Alabama withstands test from Texas A&M to win 27-19

COLLEGE STATION, Texas — Damien Harris ran for 124 yards and a touchdown, and Jalen Hurts had a touchdown pass and ran for another score to help top-ranked Alabama remain undefeated with a 27-19 win over Texas A&M on Saturday night.

The Aggies (4-2, 2-1 Southeastern Conference), who entered the game as 26 1/2 point underdogs, made the game interesting, but in the end freshman quarterback Kellen Mond was simply too inexperienced to help them topple a team as talented as Alabama.

Alabama (6-0, 3-0) had rolled past Vanderbilt and Mississippi by a combined scored of 125-3 over the last two weeks, but got much more of a test from the young Aggies.

Mond was 19 of 29 for 237 yards with a touchdown and an interception. He also ran for a touchdown and lost a fumble. Hurts threw for 123 yards and ran for 56. Mond connected with Damion Ratley on a 32-yard pass on fourth-and-9 to get the Aggies to the 3 late in the third quarter. They were facing another fourth down later in the possession when Mond evaded one sack and got the ball off just as he was hit, finding Christian Kirk on for a 2-yard touchdown pass to get the Aggies to 24-10. Kirk grabbed the ball just before his knee hit the ground.

The Aggies were driving again early in the fourth quarter when Minkah Fitzpatrick intercepted Mond near the goal line for his first pick this season.

But Alabama couldn't move the ball and had to punt out of the end zone. Cullen Gillaspia, who wears Texas A&M's beloved 12th man jersey, blocked JK Scott's punt in the end zone for a safety to make it 24-12.

Texas A&M couldn't do anything on its next drive, with Mond getting sacked twice and losing two yards on a run to force the Aggies to punt.

Alabama added a field goal with about two minutes left to make it 27-12.

Mond cut the lead to 8 with a 1-yard run with 17 seconds left, but the Aggies ran out of time to do anything else.

Alabama took its opening drive of the second half 75 yards, capped by an 8-yard touchdown pass from Hurts to Henry Ruggs to extend the lead to 24-3 early in the third quarter.

Later in the third quarter Robert Foster simply dropped what should have been an easy catch before fumbling after a catch on the same drive. It was Alabama's first turnover since Nov. 24, 2016 and earned Foster a talking to from coach Nick Saban as soon as he reached the sideline.

The Aggies led 3-0 early after Daniel LaCamera made the longest field goal of his career and the first over 50 yards with a 52yard field goal.

The lead didn't last long as Damien Harris ran 75 yards for a touchdown on the first play of the next series.

South Carolina 48, Arkansas 22

COLUMBIA, S.C. — South Carolina's defense scored three touchdowns and Jake Bentley went 16 of 31 for 199 yards and three touchdowns as the Gamecocks beat Arkansas.

Bentley spread the ball around to nine receivers as South Carolina (4-2, 2-2 Southeastern) beat a team from the SEC West for the first time since 2013.

After a 75-yard touchdown drive by Arkansas (2-3, 0-2) tied it at 10 early in the second quarter, the Razorbacks gained just 48 yards in their next 18 plays. Those plays included an Austin Allen interception Skai Moore returned 34 yards for a TD and an Allen fumble that TJ Brunson returned 74 yards for a score.

South Carolina's offense clicked, too. The Gamecocks gained 358 yards, scoring on five of eight possessions in the final three quarters. Bentley was sacked just once, a week after the offense line allowed seven sacks in a loss to Texas A&M.

Georgia 45, Vanderbilt 14

NASHVILLE, Tenn. — The Georgia Bulldogs knew they could run the ball better than they did last season, and now they're starting to show just how much they can punish opposing defenses.

Nick Chubb ran for two touchdowns and 138 yards, and fifth-ranked Georgia routed Vanderbilt despite missing three players from the Bulldogs' stingy defense.

Georgia (6-0, 3-0 Southeastern Conference) now is off to its best start since 2005 when the Bulldogs won their first seven games and longest winning streak since reaching the SEC championship in 2012. The Bulldogs also avenged a 17-16 loss to Vanderbilt last year

The Bulldogs ran through and over Vanderbilt, piling up 423 yards for their best rushing day since 1987 — also against Vanderbilt. Sony Michel added 150 yards and a TD, while Elijah Holyfield scored his first career TD on a 15-yard run. Georgia set the tone on its opening drive, running all seven plays for 83 yards.

“That's the mentality of this team,” Georgia coach Kirby Smart said. “It's not really a scoreboard deal. It's like we really just want to see if we can make the other team quit. And if you can try your best to make them quit and you start seeing the, I guess, the falling in, the pushing, the movement, you know that you've got them where you want them.”

Chubb, who became only the eighth running back in SEC history to reach 4,000 yards rushing in his career, credited the offensive line for a strong performance.

“Every play felt like I was getting like 10 yards, and the other guys, too, from watching it,” Chubb said. “And that starts up front.”

Vanderbilt (3-3, 0-3) lost its third straight to wrap up the toughest four-game stretch in school history against the Commodores' fourth consecutive ranked opponent.

Kentucky 40, Missouri 34

LEXINGTON, Ky. — Austin MacGinnis kicked four field goals, including two in the fourth quarter, and Stephen Johnson and Benny Snell each had two touchdowns as Kentucky outlasted Missouri in a back-andforth marathon.

Kentucky (5-1, 2-1 Southeastern Conference) led by double digits three times but allowed Missouri to eventually tie the game at 27 late in the third quarter and 34 early in the fourth. MacGinnis' 53-yard field goal with 9:40 remaining provided a threepoint edge before Lonnie Johnson blocked Tucker McCann's 45-yard field goal attempt with 6:15 left, setting up MacGinnis' 20-yard kick with 1:48 left that gave the Wildcats a cushion in a game that lasted nearly four hours.