Lawrence, Etienne power Clemson past Syracuse

CLEMSON, S.C. — Trevor Lawrence threw two touchdown passes, Travis Etienne ran for three scores and No. 1 Clemson shook off a sluggish performance to win its 27th straight Atlantic Coast Conference game and put away pesky Syracuse 47-21 on Saturday.

The Tigers opened 6-0 for the sixth straight season, but it took a late burst to get it done — just like usual against Syracuse (1-5, 1-4). The Orange were the last ACC team to beat the Tigers (5-0 ACC) with a 27-24 victory in 2017. A year later at Death Valley, Syracuse again looked primed for the upset as it held a 10-point lead in the fourth quarter before Clemson’s 27-23 escape to keep its national championship season intact.

Syracuse kept the Tigers out of synch much of the game and was down just 27-21 late in the third quarter. But Andrew Booth Jr.‘s fumble recovery and touchdown run after Rex Culpepper was sacked late in the third quarter turned the game in Clemson’s favor for good.

NO. 2 ALABAMA 48, TENNESSEE 17

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — Mac Jones threw for 387 yards and ran for a touchdown, and Najee Harris ran for three more TDs as Alabama routed Tennessee for the 14th straight win in this rivalry.

The Crimson Tide (5-0) outgained Tennessee 587302. But playing the Vols proved costly for Alabama a second straight season. A year ago, Tua Tagovailoa hurt an ankle in the second quarter and missed the next game against Arkansas.

On Saturday, wide receiver Jaylen Waddle rolled his right ankle as he was tackled on the opening kickoff. He was taken by cart to the locker room, and coach Nick Saban said at halftime that Waddle will be out the rest of the year and that the junior likely will need surgery.

NO. 3 NOTRE DAME 45, PITTSBURGH 3

PITTSBURGH — Ian Book passed for 312 yards and three touchdowns — two of them long catch-andruns to graduate transfer Ben Skowronek — and Notre Dame overwhelmed reeling Pittsburgh.

A week after scuffling its way past Louisville, Notre Dame (5-0, 4-0 Atlantic Coast Conference) had no such issues while handling the Panthers (3-4, 2-4) their fourth consecutive loss. Book hit Skowronek for a 34-yard score on Fighting Irish’s first possession and Pitt — playing without injured senior quarterback Kenny Pickett for a second straight week — simply could not keep up.

NO. 5 OHIO STATE 51, NEBRASKA 17

COLUMBUS, Ohio — Justin Fields completed 20 of 21 passes for two touchdowns and ran for another score, Master Teague III rushed for a pair of scores and Ohio State rolled over Nebraska in the Big Ten teams’ pandemic-delayed opener.

Fields completed his first 12 passes and threw for 276 yards. He ran for another 52 yards — including a stunning 17-yard third-quarter touchdown scramble around the left side that saw him spin past a defender into the end zone.

NO. 6 OKL. STATE 24, NO. 17 IOWA STATE 21

STILLWATER, Okla. — Spencer Sanders passed for 235 yards and ran for 71 and a touchdown in his return from injury, and Oklahoma State defeated Iowa State.

INDIANA 36,

NO. 8 PENN STATE 35 (OT)

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. — Michael Penix forced overtime with a 2-point conversion run with 22 seconds left, then scored on a diving 2-point conversion to give Indiana a season-opening upset victory over Penn State — ending the Big Ten’s longest streak of consecutive losses to Top 10 teams at 42.

The winning play went to a replay review before the officials announced the initial call stood.

Indiana beat the Nittany Lions for the second time in 24 matchups, and beat a Top 10 foe for the first time since a 31-10 victory at Ohio State on Oct. 10, 1987.

NO. 14 UNC 48, NO. 23 NC STATE 21

CHAPEL HILL, N.C. — Javonte Williams ran for 160 yards and three touchdowns to help North Carolina beat North Carolina State in the renewal of the longtime state rivalry.

WAKE FOREST 23, NO. 19 VA. TECH 16

WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. — Walk-on freshman safety Nick Anderson had three interceptions, Christian Beal-Smith ran for 129 yards and Nick Sciba kicked three field goals to help Wake Forest beat Virginia Tech.

NO. 20 KANSAS ST. 55, KANSAS 14

MANHATTAN, Kan. — Phillip Brooks returned a pair of punts for touchdowns, Kansas State took advantage of an embarrassing day of special teams by its biggest rival, and the Wildcats rolled past Kansas.

The Jayhawks were playing their first game since coach Les Miles returned from a positive COVID-19 test.

NO. 22 MARSHALL 20, FLORIDA ATLANTIC 9

HUNTINGTON, W.Va. — Brenden Knox rushed for 101 yards and caught one of redshirt freshman Grant Wells’ two touchdown passes to lead Marshall over pandemic-depleted Florida Atlantic.

NO. 25 COASTAL CAROLINA 28, GEORGIA SOUTHERN 14

CONWAY, S.C. — Backup quarterback Fred Payton three three touchdown passes and Coastal Carolina won its first game as a ranked team with a victory over Georgia Southern.