College roundup: Georgia shuts down QB Hooker, No. 2 Tennessee, 27-13

ATHENS, Ga. (AP) — In the biggest games, Stetson Bennett seems to rise to the occasion and above his often more heralded counterparts.

Bennett threw two touchdown passes and ran for a score as No. 1 Georgia shut down Hendon Hooker and the Vols’ high-powered offense to win a Southeastern Conference showdown of the nation’s top-ranked teams 27-13 Saturday.

After leading the Bulldogs to a national title last season, Bennett improved to 23-3 as a starter at Georgia.

“Competitive excellence, competitive toughness,” said Georgia coach Kirby Smart when asked about Bennett’s ability to shine on the grandest stages.

“He’s a winner. Let’s be honest. The guy knows how to win.”

Bennett passed for 257 yards, completing 17 of 25 passes. He had a 13-yard scoring run in the matchup against Hooker, regarded as a Heisman Trophy favorite. Maybe Bennett should be now?

Bennett insisted his only motivation was for the team’s hopes of returning to the SEC championship game, not for his personal validation “because at the end of the day we’re playing for the East and if we lost it’s a lower percentage we’re playing in Atlanta.”

Added Bennett: “I don’t really care about quarterback vs. quarterback.”

Georgia (9-0, 6-0 Southeastern Conference) turned the 25th regular-season matchup of the top two teams in the AP poll into a rout that made clear the defending national champions are still the team to beat.

“I kind of feel like it was a statement win,” said Georgia wide receiver Ladd McConkey, who had five catches for 94 yards and a touchdown.

In a deafening and soggy Sanford Stadium, Georgia led 27-6 before Tennessee scored its first touchdown with 4:15 remaining.

Hooker, whose Heisman hopes were bolstered by a win over Alabama last month, passed for only 195 yards for Tennessee (8-1, 4-1). Hooker was sacked six times by star defensive tackle Jalen Carter and the Bulldogs.

Tennessee wide receiver Jalin Hyatt said Georgia’s defense was “way more physical than Alabama.”

Georgia’s special teams put more pressure on Tennessee. Punter Brett Thorson nailed a 75-yarder that went out of bounds at the Tennessee 1 in the first quarter. Jack Podlesny kicked two field goals.

Hooker threw an interception, lost a fumble that nearly resulted in a safety for Georgia and didn’t throw a touchdown pass.

“”They are a great ball team,” Hooker said. “They played extremely hard, and they got the win today. We have got to clean some things up. It is a learning process.”

The Volunteers came in averaging almost 50 points per game.

The Volunteers rode that Alabama victory to the top spot in the first College Football Playoff ranking. Georgia was No. 3 in last week’s CFP ranking.

That will change Tuesday.

The Vols were held to two first-half field goals as Georgia took a 24-6 halftime lead. Rain in the second half made it only more difficult to move against the Bulldogs’ defense.

Bennett threw scoring passes of 37 yards to McConkey and 5 yards to Marcus Rosemy-Jacksaint in the first half.

There were more big plays in Georgia’s passing game. Bennett had completions of 52 yards to Arian Smith and 49 yards to running back Kenny McIntosh.

NO. 2 OHIO STATE 21, NORTHWESTERN 7

EVANSTON, Ill. (AP) — Miyan Williams ran for 111 yards and two touchdowns as the Buckeyes held on in rainy and windy conditions.

The Buckeyes (9-0, 6-0 Big Ten, No. 2 CFP) came in tied with Tennessee in the AP poll, but didn’t score until the closing minutes of the first half, when Emeka Egbuka ran it in from the 15.

Williams gave Ohio State the lead with a 27-yard touchdown in the third quarter. He made it 21-7 when he scored from the 2 with about 4 1/2 minutes remaining in the game after C.J. Stroud broke a 44-yard run.

Stroud, the Big Ten leader in yards passing, set a career low with 76. He completed just 10 of 26 passes in his only game this year without a touchdown throw.

Evan Hull ran for 122 yards and a touchdown for the Wildcats (1-8, 1-5), who dropped their eighth straight, matching their worst skid since 1998.

NO. 4 MICHIGAN 52, RUTGERS 17

PISCATAWAY, N.J. (AP) — J.J. McCarthy threw two touchdown passes and ran for another score as No. 4 Michigan rallied from its first halftime deficit of the season to beat Rutgers.

Running Back Blake Corum had two short TD runs and linebacker Michael Barrett intercepted two passes in a big third quarter, returning the second 31 yards for a touchdown as Michigan (9-0, 6-0 Big Ten, No. 5 CFP) matched its best start since 2016.

The Scarlet Knights (4-5, 1-5) led 17-14 at halftime.

NOTRE DAME 35, NO. 5 CLEMSON 14

SOUTH BEND, Ind. (AP) — Prince Kollie scored on a blocked punt, Benjamin Morrison returned an interception 96 yards for a touchdown and had another interception to set up another score as Notre Dame earned its second-straight win over a ranked opponent, beating No. 5 Clemson.

It was just the third win over a top-10 opponent for Notre Dame (6-3) in its past 10 games since 2018. The other wins were against No. 8 Stanford in 2018 and top-ranked Clemson in 2020. Just as in that 47-40 victory two years ago, fans stormed the field to celebrate.

The loss ended a 14-game winning streak by the Tigers (8-1), the longest active streak among FBS teams. It was Clemson’s fifth road loss since 2015.

NO. 15 LSU 32, NO. 6 ALABAMA 31

BATON ROUGE, La. (AP) — Jayden Daniels ran for a 25-yard touchdown in overtime and then found tight end Mason Taylor for a do-or-die 2-point conversion, and 15th-ranked LSU defeated No. 6 Alabama to give first-year Tigers coach Brian Kelly his first victory over Crimson Tide coach Nick Saban.

The victory in a riveting game that included six second-half lead changes and a tying field goal by Alabama in the final minute also gave LSU (7-2, 5-1 Southeastern Conference) control of the SEC Western Division with two league games remaining.

Bryce Young passed for 328 yards and one touchdown for Alabama (7-2, 4-2) and also was intercepted.

NO. 7 TCU 34, TEXAS TECH 24

FORT WORTH, Texas (AP) — Derius Davis returned a punt 82 yards for a touchdown and Kendre Miller ran for the go-ahead score early in the fourth quarter as TCU reached 9-0 for the first time since 2010.

Davis caught one of Max Duggan’s two fourth-quarter TD passes for the Horned Frogs, 6-0 in the Big 12.

The Red Raiders (4-5, 2-4) went ahead 17-13 in the third quarter on Tyler Shough’s 33-yard touchdown pass to J.J. Sparkman.

Miller surpassed 100 yards rushing for the sixth time in seven games, finishing with a season-high 158 yards on 21 carries. Duggan was 12 of 23 for 195 yards without an interception, giving him 24 TDs and two picks.

NO. 8 OREGON 49, COLORADO 10

BOULDER, Colo. (AP) — Bo Nix completed 20 of 24 passes for 274 yards and two TDs and caught a touchdown pass to key the rout on a windy day.

Oregon dialed up the gadget plays, including an offensive lineman catching a touchdown pass and a linebacker scoring from short, becoming the first FBS team to have a receiving TD from an offensive lineman, a receiving score from a quarterback, and a rushing TD by a defensive player in the same game since at least 1996, according to research provided by Oregon.

It was the eighth straight win for the Ducks (8-1, 6-0 Pac-12, No. 8 CFP) since a season-opening loss to No. 1 Georgia.

Offensive tackle Josh Conerly Jr. caught a 4-yard TD pass to open the scoring and linebacker Noah Sewell scored on a 1-yard plunge. Even Nix got into the trick-play act by catching an 18-yard touchdown pass from tailback Bucky Irving.

Freshman receiver Jordyn Tyson had five catches for 137 yards for the Buffaloes (1-8, 1-5), including an 81-yard score before being hurt late.

NO. 12 UTAH 45, ARIZONA 20

SALT LAKE CITY (AP) — Ja’Quinden Jackson ran for a career-high 97 yards and a touchdown and Utah had a season-high 306 yards rushing in its win over Arizona.

Cam Rising threw for 151 yards and a touchdown in his return following a one-game absence. Utah (No. 14 CFP, 7-2, 5-1 Pac-12) forced seven fumbles and recovered four.

Jayden de Laura threw for 159 yards and ran for a TD to lead Arizona. The Wildcats (3-6, 1-5) totaled 387 yards but gained only 138 yards after halftime.

TEXAS 34, NO. 13 KANSAS STATE 27

MANHATTAN, Kan. (AP) — Bijan Robinson romped for 209 yards and a touchdown, Quinn Ewers threw for 197 yards and two more scores, and Texas held off No. 13 Kansas State for the Longhorns’ sixth straight win over the Wildcats.

Xavier Worthy had two touchdown catches and Roschon Johnson added a TD run for the Longhorns (6-3, 4-2 Big 12), who built a 31-10 halftime lead and then had to make a defensive stand in the closing minutes to preserve the victory.

The Wildcats (6-3, 4-2) stuffed Robinson on third down with 4:26 left to get the ball back, and Adrian Martinez quickly moved them close to midfield. But after converting fourth down with a pass to Deuce Vaughn with 34 seconds to go, the senior quarterback — back in the lineup after an injury — fumbled the ball away.

MICHIGAN STATE 23, NO. 14 Illinois 15

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. (AP) —Payton Thorne passed for 182 yards and two touchdowns as Michigan State ended a troubling week on a positive note and kept alive its bowl hopes.

The Spartans (4-5, 2-4 Big Ten), who were without eight suspended players, stopped the Illini five times on fourth down. Illinois turned the ball over on downs three times in the red zone and went a combined 7 of 23 on third- and fourth-down attempts.

Spartans wideout Jayden Reed got loose for a 16-yard touchdown reception for a 23-7 lead with 2:57 to go and the defense did enough to halt a late comeback effort. Quarterback Tommy DeVito and the Illini (7-2, 4-2) stalled at the Spartans’ 25 when time expired.

NO. 16 PENN STATE 45, INDIANA 14

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. (AP) — Kaytron Allen ran for 86 yards and scored a season-high three TDs as the Hoosiers lost their sixth straight.

Penn State (7-2, 4-2 Big Ten) has won eight of the last nine in the series with Indiana (3-6, 1-5).

Nicholas Singleton started the scoring for Penn State with a 1-yard TD run. After Jack Tuttle tied the score with an 11-yard TD pass to AJ Barner, the Nittany Lions quickly took control.

Allen scored on runs of 11 and 6 yards on back-to-back, second-quarter possessions and Jack Pinegar closed out the half with a career-long 50-yard field goal to make it 24-7.

Allen’s 6-yard TD run in the third quarter sealed the victory.

NO. 17 NORTH CAROLINA 31, VIRGINIA 28

CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. (AP) — Drake Maye threw for two touchdowns and ran for another as North Carolina rallied after halftime for the win.

Elijah Green scored twice and Josh Downs caught 15 passes, including one for a TD for the Tar Heels (8-1, 5-0 Atlantic Coast Conference, No. 17 CFP), now 5-0 in league play for the first time since 2015.

Maye finished 26 for 37 for 293 yards and ran for 74 yards. Downs’ catches went for 166 yards.

Brennan Armstrong, Xavier Brown and Ronnie Walker ran for scores for the Cavaliers (3-6, 1-5), who were playing without three starting wide receivers and lost for the fifth time in six games.

KANSAS 37, NO. 18 OKLAHOMA STATE 16

LAWRENCE, Kan. (AP) — Devin Neal ran for 224 yards and a touchdown and had 110 receiving yards for Kansas to key the upset.

The Jayhawks (6-3, 3-3 Big 12 Conference) are bowl-eligible for the first time since 2008.

Kansas had 351 yards rushing, with Neal setting career highs in both rushing and receiving yards. Jason Bean went 18-for-23 passng for 203 yards with two touchdowns while rushing for a 72-yard touchdown.

The Cowboys (6-3, 3-3) played without quarterback Spencer Sanders. Freshman Garrett Rangel threw interceptions on the Cowboys’ first two drives and went 27 of 40 for 304 yards and two touchdowns. Bryan Green had nine catches for 105 yards.

NO. 19 TULANE 27, TULSA 13

TULSA, Okla. (AP) — Tyjae Spears ran for 157 yards and a touchdown and Shaadie Clayton-Johnson gained 106 as Tulane dominated on the ground.

Tulane (8-1, 5-0 American Athletic Conference) had lost the past two meetings with Tulsa (3-6, 1-4) in overtime.

The Hurricane gained 357 yards on the ground, with Spears and Johnson each running the ball 14 times.

Michael Pratt completed 11 of 19 passes for 125 yards for Tulane.

PITTSBURGH, 19, NO. 22 SYRACUSE 9

PITTSBURGH (AP) — Rodney Hammond ran for a career-high 124 yards and a touchdown while filling in for injured Israel Abanikanda as Pittsburgh handed Syracuse its third straight loss.

The Panthers (5-4, 2-3 Atlantic Coast Conference) relied heavily on Hammond and a defense that kept Orange redshirt freshman quarterback Carlos Del Rio-Wilson in check in his first career start. Pitt sacked Del Rio-Wilson six times and limited the Orange (6-3, 3-2) to 145 total yards.

C’Bo Flemister added a short touchdown run for Pitt as the defending ACC champions righted themselves after three losses in four games.

Andre Szmyt hit three field goals for the Orange, who likely will fall out of the AP Top 25.

NO. 21 NC STATE 30, NO. 20 WAKE FOREST 21

RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — First-year passer MJ Morris threw for three scores while No. 21 North Carolina State’s defense had three interceptions off Sam Hartman in a win over Wake Forest.

Morris threw for 210 yards in becoming the first true freshman in more than 22 years to start for the Wolfpack (7-2, 3-2 Atlantic Coast Conference), following his three-TD effort in last week’s comeback home win against Virginia Tech. This performance, though, came against a ranked instate foe in the Demon Deacons (6-3, 2-3), featuring a veteran star quarterback in Hartman leading a high-scoring offense.

Morris hit Darryl Jones for two of his TDs and Keyon Lesane for another to lead the offense. He also directed a key late drive that took four minutes off the clock and set up Christopher Dunn’s 25-yard field goal to make it a two-possession game with 2:54 left.

NO. 23 LIBERTY 21, ARKANSAS 19

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. (AP) — Johnathan Bennett threw three touchdown passes in the first half and Liberty used a late goal-line stop on a 2-point conversion to hang on.

Liberty (8-1) stopped KJ Jefferson’s conversion attempt with 1:11 left. The Razorbacks (5-4) scored 19 unanswered points on a field goal, safety, two touchdowns and a 2-point conversion. Jefferson took a shotgun snap up the middle on the conversion try and was marked short of the end zone near the goal line. Officials upheld the call after more than two minutes of review.

Liberty raced to a 21-point lead behind Bennett’s three first-half TD passes. Bennett finished 15 of 25 for 224 yards. But the Flames were outgained 250- 79 in the second half.

Jefferson was 23 of 37 passing for 284 yards with two touchdown passes, both to tight end Trey Knox, and two interceptions.

Arkansas entered with the sixth-ranked rushing game in FBS, averaging more than 244 yards. Liberty held Arkansas to 144, including just 60 from Rocket Sanders, the ninth-ranked rusher in the nation.

NO. 25 UCF 35, MEMPHIS 28

MEMPHIS, Tenn. (AP) — Mikey Keene passed for 219 yards and three touchdowns and RJ Harvey rushed for 151 yards and a score as UCF handed the Tigers their fourth straight loss.

Keene was pressed into his first start of the season for UCF (7-2, 4-1 American Athletic Conference) after quarterback John Rhys Plumlee suffered an injury in last weekend’s upset of nationally ranked Cincinnati.

Keene rallied the Knights, who were held scoreless in the third quarter, by tossing two fourth-quarter touchdowns. The first was a 13-yarder to Kobe Hudson early in the fourth quarter for a 28-21 UCF lead.

Quarterback Seth Henigan passed for 284 yards and a touchdown to lead Memphis (4-5, 2-4) but was intercepted twice. Henigan also led the Tigers with 69 rushing yards and a touchdown.

The Knights held Memphis scoreless on three trips inside the UCF 10-yard line in the first half.