College football:
San Jose St. ends skid; No. 1 ’Bama falls
Auburn fans blanketed the field from end zone to end zone just like the last time they got to celebrate an Iron Bowl win.
This time, Jarrett Stidham, Kerryon Johnson and No. 6 Auburn didn’t need a miraculous final play to unleash the celebration. It was a buildup to the crescendo as the Tigers beat top-ranked Alabama in a dominating 26-14 win Saturday.
Auburn earned a berth in Saturday’s SEC title game against No. 7 Georgia.
The Tigers (10-2, 7-1 SEC, No. 6 CFP), an afterthought earlier this season, now have their sights set on one of the four playoff spots. Auburn head coach Gus Malzahn made it clear he believes his two-loss squad deserves a shot. One of his team’s two losses was to defending national champion Clemson, No. 3 at the time.
“We’ve got to win next week and that’s going to be a handful,” Malzahn said of his upcoming rematch with Georgia. “I don’t know, them experts got it figured out. I don’t think anybody else has played two No. 1 teams and a No. (3) team. Put up our schedule against anybody.”
Auburn fans covered the field in orange and blue after the final play, creating a scene similar to 2013 when the fourthranked Tigers beat No. 1 Alabama on a last-play, 109-yard return of a missed field-goal try. The Tigers went to the nationaltitle game but had lost the three Iron Bowls since then. This was Auburn’s biggest margin of victory in the Iron Bowl since winning 49-26 in 1969.
Stidham passed for 237 yards and ran for a fourth-quarter touchdown. Auburn won the Western Division a week after dispatching Georgia with similar precision.
The Crimson Tide (11-1, 7-1, No. 1 CFP) made a rare assortment of mistakes for a team that had appeared to be headed toward a shot at a fourth consecutive SEC title and playoff berth.
Alabama head coach Nick Saban said his team still deserves a playoff shot.
“I don’t think one game defines who you are,” Saban said. “It certainly doesn’t define this team for who they are. I’m sorry that I could not do a better job as a coach and as a leader.” #3 Oklahoma 59, West Virginia 31: Baker Mayfield threw for 281 yards and three touchdowns after being punished for directing a lewd gesture toward the Kansas bench the previous Saturday, and the host Sooners (11-1, 8-1 Big 12, No. 4 CFP) routed the Mountaineers (7-5, 5-4) to maintain their momentum heading into the Big 12 championship game. Oklahoma will play TCU for the Big 12 title next Saturday in Arlington, Texas. Mayfield was stripped of his captaincy and starting job for the game. He received the loudest cheers when the seniors were announced, then more loud cheers when he entered the game on Oklahoma’s second possession. Rodney Anderson ran for 118 yards and four touchdowns for Oklahoma, which gained 646 yards in winning its seventh straight. #4 Clemson 34, South Carolina 10: Kelly Bryant threw two touchdowns to Hunter Renfrow and the visiting Tigers kept on track for a third straight trip to the College Football Playoff with a victory over the Gamecocks. The Tigers’ (11-1, No. 3 CFP) win was the 100th in Clemson head coach Dabo Swinney’s career. And combined with the CFP’s top teams — Alabama and Miami — losing this weekend, the Tigers solidified their position among the top four heading into the ACC title game next Saturday. South Carolina (8-4, No. 24 CFP) and quarterback Jake Bentley were contained by Clemson’s defense. #5 Wisconsin 31, Minnesota 0: Alex Hornibrook threw three touchdown passes without an interception and the Badgers (12-0, 9-0, No. 5 CFP) kept the Paul Bunyon Axe by beating the host Golden Gophers (5-7, 2-7) for the 14th straight time — and completed their first unbeaten conference season since 1912, when there were only five games on the schedule. Jonathan Taylor rushed for 149 yards on 20 carries, including a 53-yard scoring sprint on the first play of the fourth quarter that gave the Badgers their largest winning margin in a Big Ten game this season. #7 Georgia 38, Georgia Tech 7: Sony Michel ran for 85 yards and a touchdown, Jake Fromm threw two touchdown passes and the visiting Bulldogs (11-1, No. 7 CFP) protected their playoff hopes as they head to the SEC championship game against Auburn. The Bulldogs had 247 yards rushing. Michel, Nick Chubb and D’Andre Swift ran for touchdowns. Fromm threw scoring passes of 21 yards to Javon Wims and 78 yards to Ahkil Crumpton. The Yellow Jackets (5-6) were denied the win they needed to become bowleligible. #8 Ohio State 21, Michigan 20: Dwayne Haskins replaced injured QB J.T. Barrett in the third quarter and the visiting Buckeyes (10-2, 8-1 Big Ten, No. 9 CFP) won their sixth straight in the rivalry and head to the conference championship game next Saturday to face No. 5 Wisconsin, with hopes of making the College Football Playoff. The Wolverines (8-4, 5-4) have lost 13 of 14 to Ohio State, including the last three with head coach Jim Harbaugh. Michigan was relegated to starting John O’Korn because Brandon Peters wasn’t cleared to play after having a concussion and Wilton Speight is still out with cracked vertebrae. O’Korn, a fifth-year senior, completed fewer than half of his passes. He threw an interception with about two minutes left and the Buckeyes ahead 24-20. Mike Weber sealed it for Ohio State with a 25-yard touchdown run with 1:44 left. #12 Penn State 66, Maryland 3: Trace McSorley threw two touchdown passes and ran for a score to cap an outstanding regular season for the host Nittany Lions (10-2, 7-2 Big Ten, No. 10 CFP), who built a 31-0 halftime lead and cruised to their third straight victory. The streak began after successive losses at Ohio State and Michigan State by a combined four points. McSorley went 22-for-33 for 237 yards and ran seven times for 36 yards. The junior has thrown for 3,228 yards and 26 touchdowns this season and run for 589 yards and 11 TDs. McSorley left with 5:46 left in the third quarter, after Saquon Barkley made it 45-0 with two third-quarter touchdown runs. #17 Memphis 70, E. Carolina 13: Riley Ferguson threw for three touchdowns, Patrick Taylor ran for 127 yards and scored twice and Darrell Henderson scored twice and rushed for 122 yards for the host Tigers (10-1, 7-1, No. 20 CFP), who completed their first undefeated home season at Liberty Bowl Memorial Stadium since it opened in 1965. The rout served as a tuneup for the American Athletic Conference title game against No. 13 Central Florida on Saturday in Orlando. Memphis’ lone loss came Sept. 30 against the Knights. #18 Oklahoma St. 58, Kansas 17: Mason Rudolph passed for 438 yards and two touchdowns and ran for two scores in his final home game to lead the Cowboys (9-3, 6-3 Big 12). James Washington, Dillon Stoner and Marcel Ateman each went over 100 yards receiving for Oklahoma State. Peyton Bender was 17-for-32 passing for 172 yards and two touchdowns for the Jayhawks (1-11, 0-9), who lost their 45th consecutive road game.
#19 LSU 45, Texas A&M 21: Danny Etling passed for 347 yards and three touchdowns and the host Tigers beat the Aggies in the regular-season finale for both teams. Etling completed 19 of 30 passes and had six completions longer than 25 yards, including a 56-yarder on a short pass to running back Darrel Williams and a 49-yarder deep downfield to D.J. Chark. LSU (9-3, 6-2 SEC) won for the sixth time in seven games. The Aggies (7-5, 4-4) entered the game with questions swirling about the future of head coach Kevin Sumlin, who will go a fourth straight year without as many as nine victories. #21 Michigan State 40, Rutgers 7: Brian Lewerke threw for a touchdown and ran for another and the visiting Spartans (9-3, 7-2 Big Ten) flipped their overall record from a year ago, holding the ball for more than 47 minutes against the Scarlet Knights (4-8, 3-6). Redshirt freshman Matt Coghlin kicked a personal-best four field goals. #23 Northwestern 42, Illinois 7: Justin Jackson ran for 144 yards and a touchdown and the visiting Wildcats (9-3, 7-2 Big Ten) won their seventh straight. Northwestern held the Illini (2-10, 0-10) scoreless after giving up a first-quarter touchdown, and put 42 straight points on the board. Jackson finished the regular season with 1,154 yards, one of two Big Ten players (Wisconsin’s Ron Dayne is the other) to top 1,000 yards for four straight seasons. Clayton Thorson was 13for-21 for 140 yards with a touchdown and an interception. Fresno St. 28, #25 Boise St. 17: Marcus McMaryion threw for 332 yards and two touchdowns and host Fresno State beat Boise State in a preview of the Mountain West title game. West champion Fresno State (9-3, 7-1) and Mountain winner Boise State (9-3, 7-1) already had wrapped up the division titles. They will meet Saturday in the MWC championship game at a site to be determined. A summer transfer from Oregon State, McMaryion went 23-for-36 with no interceptions. He put away the game with an 81-yard strike to KeeSean Johnson midway through the fourth quarter.