The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
No. 1 Alabama rolls past Auburn as Saban sits out
Once the Iron Bowl kicked off, Nick Saban was just another passionate, heavily invested fan who was powerless to help his team win.
His team still won — big. Mac Jones passed for 302 yards and a career- high five touchdowns, highlighted by two long ones toDeVonta Smith, and No. 1 Alabama rolled ov er rival No. 22 Auburn 42- 13 on Saturday without Saban.
The host Crimson Tide ( 8- 0) continued a dominating march through a schedule of all- SEC games even minus its six- time national champion coach on the sideline.
Saban tested positive for COVID- 19 on Wednesday and watched the game feed from home, witnessing the usual array of big plays with offensive coordinator Steve Sarkisian running the show.
Saban said his staff “did a marvelous job.”
“Sark did a nice job of managing things, and I sat here and felt a little helpless,” he said in a postgame zoom from his home. “I could see things and yell at things and listen to ( wife) Miss Terry yell downstairs. It’s a little different. It still feels good to win.”
The result was much of the same against the Tigers ( 5- 3), who suffered the second- most lopsided loss of Gus Malzahn’s coaching tenure. The only bigger margin was Alabama’s 52- 21 win in the 2018 Iron Bowl.
“They’re a very, very talented team,” Malzahn said. “We knew that. Still we came in here with the mindset that we wanted to win the game.
“To beat a team like that on the road, you’ve got to make plays. We didn’t do that. We didn’t play our best. It’s obvious.”
Alabama started a string of three straight touchdowns with Jones’ 66- yard touchdown to Smith, who was streaking by himself downfield after Auburn defenders bit on a double move. He later added a 58- yard catch and run on a quick slant, sprinting away from the Tigers.
Smith had seven catches for 171 yards. Najee Smith ran for 96 yards, including a 39- yard touchdown, and John Metchie III caught a pair of scoring passes.
Bo Nix passed for 227 yards and ran for a late touchdown for the Tigers, but also threw two interceptions.
Saban, meanwhile, couldn’t talk to his team starting 90 minutes before kickoff though he still led the preparation during the week.
He spoke to the media in his home’s “recruiting room,” filled with Alabama memorabilia, including an elephant head on the wall and a pool table with a crimson playing surface.
“That was really hard, especially the fact that I feel great,” the 69- year- old said.
( At) No. 6 Florida 34, Kentucky 10: Florida’s Kyle- to- Kyle connection returned in a big way after a two- week hiatus and put the sixth- ranked Gators on the verge of the SEC championship game.
Kyle Trask found Kyle Pitts for three touchdowns, including a 56- yarder inwhich the star tight end ran away from a cornerback, and Florida overcame a sluggish start to beat Kentucky ( 3- 6) in the Swamp.
It was Pitts’ first game since suffering a concussion and breaking his nose on a vicious hit against Georgia.
Trask wasted little time reconnecting with his favorite and most talented target.
Trask has 34 touchdownpasses this season, moving him past 2007 Heisman Trophy winner Tim Tebow and into a tie for third on the school’s single- season list. Only Danny Wuerffel ( 39 in 1996, 35 in 1995) is ahead of him. Rex Grossman also threw 34 TD passes in 2001.
Trask did break one of Wuerffel’s records Saturday. He became the first player in school history with at least three TD passes in eight consecutive games, topping Wuerffel’s mark of seven set in 1996.
Trask is on pace to pass Wuerffel for TDs, too, and it could happen in his final two regular- season games. More important for Trask and the Gators ( 7- 1), though, is they can clinch the East Division with a victory at Tennessee next week.
( At) Ole Miss 31, Mississippi State 24: Matt Corral threw for two touchdowns as Ole Miss raced to a 14- 0 first quarter lead and held off a late Mississippi State surge to defeat the Bulldogs in the Egg Bowl rivalry.
Ole Miss ( 4- 4, 4- 4 SEC) snapped a two- game losing streak in the rivalry, erasing last year’s painful one- point loss after Elijah Moore drew an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty in the end zone, pushing back a PAT that failed in the final seconds.
Saturday, Moore responded with 12 receptions for 139 yards, including four catches to convert on third and fourth downs.
Moore entered the game leading the nation in receptions ( 10.6 per game) and yardage ( 159.3). Corral was 24 of 36 passing for 385 yards with touchdowns of 81 yards to Braylon Sanders and 48 yards to Dontario Drummond as Ole Miss built a 21- 7 second- quarter lead and never trailed. Snoop Conner and Jerrion Ealy added touchdown runs of 1 and 8 yards, respectively.
Freshman Will Rogers threw three touchdown passes for Mississippi State ( 2- 6, 2- 6) including 6 and 11 yards to Malik Heath. Rogers finished 45 for 61 passing for 440 yards.
( At) Missouri 41, Vanderbilt 0: Sarah Fuller made history, but her barrier- breaking kicko ff was the only highlight for Vanderbilt as Missouri dominated the Commodores.
Fuller became the first woman to participate in a Power Five conference football game when she kicked off to start the second half. Fuller delivered a low kick that bounced to the 35- yard line, where Missouri pounced on it.
She never got the chance to attempt a PAT or field goal, as the Tigers ( 4- 3) rarely allowed the Commodores ( 0- 8) to cross midfield.
Larry Rountree rushed 21 times for 160 yards and three touchdowns. Connor Bazelak completed 30 of 37 passes for 318 yards.