TOP 25 ROUNDUP
No. 1 Alabama 58, Tennessee 21
Tua Tagovailoa threw touchdown passes to four receivers and No. 1 Alabama started fast again in a 58-21 victory over Tennessee on Saturday in Knoxville. Alabama had touchdowns on its first four possessions while outscoring Tennessee 28-0 and outgaining the Volunteers 217-6 in the opening period. Alabama has outscored opponents 165-31, and Tennessee has been outscored 69-16 in first quarters this season. Tagovailoa went 19 of 29 for 306 yards before leaving midway through the third quarter with Alabama ahead 51-14. He took a big hit on his final play of the day, a 51-yard touchdown pass to Henry Ruggs III. Earlier, Tagovailoa connected on touchdown passes to Jerry Jeudy, Jaylen Waddle and Irv Smith Jr. The Heisman Trophy contender has thrown 25 touchdown passes without an interception this season. Alabama (8-0, 5-0 Southeastern Conference) beat Tennessee (3-4, 1-3) for the 12th straight year and had the highest points total either team has ever recorded in the 101-game history of the series. Alabama is scoring 54.1 points per game. Tennessee quarterback Keller Chryst went 9 of 15 for 164 yards with two touchdown passes after replacing injured starter Jarrett Guarantano in the second quarter.
No. 3 Clemson 41, No. 16 NC St. 7
Trevor Lawrence threw for a career-high 308 yards, Travis Etienne rushed for three touchdowns and Clemson turned an expected Atlantic Coast Conference showdown into a rout. The Tigers (7-0, 4-0) opened with seven straight wins for the third time in four seasons in topping the Wolfpack (5-1, 2-1) for the seventh consecutive season. It was the ACC’s first matchup of undefeated teams this deep in a season since 2013, a game that also took place in Death Valley. But unlike five years ago when the Tigers were pummeled by eventual national champ Florida State 5114, Clemson who took control early and never gave the Wolfpack a chance to rally. North Carolina State quarterback Ryan Finley came in leading the ACC at more than 324 yards passing a game. He managed just 156 yards passing with two interceptions and a fumble.
No. 5 LSU 19, No. 22 Miss. St. 3
Michael Divinity Jr.’s interception set up Nick Brossette’s short touchdown run, Cole Tracy kicked four field goals, and No. 5 LSU beat No. 22 Mississippi State 19-3. Still, the Tiger Stadium crowd left angry after LSU’s top linebacker, Devin White, was ejected for targeting in the fourth quarter, meaning he will not be eligible to play in the first half of the Tigers’ upcoming showdown with unbeaten and top-ranked Alabama. Safety John Battle’s interception prevented Mississippi State from scoring on the drive and virtually sealed the result. But fans continued booing officials until the end, keenly aware of how much the absence of White, even for just a half, could hurt the Tigers (7-1, 4-1 SEC) against Crimson Tide’s dynamic and prolific offense. White’s penalty was the low-point of an otherwise banner performance by the Tigers’ defense, which intercepted Fitzgerald four times. Fitzgerald rushed for 131 yards for Mississippi State (4-3, 1-3), but completed just 8 of 24 passes for 59 yards.
No. 6 Mich. 21, No. 24 Mich. St. 7
Shea Patterson threw two touchdown passes and Michigan snapped a streak of 17 consecutive losses to ranked teams on the road. The game was delayed for 1 hour, 15 minutes in the first quarter because of lightning in the area. The Wolverines (7-1, 5-0 Big Ten) had lost eight of 10 against their in-state rivals and those setbacks have led to them not winning a Big Ten title since 2004. The Spartans (4-3, 2-2) struggled to move the ball, getting held to 94 yards and failing to convert any of its 12 third downs. Patterson’s 79-yard pass to Donovan Peoples-Jones put Michigan ahead late in the third quarter. He converted a fourthand-2 from the Michigan State 41 early in the fourth, setting up Ben Mason’s 5-yard run that gave the Wolverines a 21-7 lead. The Ole Miss transfer was 14 of 25 for 212 yards. Michigan’s Karan Higdon had 144 yards rushing on 33 carries against the nation’s top-ranked rushing defense.
No. 9 Oklahoma 52, TCU 27
Kyler Murray threw four touchdown passes, Kennedy Brooks and Trey Sermon had 100-yard rushing games with scores and Oklahoma rebounded from its only loss this season to beat TCU for the third time in 11 months. The Sooners (6-1, 3-1 Big 12) won their 18th consecutive true road game, never trailing after scoring touchdowns on each of their first four drives in their first game since losing to Texas two weeks ago. Brooks ran for 168 yards on 18 carries with an early 21-yard TD. Sermon ran 17 times for 110 yards and scored twice before walking gingerly off the field after being tended to by trainers with about 8 1/2 minutes left. This was a rematch of the Big 12 Conference championship game last December, when Oklahoma won three weeks after beating TCU (3-4, 1-3) in the regular season.
No. 15 Washington 27, Colo. 13
Jake Browning threw a 26-yard touchdown pass to Aaron Fuller on fourth down with less than four minutes remaining, and Washington held off Colorado. Rather than trying for a long field goal, Browning and the offense stayed on the field. Facing a blitz, Browning found Fuller on a quick slant with nothing but the end zone ahead. Salvon Ahmed and Kamari Pleasant both scored on touchdown runs in the first half for the Huskies (6-2, 4-1 Pac-12). They played without starting running back Myles Gaskin due to a shoulder injury. Washington linebacker Ben Burr-Kirven had 15 tackles and an interception. Steven Montez threw for 144 yards for Colorado (5-2, 2-2). No. 18 Penn State 33, Indiana 28
Trace McSorley passed for 220 yards, ran for 107 and had a hand in three touchdowns in Penn State’s victory over Indiana. Penn State (5-2, 2-2 Big Ten) rallied to snap a two-game losing streak after Indiana (4-4, 1-4) took a 21-20 lead in the third quarter on Steve Scott’s 3-yard touchdown run. Johnathan Thomas took the ensuing kickoff back to the Indiana 5, setting up McSorley for the go-ahead touchdown on the next play.
No. 19 Iowa 23, Maryland 0
Nate Stanley threw for 86 yards and a touchdown for Iowa. Anthony Nelson added a TD on a fumble recovery for the Hawkeyes (6-1, 3-1 Big Ten). They held the Terrapins (4-3, 2-2) to 115 yards and seven first downs on a day when wind gusts topped 40 mph. After settling for a pair of short field goals, Iowa went into halftime ahead 13-0 after Stanley found Brandon Smith for a 10-yard TD grab — which Smith made with one hand — with eight seconds left in the second quarter. Nelson, a defensive end, made it 23-0 late in the third quarter by falling on a botched handoff from backup quarterback Tyrrell Pigrome in the end zone. Ivory Kelly-Martin ran for 98 yards for Iowa.
Temple 24, No. 20 Cinci. 17 (OT)
Anthony Russo threw a tying 20-yard touchdown pass with 49 second left to Brandon Mack, and then a 25-yarder to Isaiah Wright in overtime for Temple. Russo was 20 for 41 for 237 yards and three touchdowns for the Owls (5-3, 4-0 American). He led a seven-play, 75-yard drive in the closing minutes to tie it. Cincinnati (6-1, 2-1) got a first down on its first play of overtime, but an errant snap behind quarterback Desmond Ridder left the Bearcats with second-and-21 and a personal foul pushed them even farther back. Ridder’s pass was intercepted by by Shaun Bradley on third-and-36 to end the game.
No. 23 Wisconsin 49, Illinois 20
Jonathan Taylor rushed for 159 yards and Taiwan Deal ran for 111 yards and two touchdowns and Wisconsin took advantage of Illinois’ five first-half turnovers. Wisconsin (5-2, 3-1 Big Ten) has won nine straight against Illinois (3-4, 1-3). The Badgers had three interceptions and recovered two fumbles on the way to building a 28-10 halftime lead.