LSU quarterback Sam Leavitt is starting to justify his billing as the top transfer quarterback of the offseason. In the Tigers' 38-17 Week 8 victory at Auburn, he threw for a season-high 388 yards and went a second straight game without an interception, even though a sore hamstring limited his mobility.

One throw nearly broke that streak. Early in the second quarter, Leavitt rolled right and underthrew a pass that was caught by diving Auburn safety Eric Winters. Replay review overturned the call and ruled that the ball hit the ground. Leavitt made the most of the reprieve, completing 8 of 10 passes the rest of the way on a 14-play, 95-yard touchdown drive that put LSU ahead 17-3.

Auburn never recovered. LSU coach Lane Kiffin told Leavitt he was "lucky" to escape with that early mistake, but he was pleased with the overall progress. "This is where we planned on being," Kiffin said. "Would have loved to be that way every game, but realistically, it was going to be a little bit slower with Sam missing all his spring."

Leavitt, who was among the most interception-prone quarterbacks in the first half of the season, completed 63 of 83 passes for 677 yards and seven touchdowns in wins over Mississippi State and Auburn, with no turnovers. He moved from 24th to 17th in this week's CBS Sports quarterback power rankings.

Miami's Darian Mensah stayed at No. 1 after throwing for 387 yards and four touchdowns in a 52-23 win over Pittsburgh. The Duke transfer holds a wide lead in passing efficiency among FBS quarterbacks and has 22 touchdown passes. Oregon State's Braden Atkinson remained second. He leads the country with 2,604 passing yards and 24 touchdowns, and he tied a school record with a seventh consecutive 300-yard game in Week 7.

Wake Forest's Gio Lopez rose to third, and Oklahoma State's Drew Mestemaker made the biggest jump among the top five, moving from eighth to fourth after throwing for 386 yards and four touchdowns in a 57-24 win over Colorado. Notre Dame's CJ Carr slipped to fifth after a 28-24 loss at BYU in which he went just 3 of 16 on throws traveling 15 or more air yards. Ole Miss quarterback Trinidad Chambliss dropped from third to sixth after completing 25 of 52 passes in a narrow loss to Texas.

Maiava was the week's biggest faller among the top 15, going from 10th to 15th. He averaged a career-worst 5.1 yards per attempt in USC's 24-7 loss at Wisconsin, throwing for 257 yards on 31-of-50 passing, and was intercepted twice in a game for the first time this season. CBS Sports noted that USC's problems go well beyond quarterback play, but said his dark-horse Heisman hopes have faded.

Arizona's Noah Fifita jumped from 16th to 11th after going 27 of 34 for 308 yards in a 39-3 rout of Iowa State. He leads all active quarterbacks with 91 career touchdown passes. Alabama's Keelon Russell rose to ninth after throwing for 311 yards and three touchdowns against Texas A&M, and the Crimson Tide visit LSU after their Week 9 bye.