There was no shortage of intrigue heading into Week 7 of the college football season, with a loaded slate that featured some of the biggest games of the season to-date.
There was no game bigger than the tilt at Autzen Stadium between No. 7 Indiana and No. 3 Oregon (much more on that momentarily).
But first, let's kickoff 's Week 7 college football takeaways with a hot seat check.
Hot seat checkIt's over, but probably not until the end of the season: James Franklin, Penn State
There's a lot to process here.
Penn State was in the College Football Playoff semifinal nine months ago facing Notre Dame in the Orange Bowl. With just over 30 seconds to play and the game tied at 24, Nittany Lions starter Drew Allar threw an interception that the Irish turned into a converted field goal shortly thereafter, which sent the program to the national championship.
That's how close Penn State was to getting an opportunity to play for a title.
Fast forward to 2025. Penn State lost two weeks ago to Oregon at home in overtime, continuing the narrative that James Franklin can't beat elite teams.
Now Franklin has a bigger problem, he can't beat overmatched teams in 2025.
Penn State lost a stunner at the Rose Bowl last Saturday against 0–4 interim-coach led UCLA. This week, the Nittany Lions returned home to Beaver Stadium to host Northwestern. For the second straight weekend, Penn State was a three-score favorite and found a way to lose, this time 22–21 to the Wildcats.
Not only did Penn State inexplicably lose its second-straight game as a multi-score favorite, but the Nittany Lions also lost Allar to a season-ending injury late in the contest.
Franklin has a buyout in excess of $50 million if he's fired after the season. What seems more likely is a mutual parting of ways with a reduced buyout. A fresh start is best for both sides.
It's over, probably before the end of the season, and maybe even this week: Luke Fickell, Wisconsin
The tenure for Fickell in Wisconsin has been disastrous.
The 52-year-old's hire at Wisconsin was widely viewed as a home run. But Fickell is now 2–4 in his third season, which is following up a disappointing 2024 that saw the Badgers finish 5–7.
Fickell was booed during pregame introductions at Badger Stadium on Saturday night prior to his program's tilt against Iowa, and was subsequently booed going into halftime with his team trailing 23–0.
Fickell and the Badgers were ultimately shut out 37–0 by the offensively-challenged Hawkeyes, and it felt like a death knell for his tenure in Madison. Let him leave his post in peace before Big Ten title contenders Ohio State and Oregon come calling in the next two weeks.
Future is murky (at best): Mike Norvell, Florida State
Florida State's Week 1 upset of Alabama—a two-score victory against a team that appears to be the class of the SEC—is aging quite well.
What's not aging well? Florida State's three-game losing streak, which continued on Saturday in a 34–31 home loss to Pittsburgh and its ascending freshman quarterback Mason Heintschel. Heintschel, in his second college start, completed 21 of his 29 passes for 321 yards and two touchdowns.
Pitt racked up 476 yards in total in what's becoming a sieve of a defense for the Seminoles. Florida State has now allowed 108 points in the last three games. Norvell was seen voicing his frustrations to defensive coordinator Tony White on the way to the locker room after the game on Saturday, and it's becoming a tenuous situation in Tallahassee.
An ACC championship appearance is now very unlikely in 2025, and that Alabama win seems more like an opening week aberration than a season-defining win.
It would serve Norvell well to have his team win the remainder of the games on the schedule, before calls for his job become more realistic.
Fan base can't decide whether they hate you or love you: Billy Napier, Florida
It seems like there's a hot seat discussion around Billy Napier at Florida following every loss. But then Napier, the man that has nine coaching lives in Gainesville, pulls off an improbable win that excites the fan base and gives them a taste of what the program could look like once it's fully operational.
Florida upsetting Texas at home last week earned Napier some goodwill (and momentum) heading into Saturday's road tilt with No. 5 Texas A&M. The Gators hung in there and were competitive for most of the night, but ultimately fell 34–17 on the road at Kyle Field.
Florida is very likely the best 2–4 team in the country. Napier and his group will look to bounce back in Week 8 against Mississippi State.
Welcome to the NIL era, where the Indiana Hoosiers are national title contenders
There was a great deal of pomp and circumstance around Curt Cignetti when Indiana hired him away from James Madison following the 2023 season. Cignetti, who was clearly trying to ingratiate himself with the fan base in his introductory press conference, went viral for bluntly stating, "I win, Google me."
Cignetti's year one was an unquestioned success. The Hoosiers went 11–1 in the regular season and traveled to Notre Dame in the first round of the College Football Playoff. The Hoosiers lost that game and finished the season with two losses, both of which came to the teams who played in the national title (Ohio State, and of course, the Irish).
Forde: Indiana Stuns No. 3 Oregon in Historic Upset, Cementing Curt Cignetti’s Remarkable Rise
Year two is going even better thus far. Indiana picked up its biggest win of the Cignetti era to date when it traveled to Autzen Stadium and took down third-ranked Oregon on Saturday, 30–20. The Hoosiers gained separation late in a contest where they appeared to be the better team throughout.
Last season, the narrative was that Indiana was a well-coached team that punched above its weight, finding its way into the College Football Playoff thanks to an easy schedule.
This season?
The Hoosiers are 6–0 with two top 10 wins. The remaining schedule is favorable. Indiana has home games against Michigan State, UCLA and Wisconsin to go along with road contests against Maryland, Penn State and Purdue.
Indiana is a Big Ten title contender, and appears capable of matching up with any of the sport's top national title contenders.
Dream big, Hoosiers fans.
Welcome to the Heisman race, Ty Simpson
Alabama quarterback Ty Simpson has ascended quickly into one of the sport's top signal callers. For my money, he's the best quarterback in the sport, and he solidified himself squarely in the middle of a wide open Heisman Trophy race with his performance in Saturday's 27–24 win at No. 14 Missouri.
With Alabama leading 20–17 in the fourth quarter, Crimson Tide head coach Kalen DeBoer chose to go for it not once, but twice, on fourth down to try to put the game away in Columbia. Simpson delivered both times.
The first came on fourth-and-8 from the Mizzou 38-yard line, when Simpson hit Lotzeir Brooks on a perfectly thrown 29-yard pass to set up the Tide inside the Tigers 10-yard line. The unbelievable throw-and-catch silenced the hostile crowd inside Memorial Stadium.
Four plays later, DeBoer elected to go for it again from the Missouri 1-yard line. Simpson hit running back Daniel Hill out of the backfield for a touchdown in what proved to be the deciding score in the ball game.
Simpson completed 23 of his 31 passes for 200 yards and three touchdowns to zero interceptions. While his stats aren't eye-popping by any stretch, the quality of the throws that he's making tells the full story of just how impactful he's been this season for the Crimson Tide, who continue to look like the class of the SEC.
It's time to take USC seriously after throttling No. 15 Michigan at the Coliseum
A fair number of college football fans dismissed USC as a true contender in the Big Ten after the Trojans fell to No. 23 Illinois by two in Champaign on Sept. 27. That loss for the Trojans came one week after Illinois lost 63–10 to Indiana, so the optics weren't great for USC given the circumstances.
But as we learned on Saturday, Indiana is one of the best teams in the country, and Illinois is not as bad as they looked the week before they beat USC.
The Trojans had a bye week to reflect on the loss, and came out Saturday night firing on all cylinders with No. 15 Michigan in town. The Trojans racked up nearly 500 yards of total offense and forced two turnovers defensively in a stifling effort on that side of the football in a 31–13 victory.
Up next, the Trojans travel to South Bend to take on Notre Dame in what's sure to be a ranked matchup next Saturday night. A win there against a very good Irish team would vault USC back into the national conversation.
For now, USC is an under-the-radar Big Ten title contender, with all of their season goals still in front of them.
