Auburn Ties for No. 2 Spot

Auburn caught Oklahoma in the Associated Press top 25 poll Sunday, creating a tie for second place behind No. 1-ranked USC.

It’s the second tie for No. 2 in the history of the AP media poll. The other was Nov. 3, 1991, when Miami and Washington were tied behind No. 1 Florida State. The Hurricanes and Huskies eventually shared the national title.

Auburn, which beat No. 8 Georgia, 24-6, on Saturday, received 1,536 points, the same as Oklahoma. Auburn got six first-place votes; the Sooners received eight. Last week, Oklahoma led Auburn by 43 points and had 10 first-place votes to the Tigers’ three.

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Kansas Coach Mark Mangino, who suggested that officials deliberately tried to influence the outcome of his team’s 27-23 loss to Texas on Saturday, reiterated an apology he had released in a statement immediately after the game.

“It’s inexcusable,” he said.

Mangino said he did not say things that he truly believed and that he was caught up in the emotions of the game. “I was trying to say something to comfort the players, who were distraught after the game,” he said.

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An audit of Colorado’s football program begun in the wake of a sex-and-alcohol recruiting scandal found no evidence that escorts or strippers were hired to attract athletes. ... Western Michigan (1-9) fired Coach Gary Darnell. ... Occidental (8-1) will play host to Willamette (7-3) in an NCAA Division III first-round playoff game Saturday at Patterson Field.