From the earliest days of spring, Alabama believed in quarterback Keelon Russell. He racked up four passing touchdowns in the Crimson Tide’s spring game, and wide receiver Ryan Coleman-Williams compared playing with him to “a video game.”
Then, a funny thing happened: Russell became the rare quality Alabama quarterback to fly under the radar. Ole Miss’s Trinidad Chambliss and Mississippi State’s Kamario Taylor gained the SEC’s attention, alongside famous-since-birth Texas gunslinger Arch Manning. In the wake of his performance Saturday, however, Russell—along with his team—must be taken seriously.
Here’s hoping your team won over its ample doubters amid a clear Midwestern and rainy Southern afternoon. Welcome to Week 5’s (now live throughout the day!) winners and losers.
Winners: Keelon Russell, Kalen DeBoer and Alabama
All kinds of victory for the Crimson Tide in a comprehensive 56–23 win over the Bulldogs. For Russell: an announcement of his Heisman candidacy after spreading 10 passing touchdowns and 970 yards over his past three games. For DeBoer: another big-game feather in his cap as he continues his multiyear quest to win over the Alabama faithful. For the Crimson Tide at large: a 5–0 start that buys them a margin of error over the next five weeks, during which they’ll see Georgia, Tennessee on the road and LSU on the road.
Loser: Michigan
The Wolverines, an object of fascination throughout college football this season, added another strange game to their curriculum vitae Saturday against Minnesota. The Golden Gophers outgained Michigan 262–180 but came oh-so-close to losing, going up 20–14 with 13:44 left before successfully gritting out a tense fourth quarter. Wolverines quarterback Bryce Underwood—whose struggles are becoming more and more difficult for his youth to excuse—completed just 10 of 21 passes for two interceptions. The team’s bye week couldn’t come at a better time, with a potential get-right game against a mediocre Penn State team looming Oct. 17.
Winner: Wake Forest
Considering the Demon Deacons have played football in the ACC since 1953, setting a program conference margin of victory is no small feat. That’s precisely what Wake Forest did against Stanford Saturday, blasting the Cardinal 57–3 to move to 4–1 on the season. As amazing a show as coach Jake Dickert has put on this year, quarterback Gio Lopez’s improvement may be even more impressive—with two passing touchdowns against Stanford, he now has he same number (10) he had all last year for North Carolina. The Demon Deacons are an ACC title contender, full stop.
Winner: Northwestern
The Wildcats opened their nine-figure jewel of a new stadium Friday by completely flummoxing the Nittany Lions, showing themselves potential Big Ten movers. The most shocking statistic of Northwestern’s 34–13 win: a 413–48 rushing yardage differential (the most rushing yards Penn State has allowed since 2022). Like Wake Forest, the Wildcats should crack the Top 25 in the near future. How long Northwestern will stay there is a different question, as a vicious Oregon-Iowa-Ohio State-Minnesota stretch begins Halloween.
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