Ole Miss falls to Auburn 44-23
AUBURN, Ala. — Kerryon Johnson is enjoying taking his mostly healed hamstring on frequent jaunts to the end zone.
No. 12 Auburn is happily riding along with him. Both continued their hot streaks on Saturday, with Johnson rushing for a career-high 204 yards and three touchdowns and the Tigers beating Mississippi 44-23.
Johnson and the Tigers (5-0, 3-0 Southeastern Conference) continued a recent tear with their third straight lopsided win over a league team. Johnson, who didn't play in the fourth quarter, has 11 touchdown runs during that stretch after missing two games with a right hamstring injury.
The Rebels (2-3, 0-2) endured their second straight blowout in the state a week after losing 66-3 to No. 1 Alabama. This one was much closer, but not competitive.
The Tigers were up 35-3 at halftime before Shea Patterson and Ole Miss managed to whittle down the lead.
Auburn's Jarrett Stidham completed 14 of 21 passes for 235 yards and two touchdowns. That included a screen pass which Ryan Davis took 75 yards for a touchdown in the first quarter, the Tigers' longest offensive play of the season.
Auburn's Daniel Carlson made three field goals to become the SEC's career scoring leader with 413 points. Georgia's Blair Walsh set the old mark of 412 points.
The Rebels snapped a 10-quarter streak without a touchdown when Patterson hit D.K. Metcalf for a 9-yard touchdown in the third quarter.
Patterson led two more touchdown drives in the fourth. He completed 34 of 51 passes for 346 yards and two touchdowns, both to Metcalf.
Southern Miss 31, UTSA 29
SAN ANTONIO — Keon Howard threw three touchdown passes, and Ito Smith ran for an 89-yard score to help Southern Mississippi beat UTSA.
Within a five-minute span between the third and fourth quarters, Howard threw a 20-yard touchdown pass to Korey Robertson and a 48-yard TD strike to Quez Watkins. Smith capped the rally with his scoring run as Southern Miss (3-2, 1-1 Conference USA) took a 2813 lead.
Dalton Sturm threw a 24-yard touchdown pass to Marquez McNair to pull UTSA to 31-29 with 48 seconds left, but the 2-point conversion failed.
Howard was 15 of 20 for 212 yards passing. Smith ran for 178 yards on 17 carries.
Sturm threw for 367 yards and three touchdowns to lead UTSA (3-1, 0-1). Greg Campbell Jr. had 10 receptions for 108 yards, and Josh Stewart made five catches for 101 yards.
Mississippi Valley St. 38, Arkansas-Pine Bluff 31.
PINE BLUFF, Ark. — Dewayne Betts threw for 272 yards and four touchdowns to lead Mississippi Valley State to its first win of the season with a victory over ArkansasPine Bluff.
Two of the touchdown throws were pulled in by Steven McIntosh, who also had a 31-yard TD throw to Darrion Harper in the second quarter for Mississippi Valley State (1-4, 1-1 Southwestern Athletic Conference). McIntosh finished with three catches for 105 yards, including a 60-yard scoring grab in the fourth quarter.
Also catching TD passes from Betts, who was 17for-27 passing, was Quinn McElfresh and Tyrone Hundley. Nicholas Jacque had a 42-yard field goal.
Arkansas-Pine Bluff (2-4, 1-2) jumped out to a 14-0 lead in the second quarter on a 3-yard touchdown run by Dante McDonald, and then retook the advantage on a 52-yard field goal from Jamie Gillan for a 17-14 halftime lead. But the Golden Lions couldn't contain MVSU in the second half.
KeShawn Williams led UAPB with 147 yards rushing, including an 80yard scoring run in the third quarter.