College Football Week 9 Recap
Here are five things we learned in Week 9 of college football.
Marcel Reed should be in Heisman talks
The bookmakers believe that Texas A&M’s sophomore quarterback already is. Marcel Reed, who led a definitive 49-25 win against LSU at Baton Rouge’s Tiger Stadium Saturday night, has the fourth-best odds (plus-500) to win the Heisman Trophy, per FanDuel Sportsbook. Only Indiana’s Fernando Mendoza, Alabama’s Ty Simpson and Ohio State’s Julian Sayin are ranked above him.
He totaled 310 yards, four touchdowns and two interceptions (both of which were tipped at the line of scrimmage) against the Tigers and talked the talk afterwards. His 1,972 passing yards and 17 passing touchdowns both rank fourth in the Southeastern Conference and he’s performed his best in historically difficult road environment.
Oh, and because of his play, the third-ranked Aggies (8-0, 5-0 SEC) have certified themselves as legitimate College Football Playoff contenders.
Can Texas turn this around?
Texas coach Steve Sarkisian praised his team’s culture, fight and ability to rally after a 45-39 overtime win against an underdog Mississippi State team Saturday. He confronted reality soon after.
“We can’t keep living like this,” Sarkisian said, “right?”
Right. Especially not with No. 9 Vanderbilt, No. 5 Georgia and No. 3 Texas A&M left to play in the final five weeks of the regular season. Kentucky and Mississippi State — who are a combined 0 for 9 in conference play this season and took Texas to overtime in consecutive weeks — are the caliber of teams that will inevitably allow a roster as naturally talented as the Longhorns to either survive or claw their way back into contests.
The Commodores, who visit Austin this Saturday, have developed into relentless upstarts that can go toe-to-toe with the league’s best. The Bulldogs beat Texas twice last season and are institutional winners. The Aggies are physical, fast and have already downed two ranked opponents on the road this season.
This isn’t the conference’s basement anymore.
The Longhorns will need to acquiesce to that if they’d like to sniff the playoffs for a third-straight season.
North Texas quarterback Drew Mestemaker (17) throws before an NCAA football game against South Florida at DATCU Stadium, Friday, Oct. 10, 2025, in Denton.
Elías Valverde II / Staff Photographer
North Texas deserves nice things
North Texas athletic director Jared Mosley used social media Saturday to express a sentiment that his university’s fans have had to share ad nauseum this fall. He quoted a tweet from @SleeperCFB which read “Where will Drew Menstermaker be playing next season?”
“Drew is an amazing young man and leader!” Mosley replied. “Drew deserves to take THIS season to the finish with [UNT].”
Menstermaker, a walk-on turned prolific quarterback, passed for 608 yards and 4 touchdowns in a 54-20 win over Charlotte. His season totals (2,468 yards, 21 touchdowns and 4 interceptions) are among the nation’s best and, because of that, and because of UNT’s status as a Group of Five program, he’s become a popular target for college football’s free agency in the transfer portal world. Head coach Eric Morris — a quarterback guru who’s led the Mean Green to a 7-1 record — is in a similar position with a number of high-profile vacancies across the sport.
That’s the reality of college football. Premier coaches at lower-level schools are expected to jump ship for bigger and better opportunities and their players are expected to follow. Morris, who brought quarterback Cam Ward with him from Incarnate Word to Washington State, is proof.
But the Mean Green have struck gold and reaped the benefits because of that this season. They should be able to enjoy that — and see things through to the finish line — without the threat of transactions and movements stuck over their heads for the duration of it.
The Baylor of it all
Where does Baylor go from here?
The Bears (4-4, 2-3 Big 12) are 21-27 since head coach Dave Aranda’s breakout 12-win season four years ago and have fallen behind in a conference that it once paced. They’ve recruited at an average-at-best rate in both the high school and portal ranks each of the last two seasons and may now be the third-best Big 12 program within their own state.
They’ve lost consecutive games to TCU and Cincinnati and will play two ranked teams (No. 24 Utah and No. 22 Houston) in their last four to finish the season. This final stretch could determine the immediate trajectory of the program and, for Aranda, determine his long-term future.
