San Francisco Chronicle - (Sunday)
Michigan St. rallies to beat Wolverines
Kenneth Walker earned the right to stump for Heisman Trophy votes and humbly refused, shaking off questions about the coveted award as if they were linebackers trying to tackle him.
Walker ran for 197 yards and five touchdowns, helping No. 8 Michigan State top No. 6 Michigan 37-33 for a thrilling comeback win on Saturday in East Lansing.
“I don’t feel like it was a Heisman moment,” said Walker, who started the day leading the nation in rushing and finished it with 1,194 yards rushing and 15 touchdowns. “But it was just a great team win.”
The Wake Forest transfer had a lot to do with it. The Spartans (8-0, 5-0 Big Ten) trailed by nine at half and 30-14 with 6:47 left in the third quarter before rallying as Walker boosted his chances of becoming college football’s most outstanding player.
Walker’s fifth touchdown — a 23-yard run — lifted the Spartans to a 37-33 lead with 5:08 remaining. He had 8.6 yards a carry, an average that spiked thanks to his 58-yard touchdown that helped the Spartans pull into a 30-all tie early in the fourth quarter.
“This was a huge stage, the whole world was watching, and you got a chance to see what type of player he is,” coach Mel Tucker said. “Any recognition he’s getting for Heisman consideration is well deserved.”
The Wolverines (7-1, 4-1) forced a final punt and had the ball at their 33 with 1:15 and no timeouts left.
After a roughing-the-passer penalty put the ball at midfield, Michigan State cornerback Charles Brantley sealed the victory by picking off a floating pass from Cade McNamara.
Coach Jim Harbaugh, left, saw his Michigan team take its first loss as Kenneth Walker rushed for five TDs for Michigan State.
“This one stings,” McNamara said. “We have to respond. Our backs are against the wall now.” McNamara threw for 383 yards and two touchdowns, but his interception was costly, as was freshman quarterback J.J. McCarthy’s lost fumble on a handoff in the fourth quarter.
The rivals met with 7-0 or better records for the first time, matching up as top-10 teams for the first time since 1964.
Michigan State’s win puts it in contention for the Big Ten championship and potentially a spot in the College Football Playoff. “We’re in the hunt,” Tucker said.
The loss leaves Michigan coach Jim Harbaugh with a 3-4 record against Michigan State as a coach, putting pressure on him to earn his first win against No. 5 Ohio State next month.
The Bulldogs and their top-ranked defense dominated, scoring three touchdowns off turnovers in a 12-play sequence that turned The World’s Largest Outdoor Cocktail Party in Jacksonville, Fla., into another lopsided affair. Georgia (8-0, 6-0 SEC) won its 12th consecutive game since getting steamrolled in Jacksonville a year ago. Florida (4-4, 2-4) managed no points, 11 first downs and 214 yards through three quarters and looked like its decades-old, NCAArecord scoring streak might be in jeopardy down the stretch. But the Gators finally got on the scoreboard with 2:49 remaining, extending the streak to 418 games. They were last blanked by Auburn in 1988.
#2 Cincinnati 31, Tulane 12:
Desmond Ridder threw two touchdown passes to tight end Josh Whyle and the visiting Bearcats beat the Green Wave. Jerome Ford rushed for 65 yards and a touchdown — his 14th this season — for Cincinnati (8-0, 4-0 American). The Bearcats briefly trailed in the second quarter and led by two points at halftime. Tulane (1-6, 0-4) played without starting quarterback Michael Pratt because of a concussion suffered a week earlier in a loss at SMU.
Caleb Williams threw for 402 yards and six touchdowns and the host Sooners (9-0, 6-0 Big 12) finally put together a complete game. The true freshman quarterback tied Kyler Murray and Landry Jones for the second-most touchdown passes in a game in school history. Baker Mayfield threw seven against Texas Tech in 2016. Donovan Smith passed for 192 yards for the Red Raiders (5-4, 2-4) in Sonny Cumbie’s first game as interim coach since Matt Wells was fired.
In Columbus, Ohio, TreVeyon Henderson ran for 152 yards and a touchdown and the Buckeyes (7-1, 5-0 Big Ten) made just enough long plays and short field goals to win. Coming off an ugly nineovertime loss at home to Illinois, Penn State (5-3, 2-3) looked a lot like the team that had climbed into the top five before losing to Iowa in a game where quarterback Sean Clifford got hurt. The senior looked sharp and healthy, going 35-for-52 for 361 yards and a touchdown after a tentative game a week earlier.
Graham Mertz scored on two quarterback sneaks and threw a touchdown pass to help the host Badgers (5-3, 3-2 Big Ten) notch their fourth straight win. Iowa (6-2, 3-2) has been outscored 51-14 in its past two games after being
ranked second in the nation just a couple of weeks ago. It was the Hawkeyes’ first game since a 24-7 home loss to Purdue on Oct. 16.
Bo Nix passed for 276 yards and a touchdown and ran for two more scores, and the host Tigers (6-2, 4-1 SEC) made a number of big stops to beat Ole Miss (6-2, 3-2). Auburn remained the top challenger to No. 3 Alabama in the SEC’s Western Division. The Rebels saw their three-game winning streak end after squandering four second-half scoring chances, three with failed fourth-down passes while in field-goal range.
In South Bend, Ind., Kyren Williams raced 91 yards for a touchdown early in the fourth quarter and the Fighting Irish (7-1) held off the Tar Heels (4-4) in a game that had over 1,000 yards in offense. Notre Dame won despite being outgained 554-523. Sam Howell threw for 341 yards to become North Carolina’s first quarterback with more than 10,000 passing yards
Will Rogers threw for 344 yards and a touchdown for the host Bulldogs (5-3, 3-2 SEC). Quarterback Will Levis threw for just 150 yards with three interceptions for Kentucky (6-2, 4-2).
Sam Hartman continued his tear by accounting for 402 passing yards and five touchdowns, three via air, giving the host Demon Deacons their best start in history (8-0, 5-0 ACC). Mataeo Durant ran for 103 yards to lead the Blue Devils (3-5, 0-4), who had little go right; they didn’t find the end zone until the last score of the game.
In
Stillwater, Okla., Spencer Sanders threw for 157 yards and two touchdowns and rushed for 53 yards and a
score, all in the first half, to lead the Cowboys (7-1, 4-1 Big 12). It was a rough day for the Jayhawks (1-7, 0-5), who lost their seventh straight game.
Ben Sims had a 1-yard touchdown run in the fourth quarter, Abram Smith spun away for a 32-yard scamper to the end zone and the host Bears (7-1, 4-1 Big 12) became the third team in a row to overcome a double-digit deficit to beat Texas. The Longhorns (4-4, 2-3) were coming off an open date, which followed consecutive losses to No. 4 Oklahoma and No. 15 Oklahoma State in which the Longhorns led by at least two TDs before halftime each game.
Miami freshman Tyler Van Dyke outdueled Kenny Pickett, throwing for 426 yards and three touchdowns in a road victory as the Hurricanes (4-4, 2-2 ACC) beat a ranked opponent for the second straight week. Pickett threw for a school-record 519 yards and four touchdowns with two interceptions, both of which led to huge momentum shifts for Pitt (6-2, 3-1).
Marcus Jones returned a kickoff 100 yards for a touchdown with 17 seconds left to extend the host Cougars’ winning streak to seven. After the Mustangs (7-1, 3-1 American) tied it at 37 on a 45-yard field goal by Blake Mazza with 30 seconds left, Jones took the kickoff and broke several tackles before breaking loose for the Cougars (7-1, 4-1). Houston’s Clayton Tune threw for 412 yards and four touchdowns.
Jarret Doege threw for 370 yards and three touchdowns and Leddie Brown ran for two scores for the host Mountaineers (4-4, 2-3 Big 12). Iowa State (5-3, 3-2) was missing leading tackler Mike Rose because of an undisclosed injury.