Spartan Avenue College Football Rankings: Week 4

Sep 19, 2015; Durham, NC, USA; Northwestern Wildcats running back Justin Jackson (21) runs the ball against Duke Blue Devils safety Jeremy Cash (16) in their game at Wallace Wade Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Mark Dolejs-USA TODAY Sports

Tanner Mangum out-dueled UCLA‘s stud freshman quarterback Josh Rosen in a close, one-point loss on Saturday. He passed for 244 yards with a touchdown and a pick, but senior running back Adam Hine really stole the show, running the ball 23 times for 149 yards and a score. The BYU defense held Rosen in check with just over 100 yards with three interceptions.

Kevin Hogan had one of the best games of his veteran career for Stanford, traveling into Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum and finishing the game 18-of-23 with 279 yards and two touchdowns. The defense struggled a bit against USC, but eventually came up with some big stops in order to upset the No. 6 Trojans on the road.

It took a close lose against a ranked LSU team last week to really instill faith in Mississippi State fans, players and coaches for the 2015 season. Dak Prescott had a nice comeback performance against Northwestern State in week three, completing 10-of-11 passes for 227 yards and two touchdowns. The Bulldogs have a big road game against a struggling Auburn team next week.

Sophomore quarterback Mason Rudolph continues his scorching-hot play with another win for Oklahoma State over UTSA in week three, passing for280 yards and two touchdowns. On the year, he’s been solid against inferior opponents, passing for 947 yards and five touchdowns while completing 69 percent of his passes.

Northwestern is one of the biggest surprise teams in college football this year, taking down No. 21 Stanford in week one and winning a road game against Duke this past week. Clayton Thorson is still trying to gain confidence as the starter, but the run game, led by Justin Jackson, and the defense are both top-notch.

Next: No. 20 Georgia Tech - No. 16 Texas A&M