Week 4: Winston drama won't end, Amari Cooper, Big Ten and more

Published Sep. 21, 2014 3:10 a.m. ET

Bruce Feldman

As chaotic as the 24 hours were leading up to kickoff of the Clemson-FSU game, it didn't seem like such a stretch that, with the Noles trailing 10-3 at halftime, suspended star Jameis Winston might actually put his helmet and pads back on and convince Jimbo Fisher to insert him into action to rally Florida State.

You could've guessed anything was coming Saturday night after pregame shots showed Winston dressed in full uniform standing by his perplexed-looking coach.

For much of the night, the Tigers looked like the better team, overwhelming the touted Noles O-line as Clemson hounded QB Sean Maguire in his first start. They outrushed the defending national champs, 101-13. Meanwhile, the Tigers’ future became the present Saturday night as true freshman Deshaun Watson lit up the Noles’ defense.

The Tigers, though, ended up “Clemsoning” their way out of what seemed like a big upset win. They got the ball into FSU territory after Maguire threw an interception with a little over two minutes left in the fourth. But then with the Tigers moving the ball inside the FSU 20, and the game tied, Clemson's C.J. Davidson was stripped by Eddie Goldman and FSU took over the ball at 1:36. The Noles played for overtime, made a clutch stop on a fourth down and won the game on a Karlos Williams TD run.

The Noles survived, but the soap opera surrounding their star player figures to remain a hot story.

Breakout Performance: I was tempted to go with Deshaun Watson for what he did to spark Clemson on the road against the No. 1 team, but powerhouse Samaje Perine's 242 rushing yards at WVU was huge for the Sooners.

Coach of the Day: Mississippi State’s Dan Mullen. The Bulldogs beat a Top 10 team for the first time in 14 seasons with their win at LSU.

Stock Up: Alabama WR Amari Cooper. Five catches for 156 yards in the first quarter alone against Florida. It was an awesome showing by a legit Heisman contender.

Stock Down: Florida State OT Cam Irving. Clemson's speed rushers gave him fits as the Noles struggled to keep backup QB Sean Maguire clean.

Best Win: Mississippi State. Beating LSU is one thing. Beating LSU at night in Baton Rouge is another thing entirely. Only two other teams have done it since 2005, and those were both No. 1 teams (Florida in 2009 and Bama in 2012).

Worst Loss: Michigan. The Wolverines get thumped by Utah, giving Brady Hoke his first non-conference home loss in Ann Arbor.

One Thing Nobody's Talking About: ECU, which played Top 25 teams three weeks in a row and beat two of them -- Virginia Tech and routing North Carolina. The Pirates can claim to be the kings of the ACC Coastal Division.

Conference of the Day: The Big Ten. Despite Michigan losing to Utah, The Big Ten, which was 1-8 against Power 5 teams entering the week, went 4-1 against those teams this week.

What I'll Take Away From Week 4: I want to say it's how the Big Ten played, but it's the soap opera at FSU surrounding Jameis Winston.

Bruce Feldman is a senior college football reporter and columnist for FOXSports.com and FOX Sports 1. Follow him on Twitter @BruceFeldmanCFB.