No. 2 Miami rallies to beat Virginia for 15th straight win
MIAMI GARDENS, FLA. » Malik Rosier threw three touchdown passes and ran for another score and No. 2 Miami pulled off its biggest comeback in five years, by holding off Virginia 44-28 on Saturday to extend the nation’s longest winning streak to 15 games.
Jaquan Johnson had an interception return for a touchdown for Miami (100, 7-0 Atlantic Coast Conference, No. 3 CFP), which went on a 30-0 run in the second half to remain unbeaten.
The Hurricanes erased a pair of 14-point deficits, and had lost 15 consecutive games in which they trailed at any point by such a margin. But they got a pair of fourth-down stops in Virginia territory in the fourth quarter, and theHurricanes finished their first 7-0 home regular season since 1988.
Travis Homer rushed for 96 yards and a touchdown for Miami, which looks to close out a perfect ACC regular-season slate at Pittsburgh on Friday. The Hurricanes already had a spot in the ACC championship game against Clemson on Dec. 2 secured.
Kurt Benkert completed 28 of 37 passes for 384 yards and four touchdowns for Virginia (6-5, 3-4). NO. 1 ALABAMA 56, MERCER 0» Jalen Hurts passed for 180 yards and three touchdowns in a little more than a quarter and Alabama beat FCS team Mercer.
The Crimson Tide (11-0, 7-0 SEC, No. 1 CFP) raced to a 35-0 halftime lead in what amounted to a tuneup for the team’s biggest game. Now, Alabama heads to No. 6 Auburn with the winner of the Iron Bowl facing No. 7 Georgia in the Southeastern Conference championship game in Atlanta.
The Bears (5- 6, 2-4 Southern Conference) also lost to Auburn 24-10 early in the season, when the Tigers committed five turnovers.
Hurts led Alabama to touchdowns on each of his four possessions, completing all seven of his attempts and running for 30 yards. He hit a wide-open Calvin Ridley for a 66-yard touchdown, giving Ridley 103 yards on three catches before the half.
It was an FBS record 73rd consecutive win against unranked teams. NO. 4 CLEMSON 61, CITADEL 3» Kelly Bryant threw for 230 yards and three touchdowns and was out of the game before halftime for Clemson against the lowerdivision opponent.
After Bryant’s 14-yard touchdown pass to T. J. Chase on the offense’s 26th play, Clemson (10-1, No. 2 College Football Playoff) led 28-0. Bryant completed 17 of 22 passes.
Freshman receiver Tee Higgins caught six passes for 178 yards andtwo touchdowns and fellow freshman Travis Etienne ran eight times for 62 yards and two TDs as Clemson scored on nine of its first 10 possessions. The Tigers finished with 662 yards, their third game over 600 yards this season.
The Citadel (5-6) ran for 155 yards. NO. 5 WISCONSIN 24, NO. 19 MICHIGAN 10 » Alex Hornibrook threw a 24-yard touchdown pass toA.J. Taylor in third quarter to break open a defensive slugfest, and Kendric Pryor scored on an end-around to help Wisconsin remain undefeated.
The Badgers (11-0, 8-0 Big Ten, No. 5 CFP) padded their playoff resume by winning a grinding, physical matchup against the Wolverines (8-3, 5-3, No. 24 CFP).
Hornibrook finished 9 of 19 for 143 yards, but bounced back from an interception early in the third quarter with some of his best throws of the season. He connected with Taylor through a tight window in the end zone for a 14-10 lead with 3:31 left in the third quarter. NO. 6 AUBURN 42, LOUISIANA-MONROE 14 » Darius Slayton caught a 50-yard touchdown pass late in the first half and Auburn pulled away to set up next week’s visit from No. 1 Alabama.
Kam Martin scored two touchdowns, one rushing and one receiving, in the third quarter. Nick Ruffin scored on a 45-yard interception return in the fourth. Despite a sluggish first half, Auburn’s final production was still impressive: 317 yards rushing and 552 total yards.
Auburn (9-2, No. 6 CFP) can earn a spot in the Southeastern Conference championship game by beating Alabama next week. ULM dropped to 4-6. NO. 11 TCU 27, TEXAS TECH 3 » True freshman quarterback Shawn Robinson ran for 84 yards and threw a key second-half touchdown in his first career start to help TCU to stay in contention for a spot in the Big 12 championship game.
Robinson, who won a Texas Class 6A state high school championship last season, filled in for Kenny Hill. The senior didn’t even make the trip to Lubbock because of an unspecified injury.
While Robinsonwas only 6-of-17 passing for 85 yards, his 12-yard TD to Jalen Reagor came late in the third quarter as the Horned Frogs (9-2, 6-2 Big 12, No. 12 CFP) took a 17-3 lead. The Red Raiders (5-6, 2-6) got their only score on their opening drive of the game. NO. 14 UCF 45, TEMPLE 19 » McKenzie Milton threw four touchdown passes and ran for a score and Central Florida stayed unbeaten heading into a showdown with rival USF.
The Knights (10-0, 7-0 American Athletic conference, CFP No. 15) turned three Temple turnovers inside the Owls 25 into 17 first-half points, taking a 3110 lead when Gabriel Davis stretched across the goal line for a 5-yard touchdown reception with 2:36 left in the second quarter.
The AAC East Division will be decided on Black Friday in Orlando, Florida, when No. 23 South Florida (9-1, 6-1) visits UCF. Temple dropped to 5-6 and 3-4. NO. 17 MISSISSIPPI STATE 28, ARKANSAS 21 » Nick Fitzgerald threw a 6-yard touchdown pass to Deddrick Thomas with 17 seconds remaining, and No. 17 Mississippi State survived a lackluster performance and four fumbles.
The Bulldogs (8-3, 4-3 Southeastern Conference) won at least eight games in a season for the fourth time in coach Dan Mullen’s nine years.
The Razorbacks (4-7, 1-6) led by a touchdown in the fourth quarter, but Fitzgerald tied it with 4:07 remaining with a 37-yard touchdown pass to Reggie Todd.
Arkansas coach Bret Bielema then went for it on a fourth-and-2 fromtheRazorbacks 44, and the Bulldogs held. Nine plays later, Thomas scored to give Mississippi State its fifth win in six games against Arkansas. NO. 18MEMPHIS 66, SMU45 » Darrell Henderson rushed for 147 yards, including two long touchdowns, and Riley Ferguson threw for 320 yards and two scores to helpMemphis wrap up the American Athletic Conference West Division championship.
Ferguson scored on three runs as Memphis (9-1, 6-1, No. 21 CFP) won its sixth straight and claimed a spot in the conference’s Dec. 2 championship game. Patrick Taylor had 112 yards rushing, while Anthony Miller had 163 yards receiving. Both scored two touchdowns each.
Xavier Jones rushed for 175 yards and two touchdowns for the Mustangs (6-4, 3-4). TEXAS 28, NO. 24 WEST VIRGINIA 14 » Sam Ehlinger threw two touchdown passes and Texas became bowl eligible under firstyear coach Tom Herman with victory over West Virginia.
The Longhorns (6-5, 5-3 Big 12) qualified for a bowl for the first time since 2014, which was former coach Charlie Strong’s first season.
Texas entered the game with 13 touchdown passes all season, and Ehlinger got two in the second quarter.