Northwest Arkansas Democrat-Gazette
Corral, Mississippi too much for LSU
SEC/TOP 25 NO. 12 MISSISSIPPI 31, LSU 17
OXFORD, Miss. — Matt Corral threw for a touchdown and ran for another, directing No. 12 Mississippi to a 31- point outburst that spanned the second and third quarters to beat lame-duck Coach Ed Orgeron and LSU 31-17 Saturday.
LSU (4-4, 2-3) lost in its first game since it was announced Orgeron wouldn’t return next season. A former Mississippi coach, he led the Tigers to the national championship less than two years ago.
Mississippi retired the No. 10 jersey of former All-America quarterback Eli Manning at halftime. The capacity crowd of 64,523 enthusiastically cheered Manning and his family members during the tribute.
“It was a good day and a good win,” Mississippi Coach Lane Kiffin said.
“I’ve got to be more positive. It wasn’t the prettiest win, but considering Matt wasn’t 100% and how banged up we are, well, I’ve just got to be more positive.”
Trailing 7- 0, Corral led four consecutive scoring drives, including a 3-yard touchdown run and a 2-yard touchdown pass to Casey Kelly. The Rebels (6-1, 3-1) led 17-7 at halftime and kept pulling away.
Corral enhanced his status as a Heisman Trophy contender with an efficient performance after being considered questionable from injuries sustained in last week’s win over Tennessee. He finished 18 of 23 passing for 185 yards, rushed for 24 yards, including three thirddown conversion runs before yielding to reserves in the final period.
“Just execute and trust. It’s just a matter of selling out every play and executing,” Corral said. “We have the plan. We have the scheme. We have the coaches. Everything is in place. I do my job and what I do sends a message to the team.”
Henry Parrish Jr. scored on a 5-yard touchdown run and Jerrion Ealy ran for a 36-yard score for Mississippi. The Rebels had 470 yards of total offense, with Snoop Conner running for 117 yards on 14 carries. Dontario Drummond had a game-high eight catches for 93 yards.
NO. 4 ALABAMA 52, TENNESSEE 24
TUSCALOOSA, Ala. — Bryce Young passed for 371 yards and two touchdowns and ran for two more scores, carrying No. 4 Alabama to a victory over traditional rival Tennessee.
Brian Robinson ran for 107 yards and three touchdowns, helping the Crimson Tide (7-1, 4-1) score 21 points in the first six-plus minutes of the final quarter.
That turned a mostly competitive game against the Volunteers (4-4, 2-3), fueled by Hendon Hooker’s 282-yard passing performance, into another lopsided final score.
The result was Alabama’s 15th consecutive win in the border rivalry, with the previous five having an average margin of 33 points.
Young, a leading Heisman Trophy candidate, completed 31 of 43 passes and turned five of his frequent scrambles into first downs or touchdowns.
John Metchie caught 11 passes for 121 yards and 2 touchdowns. Jameson Williams gained 123 yards on six catches.
Hooker was 19-of-28 passing with three scores. But he had a fourth-quarter pass intercepted by Jalyn Armour-Davis, who returned it 47 yards to set up another Alabama score.
Tennessee’s Cedric Tillman had seven catches for 152 yards, including a 70yard TD early in the fourth.
NO. 17 TEXAS A&M 44, SOUTH CAROLINA 14
COLLEGE STATION, Texas — Ainias Smith had a 95-yard punt return for a touchdown and Jalen Wydermyer added two TD catches as No. 17 Texas A&M built a huge first-half lead and coasted to a rout of South Carolina.
The star rushing duo of Isaiah Spiller and Devone Achane continued to do damage for the Aggies. They combined for 256 yards and two touchdowns a week after rushing for 292 yards and three touchdowns.
Texas A&M (6-2, 3-2) raced to a 31-0 lead by halftime, and Achane’s 35-yard touchdown run made it 41- 0 late in the third. It was the third consecutive victory for Texas A&M, which knocked off top-ranked Alabama two weeks ago before beating Missouri last week.
Zach Calzada had 187 yards passing with two touchdowns for the Aggies.
Jason Brown led the Gamecocks (44, 1-4) on two touchdown drives after replacing Zeb Noland, but also threw an interception in the end zone.
MISSISSIPPI STATE 45, VANDERBILT 6
NASHVILLE, Tenn. — Will Rogers had a career day at quarterback for Mississippi State, but Coach Mike Leach was not overly satisfied.
Rogers threw a career- best four touchdowns, two to wide receiver Makai Polk, and Mississippi State was never challenged in a victory over Vanderbilt. Rogers, the SEC leader in passing yards with 360.3 yards, threw for 386 against the Commodores, completing 41 of 57 attempts. It was the fifth time he has thrown three or more touchdown passes in a game this season and the seventh time in his career.
“I thought Will was good overall,” Leach said. “Obviously, he had some sloppy play in the mix.
“What he did best was maintain his composure. He was ready for the next play or next series after something went wrong. I think that rubbed off on the offensive unit and our team to a degree,” Leach said.
The Bulldogs (4-3, 2-2) were coming off a 49-9 loss to No. 4 Alabama. Mississippi State has won their last five meetings with Vanderbilt after a loss in 2004. It was the 17th consecutive SEC loss for the Commodores (2-6, 0-4).