Week 8 of the 2026 CFB season is right around the corner, and while it isn’t as stacked as last week’s slate, there are still a ton of great games on the schedule. But before we can start talking about the games, there’s some news you need to catch up on.

An ACC clash has already ruled out over 30 players for their upcoming game, an HBCU has named its athletic director as interim head coach, Syracuse will be without three quarterbacks for its upcoming game, and so much more. Here’s everything you need to know ahead of Week 8.

Duke-UVA Game Availability Report Confirms 32 Player Absences

Duke and UVA are set to face off on Saturday, but neither team will be at full strength. Duke has already ruled out 12 players, while UVA has a whopping 20 listed as out for this game, and that’s not even mentioning the six players who are questionable.

Anna Snyder

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Tonight’s update:

12:01 AM · Oct 22, 2026

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Among those out for this game are Duke starting safety Andrew Pellicciotta and kicker Cosme Salas, and UVA starting wide receiver Rico Flores Jr. and safety Ethan Minter. Both sides will be short-handed and can’t afford injuries in this game anymore.

HBCU Football HC Steps Down, AD Named Replacement

Lane College head football coach Stanley Conner has stepped down after a 0-8 start to the season, and the school’s athletic director Jeremy C. Patterson is set to take over for the rest of the 2026 season. The rest of Lane College’s staff is set to remain in place for the rest of the 2026 season until a new head coach is brought in.

Conner had over three decades of coaching experience, including stops at Alabama State and Alabama A&M, but after a year and a half at Lane College, he called it quits after a poor start to the season.

“Coach Conner has given his life to developing young men through this game, and he brought that same commitment to Lane College,” Lane College’s President said in a statement. “We are grateful for his service to the Dragons; we have great respect for him, and we wish him and his family every success in the next chapter.”

Lane College will begin its search for a new head coach as soon as its season ends.

Syracuse Could Lose Three QBs Ahead of UNC Game

The Syracuse Orange are 2-4 to start the season, and it appears things are only going to get worse this week. QBs Malachi Nelson and Amari Odom have both been ruled out for their upcoming game against UNC, and Steve Angeli is listed as questionable.

If Angeli can play, he will be the starter, but he hasn’t appeared in a game since September 17th when he threw two picks against Pitt. In three games this year, Angeli has thrown for 731 yards, four touchdowns and five interceptions while taking eight sacks.

Those three QBs have combined for all but 86 of Syracuse’s passing yards this season, and if none of them can go, it appears the Orange will turn to Danny Lauter, who has completed five passes for 74 yards and one touchdown this season. Either way, things aren’t looking good for the Orange this week.

Tennessee LB Becomes Finalist For Academic Heisman

Tennessee Volunteer Linebacker Arion Carter is one of 18 finalists for the William V. Campbell Trophy, which is also known as the “Academic Heisman” award. The award recognizes academic success, football performance, and academic leadership, and all 18 finalists will receive an $18,000 scholarship.

What makes this even more impressive is that Carter plays a major role for Tennessee on the field as well. This season, Carter has totaled 43 tackles, two sacks, and two fumble recoveries while also killing it in the classroom.

It’s great to see that some players still embody the term “student-athlete” even though they’re getting paid absurd amounts of money.

Colorado State’s Jim Mora Turns DC’s Office Into a Bedroom

Coaches sleeping in their offices to give them more time to game plan for a game used to be fairly common, but nowadays it’s becoming less and less common. Unless you’re Colorado State Defensive Coordinator Kenny McClendon, who, according to head coach Jim Mora, hasn’t been home in two weeks.

“Kenny hasn’t been home in 2 weeks,” Mora said. “We took Jordan’s office and turned it into a bedroom for Kenny, so he just sleeps there.”

McClendon was promoted to DC just a couple of weeks ago, so it appears he’s taking his promotion very seriously. Maybe too seriously. To be fair, though, he does need every second he can get, because CSU’s defense has allowed 56 and 66 points in their last two games. There’s a lot of work to be done, so he might as well save time on the commute.

Utah & Houston Suffer Major Blows Ahead of Big 12 Clash

No. 10 Utah and No. 14 Houston are set to clash in a major Big 12 showdown this Saturday, but both teams are going to be down at least one key player.

For Utah, it’s offensive lineman Kelvin Obot, who has played 244 snaps this season at left guard and left tackle. Obot is an excellent pass blocker, giving up a total of two pressures and one sack this season while earning a 52.2 run-blocking grade. He is going to be greatly missed on that offensive line against a good Houston defense.

On the other side of the field, Houston will be without DT Demarion Thomas, who has been a key contributor for this defensive front. In 173 snaps, Thomas has been excellent against the run, earning a 70+ run defense grade in all but two games this season.

We’ll see how Utah’s offensive line and Houston’s defensive line look without one of their key pieces on Saturday.

Assistant Coaches Hall of Fame Member Dies at 80

Chuck Amato, longtime assistant coach in college football and a member of the unofficial Assistant Coach Hall of Fame, has sadly passed away at the age of 80.

Amato started his assistant coaching career at Easton Area HS in 1969, and by 1971, he was working with N.C. State as a graduate assistant. He’d spend nearly a decade with the Wolfpack, working as a GA, defensive backs coach, linebackers coach, and defensive coordinator before Arizona picked him up in 1980. Amato would spend just two seasons at Arizona before jumping to Florida State, where he spent nearly 20 years as their defensive line/linebackers coach and assistant head coach.

At the turn of the century, Amato got his first and only head coaching job back at N.C. State, where he led the Wolfpack to four bowl wins before he was fired after a 3-9 record in 2006. He could bounce back to FSU from 2007-2009, take a three-year break, and return to coaching at Akron in 2012. He officially retired in 2017 after nearly 50 years of coaching college football.

Our thoughts and prayers are with the Amato family during this time.

Western Michigan’s Game at Toledo to Proceed as Scheduled Despite Chemical Spill

On Tuesday night, nearly 1,000 Toledo residents were forced to evacuate their homes after glycidyl methacrylate leaked out of a tank in a nearby area. Everyone within a mile of the tank was forced to evacuate, while those within three miles were forced to shelter in place. Officials initially thought there could be a second explosion from the tank in the 12 hours following the initial leak, but nothing else took place, and restrictions have since been scaled back.

With the situation seemingly under control, Toledo’s home game against Western Michigan will still be played on Saturday. WMU is 3-0 in conference play and 5-2 on the season while Toledo is 2-1 in conference play and 5-2 overall. Both teams have a chance to make the MAC Championship Game, but the loser of this contest will have a lot of work to do.

CMU Comes Out Against Proposed Playoff Expansion

Central Michigan Head Coach Matt Drinkall is one of many college football coaches and fans who think the 24-team CFP expansion is just flat-out dumb. When asked about the new expansion in his press conference, Drinkall did not hold back.

“Everything since COVID has just 100% been reactionary,” Drinkall said on Tuesday. “No one has ever said, ‘OK, well, if we do this, what does this look like 15 years from now? What does this look like 10 years from now? Is this in the best interest culturally of everyone, or is it all, just how do I save my ass and make the most money right this second? Whoever has to sell TV spots or tickets at every school or promote a conference, they’re not interested in what’s good for the sport of football. They’re not interested in what’s good for young people coming up. They want to know what makes my job the most amount of money right now.”

But that wasn’t all. Drinkall’s rant continued.

“It’s just like everybody went nuts at once, and it’s just been a downward spiral that is nonstop, until it’s going to be a smoldering Dumpster fire left, like the Truffula Trees in ‘The Lorax,'” Drinkall said. “They are going to ring the sport out for every cent they can, as long as they can, and prostitute the sport for financial gain until people stop caring, just like they did with boxing back in the ’20s (1920s).”

Everything Drinkall said was correct. Everything CFB has done recently has been to maximize profit and isn’t in the best interest of the sport long term. It’s crazy that 99 percent of people can tell that all the moves they’re making are idiotic, but the one percent who can’t are the ones in charge.