Dominic Zvada kicked a 21-yard field goal with 45 seconds left as Michigan shocked No. 2 Ohio State 13-10 in Columbus, Ohio, on Saturday.
The Wolverines (7-5, 5-4 Big Ten) were a three-touchdown underdog but were helped by the mistake-prone Buckeyes (10-2, 7-2), who committed two turnovers and missed two field-goal attempts as Michigan won its fourth straight in the series.
The loss, coupled with No. 4 Penn State’s 44-7 victory over Maryland, prevented the Buckeyes from playing Oregon in the Big Ten championship game on Dec. 7.
Ohio State defensive end Jack Sawyer intercepted Davis Warren’s pass at the goal line and returned it 12 yards with 7:48 left in regulation, but the Buckeyes had to punt. Michigan used 11 plays to go 57 yards and exhausted 5:28 off the clock on the winning drive.
No. 1 Oregon 49, Washington 21
The top-ranked Ducks, already locked into the Big Ten championship game next weekend against Penn State, finished a perfect regular season with a blowout win over the Huskies in Eugene, Ore.
Quarterback Dillon Gabriel threw for 209 yards with two touchdowns, and the Oregon ground game gained 222 yards. Jordan James had 99 yards on 15 carries with two touchdowns, and Gabriel, Noah Whittington and Da’Jaun Riggs also scored rushing touchdowns for Oregon (12-0, 9-0).
Washington (6-6, 4-5) went with Demond Williams Jr. at quarterback over the more experienced Will Rogers, who was benched in the Huskies’ previous game. Williams spent much of the night running from Oregon defenders but ended up 17-for-20 for 201 yards and a touchdown pass.
No. 3 Texas 17, No. 20 Texas A&M 7
Quinn Ewers passed for 218 yards and a touchdown and the Longhorns rode a dominant defensive performance to a berth in the Southeastern Conference championship game, beating the host Aggies in College Station, Texas.
Quintrevion Wisner rushed for a career-high 186 yards on 33 carries and the Longhorns (11-1, 7-1 SEC) held the Aggies (8-4, 5-3) to 244 total yards of offense to earn a meeting with No. 7 Georgia in the conference title game next Saturday in Atlanta. Texas has won five straight games since a 30-15 home loss to the Bulldogs on Oct. 19.
Marcel Reed passed for just 146 yards but added a team-high 56 rushing yards for Texas A&M, which got its only points from its defense when Will Lee III intercepted Ewers’ pass and ripped off a 93-yard return for a touchdown.
No. 4 Penn State 44, Maryland 7
Nicholas Singleton rushed for two touchdowns and the Nittany Lions scored 28 points in the second quarter in their blowout win over the Terrapins in State College, Pa.
Drew Allar went 17-of-26 for 171 yards and a touchdown for Penn State (11-1, 8-1 Big Ten), which has won four in a row.
MJ Morris threw the only touchdown for Maryland (4-8, 1-8) but also had three passes intercepted.
No. 5 Notre Dame 49, Southern California 35
Despite surrendering a season high in points, the Fighting Irish’s defense came through in the clutch with pick-sixes of 99 and 100 yards to beat the Trojans in Los Angeles.
Notre Dame (11-1), which has won 10 straight games, led 35-28 but USC (6-6) was driving. Notre Dame’s Christian Gray snagged an underthrown ball from Jayden Maiava near the pylon and returned it 99 yards down the sideline. Then Xavier Watts intercepted Maiava and went 100 yards to make it 49-28 with 1:18 to play.
Maiava went 27-for-48 for 360 yards with three touchdown passes, all of which went to Ja’Kobi Lane. Maiava also rushed for a pair of touchdowns in the loss.
Syracuse 42, No. 6 Miami 38
Kyle McCord passed for 380 yards and three touchdowns as the host Orange rallied to upset the Hurricanes in an ACC game.
Syracuse (9-3, 5-3) got two touchdown receptions from Jackson Meeks (seven catches, 110 yards). Teammate Trebor Pena caught six passes for 128 yards and one TD.
A win would’ve put Miami in the ACC title game next Saturday against SMU. Instead, the Hurricanes (10-2, 6-2) ended their regular season with two upset losses in their final three games. Cam Ward led Miami, passing for 349 yards and two TDs. He leads the nation with 36 TD passes, and he also went over 4,000 passing yards for the season.
No. 8 Tennessee 36, Vanderbilt 23
Nico Iamaleava threw for 257 yards and four touchdowns as the Volunteers stormed back from an early deficit to beat the host Commodores. Two of those scoring strikes went to Dont’e Thornton (three catches, 118 yards) while Dylan Sampson added 178 rushing yards on 25 carries.
Tennessee (10-2, 6-2 SEC) held Vanderbilt quarterback Diego Pavia to 8-of-17 passing for 104 yards and had more snaps (73-49) and yards (538-232) than the Commodores (6-6, 3-5). Vanderbilt still got 17 first-quarter points against the Vols, who’d given up just over 13 points a game.
The Vols won’t play in the SEC title game, but likely clinched a College Football Playoff berth and possibly a first-round home game.
No. 9 SMU 38, Cal 6
The Mustangs jumped out to a three-touchdown lead and then sealed the game with a fourth-quarter explosion in their lopsided win over the visiting Golden Bears in an Athletic Coast Conference matchup in Dallas.
SMU (11-1, 8-0 ACC) was already assured of a berth in the conference title game on Dec. 7. The Mustangs will play Clemson, which qualified when No. 6 Miami fell at Syracuse on Saturday. Kevin Jennings threw for 225 yards and two touchdowns. Brashard Smith had rushing and receiving scores, and Derrick McFall also ran for a touchdown for SMU, which won its ninth in a row.
Chandler Rogers had 84 yards passing before leaving with an apparent leg injury in the third quarter for Cal (6-6, 2-6), and CJ Harris came on to throw for 75 yards and had one interception. Nyziah Hunter finished with 85 yards on five receptions.
No. 10 Indiana 66, Purdue 0
Kurtis Rourke threw for 349 yards and six touchdowns as the Hoosiers appear headed for an unlikely spot in the College Football Playoff after their lopsided Big Ten Conference rout of the Boilermakers in Bloomington, Ind.
Picked 17th among 18 teams in the conference’s preseason poll, Indiana improved to 11-1 overall and 8-1 in the conference. Though the Hoosiers lost the tiebreaker to No. 4 Penn State to meet No. 1 Oregon in the conference title game on Dec. 7, they should be among the 12-team CFP field when it’s announced on Dec. 8.
Their defense stifled hapless Purdue (1-11, 0-9), which managed just 67 yards and five first downs in absorbing its 11th straight loss.
No. 15 South Carolina 17, No. 12 Clemson 14
LaNorris Sellers ran for two touchdowns and amassed a combined 330 yards rushing and passing to lead the Gamecocks to a comeback victory over the host Tigers.
Sellers led the Gamecocks (9-3) on a nine-play, 75-yard drive that he capped with a 20-yard touchdown run to put them ahead by the eventual winning margin with 1:08 left in the fourth quarter.
Clemson (9-3) had one last chance and drove toward the red zone. But Demetrius Knight Jr. made a diving interception with 12 seconds remaining to seal the Gamecocks’ second win in three seasons in the Palmetto Bowl series and second in a row at Clemson.
No. 13 Alabama 28, Auburn 14
Quarterback Jalen Milroe rushed for 104 yards and three touchdowns and the Crimson Tide bolstered their playoff possibilities with a victory over the visiting Tigers in the Iron Bowl at Tuscaloosa, Ala.
Milroe completed 18 of 24 passes for 256 yards and one interception as Alabama (9-3, 5-3 SEC) bounced back from last week’s 24-3 road loss to Oklahoma. The victory could return the Crimson Tide to the top 10 when Tuesday’s latest College Football Playoff rankings are unveiled.
Justice Haynes rushed for a touchdown and Germie Bernard had seven receptions for 111 yards for Alabama. Payton Thorne was 24-of-41 passing for 301 yards, one touchdown and one interception for the Tigers (5-7, 2-6), who clinched their fourth straight losing campaign.
No. 16 Arizona State 49, Arizona 7
Cam Skattebo rushed for 177 yards on 21 carries with three touchdowns to lead the visiting Sun Devils past the archrival Wildcats in Tucson, Ariz.
Arizona State (10-2, 7-2 Big 12) will face Iowa State in the Big 12 championship game Dec. 7. Sam Leavitt completed 17 of 22 pass attempts for 291 yards with three touchdowns and no interceptions for the Sun Devils, who piled up 643 yards in total offense.
Arizona (4-8, 2-7) ended coach Brent Brennan’s first season by losing seven of its last eight games. Receiver Tetairoa McMillan, a projected NFL first-round draft pick, finished with six receptions for 68 yards and a touchdown. Noah Fifita, a preseason Heisman hopeful, completed 14 of 29 pass attempts for 126 yards with a touchdown and no interceptions.
No. 18 Iowa State 29, No. 24 Kansas State 21
The Cyclones scored 14 points off turnovers and defeated the Wildcats on a frigid night in Ames, Iowa.
Iowa State (10-2, 7-2), which will face Arizona State in the Big 12 title game, last won a conference football championship in 1912 when they were members of the Missouri Valley Conference. Iowa State has 10 wins in a season for the first time in school history.
Rocco Becht threw for 137 yards and two touchdowns for the Cyclones. Avery Johnson racked up 220 yards passing and three touchdowns for the Wildcats (8-4, 5-4), who have lost three of their past four games.
No. 19 BYU 30, Houston 18
Jake Retzlaff passed for 167 yards and added two rushing touchdowns as BYU rode a stifling defensive performance to beat Houston in Provo, Utah.
Retzlaff scored on runs of 13 and 7 yards, the latter coming with 2:52 remaining in the game to help BYU (10-2, 7-2 Big 12) reclaim its two-possession advantage.
Zeon Chriss passed for 156 yards and ran for two scores for Houston (4-8, 3-6).
No. 21 Missouri 28, Arkansas 21
Brady Cook ran for a 30-yard go-ahead touchdown with 1:53 remaining, lifting the Tigers over the Razorbacks in a snowy Battle Line Rivalry matchup in Columbia, Mo.
Cook had a quiet day through the air (10-of-20, 168 yards), as Missouri (9-3, 5-3 SEC) opted to lean on Marcus Carroll (22 carries, 90 yards, two TDs).
Taylen Green was 21-of-35 passing for 229 yards and added 53 rushing yards for Arkansas (6-6, 3-5). Ja’Quinden Jackson ran 18 times for 87 yards and three TDs to fuel the Arkansas offense. Andrew Armstrong registered 128 yards on nine receptions.
No. 22 UNLV 38, Nevada 14
Hajj-Malik Williams threw for 168 yards, ran for 104 more and accounted for three touchdowns as the Rebels beat the visiting rival Wolf Pack in Las Vegas to clinch a berth in next week’s Mountain West Championship Game.
Jacob De Jesus led UNLV (10-2, 6-1) with a season-high 84 yards receiving, while Ricky White III added five receptions for 55 yards and a touchdown in each player’s final home game at UNLV. Jai’Den Thomas led the team in rushing with 135 yards on 15 carries, equaling his total from last week’s win at San Jose State in 11 fewer carries.
Nevada quarterback Brendon Lewis finished with 292 passing yards, two touchdowns and an interception, completing 27 of his 37 pass attempts. UNLV outgained Nevada (3-10, 0-7) 519-359 in total net yards and outgained it 351-67 on the ground.
No. 23 Illinois 38, Northwestern 28
Aidan Laughery ran for 172 yards and three touchdowns, both career highs, to propel the Fighting Illini past the Wildcats at Wrigley Field in Chicago.
The sophomore running back needed just 12 carries to orchestrate his career day and ripped off three runs of 30 or more yards, including a 64-yard touchdown scamper that put Illinois (9-3, 6-3 Big Ten) ahead 21-10 early in the second half. After Northwestern (4-8, 2-7) pulled within 28-20 entering the fourth quarter, Laughery broke off a 31-yard run to replenish the Fighting Illini’s two-score lead.
The Wildcats used two quarterbacks in the loss, their third straight to end the season. Jack Lausch played most of the snaps and threw for 287 yards with two touchdowns and two interceptions on 25-of-48 passing. Before the game, head coach David Braun said freshman quarterback Ryan Boe would take snaps with his team out of bowl contention. Boe completed 4 of 13 throws for 42 yards with an interception.
–Field Level Media
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