Kirk Herbstreit reveals top performing teams from Week 7

There was some massive movement in college football in Week 7, with multiple games having College Football Playoff implications. Some clarity was provided in the Pac-12, specifically, with some of the cannibalism taking place on Saturday afternoon.

As he does every week, ESPN’s Kirk Herbstreit released his top-performing teams of the week, highlighting seven this go-round. All but two of the programs recognized got wins against ranked opponents in major spots.

In keeping tradition with the rest of the season, three Pac-12 teams are featured by Herbstreit. Seemingly on a weekly basis, multiple teams from the conference are able to pull out massive wins. They probably are not slowing down anytime soon either.

1. Washington Huskies

Washington is a safe No. 1 from Herbstreit, getting a win against the arch-rival Oregon Ducks in the first time the two programs have faced each other as top-10 opponents. Dan Lanning has taken plenty of heat for his fourth-down decisions but Washington did a great job getting three critical stops.

An offensive clinic was also put on by the Huskies and are now in full control of the Pac-12’s race to the College Football Playoff. The schedule does not lighten up but for now, nobody in the sport looks better than Washington.

2. Notre Dame Fighting Irish

Leading into the game, USC leaving South Bend with their first loss of the season was not the craziest thought in the world. However, if someone had told you why Notre Dame was able to pull off a rivalry win, you would likely be shocked.

Caleb Williams looked like a human on Saturday night, not that the offensive line was giving him any help throughout. Notre Dame’s defense was the real story of the night, finishing off a tough four-game stretch in impressive fashion.

3. Pitt Panthers

Pitt was staring a fifth consecutive loss in the face against a Louisville team coming in with a ton of momentum. An incredible second-half performance made sure Pat Narduzzi‘s squad got its first win against a Power Five program this season.

Louisville did not score in the final two frames, being shut out. On the flip side, three touchdowns — one of them being an 86-yard pick-six — propelled Pitt to an impressive victory, shaking up how things look in the ACC.

4. Iowa Hawkeyes

How Iowa keeps doing this, we do not know. The race to 325 had another disastrous week for offensive coordinator Brian Ferentz but the win against Wisconsin meant the Hawkeyes took control of the Big Ten West and moved to 6-1.

Wisconsin outgained Iowa, having 95 more yards. Deacon Hill completed just six of 14 pass attempts for 37 yards while the run game produced 200 yards flat on 48 attempts. But the Hawkeyes’ defense continues to be one of the best in the country and is saving plenty of jobs in Iowa City.

5. Stanford Cardinals

When you went to bed, Stanford was down 29-0 and was probably in for a long second half. When you woke up on Saturday, they were winners in double overtime after an unbelievable come-from-behind win in Boulder against Colorado.

If there is one stat to observe, it’s Elic Ayomanor‘s performance. He caught 13 passes for 294 yards and three touchdowns. Not every day you see a wide receiver single-handedly carry an offense to a conference win on the road.

6. North Carolina Tar Heels

Miami and North Carolina were able to light up the stat sheet, scoring a total of 72 points in Chapel Hill. It was a bad day to be a defense, with nearly 1,000 total yards being put up by the two teams.

In the end, it was North Carolina on the winning end, with quarterback Drake Maye throwing four touchdown passes. Now 6-0 to begin the 2023 season, head coach Mack Brown has the Tar Heels in position to win their first ACC Championship since 1980.

7. Oregon State Beavers

With both Oregon State and UCLA having a conference loss heading into the contest, a win was critical to stay in the race to reach Las Vegas. Dropping a second game would be lethal will how stacked the Pac-12 is at the top.

Jonathan Smith’s team found a win to get a win, forcing three interceptions out of true freshman Dante Moore. Now, 6-1 overall, Oregon State is still in a position to make noise on the national level.

As we now move onto Week 8 of the college football season, there are going to be a few big-time matchups taking place. The CFP picture will continue to clear up and Herbstreit will have plenty of teams to give credit to next Monday.