There are plenty of games worth talking about this weekend, but two games that shocked the college football world were Notre Dame’s victory and USC’s loss. Notre Dame, who many thought would go 0-8 before their first win, beat UCLA to bring their record to 1-5, while the USC Trojans fell to Stanford for their first loss of the season.

USC Beaten By Underdog Stanford 24-23

The biggest shock was the #2 USC Trojans’ (4-1) loss to the Stanford Cardinals (2-3), especially after the Cardinals ‘ embarrassing 41-3 loss to Arizona State last week and USC’s undefeated record going into the game. The Trojans’ loss came at the hands of an unranked PAC 10 opponent at home, snapping their 35-home game winning streak along with their 24-game winning streak against PAC 10 opponents. The upset also shows that even a 40-point underdog can win a college football game, and hurts USC’s chances to play in the BCS championship game.

Stanford’s hopes first came to life after converting on 4th & 20. Then, after a penalty that brought them back 5 yards to the Trojan’s 10 yard line, they faced 4th & goal with the game on the line. Cardinals quarterback Tavita Pritchard was originally a backup before the game, having completed only one pass in his career. Pritchard capped USC’s embarrassing home loss with a lob to Mark Bradford deep in the end-zone.

Notre Dame Gets First Win of the Season Over UCLA 20-6

As for Notre Dame (1-5), their first victory was a baby step towards normalcy. The win was surprising, given that Notre Dame wasn’t expected to see a victory for a couple of weeks, when they play Navy at home.

Charlie Weiss is still a disappointment as an offensive head coach, especially since he was the offensive coordinator for the New England Patriots during their Super Bowl wins.

Notre Dame’s offense was yet again abysmal, and if it wasn’t for their defense taking the ball into the red-zone for them after an interception, their offense would’ve yet again gone another game with out an offensive touchdown. As for the UCLA Bruins (4-2), the game is a bad sign given their remaining schedule, which includes four top 25 teams, including powerhouses California and USC.

UCLA played a strong game defensively, allowing only 13 points, with the other seven scored via a fumble recovery for a touchdown. It was their offense that did them in, making Notre Dame’s porous defense look strong. Bruins quarterback Ben Olson went down in the 1st quarter with a knee injury. He was replaced by redshirt freshman McLeod Bethel Thompson, with the walk-on throwing three interceptions in the fourth quarter alone.

In Other News

This weekend featured four of the top 10 teams losing (USC, Wisconsin, Kentucky, and Florida). This makes 13 losses by teams ranked in the top 25 in the last two weeks.

Top ranked LSU, barring any catastrophic setbacks, is primed to go all the way — the only question is who will join them.‘ California and Ohio State are strong contenders, but the second spot is up in the air, with South Florida and South Carolina among the teams gaining speed.