Kentucky avoids Missouri upset with ‘walk-off’ TD catch
Terry Wilson threw a 2-yard touchdown pass to C.J. Conrad on the final play to give No. 12 Kentucky a 15-14 victory over host Missouri on Saturday.
Kentucky took over on its own 19 with 1:24 left. With 4 seconds left, Wilson threw toward Ahmad Wagner in the back left corner of the end zone. Wagner caught the ball out of bounds, but Missouri cornerback DeMarkus Acy was called for pass interference, giving Kentucky an untimed down that it turned into the winning score.
Lynn Bowden Jr. returned a punt 67 yards for a touchdown with 5:18 left to pull the Wildcats (7-1, 5-1 Southeastern Conference) to 14-9.
Kentucky held Missouri (4-4, 1-4) without a first down on eight second-half possessions.
Wilson, who was replaced by backup Gunnar Hoak for part of the second half, completed 22 of 31 passes for 267 yards. Bowden had 13 catches for 166 yards. Benny Snell, who entered the game as the nation’s fourth-leading rusher, gained just 67 yards on 19 carries.
Missouri opened a 14-3 halftime lead with two 10-play touchdown drives. Damarea Crockett scored on a 2-yard run early in the second quarter, and Larry Rountree added a 1-yard TD run just before halftime.
Kentucky appeared to have squandered its last chance to get back in the game when A.J. Rose was stuffed on a fourth-andgoal run from the 2-yard line with 7:31 left. It was the third failed fourthdown conversion of the game for the Wildcats. But a few minutes later, Bowden returned the punt for a touchdown and the comeback was on.
A No. 8 Oklahoma 51, Kansas State 14: Kyler Murray passed for 352 yards and three touchdowns and ran for another score to help the host Sooners beat the Wildcats.
The Sooners (7-1, 4-1
Big 12) rolled up a seasonhigh 702 total yards and only punted once, and that was in the fourth quarter after Murray was done for the day.
CeeDee Lamb caught four passes for a careerhigh 160 yards and two touchdowns, and Kennedy Brooks ran for 94 yards and two scores. The Sooners won their second straight since losing to Texas.
Oklahoma held Kansas State (3-4, 1-4) to 245 yards. Alex Barnes, who entered the game as the Big 12’s leading rusher, was limited to 28 yards on 13 carries.
The Sooners gained 209 yards in the first quarter and took a 17-0 lead. Murray threw two touchdown passes in the period, in- cluding an 82-yard connection with Lamb.
Murray ran for a 9-yard touchdown in the second quarter to push the lead to 31-7, and the Sooners were ahead 34-7 at the break. Murray completed 17 of 22 passes for 289 yards and two touchdowns and ran for 37 yards and another score in the first half.
A No. 17 Penn State 30, No. 18 Iowa 24: Nick Scott intercepted a pass to thwart Iowa at the Penn State 2 with 3:18 left and the host Nittany Lions held on to avoid a third straight home loss with a close victory over the awkeyes.
Penn State (6-2, 3-2 Big Ten) needed one last defensive stand to hold off Iowa (6-2, 3-2), which got to the Nittany Lions 44 with less than a minute left.
On fourth-and-10 with 7 seconds left, Penn State’s pass rush swarmed Nate Stanley, who flipped backward to offensive tackle Tristan Wirfs. The 300pounder rumbled 15 yards before being dragged down with no time left.
It was a fitting end to an odd game with little sustained offense. Iowa scored on two safeties and a touchdown pass by punter Colten Rastetter to defensive tackle Sam Brincks on a faked field goal in the first half. Penn State played three series in the second quarter without starting quarterback Trace McSorley.
McSorley was sandwiched by two Hawkeyes defenders as he tried to scramble and stayed down, grabbing his right leg. The Beaver Stadium crowd fell silent as athletic trainers attended to the senior. He got up with assistance and had help to take a few steps before walking off on his own with a limp. The 6foot, 202-pound McSorley has started 35 straight games for Penn State since the start of the 2016 season.
A Northwestern 31, No. 20 Wisconsin 17: Clayton Thorson ran for two touchdowns and threw for one, and the host Wildcats beat the Badgers.
The first-place Wildcats (5-3, 5-1) solidified themselves as contenders for the Big Ten West championship while gaining some revenge for a loss at Camp Randall Stadium early last season that helped prevent them from winning the division.
They increased their lead over the Badgers (5-3, 3-2) and Purdue — a 23-13 loser at Michigan State — to 1 1⁄
2 games. Iowa, which began the day tied with the Boilermakers and Wisconsin, visited No. 17 Penn State.
Northwestern turned two fumbles by star running back Jonathan Taylor and another by quarterback
Jack Coan into 17 points on the way to its fourth straight victory.
Taylor, the nation’s leading rusher, ran for just 46 yards on 11 carries after finishing with 100 or more in eight straight games.