Malzahn proud of Tigers for stepping up vs. Aggies
COLLEGE STATION, Texas — When Auburn football coach Gus Malzahn has had championship teams in the past, he has seen his players take things up a notch this time of year.
In a 42-27 win Saturday at Texas A&M, he saw that quality in his No. 16 Tigers, and it left him feeling encouraged with a huge test looming next week against undefeated No. 2 Georgia, the top team in the College Football Playoff rankings.
Jarrett Stidham threw for 268 yards and three touchdowns as Auburn (7-2, 5-1 Southeastern Conference) pulled away in the second half against the Aggies (5-4, 3-3), and Kerryon Johnson added 145 yards and a touchdown on the ground. Johnson also provided a highlight with a nifty one-handed catch for an 11-yard gain on third down in the fourth to keep a drive going.
“He’s a special player,” Malzahn said, “and the special players, they feel it when the game’s on the line.”
Eli Stove capped that drive with a 4-yard touchdown run that pushed the lead to 42-20 and put the game out of reach. That series had followed Auburn’s defense stopping the Aggies on fourth down at the 4.
“We talked about a championship urgency,” Malzahn said. “This time of year, the championship teams we’ve had have found ways to raise their level. And the defense did that in that area — in that spot right there — and the offense followed it up … That makes you feel real good.”
Auburn, 14th in the CFP rankings, led by eight at halftime and made it 28-13 when Stidham connected with Ryan Davis on a 4-yard touchdown early in the third quarter. Darius Slayton beat the Texas A&M defense soon after that, and Stidham found him for a 46-yard catch to set up a 2-yard touchdown run by Johnson to extend the lead to 35-13.
Aggies coach Kevin Sumlin benched freshman quarterback Kellen Mond in the second quarter after he went 5-for-11 for 16 yards. Nick Starkel, who began the season as the starter before breaking his ankle in the opener, took over and threw for 184 yards and two scores.
“It was time to give somebody else a chance,” Sumlin said, “and I think Nick took advantage of that today.”
› No. 21 Mississippi State 34, Massachusetts 23
STARKVILLE, Miss. — Quarterback Nick Fitzgerald ran for 135 yards and two touchdowns as the Bulldogs, 31-point favorites entering the game, overcame a 20-13 halftime deficit to win.
They scored two quick touchdowns in the third quarter to go ahead 27-20. UMass pulled within 27-23 on a short field goal in the fourth quarter, but the Minutemen (2-7) couldn’t move the ball in the final minutes.
Aeris Williams added 114 yards on 24 carries for Mississippi State (7-2), and Deddrick Thomas returned a late punt 83 yards for a touchdown to put the game away.
The Minutemen, who lost 17-13 to Tennessee in September, provided tough competition for an SEC opponent for the second time this year. Andy Isabella had a huge game against the Bulldogs, catching seven passes for 158 yards and a touchdown. › Missouri 45, Florida 16
COLUMBIA, Mo. — Missouri’s surge in the season’s second half continued. So did Florida’s slide.
The Tigers (4-5, 1-4) earned their third straight win. Florida (3-5, 3-4) — which fired coach Jim McElwain this past Sunday and made Randy Shannon its interim coach — has lost four straight and has been outscored 87-23 in its past two games.
Missouri took control with a 14-play, 98-yard touchdown drive that spanned the first and second quarters. The key play was a 36-yard pass from Drew Lock to Emanuel Hall on first-and-25. Larry Rountree III capped the drive with a 2-yard touchdown run, and the Tigers were up 14-0 after the extra point.
Rountree finished with 83 yards on 15 carries, including three touchdowns, and Ish Witter added 83 yards on 17 rushes as the Tigers finished with 227 yards on the ground. Lock completed 15 of 20 passes for 228 yards with three touchdowns and an interception, and Hall had five catches for 113 yards.
In his first start at quarterback for the Gators, graduate transfer Malik Zaire completed 13 of 19 passes for 158 yards with one interception. Florida settled for three Eddie Pineiro field goals until backup quarterback Feleipe Franks connected with Lamical Perine on a 16-yard touchdown pass in the fourth quarter.
› Ole Miss 37, Kentucky 34
LEXINGTON, Ky. — Jordan Ta’amu threw a 7-yard touchdown pass to D.K. Metcalf with five seconds remaining as the Rebels (4-5, 2-4) won a wild game against the Wildcats (6-3, 3-3).
Moments after officials determined Ta’amu was down before fumbling the ball away to Kentucky, Metcalf pulled down the quarterback’s throw in the left corner of the end zone and kept his feet inbounds to spark a huge celebration for the Rebels.
Ta’amu threw for career highs of 382 yards and four touchdowns, including two to Metcalf, who had 83 yards on five catches.
Ole Miss, which outgained Kentucky 473-455, bounced back from a 38-37 loss to Arkansas and maintained its hopes of becoming bowl eligible.
Benny Snell’s 1-yard go-ahead score for Kentucky with 2:14 remaining came after a sluggish second half by the Wildcats. Snell rushed for 176 yards and three touchdowns on 28 carries.
› Vanderbilt 31, Western Kentucky 17
NASHVILLE — Kyle Shurmur hit Trent Sherfield on a 4-yard touchdown pass on Vanderbilt’s opening drive, and the Commodores (4-5) never trailed in the final nonconference game of the season for both teams.
Shurmur passed for two touchdowns and the Commodores rushed for two more, including Sherfield’s 45-yard run with 48 seconds left in the third quarter. Ralph Webb added 104 yards and one touchdown on 23 carries, moving into 11th place all-time in the SEC in career rushing with 3,885 yards.
Western Kentucky (5-4) was without injured tight end Deon Yelder, the team’s leading receiver.
› Arkansas 39, Coastal Carolina 38
FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — Cole Kelley scored on a 1-yard touchdown run with 1:55 remaining to help Arkansas rally for a second straight week, this time over a program in its first year of Football Bowl Subdivision competition.
The Razorbacks (4-5) trailed 38-25 early in the fourth quarter but were boosted by an 88-yard touchdown run by T.J. Hammonds and Kelley’s final scoring run. Hammonds accounted for 179 yards in the comeback win over the Chanticleers (1-8), scoring on the long run and a 60-yard pass in the first half.
Arkansas beat Ole Miss 38-37 the previous weekend and now has back-to-back victories for the first time this season.
Backup quarterback Kilton Anderson entered the game for injured starter Tyler Keane in the first half for Coastal Carolina and accounted for 152 total yards in the loss. Coastal Carolina entered the game with an interim coach (Jamey Chadwell) and a seven-game losing streak.