CFB Maxwell Momentum Week 7 Review | Week 8 Preview
Maxwell Award Week 7 Elite
- In a Big 10 rival matchup against Purdue, Wisconsin RB Montee Ball ran for a career-high 247 yards and scored three touchdowns while breaking Ron Dayne’s Big 10 career touchdown record of 71. Not only did Montee Ball make history moving into third in all-time career touchdowns for running backs, but he also was named our Maxwell Award Player of the Week. Ball currently has a streak of scoring a touchdown in five straight games, and in his last his three games he has eight scores.
- QB Johnny Manziel has been more than just a productive surprise for the Aggies, but a complete leader as a redshirt freshman. In a victory over an underrated Louisiana Tech, Manziel threw for 395 yards and three touchdowns with 181 rushing yards and three touchdowns on the ground. This was Manziel’s third consecutive game with 100 rushing yards or more and fifth consecutive game of at least two total touchdowns. On the year Manziel has 24 total touchdowns in his six games.
- In a commanding upset over West Virginia, Texas Tech QB Seth Doege threw for 499 yards and tied his season-high with six passing touchdowns. After a beating from Oklahoma, Doege displayed perseverance with his third game of five touchdowns or more. Doege now only trails Geno Smith by four passing touchdowns for the FBS lead.
Chuck Bednarik Award Presented by Cracker Barrel Elite
- Rutgers LB Khaseem Greene gave Syracuse nothing but trouble with a career performance earning him recognition as our Chuck Bednarik Award Player of the Week presented by Cracker Barrel. Greene registered a season-high 14 tackles, a career high three forced fumbles, 1.5 sacks and an interception. Greene now ranks eighth in school history with 314 career tackles, and has been a staple in the No. 15 Rutgers defense, who is currently third in the nation with 11.5 points against.
- Mississippi State CB Johnthan Banks has once again proved that he is one of best corners in the nation by shutting down Tennessee’s talented duo of Tyler Bray and Justin Hunter. Banks recorded six tackles, one forced fumble and one pass breakup as he played phenomenal lockdown coverage against Hunter. Banks is a significant reason why Mississippi State is ranked and undefeated, and will continue to cause problems in the SEC.
- Up until last week West Virginia’s offense was a head-hurting riddle, but Texas Tech and S Cody Davis left Saturday’s game confidently puzzled in their electrifying upset performance. Davis led the way with a career-high 13 stops and two passes broken up, disrupting any potential momentum swings in WVU’s favor. Davis has played an instrumental part in contributing to Texas Tech’s fourth overall pass defense.
Week 8 Matchups To Watch For
- No. 6 LSU vs. No. 20 Texas A&M
LSU, led by DE Sam Montgomery, was able to stop South Carolina’s offense by sacking Connor Shaw four times and holding SC to only three third down conversions out of 13 attempt last week. Now they’ll have a new challenge facing Texas A&M dual threat QB Johnny Manziel. Manziel will look to keep the athletic defense as honest as possible, while Les Miles will attempt to turn the heat up on the freshman. Offensively LSU will look to get the run game going with their big backs and new freshman piece Jeremy Hill, who ran for 124 yards and two touchdowns last week. However, look for DE Damontre Moore to become a problem in the backfield as he averages 2.5 tackles for loss per game (Moore has 15 on the season).
- No. 9 South Carolina vs. No. 3 Florida
Both teams will look to hand the ball off to their workhorse RBs Macus Lattimore (South Carolina) and Mike Gillislee (Florida), and both teams will look to strategically use their QBs Connor Shaw (South Carolina) andJeff Driskel (Florida) to throw off the opposing defense. It’s a pretty even matchup as the Gamecocks rank 21stagainst the rush while the Gators come in at 20th place.
- Michigan State vs. No. 23 Michigan
The question for the past two years is how is Michigan State going to contain Michigan QB Denard Robinson? The easy answer is linebacker duo Max Bullough and Denicos Allen will be spying Denard and forcing him to throw while DE William Gholston and company keeps pressure in the pocket. Michigan has yet to beat Denard in his tenure, so you can bet he’ll leave everything on the field in his last shot to beat the Spartans.
Week 8 Maxwell Shootouts
- No. 3 Oregon vs. Arizona State
This might be a trap game for Oregon in Tempe, but even if it is we can be sure they’ll still put points on the board like they do ever week. Led by QB Marcus Marriota and RB Kenjon Barner and WR De’Anthony ThomasOregon’s season low is just 42 points this season. Under new coach Todd Graham, Arizona State is on the right track with a quiet 5-1 start. Therir defense has been one of the best in Pac-12, and offensively QB Taylor Kelly has thrown 14 touchdowns and just two interceptions with 11 coming in just his last three games.
- No. 4 Kansas State vs. No. 17 West Virginia
West Virginia is going to come out with every intention to put as many points up as possible after being held to 14 by Texas Tech. QB Geno Smith will be unleashed once again making an effort to throw the deep ball to his reliable WRs Stedman Bailey and Tavon Austin. Geno still leads the nation with 25 passing touchdowns, and has zero interceptions in his 259 passing attempts. Kansas State will look to control the game and momentum with their always dependable rushing game with QB Collin Klein and RB John Hubert. Klein has had two consecutive games of 100 rushing yards or more with at least two scores.
- Virginia Tech vs. No. 14 Clemson
Although the preseason expectations of Clemson’s offense were a bit too high, the Tigers still stand 11th in passing yards, 32nd in rushing yards and are averaging 41.3 points each game. QB Tajh Boyd has been quite productive throwing for multiple touchdowns each game and utilizing breakout stud receiver DeAndre Hopkinswho has eight of Boyd’s 14 passing touchdowns. Although Virginia tech has looked a bit shaky at times, they have shown glimpses of being a contender with QB Logan Thomas controlling the game and putting points on the board quickly. Thomas has proved that he can throw the long ball to WR Marcus Davis who is averaging 21.7 yards per catch.
