Alabama quarterback Mac Jones throws a pass during the Crimson Tide’s 42-13 win over Auburn on Sunday in Tusclaoosa, Alabama. Mickey Welsh/The Montgomery Advertiser via AP
TUSCLAOOSA, Ala. — Mac Jones passed for 302 yards and five touchdowns, highlighted by two long ones to DeVonta Smith, and No. 1 Alabama rolled over rival No. 22 Auburn 42-13 on Saturday without coach Nick Saban.
The Crimson Tide (8-0, No. 1 playoff rankings) continued a dominating march through a schedule of all-Southeastern Conference games even minus its six-time national champion coach on the sideline.
Saban tested positive for COVID-19 on Wednesday and watched the game feed from home, witnessing the usual array of big plays with offensive coordinator Steve Sarkisian running the show.
The result was much of the same against the Tigers (5-3), who suffered the second-most lopsided loss of Gus Malzahn’s coaching tenure. The only bigger margin was Alabama’s 52-21 win in the 2018 Iron Bowl.
Alabama started a string of three straight touchdowns with Jones’s 66-yard touchdown to Smith, who was streaking by himself downfield after Auburn defenders bit on a pump fake. He later added a 58-yard catch and run on a quick slant, sprinting away from the Tigers.
Smith had seven catches for 171 yards. Najee Smith ran for 96 yards, including a 39-yard touchdown, and John Metchie III caught a pair of scoring passes.
Bo Nix passed for 227 yards and ran for a late touchdown for the Tigers, but also threw two interceptions.
(4) CLEMSON 52, PITTSBURGH 17: Trevor Lawrence threw for 403 yards and two touchdowns in his first game in five weeks – and likely last one at Death Valley – as the Tigers (8-1, 7-1 ACC) beat the Panthers (5-5, 4-5) in Clemson, South Carolina.
Lawrence hadn’t seen the field on game day since beating Syracuse on Oct. 24. He tested positive for the coronavirus the following week and missed Clemson’s next two games, including its only loss this season – a 47-40 double OT defeat at No. 2 Notre Dame.
A healthy, eager Lawrence expected to play last week, but a positive test from a Clemson offensive lineman on the Friday before the game led to a postponement at Florida State just hours before kickoff.
Lawrence, a 6-foot-6 junior with a powerful arm, deft touch and flowing hair, was as crisp as ever in leading Clemson a step closer to the league championship game and a likely rematch with the unbeaten Fighting Irish.
Cornell Powell had five catches for 176 yards, including a 43-yard TD catch off a flea-flicker pass from Lawrence. Powell also had an incredible, one-handed grab on a 70-yard pass to the Pitt 5 that set up Chez Mellusi’s 2-yard TD run for a 38-3 lead.
(6) FLORIDA 34, KENTUCKY 10: Kyle Trask found Kyle Pitts for three touchdowns, including a 56-yarder in which the star tight end ran away from a cornerback, and the Gators (7-1) overcame a sluggish start to beat the Wildcats (3-6) in Gainsville, Florida.
It was Pitts’ first game since suffering a concussion and breaking his nose on a vicious hit against Georgia. Trask wasted little time reconnecting with his favorite and most talented target.
Trask has 34 TD passes this season, moving him past 2007 Heisman Trophy winner Tim Tebow and into a tie for third on the school’s single-season list. Only Danny Wuerffel (39 in 1996, 35 in 1995) is ahead of him. Rex Grossman also threw 34 in 2001.
Trask did break one of Wuerffel’s records Saturday. He became the first player in school history with at least three TD passes in eight consecutive games, topping Wuerffel’s mark of seven set in 1996.
Trask is on pace to pass Wuerffel for TDs, too, and it could happen in his final two regular-season games. More importantly for Trask and the Gators (7-1), though, is they can clinch the East Division with a victory at Tennessee next week.
The Gators will want to avoid another lackluster start in that one. The Wildcats (3-6) kept Florida’s high-scoring offense in check for the first half, thanks partly to a fumble and a dropped third-down pass.
MICHIGAN STATE 29, (11) NORTHWESTERN 20: Matt Coghlin made a tiebreaking 48-yard field goal with 3:35 left, and the Spartans (2-3) handed the Wildcats (5-1) their first loss of the season, in East Lansign, Michigan.
The Wildcats were coming off a 17-7 victory over Wisconsin that put them in contention for a spot in the College Football Playoff. That prospect likely was dashed with the loss to the Spartans, but they remain in control of the Big Ten West.
The Spartans lost a 17-0 lead, but went back ahead by forcing three turnovers in the fourth quarter and making the most of two big kicks by Coghlin.
Northwestern grabbed a 20-17 lead early in the fourth on Cam Porter’s 3-yard run.
The Spartans rallied on Coghlin’s 44-yard field goal after forcing a turnover one snap following Rocky Lombardi’s interception.
Northwestern turned the ball over again, and receiver Berkeley Holman was carted off the field following the play.
Shakur Brown broke on Peyton Ramsey’s pass and made contact with Holman, who lay motionless on the field while the school’s medical staff evaluated him.
Holman was carefully strapped to a backboard and lifted onto a cart. After Holman’s teammates surrounded him to offer support, he lifted his left arm and extended his thumb.
The Wildcats punted on their next possession, facing a fourth-and-10 from their 22, with a few minutes left.
Lombardi converted a third-and-8 from his 38 with a run after Northwestern called a timeout, taking time off the clock until punting from midfield with 32 seconds left.
The Wildcats ended the game by throwing laterals from deep in their end, trying to extend the play as time expired, only to have the Spartans recover the ball in the end zone for a touchdown at a fan-free game.
(12) INDIANA 27, MARYLAND 11: Stevie Scott III ran for three touchdowns and the Hoosiers (5-1) had three interceptions, three sacks and a game-changing safety in a win over the Terrapins (2-2) in Bloomington, Indiana.
Freshman Tim Baldwin Jr. ran for a season-high 106 yards for the Hoosiers (5-1), who have won four straight at home.
The safety midway through the third quarter gave the Hoosiers a 9-3 lead, and Indiana extended the margin to 17-3 on the ensuring possession. Scott scored on a 1-yard plunge and backup quarterback Jack Tuttle completed his first throw of the day — a 2-point conversion to Peyton Hendershot. Tuttle also led the Hoosiers to two fourth-quarter scores after replacing injured starter Michael Penix Jr.
“It’s not by chance, I can promise you that,” Indiana Coach Tom Allen said, referring to the defense’s big plays. “Just watch the film.”
Maryland (2-2) moved the ball well in the first half but struggled in the red zone after a 21-day break stemming from a COVID-19 outbreak that caused the cancellation of two games. Taulia Tagovailoa missed two open receivers for potential scores in the first half and was picked off twice in the red zone. Also, Joseph Petrino missed a 29-yard field goal wide left on the first possession of the game.
(16) COASTAL CAROLINA 49, TEXAS STATE 14: C.J. Marable ran for 157 yards and three touchdowns and the Chanticleers (9-0, 7-0) wrapped up the Sun Belt Conference East Division title with a win over the Bobcats (2-10, 2-6) in San Marcos, Texas.
The Chanticleers had 572 yards of offense in extending their winning streak to 10 games. They moved up to the Football Bowl Subdivision three seasons ago.
Texas State closed its sixth straight losing season. It was the second-most points the Bobcats have allowed in regulation this season.
(21) OKLAHOMA STATE 50, TEXAS TECH 44: Dezmon Jackson rushed for career highs of 235 yards and three touchdowns, and the Cowboys (6-2, 5-2 Big 12) bounced back from a disappointing loss to rival Oklahoma to beat the Red Raiders (3-6, 2-6) in Stillwater, Oklahoma.
Jackson had 36 carries in part because the top two backs, Chuba Hubbard and LD Brown, did not play. The Cowboys still ran for a season-high 317 yards.
Hubbard was out with a right ankle injury. The redshirt junior was introduced with the seniors on Senior Day. He walked onto the field during a pregame ceremony wearing his jersey without pads and a medical boot on the injured leg. Brown also has been fighting through injuries.
Spencer Sanders passed for 222 yards and ran for 78, and Tylan Wallace caught seven passes for 129 yards and a score for Oklahoma State, which remained in the running for a spot in the Big 12 title game.
Alan Bowman passed for 384 yards and three touchdowns, Erik Ezukanma caught seven passes for 183 yards and two touchdowns, and SaRodorick Thompson ran for 133 yards and two scores for Texas Tech. The Red Raiders gained 639 yards, but Oklahoma State made up for it with a safety, an onside kick return for a touchdown, and an interception return for a score.
(23) LOUISIANA-LAFAYETTE 70, LOUISIANA-MONROE 20: Levi Lewis passed for three touchdowns and ran for two more in less than three quarters, and the Ragin’ Cajuns (8-1, 6-1 Sun Belt) routed winless Warhawks (0-9, 0-6) in Monroe, Louisiana.
Running backs Trey Regas and Elijah Mitchell each rushed for more than 90 yards and scored one touchdown apiece for Louisiana-Lafayette. Bralen Trahan returned an interception 53 yards for a score during a second quarter in which ULL scored four straight touchdowns to blow the game open.
The Ragin’ Cajuns have won five straight since their lone loss to 16th-ranked and unbeaten Coastal Carolina, which is scheduled to host ULL in the Sun Belt title game on Dec. 19.
MISSOURI 41, VANDERBILT 0: Sarah Fuller made history, but her barrier-breaking kickoff was the only highlight for Vanderbilt as the Tigers (4-3) dominated the Commodores (0-8) in Columbia, Missouri.
Fuller became the first woman to participate in a Power 5 conference football game when she kicked off to start the second half. Fuller delivered a low kick that bounced to the 35-yard line, where Missouri pounced on it. She never got the chance to attempt a PAT or field goal, as the Tigers rarely allowed the Commodores to cross midfield in the Southeastern Conference game.
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