Take a bow: The On3 players of the week for Week 10

Here are the On3 players of the week for Week 10 of the 2022 season. Each week, we pick a player of the week in each Power 5 conference as well as an overall Group of 5 player of the week.

Everything being equal, more weight is given to big performances against “good” opponents.

ACC

NC State LB Drake Thomas
The buzz: Wake Forest came in averaging 38.9 points per game, but Thomas and NCSU’s defense shut down the Demon Deacons in a 30-21 win. Thomas had nine tackles, three tackles for loss, two sacks and four quarterback hurries as the Wolfpack harassed Wake QB Sam Hartman throughout. Wake managed just 17 rushing yards, its lowest total since rushing for 7 yards in a 34-20 loss to Clemson on November 6, 2014.

Big Ten

Minnesota RB Mohamed Ibrahim
The buzz: It took a while before Ibrahim and the Golden Gophers got going, but they eventually revved up and beat Nebraska 20-13. Ibrahim rushed for 128 yards and two touchdowns, both in the second half as Minnesota rallied from a 10-0 halftime deficit. Ibrahim had 10 yards at halftime. While Ibrahim rushed for 128, the Golden Gophers as a team rushed for 125 because of sacks. It was Ibrahim’s 17^th consecutive 100-yard game; the FBS record is 31 by Archie Griffin.

Big 12

Kansas RB Devin Neal
The buzz: Neal helped Kansas reach bowl eligibility for the first time since 2008 by accounting for 334 scrimmage yards as the Jayhawks pounded then-No. 18 Oklahoma State 37-16. Neal rushed for 224 yards and a TD and also had six receptions for 110 yards. Neal, a sophomore, came in with 90 career receiving yards. It was the first 200-yard rushing game of his career and his fifth time with at least 100 yards. He had 146 rushing yards – a career-high total – in the first half, which ended with KU leading 24-7. Oklahoma State never really threatened in the second half.

Pac-12

UCLA QB Dorian Thompson-Robinson
The buzz: UCLA star RB Zach Charbonnet – the Pac-12’s leading rusher – was unable to play because of an injury. Thompson-Robinson made sure he wasn’t missed and that UCLA stayed squarely in the hunt for the Pac-12 title. DTR rushed for 120 yards and two TDs and also threw two TD passes as the Bruins beat Arizona State 50-36. Even without Charbonnet, the Bruins rushed for 402 yards and DTR also passed for 169. Thompson-Robinson threw both his TD passes and also rushed for a score in the first half; he capped off the Bruins’ first possession of the second half with his second TD run, which gave UCLA a 35-10 lead. It was the third 100-yard game of his five-year career and the sixth time he had two rushing TDs in the same game.

SEC

Georgia defense
The buzz: It’s hard to spotlight one guy, given the way Georgia shut down high-powered Tennessee. Most impressive was how the Bulldogs limited the Vols to 195 passing yards and zero TD passes. The Vols came in averaging 368.9 passing yards per game, with 23 TD passes. Georgia’s pass rush appeared for, really, the first time this season. The Bulldogs had six sacks Saturday; they had just 10 coming in. Three guys who do deserve a shoutout: DB Javon Bullard (who plays the Bulldogs’ hybrid “star” position) had seven tackles, two sacks, both in the fourth quarter, and a pass breakup; DT Jalen Carter had four tackles, two tackles for loss, a sack and two forced fumbles; and true freshman S Malaki Starks had a team-leading 10 tackles and a pass breakup.

Group of 5

SMU QB Tanner Mordecai
The buzz: Mordecai accounted for 10 – yep, 10 – touchdowns in the Mustangs’ epic 77-63 victory over Houston. Heck, he accounted for 327 yards and eight touchdowns in the first half alone. Mordecai finished 28-of-37 for 379 yards and nine touchdowns (two shy of the NCAA single-game record of 11, set by Houston’s David Klingler in 1990); he also rushed for 54 yards and a score. He guided the Mustangs to 642 yards of offense; Houston had 710 yards, and Cougars QB Clayton Tune threw seven TD passes himself. (As impressive as the offensive performances were, the 1,352 combined yards was a long way from the record – 1,708 by Oklahoma and Texas Tech in  2016.)