Notable numbers from Week 4 in college football
By definition, not all numbers are created equal. Depending upon what they represent, of course, sometimes small numbers are just as important as big ones in a football context. Here are a few notable numbers from Week 4 in college football.
453
North Carolina QB Mitch Trubisky amassed 453 passing yards and five touchdowns on Saturday, both career highs. But the last 2 of those yards were the most important as he found a leaping Bug Howard in the end zone as time expired to give the Tar Heels a 37-36 comeback win against ACC Coastal opponent Pittsburgh. The win helped the Tar Heels move back into the Amway Coaches Poll this week at No. 23.
319
The yardage total itself wasn’t even close to anything in the record books. But it was a timing of Josh Dobbs’ 319-yard passing performance that Tennessee fans will remember for a long time. Dobbs did most of his damage after intermission to lead the Vols rally against Florida, ending 11 years of frustration against the Gators. The Florida defense had surrendered a total of 262 yards through the air in their three prior contests this season.
267
The good news for Dalvin Cook is he finally got that breakout game he was seeking. The Florida State standout RB rushed for a career-high 267 yards to lead the Seminoles in a needed bounce-back win at South Florida. He beat his previous best by 1 yard, set last season also against USF. The bad news? FSU can’t play the Bulls every week.
25
One could take one’s pick of numbers to illustrate Louisville QB Lamar Jackson’s dominance in 2016. But we’ll go with this one. Following another seven-touchdown effort at Marshall, he has accounted for 25 total TDs in 2016, 13 by air and 12 by land. As a team, Michigan has scored 28 touchdowns through its four games, and the Wolverines are the only team that has more touchdowns than Jackson has produced on his own.
8
When you cross your opponent’s 20-yard line and fail to score on multiple occasions in a game, it usually doesn’t bode well. Arkansas (three), Indiana (three) and Oklahoma State (two) combined for eight empty red-zone trips on Saturday, and all came up short. Not coincidentally, the three opponents that were able to take advantage of those missed opportunities — Texas A&M, Wake Forest and Baylor, respectively — are unbeaten.
7
Memphis quarterback Riley Ferguson did his own Lamar Jackson impersonation while leading the Tigers’ in a 77-3 romp past Bowling Green. The junior, whose collegiate career began at Tennessee, accounted for seven touchdowns in less than a half, hitting six different receivers with scoring throws and taking another in himself.
3
D’Eriq King is Houston’s quarterback of the future. But right now the freshman is the Cougars’ Mr. Everything, getting his team into the end zone three different ways in Saturday’s rout of Texas State. Coach Tom Herman had to burn King’s redshirt season and utilize him at receiver with that position depleted by injuries, and King is making the most of his current job. He caught one touchdown on Saturday, threw another on a trick play, and opened the second half with a 99-yard kickoff return.
HIGHLIGHTS FROM WEEK 4