Clemson sizzles as N.C. State fizzles
CLEMSON, S.C. — Trevor Lawrence passed for a careerhigh 308 yards and Travis Etienne rushed for three touchdowns as third-ranked Clemson turned what was expected to be an Atlantic Coast Conference showdown against No. 16 North Carolina State into a rout.
The Tigers (7-0, 4-0) opened with seven straight wins for the third time in four seasons while topping the Wolfpack (5-1, 2-1) for the seventh consecutive season.
It was the ACC’s first matchup of undefeated teams this deep in a season since 2013, a game that also took place in Death Valley. But unlike five years ago, when the Tigers were pummeled by eventual national champion Florida State 51-14, it was Clemson that took control early and never gave the Wolfpack a chance to rally.
North Carolina State quarterback Ryan Finley came in leading the ACC with an average of more than 324 passing yards a game. He managed just 156 yards with two interceptions and a fumble. › No. 5 LSU 19,
No. 22 Mississippi State 3
BATON ROUGE, La. — Michael Divinity Jr.’s interception set up Nick Brossette’s short touchdown run and Cole Tracy kicked four field goals as LSU beat Mississippi State.
Still, the Tiger Stadium crowd left angry after LSU’s top linebacker, Devin White, was ejected for targeting in the fourth quarter, meaning he will not be eligible to play in the first half of the Tigers’ upcoming Southeastern Conference showdown with unbeaten and top-ranked Alabama.
White appeared to lower his head as he leveled quarterback Nick Fitzgerald a moment after he released a pass that was intercepted by defensive back Kristian Fulton. The targeting penalty wiped out the turnover, and LSU’s celebrations also drew two flags for unsportsmanlike conduct, resulting in 45 yards in penalties on one play.
Safety John Battle’s interception prevented Mississippi State (4-3, 1-3) from scoring on the drive and virtually sealed the result.
Safety Grant Delpit came through with several drive-stalling plays for the Tigers (7-1, 4-1), including two interceptions and a fourth-down sack.
› No. 6 Michigan 21,
No. 24 Michigan State 7
EAST LANSING, Mich. — Shea Patterson threw two touchdown passes as Michigan snapped a streak of 17 consecutive losses to ranked teams on the road.
The Wolverines (7-1, 5-0 Big Ten) had lost eight of 10 against their in-state rivals, and those setbacks have led to them not winning a Big Ten title since 2004.
The Spartans (4-3, 2-2) struggled to move the ball, getting held to 94 yards and failing to convert any of their 12 third downs.
Patterson’s 79-yard pass to Donovan Peoples-Jones put Michigan ahead late in the third quarter. He converted on fourthand-2 from the Michigan State 41 early in the fourth, setting up Ben Mason’s 5-yard run that gave the Wolverines a 21-7 lead.
Patterson, an Ole Miss transfer, finished 14-of-25 for 212 yards. Michigan’s Karan Higdon ran for 144 yards on 33 carries against the nation’s top-ranked rushing defense.
The game was delayed for 1 hour, 15 minutes in the first quarter because of lightning in the area. ›
No. 9 Oklahoma 52, TCU 27
FORT WORTH, Texas — Kyler Murray threw four touchdown passes, Kennedy Brooks and Trey Sermon had 100-yard rushing games with scores and Oklahoma rebounded from its only loss this season to beat TCU for the third time in 11 months.
The Sooners (6-1, 3-1 Big 12) won their 18th consecutive true road game, never trailing after scoring touchdowns on each of their first four drives in their first game since losing to Texas two weeks ago.
Brooks ran for 168 yards on 18 carries with an early 21-yard touchdown. Sermon ran 17 times for 110 yards and scored twice before walking gingerly off the field after being tended to by trainers with about 8 1/2 minutes left.
This was a rematch of the Big 12 Conference championship game last December, when Oklahoma won three weeks after beating TCU (3-4, 1-3) in the regular season.
› No. 10 Central Florida 37, East Carolina 10
GREENVILLE, N.C. — Darriel Mack Jr. stepped in for Heisman Trophy hopeful McKenzie Milton and rushed for 120 yards and a touchdown, and the Knights forced five turnovers on the way to their 20th straight victory.
Nate Evans returned a fumble 94 yards for a momentum-changing touchdown with 10:07 left, Greg McCrae added a 74-yard scoring run and the Knights (7-0, 4-0 American Athletic Conference) turned all those takeaways into 24 points. Central Florida — which was outgained 496-427 — went up 20-3 by scoring on four consecutive possessions in the second quarter, then made it a full-fledged rout with those late big plays.
Receiver Quadry Jones threw a 42-yard touchdown pass to Adrian Killins on a trick play, and Matthew Wright kicked three field goals for the Knights.
With Milton sitting this one out while in full uniform from the sideline, Mack was 12-of-20 for 69 yards but was more dangerous with his legs, rushing 7 yards for an early touchdown.
The Pirates (2-5, 0-4) have lost three straight and four of five.
› No. 14 Kentucky 14, Vanderbilt 7 LEXINGTON, Ky. — Benny Snell Jr. rushed for 169 yards, including the go-ahead 7-yard run with 8:04 remaining that helped Kentucky pull away.
The Wildcats (6-1, 4-1 SEC) clinched bowl eligibility for a third consecutive season and stayed in contention in the East division with their third straight victory over the Commodores (3-5, 0-4). But it took linebacker Kash Daniel’s fourth-down forced fumble that Quinton Bohanna recovered at the 20 midway through the fourth quarter to jump-start Kentucky from game-long inconsistency.
Snell took control from there, rushing 10 times for 74 yards on the drive that ended with his
ninth touchdown run. The junior rushed 32 times for his 16th career 100-yard game on a blustery night in which Kentucky had to work hard to outgain Vanderbilt 298284.
› No. 15 Washington 27, Colorado 13
SEATTLE — Jake Browning threw a 26-yard touchdown pass to Aaron Fuller on fourth down with less than four minutes remaining, and Washington held off Colorado.
Rather than trying for a long field goal, Browning and the offense stayed on the field. Facing a blitz, Browning found Fuller on a quick slant with nothing but the end zone ahead.
Salvon Ahmed and Kamari Pleasant both scored on touchdown runs in the first half for the Huskies (6-2, 4-1 Pac-12). They played without starting running back Myles Gaskin (shoulder injury).
Washington linebacker Ben Burr-Kirven had 15 tackles and an interception.
Steven Montez threw for 144 yards for Colorado (5-2, 2-2).
› No. 18 Penn State 33, Indiana 28
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. — Trace McSorley passed for 220 yards, ran for 107 and had a hand in three touchdowns in Penn State’s victory over Indiana.
Penn State (5-2, 2-2 Big Ten) rallied to snap a two-game losing streak after Indiana (4-4, 1-4) took a 21-20 lead in the third quarter on Steve Scott’s 3-yard touchdown run.
Johnathan Thomas took the ensuing kickoff back to the Indiana 5, setting up McSorley for the go-ahead touchdown on the next play.
Brandon Wilson partially blocked the extra point, leaving Penn State’s lead at 26-21. Indiana forced Penn State to punt on the Nittany Lions’ next drive, but J-Shun Harris fumbled the punt return and turned the ball over. Five plays later, McSorley nearly walked into the end zone to make it a 33-21 lead.
Miles Sanders ran for 72 yards and a touchdown.
› No. 19 Iowa 23, Maryland 0
IOWA CITY, Iowa — Nate Stanley passed for 86 yards and a touchdown for Iowa.
Anthony Nelson added a score on a fumble recovery for the Hawkeyes (6-1, 3-1 Big Ten), who held the Terrapins (4-3, 2-2) to 115 yards and seven first downs on a day when wind gusts topped 40 mph.
After settling for a pair of short field goals, Iowa went into halftime ahead 13-0 after Stanley found Brandon Smith for a 10-yard touchdown grab — which Smith made with one hand — with eight seconds left in the second quarter.
Nelson, a defensive end, made it 23-0 late in the third quarter by falling on a botched handoff from backup quarterback Tyrrell Pigrome in the end zone.
Ivory Kelly-Martin ran for 98 yards for Iowa.
› Temple 24,
No. 20 Cincinnati 17, OT
PHILADELPHIA — Anthony Russo threw a tying 20-yard touchdown pass with 49 second left to Brandon Mack, and then a 25-yarder to Isaiah Wright in overtime for Temple.
Russo finished 20-for-41 for 237 yards and three touchdowns for the Owls (5-3, 4-0 AAC). He led a seven-play, 75-yard drive in the closing minutes to tie it.
Cincinnati (6-1, 2-1) got a first down on its first play of overtime, but an errant snap behind quarterback Desmond Ridder left the Bearcats with second-and-21, and a personal foul pushed them even farther back.
Ridder’s pass was intercepted by by Shaun Bradley on thirdand-36 to end the game. › No. 23 Wisconsin 49, Illinois 20
MADISON, Wis. — Jonathan Taylor rushed for 159 yards and Taiwan Deal added 111 and two touchdowns as Wisconsin took advantage of five first-half turnovers by Illinois.
Wisconsin (5-2, 3-1 Big Ten) has won nine straight against Illinois (3-4, 1-3).
The Badgers had three interceptions and recovered two fumbles on the way to building a 28-10 halftime lead. Alex Hornibrook threw three touchdown passes and two interceptions.