Five takeaways from CFB Week 6: College Football Playoff upheaval

Horns down

Here's the truth: Texas (3-2, 0-1) quarterback Arch Manning was overhyped. If his last name was anything but Manning, the national media would never have piled on the expectations they did.

Saturday, it became clear: Manning is not good enough right now to carry Texas to the CFP. To take it a step further: Texas is not a CFP team.

Manning threw two interceptions and Texas had a punt blocked for a safety in a 29-21 defeat at Florida (2-3, 1-1). Texas faces four ranked opponents in its final six games. At this point, a CFP invite will be difficult.

Alabama gets its revenge

Speaking of shocking upsets, who could forget last year's Vandy-over-Alabama game? It was Diego Pavia's coming-out party, and he played a major role in the Tide missing the CFP.

Alabama (4-1, 2-0) finally got its revenge. After Vanderbilt (5-1, 1-1) got out to a 14-7 lead, Alabama scored 23 unanswered points to secure its second-straight win over a ranked opponent.

Alabama quarterback Ty Simpson has settled into the starting job, racking up 340 yards and two touchdowns Saturday. More importantly, the Tide's defense hounded Pavia into an interception and a lost fumble. Right now, Bama looks like the team to beat in the SEC.

Miami, Virginia keep rolling

The two best teams in the ACC took down a pair of contenders. Miami (5-0, 1-0) secured a hard-fought win at Florida State (3-2, 0-2), where the good vibes from Week 1's win over Alabama are fading fast. Virginia (5-1, 3-0) won in overtime at previously unbeaten Louisville (4-1, 1-1).

Miami's defense forced three turnovers to build an early lead, and Carson Beck's four touchdowns were enough to hold off a late FSU rally.

Virginia was impressive in its win because it strayed from its usual script. The Cavaliers boast the nation's fifth-best offense (539.6 yards per game), but were held to 237 yards. Two defensive scores helped Virginia win.

Get excited about the Big 12

The Big 12 doesn't boast an obvious national title contender, but it is an extremely deep league that is worth watching. Here's a sampling of what went down in Week 6:

• Bear Bachmeier (351 pass yards, TD, 43 rush yards, TD) and BYU moved to 5-0 with a win over West Virginia.
• Cincinnati (4-1, 2-0) handed No. 14 Iowa State (5-1, 2-1) its first loss of the season, 38-30.
• Baylor (4-2, 2-1) rallied to beat Kansas State (2-4, 1-2). All it took was a 66-yard pick-six from Jacob Redding, a 53-yard field goal from Connor Hawkins and a blocked kick on a potential K-State game-winner as time expired.
• Texas Tech (5-0, 2-0) remained undefeated with a 35-11 win over previously unbeaten Houston (4-1, 1-1).
• Kansas (4-2, 2-1) overcame a 14-0 deficit to win at UCF (3-2, 0-2).

The league is evenly matched, and it leads to great games each week.