No. 2 Bama defeats Arkansas, sets up date with No. 1 UGA

Bryce Young passed for a school-record 559 yards and five touchdowns, and No. 2 Alabama clinched a spot in the Southeastern Conference championship game against Georgia with a 42-35 victory Saturday over No. 21 Arkansas.

The Crimson Tide (10-1, 7-1 SEC) won its 15th consecutive game against the Razorbacks (7-4, 3-4), thanks largely to the Young-toJameson Williams deep connection that continues to be the ultimate offensive bailout.

Alabama set up a date with No. 1 Georgia in Atlanta on Dec. 4 after a visit to rival Auburn.

This one wasn’t settled until Arkansas’ onside kick went out of bounds with 1:02 left. The Razorbacks had stayed alive with Raheim Sanders’ 17-yard touchdown catch from K.J. Jefferson but took nearly five minutes to get there.

Young completed 31 of 40 passes to keep himself squarely in the Heisman Trophy conversation. Williams caught eight passes for 190 yards with touchdowns of 79, 32 and 40 yards.

Young hit him right in the arms despite double coverage for the 79-yarder and delivered another impressive play with a 12-yarder to Christian Leary, a reserve receiver turned tailback because of injuries. Young waited in the pocket and ran toward the line before flipping it to Leary near the right sideline.

John Metchie also gained 173 yards on 10 catches with a touchdown. Alabama’s Brian Robinson ran for 122 yards on 27 carries.

The clincher was Young’s 40-yarder to Williams in the end zone on third-and-10. It was reviewed to see if Williams had possession as he came down, and replay officials upheld the call to the relief of the Bryant-Denny stadium crowd. That left Jefferson and Arkansas needing two scores in the final 5:39, but they could only deliver one.

Jefferson completed 22 of 30 passes for 326 yards and three touchdowns. Much of that damage was done by Treylon Burks, whose eight catches went for 179 yards and a pair of scores. It gave Alabama double-digit wins for the 14th consecutive season, matching Florida State’s FBS record set from 1987-2000.

Young shattered the school mark of 484 passing yards set by Scott Hunter against Auburn in 1969, surpassing it with 11 minutes to play.

(At) No. 16 Texas A&M 52, Prairie View 3:

Devon Achane and Isaiah Spiller combined for three touchdowns before halftime, and the Aggies (8-3) led 38-0 at the break, cruising past the Panthers (7-3). Moose Muhammad grabbed a 30-yard TD pass from Zach Calzada on Texas A&M’s first possession of the third quarter, making it 45-0. Backup quarterback Blake Bost then took over for A&M with about 5½ minutes left in the third quarter. Achane and Spiller combined for 115 yards rushing in the first two quarters and didn’t run the ball after halftime.

(At) No. 25 Mississippi St. 55, Tennessee St. 10:

Will Rogers threw for 391 yards and tossed five TD passes as the Bulldogs routed the Tigers (5-6). The sophomore quarterback came off a six-touchdown, no-interception performance last week against Auburn to break Dak Prescott’s single-season school records for passing touchdowns and passing yards in the first quarter. Rogers completed three touchdown passes of 30 yards or more and threw for 300 yards or more for an FBS-best ninth straight game.

Austin Williams caught three scoring passes for Mississippi State (7-4), while Makai Polk and Malik Heath had a touchdown grab apiece. Jo’quavious Marks and Dillon Johnson each rushed for a touchdown.

(At) Missouri 24, Florida 23 (OT):

Both teams put up one touchdown and three field goals in regulation, but Missouri’s big risk in overtime paid off for the Tigers, who went for a 2-point conversion that won it.

MU quarterback Connor Bazelak found an open Daniel Parker Jr. for the score.

The Tigers improved to 6-5 and will play in a postseason game for the first time since 2018. Florida dropped to 5-6.

Missouri lost its only other overtime game of Eli Drinkwitz’s tenure as head coach, a 41-34 defeat to Boston College earlier this season.

(At) Kentucky 56, New Mexico State 16:

Will Levis overcame an early fumble to throw for four touchdowns and 419 yards as the Wildcats cruised past the Aggies (1-10) in their home finale. The Wildcats (8-3) earned their 14th consecutive nonconference victory behind Levis, who completed 21 of 31 passes to become the first Kentucky quarterback to surpass 400 yards since Andre Woodson against Tennessee in 2007.