Why college football is awesome - Week 11

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Every week, DAZN News's NCAA expert Simon Carroll reflects on the key action and memorable moments that you just do not get in any other sport, and what makes college football awesome.

With everything from trick plays and Heisman-defining drives to field goal proposals, Week 11 in college football did not disappoint:

Trojan Horse

There are few things better in football than a fake punt. Just as one team thinks they’ve wrestled away momentum, their opponents dive deep into their playbook to keep the ball and move the sticks.

And on Friday night, USC dialled the trick play meter all the way up to eleven…

Tied at 7-7 with Northwestern in the second quarter of their Big Ten matchup, the Trojans looked set to punt from their own territory.

Number 80 - Sam Johnson - took to the field to receive the snap. But instead of booting the ball down the field, he immediately found receiver Tanook Hines for a ten-yard gain and a first down.

On second glance, it turned out that third-string quarterback Sam Huard was wearing #80, sharing the same jersey as the punter in an audacious attempt to hoodwink the Wildcat coaching staff. And it worked!

Seemingly, USC head coach Lincoln Riley had listed Huard as #80 on the depth chart for the past three weeks, adding depth to the subterfuge that a Hollywood scriptwriter would have been proud of.

Despite questions of its legality, the play stood. The Trojans went on to win 38-17 and move to 7-2 on the season, with the playoffs still a possibility. I’d say it was worth a punt.

Toe-Tapping TD Maintains Hoosiers’ Unbeaten Season

Up 13 points in the third quarter and seemingly cruising to 10-0, Indiana looked certain to beat Penn State in Happy Valley for the first time in their history on Saturday.

The Hoosiers are flying under head coach Curt Cignetti, making the playoffs last season and sitting at #2 in the CFP’s first rankings of 2025 on Tuesday.

But the Nittany Lions, despite a woeful campaign that has fallen far short of the preseason hype, rallied. Star running back Nick Singleton scored touchdowns on the ground and through the air as Penn State took a shock four-point lead.

With less than two minutes on the clock, Indiana had one drive to maintain their unblemished season.

Step forward Heisman favourite Fernando Mendoza, who, after throwing a devastating interception a few minutes earlier, got himself off the mat to execute a 10-play, 80-yard touchdown drive.

Mendoza delivered some clutch sideline throws on fourth down, but it was his final pass that broke the internet…

On 3rd and goal from the seven-yard line, Mendoza threw it high to the back of the endzone under pressure. Receiver Omar Cooper managed to reel it in before miraculously getting a toe down in the paint to win the game for Indiana.

A play that defied gravity like that was inevitably reviewed, allowing the watching world to revel in Cooper’s wherewithal to keep one foot off the ground whilst tapping his other one in bounds.

Best catch of the year? Probably.

Fake Field Goal

Not to be outdone by the fake punt at the Coliseum on Friday night, Ole Miss decided to break out a fake field goal - of sorts - on Saturday…

During a timeout, a young man trotted onto the field at Vaught-Hemingway Stadium to seemingly kick a promotional field goal, with his girlfriend as the holder.

As he ran in to kick the ball, he stopped, lifted his partner and got down on one knee himself, proposing to her in front of 64,000 people.

The shocked fiancée-to-be gratefully said yes, to the delight of the Ole Miss faithful and the relief of the boyfriend, who was probably more nervous than any kicker who has attempted a field goal at ‘The Sip’ this season.

Never one to miss an opportunity, Rebels head coach Lane Kiffin ran onto the field and photobombed the ensuing photographs of the happy couple, a moment that will no doubt be remembered fondly by the pair.

Ole Miss went on to shut out their opponents, The Citadel 49-0, and move to 9-1 on the year. The feel-good factor is high in Oxford, Mississippi.

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