By admin 
The second week of the college football season was whiplash from a relatively calm Week 1.
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There were upsets galore, from the No. 1 team in the nation going down to some surprising results well outside the top 25 at the Group of 6 level. We will try to wrap our arms around it all in the second iteration of Athlon Sports’ weekly college football awards.
Once again, we are nominating players for Offensive and Defensive Player of the Week. We also brought Best Upset back after so many favorites went down. But we need your help to pick the best of the best from these three categories.
Be sure to vote below! Here are our nominees:
Offensive Player of the Week
I had a feeling Mississippi State quarterback Kamario Taylor was going to have a big game against Minnesota. This was the forgotten game of the Big Ten vs. SEC tripleheader, but the Bulldogs used it to send a message. Taylor completed 16-of-22 passes for 227 yards and three touchdowns. He also added 86 yards on the ground in the 38-13 rout. If Mississippi State takes a big step forward in coach Jeff Lebby’s third season, it will be because of the play of its up-and-coming quarterback.
What a turnaround for Oklahoma State. The Cowboys were one of our nominees for Biggest Flop in Week 1. Now, they’re up for two much more positive categories after they beat No. 6 Oregon, 39-31. The upset was led by quarterback Drew Mestemaker, who completed 26-of-43 passes for 317 yards with two touchdowns and two interceptions. He also had a career day on the ground. His 109 rushing yards were more than he had in the entire 2025 season.
The upset of No. 1 Ohio State was stunning, and the hero of that game has to be mentioned. Texas running back Hollywood Smothers didn’t have the most gaudy stat line. He ground out 74 yards on 21 carries. But he scored two touchdowns, both from one yard out, including the go-ahead score in the final 30 seconds of the game. The No. 4 Longhorns were left for dead in the first half, but they slowly worked their way back into the game and Smothers, who also added 29 yards on three catches, spearheaded that miraculous comeback.
Defensive Player of the Week
Michigan is another team that was not looked upon fondly in the first iteration of this column. But the Wolverines, much like Oklahoma State, engineered a remarkable turnaround. Their 17-10 upset over No. 11 Oklahoma was one of the more surprising results on Saturday. The Sooners’ offense was stymied, and defensive end John Henry Daley was a big reason why. The Utah transfer, who ruptured his Achilles last season, tallied eight total tackles, three tackles for loss and a sack to lead the charge on defense.
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California safety Kingston Lopa had an all-time game against Syracuse. He didn’t have a single interception in two seasons at Oregon, but he has two through four games for the Golden Bears. And Lopa picked off Orange quarterback Steve Angeli three times in Saturday’s 21-18 win. The first set up a Cal touchdown drive, the second he returned for a touchdown and the third iced the game.
Virginia Tech’s loss to Old Dominion last season was a signal that things in Blacksburg needed to change. One year later, the Hokies blew out the Monarchs, 44-21. Transfer defensive lineman Mylachi Williams, who followed coach James Franklin from Penn State, had a breakout game on defense. He tied for the team lead with four total tackles, including 3 1/2 for loss, added two sacks and forced two fumbles, one of which was returned for a touchdown.
Best Upset
There were plenty of choices this week for best upset, but the aforementioned Oklahoma State win over Oregon was an obvious choice. The Cowboys, who lost to Tulsa as a two-score favorite in Week 1, were 24.5-point underdogs to the Ducks. They had not beaten an FBS team since 2023 and lost to Oregon by 66 in 2025. No matter, Mestemaker and Co. shocked the Ducks, who barely escaped an upset in Week 1 against Boise State.
Another game that has already been mentioned and is worth revisiting is Michigan’s stunner against Oklahoma. The Wolverines were only 5.5-point underdogs, but confidence in Bryce Underwood and Co. had waned so much that it might as well have been a two-touchdown spread. Just like Oklahoma State and Oregon, Michigan lost to the Sooners the previous season and exacted its revenge. After last week’s game against Western Michigan and now a gritty win over an SEC squad, who knows what to make of coach Kyle Whittingham’s team. But they’re 2-0 and back in the AP Top 25. He’ll sure take that.
This result might have escaped you on Saturday, so it’s worth highlighting here. North Texas blew out UNLV, leaving nothing to chance in a 44-6 evisceration. The Rebels had high hopes heading into the season as a potential College Football Playoff team from the Group of 6. But now they’re 1-2 with concerns about the viability of their defense. And how about the Mean Green? After Mestemaker and coach Eric Morris left for Oklahoma State, this team was expected to take a huge step back. But North Texas didn’t embarrass itself against Indiana in Week 1 and now has a marquee win under its belt under coach Neal Brown.
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