By Field Level Media
Sep 26 (Field Level Media) – Colin Simmons tied the school record with five sacks and Raleek Brown rushed for two touchdowns as top-ranked Texas notched a 20-17 victory over No. 14 Tennessee on Saturday afternoon in the Southeastern Conference opener for both teams in Knoxville, Tenn.
Arch Manning completed 14 of 19 passes for 201 yards and one interception for the Longhorns during his first visit to Knoxville, where his famous uncle Peyton starred for the Volunteers in the 1990s. The Longhorns recorded 10 sacks and held Tennessee to 221 total yards. Rasheem Biles tallied a team-high 13 tackles and one sack.
Brown rushed for 67 yards on 17 carries and Ryan Wingo caught six passes for 74 yards for Texas (4-0, 1-0 SEC). Simmons, who also forced a fumble, tied the longstanding school mark set by Shane Dronett in 1990 against Texas Tech.
Qua Moss returned a punt for a touchdown. Faizon Brandon completed 17 of 29 passes for 145 yards and one touchdown, and Mike Matthews caught a touchdown pass for the Volunteers (3-1, 0-1). Tyree Weathersby accounted for 2.5 of Tennessee’s six sacks, while Arion Carter had 11 tackles and recovered an onside kick.
No. 3 Notre Dame 49, Purdue 10
CJ Carr completed 14 of 22 passes for 237 yards, three touchdowns and one interception and added another score on the ground as Notre Dame cruised past host Purdue.
Micah Gilbert led Notre Dame (4-0) with 83 receiving yards and one touchdown. Aneyas Williams had 14 carries for 80 yards and a touchdown, while Cooper Flanagan, Nolan James Jr. and Matt Jeffery each had one receiving touchdown. The Fighting Irish outgained the Boilermakers 444-218, including a 177-40 advantage on the ground.
Ryan Browne completed 18 of 28 passes for 111 yards for Purdue (1-3). Fame Ijeboi was limited to 41 rushing yards on 12 carries. Backup quarterback Evans Chuba completed 7 of 9 passes for 67 yards and a touchdown. Bisi Owens caught Purdue’s lone touchdown.
No. 7 Ohio State 42, Illinois 19
Jeremiah Smith caught a career-high four touchdowns, three in the first half, while Julian Sayin threw for four scores and ran for another, as the Buckeyes defeated the visiting Illini.
Ohio State (3-1, 1-0 Big Ten) led 28-10 at the half on the strength of Smith’s TDs of 7, 72 and 9 yards and Sayin’s 7-yard scamper with 15 seconds left. Smith became the first Ohio State player with three first-half touchdown receptions since Noah Brown at Oklahoma on Sept. 17, 2016. His fourth touchdown later tied the program’s single-game record, also last accomplished by Brown in that game.
Quarterback Katin Houser was 21 of 37 for 263 yards, and a TD for Illinois (2-2, 0-1 Big Ten), and Hudson Clement made five catches for 87 yards. Aidan Laughery ran for 113 yards and Jordan Anderson rushed for a 22-yard TD.
No. 11 Texas Tech 49, Sam Houston 14
Linebacker Austin Romaine returned two interceptions for touchdowns on successive plays and Cameron Dickey rushed for 91 yards and two scores as the Red Raiders routed the visiting Bearkats in Lubbock, Texas.
Romaine, a Kansas State transfer, notched his pair of defensive scores just seven seconds apart in the first minute of the second quarter. Romaine grabbed a Brett Holloway pass that was deflected by Red Raiders linebacker Brock Golwas and returned it 15 yards for a touchdown with 14:54 remaining in the quarter. Then Romaine swooped in front of a Landyn Locke pass and raced 31 yards for another TD.
Will Hammond threw for 224 yards on 17-for-29 passing with one touchdown and three interceptions while adding a rushing TD for Texas Tech, which secured a 4-0 start for the second straight season and 12th time in program history. Meanwhile, Locke was 23-for-37 for 195 yards with two touchdowns and two interceptions for the Bearkats (1-3).
Wake Forest 30, No. 16 Louisville 27
Ty Clark III ran for two touchdowns and Wake Forest (3-1, 1-1 Atlantic Coast Conference) relied on a stout second-half defense to upset host Louisville. Connor Calvert kicked his third field goal — a 32-yarder — with 6:20 remaining to break a 27-all tie.
Wake Forest’s Gabe Kirschke blocked a 57-yard field goal attempt by Nick Keller with 15 seconds left, preserving the outcome. Quarterback Gio Lopez completed 12 of 19 passes for 225 yards and a touchdown. Nine of those completions went to Carlos Hernandez for 194 yards. Clark gained 91 yards on 21 carries.
Louisville (2-2, 1-1) had a chance to pull even earlier, but Carson Hilbert missed a 42-yarder with 2:29 left. Hilbert had drilled a 54-yarder with 42 seconds to go in the third quarter to pull the Cardinals even at 27-all. Lincoln Kienholz ran for two touchdowns and threw for another for Louisville. He was 27 of 36 for 324 yards in the air with an interception.
(–Field Level Media)
