CFB MVP
This flabbergasted Florida State cheerleader is the college football star of the week
When we originally came up with the idea for "college football star of the week," we had leaned toward crowning actual players for their on-field performances. Take, for example, Joe Burrow, who was our first-ever CFB star of the week back in 2019. In retrospect, that was a nice call by us considering where he is now, but there's more to college football than the stat sheet, which Burrow has been filling up nonstop since.
College football is about the players on the field, yes, but it's even more about the people off of it. CFB star of the week has since evolved to point out those exact people - the fans, the mascots, the band geeks, the strength coaches, the reporters wading through scores of drunken tailgaters to report the damn news, and everything else that makes college football college football.
That brings us to our Week 2 star, who is not the Jacksonville State quarterback who threw the stunning Hail Mary to beat Florida State at Doak Campbell Stadium, and it wasn't the kid who caught it, either. It was a man who saw it, this flabbergasted Florida State cheerleader, to be more specific:
As Scott Van Pelt correctly points out here, there is no sport that creates the reaction GIFs/clips, both good and bad, quite like college football. A FCS team just tossed a shocking final-second touchdown to beat mighty Florida State, a program that's now 0-2 and has become the laughingstock of the ACC, and all we can focus on is this dude's reaction. Mouth agape. Utterly astonished. It looks like this group of cheerleaders was on its way to go celebrate a very low-energy win, but they got a little too far ahead of themselves and before they knew it the Gamecocks were dog-piling in the end zone. You can't even control your jaw dropping at that point.
So kudos to you, young man, for producing a genuine, A+ reaction that has now been viewed by the internet north of 2 million times. Life, college football more specfically, comes at you very fast. Just ask these two lovebirds who were trying to get engaged at the other end of the field:
Nowhere for this marriage to go but up. Unless they send their kids to Florida State.
Helmet Stickers
(In this section, we'll dole out helmet stickers for those who just missed the cut on "star of the week.")
The Hard Rock cat
If not for our star FSU cheerleader, there is no question that the Hard Rock cat would have been our star of the week. Generally speaking, if you nearly eclipse 10 million views on the internet, you are the star of all stars:
It's honestly difficult to script a more perfect internet video. The suspense of the cat hanging by a thread, the cat falling and causing mass panic, the damn American flag saving the cat on September 11, the idiots picking up the poor terrified creature and all trying to squeeze the life out of it. I legitimately cannot believe this is a real thing that happened over the weekend. On top of it all, The U hung on to win a close one over a very good Appalachian State team, and next week they welcome in the 2-0 Michigan State Spartans, who will likely be ranked. Could this cat bring The U back? Five freaking helmet stickers for our feline friend anyway.
The Army football team
Displays of patriotism are usually met with varying opinions from mouthbreathers on the internet in 2021, but nobody was saying squat when the Army football team ran out on Saturday, the 20th anniversary of 9/11:
Chills on chills. The Black Knights promptly moved to 2-0 with a win over Western Kentucky, giving them 11th straight victories at home. Four helmet stickers for the men from West Point.
Texas A&M girl who called off the surrender cobra mid-surrender cobra
For those unaware, the surrender cobra is a common move where a fan who has just witnessed something go terribly wrong for their team places both hands behind their head and "surrender cobra"'s. The most famous iteration of the move came from the Michigan fan who had just watched his Wolverines botch a punt, watching Michigan State score a walk-off touchdown in the Big House as time expired.
On Saturday, a girl from Texas A&M became the latest surrender cobra victim when her Aggies fumbled the ball in the red zone with less than nine minutes left in the game. It was a stunning moment, as TAMU, trailing 7-3, was on a 13-play drive that appeared destined for the end zone. The fumble gave Colorado the ball on their own 20-yard line.
But then something magical happened. The Texas A&M girl in question called off the surrender cobra MID-surrender cobra when she realized she was on the big screen. Madden awareness: 1 billion.
What an audible! Not to exaggerate, but one has to wonder if this was the turning point for the fifth-ranked Aggies, who were on the verge of a brutal early-season upset they simply could not afford if they wanted to remain in the playoff picture. After this reverse surrender cobra, though, the Aggies came back, winning 10-7 on a late 18-yard touchdown pass from quarterback Zach Calzada to running back Isaiah Spiller. Now A&M is 2-0 with a cupcake New Mexico team rolling into College Station next Saturday and then a pair of suddenly big-time tilts at Arkansas and home to Mississippi State before they take on the almighty Alabama Crimson Tide. If they get to 5-0 before that game, we will remember the reverse surrender cobra as the moment that kickstarted a strong September. Three helmet stickers.
The guy who popped Jack Coan's finger back in
Out of respect to Notre Dame fans, we're not going to talk about the fact that last week they almost lost to a team that lost to Jacksonville State on a Hail Mary this past Saturday. Or the fact that they needed a miracle last-minute drive to take down freaking Toledo. The Fighting Irish are 2-0, and all you can do is win the games on your schedule. Jack Coan has been solid, particularly in crunch time like he was on Saturday in South Bend. But the true MVP was the guy who popped Coan's finger back in right before he threw the game-winner to tight end Michael Mayer:
Team work makes the dream work. Two helmet stickers.
Anthony Richardson
Scary news for Georgia fans who thought the Dawgs might skate to the SEC title game this year - Florida may have found a quarterback in redshirt freshman Anthony Richardson:
Unfortunately for Gators fans, Richardson came up lame at the end of this run, putting his availability next week in doubt. Richardson's injury, and its progression, will loom large these next few days, as Florida gets set to take on a team you may have heard of this Saturday: Alabama.
We're guessing Richardson won't be doing this during pregame again:
Insane. Hopefully, Richardson can suit up. Even if he doesn't, though, that SEC on CBS music is going to hit so different this weekend. There is absolutely nothing like the first 3:30 p.m. ET Saturday afternoon mega tilt between a pair of SEC brand names. One helmet sticker for Richardson, who needs to ice up for the Tide.