Iowa rallies from two-td hole to knock off Penn State
IOWA CITY, Iowa — Spencer Petras threw a 44-yard touchdown pass to Nico Ragaini to complete No. 3 Iowa’s comeback from a two-touchdown deficit, No. 4 Penn State’s offense did next to nothing after quarterback Sean Clifford was knocked out of the game and the Hawkeyes held on for a bruising 23-20 victory Saturday.
The Hawkeyes (6-0, 3-0) took control of the Big Ten West with their 12th straight win and thrust themselves into the College Football Playoff conversation.
Penn State (5-1, 2-1) lost for the first time in 10 games and headed back to
Happy Valley with a list of injuries that could make its path through the rest of the season difficult.
When Petras took a knee in victory formation to end the game, students and other fans poured out of their end zone seats to celebrate. Bodies were packed together the entire width of the field from the south end zone to the 10-yard line on the other end.
“It’s a pretty special place when the lights go on and the sun goes down,” Iowa coach Kirk Ferentz said.
The Hawkeyes’ grinding offense isn’t built to play from behind, but it managed to come back in the biggest game at Kinnick
Stadium since then-no. 1 Iowa beat then-no. 2 Michigan in 1985.
Iowa won the fieldposition battle thanks to the work of punter Tory Taylor, who repeatedly pinned Penn State deep in its own end after Clifford went out of the game in the second quarter.
Iowa chipped away with field goals by Caleb Shudak to cut it to 20-16. The winning drive started when it got the ball at the Penn State 44 with 6:35 left.
NO. 9 MICHIGAN 32 NEBRASKA 29
Jake Moody hit a 39-yard field goal with 1:24 remaining to lift Michigan in Lincoln, Neb.
Moody’s fourth field goal came after Wolverines defensive back Brad Hawkins forced Cornhuskers quarterback Adrian Martinez to fumble, returning it 19 yards to the Nebraska 18 to set up the game-winner.
Michigan (6-0, 3-0 Big Ten) has won its first six games for the first time since starting 9-0 in 2016.
Nebraska (3-4, 1-3) has lost three games in four weeks to ranked teams — No. 6 Oklahoma on Sept. 18, No. 11 Michigan State two weeks ago and Michigan — by a total of 13 points.
The Huskers have now lost 14 straight games against ranked opponents, nine of them under coach Scott Frost.
NO. 14 NOTRE DAME 32 VIRGINIA TECH 29
Jonathan Doerer kicked a 48-yard field goal with 17 seconds remaining, capping a dramatic rally to lift Notre Dame.
The Fighting Irish (5-1) tied it at 29 on Jack Coan’s 4-yard pass to Avery Davis and a two-point conversion completion to Kevin Austin with 2:26 left. After forcing the Hokies to punt, Coan drove them 45 yards in seven plays, and Doerer split the uprights, sparing the Fighting Irish a second straight loss.
NO. 16 KENTUCKY 42, LSU 21
Will Levis threw for three touchdowns and ran for two more scores and the Wildcats dominated the Tigers throughout in Lexington, Ky.
Kentucky (6-0, 4-0 Southeastern Conference) and earned a second consecutive win over a conference heavyweight ahead of a matchup at No. 1 Georgia next week.
LSU (3-3, 1-2) trailed 21-0 before Tyrion Davis-price rushed for the first of two TDS midway through the third quarter.
NO. 25 SAN DIEGO STATE 31 NEW MEXICO 7
Greg Bell rushed for 111 yards and a touchdown and quarterback Jordon Brookshire added two scoring runs for San Diego State (5-0) in its first game as a ranked team in two seasons.