Michigan, TCU survive to reach 11-0
WACO, Texas — Griffin Kell kicked a 40-yard field goal on the final play of the game, and fourth-ranked TCU beat Baylor 29-28 on Saturday, scoring nine points in the final 2:07 to avoid a potential playoff-busting loss.
Emari Demercardo scored on a 3-yard touchdown run with 2:07 left to get the Horned Frogs (11-0, 8-0 Big 12) — No. 4 in the most recent College Football Playoff rankings — within 28-26, but he was unable to pull in a pass on the 2-point conversion attempt. TCU used all three of its timeouts while forcing a three-and-out series by the Bears to get the ball back and kick the winner.
TCU, which had already clinched a spot in the Big 12 title game, hasn’t been undefeated this deep in a season since 2010, when it finished 13-0 with a Rose Bowl victory and No. 2 national ranking.
Baylor (6-5, 4-4) was coming off a 31-3 home loss to Kansas State. Bears quarterback Blake Shapen was 21-of-30 for 269 yards and a score, Craig “Sqwirl” Williams ran for 112 yards and Monaray Baldwin had six catches for 123 yards.
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No. 2 Ohio State 43, Maryland 30
COLLEGE PARK, Md. — Dallan Hayden scored three touchdowns in the second half of Ohio State’s victory over Maryland to set up a monumental matchup of unbeatens next weekend between the Buckeyes and rival Michigan.
Maryland (6-5, 3-5 Big Ten) led 13-10 at halftime, and the Buckeyes were up just 33-30 when they turned the ball over on downs at the Maryland 42-yard line with 6:36 remaining in the game. Ohio State (11-0, 8-0, No. 2 CFP) forced a three-andout series by the Terrapins, then ran out much of the clock before making a field goal and scoring a defensive touchdown with nine seconds remaining.
Maryland quarterback Taulia Tagovailoa was 26-of-36 for 293 yards and two touchdowns.
› No. 3 Michigan 19, Illinois 17
ANN ARBOR, Mich. — Jake Moody made a go-ahead 35-yard field goal with nine seconds left, lifting the Wolverines (11-0, 8-0 Big Ten, No. 3 CFP) after they played much of the second half without star running back Blake Corum, who grabbed his left knee after being tackled just before halftime.
The Fighting Illini (7-4, 5-3) took a 17-10 lead late in the third quarter on Chase Brown’s 37-yard touchdown run. With a chance to run out the clock, they had to punt to Michigan late in the game and failed to hold on and beat a top-three team for what would have been the first time since knocking off topranked Ohio State in 2007.
› No. 9 Clemson 40, Miami 10
CLEMSON, S.C. — DJ Uiagalelei threw for two touchdowns and ran for a third as Clemson wrapped up an undefeated regular season against Atlantic Coast Conference competition and extended its streak of home wins to 40 by storming past the Hurricanes.
The Tigers (10-1, 8-0, No. 9 CFP) have won at least 10 games in 12 straight seasons and — for a half — had their most dominant showing on both sides of the ball. They scored touchdowns on three of their first four possessions while Miami (5-6, 3-4) was stuffed by the Clemson defense.
The Hurricanes managed just 8 yards the first two quarters and a season-low 98 for the game.
› No. 11 Penn State 55, Rutgers 10
PISCATAWAY, N.J. — Sean Clifford ran for a touchdown and threw for another, and Penn State scored twice on fumble returns and once on a kickoff return to roll over Rutgers.
Freshman Nick Singleton scored on a 100-yard kickoff return, Kobe King gave Penn State (9-2, 6-2 Big Ten, No. 11 CFP) the lead for good with a 14-yard fumble return, and Ji’Ayir Brown rumbled 70 yards with another fumble as the Nittany Lions blew it open in the second half.
Rutgers (4-7, 1-7), which lost for the 16th straight series meeting, was held to 167 yards and committed three turnovers that led to 21 points for Penn State.
› Georgia Tech 21,
No. 13 North Carolina 17 CHAPEL HILL, N.C. — Zach Gibson threw for 174 yards and
Georgia Tech scored 21 unanswered points to win its ACC finale on the road before visiting top-ranked Georgia of the Southeastern Conference next weekend.
The Yellow Jackets (5-6, 4-4) trailed 17-0 late in the first half, but then they started to methodically move the ball. All three of their scoring drives were for 68-plus yards and culminated with rushing touchdowns.
North Carolina (9-2, 6-1, No. 13 CFP) was riding a six-game winning streak and had clinched the Coastal Division title last week, securing a spot in next month’s ACC title game against Atlantic Division champ Clemson in Charlotte. Tar Heels quarterback Drake Maye, who had emerged as a possible Heisman Trophy contender as a redshirt freshman, failed to score a touchdown for the first time this season.
Meanwhile, the Jackets improved to 4-3 under interim coach Brent Key, who took over when Geoff Collins was fired a month into his fourth season — and this win came after Tech lost its top two quarterbacks in the span of a few days.
Jeff Sims, the starter since 2020, is out indefinitely undergoing medical treatment for an injured foot. Zach Pyron broke his collarbone in the third quarter of last week’s 35-14 home loss to Miami and is out for the season. Queue up Gibson, a transfer from Akron who made his second start since completing two of three passes playing the first series of a 41-16 loss at Florida State three weeks ago.
› Navy 17, No. 17 UCF 14
ORLANDO, Fla. — Fullback Daba Fofana rushed for 114 yards as Navy beat the University of Central Florida without completing a pass.
Navy (4-7, 4-4 American Athletic Conference) possessed the ball for nearly 40 minutes and gained 248 yards, all on the ground. The loss dropped UCF (8-3, 5-2) out of first place in the AAC and all but eliminated the Knights’ chances of playing at home in the conference championship game.
Mikey Keene replaced quarterback John Rhys Plumlee in the second half and immediately led the Knights to their only touchdown of the game.
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No. 18 Notre Dame 44, Boston College 0
SOUTH BEND, Ind. — Notre Dame cornerback Benjamin Morrison had three interceptions for a defense that also forced two fumbles, and the Fighting Irish scored on their first eight possessions to wallop Boston College.
The Fighting Irish (8-3, No. 18 CFP) won their ninth straight against the Eagles (3-8).
The temperature at game time was 27 degrees, making it the coldest game at Notre Dame in nine years, and heavy snow fell for much of the third quarter.
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No. 19 Kansas State 48, West Virginia 31
MORGANTOWN, W.Va. — Will Howard threw two touchdown passes and ran for another score, Cincere Mason returned an interception for a touchdown, and Kansas State moved closer to a berth in the Big 12 title game by beating West Virginia.
Kansas State (8-3, 6-2, No. 15 CFP) can clinch a title showdown with TCU on Dec. 3 with a win in its regular-season finale at home against Kansas. West Virginia (4-7, 2-6) failed to become bowl eligible for what would have been the second time under fourth-year coach Neal Brown and only the fourth time since 2000.
The Mountaineers’ Garrett Greene threw three touchdown passes to Sam James and was 15-of-27 for 204 yards with two interceptions. Greene also scored on a 13-yard run.
› No. 20 Florida State 49, Louisiana-Lafayette 17 TALLAHASSEE, Fla. — Jordan Travis and Treshaun Ward each had a pair of touchdown runs in the first half, and the Seminoles rushed for 251 yards in a runaway win.
Florida State (8-3, No. 19 CFP) hit a season high in points, surpassed 200 rushing yards for a sixth straight time and picked up its fourth straight double-digit victory against the Ragin’ Cajuns (5-6).
Louisiana quarterback Chandler Fields was 19-of-36 for 159 yards, including a touchdown to Michael Jefferson.
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No. 22 Cincinnati 23, Temple 3
PHILADELPHIA — Jacob Dingel and Bryon Threats intercepted passes, and Noah Potter and Dontay Corleone recovered fumbles to help the Bearcats secure the victory.
Cincinnati (9-2, 6-1 AAC, No. 25 CFP) can guarantee a berth in its fourth straight conference title game with a win in its regular-season finale Friday against Tulane.
Temple quarterback E.J. Warner — the son of Pro Football Hall of Fame quarterback Kurt Warner — passed for 167 yards and two interceptions, completing 21 of 36 attempts. Last week, Warner set a school record for passing yards with 486 yards and had three touchdown passes in a 43-36 loss at Houston.
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No. 25 Oregon State 31, Arizona State 7
TEMPE, Ariz. — Damien Martinez ran for 137 yards and two touchdowns as the Beavers (8-3, 5-3 Pac-12, No. 22 CFP) won at Arizona State for just the second time since 1972.
The Sun Devils (3-8, 2-6) played their final home game of the season, falling to 2-6 under interim coach Shaun Aguano, who replaced Herm Edwards on Sept. 20.
Trent Bourguet was 20-of-32 passing for 122 yards for the Sun Devils. He ran eight times for 26 yards.
› Auburn 41, Western Kentucky 17
AUBURN, Ala. — Tank Bigsby and Jarquez Hunter combined for 229 rushing yards and four total touchdowns to lead the SEC’s Tigers (5-6) to the nonconference win.
After the Hilltoppers (7-5) of Conference USA generated 290 yards and 17 points in the first half, Auburn’s defense held the pass-happy visitors to 105 yards and allowed zero points after halftime.
Bigsby and Hunter both scored long rushing touchdowns, and D.J. James returned an interception 25 yards to cap 24 unanswered points for the
Tigers in the second half.
Auburn has won back-to-back games under interim coach Carnell Williams as it heads into its annual Iron Bowl matchup with in-state and league rival Alabama.
Western Kentucky, which has won four games against SEC opponents since 2012, was unable to carry a strong second quarter of offense into the second half.
› Mississippi State 56, ETSU 7
STARKVILLE, Miss. — Just five days from the Battle for the Golden Egg against in-state and SEC rival Ole Miss, the Bulldogs handled their business quickly and did what they needed to do, staying healthy in a blowout win of Football Championship Subdivision member East Tennessee State University.
Highlighting the day was Will Rogers, who threw for five touchdowns and moved into ninth in SEC history with 10,189 passing yards, eclipsing Ole Miss great Eli Manning heading into the Bulldogs’ Thanksgiving Day showdown with the Rebels in Oxford.
The Bulldogs (7-4) had 418 yards, and 342 of those were through the air with Rogers 30-of-37 passing for 301 yards. Justin Robinson had five catches for 62 yards and a touchdown, and Tulu Griffin had four for 53 and two scores. Jo’Quavious Marks had five carries for 58 yards and a touchdown run.
In the second quarter, Emmanuel Forbes snagged a carom off the foot of ETSU receiver Cameron Lewis and returned it 79 yards for a touchdown — his sixth career pick-six to set both an SEC and Football Bowl Subdivision record. The junior tied the Mississippi State record for most interceptions in a season with six, and his 14 picks are two away from tying the career record.
The Buccaneers (3-8) of the Southern Conference had just 154 yards of offense, including 43 through the air, were 2-of-13 on third-down conversions and turned the ball over three times.
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Texas A&M 20, Massachusetts 3
COLLEGE STATION, Texas — Conner Weigman threw for 191 yards and a touchdown, and Texas A&M overcame a sloppy and mistake-filled performance to snap a six-game skid.
The Aggies (4-7) entered the game as 33 1/2 point favorites against the Minutemen (1-10), but the hosts lost four fumbles and struggled to move the ball while playing without top running back Devon Achane and leading receiver Evan Stewart on a soggy and cold day.
Weigman threw a touchdown pass in the second quarter to put the Aggies on top, but they didn’t get in the end zone again until Le’Veon Moss scampered 12 yards for a touchdown with about five minutes remaining for the final margin.
The school announced a paid attendance of more than 90,000, but the crowd in the cavernous stadium looked sparse from the start and morphed into a ghost town by the third quarter as light rain steadily fell. It was a far cry from the atmosphere when the Aggies opened the season ranked No. 6 in the country with designs on competing for a
national title.
They’ve not only tumbled out of the poll since then but won’t even make a bowl game this season, raising questions about the $75 million contract of Jimbo Fisher. The coach insisted he didn’t notice how empty the stadium was in the second half, and he denied that he was losing the fan base.