Michigan upends Michigan St.
EAST LANSING, MICH. >> Amara Darboh caught eight passes for a career-high 165 yards, and De’Veon Smith ran for two touchdowns to lift No. 2 Michigan to a 3223 win over rival Michigan State on Saturday.
The Wolverines (8-0, 5-0 Big Ten) scored every time they had the ball in the first half, beating the Spartans (2-6, 0-5) for only the second time in the last nine meetings. Michigan avenged last year’s loss, in which the Spartans scored the winning touchdown on the final play when the Wolverines botched a punt.
Michigan State went on to a Big Ten title and a national semifinal appearance after that dramatic victory, but this season it’s Michigan that’s in the national title hunt. The Wolverines were heavy favorites to win in East Lansing, and they trailed only briefly in the first quarter.
Michigan won the Paul Bunyan Trophy for the first time since 2012.
“We came here expecting to get it back,” Wolverines quarterback Wilton Speight said.
Michigan led 30-10 in the fourth before the Spartans scored a pair of touchdowns, the last of which came with only 1 second on the clock. Michigan State attempted a 2-point conversion and fumbled, and Jabrill Peppers returned it the other way for a defensive conversion that enabled the Wolverines to cap the win on a high note.
“It’s unfortunate it ended in a big celebration for them,” Spartans coach Mark Dantonio said.
Speight threw for 244 yards for Michigan. Michigan State, meanwhile, did
not complete a pass in the second or third quarter. The Spartans have lost six in a row and need to win out to become bowl eligible. NO. 5 LOUISVILLE 32, VIRGINIA 25 >> Lamar Jackson floated a 29-yard touchdown pass to Jaylen Smith with 13 seconds left and Louisville survived a frenetic finish.
Jackson’s fourth touchdown pass kept the Cardinals (7-1, 5-1 Atlantic Coast Conference) in the College Football Playoff picture, and couldn’t have hurt the Heisman Trophy frontrunner’s candidacy. Virginia (26, 1-3) scored with 1:57 remaining and used a 2-point conversion to take a 25-24 lead.
Jackson did not have one of his best days, getting sacked five times and turning the ball over twice, but on the final drive, he ran for 18 yards, hit Cole Hikutini
in traffic for 5 yards on fourth-and-3 and ran twice more for 16 yards before hitting Smith in the end zone. OKLAHOMA STATE 37, NO. 10
WEST VIRGINIA 20 >> Mason Rudolph threw three touchdown passes and ran for a score for Oklahoma State.
Rudolph completed 26 of 36 passes for 273 yards. James Washington had six catches for 117 yards, Chris Lacy caught two touchdown passes, and Jalen McCleskey matched a career high with 11 receptions for the Cowboys (6-2, 4-1 Big 12). It the 100th career victory for Oklahoma State coach Mike Gundy.
West Virginia’s Skyler Howard passed for 212 yards, but he threw two interceptions and lost a fumble for the Mountaineers (61, 3-1). NO. 24 PENN STATE 62, PURDUE 24 >> Saquon Barkley ran for 207 yards and two touchdowns, Trace McSorley threw three scoring passes, and Penn State had a 24-point third quarter.
The Nittany Lions (62, 4-1 in the Big Ten) converted an interception, a fumbled punt and a failed onside kick into third-quarter touchdowns on their way to a fourth consecutive victory, They snapped a sevengame road losing streak dating to 2014.
Tied at 17 through two quarters, the Nittany Lions outscored Purdue (3-5, 1-4) 24-7 in the third. McSorley threw a 1-yard touchdown pass to Chris Godwin and for 21 yards to Miles Sanders for another.
Barkley padded the lead with 13:56 left on a careerbest 81-yard run along the right sideline. It was the longest touchdown run by a Nittany Lion since Larry Johnson’s 84-yarder in 2002 against Illinois.