B/R Experts Week 5 College Football Rankings 2024 | News, scores, highlights, stats and rumors

Kansas State, Oklahoma, Nebraska and USC all suffered their first losses of the season in Week 4 action, but they rebounded nicely on Saturday to avoid the dreaded second loss and stay alive in the hunt for a spot in the play -offs.

• Kansas State 42, Oklahoma State 20
• Nebraska 28, Purdue 10
• Oklahoma 27, Maroon 21
• USC 38, Wisconsin 21

The biggest game of the bunch was also the most lopsided, as No. 23 Kansas State destroyed No. 20 Oklahoma State, while the Cowboys also lost No. 1 to Utah last week. Quarterback Avery Johnson had five total touchdowns for the Wildcats, who also forced three turnovers on defense.

The Cornhuskers were the only of those four teams to fall out of the Top 25 completely after last week’s loss to Illinois, but they pulled off a road win against Purdue thanks to 21 fourth-quarter points.

The Sooners trailed 21-10 early in the fourth quarter, but a touchdown on offense, a pick-six defensively and a field goal in the final 8:32 of the game were enough to avoid another disappointment after their previous got hit at home last week. through Tennessee.

It was all USC in the second half against Wisconsin as the Trojans outscored the Badgers 28-0 after halftime. Miller Moss finished with 308 yards and three touchdowns through the air while adding another score on the ground, and this USC team is back on track after last week’s 27-24 loss to Michigan.

A single loss is no longer the dagger it once was thanks to the expanded playoff field, but it was crucial that all four of these teams avoided their second loss of the season, and that’s exactly what they did on Saturday.