Brooks’ late romp leaves OU on top
TOP 25 NO. 6 OKLAHOMA 55, NO. 21 TEXAS 48
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS DALLAS — Kennedy Brooks took the final snap for sixth-ranked Oklahoma, after freshman quarterback Caleb Williams had taken over when Spencer Rattler was again benched in the Red River rivalry game.
Brooks ran for 217 yards and two go-ahead touchdowns in the fourth quarter, including a direct snap for a 33-yard game-winner with 3 seconds left, and the Sooners beat No. 21 Texas 55-48 on Saturday in the highest-scoring game of 117 meetings in a series that will soon move to the SEC.
“I just ran straight and scored,” Brooks said, crediting the offensive line and the receivers blocking downfield. “Just a great call by Lincoln Riley. It’s a great play setup.”
The Sooners (6-0, 3-0 Big 12) appeared to be trying to set up for a game-ending field goal when Brooks instead broke free for a sprint to the end zone.
“Give him some clean lanes … that was important regardless of who was playing quarterback,” Riley said.
Oklahoma hadn’t even led until Brooks had an 18-yard TD with 7:10 left that made it 48-41. His rush was the first play from scrimmage after OU tied the game and kicked off to Xavier Worthy, who had the ball stripped away by Caleb Kelly.
The Sooners overcame a 28-7 deficit after the first quarter, matching the second-largest comeback in program history. And when it was over, Oklahoma students who were part of the sellout crowd at 92,100-seat Cotton Bowl Stadium streamed onto the field to celebrate with their team.
“I’m trying to think of the moments in my career that I’ve been prouder of a team,” Riley said. “If there’s any, it’s not many.”
Worthy had nine catches for 261 yards and two scores for the Longhorns (4-2, 2-1), and his 31-yard TD catch tied the game with 1:23 left before the winning drive by the Sooners.
Williams ran for a 66-yard score on a fourth-and-1 and completed 15 of 24 passes for 211 yards and 2 touchdowns after replacing Rattler, who had two turnovers in the first half that led to Texas touchdowns. Rattler did return to throw the tying two-point conversion after Williams’ 52-yard TD pass with 7:25 left to Marvin Mims, who made a leaping catch and managed to get a toe down inbounds before falling on the pylon.
Rattler was benched early in last year’s game against Texas, but came back after halftime and threw two of his three TDs in the four overtimes the Sooners needed for a 53-45 win.
NO. 3 IOWA 23, NO. 4 PENN STATE 20
IOWA CITY, Iowa — Spencer Petras threw a 44-yard touchdown pass to Nico Ragaini to complete Iowa’s comeback from a two-touchdown deficit.
Penn State’s offense did next to nothing after quarterback Sean Clifford was knocked out of the game.
The Hawkeyes (6-0, 3-0) took control of the Big Ten West with their 12th consecutive win and thrust themselves into the College Football Playoff conversation.
Penn State (5-1, 2-1) lost for the first time in 10 games.
NO. 7 OHIO STATE 66, MARYLAND 17
COLUMBUS, Ohio — C.J. Stroud threw five touchdowns passes as Ohio State scored on nine consecutive possessions.
Stroud was 24 for 33 for 406 yards and threw two touchdown passes each to star wideouts Chris Olave and Garrett Wilson against a depleted Maryland secondary before taking a seat after three quarters.
Freshman TreVeyon Henderson, after managing just 17 yards rushing in the first half, finished with 102 and two touchdowns. He also caught a 26-yard TD pass in the first half for the Buckeyes (5-1, 3-0 Big Ten).
Master Teague also had a touchdown plunge as Ohio State beat Maryland (42, 1-2) for the seventh consecutive time.
Taulia Tagovailoa was 28 for 39 for 279 yards and two touchdowns for Maryland but threw two late picks.
NO. 9 MICHIGAN 32, NEBRASKA 29
LINCOLN, Neb. — Jake Moody hit a 39-yard field goal with 1;24 remaining to lift No. 9 Michigan over upset-minded Nebraska.
Moody’s fourth field goal came after Wolverines defensive back Brad Hawkins forced Cornhuskers quarterback Adrian Martinez to fumble, returning it 19 yards to the Nebraska 18 to set up the game-winner.
Michigan (6-0, 3-0 Big Ten) has won its first six games for the first time since starting 9-0 in 2016.
Nebraska (3-4, 1-3) has lost three games in four weeks to ranked teams — No. 6 Oklahoma on Sept. 18, No. 11 Michigan State two weeks ago and Michigan — by a total of 13 points. The Huskers have now lost 14 consecutiver games against ranked opponents, nine of them under Coach Scott Frost.
Nebraska trailed 13-0 at halftime, but came storming back to take the lead in the third quarter after cornerback Deontai Williams picked off the first interception of Michigan quarterback Cade McNamara’s career.
BOISE STATE 26, NO. 10 BYU 17
PROVO, Utah — Hank Bachmeier threw for 172 yards and Boise State forced four turnovers in pulling the upset.
Cyrus Habibi-Likio ran for a season-high 75 yards and a touchdown, and Andrew Van Buren added a season-high 60 yards and a touchdown. The Broncos (3-3) snapped a two-game losing streak in the series.
Jaren Hall threw for a career-high 302 yards and a touchdown for BYU (5-1). Tyler Allgeier ran for 73 yards and a touchdown. The Cougars outgained Boise State 413-312.
NO. 11 MICHIGAN STATE 31, RUTGERS 13
PISCATAWAY, N.J. — Jalen Nailor caught touchdown passes of 63, 63 and 65 yards from Payton Thorne as the Spartans used their big-play offense to remain unbeaten.
Kenneth Walker, who came into the game leading all Football Bowl Subdivision players in rushing, ran for 233 yards, including a school-record 94yard touchdown. It was the longest offensive play in Michigan State history.
Michigan State (6-0, 3-0 Big Ten) is off to its best start since it won its first eight games in 2015, when it reached the College Football Playoff.
NO. 14 NOTRE DAME 32, VIRGINIA TECH 29
BLACKSBURG, Va. — Jonathan Doerer kicked a 48-yard field goal with 17 seconds remaining, capping a dramatic rally to give No. 14 Notre Dame a victory over Virginia Tech.
The Fighting Irish (5-1) tied it at 29 on Jack Coan’s 4-yard pass to Avery Davis and a two-point conversion completion to Kevin Austin with 2:26 left. After forcing the Hokies to punt, Coan drove them 45 yards in seven plays, and Doerer split the uprights, sparing the Fighting Irish a second consecutive loss.
The Hokies (3-2) had taken command with an interception return for a touchdown by Jermaine Waller and another touchdown drive started by an interception and finished with a 19-yard run by Braxton Burmeister with 3:55 to play, but Coan returned after playing just the first quarter to lead the comeback.
Freshman Tyler Buchner ran for a touchdown and threw for another for Notre Dame after replacing Coan to start the second quarter, but his two second half interceptions both turned into Virginia Tech touchdowns.
NO. 19 WAKE FOREST 40, SYRACUSE 37, OT
SYRACUSE, N.Y. — A.T. Perry caught three touchdowns, including a 22-yarder from Sam Hartman in the left corner of the end zone for the win.
A 38-yard field goal by Andre Szmyt gave Syracuse (3-3, 0-2 ACC) a 37-34 lead on its first possession in overtime, but the Demon Deacons (6-0, 4-0) scored six plays later to start 6-0 for the first time since 1944.
NO. 24 SMU 31, NAVY 24
ANNAPOLIS, Md. —Tanner Mordecai threw for 324 yards and two touchdowns as SMU rallied from a 14-point second-quarter deficit.
Bryan Massey scored on a 95-yard kickoff return to begin the comeback for the unbeaten Mustangs. SMU (6-0, 2-0 AAC) had the game tied by halftime and went up 31-24 on a 22-yard TD pass from Mordecai to Jordan Kerley with 8:19 remaining in the final quarter.
Mordecai now has 26 touchdown passes on the season. He also threw a 66-yarder to Reggie Roberson on fourth-and-1 to open the scoring, but Navy (1-4, 1-2) answered with the next 21 points.