College football Week 9 wins, ranked: USC over Ohio State tops it

Why USC over Ohio State is No. 1

1. USC 30, No. 2 Ohio State 18. Nothing else this weekend was close. An unranked team beat the No. 2 team in the country by 12 at the Coliseum, and it was USC's first win over a top-three team since 2015.

Jayden Maiava threw for 222 yards and a touchdown, and freshman Trent Mosley took a screen 69 yards for a score on the second snap of the game. Ohio State moved the ball all night and still lost by two scores. That is a playoff resume taking a real hit.

2. Georgia 27, No. 17 Florida 8. Georgia did not need its passing game. Gunner Stockton went 13 of 23 for 101 yards, and it did not matter. The Bulldogs outrushed Florida 217-48, forced 4 turnovers, and Chris Cole returned a fumble 66 yards for a touchdown late in the first half. It is Georgia's sixth straight win in the rivalry.

Iowa State and Syracuse: the late-game wins

3. Iowa State 51, No. 24 Oklahoma State 49. The wildest game of the week. Aiden Flora ran for 221 yards and 2 touchdowns. Jaylen Raynor threw for 309 yards and 3 touchdowns. Kyle Konrardy hit a 34-yard field goal as time expired to win it. Oklahoma State quarterback Drew Mestemaker threw for 323 yards and 5 touchdowns and lost. The two teams combined for 1,114 yards.

4. Syracuse 30, No. 19 SMU 27. Syracuse trailed 27-23 and got the ball at its own 32 with 3:36 left. Eleven plays later, Steve Angeli hit tight end Noah Meyers for a 2-yard touchdown with 17 seconds to go. Angeli threw for 200 yards and ran for a 26-yard score. It was Syracuse's first win over a ranked team since Nov. 30, 2024.

Indiana and Miami: survived, not dominated

5. No. 4 Indiana 23, Minnesota 16 in overtime. Indiana lost starting quarterback Josh Hoover to an injury late in the second quarter, and backup Grant Wilson finished it. Minnesota took a 16-13 lead with about 19 seconds left. Paddy McAteer answered with a 60-yard field goal as time expired, and Wilson hit Charlie Becker for 25 yards on the first snap of overtime. Indiana is 8-1.

6. No. 1 Miami 38, North Carolina 35. Miami trailed 28-24 early in the fourth quarter. Mark Fletcher Jr. ran one in from 2 yards, Marquise Lightfoot strip-sacked Billy Edwards Jr., and Darian Mensah found Malachi Toney for 9 yards. Mensah went 22 of 29 for 274 yards and 3 touchdowns. Miami is 8-0 and won in Chapel Hill for the first time since 2017.

What is the case for a different order?

The fair argument is Miami. The No. 1 team in the country went on the road, trailed in the fourth quarter and found a way. Some fans will rank that above Georgia handling a Florida team that turned it over four times.

Others will put Syracuse higher. A last-minute touchdown drive against a ranked team, with a little-used tight end catching the winner, is the kind of win that changes a season in a way a top-five team surviving does not.

We stand by the top two. USC knocked a title contender off its spot, and Georgia beat a ranked rival by 19 with its quarterback throwing for 101 yards. Everything after that is a fair fight in the comments.