There are a lot of familiar names on Week 10's Team of the Week as the superstars are starting to play up to their ability as we enter the stretch run in college football. Of course, there are new names sprinkled around the team as well, as any given week can bring out a player’s best.
Here’s your Week 10 Team of the Week featuring a number of All-American candidates who have built on already-impressive seasons:
Quarterback – Deshaun Watson, Clemson 89.6
It’s been a disappointing season for Watson given his massive expectations but this was his best game of the season against Syracuse. He threw accurately into tight windows and completed 13 of his 16 passes with two of his best passes of the day being dropped to skew the stats. He still threw for two touchdowns and 169 yards in just a half of work before going down to a shoulder injury.
Running back –Kyle Hicks, TCU 96.1 and Elijah Hood, North Carolina 83.7
Hicks stole the show against Baylor, rushing 26 times for 192 yards and five touchdowns that included six forced missed tackles. Hood made the most of his 12 carries with 168 yards and three scores in by far his best game of the season.
Wide receiver – Corey Davis, Western Michigan 91.9 and Ahmmon Richards, Miami 88.1
Davis took over Tuesday night with 272 yards, 12 receptions and three touchdowns on 16 targets. He lived up to his No. 1 status on the PFF Draft Board with a dominant outing. Richards continues to establish himself as one of the best true freshmen receivers in the nation as he caught eight of his nine targets for 144 yards while forcing two missed tackles after the catch.
Slot – Austin Carr, Northwestern 82.9
Back on the team for the second week in a row, Carr averaged 2.69 yards per route from the slot this week, catching 12 of his 16 targets for 132 yards and a score. His 91.1 overall grade now leads all receivers this season.
Tight end – Kendall Blanton, Missouri 90.6
With four catches for 42 yards and a touchdown, Blanton had his top receiving game of the season while providing strong run blocking at 80.2. He was extremely productive while playing only 30 snaps.
Offensive tackle – Cole Madison, Washington State 84.5 and Connor Williams, Texas 84.2
Familiar names along the offensive line this week, including Madison who allowed only one QB hit on 51 attempts in pass protection. Williams returns to the list, as he continued his All-American caliber season with a clean game in pass protection on 42 dropbacks and one of his best run-blocking games of the year.
Guard –Wyatt Teller, Virginia Tech 86.0 and Eduardo Middleton, Washington State 85.8
Teller had a dominant performance in the run game against Duke, grading at 89.6 to lead the nation while not allowing a pressure on his 36 attempts. Middleton was a part of a strong Washington State unit as he stayed clean on 55 pass protection snaps while showing well in the run game.
Center –Frank Ragnow, Arkansas 89.8
PFF analyst Mike Renner appreciates good center play as much as anyone, and he raved about Ragnow’s performance against Florida.
Defense
Edge rusher –Jordan Willis, Kansas State 88.1 and Takkarist McKinley, UCLA 86.4
Willis is playing at an All-American level this season and he was in Oklahoma State’s backfield all game with eight hurries and a sack on 44 rushes while adding a stop in the running game. It was the second-straight dominant game for McKinley who notched eight hurries and two sacks on only 31 rushes against Colorado while showing well against the run at 78.4.
Defensive interior – Sebastian Joseph, Rutgers 90.5 and Vincent Taylor, Oklahoma State 85.2
Joseph put together his best game of the season as he was disruptive in the running game with a 90.0 grade and four stops while adding three QB hits as a pass-rusher. Taylor returns to the team as he’s one of the hottest interior defensive linemen in the nation after picking up a sack and four run stops on only 43 stops against Kansas State.
Linebacker –Stacy Thomas, Louisville 94.0; Jayon Brown, UCLA 87.6; Richie Brown, Mississippi State 87.4
Making an impact in all phases, Thomas had the No. 6 run grade this week at 87.3 while deflecting a pass and picking up two hurries in the pass game. Jayon Brown finished with 10 stops to tie for the national lead this week as he made a number of plays against the run while keep the ball in front of him in the pass game. Richie Brown helped fuel Mississippi State’s upset of Texas A&M with six stops, a pass break up and two pressures as a rusher.
Cornerback – Adoree’ Jackson, USC 91.2 and Sidney Jones, Washington 91.0
Jackson had his best game of the season as he allowed only 14 yards on six targets while breaking up a pass and forcing a receiver out of bounds on another. He’s headed for his biggest challenge of the season next week against Washington. Speaking of Washington, Jones had been targeted only 17 times coming into the Cal game and they challenged him 13 times Saturday night. He only allowed four catches on 13 targets while intercepting two passes and breaking up another.
Safety – Adarius Pickett, UCLA 85.8 and Ronnie Harrison, Alabama 85.5
It was a solid all-around game for Pickett who played well against the run game while allowing only one catch on five targets for 10 yards. As for Harrison, he was one of Alabama’s stars this week as he got in on two stops, blocked a field goal and broke up one of his three targets while allowing only one catch for two yards.
Special teams analyst Gordon McGuinness checks in…
Kicker – Emmit Carpenter, Minnesota
Carpenter had a big game this week, connecting on all three of the field goals he attempted, including going two-for-two on field goals of 50 yards or further. Showcasing his big leg, he also boomed eight of his nine kick-offs resulting in touchbacks.
Punter – Joe Schopper, Purdue
Schopper averaged 44.6 net yards per punt on his eight punts this week, with four of them landing inside the opposing 20-yard line. His longest hang time on a punt was 4.85 seconds, and none of his punts were returned.
K/PR – Christian Kirk, Texas A&M
Another week and another big punt return for Kirk, who makes it three punt returns for touchdowns in the past two games. Against A&M he took a second quarter punt back 93 yards for a score to keep the Aggies in a game that was starting to get away from them.
SEC — Gordon McGuinness
QB: Jake Bentley, South Carolina, 71.9
HB: Sony Michel, Georgia, 83.2
WR: Deebo Samuel, South Carolina, 85.4; C.J. Duncan, Vanderbilt, 81.7
TE: Kendall Blanton, Missouri, 90.6;
OT: Paul Adams, Missouri, 81.3; Robert Leff, Auburn, 80.8
OG: Will Clapp, LSU, 81.0; Kevin Pendleton, Missouri, 76.8
C: Frank Ragnow, Arkansas, 89.8
ED: Tim Williams, Alabama, 84.7; Ryan Anderson, Alabama, 84.2
DI: Montravius Adams, Auburn, 82.2; Julian Rochester, Georgia, 82.2
LB: Dwyane Thomas, LSU, 90.2; Richie Brown, Mississippi State, 87.4; Brandon Lee, Missouri, 85.8
CB: Nick Harvey, Texas A&M, 89.2; Rashad Fenton, South Carolina, 89.1
S: Ronnie Harrison, Alabama, 85.5; Josh Liddell, Arkansas, 83.3
K: Daniel Carlson, Auburn
P: JK Scott, Alabama
K/PR: Christian Kirk, Texas A&M
Big 12 — Bryson Vesnaver
QB: Mason Rudolph, Oklahoma State, 94.2
HB: Kyle Hicks, TCU, 96.1; D’Onta Foreman, Texas, 76.7
WR: Shelton Gibson, West Virginia, 82.0; Daikel Shorts Jr., West Virginia, 81.9; Dede Westbrook, Oklahoma, 79.3
OT: Connor Williams, Texas, 84.2; Orlando Brown, Oklahoma, 81.0
OG: Kyle Bosch, West Virginia, 82.1; Ben Powers, Oklahoma, 81.0
C: Tyler Orlosky, West Virginia, 84.4
ED: Jordan Willis, Kansas State, 89.3; Noble Nwachukwu, West Virginia, 86.7
DI: Vincent Taylor, Oklahoma State, 85.2; Poona Ford, Texas, 82.6
LB: Travon Blanchard, Baylor, 90.0; Denzel Johnson, TCU, 86.1; Justin Arndt, West Virginia, 85.7;
CB: D.J.Reed, Kansas State, 89.1; Rasul Douglas, West Virginia, 87.1, Holton Hill, Texas, 84.1
S: Nick Orr, TCU, 84.0; Jah’Shawn Johnson, Texas Tech, 83.2
K: Brandon Hatfield, TCU
P: Michael Dickson, Texas
KR: KaVontae Turpin, TCU
Pac-12 — Jordan Plocher
QB: Luke Falk, Washington State, 85.2
HB: Christian McCaffrey, Stanford, 79.6; Gerard Wicks, Washington State, 79.0
WR: John Ross, Washington, 82.5; Deontay Burnett, USC, 81.6
TE: Austin Roberts, UCLA, 72.8
OT: Cole Madison, Washington State, 84.5; Connor McDermott, UCLA, 81.3
OG: Eduardo Middleton, Washington State, 85.8; Gerrard Kough, Colorado, 80.2
C: Riley Sorenson, Washington State, 82.7
ED: Takkarist McKinley, UCLA, 86.4; Porter Gustin, USC, 81.0
DI: Raheem Green, USC, 83.9; Elijah Qualls, Washington, 83.2
LB: Jayon Brown, UCLA, 87.6; Isaac Dotson, Washington State, 87.3; Kenneth Olugbode, Colorado, 84.8
CB: Adoree’ Jackson, USC, 91.2; Sidney Jones, Washington, 91.0
S: Adarius Pickett, UCLA, 85.8; Tedric Thompson, Colorado, 83.1
Big Ten — Josh Liskiewitz
QB: Wilton Speight, Michigan, 88.9
RB: Rodney Smith, Minnesota, 85.4; Curtis Samuel, Ohio State, 81.5
FB: Prescott Line, Michigan State, 83.7
WR: Austin Carr, Northwestern, 82.9; Jawuan Harris, Rutgers, 80.8
OT: Cole Conrad, Nebraska, 80.0; Jamarco Jones, Ohio State, 79.3
OG: Ryan Bates, Penn State, 82.3; Kyle Kalis, Michigan, 82.0
OC: James Daniels, Iowa, 84.4
DI: Sebastian Joseph, Rutgers, 90.5; Darius Hamilton, Rutgers, 84.8
ED: Robert McCray, Indiana, 87.0; Taco Charlton, Michigan, 86.0; Duwuane Smoot, Illinois, 83.7
LB: Ben Gedeon, Michigan, 85.2; Joe Burger, Ohio State, 84.8
CB: Jourdan Lewis, Michigan, 88.9; Blessaun Austin, Rutgers, 84.0
S: Duke McGhee, Minnesota, 84.2; Jabrill Peppers, Michigan, 83.5
ACC — John Breitenbach
QB Deshaun Watson, Clemson, 89.6
HB Elijah Hood, North Carolina, 83.7
WR Ahmmon Richards, Miami, 88.1; Deon Cain, Clemson, 84.2
TE Brandon Fritts, North Carolina, 76.5
OT Tyree St Louis, Miami, 83.7; Will Richardson, North Carolina State, 79.3
OG Wyatt Teller, Virginia Tech, 86.0; Dorian Johnson, Pittsburgh, 77.9
C Lucas Crowley, North Carolina, 82.4
ED Christian Wilkins, Clemson, 82.8; Trent Harris, Miami, 80.7
DI Ricky Walker, Virginia Tech, 81.6; Woody Baron, Virginia Tech, 80.5
LB Stacy Thomas, Louisville, 94.0; Micah Kiser, Virginia, 84.6; Matt Milano, Boston College, 84.1
CB Lance Austin, Georgia Tech, 89.8; Cordrea Tankersley, Clemson, 89.1
S Cameron Glenn, Wake Forest, 83.9; Chucky Williams, Louisville, 81.5
Group of Five — Zoltan Buday
QB: Ryan Higgins, Louisiana Tech, 92.3
RB: Devin Singletary, Florida Atlantic, 86.2
WR: Corey Davis, Western Michigan, 91.9; Zay Jones, East Carolina, 78.9
TE: Michael Roberts, Toledo, 80.3
OT: Chukwuma Okorafor, Western Michigan, 85.1; Darrell Williams Jr., Western Kentucky, 83.9
OG: Will Hernandez, UTEP, 95.8; Travis Averill, Boise State, 83.9
C: Jake Bennett, Colorado State, 84.9
ED: Chris Odom, Arkansas State, 90.3; Trey Hendrickson, Florida Atlantic, 87.7
DI: Waylon Roberson, Arkansas State, 85.4; Omarius Bryant, Western Kentucky, 85.5
LB: Michael Shaw, Georgia Southern, 88.2; Grant Ross, Air Force, 85.3; Nick Cook, Charlotte, 88.1
CB: Brandon Addison, Old Dominion, 96.3; Shaquil Griffin, UCF, 89.1
S: Trayvon Henderson, Hawaii, 85.1; Zach Edwards, Cincinnati, 84.3
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