As we say goodbye to Week 3 of college football, we look back at the highs and lows of the past weekend.

Georgia dropped a spot in the AP Top 25 poll after a close-before-expected win over Kentucky. Group 5 teams are showing an early season ability to compete with Power 4 programs, and SEC schools are atop the race for the 12-team College Football Playoff.

Can Georgia’s offense get going for its big Week 5 matchup against No. 4 Alabama at Bryant-Denny Stadium? Will we see more Group of 5 upsets against ranked opponents this season? And now that SEC play has begun, how could those outcomes impact the future of this CFP race?

Our college football experts discuss the key takeaways from Week 3’s performance.

The SEC Dominates the CFP Race — For Now

The SEC currently holds five of the top six spots in ESPN’s Football Power Index (No. 1 Texas, No. 2 Alabama, No. 4 Tennessee, No. 5 Georgia and No. 6 Ole Miss). Missouri is ranked No. 10. Aside from the guaranteed spots for the five highest-ranked conference champions (which, of course, include an SEC team), there is no limit to the number of teams from a single conference that can qualify for the new 12-team playoff. According to ESPN Analytics, the SEC has a 60 percent chance of placing five or more teams in the College Football Playoff.

While three or four teams seems reasonable, you should pump the brakes before considering this the SEC’s invitation. They still have to play each other, and Georgia’s tough trip to Kentucky after watching LSU blow out South Carolina on Saturday is a reminder that anything can happen — especially on the road. The SEC will produce playoff teams with multiple losses. The question is whether the selection committee will reward those teams more than others with fewer losses but less challenging schedules. — Heath Dinich

Pitt keeps finding a way

Pitt mounted another improbable rally, coming back from a 10-point deficit late in the fourth quarter to surprise West Virginia and win 38-34 in the Backyard Brawl.

With just over three minutes left and the Panthers facing second-and-30, quarterback Eli Holstein threw a ball into the end zone. Daejon Reynolds leaped over triple coverage and came down with a 40-yard touchdown reception — his first catch of the season — to pull Pitt within a field goal. After forcing a quick punt, Pitt came right back and Derrick Davis Jr. scored the winning touchdown on a 1-yard plunge with just seconds left.

With last week’s 21-point comeback win over Cincinnati, Pitt became the first FBS team since 2020’s Tulsa to turn a double-digit fourth-quarter deficit into two straight games, according to ESPN Research.

A team with this much resilience could spring a surprise in the wide-open ACC title race. — Jake Trotter

Cheers to the Group of 5

In all, the Group of 5 just wrapped up its most successful weekend of this young season. A week after Northern Illinois defeated then-No. 5 Notre Dame, UNLV defeated Kansas, Memphis pounced on Florida State’s disastrous start, Georgia State stunned Vanderbilt and Toledo pulled off a 24-point rout of Mississippi State. Meanwhile, Texas State, Arkansas State, Miami (Ohio), UAB, Tulane, Troy and Louisiana Tech all scared their respective Power 4 opponents in Week 3.

Saturday’s four wins account for two-thirds of the Group of 5’s six wins this fall over opponents from the Power 4 plus Notre Dame. After three weeks, 14 Group of 5 offenses rank in the nation’s top 50 in total offense, while 12 Group of 5 defenses rank in the top 50 in total defense. No. 23 Northern Illinois was the lone Group of 5 representative in the latest Associated Press Top 25, but five other Group of 5 programs were among those receiving votes this week.

As the divide between college football’s haves and have-nots grows, we should celebrate these Group of 5 victories. And with a guaranteed College Football Playoff spot for the top-ranked Group of 5 conference champion, the stakes will remain high among the contenders like Boise State, Memphis, Northern Illinois, UNLV and Liberty. Stay tuned, folks. — Eli Lederman

Those who got away

I was in Fort Collins Saturday night to see firsthand what has made Colorado’s Travis Hunter the most special player in college football. On the field for 123 of 138 total plays in a 28-9 win over Colorado State, Hunter shined with 13 catches for 100 yards, 2 touchdowns, an interception, 5 tackles and a pass breakup.

He was everywhere at once, or at least it seemed that way, and afterwards he smiled shyly and said he wasn’t tired, but was looking forward to an ice bath when the buses got back to Boulder.

I couldn’t help but think back to 2021, when Hunter pulled off one of the biggest signing day shocks, flipping his long-term commitment from Florida State to Deion Sanders, then at Jackson State (Hunter eventually followed Sanders to Colorado). It was one of many low points early in Florida State coach Mike Norvell’s tenure, a particularly devastating blow considering Hunter had been under contract for more than a year, the Seminoles desperately needed someone like Hunter to jumpstart the program, and Hunter had snubbed them for an FCS program.

Three years later, Hunter is on the verge of a top 10 NFL draft pick and Florida State is 0-3.

The Seminoles have done a fine job rebuilding their program without Hunter, but the start to this season has highlighted something that may have been overlooked as Florida State made its run at the CFP. In each of the past three years, Florida State has lost its top-rated commitment on signing day. In 2022, it was defensive end Keldric Faulk, who went to Auburn.

Last December, after a 13-0 season but a playoff snub, Florida State lost defensive back KJ Bolden to Georgia. Those signing-day losses have led to the perception that Norvell can’t close the deal when it comes to recruits. While all three situations are certainly different — Hunter, for instance, saw a chance to play for a coach he admired growing up — Florida State has tried to build through recruiting, despite its reputation as a master of the portal.

Florida State needed the portal early on to turn a downward spiral. But its recruiting efforts simply haven’t maximized its potential. Of the 20 ESPN 300 prospects signed between 2020 and 2022, zero have developed into All-ACC players. Maybe the ones who walked away would have helped. Maybe not. But it’s got to hurt to watch a player who walked away develop into a star. — Andrea Adelson

Washington State QB John Mateer has the “It” factor

While Hurricanes quarterback Cam Ward is helping Miami return to the national stage, his replacement at Washington State, John Mateer, has many in Pullman believing the Cougars may have an upgrade on their hands. Mateer is the first true dual-threat quarterback WSU has fielded in years, and after setting a school record for single-game rushing yards (197) against Texas Tech on Sept. 7, he added rushing scores of 23 and 25 yards in the Apple Cup against Washington on Saturday.

As a passer, he completed 17 of 34 attempts for 245 yards against what may be the best defense the team will face this year. He took some ill-advised chances as WSU held on — including a nearly costly interception that was overturned on replay — but there’s a Gardner Minshew-esque confidence to him that’s entertaining to watch, especially for a player who has only started three times. — Kyle Bonagura

Explosive game moments will define Kalen DeBoer’s first Alabama team

Coaches often talk about the 5-7 plays that determine the outcome of every game. Alabama is a team that is fully capable of making them on both sides of the ball. After spending time with the Crimson Tide this weekend in Madison, Wisconsin, I was impressed by the sheer number of playmakers on coach Kalen DeBoer’s first team. Wisconsin was clearly outmatched in terms of talent, but even when the Badgers did well, Alabama would immediately strike back with a takeaway or a long gain on offense.

The Tide are “a work in progress,” as DeBoer noted after a 42-10 win, but when they play clean, they’re also arguably the most explosive team in the country. Quarterback Jalen Milroe has fit the definition since becoming the starter, but others can tear defenses apart, including freshman wide receiver Ryan Williams, transfer wideout Germie Bernard and running back Jam Miller. Alabama also had four different defenders force fumbles on Saturday, and the staff is excited about the additions of transfers Keon Sabb and LT Overton to complement established stars Deontae Lawson and Malachi Moore.

“We expect to make plays that we shouldn’t make,” Bernard said. “That gives us the mindset to go out there and make the big plays when our number is called.”

The Tide may not be the most complete team in the country, and they’ll need to put together a standout performance to beat Georgia in two weeks. But their ability to generate — and confidence to make — game-changing plays should keep them firmly in the SEC race. — Adam Rittenberg

Slow starts should be a concern for Georgia’s offense

Should alarm bells be ringing in Athens, Georgia? The Bulldogs didn’t exactly look like the No. 1 team in the FBS heading into their narrow win over Kentucky on Saturday night, which is a big reason why Texas overtook them in the AP poll the next day.

Georgia had just 262 yards of offense and 12 first downs. It went 5-for-13 on third downs and averaged 3.4 yards per rush attempt. Even star quarterback Carson Beck struggled, completing 15 of 24 passes for 160 yards.

It shouldn’t come as much of a surprise. As good as Georgia has been under Kirby Smart, for some reason his teams have struggled at Kentucky. Since 2020, the Bulldogs have been limited to 20 points or fewer on foreign soil three times. Each of those games has been a win over the Wildcats: 14-3 in 2020, 16-6 in 2022 and 13-12 on Saturday.

It’s not the first time Georgia has struggled against a lesser SEC opponent. Last year, Georgia trailed Auburn 10-0 and only took the lead when Brock Bowers scored a 40-yard touchdown with 2:25 left in a 27-20 victory. The year before that, the Bulldogs needed two touchdowns in the final 9:39 to defeat troubled Missouri 26-22.

Georgia’s offense still has a lot of cleaning up to do. It was the second time in three games that it didn’t score a touchdown in the first half. The offense was tossed around by Kentucky’s defensive front, and the loss of All-America guard Tate Ratledge to a leg injury in the second quarter didn’t help matters. Tight end Ben Yurosek, a Stanford transfer, also missed a couple of key blocks.

The good news for Georgia is that it has two weeks to recover and regroup for its Sept. 28 showdown with No. 4 Alabama. With road games against No. 1 Texas and No. 5 Ole Miss remaining, it can’t afford to repeat a performance like Saturday night. — Mark Schlabach