College football week 3 recaps
Archived — this story has rotated out of today’s deck. It is kept here in full.
The gist
Week 3 of the 2026 college football season delivered multiple ranked upsets, including Kentucky over No.
The results set up movement in the AP Top 25 poll and shake up early-season rankings.
Background
Week 3 of the 2026 college football season featured high-drama revenge storylines, stormy weather delays, and a chaotic shakeup in the rankings. Lane Kiffin returned to Oxford as LSU's coach to face his former team Ole Miss. Oregon entered Week 3 after falling 15 spots in the AP Top 25 poll that week. NCAA.com noted the week included multiple unranked upsets over ranked teams and the sixth FCS over FBS win of the season.
How it unfolded
- Sep 19, 2026No. 13 Texas Tech beat No. 22 Houston 28-26; Houston QB Conner Weigman's two-point conversion attempt came up short. Weigman completed 27 of 38 passes for 282 yards and three touchdowns; Texas Tech QB Will Hammond threw for 257 yards, one touchdown and one interception.
- Sep 19, 2026No. 5 Miami beat Wake Forest 33-20.
- Sep 19, 2026No. 21 Oregon beat Portland State 84-0, piling up 726 yards of total offense while holding the Vikings to 103 total yards.
- Sep 19, 2026Kentucky beat No. 9 Texas A&M 31-21.
- Sep 19, 2026West Virginia beat No. 25 Virginia 38-27.
- Sep 19, 2026SE Louisiana beat UL Monroe 38-35, the sixth FCS over FBS win of the season.
- Sep 19, 2026Arizona State beat Kansas 24-17 in the inaugural Union Jack Classic in London.
- Sep 19, 2026No. 8 Ole Miss beat No. 7 LSU 32-24 in Oxford in Lane Kiffin's return to Vaught Hemingway Stadium. Ole Miss led 24-7 at the half; LSU tied the game with two touchdowns and a field goal; Ole Miss answered with a successful two-point conversion to lead 32-24; LSU's final fourth-down pass was tipped and intercepted by Ole Miss defender Jaylon Braxton.
- Sep 19, 2026Alabama beat Florida State 50-36; Georgia beat Arkansas 45-17; Pittsburgh beat Syracuse 27-13; Appalachian State beat Charlotte 26-21; Arizona beat Northern Illinois 42-17; Baylor beat Louisiana Tech 36-19; Boise State beat South Dakota 38-24; Boston College beat Maine 22-16; BYU beat Colorado State 41-23; California beat Wagner 49-7; Central Michigan beat Wyoming 24-10; Cincinnati beat Miami (OH) 35-31; Clemson beat North Carolina 28-20; Connecticut beat Southern Miss 48-20; Delaware beat Coastal Carolina 22-14; Duke beat Stanford 35-7; East Carolina beat Old Dominion 20-17; Florida beat Auburn 44-39; Florida Atlantic beat Florida International 16-10; Fresno State beat San Jose State 26-10; Georgia Tech beat Mercer 44-11; Illinois beat Southern Illinois 48-10.
- Sep 19, 2026FCS No. 3 Montana was trailing Oregon State 14-0; Boise State led FCS South Dakota 21-14 going into the second quarter.
- Sep 20, 2026NCAA.com signed off for the night, noting it would return to recap the late night games and that with a pair of ranked upsets there would surely be movement in the AP Poll.
Who’s saying what
- Official
- NCAA.com called Week 3 'certainly special,' listing multiple unranked upsets over ranked teams, the sixth FCS over FBS win of the season, a wild finish in Lane Kiffin's return to Oxford, and Arizona State's win in the inaugural Union Jack Classic in London.
- Analysts
- PFF's Mark Chichester summarized 'Week 3 results in one place' and highlighted 'Ole Miss wins SEC matchup.'
- Expert
- Former college coach Marc Nudelberg posted an 'unsolicited recap' saying 'College football is better than it has ever been.'
- Public
- A Facebook post commented that 'Texas A&M looked pretty good,' 'West Virginia destroyer teams,' and 'Penn State winning but.'
Still unverified
Kewan Lacy exited the game with shoulder pain in the third quarter; Trey'Dez Green was helped to the sideline struggling with an apparent lower-body injury.