Three And Out: Will Howard's Legacy Game; Quinn Ewers Returns; LSU Defense's Big Test | Barrett Sallee
Mid-October is go-time for teams looking for conference championship game berths and College Football Playoff appearances. This weekend will go a long way toward determining the future landscape of the rest of the season.
No. 2 Ohio State will travel to Eugene to take on No. 3 Oregon in the biggest Big Ten game of the year and, by ranking, the entire season so far. The winner of this game will have a huge leg up on the competition in the Big Ten title race, with the loser having a very small margin for error moving forward.
The Red River Rivalry should be a wild one with Texas quarterback Quinn Ewers coming back from injury and the Sooners looking to keep momentum going under new quarterback Michael Hawkins.
Let’s take a spin around the country with this week’s edition of Three and Out.
Will Howard’s big moment?
The eyes of the country have been on freshman superstar wide receiver Jeremiah Smith, but Will Howard has been the one distributing the ball to him. It’ll be on Howard to stay calm in what will be a wild atmosphere in Autzen Stadium. This is, by far, the biggest test of Howard’s career. He isn’t concerned.
COLUMBUS, OH - OCTOBER 05: Ohio State Buckeyes quarterback Will Howard (18) looks to pass during the game against the Iowa Hawkeyes and the Ohio State Buckeyes on October 5, 2024, at Ohio Stadium in Columbus, OH. (Photo by Ian Johnson/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
"I think confidence-wise, we feel great," Howard said (via: SI). "We continue to iron things out and get better every single week. I think we've learned a lot about ourselves and about this team. I think going into this game, we know that it's a big one. I looked at (Oregon) a little bit on the bye week, and I started checking them out and seeing what they're about. I'm excited."
This is a "legacy game" for Howard. He’ll only be in Columbus for one season, and this could make him a legend. No pressure, dude.
He’s baaaaaaack
Remember Quinn Ewers? You know, that guy who was a Heisman Trophy front runner back in mid-September? He’s back and in control of the Texas offense after sitting out two games before the bye week. Arch Manning was just fine in his stead, but it’s Ewers who will get the chance to get revenge on Oklahoma in the Red River Shootout and keep the Longhorn train rolling along.
Do not get caught up in the Manning talk if Ewers makes just one mistake. This is Ewers’ team. The last thing on Earth Texas needs is to deal with another contrived quarterback controversy.
AUSTIN, TEXAS - SEPTEMBER 14: Quinn Ewers #3 of the Texas Longhorns signals at the line of scrimmage in the first quarter against the UTSA Roadrunners at Darrell K Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium on September 14, 2024 in Austin, Texas. (Photo by Tim Warner/Getty Images)
Let Ewers cook. We know his ceiling, and it is incredibly high. More importantly, though, is that his floor is too. The same can’t be said for Manning.
Wrong team, wrong time for LSU
I was wrong about LSU’s defense. I thought new defensive coordinator Blake Baker would come in and transform the historically bad unit from last year into, at least, an average unit. Instead, the Tigers are next-to-last in the SEC in defensive yards per play given up at 5.85 and 12th in plays of 20 or more yards allowed at 22.
In my best weird Joe Biden whisper … "That isn’t good."
Oh, and here comes Ole Miss coach Lane Kiffin, quarterback Jaxson Dart and the explosive Rebels offense that can take the top off of anybody’s defense. Did LSU fix the glitch? If it didn’t, this game could not only knock the Tigers out of the race to the SEC Championship Game, but the College Football Playoff race as well.