Oklahoma quarterback John Mateer struggled with critical turnovers in a 41-13 loss to Georgia on Saturday, Sept. 26, 2026, at Sanford Stadium in Athens, Georgia, while Iowa and Wisconsin secured major upsets during a chaotic Week 4 of college football.
College football’s opening weekend of conference play delivered sweeping momentum shifts across the country on Saturday, Sept. 26, 2026. While powerhouse programs stumbled, programs like Iowa and Oklahoma State seized defining victories that rewrote their respective conference outlooks.
John Mateer Turnovers Doom Oklahoma Against Georgia
Oklahoma’s offense found a brief spark in the second quarter at Sanford Stadium, driving 73 yards and threatening to pull within one score of second-ranked Georgia. Then the game unraveled according to reporting from Athens, Georgia. Quarterback John Mateer pump-faked and the ball slipped out of hands along with any sliver of momentum remaining for OU, allowing Bulldogs defender Chris Cole to scoop it up and take it 85 yards for a touchdown.
That sequence represented, essentially, a 14-point swing as the Sooners never recovered, falling 41-13 to Georgia on Saturday. Mateer finished the afternoon completing 25 of 34 pass attempts for 231 yards, but his mistakes—including the fumble, an interception, and another fumble all in the second quarter—ultimately led to the Sooners’ downfall. Because the Sooners relied almost exclusively on the aerial attack via wide receiver Isaiah Sategna III and tight end Rocky Beers—who paired up for 16 receptions and 165 yards—they were left weathering every miscue from Mateer.
Outside of Mateer’s disastrous turnovers, the Sooners failed to get anything going on the ground yet again, rushing for 65 yards on 35 attempts against the Bulldogs after averaging 1.9 yards per carry in a narrow win over New Mexico. Mateer ran 15 times himself, finishing with only 7 yards. Colorado State transfer Lloyd Avant was the running back with the most carries, taking 10 for 23 yards. Tory Blaylock finished with 10 yards on three carries, freshman Jonathan Hatton Jr. added 14 yards on five carries, and Xavier Robinson had a single carry for 5 yards. Despite the score, coach Brent Venables’ defense showed up and allowed 308 total yards despite being constantly put in bad situations due to the turnovers on offense. Returning from a knee injury sustained in the Michigan defeat, linebacker Kip Lewis contributed five tackles, a pass breakup, and teamed up with defensive tackle Jayden Jackson for half a sack. Safety Omarion Robinson recorded an interception and finished with five tackles. Star defensive tackle David Stone, five days after dislocating his kneecap, started for the Sooners and recorded two tackles.
Iowa Stuns Michigan to Shake Up Big Ten
While Oklahoma faltered in the SEC, the Big Ten witnessed a thriller in Ann Arbor. No. 17 Iowa pulled a stunner against No. 18 Michigan to win at Michigan Stadium for the first time since 2010 on the last play. Sparked only by a 99-yard kickoff return for a touchdown, Kirk Ferentz’s group labored through the opening 40 minutes of action while managing to stay within striking distance.
Elsewhere in the conference, Wisconsin needed something positive to happen in the Luke Fickell era, and Old Dominion quarterback transfer Colton Joseph was ready to deliver. In the last 3:31, Joseph threw two touchdown passes to stun No. 13 Penn State, including a 72-yard pass to Jacob Harris with only 73 seconds remaining, capping the most complete defensive performance for the Badgers while holding Penn State to only 233 yards.
Oklahoma State and Texas A&M Experience Divergent Fates
Recovering from their season-opening stumble against Tulsa, Oklahoma State erased an early deficit to secure a 41-24 victory away from home against West Virginia. The Mountaineers took a 14-3 lead early in the second quarter, but quarterback Drew Mestemaker and wide receiver Wyatt Young rose to the occasion. Young was a dominant force, hauling in eight passes for 192 yards and finding the end zone once, while Mestemaker bounced back from an interception to accumulate 389 yards through the air on just 27 pass attempts, with 270 of those yards coming after halftime. Ending an 18-game skid, the triumph marked Oklahoma State’s initial Big 12 victory in upwards of 1,000 days.
Expectations were low for Texas A&M when they traveled to face No. 10 LSU, but in one fell swoop, a 35-6 loss effectively ended No. 23 Texas A&M’s season. Quarterback Marcel Reed was the primary culprit, completing a paltry 10 of 26 passes for 106 yards and an interception. The backup, Brady Hart, threw an interception on his only pass attempt, while the Aggies allowed more than 300 yards passing and nearly 200 yards rushing.