No. 1 Tide rolls behind Tagovailoa, defense
Tua Tagovailoa threw two touchdown passes and ran 44 yards for a score in his toughest test this season, Alabama’s defense stifled No. 4 LSU, and the topranked Crimson Tide remained unbeaten with a 29-0 victory Saturday night in Baton Rouge.
Tagovailoa took the field wearing a brace on right knee, threw his first interception of the season late in the first half and also played into the fourth quarter for the first time this season. None of those developments proved consequential. He was 25-of-42 passing for 295 yards and moved as well as well as he needed to, particularly when he sprinted up the middle of the field or his long TD run in the third quarter to give Alabama (9-0, 6-0 SEC, No. 1 CFP) a 22-0 lead.
Tagovailoa limped off the field after that play, went into the medical tent for some treatment and rode a stationary bike on the sideline, but returned for the next series.
LSU (7-2, 4-2, No. 3 CFP) entered a chance to control of the SEC Western Division with a victory, but that began to decreasingly realistic with every possession.
Alabama led 16-0 by halftime and forced LSU punts on the Tigers’ first nine possessions. LSU drove to the Alabama 15 on its 10th series early in the fourth quarter, only to miss a field goal with 10:45 to go.
Tigers quarterback Joe Burrow completed 18 of 35 passes for 184 yards. He was sacked five times and had a pass intercepted in the end zone late in the back by linebacker Mack Wilson.
Alabama finished with a 576-196 advantage in total yards and spent 35:18 in possession of the ball.
Damien Harris rushed for 107 yards on 19 carries, including his 1-yard TD run, for Alabama. Najee Harris gained 83 yards on the ground, 29 on one carry.
The best defense Alabama has faced this season wasn’t good enough on its own field to stop the Tide from gashing it for numerous plays of 20-plus yards. CLEMSON PILES IT ON LOUISVILLE >> Travis Etienne ran for 153 yards and two touchdowns, and 350-pound defensive tackle Dexter Lawrence added a 2-yard scoring burst in No. 2 Clemson’s 77-16 victory over Louisville at home. The Tigers (6-0 Atlantic Coast Conference, No. 2 CFP) improved to 9-0 for the third time in four seasons and can wrap up their fourth ACC Atlantic Division title next week at Boston College.
Coach Dabo Swinney’s eldest son Will caught a TD pass.
NO. 3 NOTRE DAME 31, NORTHWESTERN 21 >> Ian Book threw for threw two touchdown Alabama quarterback Tua Tagovailoa carried the top-ranked Crimson Tide past LSU. West Virginia quarterback Will Grier runs in the winning two-point conversion with 16 seconds left to beat Texas.
passes and ran 23 yards for a score in the closing minutes to lead the Fighting Irish over the Wildcats. The Fighting Irish (9-0, No. 4 CFP) remained in line for a playoff spot and continued to build on their best start since the 2012 team went undefeated before losing to Alabama in the BCS championship game. The Wildcats (5-4) had won four in a row.
NO. 5 MICHIGAN 42, NO. 14 PENN STATE 7 >> Shea Patterson accounted for three touchdowns, and the host Wolverines put together a dominant performance on defense against the Nittany Lions (6-3, 3-3, No. 14 CFP). The Wolverines (8-1, 6-0 Big Ten, No. 5 CFP) moved a step closer toward their goals of winning a conference championship for the first time since 2004 and earning their first spot in the College Football Playoff.
Karan Higdon ran for 132 yards and a score that put the Wolverines up 35-0 early in the fourth quarter. NO. 6 GEORGIA 34, NO. 11 KENTUCKY 17 >> D’Andre Swift ran for a career-high 156 yards and two touchdowns on 16 carries against Kentucky’s (7-2, 5-2, No. 9 CFP) vaunted defense, and Georgia wrapped up its second straight Southeastern Conference Eastern Division title. Swift had an 83yard breakaway in the third quarter that gave Georgia (8-1, 6-1, No. 6 College Football
Playoff) a 28-3 lead. He also had a nifty 20-yard scoring run in the second period when the game was close. Elijah Holyfield ran for a career-high 115 yards on 18 carries, scoring on a 4-yarder in the third quarter.
NO. 7 OKLAHOMA 51, TEXAS TECH 46 >> Kyler Murray recovered from a pair of early interceptions that led to a two-touchdown deficit, throwing for 360 yards and three touchdowns and running for 100 yards and another score to rally the Sooners (8-1, 5-1 Big 12). Trey Sermon set career highs with 206 yards rushing and three TDs as the Sooners stayed in the hunt for a return to the College Football Playoff with their 19th straight win in a true road game and 14th consecutive November victory.
The Red Raiders (5-4, 3-3) led 31-28 at halftime, but freshman quarterback Alan Bowman didn’t return in the second half of their eighth straight loss against a Top 10 team going back to 2012. Texas Tech officials didn’t immediately say why Bowman left the game. NO. 12 WEST VIRGINIA 42, NO. 15 TEXAS 41 >> Will Grier threw a 33-yard touchdown pass to Gary Jennings with 16 seconds left, and then ran in the 2-point conversion to lift West Virginia (7-1, 5-1 Big 12, No. 13 CFP) past Texas in Austin. Quarterback Sam Ehlinger
passed for 356 yards and three scores and also ran for a touchdown for Texas (6-3, 4-2, No. 17 CFP), which has lost two in a row. MISSOURI 38, NO. 13 FLORIDA 17 >> Drew Lock picked apart the Gators (6-3, 4-3 SEC) for the second straight year, throwing three touchdown passes to lead the Tigers (5-4, 1-4) on the road. Lock completed 24 of 32 passes for 250 yards, with scoring throws to Albert Okwuegbunam, Kam Scott and Emanuel Hall that stunned the Swamp.
ARIZONA STATE 38, NO. 16 UTAH 20 >> Manny Wilkins threw three touchdown passes to N’Keal Harry, and the host Sun Devils (5-4, 3-3 Pac-12) stunned the Utes, knocking them out of sole possession of first place in Pac-12 South. The Utes (63, 4-3) lost quarterback Tyler Huntley to a broken collarbone in the third quarter. The loss snapped Utah’s four-game winning streak.
ASU’s Eno Benjamin rushed for 175 yards, including a 44-yard TD run that sealed the victory with 4:12 to play. Arizona State gained 536 yards against a Utah defense that had been ranked No. 1 in the Pac-12. DUCKS SPOIL KELLY’S RETURN TO OREGON >> Justin Herbert threw for 264 yards and two touchdowns, and Oregon (6-3, 3-2 Pac-12) defeated UCLA 42-21 in Bruins coach Chip Kelly’s first game at Eugene’s Autzen Stadium since he left the Ducks following the 2012 season. With the loss, UCLA (2-7, 2-4) was guaranteed to finish below .500 in Kelly’s first season with the Bruins. UC DAVIS STILL PERFECT IN BIG SKY >> Tehran Thomas and Keelan Doss scored two touchdowns apiece, and host UC Davis (8-1, 6-0 Big Sky Conference) raced past Northern Arizona 42-20. Jake Maier finished 21-of-33 passing for 262 yards with Doss turning eight catches into 103 yards. Thomas had 94 yards on the ground and 56 receiving as the Aggies piled up 477 yards on offense.