McSorley lifts Penn St.
QB’s three touchdown passes help Nittany Lions subdue Pittsburgh
Trace McSorley threw for three touchdowns, including Saquon Barkley's 46-yard catch-and-run, and No. 4 Penn State pulled away from visiting Pittsburgh for a 33-14 football win on Saturday.
McSorley completed 15 of 28 passes for 164 yards, helping the Nittany Lions (2-0) avenge a loss to their in-state rivals a year ago. Tight end Mike Gesicki had two touchdown receptions and Barkley ran for 88 yards as Penn State ended a two-game skid against the Panthers.
Qadree Ollison rushed for 96 yards for the Panthers (1-1), but Pitt's offense struggled to finish drives early on and the Nittany Lions pulled away late. Max Browne completed 19 of 32 passes for only 138 yards and was intercepted twice.
Pitt dominated in time of possession, holding the ball for more than 38 minutes. Penn State countered with a quick strike attack in front of the largest Beaver Stadium crowd in nearly a decade.
Twice the Nittany Lions needed just one snap to score. McSorley found a wide-open Gesicki for an 8-yard touchdown just 2:07 into the game after Browne's first interception. McSorley hit Barkley down the middle of the field early in the second half and Barkley did the rest to put Penn State up 21-3 early in the third quarter.
Pitt drew within 14 when sophomore quarterback Ben DiNucci scored on a 3-yard run after Browne was forced to sit for one play after his helmet came off. DiNucci added a 2-point conversion to Ollison to make it 28-14.
NO. 5 OKLAHOMA 31, NO. 2 OHIO STATE 16: Baker Mayfield threw for 386 yards and three touchdowns to lead the Sooners past the host Buckeyes.
NO. 3 CLEMSON 14, NO. 13 AUBURN 6: Kelly Bryant ran for two touchdowns after getting knocked hard to the ground and defensive end Austin Bryant had four of 11 sacks as host Clemson (2-0) beat Auburn (1-1).
This was billed as an early showcase between elite teams with dreams of the College Football Playoffs. Instead, Clemson's Bryants never gave Auburn much of a chance.
NO. 8 MICHIGAN 36, CINCINNATI 14: Ty Isaac ran for a career-high 133 yards and Wilton Speight threw for two touchdowns to help the host Wolverines (2-0) overcome a sluggish performance to pull away and beat the Bearcats (1-1).
Michigan led by just three points early in the second half and were booed until getting the fans behind them again by scoring 19 straight points to turn a closely contested game into a lopsided one.
NO. 17 LOUISVILLE 47, NORTH CAROLINA 35: Reigning Heisman Trophy winner Lamar Jackson accounted for 525 total yards and six touchdowns to help the visiting Cardinals (2-0, 1-0 Atlantic Coast Conference) pull away late from the Tar Heels (0-2, 0-1).
Jackson threw for 393 yards and three scores while also running for 132 yards and three TDs. The last came on a spinning-through-tacklers 11-yard run with 3:06 left to punctuate a dominant fourth-quarter effort by Louisville.
NO. 18 VIRGINIA TECH 27, DELAWARE 0: Greg Stroman returned a punt for a touchdown and Josh Jackson threw two scoring passes to carry the host Hokies (2-0) past the Blue Hens (1-1).
NO. 25 TENNESSE 42, INDIANA STATE 7: Carlin Fils-aime and Brandon Johnson combined for three first-half touchdowns as the host Volunteers (2-0) beat the Sycamores (0-2).
POSTPONEMENT: Hurricane Irma has forced the postponement of the annual Florida State-Miami showdown, which was scheduled to be played on Florida State’s campus in Tallahassee on Sept. 16. The game is now set for Oct. 7, which was supposed to be an off week for both teams. The switch also forced another tweak: Miami's home game with Georgia Tech has been pushed back from Oct. 12 to Oct. 14, at the Hurricanes’ request.