Vanderbilt beats No. 1 Alabama 40-35, ending 23-game skid against Tide
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Sedrick Alexander ran for two touchdowns, Randon Fontenette scored on a Pick-6 and Diego Pavia outplayed Heisman Trophy candidate Jalen Milroe as Vanderbilt stunned No. 1 Alabama 40-35 Saturday for the Commodores’ first win over the nation’s top-ranked team.
Vanderbilt (3-2, 1-1) had lost all 60 games against AP Top Five teams, according to SportRadar. The Commodores hadn’t beaten Alabama on the field in 40 years, but they snapped a 23-game skid making big play after big play to give coach Clark Lea his alma mater’s biggest win ever.
The Commodores scored the first 13 points and took a 16-point lead that was their largest ever over the No. 1 team in the country. Only Jam Miller running for his second TD just before halftime trimmed that to 23-14.
Alabama had just moved to the top of The Associated Press’ Top 25 after an emotional win over Georgia.
No. 3 OHIO ST. 35, IOWA 7
COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — Emeka Egbuka caught three touchdown passes and Jeremiah Smith made another one-handed grab for a score as Ohio State sputtered early before burying Iowa.
Quarterback Will Howard was 21 for 25 for 209 yards passing and four touchdowns and ran for 28 yards and a score as Ohio State (5-0, 2-0 Big Ten) cleaned up its first-half mistakes and put up 21 unanswered points in the third quarter.
The Buckeyes, hanging on to a 7-0 halftime lead, seized the momentum in the second half.
Ohio State had a third-and-6 on their own 43 when Howard threw a long ball to Smith who had outrun two defenders.
ARKANSAS 19, No. 4 TENNESSEE 14
FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. (AP) — Malachi Singleton scored on an 11-yard run with 1:17 remaining to lift Arkansas to a win over No. 4 Tennessee.
The Razorbacks (4-2, 2-1 Southeastern Conference) overcame a 14-3 third-quarter deficit to notch their first home win over a top-five opponent since beating the No. 3 Volunteers in 1999. Singleton, the backup to starting quarterback Taylen Green, led the game-winning drive after the Boise State transfer exited the game with an injury.
Along with No. 1 Alabama’s loss at Vanderbilt earlier in the day, it marked the first time two top-5 teams from same conference lost on same regular season weekend was Oct. 6, 2012 when No. 4 LSU and NO. 5 Georgia were beaten. It was also the first time two top-5 teams were defeated by unranked opponents since No. 4 Miami and No. 5 Florida State lost on Oct. 30, 2004.
Singleton completed 2 of 3 passes for 31 yards and ran four times for 12 yards and the go-ahead touchdown. Ja’Quinden Jackson added 57 yards rushing and a touchdown on 20 carries, and Andrew Armstrong led Arkansas with nine receptions for 132 yards.
No. 5 GEORGIA 31, AUBURN 13
ATHENS, Ga. (AP) — Trevor Etienne ran for two touchdowns as No. 5 Georgia bounced back from its first regular-season loss in almost four years with a workmanlike victory over struggling Auburn.
The Bulldogs (4-1, 2-1 Southeastern Conference) made it eight straight wins in the Deep South’s oldest rivalry, but it was more of a struggle than expected for the team that began the season ranked No. 1 and favored to win its third national championship in four years.
That goal is still within reach, but Georgia didn’t wrack up a lot of style points against the offensively challenged Tigers (2-4, 0-3), who have dropped six consecutive games against Power Four opponents.
Etienne scored on a 2-yard run to cap Georgia’s opening possession, and he added a 1-yard scoring plunge late in the third quarter that led to conflicting calls. One official ruled him down, another said he crossed the goal line — if only by an inch or two. The TD call was upheld after a lengthy video review.
Etienne finished with 88 yards on 16 carries.
No. 7 PENN ST. 27, UCLA 11
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. (AP) — Drew Allar threw for 237 yards with a touchdown and ran for another score to lead the Nittany Lions over the Bruins.
Tyler Warren caught a touchdown pass in the last minute of the first half and Kaytron Allen ran one in from 1-yard out in the third quarter. Allar opened the scoring with a 1-yard run of his own in the second quarter. Ryan Barker made two field goals and the Penn State (5-0, 2-0 Big Ten) defense turned in another dominant second half to cap a four-game home stand.
UCLA (1-4, 0-3) made it 7-3 on Mateen Bhaghani’s 25-yard field goal. The Bruins scored a touchdown in the last minute of the game on a 1-yard pass from Justyn Martin to Logan Loya and converted the 2-point try.
Allar completed 17 of 24 passes, while Martin went 22-of-30 passing.
No. 8 MIAMI 39, CALIFORNIA 38
Berkeley, Calif. (AP) — Cam Ward threw a 5-yard touchdown pass to Elijah Arroyo with 26 seconds left and No. 8 Miami roared back from a 25-point deficit in the second half to beat California.
Ward led four straight touchdown drives to end the game and spoil what looked like the most monumental day in years for the Golden Bears (3-2, 0-2 ACC), who hosted ESPN’s “College GameDay” for the first time and were on the verge of their second win over a top 10 team in the past 21 seasons.
Instead, Ward made sure the rare sellout crowd at Memorial Stadium went home unhappy after overcoming a 35-10 deficit in the third quarter. That gave the Hurricanes (6-0, 2-0) a second straight dramatic victory after needing a replay review to hold off Virginia Tech last week.
Ward threw an 18-yard TD pass to Isaiah Horton with 10:28 left to cut it to 38-25 and then scrambled in from 24 yards out to make it a six-point game with 4:04 to play.
No. 25 TEXAS A&M 41, No. 9 MISSOURI 10
COLLEGE STATION, Texas (AP) — Le’Veon Moss ran for a career-high 138 yards with three touchdowns and No. 25 Texas A&M handed ninth-ranked Missouri its first loss.
It’s the fifth straight win for Texas A&M (5-1, 3-0 SEC) and first-year coach Mike Elko after a loss to Notre Dame in the season-opener in his debut with the Aggies.
Texas A&M was up 24-0 at halftime and padded the lead when Moss ran 75 yards for a touchdown on the first play of the third quarter. He burst through a hole in the line and evaded one tackle before simply outrunning everyone for his second score of the day.
When he scored his third TD on an 18-yard run early in the fourth quarter that made it 41-7, the crowd of 97,049 broke into chants of: ‘over-rated, over-rated’.
WASHINGTON 27, No. 10 MICHIGAN 17
SEATTLE (AP) —Will Rogers threw for 271 yards and a pair of first-half touchdowns, Jonah Coleman’s 1-yard TD with 6:22 left gave Washington the lead, and the Huskies beat No. 10 Michigan in a rematch of last season’s College Football Playoff championship game.
This time around was far more competitive than that night in Houston last January when Michigan romped to its first national title since 1997. It also had a different outcome as the Huskies (4-2, 2-1 Big Ten) used an offensive outburst in the first half and two key turnovers in the fourth quarter to take down the Wolverines.
The loss snapped Michigan’s 24-game Big Ten regular season win streak.
Rogers threw touchdowns of 3 yards to Denzel Boston and 16 yards to Giles Jackson as the Huskies built a 14-0 lead early in the second quarter. That lead evaporated as Michigan (4-2, 2-1) finally found some offensive rhythm going to backup quarterback Jack Tuttle after Alex Orji was ineffective early in the game.
But Tuttle committed two turnovers in the final 10 minutes and Washington capitalized.
MINNESOTA 24, No. 11 SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA 17
MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Max Brosmer powered into the end zone for Minnesota on fourth-and-goal from the 1-yard line with 56 seconds left, breaking a tie with his third rushing touchdown of the game to fuel an upset of 11th-ranked Southern California.
Brosmer, who went 15 for 19 for 169 yards passing , buried himself in a crowd of blockers and found enough of a crease to cross the goal line. The ruling on the field had Brosmer short, but the replay review resulted in a reversal the entire stadium knew was coming.
With the Trojans (3-2, 1-2 Big Ten) out of timeouts, Miller Moss moved them into striking range before his heave from the 28 into double coverage was picked off by Koi Perich in the end zone for his second interception of the game.
Darius Taylor had 200 yards from scrimmage for the Gophers (3-3, 1-2), including 144 yards on 25 rushes to lead a two-touchdown rally in the fourth quarter.
No. 12 MISSISSIPPI 27, SOUTH CAROLINA 3
COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) — J Pegues, a 325-pound nose tackle, ran for two short touchdowns as No. 12 Mississippi bounced back from its first loss of the season to beat South Carolina and give coach Lane Kiffin his 100th career victory.
The Rebels (5-1, 1-1 Southeastern Conference) took advantage of a pair of early gambles by the Gamecocks (3-2, 1-2) to build a quick lead and take control.
Gamecocks coach Shane Beamer — son of Frank Beamer, a coach known for special teams prowess at Virginia Tech — faked a punt on fourth-and-1 at his own 36 and Ole Miss linebacker Chris Paul Jr. stuffed Maurice Brown II short.
Five plays later, Henry Parrish Jr. ran for a 3-yard touchdown to give the Rebels a 7-0 lead.
On South Carolina’s next series, it lined up with quarterbacks LaNorris Sellers and Robby Ashford in the formation. After Ashford slid in, he fumbled the ball and defensive tackle Walter Nolen recovered.
The Rebels’ subsequent drive ended with the first of Pegues’ two 1-yard rushing scores. The fifth-year senior took the direct snap and pushed through the line for the TD.
No. 15 CLEMSON 29, FLORIDA ST. 13
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (AP) — Cade Klubnik had 235 passing yards and threw touchdown passes to Antonio Williams and T.J. Moore as No. 15 Clemson jumped to an early lead and cruised past Florida State.
Phil Mafah ran for 136 yards on 20 carries as Clemson (4-1, 3-0 Atlantic Coast Conference) was in control from the start, taking a 17-0 lead in the first quarter. The Tigers finished with 265 rushing yards, averaging 6.6 yards per carry.
Klubnik completed 19 of 33 passes, including a 57-yard touchdown to Williams. The junior quarterback also had 62 rushing yards.
Coach Dabo Swinney picked up his 174th win at Clemson, breaking the record for victories at an ACC school — a mark held by Florida State’s Bobby Bowden.
No. 16 IOWA ST. 43, BAYLOR 21
AMES, Iowa (AP) — Rocco Becht threw for 277 yards and two touchdown to lead No. 16 Iowa State to a win over Baylor.
The Cyclones (5-0, 2-0 Big 12) wiped out an early deficit and another in the third quarter and are off to their best start since 1980. Baylor (2-4, 0-3) lost its third straight game.
Becht’s TD passes were 10 yards to Benjamin Brahmer and 11 yards to Jayden Higgins, who extended his streak of games with a touchdown reception to seven. Becht was 16 of 25 for 277 yards.
Jaylon Jackson led the Cyclones rushing attack with 107 yards and his first two touchdowns for Iowa State since transferring from Eastern Michigan.
The Cyclones had a total of 542 yards on offense.
No. 21 BOISE ST. 62, UTAH ST. 30
BOISE, Idaho (AP) — Ashton Jeanty ran for 186 yards and three touchdowns on 13 first-half carries, Maddux Madsen passed for 256 yards and three TDs and No. 21 Boise State beat Utah State in the Mountain West opener for both teams.
Jeanty became only the eighth FBS running back since 1996 to eclipse 1,000 yards rushing five games into a season, a list that includes Ricky Williams and Leonard Fournette.
Boise State (4-1) won its eighth straight against the Aggies (1-4), racing to a 49-17 halftime lead and showing no signs of a letdown after beating Washington State last week. Jeanty sat out the second half in the blowout.
Utah State lost its third game this season to a ranked opponent after falling to Southern California and Utah in consecutive weeks in September.
SMU 34, No. 22 LOUISVILLE 27
LOUISVILLE, Ky. (AP) — Kevin Jennings passed for a career-high 281 yards, Isaiah Nwokobia intercepted an end-zone pass with 2:23 left to seal it, and the Mustangs overcame blowing a double-digit lead to beat the Cardinals.
The Mustangs (5-1, 2-0 Atlantic Coast Conference) rang up another significant win as an ACC newcomer, but only after its 24-13 halftime lead dissolved into a 27-all tie entering the fourth quarter. The Cardinals (3-2, 1-1) had clawed back behind Ja’Corey Brooks’ 86-yard catch-and-run touchdown and a 1-yard TD run by Donald Chaney Jr. in the third.
After missing a third-quarter field goal and punt on its first fourth-quarter drive, SMU took over at its 11 and drove for the winning score with the help of several Louisville penalties and a video review that overturned Brashard Smith’s fumble that Louisville had recovered at the 5. That gave the Mustangs possession at the 13, and Louisville penalties for pass interference and offsides put the ball at the 1.
LJ Johnson took it in for the TD with 6:39 remaining.
No. 23 INDIANA 41, NORTHWESTERN 24
EVANSTON, Ill. (AP) — Kurtis Rourke threw for 380 yards and three touchdowns to help No. 23 Indiana stay unbeaten with a victory over Northwestern.
The Hoosiers (6-0) also had 158 yards on the ground with Justice Ellison (68 yards) and Ty Son Lawton (52 yards) each having a rushing TD. Elijah Sarratt had 135 yards on seven catches. The Hoosiers matched their best start to the season with the six wins, equaling the 1967 squad.
Jack Lausch had a bounce-back performance for Northwestern, throwing for 243 yards and two scores. Bryce Kirtz and A.J. Henning were his favorite targets, combining for 195 yards on 16 catches.
Following a slow start, both teams combined for five consecutive scoring drives to end the first half. Indiana took a 17-10 lead into the break, led by Rourke’s 196 yards. Miles Cross made a toe-tapping catch in the back of the end zone to break a 7-7 tie and put the Hoosiers in front for good.
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