Good morning, and welcome back to CFB Roundup from CFB Home – the first daily newsletter that’s all college football, all the time with no bias, no slant, and no fluff.

Week 3 Update for AP Top 25

Following Week 3, the AP voters have spoken and named their new Top 25 teams:

1. Texas (+1)

2. Georgia (-1)

3. Ohio State

4. Alabama

5. Ole Miss

6. Tennessee (+1)

7. Missouri (-1)

8. Miami (+2)

9. Oregon

10. Penn State (-2)

11. USC

12. Utah

13. Kansas State (+1)

14. Oklahoma State (-1)

15. Oklahoma

16. LSU

17. Notre Dame (+1)

18. Michigan (-1)

19. Louisville

20. Iowa State (+1)

21. Clemson (+1)

22. Nebraska (+1)

23. Northern Illinois (+2)

24. Illinois (NEW)

25. Texas A&M (NEW)

RV: MEM (77), SYR (62), BOIS (62), UNLV (54), BC (47), WAZZ (30), IOWA (15), ARI (15), IND (13), CAL (11), LIB (10), TOL (9), UCF (6), SCAR (3), UNC (3), ASU (3), BYU (2), PITT (1)

Dropped: #20 Arizona, #24 Boston College

Texas QB Quinn Ewers Injury Update

ESPN’s Pete Thamel is reporting that Quinn Ewers’ injury is not as serious as initially feared, and he should be considered week-to-week.

Ewers will miss the game against UL Monroe, but backup QB Arch Manning will play in Ewers’ absence. Manning took over for Ewers after Ewers left with injury and finished 9-of-12 passing for 223 yards, four passing touchdowns, and an additional one on the ground in which he hit almost 21 MPH running.

Texas coach Steve Sarkisian said after the game that Ewers’ injury is an oblique or abdomen strain but that it was unclear the extent of the injury. But considering that Texas plays UL Monroe, then starts SEC play with a Mississippi State team (that has looked like anything but an SEC team), and then has a bye, Ewers only being out for a couple weeks comes at just about the best possible time in the Longhorns’ schedule.

After the bye week, though, Texas has Oklahoma and then Georgia on the schedule.

Mark Stoops: I Don’t Regret Punting

Mark Stoops recently addressed his decision to punt the ball late in the 4th quarter in a game in which it was down 13-12 and was on Georgia’s side of the field, and Stoops shared that he does not regret it and does not think it was a mistake.

Said Stoops, “I was 100 percent going for it until we got to fourth and seven. Had it been less, absolutely.”

Stoops also shared that he does not see it as a mistake, saying, “I’ve been honest with you for 12 years. If I say I made a mistake, like last week, I’ll tell you. I don’t regret punting that ball.”

The strategy there, according to Stoops, was to play to Kentucky’s strengths: “If we went for it there and don’t make it, then our offense, if we stop them, has to go the length of the field. And that was going to be tough against that defense in a predictable pass situation. You know, it’s not our strength, so it’s a play to our strengths, pin them, plenty of time to pin them and get the ball back.”

Ultimately, Kentucky would punt the ball with 2:58 remaining. Georgia would burn 2:49 of that time in the next 8 plays forcing Kentucky to attempt to drive the length of the field with only 9 seconds – a feat that would’ve required a miracle that did not happen.

Pitt Coach Pat Narduzzi Fined $5k For Criticizing Officials

The ACC has fined Pitt coach Pat Narduzzi for saying, “we beat West Virginia and the officials in the same day.”

But technically, the fine is an institutional fine, so Pitt has been fined $5,000 for Narduzzi’s comments.

The ACC also publicly reprimanded Narduzzi for a violation of the ACC’s Sportsmanship Policy as part of the punishment. The ACC finally shared that, “the ACC considers this matter closed and will have no further comment.”

2026 Consensus 4-Star RB Damarius Yates Commits to Mississippi State

2026 consensus 4-star RB Damarius Yates committed to Mississippi State yesterday over offers from Alabama, Ohio State, Tennessee, Florida State, and others.

The in-state RB said of Mississippi State, “the environment is nice at Mississippi State. … They showed me a lot of love. I feel this is a great place for me. They made me feel at home every time I came up there. I am ready to come and show my face some more.”

Yates ranks as highly as the 31st national prospect and 3rd for his position according to On3. And according to On3’s industry composite, he ranks 56th nationally and 5th for his position in the 2026 class.

This is Mississippi State’s first 4-star commitment for 2026 and 4th commitment overall for the 2026 class. Of the 21 teams with enough commitments for 2026 to have a team ranking on On3, Mississippi State ranks 14th.

South Carolina Coach Shane Beamer Calls Out Officials, Says He Sent Plays to SEC Office

Immediately following the game on Saturday, Shane Beamer did not say much on what was evidently poor officiating according to most.

However, the South Carolina coach recently said that he took exception to several calls – and no-calls. For example, he believes that following the missed kick as time expired that would have sent the game to overtime, there should have been taunting called due to the fact that it was explained to Beamer and the rest of the SEC that taunting would be a point of emphasis and not allowed:

“I was told celebrations were going to be allowed a little bit. But there’s going to be a very clear emphasis on taunting. For that crew yesterday to throw 22 flags, and on the last play of the game, I think there’s two very clear instances of taunting that happened after the kick. And after throwing 22 flags, no one decided to throw a flag on that one.”

Beamer also revealed that he sent in a number of plays to the league office asking for explanations for what the rationale there was, because he can’t change the result but he does feel owed an explanation. Ultimately, Beamer said “we’re not going to seek comfort by looking at the officials. So that’s how we’ve handled it, as well. I’ve got to coach better, I’ve got to continue to put these guys in positions to make plays, there’s no doubt about it.”

Billy Napier on Florida’s Patience With Him

After Florida lost to Texas A&M 33-20, Billy Napier reflected on his standing with the Florida administration and their patience with him.

Said Napier, “the most important thing is that we make decisions with perspective. We’ve got to try to be objective. That’s the biggest challenge in leadership, I think, is kind of trying to put your ego on the shelf a little bit and evaluate things objectively and try to make decisions that reflect that. For me, all my decisions are about stewarding the people that have been entrusted to you, the players, your staff members.”

Also worth noting is Napier’s current contract: back in December of 2021, Napier signed a seven year contract worth almost $52 million. In the event Napier is fired, Florida owes Napier 85% of the remaining balance, of which he would still be owed roughly half of. Not only that, but whatever that owed balanced is, Napier would be owed 50% of it within 30 days.

In other words, Napier would be owed roughly $25 million if fired, which means the University of Florida would need to pay Napier $12.5 million within 30 days.

South Carolina QB LaNorris Sellers Injury Update

South Carolina QB LaNorris Sellers missed the 2nd half of South Carolina’s game against LSU, a game in which backup Robby Ashford nearly completed a comeback for the Gamecocks in.

Sellers shared that his ankle injury was not as severe as it might have seemed in the moment and that he’ll be OK:

“I think he just rolled up on my ankle, and then it’s kind of like my ankle – in the moment it was just like it was hurt. At halftime, they just took the tape off, looked at it, then they retaped it and figure out that nothing was really wrong. I was good to go.”

Sellers further shared that the training staff also used a different tape than he was used to, so there was a little bit of an adjustment period that frustrated him. But after he got used to it, he felt like he was good to go and wanted to come back on the field, but ultimately was a team player and watched Ashford nearly win the game.

Shedeur Sanders on Colorado State: They Asked For It

After Colorado State spent the week leading up to the game doing much of the talking, Shedeur Sanders and Colorado waited until after the game against Colorado State to do all of their talking.

Sanders admitted after the game that the Buffaloes had “a little bit of extra motivation when they’re talking crazy. We don’t really put other players down. We’re not trying to go on social media and do that. They just asked for it.”

Coach Deion Sanders also waited until after the game to share his thoughts on the matchup against Colorado State, describing it as a “personal game, heartfelt game, emotional game. They kind of make it like that. We just want to play some football. The disrespect was uncalled for throughout the week. A couple of the players took shots at the whole program, and a few of our players. So it is what it is. … We knew that coming into the game, it was going to be personal. … One of our coaches, Coach Phillips, during warmups, one of the guys ran into him and elbowed him, which is uncalled for. I just pray that our kids never act in that manner, because I know you guys would have a field day if they did.”

New ESPN FPI Computer Rankings After Week 3

ESPN’s computer system also took in every Week 3 result and has created new power rankings which are meant to power rate (not rank) each team:

1. Texas (28.5)

2. Alabama (28.2, +1)

3. Ohio State (26.2, +1)

4. Tennessee (24.4, +1)

5. Georgia (23.7, -3)

6. Ole Miss (22.7)

7. Notre Dame (19.9, +3)

8. Miami (17.9, +4)

9. Penn State (17.7, -2)

10. Missouri (17.4, -1)

11. Oregon (17.1, +2)

12. USC (16.8, -4)

13. Louisville (14.7, -2)

14. Oklahoma (13.5, +1)

15. Texas A&M (13.4, +4)

16. Clemson (13.0, -2)

17. Kansas State (12.8, +1)

18. UCF (12.7, -2)

19. Indiana (12.1, +7)

20. Oklahoma State (10.9, +7)

21. Michigan (10.7, -4)

22. LSU (10.7, -2)

23. Boston College (10.2, +1)

24. Utah (10.1, -3)

25. Nebraska (9.1, +3)

Other Commitments/Decommitments

3-Star (86) DL Robert James III commits to Fresno State

3-Star (83) Edge Bleu Dantzler commits to Utah State

3-Star (83) S Messiah Washington commits to Eastern Washington