No. 1 Alabama shuts out No. 3 LSU in laugher

Sophomore quarterback Tua Tagovailoa passed for 295 yards, threw two touchdowns and raced 44 yards for another score, and the Alabama defense smothered LSU’s offense to power the No. 1 Crimson Tide to a 29-0 shutout over the No. 3 Tigers on Saturday night at Baton Rouge, Louisiana.

Alabama (9-0, 6-0 Southeastern Conference) held LSU (7-2, 4-2) to just 196 yards in total offense. With the win, the Tide clinched a spot in the SEC title game, where they will face Georgia.

Tagovailoa completed 25 of 42 passes and iced the game with his 44-yard scramble on third down that put the Tide on top 22-0 with 5:14 left in the third quarter.

The Tide amassed 576 total yards and held a 29-13 edge in first downs. Alabama finished off the shutout by intercepting LSU quarterback Joe Burrow in the end zone with 3:35 left.

No. 5 Michigan 42, No. 14 Penn State 7

Shea Patterson passed for two touchdowns and rushed for another while the Wolverines defense silenced the Nittany Lions offense until the late going at Ann Arbor, Michigan.

Karan Higdon reached the 100-yard rushing mark for the seventh straight game in which he’s played, gaining 132 yards on 20 carries with a score for the Wolverines (8-1, 6-0 Big Ten).

Michigan, the only Big Ten team without a conference loss, avenged a 42-13 thumping at Penn State’s home field last season, dropping the Nittany Lions to 6-3 overall and 3-3 in conference play.

No. 2 Clemson 77, Louisville 16

The unbeaten Tigers continued their impressive run through the Atlantic Coast Conference, rolling past the Cardinals in Clemson, South Carolina.

Clemson (9-0, 6-0 ACC) has won its last four games by a combined score of 240-36. It was the sixth consecutive loss for Louisville (2-7, 0-6).

Clemson set the tone for the day by scoring twice in its first five plays. Travis Etienne scored on a 10-yard run to cap a four-play, 75-yard drive, and fellow running back Tavien Feaster added a 70-yard scoring run on the first play of the Tigers’ ensuing possession.

No. 4 Notre Dame 31, Northwestern 21

Ian Book completed 22 of 34 passes for 343 yards and two touchdowns as the Fighting Irish held on top the Wildcats at Evanston, Illinois, and remain unbeaten.

Book and Dexter Williams each rushed for a score for Notre Dame while Miles Boykin and Michael Young hauled in touchdown passes. The Fighting Irish (9-0) have three games to go in their quest for a perfect regular season and a spot in the College Football Playoff.

Clayton Thorson completed 16 of 29 passes for 141 yards and one touchdown for the Wildcats (5-4), who were trying to beat a ranked opponent for the third time in a row. Thorson also rushed for a pair of touchdowns.

No. 6 Georgia 34, No. 9 Kentucky 17

The Bulldogs locked up a second straight berth in the SEC Championship Game, humbling the upstart Wildcats in Lexington, Kentucky.

Georgia (8-1, 6-1 SEC) won the East Division in convincing fashion by dominating one of the nation’s top defensive units. Kentucky (7-2, 5-2) entered the game with the nation’s top scoring defense (13 points per game) and had surrendered no more than 20 points in any game this season. Georgia had 14 at halftime and eclipsed 20 with more than 10 minutes left in the third quarter.

Georgia used a powerful run game for the win, amassing 331 of its 444 yards of offense via the ground. D’Andre Swift rushed for 156 yards and two touchdowns, and Elijah Holyfield added 115 yards and a TD. Jake Fromm was 14-of-20 passing for 113 yards and a touchdown.

No. 7 Oklahoma 51, Texas Tech 46

Kyler Murray overcame a rough start to throw for 360 yards and three touchdowns to help the Sooners outlast the Red Raiders at Lubbock, Texas.

Oklahoma (8-1, 5-1 Big 12) has won three straight following its three-point loss to Texas on October 6. Murray also ran for 100 yards and a touchdown, and Trey Sermon added 206 yards and three touchdowns on the ground.

But perhaps the biggest play of the game was made by Oklahoma’s defense after Texas Tech (5-4, 3-3) pulled within two on a touchdown midway through the fourth quarter. On the two-point conversion attempt, sophomore safety Robert Barnes intercepted Jett Duffey’s pass five yards deep in the end zone and returned it the other way for a two-point conversion for the Sooners, giving Oklahoma a 44-40 lead with 6:54 to play.

No. 10 Ohio State 36, Nebraska 31

J.K. Dobbins ran for three scores, and Dwayne Haskins threw two touchdown passes as the Buckeyes rallied in the second half to take down the Cornhuskers in Columbus, Ohio.

Ohio State (8-1, 5-1 Big Ten), playing for the first time since a 49-20 loss at Purdue on October 20, trailed 21-16 at the half before Dobbins had a threeyard TD run and Parris Campbell a nine-yard touchdown reception, both late in the third quarter, as the Buckeyes took control.

With Nebraska (2-7, 1-5) trailing by 12, freshman quarterback Adrian Martinez hit JD Spielman on a 17-yard TD to make it 36-31 with 2:57 left in the game. But Ohio State picked up two first downs on the ensuing drive, running out the clock to preserve the win.

(Reuters)