The best in Texas college football were on full display on Saturday as 10 of the 12 FBS teams in the state were in action. A few new skill position players rose to the surface, and a dominant defensive performance stood apart. 

Talking about the superlatives of the weekend takes much more than seeing a final score. It’s about standing out and exceeding expectations in a way that forces Texas to take notice. Here are five players who earned those honors in Week 9.

QB Kellen Mond, Texas A&M

Has Texas A&M’s quarterback turned a corner? The senior signal-caller from San Antonio completed a career-best 80.8 percent of his passes, posted 260 yards and added three touchdowns to dominate Arkansas. 

Mond completed passes to five different receivers and looked very comfortable in the pocket delivering the ball downfield. He also added 32 rushing yards to keep the Razorbacks on their feet. The sky’s the limit if Mond is playing this well. 

DE Joseph Ossai, Texas (Conroe Oak Ridge)

Is it even possible to play a better game as a defensive lineman? Ossai led the team with 12 tackles, six tackles for loss, three sacks, a forced fumble and a fumble recovery in Texas’ 41-34 win over No. 6 Oklahoma State.

More importantly, Ossai made the biggest plays of the night, including a sack on fourth down on Spencer Sanders to end the game. If this Ossai shows up the rest of the year, he will compete to be a first round NFL draft pick. 

WR Austin Trammell, Rice (Klein)

Trammell has quickly built a special relationship with new starting quarterback Mike Collins and it paid off in a big way against Southern Miss. The senior caught seven passes for 143 yards and three touchdowns in a big win. 

Rice’s passing offense could have fallen apart when last season’s top receiver – Brad Rozner – opted out for the season. However, Trammell has posted 219 yards and five touchdowns through just two performances. If this keeps up, he’ll be in line for an All-Texas College nod at the end of the year. 

TCU defensive line

The Horned Frog defensive line has been a weakness all season, but TCU found a way to put it together for four quarters on Saturday. The Frogs posted five sacks, which matched the previous production from all season long. 

Four different linemen earned a sack, including rising star freshman Khari Coleman, who also added a pair of tackles for loss. For all the success against the pass, winning up front also played a huge part in holding Baylor to 2.3 yards per carry. TCU has to keep this momentum heading forward. 

RB Ulysses Bentley, SMU (Houston C.E. King)

After SMU’s loss to Cincinnati, the biggest takeaway is that the Mustangs needed to find some consistency in the running game. The freshman Bentley responded with one of the better games of his career against Navy. 

Bentley rushed 25 times for 149 yards and two touchdowns against the Midshipmen and added a team-high 68 receiving yards. More importantly, he moved from just being an explosive performer to a consistent presence on the offense.