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CFB roundup: Florida upsets Ole Miss; Iowa upends Wisconsin

Florida receiver Demarcus Robinson (11) catches a 36-yard touchdown pass between Mississippi defensive backs Mike Hilton (38) and Tony Bridges (1) during the first half Saturday.

Florida receiver Demarcus Robinson (11) catches a 36-yard touchdown pass between Mississippi defensive backs Mike Hilton (38) and Tony Bridges (1) during the first half Saturday.

(Phelan M. Ebenhack / Associated Press)
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GAINESVILLE, Fla. -- Will Grier threw four touchdown passes to four receivers — all in the first half — and No. 25 Florida upset third-ranked Mississippi, 38-10, on Saturday night to give Coach Jim McElwain a signature win in his first season in Gainesville.

The redshirt freshman battled a stomach virus for two days before the game — feeling so ill that the Gators (5-0, 3-0) thought there was a chance Treon Harris might get the nod — but Grier started anyway and was sharper than ever.

Grier was sick all right.

He was downright nasty against the Rebels (4-1, 2-1 Southeastern Conference).

He completed 24 of 29 passes for 271 yards. He was poised in the pocket, precise with every throw and even closer to perfect than he was down the stretch against Tennessee last week.

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McElwain, meanwhile, became the first Florida coach since Steve Spurrier in 1990 to open his first season 5-0.

Iowa 10, No. 19 Wisconsin 6

MADISON, Wis. -- Jordan Canzeri ran for 125 yards and Iowa took advantage of four turnovers by Wisconsin quarterback Joel Stave to upset the 19th-ranked Badgers.

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Tight end George Kittle caught a 1-yard touchdown pass from C.J. Beathard in the second quarter for the only touchdown in the game and Iowa (5-0, 1-0 Big Ten) beat a ranked opponent for the first time in its last 10 attempts.

Stave was intercepted twice by Iowa cornerback Desmond King and lost two fumbles, including midway through the fourth quarter on Iowa’s 1-yard line. The Wisconsin quarterback tripped and lost the ball while attempting to hand off to freshman Taiwan Deal. Iowa’s Faith Ekakitie recovered.

Wisconsin (3-2, 0-1) had its 10-game winning streak at Camp Randall Stadium snapped, and lost for only the eighth time in its last 79 home games dating to 2004.

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The Badgers started their final drive on their 47 and drove to the Iowa 16, but Stave’s fourth-down pass to Troy Fumagalli fell incomplete with 36 seconds to go.

No. 12 Clemson 24, No. 6 Notre Dame 22

CLEMSON, S.C. -- Deshaun Watson threw two touchdowns pass and ran for a score, and Clemson stopped DeShone Kizer on a tying 2-point conversion to help the Tigers hold off Notre Dame.

Tigers linebacker B.J. Goodson had an interception and a fumble recovery to halt two fourth-quarter drives by the Fighting Irish (4-1). But the biggest stop was by defensive tackle Carlos Watkins, who brought down Kizer short of the goal line with 7 seconds left.

Kizer rallied Notre Dame from 21-3 down in the second half with two touchdown passes, the last a 1-yard toss to Torii Hunter Jr.

Clemson secured Notre Dame’s onside kick and closed out the victory, moving to 4-0 for fourth time in five years.

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No. 1 Ohio State 34, Indiana 27

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. -- Ezekiel Elliott scored on touchdown runs of 55, 65 and 75 yards in the second half, and No. 1 Ohio State came up with a final goal-line stand to escape with the win.

Elliott had a career best 274 yards on 23 carries.

The Buckeyes (5-0, 1-0 Big Ten) extended the FBS’ longest winning streak to 18 in a row.

Indiana (4-1, 0-1) lost the nation’s leading rusher, Jordan Howard, in the first half and its starting quarterback, Nate Sudfeld, in the third quarter. But the Hoosiers made things difficult for the defending national champions.

Elliott wiped out a 10-6 deficit with the 55-yard run, a 17-13 deficit with the 65-yard run and appeared to have sealed it when his 75-yarder made it 34-20.

But the Buckeyes still needed to break up a pass in the end zone on the final play.

No. 2 Michigan State 24, Purdue 21

EAST LANSING, Mich. -- LJ Scott ran for 146 yards and two touchdowns, and No. 2 Michigan State held on through a lackluster second half to win at home.

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The Spartans (5-0, 1-0 Big Ten) led 21-0 at halftime, but Purdue had the ball near midfield with a chance to tie or take the lead before David Blough threw incomplete on fourth down with about a minute to play in the game.

The Boilermakers (1-4, 0-1) turned the ball over three times in the first half.

Michigan State’s Connor Cook went 13 of 19 for 139 yards and a touchdown, and he became the school’s career leader with his 28th victory as the starting quarterback. Kirk Cousins won 27 games.

No. 4 TCU 50, Texas 7

FORT WORTH, Texas -- Trevone Boykin threw five touchdown passes, including four to freshman KaVontae Turpin, and No. 4 TCU rode a 30-point first quarter to a 50-7 rout of Texas on Saturday.

Josh Doctson broke the TCU record for receiving TDs with a pair of scores as the Horned Frogs (5-0, 2-0 Big 12) won their 13th straight game, second nationally to defending champion Ohio State, which took a 17-game streak into its game at Indiana.

The Longhorns (1-4, 0-2), plagued by special teams mistakes for the third straight game, scored a late touchdown to avoid matching the second-worst shutout loss in school history — 50-0 to Oklahoma 107 years ago. They are off to their worst start since going 1-9 in 1956.

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TCU beat Texas in consecutive years for the first time since 1958-59, outscoring the Longhorns, 98-17.

No. 5 Baylor 63, Texas Tech 35

ARLINGTON, Texas -- Seth Russell passed for 286 yards and four touchdowns and ran for two more scores, Shock Linwood ran for a career-high 221 yards and two touchdowns and Baylor began its pursuit of a third consecutive Big 12 championship with a victory over Texas Tech.

Baylor (4-0, 1-0) entered with the FBS’ top offense in scoring (64.0 points per game), total offense (767.0 yards per game) and rushing yards (379.7 per game). The Bears gained 680 yards, 368 rushing.

Corey Coleman caught touchdown passes of 24, 16 and 16 yards.

Russell was 15 for 23 with one interception.

The Red Raiders (3-2, 0-2) dropped their second straight game after sweeping their nonconference opponents. They lost 55-52 to No. 4 TCU last week.

No. 9 LSU 44, Eastern Michigan 22

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BATON ROUGE, La. -- Leonard Fournette highlighted his third straight 200-yard game with a 75-yard touchdown run, and No. 9 LSU overcame a fitful performance to beat Eastern Michigan.

Fournette had 233 yards and three touchdowns on 26 carries to remain among the top contenders for the Heisman Trophy. He also became the first player in the history of the Southeastern Conference to rush for 200-plus yards in three straight games.

But some might have expected even more from the 6-foot-1, 230-pound sophomore against the Eagles (1-4), who came in allowing a nation’s-worst 373.2 yards rushing per game.

The Eagles stacked their defense to stop the run, but the Tigers (4-0) struggled to cash in through the air. LSU quarterback Brandon Harris was 4 of 15 for 80 yards with one interception.

No. 13 Alabama 38, No. 8 Georgia 10

ATHENS, Ga. -- Jake Coker ran the offense to perfection, the defense turned in a dominating performance, and No. 13 Alabama even got a touchdown from its special teams in a rout of Georgia that re-established the Crimson Tide as a force in the national race.

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Coming of a home loss to Mississippi two weeks ago, Alabama (4-1, 1-1 Southeastern) jumped ahead 24-3 at halftime and iced the victory on Georgia’s first offensive play of the second half. Eddie Jackson intercepted Brice Ramsey’s pass and returned it 50 yards for a touchdown.

Coker, with an assist from Lane Kiffin’s play-calling, completed 11 of 16 for 190 yards, passed for one touchdown, and ran for another. Derrick Henry rushed for 148 yards and scored on a 30-yard run that put Alabama ahead to stay midway through the second quarter.

Georgia (4-1, 2-1) yanked starting quarterback Greyson Lambert late in the first half, but it didn’t matter. He even went back in after Ramsey threw his second interception.

No. 15 Oklahoma 44, No. 23 West Virginia 24

NORMAN, Okla. -- Baker Mayfield passed for 320 yards and three touchdowns, and the Sooners won the Big 12 Conference opener for both teams.

Dede Westbrook caught five passes for a 107 yards and Durron Neal had 87 yards receiving for the Sooners (4-0).

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Oklahoma linebacker Eric Striker had 13 tackles, including two sacks and three tackles for loss. He forced a fumble in the fourth quarter that Jordan Evans returned 41 yards for a touchdown. Jordan Thomas intercepted two passes for the Sooners.

The Sooners sacked West Virginia quarterback Skyler Howard seven times, and he lost two fumbles. West Virginia had committed just two turnovers in its first three games, but had five on Saturday. Wendell Smallwood ran for 111 yards for the Mountaineers (3-1).

No. 11 Florida State 24, Wake Forest 16

WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. -- Dalvin Cook had a 94-yard touchdown run before leaving with a left leg injury, and Florida State held on to beat Wake Forest.

Johnathan Vickers added a 9-yard touchdown run and Everett Golson was 20 of 31 for 202 yards with a 5-yard scoring pass to Kermit Whitfield.

Roberto Aguayo added a 25-yard field goal for the Seminoles (4-0, 2-0 Atlantic Coast Conference). Freshman Kendall Hinton was 27 of 42 for 215 yards against the nation’s No. 4 pass defense with a 7-yard touchdown pass to Cam Serigne.

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Mike Weaver kicked three field goals for the Demon Deacons (2-3, 0-2), including a 29-yarder with 3:34 left that pulled them within eight.

Wake Forest got the ball back with 1:42 left and reached the Florida State 20 before Hinton overthrew Serigne in the end zone and a diving Tyler Hunter intercepted it with 21 seconds left.

No. 16 Northwestern 27, Minnesota 0

EVANSTON, Ill. -- Clayton Thorson scored two touchdowns, Justin Jackson ran for 120 yards and the Northwestern defense turned in another dominant performance as the No. 16 Wildcats shut out Minnesota.

Thorson, a freshman quarterback, scored on runs of 5 and 1 yards to spark the offense for Northwestern (5-0, 1-0 Big Ten). The Wildcats defense, which has allowed only three touchdowns in five games, did the rest.

Northwestern defensive tackle Tyler Lancaster forced a fumble by Minnesota quarterback Mitch Leidner that linebacker Anthony Walker returned 13 yards for a touchdown that gave the Wildcats a 27-0 lead early in the fourth quarter.

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Minnesota (3-2, 0-1) turned the ball over twice and finished with only 173 yards. The Golden Gophers also failed to convert on all three of its fourth down conversion attempts.

No. 20 Oklahoma State 36, Kansas State 34

STILLWATER, Okla. -- Ben Grogan made a 37-yard field goal with 32 seconds remaining to lift Oklahoma State past Kansas State.

Grogan rebounded to make the winner after having an extra-point blocked. Last week, he made field goals from 41 and 40 yards in the final 1:33 to give the Cowboys (5-0, 2-0 Big 12) a 30-27 victory at Texas.

After the Wildcats (3-1, 0-1) built a 28-13 lead late in the second quarter, the Cowboys rallied to take a 33-28 lead on Mason Rudolph’s 3-yard touchdown pass to Brandon Sheperd with 6:06 to go.

Joe Hubener scored on an 8-yard run to give K-State a 34-33 advantage with 3:01 left. The quarterback returned in the fourth quarter after spending most of the game on the sideline because of an apparent head injury.

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No. 22 Michigan 28, Maryland 0

COLLEGE PARK, Md. -- Desmond Morgan had nine tackles and an interception, part of a dominating defensive performance by No. 22 Michigan in a rout at Maryland.

In winning its first Big Ten opener under Jim Harbaugh, Michigan (4-1, 1-0) picked off three passes and limited Maryland to 105 yards. It was the second straight shutout for the Wolverines, who have allowed a total of 14 points in their last four games.

Morgan, a senior inside linebacker, picked off a pass in the first quarter and was a major reason why the Terrapins (2-3, 0-1) finished with 29 yards rushing after averaging 196 over their first four games.

Michigan led by only 6-0 at halftime before pulling away with two third-quarter touchdowns. After Jake Rudock connected with Drake Johnson for a 31-yard score, wide receiver Jehu Chesson took an inside handoff and sprinted down the left sideline for a 66-yard TD.

That made it 21-0, a deficit way too formidable for Maryland to overcome.

No. 24 California 34, Washington State 28

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BERKELEY -- Jared Goff got off to a shaky start and still threw for 390 yards and four touchdowns to lead No. 24 California to a victory over Washington State in the Golden Bears’ first game as a ranked team in six years.

Goff threw an early interception and was off target on a few throws before finding his groove. He threw two TD passes in a less than 2 minutes late in the third quarter surrounding a successful onside kick to erase an eight-point deficit and lead the Bears (5-0, 2-0 Pac-12) to their best start since 2007.

Luke Falk threw two touchdown passes and ran for another score for the Cougars (2-2, 0-1). They have lost 28 of their past 28 games against ranked opponents.

Penn State 20, Army 14

STATE COLLEGE, Pa. -- Christian Hackenberg passed for 156 yards and a touchdown as Penn State beat Army at Beaver Stadium.

Nick Scott ran for a touchdown, Mike Gesicki caught one and Joey Julius kicked two field goals for the Nittany Lions (4-1). Army backup quarterback A.J. Schurr ran for 74 yards and two touchdowns for the Black Knights (1-4), but three fumbles kept Army’s triple-option offense grounded.

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Scott’s scored on an 11-yard run in the first quarter and Julius kicked a 37-yard field goal to give Penn State a 10-0 lead at

halftime. Julius was good again from 27-yards to begin the third quarter before Schurr finished an 8-play drive with a 3-yard touchdown plunge.

Hackenberg found Gesicki down the sideline for a 33-yard score at the end of the third. Schurr scored on a 56-yard run up the middle before he was sacked on fourth-and-5 by Penn State linebacker Jason Cabinda that sealed the win for Penn State.

Missouri 24, South Carolina 10

COLUMBIA, Mo. -- Three turnovers helped Missouri on its way to the win over visiting South Carolina.

Freshman Drew Lock started at quarterback for Missouri in place of Maty Mauk, who was suspended Tuesday for violating team policies. Lock completed 21 of 28 passes for 136 yards and two touchdowns, helping the Tigers (4-1, 1-1) win their first Southeast Conference game of the season.

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Lorenzo Nunez threw three interceptions in his second start for the Gamecocks (2-3, 0-2), finishing 15 of 24 for 172 yards and a touchdown. He also carried the ball 15 times for 60 yards.

Missouri gained a season-high 163 rushing yards on 42 attempts. Ish Witter had 17 rushes for 98 yards and his first touchdown of the season. Russell Hansbrough had 11 rushes for 43 yards. The Tigers host No. 25 Florida next Saturday in the school’s 104th homecoming. South Carolina will return home to face No. 9 LSU.

Pittsburgh 17, Virginia Tech 13

BLACKSBURG, Va. -- Qadree Ollison ran for 122 yards and a second-half touchdown and Pittsburgh limited Virginia Tech to just 100 yards of offense in both teams’ Atlantic Coast Conference opener.

The Panthers (3-1) won for the sixth time in the last seven meetings against their old Big East rivals, largely on the backs of the defense that sacked Brenden Motley seven times and intercepted three passes.

Virginia Tech (2-3) finished with 9 rushing yards on 33 carries, and lost 57 yards because of the sacks.

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Ollison provided a huge offensive boost for the Panthers to start the second half. After Tyler Boyd returned the kickoff to the 32, Ollison ran 43 yards around the left side on the first play from scrimmage. He took it the final 25 yards through the left side on the next play, extending the Panthers’ lead to 17-7 after just 45 seconds.

The Hokies had several scoring opportunities thereafter, but were limited to two field goals.

Louisville, 20, N.C. State 13

RALEIGH, N.C. -- Lamar Jackson ran and threw for touchdowns to help Louisville beat North Carolina State 20-13 on Saturday.

Jackson ran for 121 yards, including a 68-yard scoring sprint in the opening quarter, to lead a strong ground attack for the Cardinals (2-3, 1-1 Atlantic Coast Conference). He also threw for a 20-yard touchdown to Devante Peete in the second, giving the Cards a 14-0 lead on a day when they remained in firm control from the start.

The freshman quarterback completed just 10 of 27 passes, but the Cardinals ran for 203 yards against a defense that came in ranked third nationally by allowing just 205.8 yards.

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Jacoby Brissett threw for a touchdown and Matt Dayes ran for one to lead the Wolfpack (4-1, 0-1), who managed just 228 yards and spent the entire game fighting uphill.

Houston 38, Tulsa 24

TULSA, Okla. -- Greg Ward Jr. threw for 273 yards and ran for 182 yards with three touchdowns, breaking the school record for rushing yards by a quarterback, to help lead Houston to the win.

Kenneth Farrow finished with 159 yards on 19 carries with two touchdowns, including a 44-yarder for the Houston (4-0, 1-0 American Conference).

All three of Ward’s touchdown runs came in the first half, helping Houston to a 21-10 lead at the break. A Zack Langer 1-yard TD run for Tulsa late in the third cut the Cougars lead to seven (24-17) after three quarters. But the Golden Hurricanes (2-2, 0-1) got no closer, as Farrow added both of his TD’s in the fourth to push the game out of reach.

Dane Evans finished with 326 yards passing for Tulsa. Langer added 62 yards rushing and three TDs.

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