College Football Risers and Fallers: Week 6 NCAAF Stock Watch

While Week 5 was not as action-packed as Week 4, there were still a number of exciting college football games on Saturday’s slate.

The noon slate started with Colorado’s too-late comeback attempt against a porous USC defense, Penn State’s slow start against Northwestern, Kentucky thrashing Florida, and Texas A&M’s defense stepping up against Arkansas.

The midday slate held a near Georgia upset against Auburn and dominant wins from Michigan and Texas. The night slate was the most exciting, holding a 55-49 game between Ole Miss and LSU, a last-minute win by Notre Dame over Duke, and a defensive battle between Iowa and Michigan State. Let’s dig into this week’s stock report.

Stock Up

Brock Bowers, TE, Georgia Bulldogs

Georgia’s superstar tight end was unguardable in their late road win over Auburn. Bowers had eight grabs for 157 yards and a touchdown, with 121 of those yards coming in the fourth quarter.

Auburn has kept this one close. But this huge run-after catch for Georgia star Brock Bowers for the TD puts the Bulldogs on top with 2:52 to go in the fourth quarter. pic.twitter.com/iFC7NI71W2

— The Comeback (@thecomeback) September 30, 2023

Auburn had no answer for the dynamic tight end, who essentially single-handedly kept the Bulldogs alive (no pun intended, as he had a number of one-handed grabs on Saturday). Bowers looks like a guaranteed top-10 NFL Draft pick and the face of the back-to-back champs.

Sam Hartman, QB, Notre Dame

Notre Dame quarterback Sam Hartman may not be the flashiest quarterback in college football, but he showed elite leadership and fight in a gritty road win just one week after a gritty loss to Ohio State.

What a freaking 4th down run by Sam Hartman pic.twitter.com/dpI4gLA6qM

— Alex Kielar (@AlexTBPK) October 1, 2023

The play of the game came on the game-winning drive when Hartman took off on a run on fourth and 16 to pick up a first down. Not only did he lead the Irish on a game-winning drive to keep their season alive, but Hartman showed class by waiting outside of the medical tent after the game to make sure Duke quarterback Riley Leonard was okay following a tough injury on the final play of the game.

Ray Davis, RB, Kentucky

The 5-10, 216-pound bowling ball has gone under the radar his entire career. Ray Davis ran for over 1,000 yards at Vanderbilt last season and transferred to Kentucky for his fifth season of college football.

He absolutely exploded in Saturday’s big win over Florida, taking 26 carries for 280 yards and three touchdowns. Davis also added a nine-yard touchdown reception, absolutely dominating the game.

Ray Davis after rushing for 280 yards, the third most in Kentucky football history.

“I didn’t make history, our O-Line made history. WE ran for over 300 yards. As a collective unit we made history.”

Selfless and humble.

(KY Wildcats TV) pic.twitter.com/beZToCLCBZ

— Tristan Pharis (@TristanUda) September 30, 2023

The Wildcats are 5-0 going into next week’s game against Georgia, and Davis’ stock is skyrocketing after putting himself on the map.

Taulia Tagovailoa, QB, Maryland

Tua’s brother had a Tua-esque game on Saturday against Indiana, throwing for 352 yards and five touchdowns along with a touchdown run. Tagovailoa has been red-hot, leading the Big Ten in passing yards through the first five weeks.

The Terps are 5-0 after playing lesser opponents, but they travel to Columbus to take on Ohio State next week in what could be a statement game for Tagovailoa. If he plays well, his stock can only keep rising.

Stock Down

Carson Beck, QB, Georgia

Carson Beck struggled to make plays all game long against Auburn until he just started throwing to Brock Bowers every down. While his final stat line (23/33, 313 yards, one touchdown, one interception) did not look bad on paper, Beck may hold this Georgia team back from going all the way. He looked like a significant downgrade from Jake Fromm and Stetson Bennett.

LSU Tigers

LSU’s season is on life support after a narrow defeat against Ole Miss, dropping the Tigers to 3-2. The schedule does not get easier, as they travel to take on a 5-0 Missouri team next week and still have a road game in Tuscaloosa in a few weeks.

The Ole Miss game felt like a must-win if the Tigers wanted to make it out of the SEC West. While LSU can still run the table and make it out of the West at 10-2, the playoffs now feel like a longshot.

Another DIME from Jayden Daniels and the Tigers cut the deficit to 3 before half
How are we feeling going into the second half pic.twitter.com/UzfQKTFR5k

— Boot Krewe Media (@BootKreweMedia) September 30, 2023

On the bright side, Jayden Daniels looked like the real deal on Saturday.

USC Trojans

USC escaped Boulder with a win despite the late comeback attempt from the Buffaloes, but they also raised a whole lot of doubt about their chances to contend for a national title. The defense looked atrocious, allowing Colorado to narrow a 48-21 deficit all the way to 48-41.

While Caleb Williams and the Trojans’ offense is as good as any unit in college football, defense wins championships. USC is a lot worse on the defensive side of the ball than all of the other national contenders.

Drew Allar, QB, Penn State

Drew Allar looked uncomfortable against a Northwestern team that may be the worst in the Big Ten. The sophomore quarterback only passed for 189 yards, completing 54% of his passes. Allar is very talented but still very raw. Penn State is going to have to play through their defense this season, which may be the best unit in all of college football, but can Allar make big plays in big games when called upon? The Nittany Lions’ success may hinge on this, and he has not yet shown that he is capable.

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