Isaiah Horton caught three touchdown passes from Ty Simpson to help No. 10 Alabama survive blowing a 17-point lead to escape with a 27-20 win over rival and host Auburn in the Iron Bowl on Saturday night.
The Crimson Tide (10-2, 7-1 Southeastern Conference) not only clinched a spot in the SEC championship game vs. Georgia next Saturday with the dramatic victory, but they also likely locked up a spot in the College Football Playoff.
After the Tigers tied the game with 11:43 left, Alabama responded with a 15-play, 75-yard drive which took nearly eight minutes off the clock. It ended with a fourth-and-2 conversion when Simpson found Horton once again for what became the game-winning 6-yard touchdown catch. Auburn’s ensuing drive moved well across midfield before Cam Coleman fumbled at the Crimson Tide 20 and Alabama’s Deontae Lawson recovered.
Horton had just five catches for 35 yards, but three of them were touchdowns. Simpson had a season-low 122 yards, completing 19 of 35 passes. Jam Miller had 83 rushing yards on 15 carries before leaving the game with a leg injury. Ashton Daniels was 18-of-39 passing for 259 yards, a touchdown and an interception for Auburn (5-7, 1-7), which finishes a win shy of bowl eligibility. He also ran for 108 of the Tigers’ 152 rushing yards. Malcolm Simmons had three catches for 143 yards.
No. 1 Ohio State 27, No. 15 Michigan 9
Wide receivers Jeremiah Smith and Carnell Tate returned from injuries and each had a touchdown catch, while Bo Jackson ran for more than 100 yards as the visiting Buckeyes ended a four-game losing streak to the Wolverines with a dominant victory.
Ohio State (12-0, 9-0 Big Ten) plays No. 2 Indiana in the Big Ten Championship Game in Indianapolis on Dec. 6. Julian Sayin threw first-half touchdown passes to Smith and Brandon Inniss when the Buckeyes rallied for a 17-9 lead. Tate made it 24-9 midway through the third quarter when Sayin spotted him open at the 6-yard line for a 50-yard touchdown. Sayin was 19 of 26 for 233 yards, three touchdowns and an interception as the Buckeyes defeated Michigan for the first time since 2019.
Jackson, a freshman, ran for 117 yards and amassed 49 receiving yards for the Buckeyes. Freshman QB Bryce Underwood was 8 of 18 for 63 yards and a late interception for Michigan. Kicker Dominic Zvada hit 3 of 3 field goal attempts, including a 49-yarder in snow showers.
No. 5 Texas Tech 49, West Virginia 0
Behren Morton threw all three of his touchdown passes in the first half as the Red Raiders used a fast start to earn a spot in the Big 12 Conference championship game for the first time with a victory over the Mountaineers in Morgantown, W.Va.
Terrance Carter Jr. had 10 receptions for 98 yards, while Caleb Douglas had 127 receiving yards and two first-half touchdown catches as the Red Raiders (11-1, 8-1 Big 12) won their fifth consecutive game. Morton completed 25 of 32 passes for 310 yards and Cameron Dickey had 79 yards rushing with a receiving TD.
Scotty Fox Jr. completed 13 of 23 passes for 98 yards and one interception as the Mountaineers (4-8, 2-7) lost their last two games to end their season. It was the first time since the 2013 season that West Virginia finished with fewer than five wins.
No. 6 Oregon 26, Washington 14
Atticus Sappington made all four of his field goals, including a career-long 51-yard kick late in the third quarter, and the Ducks held on for a win over the Huskies in Seattle.
Dante Moore completed 20 of 29 passes for 286 yards and a touchdown and ran for another score for Oregon (11-1, 8-1 Big Ten), which finished the regular season on a six-game winning streak. Malik Benson led the Ducks with five receptions for 102 yards and a touchdown.
For Washington (8-4, 5-4), Demond Williams Jr. threw two interceptions and was sacked four times as Oregon’s defense pressured him for much of the afternoon. He added a pair of touchdown passes to Denzel Boston.
No. 8 Oklahoma 17, LSU 13
John Mateer threw for 318 yards and two touchdowns, overcoming three interceptions to help the Sooner hold on to beat LSU in Norman, Oklahoma.
Mateer hit Isaiah Sategna III for a 58-yard touchdown with just 4:16 remaining, and then Oklahoma (10-2, 6-2 SEC) held on in the closing minutes to escape. After Sategna’s score, a 47-yard kick return by Barion Brown got the Tigers to midfield, but they were unable to find the end zone. The win likely puts the Sooners into the College Football Playoff for the first time since 2019.
LSU (7-5, 3-5) recorded only 113 yards passing and 85 yards on the ground. It was LSU’s lowest offensive output since November 3, 2018, when they mustered only 196 total yards against then-No. 2 Alabama.
No. 11 BYU 41, UCF 21
The Cougars made a statement, rallying from an early 14-0 deficit to beat the Knights in Provo, Utah.
BYU running back LJ Martin rushed for three touchdowns. Quarterback Bear Bachmeier had 289 yards passing with an 84 percent completion percentage, and wide receiver Parker Kingston had two 45-plus-yard touchdowns. Meanwhile, UCF quarterback Tayven Jackson threw for 232 yards and two touchdowns.
Arizona State’s loss to Arizona last night solidified BYU’s place in the Big 12 championship game next week against Texas Tech, providing a chance for the Cougars to avenge their lone loss.
No. 12 Miami 38, No. 22 Pitt 7
Malachi Toney threw a touchdown pass and caught another while amassing 156 scrimmage yards to lead the Hurricanes to a dominant win over the Panthers in Pittsburgh.
Miami quarterback Carson Beck completed 23 of 29 passes for 267 yards, three touchdowns and one interception. The Hurricanes (10-2, 6-2 ACC) finished their regular season on a four-game winning streak.
Pitt quarterback Mason Heintschel completed 22 of 32 passes for 199 yards, one touchdown and one interception. Heintschel tossed his lone touchdown pass to Justin Holmes with 14:20 left in the second quarter to give the Panthers their only lead of the game at 7-3.
No. 14 Vanderbilt 45, No. 19 Tennessee 24
Sedrick Alexander ran for three touchdowns as the Commodores picked up a road win over the Volunteers in SEC action from Knoxville, Tenn.
Vanderbilt outgained Tennessee 582-382 in the 119th all-time matchup between the schools — and the first ever meeting where both teams were ranked. Diego Pavia went 18 of 28 for 268 yards with a touchdown and two interceptions for the Commodores (10-2, 6-2 SEC), while adding 20 carries for 165 yards and a score. Alexander rushed 10 times for 115 yards, helping Vanderbilt average 8.5 yards per carry as a team.
Joey Aguilar went 29 of 44 for 299 yards and a touchdown for Tennessee (8-4, 4-4). DeSean Bishop fueled the Volunteers’ ground game with 20 carries for 97 yards and two touchdowns.
No. 17 Southern California 29, UCLA 10
Jayden Maiava threw both of his touchdown passes in the second half to spearhead the Trojans’ comeback win over the rival Bruins in Los Angeles.
After King Miller carried for a 5-yard score on the first drive of the game, USC (9-3, 7-2 Big Ten Conference) failed to score on four straight possessions (including two missed field goals). The Trojans finally broke through just before the end of the third quarter when Maiava found Makai Lemon for the only time in the contest, but on their 11th touchdown connection of the season, on a 32-yard bomb for a 14-10 USC lead.
USC, which has won four of its last five, struck again on its next possession when Maiava hit Lake McRee on a goal-line touchdown that pushed its lead to 21-10. UCLA (3-9, 3-6), which scored on a pair of lengthy time-consuming drives in the second quarter, saw its second-half possessions end in three consecutive punts and a turnover on downs before another turnover on downs effectively sealed the USC win.
No. 18 Virginia 27, Virginia Tech 7
J’Mari Taylor rushed for 80 yards and one touchdown and also passed for a score to help the host Cavaliers roll to an easy victory over the Hokies in Atlantic Coast Conference play in Charlottesville, Va.
Chandler Morris completed 21 of 35 passes for 182 yards and added a rushing score for the Cavaliers (10-2, 7-1), who will play in the ACC championship game on Dec. 6 against Duke, a 49-32 winner over visiting Wake Forest on Saturday.
Sage Ennis caught a touchdown pass as Virginia defeated the Hokies for just the third time in the past 25 meetings. The other victories came in 2003 and 2019. Shamarius Peterkin turned a short pass from Kyron Drones into a 57-yard touchdown with less than five minutes to play to keep the Hokies (3-9, 2-6) from being shut out.
Cal 38, No. 21 SMU 35
Kendrick Raphael scored on a 2-yard run with 43 seconds remaining as the Golden Bears, in interim coach Nick Rolovich’s debut, stunned the Mustangs in Berkeley, Calif., denying SMU a spot in the Atlantic Coast Conference championship game.
A 1-yard plunge by T.J. Harden with 2:22 remaining capped SMU’s run of touchdowns on four consecutive second-half possessions for a 35-31 lead, putting the Mustangs (8-4, 6-2 ACC) in the driver’s seat for a shot at Virginia for the ACC title next Saturday.
But freshman quarterback Jaron-Keawe Sagapolutele, who threw four touchdowns, completed five consecutive passes to quickly move the Golden Bears (7-5, 4-4) in scoring position. Raphael then capped a 111-yard rushing night with his scamper that barely broke the plane of the goal line. SMU had a chance to force overtime, but Sam Keltner missed wide right from 52 yards on a potential game-tying field goal with three seconds left.
No. 24 Tulane 27, Charlotte 0
The Green Wave did their damage early by finding paydirt on their first two drives, locking in a spot in the American Conference title game by blanking the 49ers in New Orleans, La.
With the win, the Green Wave (10-2, 7-1) earned the right to host North Texas next Friday night in the American Football Championship in the first meeting between the teams this season.
Tulane’s Jake Retzlaff went 28 of 38 for 291 yards and two interceptions but rushed for two scores. Anthony Brown-Stephens had nine catches for 98 yards. Jamauri McClure rushed for 69 yards on 11 carries. For Charlotte (1-11, 0-8), Grayson Loftis completed 18 of 25 passes for 140 yards with an interception.
–Field Level Media