College Football

Blake Corum, Sam Hartman highlight Week 8 top college football performers

Updated Oct. 24, 2021 2:13 p.m. ET

While Week 8 of the college football season didn't feature any Top 25 matchups, there were plenty of intriguing conference clashes that featured some great individual performances.

One came from Wake Forest quarterback Sam Hartman, who put on a show for the Demon Deacons. Meanwhile, Blake Corum and the No. 6 Michigan Wolverines produced a rushing clinic in a dominant 33-7 victory over Northwestern.

But Corum and Hartman weren't the only ones who left a mark in Week 8.

Here's a look at the top individual performances from Saturday’s games.

C.J. Stroud, QB, Ohio State

Stroud went 21-for-28 for 266 yards and four touchdowns in Saturday's contest against Indiana as the No. 5 Buckeyes dominated the Hoosiers, 54-7. Stroud passed for 201 yards and three of those TDs in the first half alone. Stroud now has 14 touchdown passes with zero interceptions in his last three games.

Brennan Armstrong, QB, Virginia

It was another big game from Armstrong as he helped lead Virginia past Georgia Tech 48-40, the Cavaliers' fourth-straight win. Armstrong was 29-for-43 for a whopping 397 yards and four TDs. He also added 99 rushing yards and two rushing TDs.

Blake Corum, RB, Michigan

Michigan has jumped out to an impressive 7-0 start this season behind a dominant rushing attack. It was the same story again in the Wolverines' commanding 33-7 win over Northwestern at the Big House. Corum led the way, rushing for 119 yards and two touchdowns in the victory. The Wolverines' talented back has now scored two or more touchdowns in four games this year.

Sam Hartman, QB, Wake Forest

Hartman put on a passing clinic on Saturday, leading Wake Forest to an impressive 70-56 win over Army. The Demon Deacons QB threw for a career-high 458 yards and five touchdowns while adding another score on the ground. Hartman completed 23 of 29 passes and connected on two 75-yard touchdown passes, plus scores of 41 and 54 yards en route to tying the Michie Stadium record for touchdown throws.

Garrett Shrader, QB, Syracuse

Shrader was nothing short of dominant on Saturday, putting together one of the most impressive all-around games we've seen this season. Shrader threw for 236 yards and two touchdowns while adding 174 rushing yards and three scores on the ground. The sophomore QB accounted for 410 of Syracuse's 550 yards in a 41-36 win over Virginia Tech.

Chase Brown, RB, Illinois

To pull off an upset win over a top-10 opponent, you will need star showings from your star players. To pull off that kind of upset in a nine-overtime thriller, you will need superhuman performances, which is what Illinois got from Brown. He carried the ball 33 times for 223 yards and a touchdown, throwing the Illini on his back and carrying them to a 20-18 victory at Penn State.

Treylon Burks, WR, Arkansas

The Razorbacks entered Saturday on a three-game losing streak and in need of a spark to turn their season around. They received that and more in the form of Burks, who scored three touchdowns in the first half of their 45-3 win over Arkansas-Pine Bluff. Burks finished the game with four catches for 89 yards and two touchdowns, as well as two rushes for 56 yards and a touchdown.

Xavier Hutchinson, WR, Iowa State

For Iowa State, quarterback Brock Purdy was sensational, completing 27 of 33 passes for 307 yards and two touchdowns in a 24-21 win over Oklahoma State. The receiver on the receiving end of most of Purdy's throws was Hutchinson, who hauled in 12 catches for 125 yards and two touchdowns, handing the Cowboys their first loss of the season. And to think, he could have had another 55-yard touchdown added to his total if it weren't wiped away by this controversial unsportsmanlike conduct penalty.

Braelon Allen, RB, Wisconsin

For Allen, it only took 12 carries for him to assert his dominance against Purdue, rushing for 140 yards and two touchdowns on a limited workload. It proved to be more than enough to get the job done, with the Badgers defeating the Boilermakers 30-13.

Snoop Conner, RB and Jerrion Ealy, RB, Ole Miss

Ole Miss could be poised to enter the top 10 when the next AP Poll is released after a 31-17 win over LSU, and it is mainly due to the dominance of its backfield. Conner totaled 117 rushing yards on 14 carries, while Ealy added 97 yards on 12 carries to go along with a touchdown. The two-headed monster kept LSU on its heels all day, proving to be too much for the Bayou Bengals.

Kayvon Thibodeaux, DE, Oregon

It's always a special occasion when the presumptive top NFL prospect in the country plays up to that billing, which is exactly what happened when Thibodeaux took the field against UCLA on Saturday. Oregon's standout defensive end recorded nine tackles, 4.5 tackles for a loss, two sacks and a forced fumble in a 34-31 win. Thibodeaux lived in the Bruins' backfield, which also kept the Ducks' hopes of Pac-12 supremacy alive.