San Antonio Express-News (Sunday)
Sooners escape
» Oklahome beats Nebraska in a surprisigly close game.
NORMAN, Okla. — Spencer Rattler passed for a touchdown and ran for another, and No. 3 Oklahoma held on to beat Nebraska 23-16 on Saturday.
Celebrating the 50-year anniversary of the “Game of the Century” — No. 1 Nebraska’s 35-31 win over No. 2 Oklahoma in 1971 — the teams rewarded their nostalgic fans with a competitive contest.
In the first meeting between the former conference rivals since 2010, Nebraska got the ball trailing by a touchdown with 57 seconds remaining and no timeouts. The Cornhuskers could not manage a first down.
Eric Gray ran for 84 yards on 15 carries and Kennedy Brooks added 75 yards on 14 attempts for the Sooners (3-0).
Adrian Martinez passed for 289 yards and a touchdown for Nebraska (2-2), which was seeking its first win over a ranked team since 2015.
NO. 5 IOWA 30 KENT STATE 7
Tyler Goodson ran for a career-high 153 yards and three touchdowns as the Hawkeyes (3-0) won their ninth straight. They have won 14th consecutive nonconference games, the second-longest current streak in the nation.
NO. 8 CINCINNATI 38 INDIANA 24
In Bloomington, Ind., Desmond Ridder threw the go-ahead touchdown pass early in the fourth quarter, then scored on a 7-yard TD run. Jerome Ford ran for two scores and Tre Tucker scored on a 99-yard kickoff return as the Bearcats (3-0) won their first road game of the season. They’ve won 12 of 13 since the start of 2020.
Indiana (1-2) lost despite taking a 14-0 lead — and playing in front of its largest crowd for a non-conference game since September 1987.
The turning point came when starting linebacker Micah McFadden was ejected for targeting late in the first half. The Bearcats, who struggled to move the ball, scored 10 points in the final 93 seconds of the first half and finally took the lead on Ford’s 3-yard TD run in the third quarter.
The Hoosiers regained the lead on D.J. Matthews Jr.’s 14-yard scoring run then gave it right back on the kickoff return. A missed extra point opened the door for Indiana, and the Hoosiers grabbed a 24-23 advantage on
Charles Campbell’s 49yard field goal late in the third.
Then Ridder got hot. He made it 30-24 with the scoring throw to Pierce before the scoring run and a successful 2-point conversion pass.
NO. 12 NOTRE DAME 27 PURDUE 13
Kyren Williams scored two long touchdowns, the second a 51-yard run with 6:05 remaining, as the Fighting Irish won their 26th straight home victory.
The victory was the 105th in Brian Kelly’s 12year career at Notre Dame, tying him with Knute Rockne as the winningest coach in school history. The Fighting Irish (3-0) won their eighth straight over Purdue and first since 2014.
Williams, who scored on a fourth-and-3 pass play of 39 yards from Jack Coan early in the second quarter to give the Irish their first lead 7-3, finished with 86 yards on 11 carries and two receptions for 47 yards.
NO. 16 COAST. CAROLINA 28 BUFFALO 25
Grayson McCall threw for three touchdowns, Shermari Jones ran for 149 yards and another score for the Chanticleers (3-0) in Amherst, N.Y.
McCall, who entered the day leading the nation in passing efficiency and completion rate, was 13 of 19 for 232 yards with his first interception of the season. Jaivon Heiligh caught four passes for 91 yards and a touchdown for Coastal Carolina, becoming the fourth receiver in school history to surpass 2,000 career yards.
MICHIGAN STATE 38 NO. 24 MIAMI 17
In Miami Gardens, Fla., Payton Thorne passed for 261 yards and four touchdowns, two of those scoring throws going to Jalen Nailor.
Kenneth Walker III rushed for 172 yards and caught a touchdown pass for the Spartans (3-0), who are off to their best start since 2015. Jayden Reed also had a scoring catch and a touchdown run for Michigan State, which forced Miami quarterback D’Eriq King into four turnovers.
King was 38 of 59 — both of them Miami (1-3) school records — for 388 yards, with two touchdowns and two interceptions. Charleston Rambo tied a school record with 12 catches for Miami, good for 156 yards and both of the Hurricanes’ touchdowns.
NO. 25 MICHIGAN 63 NORTHERN ILLINOIS 10
In Ann Arbor, Mich., Blake Corum rushed for 123 yards and three touchdowns as the Wolverines (3-0) scored touchdowns on their first nine drives, eight of them on the ground. The 10th drive also included a touchdown run, but it was called back for a holding penalty and Michigan turned the ball over on downs. The Wolverines never punted.
The Huskies (1-2) kicked a field goal on their second possession of the game, but it was already clear they were in major trouble. Michigan scored short rushing touchdowns on its first four possessions, two by Hassan Haskins, to take a 28-3 lead in the second quarter.
The Wolverines changed up a bit on the fifth possession, scoring on an 87-yard pass from Cade McNamara to Cornelius Johnson — the thirdlongest passing play in school history - to lead
35-3 at the half.
ARMY 52 CONNECTICUT 21
Christian Anderson ran for two touchdowns, passed for another and the Black Knights (3-0) reached the end zone on all six of their first-half possessions.
Anderson’s two short scoring runs and his 39yard TD pass to Isaiah Alston gave the Black Knights a 21-0 lead on the way to their 12th straight home victory.