College Football

Casey Thompson, Zach Charbonnet highlight Saturday's top performers

Updated Sep. 26, 2021 1:51 a.m. ET

Back in 1957, the Notre Dame Fighting Irish completed one of the greatest upsets in college football history, shutting out the No. 2-ranked Oklahoma Sooners 7-0.

The Sooners entered that contest with a 47-game winning streak and looked unbeatable after back-to-back national title seasons. But it was the unranked Fighting Irish who stunned the college football world, putting an end to the longest win streak in college football history.

Following that memorable result, all the talk throughout the college football world surrounded the Notre Dame football program and the term "upset."

Fast-forward 54 years, and once again, on Saturday, all the talk throughout college football surrounded Notre Dame, and yes, you guessed it … upsets.

In addition to No. 12 Notre Dame's impressive 41-13 victory over No. 18 Wisconsin at Soldier Field, college football fans were treated to a flurry of upsets in Week 4. We saw North Carolina State QB Devin Leary throw for four touchdowns as the unranked Wolfpack upset No. 9 Clemson, while Arkansas WR Treylon Burks caught six passes for 167 yards and a touchdown as the No. 16-ranked Razorbacks shocked No. 7 Texas A&M 20-10, giving the program its first victory over the Aggies in a decade.

Leary and Burks were just two of many individual standouts from a loaded Week 4.

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

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Casey Thompson, QB, Texas

Congratulations, Texas Longhorn fans … you have officially found your quarterback! Making just his second career start at the University of Texas, Thompson put on a passing clinic in a commanding 70-35 victory over in-state rival Texas Tech. The Longhorns' junior signal-caller completed 18 of 23 passes for 303 yards and five touchdowns, while also adding 29 yards and a score on the ground. Thompson has now guided Texas to a score in 24 of his last 27 drives since the Alamo Bowl.

Bryce Young, QB, Alabama

The Heisman Trophy looks like a two-man race at this point in this season between Matt Corral (Ole Miss) and Bryce Young, who was nothing short of spectacular again on Saturday. Alabama's standout QB completed 22 of 24 passes for 313 yards and five touchdowns as the Crimson Tide cruised to a 63-14 victory over Southern Miss. He became the first player in program history with five TD passes and two-or-fewer incompletions in a game. Young entered the game listed at +250 to take home the Heisman, trailing only Corral, who was at +200, per FOX Bet. Ready for the best part of all? These two Heisman hopefuls will square off next week as No. 1 Alabama hosts No. 13 Mississippi.

Notre Dame Defense

All eyes were on the Notre Dame-Wisconsin game at Soldier Field, and while the first half was anything but pretty, it was the Irish defense that put on a show in the second half. The Irish forced five turnovers, including a pair of interceptions that were returned for touchdowns in the final 2:30 en route to a 41-13 blowout win. Sophomore CB Cam Hart picked off a pair of passes, while Jack Kiser and Drew White each returned an interception for a score. JD Bertrand led the Irish with eight tackles, while Isaiah Foskey added a fumble recovery.

Cam Hart intercepts Graham Mertz

Notre Dame Fighting Irish defensive back Cam Hart intercepts Wisconsin Badgers quarterback Graham Mertz for the first turnover of the game.

Pat Garwo III, RB, Boston College

It has been 14 years since Boston College got off to a 4-0 start to kick off the season. Move aside Matt Ryan, as Pat Garwo III and this 2021 Eagles team reached the 4-0 mark with a thrilling 41-34 win over Missouri. Garwo was dominant in this one, carrying the ball 25 times for 175 yards and a pair of touchdowns. He has now rushed for 160-or-more yards in two of the Eagles' four games this season. One word … impressive.

Christian Anderson, QB, Army

Army has yet to make an appearance in our top performers stories, but with a 4-0 record and a quarterback who totaled 200-plus yards on the ground in a victory, it's time to welcome Christian Anderson and the Black Knights to the party. Anderson put together one of the greatest rushing performances in school history on Saturday, totaling 236 yards and two touchdowns in Army's impressive 23-10 victory over Miami (OH). His 236 rushing yard total ranks sixth all-time in Academy history.

Devin Leary, QB, N.C. State

Heading into N.C. State's matchup against No. 9-ranked Clemson on Saturday, only two quarterbacks from the program had ever beaten the Tigers this century: Philip Rivers and Mike Glennon. It's time to add Devin Leary to that list. The N.C. State sophomore threw for 238 yards and four touchdowns, including the game-winner to Devin Carter in double overtime to stun Clemson 27-21. The Wolfpack's victory marks the program's first win over a top-10 team since defeating then-No. 3-ranked Florida State back in 2012.

Treylon Burks, WR, Arkansas

It's been 18 years since the Arkansas Razorbacks started a season 4-0. It's been 10 years since the Razorbacks beat SEC foe Texas A&M. Go ahead and throw both of those streaks out the window as Treylon Burks and the No. 16-ranked Razorbacks went into Texas and beat the Aggies on the road, 20-10. Burks was the star in this one, hauling in six catches for 167 yards and a touchdown in the victory. His 160 receiving yards in the opening half was the most in a half by an Arkansas player since Cobi Hamilton in 2012 (162).

Zach Charbonnet, RB, UCLA

When it comes to the top impact transfers through four weeks of the college football season, UCLA running back Zach Charbonnet has to be near the top of the list. The former Michigan Wolverine put on a rushing display on Saturday, torching the Stanford defense for 209 yards and a touchdown. He also added five catches for 42 yards in the Bruins' 35-24 win.

Jack Campbell, LB, Iowa

The Iowa Hawkeyes continue to dominate on the defensive side of the ball, and a big reason for that is the play of Jack Campbell. The junior linebacker recorded a career-high 18 tackles and added a gigantic fumble recovery in Iowa's 24-14 win over Colorado State. Campbell's fumble recovery came with 8:34 remaining in the third quarter, setting up a touchdown run by the Hawkeyes on the next play that tied the game. Campbell and the Hawkeyes held Colorado State to just 250 yards of total offense in the win.

Jack Campbell's fumble recovery helps Iowa even the score against Colorado State, 14-14

The Iowa Hawkeyes leveled the score against the Colorado State Rams, with help form Jack Campbell's fumble recovery. Tyrone Tracy Jr. rushed it in from six yards after the turnover.

Gunnar Holmberg, QB, Duke

We highlighted Duke running back Mataeo Durant in this piece back in Week 1 after his 255-yard, three-touchdown performance to kick off the 2021 season. This Saturday, it’s a different Blue Devil making his way onto the list. Quarterback Gunner Holmberg tied a school record with four rushing touchdowns and threw for a fifth as Duke ran away with a 52-33 victory over Kansas. Holmberg threw for 328 yards, completing 22 of 29 passes in the win. He became the first Duke player to rush for four touchdowns in a game in eight years.

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