CFB Wrap-up: Takeaways from Week 4's biggest games

College Football Wrap-Up recaps the most important developments from the day's action and examines their significance moving forward.

Michigan finds its identity

Consider Michigan's mid-life crisis over. No more going to the local clubs, dying your hair, and trying to appeal to the youth with a fancy passing offense. The Wolverines returned to their roots Saturday, running the heck out of the football, playing lockdown defense, and posting a dramatic win at the last minute.

Alex Orji started at quarterback after Davis Warren got the nod for the opening three games of the year. We use the term "quarterback" loosely because Orji didn't exactly light the air up with his arm. His 32 yards passing - yes, that number is accurate - made history.

But Saturday night didn't revolve around Orji, as Kalel Mullings and the offensive line were brilliant. Michigan took over at its own 11-yard line down four with four minutes to play - a daunting task when your team is struggling mightily to throw the ball. After a quick first down, Mullings broke endless tackles on an epic 63-yard jaunt to set the Wolverines up inside the 20.

The drive - and essentially the game - ended seven plays later after Mullings plunged in the end zone with 37 seconds left on 4th-and-goal. Michigan ran the ball six times inside the 17-yard line and gained yardage each time.

It remains to be seen whether the Wolverines will keep winning games with almost no semblance of a passing attack. However, it's probably safe to say they'll be a ground-heavy attack given Sherrone Moore's postgame comments.

USC's old habits die hard

Lincoln Riley's first two seasons at USC have featured some of the nation's worst defensive units. The addition of D'Anton Lynn as defensive coordinator has paid immediate dividends for the program, something that was on display for MOST of the game Saturday. However, the final moments of the loss to Michigan saw USC's old habits reappear at the worst time.

The Trojans' penchant for poor tackling reared its ugly head after Miller Moss' third touchdown pass of the day put USC up four with four minutes to play. Two different Trojans had the chance to limit Mullings to a 10-yard gain. Instead, Mullings put the Wolverines inside the red zone with a monster 63-yard run.

Mullings wouldn't be denied on a fourth-and-goal from the 1 to essentially decide the game, spoiling USC's first game as a Big Ten member in the process.

There are plenty of positives to take from the Trojans' debut in a new conference - Moss looked really strong in his first true road start, for example. However, with their defense failing to rise to the occasion at the biggest moment, we may have been a little quick to consider last season's issue solved.

Clemson's post-Georgia explosion continues

Quick quiz: See if you can read Clemson's drive chart this season and find where the Georgia game ended and the Appalachian State contest began.

Cade Klubnik looked lost in the 37-3 opening-week blowout loss against the Bulldogs, joining a club that features just about every quarterback to face Kirby Smart's defense. However, he's been just about unstoppable since as the Tigers have piled up points at a record rate.

The latest victim was an overmatched NC State team that allowed a whopping 59 points in a blowout loss. Klubnik threw three touchdowns and rushed for one more to bring his total to 11 since Week 1. The stat barrage projects to continue for Klubnik as the Tigers face just one top-40 defense in the nation for the rest of their schedule.

Klubnik's breakout has certainly helped flip the narrative on Clemson this season. Many, including this space, wrote the Tigers off following their defeat to Georgia. While they may not be the shoo-in national title contender they once were, rumors of their demise as a playoff team were likely exaggerated.

Same old Utah

First road game in the Big 12? No problem. Seventh-year senior starting quarterback unable to play? Doesn't even register. True freshman passer going into a hostile environment in Stillwater, Oklahoma, for his first road start? Won't be an issue. It feels safe to say after Saturday that it's a new conference, yet the same Kyle Whittingham for Utah.

The Utes showed Saturday why most media had them as the Big 12 title favorites despite it being their first season in the conference for the former Pac-12 standouts. Utah stormed into Stillwater without Cam Rising and rode its stout defense and dominant rushing attack to an impressive road win over Oklahoma State.

Freshman quarterback Isaac Wilson, 18, somehow looked more polished than 24-year-old counterpart Alan Bowman, throwing for 207 yards and a touchdown while also rushing for 41 yards. Micah Bernard also ran wild for 182 yards on 25 carries.

The Utes stifled Oklahoma State's offense to such a degree that Mike Gundy benched Bowman at the half, and Ollie Gordon couldn't get anything going on the ground with just 42 yards on 11 carries. The 22-19 final scoreline was incredibly flattering to the Cowboys thanks to a pair of late touchdowns.

Utah should be considered the top dog in the Big 12 until proven otherwise with Whittingham once again showing why he's one of the top coaches in the sport.

Ohio State is running wild

Ohio State has been a factory for freakish wide receivers in recent years, including freshman star Jeremiah Smith, but it's the running duo of Quinshon Judkins and TreVeyon Henderson that'll likely determine if the Buckeyes will make a deep College Football Playoff run this season.

Judkins stole the headlines Saturday against Marshall, piling up an explosive 173 yards on just 14 carries with two touchdowns. Henderson was no slouch himself, going for 76 yards on only six touches. The two both averaged over 12 yards per carry and combined for four scores.

If there's one reason we should hold back slightly on Ohio State's potential, it's its laughable strength of schedule thus far. The Buckeyes have played two MAC teams - Akron and Western Michigan - and zero Power conference opponents. That'll change next week with an intriguing road trip to a Michigan State program that enters the weekend undefeated.

Freeze backs bus over quarterback room

The wheels on the bus go ... over the quarterback?

After Hugh Freeze played quarterback musical chairs Saturday, benching Hank Brown after a disastrous opening half and replacing him with opening-week starter Payton Thorne, the second-year head coach blamed his passers for Saturday's loss.

"I know that there's people open, and I know that we're running the football," Freeze said postgame. "We've got to find a guy that won't throw it to the other team."

Yes, the position once again doomed Auburn. Yes, Brown threw for just 72 yards and three interceptions, and Thorne produced two touchdown passes and a pick. But a quick reminder to Hugh that the man responsible for finding that person who won't throw it to the other team is ... the head football coach.

Freeze told ESPN's Greg McElroy and Cole Cubelic in the offseason that he wasn't interested in spending the money necessary to bring in a top quarterback in the transfer portal. Instead, he opted to bring in a few game-breaking receivers to surround Thorne in hopes that it'd spark growth in the passing game. It hasn't. Freeze can look directly in the mirror if he's looking for someone to blame.