball over 19 times. Kansas went to Chestnut Hill and straight-up played really, really good football in a dominant road win. The Jayhawks have struggled against everyone else, and it’s still just 2-4, but at least the fans could see how things might eventually be under Les Miles.
Midseason Surprises
ACC | Big Ten | Pac-12 | SEC | Power 5
NEXT: Pac-12
Pac-12
The Pac-12
Has there been a more fun league in college football? The Oregon loss to Auburn to kick things off was rough, but Arizona was able to take down Texas Tech, Arizona State shocked Michigan State in East Lansing, Cal stunned Ole Miss in Oxford, Colorado came back to stun Nebraska, USC battled well at Notre Dame, Stanford deleted Northwestern’s season in the opener, Washington crushed BYU, and Washington State helped Houston slide into the abyss. It’s been a good run for the league.
UCLA 67, Washington State 63
Good luck finding a more entertaining college football game this season. The two teams combined for close to 1,300 yards, almost 1,100 passing yards, there were six Washington State turnovers, ten UCLA penalties, big pass after big pass, and it all seemed to happen in about 19 minutes as the Bruins outscored the Cougars 50-28 in the second half.
Stanford 23, Washington 13
Stanford was struggling and sputtering, the offensive line was completely depleted and had no depth, starting QB KJ Costello was out, and Washington was on a roll and looking ahead to a showdown against Oregon a few weeks later. The Cardinal pitched a gem that not only turned into one of David Shaw’s best-coached games, but it might have saved the team’s season.
Midseason Surprises
ACC | Big Ten | Big 12 | SEC | Power 5
NEXT: SEC
SEC
Joe Burrow and the LSU offense
The LSU offense was supposed to be okay, but it was going to be mostly along for the ride with Joe Burrow and a slew of no-name guys – at least nationally – while the defense stepped up and dominated. Instead, Burrow has thrown 25 touchdown passes, the Tigers are No. 1 in the nation in scoring, and No. 2 in total offense.
The final 2:17 of Auburn vs. Oregon
Oregon was dominating … just not on the scoreboard. The Ducks were faster, sharper, and looking far better and stronger than Auburn, but it was only up 21-20 after drive after drive stalled. AU freshman QB Bo Nix was struggling, but in the final two minutes he led the O on the game-winning drive, connecting with Seth Williams for a 26-yard touchdown in the final seconds when a field goal would’ve gotten the job done. Considering how good Oregon has been since, it was a potential College Football Playoff-changing throw.
South Carolina 20, Georgia 17 OT
Georgia had been scuffling a bit and wanted to make a big early statement with South Carolina coming to town. Instead, the offense couldn’t get moving, the Gamecock D was solid, and the even with starting QB Ryan Hilinski out, USC pulled off the biggest stunner of the college football season so far.
Midseason Surprises
ACC | Big Ten | Big 12 | Pac-12 | Power 5
