College football Week 5: 15 players to watch

Who knew that Stetson Bennett was going to be the main key in Saturday's huge matchup between Georgia and Auburn? Bennett was essentially fourth on the depth chart not too long ago to replace Jake Fromm as transfer Jamie Newman opted out of the season, transfer J.T. Daniels is still recovering from injury and freshman D'Wan Mathis was deemed the next big thing. Well, Bennett came in for an ineffective Mathis in the opener against Arkansas and looked great (222 yards, 2 TDs). As of now, Georgia isn't sure who will be the starter against Auburn. Mathis doesn't put confidence in anyone right now and Daniels, who may be cleared to play, hasn't taken a snap in over a year. Bennett, the fourth year junior, may be the Dawgs' best bet to win a pivotal game. 

In five starts in 2019, Costello threw for 1,038 yards and six touchdowns for Stanford. In one game under new head coach Mike Leach's offense, Costello threw for 623 yards and five touchdowns against defending champion LSU. He had run a pro-style offense at Stanford for three seasons and tossed for over 3,500 yards as a sophomore but he fit right in with Leach's air attack in his first game as a Bulldog. Ranked Mississippi State hosts SEC West doormat Arkansas on Saturday. 

Hall rushed for 155 yards and 3 touchdowns in a 37-34 win over TCU last week. This week, the Cyclones host a wounded Oklahoma Sooners team that was stunned by Kansas State last week. Hall totaled 143 yards against the Sooners last season and is itching to run on a defense that allowed four rushing scores in that loss to the Wildcats. 

It has been a long time since we've seen the Tar Heels play a game. After putting away Syracuse in their opener, North Carolina saw their game against Charlotte canceled and a bye week hit before this Saturday's trip to Boston College. In that 31-6 win over the Orange, Howell threw for 295 yards and a touchdown but tossed two picks (he threw only 7 all of last season). He has been itching to get back on the field to get that bad taste out of his mouth and get UNC's offense back on track. 

The last time Lawrence saw the Virginia Cavaliers it was the 2019 ACC Championship game last December. In that game, he completed 16 of 22 passes for 302 yards and 4 touchdowns. Three of those scoring passes were to Tee Higgins, who is now playing for the Cincinnati Bengals, but Lawrence has plenty of weapons to have another big game against UVA. 

Moore had a big game in a big loss to Florida last week. The junior from Fort Lauderdale caught 10 passes for 227 yards against the Gators but failed to grab a touchdown. Moore was one of the best receivers in the SEC last season but is best known as the guy who received an excessive celebration penalty for miming a dog "peeing" in the endzone against rival Mississippi State (it cost them the game). As he attempts to redeem his image, performances like last week's will go a long way. Mississippi goes on the road to face Kentucky this week.  

Moore has been spectacular for the Longhorns this season. Through two games, he has caught 11 passes for 200 yards and 4 touchdowns, including the TD grab with :40 remaining to tie Texas Tech and the score in overtime to win it. He also caught a 78-yard touchdown pass on Texas' opening offensive play from scrimmage against UTEP. He sat all of 2019 due to a weapons charge and while he was suspended from playing games he worked hard in practice to earn the opportunity the Longhorns have given him. Texas hosts TCU on Saturday. 

Nix had a fine freshman season in 2019 and there were high hopes with him working with new offensive coordinator Chad Morris. Last week against Kentucky, Nix threw for 233 yards and 3 touchdowns (plus 34 rushing yards) in the 29-13 win. He played with poise and confidence that resonated with the team. Nix takes his Tigers to Georgia for the big game of the weekend and has a chance to show how much improvement he's made. 

Could the Sooners begin the season 0-2? If Rattler turns the ball over as he did against Kansas State then they certainly can. Rattler looked good in his first start for Oklahoma (30 of 41 for 387 yards, 4 TDs) but he piled up three costly interceptions ... including one that ended any possible comeback for the Sooners. Rattler heads to Ames this Saturday in a must-win game for Oklahoma. Rattler should put up some big passing numbers but he must trim down the turnovers or any talk of a national championship is over. 

Usually when we discuss UCF it is all about their quarterbacks, but receiver Jaylon "Flash" Robinson needs to get some love. Robinson, a transfer from Oklahoma, caught nine passes for 150 yards and 2 touchdowns in a win over East Carolina last week. Robinson sat last season and worked hard studying the offense and improving his route running. It is paying off early on in 2020 and should pay off in a big AAC game against Tulsa on Saturday. 

For Texas A&M to pull off a big upset of Alabama, running back Isaiah Spiller needs to break off some big plays. Last week against Vanderbilt, Spiller broke off a 57-yard run on the first play of the second half which led to the touchdown that opened up a 9-point lead. Last season as a freshman, Spiller struggled against big time opponents (133 rushing yards and one TD combined against Clemson, Alabama, Auburn, Georgia and LSU) so he really wants to perform in Tuscaloosa on Saturday.

I've been all about Kyle Trask for two years now and he may be the reason the Gators have a chance to win a national championship. Trask went off against Ole Miss last week, throwing for 416 yards and 6 touchdowns against the Rebels, and earning a No. 3 ranking in the AP poll. Florida will host South Carolina on Saturday, an opponent Trask threw four touchdowns against last season. 

Waddle had a great start to the season with 8 catches for 134 yards and two touchdowns in the Tide's 38-19 win over Missouri last week. Alabama lost a lot of great receivers after last season and there is an opening for new stars to shine. Waddle, thus far, is stepping up to the plate. Even with those great receivers over the last few years, he gained 1,408 yards and caught 13 TDs in his first two seasons. 

Walker had a fantastic game against NC State in Wake Forest's last game as the sophomore ran for a career high 131 yards and 3 touchdowns in the 45-42 loss to the Wolfpack. Last week's game against Notre Dame was postponed due to COVID-19, which sets up a Friday game against Campbell this week. Campbell gave up 404 yards and 7 touchdowns rushing to Appalachian State last week, so expect Walker to have a huge night.

No. 22 BYU plays the late Friday game and has been one of the more fun teams to watch. The Cougars have pummeled Navy and Troy and quarterback Wilson has been extremely efficient thus far. He's completed 78% of his passes for 624 yards and 4 touchdowns in those two games. Two years ago in the Famous Idaho Potato Bowl, he completed all 18 of his passes for 317 yards and 4 TDs in a win over Western Michigan. BYU hosts Louisiana Tech on Friday.