Kirk Herbstreit reveals his top-performing coaches from Week 5
There was no shortage of fireworks during the Week 5 college football slate, and ESPN’s Kirk Herbstreit is giving out his weekly superlatives for the coaches he believes deserve it the most.
With conference schedules ramping up and team identities becoming clear, he listed eight coaches across the country to slot in this week’s rankings. Here’s who he chose:
Charlie Weis Jr., Ole Miss
There wasn’t a better-looking offense in the country than Charlie Weis Jr.’s this weekend.
Ole Miss totaled 88 plays for 706 yards during Saturday’s 55-49 win against LSU with seven touchdowns to show for it. The offensive line played as cleanly as possible and Jaxson Dart had his best game in two seasons as the Ole Miss starter after completing 26 of 39 passes for 389 yards and four touchdowns, not to mention seven rushing attempts for 50 yards and another score.
Quinshon Judkins carries the ball a whopping 33 times for 177 yards, while Tre Harris — who scored the game-winning touchdown in the game’s final minute — and Jordan Watkins were the two Rebel wideouts to tally 100-plus yards through the air.
Liam Coen, Kentucky
If it wasn’t for Ray Davis, does Liam Coen make this list? Kentucky dominated Florida 33-14 thanks to a career-high 280 rushing yards from UK’s star running back, but quarterback Devin Leary struggled after going 9 of 19 passing for 69 yards and a touchdown.
It was the first time Leary and Kentucky didn’t turn the ball over. More will be needed from the Wildcats’ transfer quarterback this weekend on the road against No. 1 Georgia.
Still, UK is 5-0 and has an upset on their mind against a Bulldogs team that has been criticized for its strength of schedule so far this season.
Marcus Freeman, Notre Dame
Notre Dame walked into Durham wounded after last week’s heart-breaker to Ohio State — but responded with resilence by taking down Duke in one of Week 5’s premier matchups.
Audric Estime‘s 30-yard touchdown run during the game’s final minute gave the Irish the lead after the Notre Dame defense allowed 14-straight points during the second half.
Still, the final drive in general was as gutsy as they come. Perfectly executing the two-minute drill, quarterback Sam Hartman led a drive that took 10 plays and covered 95 yards before the game-winning score. A 4th & 16 conversion on a Hartman scramble pushed the Irish into field goal position before Estime took off for the end zone.
Trent Bray, Oregon State
Oregon State held down its home field with a 21-7 victory over a top-ten ranked Utah team this past weekend.
Quarterback DJ Uiagalelei threw for 204 yards, a touchdown and an interception during the contest while running back Damien Martinez and wide receiver Silas Bolden combined for 118 yards on the ground while providing the other two touchdowns on the afternoon. Bolden also caught six passes for 100 yards and was on the receiving end of Uiagalelei’s touchdown.
Neal Brown, West Virginia
West Virginia has exploded to a 4-1 start to the 2023 season, and that continued this past weekend on the road against TCU.
The Mountaineers’ rushing attack combined for 42 carries totaling 201 yards and all three WVU touchdowns. Quarterback Garrett Greene led the passing and rushing categories with 222 all-purpose yards while scoring two touchdowns on the ground.
They have a perfect opportunity to pick up a conference road win against Houston this Thursday.
Jeff Brohm, Louisville
The first-year Cardinals head coach has Louisville off to its first 5-0 start since 2013. They traveled to NC State for a Week 5 ACC matchup and escaped with a 13-10 victory.
Next up for Louisville is a home game against a top-ten Notre Dame team fresh off a massive victory over Duke. A win over the Irish would put the Cardinals in the national spotlight once again — something they haven’t enjoyed since the Lamar Jackson days.
Scot Loeffler, Bowling Green
Bowling Green stunned Georgia Tech 38-27 at home over the weekend. Improving to 2-3 on the season, they were 22.5-point underdogs to the Yellow Jackets heading to the game and simply overpowered Georgia Tech from the second quarter until the final whistle.
The Falcons forced three turnovers defensively and turn that into 438 yards on offense.
Jeff Hafley, Boston College
Boston College survived winless Virginia 27-24 thanks to a 42-yard field goal by Eagles place kicker Liam Connor.
After entering halftime with a 21-7 defecit, Boston College turned its fortunes around by producting a 17-point third quarter before Connor kicked the eventual game-winner. A fourth-down stop by the BC defense on the ensuing Cavaliers drive iced the game to secure the comeback conference victory.