College football: Miami, Wisconsin stay unbeaten; other contenders clobber lower-level teams

Malik Rosier threw three touchdown passes and ran for another score, and No. 3 Miami pulled off its biggest comeback in five years by defeating Virginia 44-28 on Saturday at Miami Gardens to extend the nation's longest winning streak to 15 games.

Jaquan Johnson had an interception return for a touchdown for Miami (10-0, 7-0 Atlantic Coast Conference), which went on a 30-0 run in the second half to remain unbeaten. The Hurricanes erased a pair of 14-point deficits, and had lost 15 consecutive games in which they trailed at any point by such a margin.

But the defense got a pair of fourth-down stops in Virginia territory in the fourth quarter, and the Hurricanes finished off their first 7-0 home regular season since 1988.

Travis Homer rushed for 96 yards and a touchdown for Miami, which looks to close out a perfect ACC regular-season slate at Pittsburgh on Friday. The Hurricanes already had a spot in the ACC championship game against Clemson on Dec. 2 secured.

Kurt Benkert was brilliant for Virginia (6-5, 3-4), completing 28 of 37 passes for 384 yards and four touchdowns.

at No. 5 Wisconsin 24, No. 24 Michigan 10: Alex Hornibrook's 24-yard touchdown pass to A.J. Taylor in the third quarter broke open a defensive slugfest while Kendric Pryor scored on a reverse to help the Badgers remain undefeated.

Wisconsin (11-0, 8-0 Big Ten) padded its playoff resume by winning a grinding, physical matchup against the Wolverines (8-3, 5-3).

Hornibrook completed nine of 19 passes for 143 yards, but bounced back from an interception early in the third quarter with some of his best throws of the season. He connected with Taylor through a tight window in the end zone for a 14-10 lead with 3:31 left in the third quarter.

at No. 1 Alabama 56, Mercer 0: Jalen Hurts passed for 180 yards and three touchdowns in a little more than a quarter and the Crimson Tide cruised to the win over their FCS opponent.

Alabama (11-0) raced to a 35-0 halftime lead in what amounted to a tuneup for the team's biggest game. Now, Alabama heads to No. 6 Auburn with the winner of the Iron Bowl facing No. 7 Georgia in the Southeastern Conference championship game in Atlanta.

The Bears (5-6) lost to Auburn 24-10 early in the season, when the Tigers committed five turnovers.

at No. 2 Clemson 61, The Citadel 3: Kelly Bryant threw for 230 yards and three touchdowns and was out of the game before halftime as the Tigers comfortably remained in the playoff race with the rout.

The lower-division Bulldogs were out of this one quickly. After Bryant's 14-yard touchdown pass to T.J. Chase on the offense's 26th play, Clemson (10-1) led 28-0.

at No. 6 Auburn 42, Louisiana Monroe 14: Darius Slayton's 50-yard scoring catch late in the first half gave the Tigers the lead and they pulled away in the second half when Kam Martin scored two touchdowns, one rushing and one receiving, in the third quarter.

Auburn (9-2) can earn a spot in the Southeastern Conference championship game by beating Alabama next week. The Tigers, perhaps distracted by last week's rout of then-No. 1 Georgia and next week's Iron Bowl showdown with Alabama, were tied at 7 with ULM (4-6) late in the first half. Auburn took the lead on Slayton's bomb from Jarrett Stidham with 1:27 left before halftime.

No. 15 Central Florida 45, at Temple 19: McKenzie Milton threw four touchdown passes and ran for a score as the Knights comfortably took care of business on the road to set up a showdown with rival South Florida.

The Knights (10-0, 7-0 American Athletic conference, CFP No. 15) turned three Temple turnovers inside the Owls' 25 into 17 first-half points, taking a 31-10 lead when Gabriel Davis stretched across the goal line for a 5-yard touchdown reception with 2:36 left in the second quarter.

The AAC East Division will be decided on Black Friday in Orlando, Florida, when No. 23 South Florida (9-1, 6-1) visits UCF. Temple (5-6, 3-4) could have been easy to overlook for the Knights. The game had no bearing on whether they play for a conference title and a loss probably wouldn't have damaged their chances to play in a New Year's Six bowl.

No. 16 Mississippi State 28, at Arkansas 21: Nick Fitzgerald threw a six-yard touchdown pass to Deddrick Thomas with 17 seconds left to overcome four turnovers and a lackluster performance on the road.

The Bulldogs (8-3, 4-3 Southeastern Conference) won at least eight games in a season for the fourth time in coach Dan Mullen's nine years with the victory. They had already earned bowl eligibility for a school-record eighth straight season.

The Razorbacks (4-7, 1-6) led by a touchdown in the fourth quarter, but Fitzgerald tied the game with 4:07 remaining with a 37-yard touchdown pass to Reggie Todd.

Let's block ads! (Why?)