Week 6 of the college football season delivered plenty of drama, from USC surviving a late scare against Penn State to Georgia taking down Alabama in a top-six showdown. Meanwhile, Michigan State fell just short in overtime, Boise State reclaimed the Milk Can, and James Madison remained undefeated. With the playoff picture beginning to take shape, let’s break down the biggest takeaways from another wild weekend of college football.

USC survives against Penn State

The Penn State whiteout game isn’t easy for any team coming into Beaver Stadium. The No. 19 USC Trojans, fresh off a close win over Washington the week before, had to make the trip east to face the Nittany Lions. It wasn’t an easy task at all; just ask the USC marching band, who had to watch the game from what seemed like another universe.

The game was close early, with both teams finding the end zone multiple times in the first half. What seemed to be the difference-maker for the Trojans was getting back freshman wide receiver Trent Mosley, who finished the day with nine receptions for 111 yards and one touchdown. Every time USC quarterback Jayden Maiava needed a play, he routinely looked for Mosley, who kept finding openings within the Penn State defense.

Despite the big plays from Maiava and Mosley, Penn State got the ball back with roughly four minutes in the game, down 31-23. It had a shot to win. But the USC defense made a big play, something it hadn’t really done all season. Penn State receiver Brett Eskildsen fumbled the ball as it was forced out by Trojans Christian Pierce. USC recovered and ran out the clock.

Big win on the road for the Trojans and Lincoln Riley, who did not enter a bye week before traveling to Wisconsin. It’s another loss for first-year Penn State head coach Matt Campbell, who is now 0-3 in Big10 play.

Alabama makes a major mistake late

Madness usually happens when Alabama and Georgia meet up. So when madness happened when the No. 2 Georgia Bulldogs traveled to Tuscaloosa to take on the No. 6 Alabama Crimson Tide, no one was surprised.

Late in the fourth quarter, the Bulldogs tried to run out the clock as the Alabama defense tried to make a stand. The Crimson Tide wanted to get the ball back to their promising young quarterback, Keelon Russell, who finished the game 16-of-30 for 185 yards and one passing touchdown, adding 41 yards on the ground.

With the two-minute timeout left, the Crimson Tide defense was looking to force a third-down stop for the Bulldogs’ offense — or so they thought. The dreaded yellow cloth left the referee’s belt, signaling a penalty. Alabama corner Dijon Lee Jr. was called for a personal foul after a second-down play had ended.

The penalty cost Alabama the game, as the team had no timeouts left. The Bulldogs ran out the clock and improved to 6-0 to win 20-17. No surprise, the Crimson Tide fan base wasn’t happy with Lee, and to ease the backlash, he deactivated his social accounts.

Michigan State head coach shows some personality

After starting the year off 2-0, the Michigan State Spartans have lost four in a row. The Spartans lost to Illinois in a nail-biting 38-37 overtime game. Michigan State found itself down 23-7 in the middle of the third quarter, but found a way to battle back. It started with an interception by Michigan State Devin Vaught, who picked off Illinois quarterback Katin Houser.

Michigan State came back to tie the game 31-31, the score going into overtime. In overtime, the Spartans’ defense gave up a one-play touchdown on the Fighting Illini’s first drive, meaning the Spartans’ offense had to do what it did in the fourth quarter. Score a touchdown.

The offense did just that with running back Jazuin Patteron taking it in from one yard out. Spartans first-year head coach Pat Fitzgerald wanted to win. Just by watching how he operated on the sideline, you could tell he wanted his team to know he believed. So, he went for the win instead of going into a second overtime. The two-point attempt failed, and Illinois won 38-37. It’s the Spartans’ third straight loss in Big10 play.

Boise State and Fresno State have a thriller

With the game kicking off at 10:30 pm EST, not many saw it. But No. 23 Boise State and Fresno State played a high-scoring affair, and the Broncos won 38-31.

Boise State’s rushing attack made the difference, with the Broncos rushing for 274 yards on the ground compared to the Bulldogs’ 69. Winning the line of scrimmage is something coaches all over emphasize, and this game showed why. Both Sire Gaines and Dylan Riley for Boise State had over 110 rushing yards each. With the dominant day on the ground, the Broncos sealed the win by sprinting to grab the Milk-Can, which Fresno State had for three straight years.

Boise State has won five straight games after losing to Oregon in Week 1.  Broncos Head Coach Spencer Danielson has his team rolling as they head into their bye week. The Broncos will face Washington State the next time they take the field.

JMU escapes a close one

James Madison is off to a strong start with first-year head coach Billy Napier at the helm. The Dukes won a close one against Georgia Southern on the road, 27-24, with the Eagles missing a late-game field goal that would’ve tied the game.

The Dukes are 6-0 with wins against Marshall, Liberty, and San Diego State. The stats show this game was close in nearly every category. The one difference was the rushing attack: James Madison had over 200 rushing yards, compared to the Eagles’ 122. The game-winning score for James Madison was a one-yard touchdown pass from JC Evans to tight end KD Mosley. It came early in the fourth quarter and gave the Dukes a 27-17 lead.

James Madison is now 3-0 in Sun Belt play, with Georgia Southern falling to 1-1 in conference play.