USC fires Kiffin. After losses in seven of their last 11 games, USC has fired head coach Lane Kiffin after a 62-41 defeat at the hands of Arizona State. The Trojans desperately needed a win to stay in the Pac-12 South race, and now find themselves in last place in the conference standings as the only Pac-12 team 0-2 in conference play.
College football news: Lane Kiffin fired after yet another Trojan loss
Though the quality of the football being played on Saturday was much improved over last week, it came at the cost of the health of some the game’s biggest stars.
Matt Kartozian-USA TODAY Sports
Trojans’ lee hurts knee in road loss. To make matters somehow worse for the Trojans, wide receiver Marqise Lee may be out for the season after an injury suffered in the loss. Lee came down awkwardly after being brought down on a kickoff return late in the third quarter. Gamemplay was suspended for several minutes as Lee was carted off the field and his Trojan teammates looked on in anguish.
Crimson Tide without their starting center. Sean Kelly entered the 2013 season with the unenviable task of replacing Barrett Jones, and now junior Kyle Lindsay will have to replace Kelly, at least for the next two weeks.
Starting center. GEORGIA STATE and KENTUCKY next. RT @jzenor: Saban: Ryan Kelly hurt his MCL and is out for two or three weeks.
— SB Nation CFB (@SBNationCFB) September 29, 2013
Kelly left the game in the second quarter, but the Alabama offensive line still managed to create plenty of room for TJ Yeldon and Kenyan Drake while keeping AJ McCarron's jersey relatively clean on their way to a 25-0 win over Ole Miss.
Over the next three weeks, the Crimson Tide get Georgia State and Arkansas at home and go to Lexington to take on the Wildcats, so Alabama will probably be able to escape this two to three week span without having Kelly’s injury cost them a game.
TJ Yeldon also emerged from the with a minor injury:
Saban diagnoses TJ Yeldon with a "butt bruise."
— Cecil Hurt (@CecilHurt) September 29, 2013
Bryant breaks his ankle. Urban Meyer was visibly upset as he took the podium following Ohio State's win against Wisconsin and broke the news that star defensive back Christian Bryant had broken his ankle, in effect bringing his career as a Buckeye to a close. The injury was sustained with the Buckeyes just 43 seconds away from the finish line in their 31-24 win over the Badgers. Candidates to replace Bryant in the defensive backfield include Ron Tanner, Corey Brown, and Vonn Bell.
The injury is severe enough that it will require surgery. Bryant is expected to be an early selection in the 2014 NFL Draft.
De'Anthony Thomas goes down during opening kickoff. The Oregon Ducks lost their superstar speed demon on the opening kickoff of their 55-16 rout of Cal. De'Anthony limped off the field after appearing to injure his ankle and did not return.
Byron Marshall came on to replace Thomas and, despite fumbling four times, accumulated 130 yards and two touchdowns.
Shaw, Wilds fall in Gamecocks' victory. South Carolina survived a scare in Orlando, holding off the Central Florida Knights 28-25, but for the next several weeks they'll have to do without starting quarterback Connor Shaw and backup running back Brandon Wilds.
Shaw suffered what is being called a shoulder strain on the Gamecocks’ first possession, which ended when Shaw fumbled on the same play that knocked him out of the game. It’s the same shoulder in which Shaw sustained a hairline fracture during the 2012 season opener and is expected to sideline him for the next two to three weeks.
South Carolina’s next fumble came from the hands of Brandon Wilds, who was also knocked out of the game during the same play that he fumbled. Wilds’ elbow appeared to bend in a direction that elbows are not meant to bend, so Gamecock fans are fortunate that he’s only expected to miss two to three weeks with a strained elbow muscle.
Gurley misses second half. Georgia running back Todd Gurley suffered a second-quarter leg injury that forced him to miss the rest of the Bulldogs’ 44-41 victory over LSU. No word yet on Gurley’s status for next week’s road game at Tennessee.
GameDay headed to Evanston. Northwestern will host College GameDay for their game against Ohio State -- the first time GameDay has gone to Evanston since 1995 (the Northwestern-Illinois game at Wrigley Field in 2010 was also on GameDay). It will be a match-up between the two top-ranked teams in the conference.
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