College football Week 12: 15 players to watch

College football Week 12: 15 players to watch,There's the Heisman race to keep an eye on, and the four College Football Playoff berths are still wide open. Needless to say, there's a lot to play for and a lot of reasons to see the stars shine.

College football Week 12: 15 players to watch

We are at the penultimate week of the regular season, where there are some really good games on tap as well as … well … some of the top teams in the nation scheduling a late-season cupcake before rivalry week. So we should see some high-scoring blowouts as well as jockeying for position in conference standings.

The last part is key since there is so much left to be decided in regard to conference championship games as well as the bowl selections. There’s also the Heisman race to keep an eye on, and the four College Football Playoff berths are still wide open. Needless to say, there’s a lot to play for and a lot of reasons to see the stars shine.

Of course, there was also the devastating news of senseless violence that took the lives of Virginia football players Lavel Davis Jr., Devin Chandler, and D’Sean Perry, as well as Mike Hollins and another University of Virginia student, wounded in the shooting. As of now, the Cavaliers’ game against Coastal Carolina has been canceled. Our thoughts are with their families as well as everyone impacted by the attack.

Here are 15 players to watch in college football’s Week 12.

1 of 15

Chase Brown, Illinois

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The Bruins may have looked ahead to this weekend’s showdown with rival USC as UCLA is coming off a loss to Arizona. Despite the bad loss, Charbonnet had yet another huge game against the Wildcats — 181 rushing yards, 3 touchdowns. 9 receptions, 38 yards. He has been amazing all season for UCLA and has really poured it on over the last month. In his last four games, he is averaging 182 yards per game and totaled 8 touchdowns. He also likes to see USC — last year, he rushed for 167 yards and a TD.

3 of 15

Blake Corum, Michigan

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Could Blake Corum be the first running back to win the Heisman Trophy since Alabama’s Derek Henry in 2015? While he isn’t leading the pack right now, he can make a big push over the next few weeks. This Saturday is Illinois, who is on a bit of a slide, but Corum is anything but. He rushed for 162 yards and a touchdown last week against Nebraska and has averaged 159 yards over the last seven games. With a showdown against Ohio State looming the following week, expect Corum to be extra sharp against the Illini.

4 of 15

Josh Downs, North Carolina

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Josh Downs is becoming a star in Chapel Hill and moving up NFL Draft boards. He’s caught at least 11 passes in each of the last three games and his 74 receptions this season (tied for 5th nationally) is all the more impressive when you factor in that he missed two games early in the season. He clearly is quarterback Drake Maye’s favorite receiver (46 receptions, 548 yards, 6 TDs over the last four games) and has turned the Tar Heels offense into one of the country’s most dynamic. Last week at Wake Forest, he caught 11 passes for 154 yards and 3 touchdowns. North Carolina hosts Georgia Tech this Saturday, where another big day will likely put Downs over the 1,000-yard mark.

5 of 15

Bert Emanuel Jr., Eastern Michigan

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Last week’s MACtion gave us one of the best efforts in the conference this season. Central Michigan freshman Bert Emanuel Jr. had one of the most unusual stat lines for a quarterback. First off, Emanuel Jr. is redshirting this season, but he can play up to four games this season and he got his second opportunity against Buffalo last week. He didn’t start, threw just three passes and completed just one. Oh, but he did rush for 293 yards and 3 touchdowns. What? He opened the second half with a 75-yard touchdown run and later on broke off a magical 87-yard TD romp. He’s the son of NFL receiver Bert Emanuel (who is most famous for his catch that was taken away in the 1999 NFC Championship game) and could be a name to watch moving forward. And also this Wednesday against Western Michigan.

6 of 15

Zay Flowers, Boston College

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Boston College heads to Notre Dame on Saturday which gives the nation a great opportunity to see Zay Flowers in person. He is in a classic NFL talent stuck on a bad team situation. He’s one of the ACC’s top receivers, leading in receiving yards and second to UNC’s Josh Downs in receptions and receiving touchdowns despite playing for the 3-7 Eagles. He’s great in space, as shown in his effort in an upset win over NC State last week.

7 of 15

Eric Gray, Oklahoma

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It’s a shame that we are apparently down to the last few seasons of the Bedlam Series and the two participants are limping into the matchup. Oklahoma State has lost two of three and is having quarterback issues. The Sooners have lost five of their last seven games despite running back Eric Gray currently on a sparkling run. Over the last four games, Gray has rushed for 594 yards and 7 TDs. Last week against West Virginia, he ran for 211 yards and 2 touchdowns … and the Sooners still lost.

8 of 15

Jalin Hyatt, Tennessee

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Tennessee not only needs to keep winning but keep winning by huge margins if they want to nab a playoff berth. Huge margins happen when #11 gets the ball. Hyatt is second nationally in receiving yards and tops in receiving touchdowns. It isn’t just that he scores, but Hyatt is a playmaker. His touchdown grab last week went for 68 yards, his fifth reception to go over 50 yards this season (three to go over 60 yards). If the Vols end up with a big lead over the Gamecocks, don’t expect them to let up.

9 of 15

Kendre Miller, TCU

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Miller continues to be exceptional. In the Horned Frogs’ 17-10 win over Texas last week, Miller carried the ball 21 times for 138 yards and a touchdown — his 5th straight 100-yard game and 7th out of his last 8. Miller has scored in every game this season, including a 75-yard romp against the Longhorns. TCU is undefeated at heads to Baylor to face a Bears team that has been struggling to stop offenses of late.

10 of 15

Michael Penix Jr., Washington

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Penix Jr. went off on Oregon last week. The Indiana transfer threw for 408 yards and 2 TDs in the upset win over the Ducks. He leads the nation in passing yards (3,640) and has nine 300-yard games this season. He must be licking his chops this week as he gets to feast on the worst team in the Pac-12, Colorado.

11 of 15

John Rhys Plumlee, UCF

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UCF is currently tied for the lead in the AAC and has beaten the other two teams (Cincinnati, and Tulane) already. A big reason for the Knights’ resurgence is quarterback John Rhys Plumlee. Last week against Tulane, Plumlee threw for just 132 yards and a touchdown, but he rolled up 176 yards and 2 TDs on the ground. That was his best rushing effort of the season and his first 100-yard game since September 24th against Georgia Tech. Plumlee transferred from Ole Miss after three years (in 2019, he rushed for 212 yards and 4 TDs in a loss to LSU) and has taken hold of his opportunity. And UCF has taken hold of the AAC. Up next, Navy.

12 of 15

Nicholas Singleton, Penn State

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There may not be a team more overlooked than Penn State this season. Okay, that may be a bit strong, but Penn State is 8-2 with wins over no one very impressive, but their losses have come to Ohio State and Michigan in resounding fashion. Freshman running back Nicholas Singleton wasn’t very good in either of those games (70 total yards combined) after getting off to such a great start to the season. His 122 yards against Maryland last week was the first time he went over the century mark since September 17th against Auburn. He also had two TDs against the Terps, giving him 10 on the season. The Nittany Lions head to Rutgers this week to face a defense that gave up nearly 300 rushing yards to Michigan a couple of weeks ago.

13 of 15

Tavion Thomas, Utah

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Last week against Stanford looked like the old Tavion Thomas. Thomas carried the ball 22 times for 180 yards and 2 touchdowns in the 42-7 win. This week the Utes travel to face Oregon, with the loser likely out of the Pac-12 title race. Thomas was a thorn in the Ducks’ side last year as he rushed for 94 yards and 3 touchdowns in their regular season matchup, then scored twice in their rematch in the Pac-12 title game (both Utah wins). He has been dealing with a loss in the family that has caused him to miss time away from the team and not all present when he’s there. But in his final home game for the Utes, he looked like his old self. Now on to Eugene.

14 of 15

Deuce Vaughn, Kansas State

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Vaughn is one of my favorite players to watch. At just 5’6, he reminds many people of another diminutive back from Kansas State: Darren Sproles. Like Sproles, Vaughn is a multi-faceted threat. He’s already topped the 1,000-yard rushing mark already this season while also being a factor in the passing game (38 receptions, 3 TDs). He isn’t having the statistical season he enjoyed last year (1,404 rush yards, 22 total touchdowns), but he’s still a nightmare for defensive coordinators. This week he’ll be West Virginia’s nightmare — he rushed for 121 yards against the Mountaineers last season.

15 of 15

Caleb Williams, USC

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USC-UCLA at the Rose Bowl? Yes, please. With UCLA and Oregon losing last week the Trojans can take control of the Pac-12 and earn a spot in the conference championship game. A win over UCLA does that and would also keep the Pac-12’s only hope for a College Football Playoff berth. Quarterback Caleb Williams has been slinging it all year. His 14-of-26 for 268 yards and 3 TDs effort was rather pedestrian for him. His TD-to-INT ratio is 31-to-2 and he’s already thrown for over 3,000 yards. Big efforts against UCLA this week and Notre Dame week could vault Williams back into the thick of the Heisman race.