College football Week 10: Players to watch

Fromm had a bad game against LSU two weeks ago, and there were grumblings about him possibly losing his starting job. While the loss didn't end Georgia's title hopes, there is little room for error with games against Kentucky and Auburn coming up. Against the Gators last weekend, Fromm was big: He threw for 240 yards and three touchdowns in a beatdown. Up next is Kentucky, which will be chomping at the bit for a shot at the Dawgs with the winner of this game likely to become the SEC East champion. Fromm led Georgia to the national title game as a freshman, so he's been in the fires before. On to the next one in Lexington.

Grier is so exciting to watch. Last week against Baylor, he tossed three touchdowns, ran for another one and threw for 353 yards in the blowout win over the Bears. That was a great turnaround after his horrible performance in a loss to Iowa State a game earlier. He has thrown for 2,272 yards and 25 TDs this season and, aside from the game with the Cyclones, has been outstanding all season. In a wild Big 12, the Mountaineers have an opportunity to take a huge step if they can beat Texas in Austin this weekend. Last year, Grier broke his finger early on in the loss to the Longhorns, ending his season. He wants this one badly.

When we last saw the Buckeyes, they were getting blown out on the road by a Big Ten West team for the second straight season. Purdue waxed them, 49-20, but Haskins still put up big numbers. He set school records with 49 completions (on 73 attempts) for 470 yards. Only two of those completions went for touchdowns, and both were late in the game with Purdue up big. They host Nebraska this weekend following a week off, and expect Ohio State to be fuming. The numbers could be big again, but they should be more meaningful.

Hightower had the game of his life last week against Air Force (eight catches, 182 yards, three TDs), but the story of how he got there is notable. He ran track at Hinds Community College in Mississippi and decided to try out for the football team. He didn't make it. He would try out the next year and make the team, though he caught only 13 passes. Still, Boise State took a chance on the JUCO, and the speedster has held his own. He doesn't typically catch in bulk, but he does stretch the defense and make big plays. (He caught touchdown passes or 44 and 61 yards last week.) The Broncos host BYU this weekend.

Texas was cruising toward one of the two berths for the Big 12 title game when it suffered a hiccup last week against Oklahoma State. So this week's game against West Virginia has taken on even more importance. Johnson, the Longhorns' leading tackler, will be tasked to lead a defense against one of the most explosive offenses in the nation. Johnson has recorded double-digit sacks in three of the Horns' last five games and has a sack in each of the last two. He has been huge in limiting opponents' rushing attacks. The Mountaineers like to spread it out, but Johnson is also adept at sniffing out quick passing plays. He'll need to be all over the place for Texas to get this key win.

McMaryion has had a fantastic season but is particularly on fire right now. Over the last five games, he's averaged 292 yards with 15 passing touchdowns and just one pick. He's also run for three touchdowns in that time and earlier this season rushed for four touchdowns in a win at UCLA. The Bulldogs are ranked and face UNLV this week, and the Rebels' defense has been horrible. If you haven't seen McMaryion play, this is a good game to check out.

This season hasn't gone the way that the Nittany Lions wanted, but they still have a chance to have a good season, and knocking Michigan off the track for a Big Ten title is always fun in Happy Valley. The Wolverines are hot right now, but Penn State has McSorley. Last week against Iowa, he suffered a knee injury that thankfully looked scarier than it was. Banged up, McSorley gutted out a big comeback win over the Hawkeyes that leads into their game in Ann Arbor. Last year against Michigan, he ran for three touchdowns and threw for another one.

Minshew is a weekly resident in the "players to watch" section and deservedly so. All season he's been playing great and has put himself in serious contention for the Heisman trophy. He's thrown for 3,183 yards and 26 touchdowns and has been simply amazing the last two weeks in big wins over Oregon and Stanford. Last week in Palo Alto, he completed 40 of 50 passes for 438 yards and three touchdowns. The Cougars lead the Pac-12 North division and face upset-minded California Saturday night on national television.

Moss has been a machine over the last month. Last week against UCLA, he ran for 211 yards and three touchdowns...both career highs. He's been averaging nearly 144 yards a game over the last four games and has totaled six touchdowns — all in wins. He is third in the Pac-12 in rushing, and the Utes lead the Pac-12 South division. Utah heads south to take on Arizona State Saturday afternoon.

Murray is a player to watch, solely because he's just been so exciting this season and you may never get to see it again. He's thrown for 2,329 yards, 28 touchdowns and just three interceptions on the season and gets to face off against Texas Tech who can give up some yards. After this season, Murray will leave the Sooners to play baseball in the Oakland Athletics organization, so this season could be his last in football. So these last five or six games will be all we get. 

Temple has quietly positioned itself to be a major player in the AAC race. The Owls beat Cincinnati in their last game and are tied with undefeated UCF atop the East division. Guess who they play Thursday night on ESPN? Russo has played very well the last three games with wins over East Carolina, Navy and Cincinnati. He's averaged 263 yards passing in those wins with eight touchdowns. He's gotten better as the season has moved on, but he needs to limit turnovers (three picks against Cincy) if the Owls are going to upset the Knights. 

Kentucky plays in its biggest game in many years when it hosts Georgia this Saturday. If the Wildcats want the season to go from great to special, Snell needs to be big against the Bulldogs. Last week against Missouri, Snell ran for 67 yards and had an unsportsmanlike penalty that killed a key drive. Kentucky won and he would apologize for losing his cool, but he still has run for less than 100 yards in three of his last four games and has scored just two touchdowns in that span. If Kentucky wants to beat Georgia, he needs to be stellar. If he does, the Wildcats could be headed to the SEC championship game in a month.

Tagovailoa looks to be running away with the Heisman trophy right now, but the gap could either widen or close with his performance against LSU this Saturday. Tags has been toying with defenses this year — basically ending games by halftime — and he's had no real late-game pressure. In fact, he rarely passes in the fourth quarter. LSU has a top-line defense and can keep this game close into the fourth quarter and force Tagovailoa to make key plays. As we saw in last year's national championship game, he is surely capable. But he was sort of playing with house money when he was put in the game. Now he's the man and will need to show it if the game gets tight. Or he could just do what he always does and make this game a laugher before we can even get to that point. 

If LSU is going to pull off the upset of Alabama, it will need to get physical with Alabama's fast receivers and Williams is just the guy to do that. Last year, Williams led the SEC in interceptions as a freshman. Opponents tested the youngster then but are less willing to do so now. He pretty much shuts down one side of the field while the rest of the talented defensive backfield cleans up the rest. With Alabama boasting great receivers like Jerry Jeudy, Jaylen Waddle and Henry Ruggs III the Tigers need to at least bother the ease of this passing attack. Williams is certainly up for the challenge. 

Great name, greater game. Zaccheaus has been white hot the last two weeks, catching 10 passes in each of the Cavaliers wins over Duke and North Carolina. Against the Tar Heels, he caught 10 passes for 108 yards and even broke off a 29-yard run. He hasn't been piling up the touchdowns (just six this season and none in his last three games), but he's been key at moving the chains. In that game, he became Virginia's all-time leader in receptions. The "Wahoos" are ranked for the first time since 2011 and face Pitt in a Friday prime-time game this week.