In righting the ship against South Carolina, Texas A&M may have found its quarterback of the future with Kyler Murray's statement opening act. Meanwhile, Duke has a bone to pick with the ACC. And in the Heisman rankings by TexAgs' resident Trophy voter ... guess who?

Returning home and donning black uniforms, the Aggies righted the ship on Halloween. Kyler Murray made the first start of his career and put up 379 total yards in Texas A&M's 35-28 defeat of South Carolina on Saturday.

Hampered and hamstrung all night by an offense that couldn't move the ball and often gave Ole Miss short fields, the reborn Texas A&M defense — led by Myles Garrett and Armani Watts — nonetheless held its own and provided bright hopes for the future.

The Aggies came up painfully short in what may have been their last chance to challenge for the SEC West, but with five games remaining the season can still be salvaged. On Tuesday Kevin Sumlin and his players and coordinators joined the media in seeking answers.

College football's craziness continued in Atlanta, where Georgia Tech's last-play victory eliminated another unbeaten. Elsewhere, some fell from the ranks of contention (yes, including Texas A&M). In the Heisman rankings by TexAgs' resident Trophy voter, it's more of the same.

Will Saturday's contest in Oxford ultimately be a story of matchups, or of matchup problems? The Aggies will pit an elite D-line against a shuffled offensive front, while the Rebels will test the improved Texas A&M secondary — and those won't even be the game's primary storyline.

Laremy Tunsil is back — just in time to line up across from Myles Garrett. Can Kyle Allen bounce back? He'll have to. In a game sure to be determined in the trenches and through the air, a select few can make the difference.

As the page turns to the season's second half, competition in the nation's best conference is as intense as ever. Some emerging stars have surprised, while others have dominated as expected. Meanwhile, the weekend's Texas A&M-Ole Miss matchup has heavy implications.

For one quarter, the Texas A&M defense looked alarmingly like its 2013 and 2014 iterations. For the three quarters that followed, it looked like a top-10 unit. John Chavis' defense wasn't perfect against Alabama, but it flashed its ultimate potential in an at-times dominant performance.

Oh, Michigan. Elsewhere in America, the ranks of the undefeated and contenders continued to thin, Memphis made its statement and Leonard Fournette solidified his iron grasp on the top spot in the weekly Heisman rankings by TexAgs' resident Trophy voter.

It's Aggies vs. Crimson Tide, and that means what it generally does: future NFL players litter the field, coaching stalwarts walk the sidelines and the game hinges on who wins critical battles on both sides of the ball.

All eyes will be on 'Batman' vs. Robinson in Kyle Field on Saturday, with the winner of the five-star battle on the left side of the line likely to pave his team's path to victory. Meanwhile, the rest of the SEC is heating up.

Elite talent on both sides of the ball characterizes a matchup in which many can single-handedly change the game. On a Kyle Field that will be littered with stars, Saturday's contest will come down to which playmakers ... make plays.

The massive improvement John Chavis has brought Texas A&M's defense is due partially to the elimination of back-breaking mistakes. That was evident against Mississippi State in a play ran twice — once to perfection, once incorrectly with catastrophic results. The lessons will be needed against Alabama.

No, the Aggies don't talk about 59-0. But they remember. With anticipation for Saturday's top-10 SEC matchup at Kyle Field building, Texas A&M is gathering fuel from perhaps the most powerful form of motivation.

Now, Bama Week truly begins. Five days from welcoming the Crimson Tide to the palace that is the new Kyle Field for one of the 'games of the year,' Kevin Sumlin and his coordinators and players met the media to address the bye week's results and the challenge ahead.

At the season's halfway point, surprise teams have become legit challengers. In College Station, the stage is set to potentially determine the eventual SEC champ. Meanwhile, the Heisman favorite maintains the top spot in the rankings by TexAgs' resident Trophy voter.

Though the stat sheet may not fully reflect it yet, John Chavis' defense is transforming into a stout one before everyone's eyes. The clearest indicators of that fact in a mostly stifling performance against Mississippi State came in the form of now-characteristic big plays.