The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Defense helps No. 19 Penn State top No. 12 Wisconsin
Jaquan Brisker and Ji’Ayir Brown intercepted Graham Mertz deep in Penn State territory in the final 2½ minutes to preserve the 19th-ranked Nittany Lions’ 16-10 road victory over No. 12 Wisconsin on Saturday.
Wisconsin (0-1) had its string of 25 consecutive victories in home openers snapped because of its red-zone failures. The Badgers dominated time of possession but had four scoreless trips inside Penn State’s 25-yard line, including three inside the 10.
The Badgers had first-and-goal at the 1 in the closing minutes on a drive that included a targeting penalty on Ellis Brooks that knocked Penn State’s top tackler out of the game. Then things went awry.
Mertz lost the ball on an apparent handoff attempt on first down, though Wisconsin’s Isaac Guerendo recovered the fumble at the 4. Guerendo lost a yard on second down, then Joey Porter Jr. broke up a pass to Jack Dunn.
On fourth down, Mertz attempted a pass across the middle to tight end Jake Ferguson, but Brisker picked it off and delivered a 41-yard return with 2:16 remaining.
Wisconsin got the ball back on its own 18 with 1:11 left and got all the way to the Penn State 25 with 26 seconds remaining,
thanks in part to a personal foul on Arnold Ebiketie. But after an intentional grounding call pushed Wisconsin back to the 32, Brown intercepted a Mertz pass on the game’s final play.
Noah Cain broke a 10-all tie and put Penn State (1-0) ahead for good with a 2-yard touchdown run with 9:17 remaining, though Jonathan Stout’s extrapoint attempt bounced off the left upright. Stout also missed a 23-yard field goal.
Jahan Dotson had a 49-yard
touchdown catch for Penn State and also set up Cain’s score with a 42-yard reception. He finished with five catches for 102 yards.
Penn State quarterback Sean Clifford was 18 of 33 for 247 yards. Mertz went 22 of 37 for 185 yards.
Wisconsin was led by Chez Mellusi, who rushed for 121 yards and a TD on 31 carries.
(At) No. 2 Oklahoma 40, Tulane 35: Spencer Rattler passed for 304 yards, and the Sooners won a game that was relocated from New Orleans because of Hurricane Ida. Oklahoma led by five in the fourth quarter and Tulane had possession, but quarterback Michael Pratt ran for 12 yards on a fourth-and-13 play. Tulane turned the ball over on downs, and Oklahoma ran out the clock.
Oklahoma’s Gabe Brkic tied an FBS record with three field goals of 50 or more yards, and Marvin Mims had five catches for 117 yards for the Sooners (1-0). Pratt passed for 296 yards and three touchdowns for the Green Wave (0-1). He also ran for another score.
Brkic made three field goals in the second quarter. His second was a 51-yarder, and then he closed the half with a careerhigh 56-yarder. It was the longest field goal for an Oklahoma kicker since 1977. Oklahoma scored just three points after the break.
No. 8 Cincinnati 49, Miami of Ohio 14: Desmond Ridder was 20 of 25 for 295 yards and four touchdowns, and the Bearcats won in the opener for both teams. Ridder threw an 81-yard TD pass to Tyler Scott, the longest TD toss of his career, and ran six times for 31 yards, including a 25-yard TD. Jerome Ford added 121 yards rushing yards on 12 carries, scoring on a 21-yard run.
(At) No. 11 Oregon 31, Fresno State 24: Anthony Brown scored on a 30-yard quarterback keeper with 2:57 left, and the Ducks overcame a wobbly season opener.
Oregon jumped to a 21-6 lead, but Fresno State scored three unanswered touchdowns to tie it in the third quarter, then took the lead early in the fourth on Abraham Montano’s field goal. A fumble recovery gave Oregon the ball at the Fresno State 32, but the Ducks settled for Camden Lewis’ 25-yard field goal to tie it before Brown’s go-ahead TD.
Brown threw for 172 yards and a touchdown while running for 62 yards and the winner. It was Oregon’s 17th straight home-opening win. The Ducks were hurt by the loss of defensive end Kayvon Thibodeaux, who left the game at halftime with an ankle injury.
Jake Haener threw for 285 yards and a touchdown for the Bulldogs (1-1).
(At) No. 18 Iowa 34, No. 17 Indiana 6: Riley Moss returned two first-half interceptions for touchdowns, and the Hawkeyes intercepted quarterback Michael Penix Jr. three times. Tyler Goodson rushed for 99 yards and a TD.
(At) No. 21 Texas 38, No. 23 La-Lafayette 18: Bijan Robinson scored twice and Hudson Card threw two touchdown passes in his first career start, leading the Longhorns over Louisiana-Lafayette in coach Steve Sarkisian’s Texas debut. Robinson finished with 176 total yards rushing and receiving. Card was 14-of-21 passing for 224 yards and no interceptions.