College football grades: Oregon earns 'F' mark for total implosion, Ohio State gets 'C+' on Week 6 report card

A look at how national championship contenders fared in Week 6 action

Oct 11, 2026 at 12:01 pm ET • 5 min read

It's a good thing Oregon coach Dan Lanning has four straight seasons of 10+ victories in his back pocket, because otherwise the Ducks coach might be feeling a little warmth under his seat after the way his team played Saturday. Oregon committed seven turnovers in a 17-15 loss to a UCLA team led by first-year coach Bob Chesney.

Ducks quarterback Dylan Raiola looked unprepared and poorly coached, and Lanning waited far too long to pull him. Additionally, Lanning's peculiar decision to go for two after a touchdown in the first quarter came back to haunt Oregon late in the fourth quarter.

Oregon's 3-2 start includes two losses as a double-digit favorite against teams under first-year coaches. At this point, it seems clear how reliant Lanning was on offensive coordinator Will Stein, who is in the midst of leading Kentucky to a 5-1 start. Lanning looks lost, the offense looks horrible and the Ducks are sliding into the abyss. The only possible redemption for Oregon would be running the table and defeating Ohio State on Nov. 7 on the road. It's hard to imagine that after what we've seen from this team through five games.

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We are handing out grades evaluating every team that started or ended the day with national championship odds of +3000 or better. No. 4 Miami (+750) was off this week.

Teams listed in order of their AP Top 25 ranking. 

No. 1 Texas

Grade: D
Result: 27-24 loss vs. Oklahoma
Title odds: +850
Texas quarterback Arch Manning suffered a meltdown in the fourth quarter, throwing a pick-six that let Oklahoma take the lead. Then, his second interception in the final minute helped Oklahoma get in position for a game-winning field goal. The Sooners also scored on a blocked punt as two of their three touchdowns were of the non-offensive variety. Gifting scores to the Sooners was the only way Texas could lose against such an offensively lifeless opponent. Texas let it happen. 

No. 2 Georgia

Grade: B+
Result: 20-17 win at Alabama
Title odds: +490
While it's true that Georgia benefitted from favorable officiating and a couple of lucky bounces, the Bulldogs also showed championship-level traits while earning a season-defining road win. Georgia averaged an impressive 7.5 yards per play and repeatedly came up with defensive answers in key situations. Every Alabama series ended either at midfield or in UGA territory, but only two of them ended in touchdowns as the Bulldogs kept the Crimson Tide under constant pressure.

No. 3 Notre Dame

Grade: A
Result: 58-7 win vs. Stanford
Title odds: +470
Notre Dame's breezed through its final tune-up before a top-10 clash with BYU as the Fighting Irish jumped out to a 37-0 halftime lead against a hapless Stanford team. The running game continued making strides, highlighted by freshman Jonaz Walton's 97-yard touchdown run in the second quarter. The Cardinal only got past their own 35-yard line once in their first nine possessions amidst another dominant showing from the Fighting Irish defense. 

No. 5 Ohio State

Grade: C+
Result: 45-16 win vs. Maryland
Title odds: +370
Ohio State was never in any real danger against a bad Maryland team, but the Buckeyes didn't play a clean game on a rain-soaked day at Ohio Stadium. They turned it over twice, leading to 10 Maryland points and committed eight penalties. With Indiana up next and the Buckeyes resting a few starters, the assignment was essentially to survive and advance without significant drama or major health issues. From that standpoint, the Buckeyes passed.

No. 6 Alabama

Grade: B-
Result: 20-17 loss vs. Georgia
Title odds: +950
Facing a great defense for the first time all season, Alabama struggled to execute in some key situations. The Crimson Tide lined up to go for it on a fourth-and-4 from Georgia's 43 with the game tied early in the fourth quarter and were called for a false start, which forced them to punt. Then, Alabama gave up a third-down sack to fall out of field goal range on its next series, which turned out to be its last. A first quarter fumble that ended a promising series in UGA territory also loomed large over a game that Bama feels like it should have won.

No. 7 Indiana

Grade: B
Result: 20-17 win at Nebraska
Title odds: +1000
Indiana played a C- level game until the final 12 minutes, when it flipped a switch and roared back from a 17-6 deficit. With its running game bottled up, IU needed its passing game to provide the punch. It did, as Nick Marsh scored on touchdown grabs of 75 and 44 yards from Josh Hoover during the comeback. The Hoosiers had some problems containing Nebraska quarterback Anthony Colandrea, but they stiffened up late and didn't allow the Cornhuskers into IU territory on their final four possessions. 

No. 9 Ole Miss

Grade: A-
Result: 52-17 win at Vanderbilt
Title odds: +2700
The competitive portion of this game ended in the second quarter as Ole Miss raced out to a 42-3 halftime lead en route to a rare easy win in the SEC. Two of the Rebels' touchdowns came in the final minute of the first half courtesy of Vanderbilt fumbles as the Commodores struggled to get out of their own way. Still, Ole Miss racked up nearly 300 yards of offense in the first half and scored touchdowns on four straight possessions while looking sharp after a bye week.

No. 10 LSU

Grade: C-
Result: 35-34 (OT) loss at Kentucky
Title odds: +2700
Kentucky missed two field goals with under five minutes remaining and LSU leading 27-24. It was almost as if the Wildcats were inviting the Tigers to win. But Lane Kiffin's offense couldn't sustain a drive either time. Stunningly, Kiffin elected not to go for it on fourth-and-1 from his own 43-yard line with 1:46 remaining. A first down would have ended the game. Instead, he punted, and the Tigers allowed Kentucky to drive for the game-tying field goal before losing in overtime. Kiffin's unusual conservatism cost his team in a game they could ill-afford to lose. 

No. 13 Oregon

Grade: F
Result: 17-15 loss vs. UCLA
Title odds: +7000
Oregon turned in a deplorable effort against UCLA and would have been blown out had the Bruins not missed numerous opportunities to build their lead. The Ducks finally pulled ineffective quarterback Dylan Raiola in the fourth quarter, and third-string QB Brock Thomas led a rally. But this game was lost over the first three quarters in a sea of turnovers, offensive ineptitude and bad coaching decisions.