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College football: Handful of top 15 teams fall; Tennessee snaps conference losing streak with upset of No. 21 Auburn; No. 5 Notre Dame and No. 10 UCF survive

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Jarrett Guarantano passed for 328 yards and two touchdowns and Tennessee snapped an 11-game SEC losing streak with a 30-24 victory against No. 21 Auburn on Saturday.

The Volunteers (3-3, 1-2) forced three turnovers from Auburn’s lackluster offense, intercepting Jarrett Stidham twice and getting a strip sack that resulted in touchdown by Alontae Taylor.

The Tigers (4-3, 1-3) are off to their worst SEC start since also going 1-3 in 2015.

Stidham’s first pick led to a 42-yard touchdown pass from Guarantano to Ty Chandler to tie the game at 10 in the second quarter.

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Guarantano got rolling from there. The sophomore spread the ball around, completing passes to eight different Volunteers, six of which finished with a double-digit average. Jauan Jennings capped a 12-play, 86-yard drive in the third quarter with a 25-yard touchdown catch to give Tennessee its first lead at 20-17 late in the third quarter.

Two plays later, Stidham was sacked and fumbled at his own 15. After several failed attempts to secure the loose ball Taylor recovered in the end zone.

Stidham, who finished 28 of 45 for 322 yards and two touchdowns to go with his three turnovers, returned on the next drive to echoing boos inside Jordan-Hare.

Auburn scored with under a minute remaining on a touchdown pass to Seth Williams, but was unable to recover the onside kick attempt.

The Vols’ offense entered the game ranked No. 94 nationally in third-down conversions, but Guarantano dissected the Tigers’ secondary on those downs with 11-of-14 passing for 188 yards and a score. The Vols converted 10 of 19 tries on third down.

at Iowa State 30, No. 6 West Virginia 14: Freshman Brock Purdy threw for 254 yards and three TDs and Iowa State throttled sixth-ranked West Virginia 30-14 on Saturday night, handing the Mountaineers their first loss in emphatic fashion.

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David Montgomery had a career-high 189 yards rushing for the Cyclones (3-3, 2-2 Big 12), who capped a wild day by beating a Top 25 team for the fifth time in seven tries.

West Virginia (5-1, 3-1) was the fourth Top 10 team to fall Saturday. LSU pounded No. 2 Georgia 36-16, No. 7 Washington fell 30-27 in overtime at No. 17 Oregon, and No. 8 Penn State lost to Michigan State 21-17.

at No. 5 Notre Dame 19, Pittsburgh 14: Ian Book threw a 35-yard touchdown pass to Miles Boykin with 5:43 remaining and No. 5 Notre Dame remained unbeaten, coming from behind and then holding off Pittsburgh 19-14 on Saturday.

The Fighting Irish are 7-0 for the first time since 2012, the year they went to the BCS title game, and this game against Pitt was reminiscent of that season’s victory in South Bend against the Panthers (3-4).

Pitt led 14-12 thanks to a long first-quarter touchdown drive and a 99-yard kickoff return by Maurice Ffrench to start the second half.

Michigan State 21, at No. 8 Penn State 17: Brian Lewerke threw a 25-yard touchdown pass to Felton Davis with 19 seconds left to lift Michigan State past No. 8 Penn State 21-17 on Saturday, making it two consecutive seasons that the Spartans used a late score to hand the Nittany Lions a second straight loss.

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Lewerke completed 25 of 52 passes for 259 yards with an interception and two touchdowns for the Spartans (4-2, 2-1 Big Ten), who were coming off a loss at Northwestern but handed Penn State a devastating loss - just like last year.

at No. 9 Texas 23, at Baylor 17: Shane Buechele came on for injured quarterback Sam Ehlinger early in the first quarter and No. 9 Texas slugged out a 23-17 win over Baylor that ended when the Bears’ final pass sailed through the back of the end zone Saturday.

Baylor quarterback Charlie Brewer drove the Bears from their own 3 to the Texas 17 before he had to rush his final three throws under intense pressure.

The victory makes Texas (6-1, 4-0 Big 12 Conference) bowl eligible.

No. 10 Central Florida 31, at Memphis 30: McKenzie Milton threw for 296 yards and ran for the go-ahead touchdown in the fourth quarter as No. 10 Central Florida weathered its first significant test of the season before escaping with a 31-30 victory over Memphis on Saturday.

Milton’s 7-yard touchdown with 12:14 left completed a comeback for the Knights (6-0, 3-0 American Athletic Conference), who trailed 30-14 with 2:04 left in the first half. The victory was UCF’s 19th straight - the nation’s longest winning streak -- but it was by far the toughest game of the season for the Knights, who defeated their first five opponents by double-digits.

Virginia 19, No. 16 Miami, Fla. 13: Jordan Ellis ran for a touchdown and Virginia kept No. 16 Miami’s high-powered offense from ever getting going in a 19-13 victory Saturday night.

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Ellis scored on a 7-yard run in the first half and Brian Delaney kicked four field goals for the Cavaliers (4-2, 2-1 Atlantic Coast Conference). Miami appeared to have stopped Virginia on a third-down run in the final minutes, but a personal foul call against Tito Odenigbo kept the drive alive and the Cavaliers were able to most of the rest of the clock out. Delaney’s 30-yard field goal came with 30 seconds to play.

The Hurricanes (5-2, 2-1) scored on an 11-yard run by Malik Rosier with 3:04 left, pulling them to 16-13, but when they tried an onsides kick, Virginia tight end Evan Butts fielded it and returned it 30 yards to the Miami 27. The Hurricanes used all three of their timeouts to stop the clock, but Odenigbo’s personal foul after Bryce Perkins was stopped a yard short of a first down foiled their comeback bid.

No. 14 Florida 37, at Vanderbilt 27: Jordan Scarlett ran 48 yards for the go-ahead touchdown on the first play of the fourth quarter, and No. 14 Florida rallied from an 18-point deficit to beat Vanderbilt 37-27 Saturday in a game marred by a near brawl , with both head coaches yelling as each team spilled onto the field.

That overshadowed the Gators (6-1, 4-1 Southeastern Conference) scoring 24 straight points after Vanderbilt jumped out to a 21-3 lead midway through the second quarter.

With the comeback, Florida won its fifth straight this season. The Gators also beat Vanderbilt (3-4, 0-3) for the fifth straight year and 27th time in 28 games in this series.

at No. 1 Alabama 39, Missouri 10: Tua Tagovailoa passed for 265 yards and three touchdowns before leaving with an injury in No. 1 Alabama’s 39-10 victory over Missouri on Saturday night.

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The Crimson Tide (7-0, 4-0 Southeastern Conference) shrugged off another would-be challenger in the league, but got a scare when the star quarterback went down after sliding at the end of a run in the third quarter.

Playing with a sprained right knee, Tagovailoa went to the medical tent on the sideline. He was joined by his parents, and Jalen Hurts led the Tide the rest of the way with a big lead over the Tigers (3-3, 0-3).

at No. 3 Ohio State 30, Minnesota 14: Dwayne Haskins threw for 412 yards and three touchdowns as No. 3 Ohio State held off persistent Minnesota to win 30-14 Saturday in a game where little went well for the Buckeyes beyond their passing game.

The Buckeyes (7-0, 4-0) needed a pair of Blake Haubiel second-half field goals and a late TD pass from Haskins to K.J. Hill to put away the Gophers (3-3, 0-3).

Hill also made the play of the game with a turn-around, one-hand grab that he turned into a touchdown in the second quarter. He had a career-high nine catches for 187 yards.

at No. 12 Michigan 38, No. 15 Wisconsin 13: Shea Patterson accounted for 214 yards of offense and a touchdown, leading No. 12 Michigan to a 38-13 victory over No. 15 Wisconsin on Saturday night.

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The Wolverines (6-1, 4-0 Big Ten) beat a ranked conference team for the first time since topping the Badgers two years ago. They have won six straight games since opening this season with a seven-point loss to then-No. 12 Notre Dame.

The Badgers (4-2, 2-1) had won a record 17 straight regular season Big Ten games, and 10 consecutive road games in and out of conference play.

No. 22 Texas A&M 26, at South Carolina 23: Tight end Jace Sternberger knew plenty of people were waiting for No. 22 Texas A&M to fall apart after its surprisingly strong start.

The Aggies showed Saturday they’re not going away any time soon.

Sternberger had seven catches for 145 yards, Kellen Mond threw for 353 yards and Seth Small had four field goals as Texas A&M held off South Carolina 26-23.

Sternberger had heard too many comparisons with past Aggies teams who opened strong, then faded as the Southeastern Conference season wore on.

In other games:

- Kasim Hill threw three touchdown passes, Ty Johnson ran for 132 yards and Maryland had five interceptions against woeful Rutgers in a 34-7 victory. The Terrapins (4-2, 2-1 Big Ten) led 24-0 at halftime and cruised to the finish. Rutgers (1-6, 0-4) lost its sixth straight and didn’t score until the game’s final minute. Freshman quarterback Artur Sitkowski was pulled late in the third quarter after going 2 for 16 for 8 yards and four interceptions.

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- Alex Barnes pounded away for 181 yards and four touchdowns, Kansas State’s much-maligned defense held Oklahoma State in check, and the Wildcats (3-4, 1-3 Big 12) bludgeoned the slumping Cowboys in a 31-12 victory. Kansas State snapped a three-game skid by beating Oklahoma State (4-3, 1-3) for the second straight time, the first time that’s happened since 2002.

- Tyree Jackson threw a touchdown pass and ran for a score and Buffalo breezed to a 24-6 victory over Akron in Mid-American Conference action on Saturday. Buffalo is now 6-1 (3-0) for the first time since 1959. The Bulls are bowl eligible for a second straight season and fourth overall.

- Daniel Jones threw a 48-yard touchdown pass to T.J. Rahming to give Duke the lead and the Blue Devils turned three Georgia Tech (3-4, 1-3 Atlantic Coast Conference) fumbles into touchdowns in the final three minutes of the third quarter to beat the Yellow Jackets 28-14 on Saturday. Jones threw for 206 yards and three touchdowns for Duke (5-1, 1-1).

- Nate Stanley threw for 320 yards and a season-high six touchdowns, and the Iowa Hawkeyes beat the Indiana Hoosiers 42-16 in Big Ten action. Stanley connected with nine different wide receivers, completing 21 of 33 throws in a game where he was only sacked once

- David Bailey ran for 112 yards and a touchdown, Travis Levy recovered a blocked punt in the end zone for a score for the second straight week and Boston College beat struggling Louisville 38-20 on Saturday. Anthony Brown completed 16 of 22 passes for 179 yards and a TD for the Eagles (5-2, 2-1 Atlantic Coast Conference). Ben Glines rushed for 107 yards. Jawon Pass was 17 of 31 with 170 yards and ran for a TD for the Cardinals (2-5, 0-4). It was Louisville’s fourth consecutive loss.

- Clayton Thorson threw for 455 yards and three touchdowns, and Drew Luckenbaugh kicked a 37-yard field goal in overtime to give Northwestern a 34-31 victory over winless Nebraska. Nebraska (0-6, 0-4 Big Ten) blew a 10-point lead in the final 5:51 in regulation and fell to 0-6 for the first time ever.

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- Purdue rolled over Illinois 46-7, dampening the Illini homecoming festivities and dimming their postseason hopes. Illinois (3-3, 1-2 Big Ten) arguably played its worst game of the year.

- Virginia Tech rallies with a 98-yard drive to beat North Carolina 22-19. Ryan Willis threw the go-ahead 1-yard score to Dalton Keene with 19 seconds left to cap the drive. The Tar Heels were positioned to take a two-score lead, but Michael Carter fumbled at the goal line to set up the Hokies’ final drive.

- Jordan Ta’amu accounted for 528 yards of total offense and engineered a late game-winning drive to help Mississippi come back for a 37-33 win over Arkansas on Saturday night.

Other scores:

at USC 31, No. 19 Colorado 20

UCLA 37, at California 7

at No. 17 Oregon 30, No. 7 Washington 27, OT

at No. 13 Louisiana State 36, No. 2 Georgia 16

Alabama Birmingham 42, at Rice 0

Army 52, San Jose State 3

Boise State 31, at Nevada 27

at Brigham Young 49, Hawaii 23

at Charlotte 40, Western Kentucky 14

at Colorado State 20, New Mexico 18

at Eastern Michigan 28, Toledo 26

at Florida International 24, Middle Tennessee 21

at Fresno State 27, Wyoming 3

Houston 42, at East Carolina 20

at Louisiana Lafayette 66, New Mexico State 38

at Liberty 22, Troy 16

Louisiana Tech 31, at Texas San Antonio 3

Marshall 42, at Old Dominion 20

at Miami (Ohio) 31, Kent State 6

at Northern Illinois 24, Ohio 21

at North Texas 30, Southern Mississippi 7

Temple 24, at Navy 17

at Utah State 59, Nevada Las Vegas 28

Western Michigan 42, at Bowling Green 35

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