Vols have no trouble routing Wildcats SEC/TOP 25
NO. 3 TENNESSEE 44, NO. 19 KENTUCKY 6
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — Jalin Hyatt caught 5 passes for 138 yards and 2 touchdowns to lead No. 3 Tennessee to a 44-6 victory over No. 19 Kentucky on Saturday night.
Hyatt broke the school record for touchdown receptions in a season with 14 and set up the Volunteers (8-0, 4-0) for their showdown with No. 1 Georgia next Saturday. Tennessee is off to its best start since winning the national championship in 1998.
“The first day I took this job, this is what you envision,” Tennessee Coach Josh Heupel said. “These guys wanted to stay [during the coaching transition].
The Wildcats (5-3, 2-3) struggled in the latest edition of the border rivalry. Will Levis, projected as one of the top quarterbacks in the upcoming NFL Draft, was intercepted three times — including two by Doneiko Slaughter, who moved from safety to cornerback to fill a void.
“You have to have the mentality you want to be great,” Slaughter said. “I like to be more in the box (at safety), but it’ll grow on me.”
Kentucky was 1 for 6 on third down in the first half and 2 of 13 for the game. Levis was 16 for 27 for 98 yards.
“[Tennessee] beat us in virtually every area,” Kentucky Coach Mark Stoops said. “When the game started getting away from us, (Levis is) forcing things. That’s the competitor in him.”
“(Tennessee’s defense was) playing some zones that ended up plugging up a lot of things,” Levis said. “Credit (Tennessee), but most of it was us shooting ourselves in the foot.”
Tennessee’s Hendon Hooker completed 19 of 25 passes for 245 yards and 3 scores. Hooker also ran for a TD.
“We’re here to accomplish the goal we set in January,” Hooker said. “We’ll take every opponent seriously. I have to lock into my assignment.”
The Vols led 27-6 at halftime. Hyatt had three receptions for 91 yards, two of them were for touchdowns.
NO. 15 OLE MISS 31, TEXAS A&M 28
COLLEGE STATION, Tex. — Quinshon Judkins rushed for 205 yards, Jaxson Dart passed for three touchdowns and No. 15 Ole Miss beat Texas A&M.
Judkins had a 1-yard touchdown run with 7:18 remaining, helping Mississippi rebound from its first loss of the season. He is up to 1,036 yards rushing on the season.
Dart threw touchdown passes of 18, 1 and 2 yards. He was 13 for 20 for 140 yards, and also had 17 carries for 95 yards on the ground.
Zach Evans, who missed last week’s 45-20 loss to LSU with a leg injury, returned against the Aggies and rushed for 75 yards. Jonathan Mingo had four catches for 89 yards and a touchdown for the Rebels (8-1, 4-1).
Ole Miss rushed for 391 yards, including 134 yards in the first quarter, and finished with 530 total yards.
Connor Weigman was 28 of 44 for 338 yards and four touchdowns for Texas A&M (3-5, 1-4). The Aggies lost their fourth consecutive game for the school’s longest slide since losing four in a row at the end of the 2005 season.
Devon Achane rushed 25 times for 138 yards, and Moose Muhammad III caught eight passes for 112 yards and a score.
MISSOURI 23,
NO. 25 SOUTH CAROLINA 10
COLUMBIA, S.C. — Brady Cook ran for a touchdown and directed three long, first-half scoring drives as Missouri built a 17-0 lead on the way to its fourth consecutive win over No. 25 South Carolina.
Receiver Dominic Lovett had career highs with 10 catches for 148 yards while the Tigers’ defense had 11 tackles behind the line of scrimmage and held the Gamecocks (5-3, 2-3) to 203 total yards. The Tigers (4-4, 2-3) won their second in a row after starting league play 0-3.
Missouri beat a ranked opponent for the first time since its 45-41 win over No. 17 LSU on Oct. 10, 2020.
It ended the Gamecocks four-game win streak — and also ended their stay in the national rankings after getting in this past week for the first time in four years.
Cook proved a steady hand against a South Carolina defense that was active and opportunistic in beating No. 19 Kentucky on Oct. 8 and Texas A&M last week.