Kirk Herbstreit ranks top players of college football Week 7

Week 7’s college football slate brought no shortage of highlight reel plays and big-time performances across the country on Saturday.

Following another eventful week, ESPN’s Kirk Herbstreit ranked the top seven performing players in his eyes across an exciting list of games.

1. Tyler Warren – Penn State

Tyler Warren caught 17 passes for 224 yards and a touchdown during Penn State‘s 33-30 overtime victory on the road at USC on Saturday. Its the second time Warren has surpassed the 100-yard mark in a game this season, and there seems to be nothing stopping the senior tight end midway through the 2024 season.

The 6-foot-6 Nittany Lions star is by far the teams leading receiver, totaling 40 catches for 513 yards and four touchdowns this season. The next closes receiver in Harrison Wallace III with 283.

2. Dillon Gabriel + Offensive Line – Oregon

Oregon‘s 32-31 victory over Ohio State wouldn’t have been possible without the heroic performance of Dillon Gabriel. The Oklahoma transfer contributed 373 total yards of offense and three touchdowns en route to victory. They remain undefeated under his guidance.

The Ducks quarterback has thrown for nearly 1,800 yards this season while throwing 13 touchdowns and scoring four more on the ground. Now the Oregon has taken down the Buckeyes — it could be smooth sailing for the Ducks moving forward, along with Gabriel’s hope at being a Heisman finalist.

3. Anthony Hill Jr. – Texas

Okahoma was held to three points during 2024’s edition of the Red River Rivalry, and the Sooners have Anthony Hill Jr. and the rest of the Texas front seven to thank for that. Hill sacked OU’s Michael Hawkins Jr. twice and forced a fumble while totaling 11 tackles during the 34-3 win.

Texas has yet to be tested through six games, and the defensive unit is giving up just 6.3 points per game on average this season. Through two games, they’re outscoring SEC competition 69-16 heading into the Longhorns’ Week 8 matchup vs. Georgia.

4. Aaron Graves – Iowa

Iowa dominated Washington 40-16 at home on Saturday. Just like Texas, that effort was aided by the strong performance of their defensive line — particularly that of Aaron Graves.

Two of Graves’ five tackles on the afternoon were sacks while also forcing two fumbles on the Huskies offense during the game. The 6-foot-6, 300-pound interior defensive lineman now has five sacks on the season.

5. DJ Giddens – Kansas State

Kansas State called DJ Giddens number often during the Wildcats’ 31-28 win on the road at Colorado on Saturday. Giddens was handed the ball 25 times, rushing for 182 yards en route to the big-time conference win.

The win improves Kansas State to 5-1 on the season, and with no more ranked opponents left on their schedule until the regular season finale against Iowa State — a Big 12 Championship and subsequent College Football Playoff bid could be in the Wildcats’ future.

6. Braylan Lovelace – Pitt

Braylan Lovelace recorded the first two sacks of his young college career during Pitt‘s 17-15 win over Cal in Week 7. The former three-star recruit also totaled three tackles for loss and a career-high seven tackles during the win.

The sophomore linebacker has had a modest start to the season, but Saturday’s win could have kick-started a hot back half of the year for the Pennsylvania native. He’ll be someone to watch during the Panthers’ matchups against Syracuse this weekend.

7. Cam Skattebo – Arizona State

A 47-yard touchdown run in the fourth quarter from Cam Skattebo was the diference in Arizona State‘s upset victory over Utah during Week 7. He totaled 22 carries for 158 yards and two touchdowns to go with four receptions for 41 yards before capping off the 27-19 win.

He’s been given a massive workload so far in 2024, with 133 carries to his credit. With 773 yards and eight touchdowns already posted through six games for the Sun Devils, he’s more than on track to record his first 1,000-yard rushing season at the Division I level.