College football grades: Notre Dame gets 'C' for ugly win, Indiana takes an 'A' on Week 10 report card

No. 12 Notre Dame stayed on the tightrope toward College Football Playoff consideration with its 25-10 win at Boston College on Saturday, but it wasn't pretty. Style points are going to matter for the Fighting Irish if they are going to make it back to the 12-team field for a second straight season, and there was nothing particularly stylish about their win over the lowly, one-win Eagles.

The only running success to speak of didn't come until 11:07 remained, when Jeremiyah Love broke off a 94-yard touchdown run to finally help Notre Dame get some separation. Perhaps the sluggishness can be attributed to a hangover effect following a tense and critical victory over rival USC two weeks ago. Whatever the explanation is, it doesn't really matter.

If the Fighting Irish want to diminish the inevitable conversation surrounding their lack of quality victories, it would behoove them to start winning games in more impressive fashion. Navy, Pitt, Syracuse and Stanford are the remaining foes on the slate. None of them are ranked, and performances like the one we saw Saturday -- it hardly matters that they result in victories -- will do nothing to convince anyone that the Fighting Irish deserve a spot in the CFP. 

In our weekly grading exercise, Notre Dame gets a C for its ugly win. 

Below, we hand out seven more grades from Week 10 -- one for every team that started or ended the day with national championship odds of +3000 or better. No. 3 Texas A&M (+950), No. 4 Alabama (+750) and No. 6 Oregon (+1000) were each off.

2025 national championship odds listed below courtesy of FanDuel Sportsbook. Teams listed in order of their AP Top 25 ranking. 

No. 1 Ohio State

Grade: A
Result: 38-14 win vs. Penn State
Title odds: +220
Ohio State's dominance was on full display in a decisive third quarter. The Buckeyes aired it out with precision and inflicted a series of punishing third-down sacks on Penn State. The multi-faceted surge turned a tight game into yet another blowout and demonstrated the Buckeyes' elite potential. The running game's continued mediocrity is the only reason why this isn't an A+ 

No. 2 Indiana

Grade: A
Result: 55-10 win at Maryland
Title odds: +500
Indiana sputtered early before igniting for its third Big Ten victory with a margin of 45+ points. The Hoosiers forced (or were gifted) five turnovers while running over, around and through Maryland. It marked the first time since a 2016 game against Maryland that Indiana produced three players with 80 or more rushing yards and a touchdown. 

No. 5 Georgia

Grade: B-
Result: 24-20 win vs. Florida
Title odds: +1100
Georgia's offense was an erratic mixture of explosive plays and listless possessions. The defense came up clutch in the fourth quarter but wasn't overly disruptive on a down-to-down basis. All told, this was anything but a dominant showing from the Bulldogs. But it was a gritty rivalry victory defined by clutch execution on both sides of the ball. In the end, that's what matters most. 

No. 7 Ole Miss

Grade: B+
Result: 30-14 win vs. South Carolina
Title odds: +1700
With the Ole Miss passing attack mired in a rare off night, its rushing attack and defense picked up the slack. Kewan Lacy totaled a career-high 167 yards on the ground, including a 54-yard touchdown run with 5:44 remaining, to put the Gamecocks away. The defense produced six sacks and held South Carolina to 230 yards.

No. 9 Vanderbilt

Grade: C
Result: 34-31 loss at No. 20 Texas
Title odds: +8000
Shoddy tackling, a crushing early fumble and a general lack of defensive disruption left Vanderbilt in a 24-point hole entering the fourth quarter. The Commodores, led by quarterback Diego Pavia, should be commended for staging an epic rally that made things tense late. But this was not a playoff-caliber showing from the defense.

No. 10 Miami

Grade: D
Result: 26-20 loss at SMU
Title odds: +6500
Miami lost in overtime, but it never should have been there in the first place. Once again, a lack of discipline and late-game awareness ruined the Hurricanes, who were penalized a whopping 12 times for 96 yards. An early interception wasn't Carson Beck's fault, but it led directly to an SMU touchdown. The 'Canes simply weren't buttoned up, and it probably cost them a chance at reaching the ACC Championship Game.

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No. 13 Texas Tech

Grade: A-
Result: 43-20 win at Kansas State
Title odds: +2000
Texas Tech's first quarter left a lot to be desired, but the Red Raiders eventually broke the will of a Kansas State team that had been playing well. The Wildcats coughed up five turnovers -- two of the fumbles were forced by star TTU linebacker Jacob Rodriguez -- and couldn't keep Texas Tech out of their backfield. The healthy return of quarterback Behren Morton was also a sight for sore eyes.