Michigan State, Georgia, Wisconsin roll to lopsided victories

Connor Cook threw two touchdown passes and ran for a score and No. 11 Michigan STate scored the third-most points in program history, smashing Eastern Michigan, 73-14, on Saturday in East Lansing, Mich.

The Spartans (2-1) came up three points short of matching the school record set in 1989 against Northwestern and found the end zone on their first five possessions. Michigan State scored 75 points against Arizona in 1949.

Eastern Michigan (1-3) was outgained 320-1 in the first half and surrendered the game’s first 20 first downs. The Eagles have been outscored 155-17 by Florida, Old Dominion and the Spartans.

Michigan State finished with 336 yards rushing, 496 in total offense and held the Eagles to five first downs.

Cook wound up 5 for 6 for 83 yards, accounting for all his touchdowns in the first quarter. Delton Williams led 10 Spartan ball carriers with 103 yards and three TDs on 10 carries.

No. 13 Georgia 66, Troy 0

Sony Michel ran for 155 yards and three touchdowns to highlight a big day for freshmen in the Bulldogs’ rout in Athens, Ga.

Michel, playing behind Todd Gurley, had a 75-yard gain to set up his second touchdown.

Among other standout freshmen for Georgia (2-1) were receiver Isaiah McKenzie, who scored on a 52-yard punt return, and Bryce Ramsey, who threw his first career touchdown pass.

Dontreal Pruitt started at quarterback for Troy (0-4) as Brandon Silvers was held out after leaving last week’s loss to Abilene Christian with a concussion. The Trojans’ last 0-4 start was in 1982.

No. 19 Wisconsin 68, Bowling Green 17

Melvin Gordon rushed for career highs of 253 yards and five touchdowns, and the Badgers ran for a Big Ten-record 644 yards in the trampling of the Falcons at Madison, Wis.

Gordon had 179 yards and four scores by halftime alone before dashing for a 69-yard touchdown on his first carry of the second half. He silenced any doubters worried about his 38-yard outing the previous game.

The Badgers (2-1) forced two turnovers on back-to-back possessions by the Falcons (2-2) in the first half to break open a close game.

Gordon capitalized each time with scores before closing the half with a 21-yard touchdown run for the highlight reel.

The team rushing total was the most in the Big Ten’s modern era, dating back to 1946.

Georgia Tech 27, Virginia Tech 24

Harrison Butker kicked a 24-yard field goal with no time remaining and the Yellow Jackets rallied from an early deficit to unbeaten with the victory at Blacksburg, Va.

The Yellow Jackets (4-0, 1-0 Atlantic Coast Conference) trailed 16-10 at halftime and 24-17 entering the fourth quarter, but returned one of Hokies’ quarterback Michael Brewer’s three interceptions for a touchdown and turned his last one into the drive to Butker’s decisive second field goal of the game.

They also got a huge day from their own quarterback, Justin Thomas. He ran 22 times for 165 yards, and completed just 7 of 18 passes, but for 125 yards and the tying touchdown with 2:03 left. Brewer, a transfer from Texas Tech, has now thrown seven interceptions in his last three games for the Hokies (2-2, 0-1), who were foiled in their bid to start ACC play with a victory.

Iowa 24, Pittsburgh 20

Mark Weisman ran for 88 yards and two touchdowns, including a 1-yard plunge with 6:56 remaining as the Hawkeyes rallied for the win at Pittsburgh.

The Hawkeyes (3-1) trailed by 10 at the half but surged when C.J. Beathard replaced starting quarterback Jake Rudock in the third quarter.

Beathard hit Damond Powell for a 62-yard gain to jumpstart the comeback and Weisman followed with a 10-yard sprint into the end zone for his first score. His second score gave the Hawkeyes their first lead.

James Conner rushed for 155 yards and a touchdown but was held in check during the second half as the Panthers (3-1) failed to improve to 4-0 for the first time since 2000. Chad Voytik passed for a career-high 250 yards but Pitt’s last-gasp drive ended with an interception.

Maryland 34, Syracuse 20

C.J. Brown threw for 280 yards and two touchdowns, cornerback William Lively returned an interception 88 yards for another score, and the Terrapins beat mistake-prone Orange in Syracuse, N.Y.

Lively, who forced a fumble, had an interception, and returned a punt for a touchdown against West Virginia last week, intercepted a Terrel Hunt pass at the Maryland 12 and raced down the right sideline for a score with 3:37 to go in the first half, giving Maryland a commanding 31-13 lead.

Maryland (3-1), which entered the game averaging 37.7 points per game, the highest in school history, almost scored its average in the first half en route to its 18-point lead at intermission.

Alabama 42, Florida 21

Blake Sims recorded Alabama’s second-best passing day with 445 yards and the third-ranked Crimson Tide overcame a sloppy performance to beat Florida 42-21 on Saturday.

The Tide (4-0, 1-0 Southeastern Conference) committed four turnovers that turned into 21 points for the Gators (2-1, 1-1), who still couldn’t handle the Sims-to-Amari Cooper connection.

Sims threw touchdown passes of 87 yards to Kenyan Drake on the opening play and 79 to Cooper later in the first quarter. Cooper, who came in leading the nation in receptions, caught 10 passes for 201 yards and three touchdowns.

The Tide’s turnovers and other miscues kept the game close into the fourth quarter. Alabama’s 645 total yards was the most the Gators have allowed. Florida’s Jeff Driskel was harassed and ineffective passing. He was 9-of-28 passing for 93 yards and was intercepted twice while the offense produced just 200 yards.

Texas A&M 58, SMU 6

Kenny Hill had 322 yards of total offense playing only the first half, Jeremy Tabuyo turned two short passes into touchdowns and sixth-ranked Texas A&M rolled to a 58-6 victory Saturday at SMU.

Trey Williams ran for two touchdowns for the Aggies, who last started 4-0 in 2006.

The Mustangs (0-3) played for the first time since coach June Jones resigned only two games into his seventh season.

Hill, the thrilling sophomore who succeeded 2012 Heisman Trophy winner Johnny Manziel as the starting quarterback, completed 16 of 22 passes for 265 yards with two touchdowns and his first interception at Texas A&M. His 58-yard run set up another touchdown as the Aggies built a 38-3 halftime lead in SMU’s home opener. Tabuyo had a 30-yard TD from Hill, and a 50-yarder from Kyle Allen in the third quarter.

Indiana 31, Missouri 27

D’Angelo Roberts scored on a 3-yard touchdown run with 22 seconds remaining and Nate Sudfeld passed for 252 yards and a touchdown to help Indiana upset No. 18 Missouri, 31-27, on Saturday.

After giving up 10 consecutive points to Missouri in the fourth quarter, the Hoosiers (2-1) traveled 75 yards on six plays to reclaim the lead. Tevin Coleman ran 44 yards to the Missouri 15-yard line to setup the game-winning score.

Coleman finished with 132 yards on 19 carries.

Maty Mauk completed 28 of 47 passes for 326 yards and two touchdowns and Russell Hansbrough gained 119 yards on the ground for Missouri (3-1). The Tigers play at South Carolina next week to start a stretch of eight consecutive games against Southeastern Conference opponents.