While Week 4 of college football in 2026 saw the Florida Gators again show the SEC that they are a force to be reckoned with under new head coach Jon Sumrall, the rest of country witnessed a mix of bitter rivalries, devastating injuries and gritty comebacks. We wrap up the best of the rest below:

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Oregon 41 @ 27 USC
‘Disgusting play’ and injury to QB Moore overshadows Ducks return to expected form.

Dylan Raiola stepped into the spotlight to drive the Oregon Ducks to victory over USC after starting QB Dante Moore was taken to hospital following a late hit on a slide that saw his head knocked back into the turf.

“Seeing him like that shook the whole team,” Raiola said of his team-mate’s injury. “But, at the same time, we knew we were going to fight for him.”

“Certainly [there was] an energy change when Dante got hurt,” confirmed Oregon coach Dan Lanning, who referred to the hit as ‘a disgusting play’, before criticising USC linebacker Desman Stephens, who made the hit on Moore, for his sideline celebrations.

Stephens was ejected from the game for targeting and has since been suspended for a game by USC for his conduct. Fortunately, reports following the game confirm that Moore was able to move all extremities and is believed to have sustained just a severe concussion.

“There’s a reason targeting exists in football,” Lanning said. “That’s as clear as day targeting. It’s a shame that that happened to a good player when, in my mind, it certainly could have been avoided. So it’s disappointing that that would happen, but I thought our players did a great job of resetting and, on that note, still played with great violence and energy to make sure they could take advantage of what happened to their team-mate.

“We’ve got a lot of guys on the sideline who were emotional in that moment, including myself, [but] all these guys went out and played for #5. [And] every guy on the sideline had faith in [Raiola].”

That faith was rewarded by a stunning Ducks debut for the two-year starter at Nebraska who transferred to Oregon to be Moore’s back-up. Raiola started strong out of the gate with a three-yard touchdown pass to Evan Stewart, and USC’s defense struggled to contain the QB thereafter as he led four second-half scoring drives to the tune of 270 yards.

Raiola was supported by a standout performance by running back Dierre Hill, who punched in two second-half touchdowns, finishing with 61 yards on the ground and 105 yards receiving.

 

USC also looked strong offensively, with Jayden Maiava putting up 326 yards and two touchdowns. The QB looked composed and commanding early in the game but, with the Trojans’ defense struggling to contain the Ducks, faltered when they were chasing the lead late on, leaving head coach Lincoln Riley to bemoan the mistakes that he felt cost them the game.

“Came down to a couple of plays, like games with two really good teams typically come down to,” Riley said. “We made a few too many errors there in the end, especially when we got momentum there in the fourth quarter — and they did a good job [to] capitalise on them.”

Riley is yet to beat Oregon in five attempts as head coach of USC.

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Texas 20 @ 17 Tennessee
Vols give Manning and Co a scare in first meeting as members of the SEC.

The Longhorns broke out the smokes in their own parody of the Tennessee tradition made famous during the 1990s Alabama-Tennessee rivalry when Peyton Manning was the Volunteers QB, but it may have been as much in relief as celebration.

“It’s just kind of a little bit of a tradition here at Tennessee, so we had cigars or somebody had cigars in there,” Texas coach Steve Sarkisian said. “I’m not certain [who], but my suit’s probably going to stink whenever I get on the plane.”

It was a difficult day for Arch Manning, who failed to find the endzone within his 201 passing yards, and The Texas QB, who was sacked six times and intercepted once, was reflective of his struggles after the game.

“It’s not about me,” Manning said. “I didn’t play very well, but our team played great. Defense played well.”

The defense certainly did play well, sacking Tennessee QB Faizon Brandon 10 times. Edge rusher Colin Simmons tied the Longhorns franchise record with five of those, but was also penalised for a celebration that appeared to simulate him urinating on the downed player.

“We took him out, addressed it and put him back in,” Sarkisian said of the offence. “At that point, I’m not going to give the guy a death penalty over an unsportsmanlike conduct. We got to fix it, though. That can’t continue.”

Despite the defensive dominance, the game went down to the wire. Brandon led an 80-yard drive that ended with a 30-yard TD pass to Mike Matthews with just over a minute left and then, following a successful onside kick, launched the ball to the far corner of the endzone in a vain attempt to snatch the win with the final seconds ticking off the clock. Jelani McDonald, however, knocked down the pass and the Longhorns’ celebrations began.

“We win big games around here, we do,” Sarkisian said. “I know we don’t win them all, but we won a lot of them. And what an incredible performance by our defense.”

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Wisconsin 24 @ 20 Penn State
Badgers end Penn State’s unbeaten start with comeback road win.

Wisconsin quarterback Colton Joseph overcame two first-half interceptions to finish strong with back-to-back scoring drives in the final four minutes as he led the Badgers to an unlikely upset of Penn State at Beaver Stadium.

The win ended a six-game losing streak to the Nittany Lions and earned Wisconsin a road win against a ranked opponent for the first time since beating Purdue in October 2021.

“I don’t know if there’s any tougher situation than what we were in out there today,” Wisconsin coach Luke Fickell claimed. “And to see these guys not falter, to see guys not kinda get down on Colton and [not] give up on him, that’s what makes me so proud.”

Penn State’s defense started strong, forcing Wisconsin to punt on their first two possessions and creating two interceptions, including Josiah Zayas picking off one of Joseph’s passes one-handed and returning it 51 yards for a score. Trailing 17-7 at the half, however, Joseph and the offense showed both the resiliency and determination to push through for the comeback win.

“We knew it wasn’t finished,” Joseph said. “Our defense was playing lights out.”

Joseph scored a touchdown with his legs before a 75-yard drive culminated in an 11-yard toss to Eugene Hilton Jr with 3:31 left on the clock. A Gavin Lahm field goal subsequently gave the Badgers enough of a cushion to hold on to the lead.

The home loss is the first defeat of Matt Campbell’s tenure as the head coach of the Nittany Lions.

“We just really struggled to find a rhythm,” Campbell said. “I feel like it kind of led to the second half of the football game and kind of being in the same spot. We just struggled.”

Despite earning the lead at the half following a Rocco Becht rushing touchdown in the second quarter, the Lions offense stalled and punted on five out of the next eight possessions. Becht’s final attempt to salvage the game with a deep pass saw the ball sail out the back of the endzone.

“This is big time man,” said Wisconsin receiver Jacob Harris, who finished with 105 yards and a touchdown. “This is a message. The Badgers are back. We’re not just going to roll over. This is historically a top-dog programme and we’re looking to get back to that. That’s what the fans deserve, that’s what the community deserves and that’s what we’re going to give them.”

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Missouri 24 @ 31 Mississippi State
Bulldogs remain unbeaten as they down ranked opposition in back-and-forth SEC scrap.

Mississippi State QB Kamario Taylor had a statement game as he passed for 360 yards and three touchdowns to lead Mississippi State to a comeback win against #19 ranked Missouri. The win gives the Bulldogs back-to-back 4-0 starts for the first time since 1944-45, as they announce themselves as a serious SEC contender.

Taylor had help with strong performances from other offensive skill players. Running back Fluff Bothwell had 122 yards on the ground to go with his six catches for 55 yards, receiver Anthony Evans III reeled in eight catches for 114 yards whilst Sanfrisco Magee caught two touchdowns, including the game deciding 24-yard pass from Taylor, to extend his scoring streak to five consecutive games.

“We got some match-ups and some one-on-one situations where we were able to go throw and catch and go make the play,” Mississippi State coach Jeff Lebby said of the winning drive. “We were able to play with tempo on the last touchdown, which gives us a real chance for [Magee] to have the match-up that we wanted and we took advantage of it.

“Things weren’t perfect. We get out to the lead, obviously we lose it, there’s all kinds of mistakes that will need to get cleaned up, but, man, put your cleats in the ground, go play the next play.”

Missouri was also impressive on offense in a tight contest. QB Austin Simmons ended with 295 yards and three touchdowns whilst receiver Cayden Lee had 156 yards and two scores, leaving coach Eli Drinkwitz to take accountability for being unable to close out the game.

“We can give them better calls right there,” he reflected after a disappointing conference defeat. “Obviously, they didn’t work, so that’s on us. But it’s life in the SEC. That game, on the road, is going to be challenging. You just have to fight and find a way to win.”