SEC ROUNDUPS
NO. 1 GEORGIA 49, UAB 21
ATHENS, Ga. — Tight end Brock Bowers caught two of Carson Beck’s three touchdown passes, including a 41-yarder that helped No. 1 Georgia overcome a sluggish start, and the Bulldogs beat the UAB Blazers on Saturday night.
Beck threw for 337 yards and ran for a score for Georgia (4-0), which pulled away after UAB pulled even at 7-all early in the second quarter. The Bulldogs led 28-14 at halftime but Beck and other starters left the game when Georgia led 42-14 late in the third quarter.
Bowers was the reliable constant for Georgia’s offense. The junior caught nine passes for 120 yards.
NO. 23 TENNESSEE 45, UTSA 14
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — Joe Milton III threw for 156 yards and ran for 89 in the first half, leading No. 23 Tennessee to a victory over UTSA on Saturday.
Milton played a key role in three early touchdowns for the Volunteers (3-1) — an 81-yard scoring run on the first play of the game and touchdown passes to Ramel Keyton and Kaleb Webb — as they took a 31-0 lead into halftime.
The Roadrunners (1-3) struggled without quarterback Frank Harris, who missed his second game with turf toe. In his absence, Owen McCown was 18 for 20 passing for 170 yards and two touchdowns and one interception.
NO. 25 FLORIDA 22, UNC-CHARLOTTE 7
GAINESVILLE, Fla. — Ricky Pearsall made a one-handed catch that will be hard to top this season, Trey Smack kicked five field goals and No. 25 Florida overcame a lackluster performance to beat UNC-Charlotte on Saturday night.
The Gators (3-1) won their third consecutive game since losing at then-No. 14 Utah, but they looked far from ready to go on the road and end a two-game skid to Kentucky next week.
Graham Mertz completed 20 of 23 passes for 259 yards, with a touchdown and a fumble. Jalon Jones, who originally signed with Florida in 2019, scored for UNC-Charlotte.
MISSOURI 34, MEMPHIS 27
ST. LOUIS — Luther Burden III put on a show in his first collegiate game in his hometown, catching a career-high 10 passes for a career-best 177 yards to help Missouri beat Memphis on Saturday night.
Fellow St. Louis native Brady Cook completed 18 of 25 passes for 341 yards and two touchdowns to help Missouri to its first 4-0 start since 2013.
Seth Henigan completed 31 of 47 passes for 316 yards and 3 touchdowns but also tossed a pair of interceptions for Memphis (3-1).
SOUTH CAROLINA 37, MISSISSIPPI STATE 30
COLUMBIA, S.C. — Spencer Rattler went 18 of 20 passing for 288 yards and 3 touchdowns to lead South Carolina to a win over Mississippi State on Saturday night.
Rattler’s favorite target, Xavier Legette, caught 5 passes for 189 yards, including touchdowns of 76 and 75 yards for the Gamecocks (2-2, 1-1 SEC).
South Carolina tried to establish the ground game — the Gamecocks attempted 47 rushes — but when they needed something, they turned to Rattler, the Oklahoma transfer who in his past seven games has finally shown why he was once one of the Sooners most highly touted recruits.
KENTUCKY 45, VANDERBILT 28
NASHVILLE, Tenn. — Cornerback Maxwell Hairston had a pair of pick6s, Ray Davis rushed for 78 yards and two touchdowns and Kentucky beat Vanderbilt on Saturday in an SEC opener for both teams.
After starting the season with three home victories over nonconference opponents, Kentucky began its Southeastern Conference schedule with its first road win. The Wildcats (4-0, 1-0) started strong, scoring three first quarter touchdowns, two on offense as well as a 29-yard pick six by Hairston.
Kentucky Coach Mark Stoops said it feels good to get the first league win, especially on the road.
TEXAS A&M 27, AUBURN 10
COLLEGE STATION, Texas — Max Johnson threw for 123 yards and two second-half touchdowns after taking over for an injured Conner Weigman to lead Texas A&M to a win over Auburn Saturday.
Weigman threw for 70 yards before he was injured on a hit late in the second quarter. He limped to the locker room, looking to have trouble putting any weight on his right foot, and the team said he had a lower leg injury.
Aggies Coach Jimbo Fisher said X-rays were negative but that he didn’t know how long Weigman would be out.
Johnson took over for the third quarter and got right to work, leading Texas A&M (3-1, 1-0 Southeastern Conference) on a 46-yard drive capped by a 22-yard touchdown pass to younger brother Jake Johnson to make it 13-3 with about 10 minutes left in the third.