COLLEGE FOOTBALL / TOP 25 ROUNDUP
Joe Burrow passed for 200 yards and had two short touchdown runs, LSU’s defense staggered Georgia’s normally prolific offense, and the 13th-ranked Tigers beat the No. 2 Bulldogs 36-16 on Saturday to give coach Ed Orgeron a signature victory. Five fourth-down decisions by Orgeron influenced the result. LSU converted all four times it ran an offensive play on fourth down, sustaining three drives that produced a total of 13 points. In another instance, Orgeron called timeout and elected to punt on fourth-and-2 after the offense initially remained on the field. That decision pinned Georgia at its 4, and Kristian Fulton’s interception of Jake Fromm’s pass shortly afterward set up another of Cole Tracy’s five field goals. Clyde Edwards-Helaire rushed for 133 yards for LSU (6-1, 3-1 Southeastern Conference), and Justin Jefferson caught six passes for 108 yards, including a 41-yard snag of a pass rifled over the middle and between converging defenders. That catch set up Burrow’s second TD in the fourth quarter. Nick Brossette added a short touchdown in the final minutes after Burrow’s 59-yard scamper. Fans rushed the field, ignoring pleas not to do so from the public address announcer, as the game ended. Fromm had by far his worst game of the season for Georgia (6-1, 4-1), completing 16 of 34 passes for 209 yards, one touchdown and two interceptions.
Tua Tagovailoa passed for 265 yards and three touchdowns before leaving with an injury in No. 1 Alabama’s victory over Missouri. The Crimson Tide (7-0, 4-0 SEC) shrugged off another would-be challenger in the league, but got a scare when the star quarterback went down after sliding at the end of a run in the third quarter. Playing with a sprained right knee, Tagovailoa went to the medical tent on the sideline. He was joined by his parents, and Jalen Hurts led the Tide the rest of the way with a big lead over the Tigers (3-3, 0-3). Jerry Jeudy gained 147 yards on three catches, including an 81-yard touchdown from Tagovailoa on the game’s second play. DeVonta Smith had four catches for 100 yards and a touchdown before leaving with an apparent leg injury injury after a 57-yard gain in the second quarter. Tagovailoa was 12-of-22 passing. Hurts was 7 of 8 for 115 yards.
C.J. Verdell scored on a 6-yard run in overtime and Oregon knocked off Washington. Verdell finished with 111 yards but none were sweeter for the Ducks than the final 6, when he sprinted nearly untouched on third-andgoal and set off a wild celebration. The Ducks (5-1, 2-1 Pac-12) were fortunate to reach overtime after Washington kicker Peyton Henry missed a 37-yard field-goal attempt on the final play of regulation. Henry’s kick was wide right. Washington (5-2, 3-1) took possession first in overtime but had to settle for Henry’s 22-yard kick after stalling inside the 10. The Huskies had a chance to force a long field goal as Oregon faced third-and-11 after a holding call. But Justin Herbert threw a strike to Dillon Mitchell for 17 yards and the Ducks had first-and-goal. Three plays later, Verdell sprinted into the end zone. Herbert didn’t have his best day, playing in front of a large gathering of NFL executives that included Denver Broncos GM John Elway. He was 18 of 32 for 202 yards and two touchdowns.
Ian Book threw a 35-yard touchdown pass to Miles Boykin with 5:43 remaining and Notre Dame remained unbeaten. The Fighting Irish are 7-0 for the first time since 2012, the year they went to the BCS title game. Pitt (3-4) led 14-12 thanks to a long first-quarter touchdown drive and Maurice Ffrench’s 99-yard kickoff return to start the second half. Pat Narduzzi’s Panthers were looking to upset an Associated Press top-five team for the third straight season after knocking off No. 3 Clemson in Death Valley during the 2016 season and No. 2 Miami last November in Pittsburgh. But the Irish, who were held to 80 yards rushing, prevailed behind Book, who is 4-0 as a starter since replacing Brandon Wimbush. Book threw two interceptions, and had 264 yards passing. Kenny Pickett was 19 for 28 for 126 yards, and was sacked by Khalid Kareem — Notre Dame’s only sack of the game — for a loss of 14 yards on Pitt’s final possession to set up a fourth-and-long the Panthers could not convert.
Brian Lewerke threw a 25-yard touchdown pass to Felton Davis with 19 seconds left to lift Michigan State past Penn State, making it two consecutive seasons that the Spartans used a late score to hand the Nittany Lions a second straight loss. Lewerke completed 25 of 52 passes for 259 yards with an interception and two touchdowns for the Spartans (4-2, 2-1 Big Ten). They were coming off a loss at Northwestern. Davis, who came back from an injury he sustained on the previous drive, finished with eight catches for 100 yards. Miles Sanders ran for 162 yards and a touchdown for the Nittany Lions (4-2, 1-2). Trace McSorley completed 19 of 32 passes for 192 yards with a touchdown to become the program’s career passing yardage leader.
Dwayne Haskins threw for 412 yards and three touchdowns and Ohio State held off persistent Minnesota. The Buckeyes (7-0, 4-0 Big Ten) needed Blake Haubiel’s two second-half field goals and Haskins’ late touchdown pass from K.J. Hill to put away the Gophers (3-3, 0-3). Hill made the play of the game with a turnaround, one-hand grab that he turned into a touchdown in the second quarter. He had a career-high nine catches for 187 yards. For the second straight week, a heavy underdog came into Ohio Stadium and shut down the Buckeyes’ running game. The Gophers held tailbacks J.K. Dobbins and Mike Weber to a total of 86 yards, without a single carry longer than 11. Minnesota’s Mohamed Ibrahim ran 23 times for 157 yards and two scores.
Shane Buechele came on for injured quarterback Sam Ehlinger early in the first quarter and Texas beat Baylor when the Bears’ final pass sailed through the back of the end zone. Charlie Brewer drove the Bears from their own 3 to the Texas 17 before he had to rush his final three throws under intense pressure. The victory made Texas (6-1, 4-0 Big 12) bowl eligible. Freshman running back Keaontay Ingram ran for 110 yards, Texas’ first 100-yard rushing effort of the season. Defensive end Charles Omenihu had two sacks and was chasing Brewer on the last three plays. Brewer passed for 245 yards and a touchdown for the Bears (4-3, 2-2).
Jordan Scarlett ran 48 yards for the go-ahead touchdown on the first play of the fourth quarter, and Florida rallied from an 18-point deficit to beat Vanderbilt in a game marred by a near brawl, with both head coaches yelling as each team spilled onto the field. An official held back Florida coach Dan Mullen as he yelled at Vanderbilt coach Derek Mason, who was near the Gators’ sideline after checking on the Commodores defender whose helmet was knocked off by a hit by linebacker James Houston IV. Both teams spilled onto the field, drawing unsportsmanlike conduct penalties. The penalty cost the Gators their leading tackler, with Vosean Joseph ejected for his second such penalty of the first half. Two people escorted an emotional Joseph off the field. Mullen and Mason hugged each other at midfield after the game. That overshadowed the Gators (6-1, 4-1 SEC) scoring 24 straight points after Vanderbilt jumped out to a 21-3 lead midway through the second quarter. The Gators beat Vanderbilt (3-4, 0-3) for the fifth straight year and 27th time in 28 games in this series.
Jarrett Guarantano passed for 328 yards and two touchdowns and Tennessee snapped an 11-game SEC losing streak. The Volunteers (3-3, 1-2) forced three turnovers from Auburn’s lackluster offense, intercepting two of Jarrett Stidham’s passes and getting a strip sack that resulted in touchdown by Alontae Taylor. The Tigers (4-3, 1-3) are off to their worst SEC start since also going 1-3 in 2015.
Kellen Mond threw for 353 yards and freshman Seth Small had four field goals, including the go-ahead kick in the fourth quarter, for Texas A&M. The Aggies (5-2, 3-1 SEC) moved to 5-0 against the Gamecocks (3-3, 2-3) since joining the league in 2012. Mond also had a 4-yard touchdown pass to Jace Sternberger in the second quarter and, when Small hit a 32-yard field goal on the Aggies’ first drive of the second half to go up 16-0, it looked like more than enough to put away the Gamecocks. But Jake Bentley, returning from a knee injury, led a pair of third-quarter TD drives — and the two-point conversions both times.