Michigan tops Ohio State, eyes CFP berth
Georgia completes back-to-back undefeated regular seasons for first time in school history
COLUMBUS, Ohio, Nov 27, (AP): J.J. McCarthy threw three touchdown passes and ran for a score, Donovan Edwards busted the game open with two long fourth-quarter TD runs and No. 3 Michigan beat No. 2 Ohio State 45-23 on Saturday, taking down the Buckeyes with stunning ease for the second straight season.
Playing almost the whole game without injured star running back Blake Corum, Michigan (12-0, 9-0, No. 3 CFP) was still able to beat Ohio State (11-1, 8-1, No. 2 CFP) in Columbus for the first time since 2000.
The Wolverines advance to face Purdue in Saturday’s Big Ten championship game, with hopes for a second straight playoff appearance firmly in their control. The Buckeyes will have to hope they can back into the CFP after crumbling in their biggest game of the season.
Jim Harbaugh and the Wolverines snapped an eight-game losing streak against their fiercest rivals last year. Now, they have a two-game winning streak in The Game for the first time in 22 years.
McCarthy, the second-year quarterback who won the starting job from incumbent Cade McNamara, played the game of his career when Michigan needed it most. His previous longest pass completion was 42 yards, but against the Buckeyes he threw three touchdown passes of at least 45 yards, the most scoring passes of 45 or more in the history of the rivalry game. He finished 31 of 48 for 349 yards with two interceptions.
Georgia 37, Georgia Tech 14
In Athens, Stetson Bennett threw two touchdown passes and Georgia completed back-to-back undefeated regular seasons for the first time in school history by overcoming a slow start against Georgia Tech.
Georgia (12-0, No. 1 CFP) was down 7-0 early and led Georgia Tech only 10-7 at halftime. Then the Bulldogs overpowered the Yellow Jackets (5-7) with their running game to score 37 unanswered points and notch their fifth consecutive win in the state rivalry.
Kenny McIntosh and Kendall Milton ran for touchdowns. Georgia outrushed Georgia Tech 251-40. Bennett finished 10 of 18 for 140 yards.
TCU 62, Iowa State 14
In Fort Worth, Kendre Miller ran for two touchdowns and TCU completed the first undefeated regular season by a Big 12 team since 2009 with a win over Iowa State that moved the Horned Frogs closer to making the four-team College Football Playoff.
Max Duggan threw TDs to three receivers for the Frogs (12-0, 9-0 Big 12, No. 4 CFP), who will face No. 15 Kansas State in the Big 12 championship game next Saturday in coach Sonny Dykes’ first season. But they will go into that as one of only three undefeated teams remaining.
South California 38, Notre Dame 27
In Los Angeles, Caleb Willams polished his Heisman Trophy credentials with 232 yards passing and four total touchdowns, and Southern California capped its outstanding regular season under coach Lincoln Riley by staying firmly in the College Football Playoff race.
Tahj Washington caught an early TD pass from Williams while USC (11-1, No. 6 CFP) snapped its fourgame losing streak in its famed intersectional rivalry with the Fighting Irish (8-4, No. 15 CFP).
Although USC is headed to Pac-12 title game against Utah in Las Vegas on Friday, the revitalized Trojans first kept their CFP hopes intact with this victory - and even got a boost from LSU’s loss to Texas A&M during this game. USC became the first team to gain 400 yards and to score more than 32 points this season against the Irish while completing its first 11-win regular season since 2008.
Texas A&M 38, LSU 23
In College Station, Devon Achane had a career-best 215 yards rushing with two touchdowns, and Texas A&M stunned LSU, all but certainly knocking the Tigers out of contention for the College Football Playoff.
Conner Weigman threw two TD passes for the Aggies (5-7, 2-6 Southeastern Conference) and Demani Richardson returned a fumble for a score. The game was tied at 17-all in the third quarter before A&M scored 21 straight points.
South Carolina 31, Clemson 30
In Clemson, Spencer Rattler threw for 360 yards and two touchdowns, Mitch Jeter hit the go-ahead field goal with 11 minutes left and South Carolina crushed the playoff hopes of a second straight top-10 team in Clemson.
The Gamecocks (8-4) last week dismantled then-No. 5 Tennessee 63-38, ending the Vols’ hopes of a CFP berth.
Alabama 42, Auburn 27
In Tuscaloosa, Bryce Young passed for 343 yards and three touchdowns and ran for another score in perhaps his final home game for Alabama in its Iron Bowl win over Auburn.
Alabama (10-2, 6-2 Southeastern Conference, No. 7 CFP) reached double digits in wins for a 15th consecutive season despite being unable to fulfill its national title aspirations.
Tennessee 56, Vanderbilt 0
In Nashville, Jaylen Wright ran for 160 yards and two touchdowns on five carries, with Jabari Small running for two more scores as Tennessee ran for six TDs and routed in-state rival Vanderbilt.
The Volunteers (10-2, 6-2 Southeastern Conference ) rebounded from losing two of their last three games to clinch their first 10-win regular season since 2003, and first overall since 2007. The losses had dropped the Vols from first in the inaugural College Football Playoff ranking to 10th.
Oregon State 38, Oregon 34
In Corvallis, Isaiah Newell ran for the go-ahead touchdown with 8:11 remaining, and Oregon State took advantage of critical mistakes in the fourth quarter to beat Oregon to rally for a 38-34 victory on Saturday.
Oregon (9-3, 7-2 Pac-12, No. 9 CFP) missed out on a spot in the Pac-12 championship game when No. 12 Washington beat Washington State later Saturday. No. 14 Utah won a tiebreaker and will face No. 5 Southern California on Friday for the league title.
Penn State 35, Michigan State 16 In State College, Pa, Sean Clifford threw four touchdown passes and Penn State’s defense tightened up late to beat Michigan State in the regularseason finale for both teams.
Tight end Theo Johnson caught two TD passes, Tyler Warren and running back Nick Singleton each caught one, and KeAndre Lambert-Smith threw a touchdown pass and caught another for the Nittany Lions (10-2, 6-2 Big Ten, No. 11 CFP).
Penn State evened the all-time series with the Spartans at 18-18-1, but needed a fourth-quarter push to do so.
Washington 55, Washington State 33
In Pullman, Michael Penix Jr. threw for 485 yards and had five total touchdowns and Washington reclaimed the Apple Cup with a wild victory over Washington State.
A year after the Huskies watched the Cougars celebrate snapping a seven-game losing streak on the turf of Husky Stadium, Washington kept alive its hopes for a New Year’s Six bowl game thanks to its standout quarterback and a handful of defensive stops in the second half.
Utah 63, Colorado 21
In Boulder, Cameron Rising threw three touchdown passes before taking a seat for the second half, Ja’Quinden Jackson ran for three scores and Utah routed Colorado and got a spot in the Pac-12 title game.
The Utes (9-3, 7-2 Pac-12, No. 14 CFP) entered the weekend with an outside shot at defending their league title, and things started to fall into place. UCLA did its part for Utah by knocking off Cal on Friday. Then, the big assist - No. 22 Oregon State storming back to beat 10th-ranked Oregon.
Kansas State 47, Kansas 27
In Manhattan, Will Howard threw for 213 yards and two touchdowns, Deuce Vaughn ran for 147 yards and a score, and Kansas State beat Kansas to earn a shot at payback against TCU in the Big 12 championship game.
Malik Knowles added a pair of touchdown runs, and Philip Brooks and Sammy Wheeler also reached the end zone, as the Wildcats (9-3, 7-2, No. 12 CFP) beat their biggest rival for the 14th straight time in a game they needed to win.
James Madison 47, Coastal Carolina 7
In Harrisonburg, Todd Centeio threw for four touchdowns and ran for one score as James Madison romped against Coastal Carolina in what the Dukes viewed as their postseason game.
JMU (8-3, 6-2 Sun Belt) earned a technical share of the league’s East Division title with the same conference record as the Chanticleers, but the Dukes are not eligible for a title under terms of their transition to the Bowl Subdivision.
UCF 46, South Florida 39
In Tampa, Alec Holler made a leaping, one-handed catch for a touchdown on a 14-yard pass from Mikey Keene with 20 seconds remaining to lead UCF past South Florida for a spot in the American Athletic Conference championship game.
Keene completed a 41-yard pass to Javon Baker for a first down at the South Florida 29. Keene added a 10yard run on a keeper to get the ball to the Bulls’ 15 and set up Holler’s leaping, twisting game-winning grab for UCF (9-3, 6-2 AAC).