No. 2 Georgia rallies to victory
No. 2 Georgia and Knowshon Moreno made sure South Carolina didn’t ruin a second straight shot at a championship season.
Moreno’s sliding 4-yard touchdown run in the third quarter lifted the Bulldogs to a 14-7 victory over the Gamecocks on Saturday in Columbia, S.C.
Reshad Jones sealed the victory for the Bulldogs (3-0, 1-0 Southeastern Conference), intercepting South Carolina’s Chris Smelley’s pass with 13 seconds left inside the Georgia 10.
The Bulldogs had all off-season to remember how last September’s 16-12 loss to South Carolina (1-2, 0-2) likely kept them from playing for the SEC and national titles.
For much of this one, it looked like the Gamecocks would do it again as the Bulldogs trailed 7-6 midway through the third quarter.
Georgia had already muffed a scoring chance near the goal line, settling for Blair Walsh’s 23-yard field goal after having a third-and-goal at the South Carolina 1.
Moreno, who finished with 79 yards on 20 carries, didn’t squander the Bulldogs’ next opportunity.
He ran left, then took a hard cut up the middle with his feet sliding out from under him. He steadied himself with his right hand, then slipped through for his seventh touchdown of the year.
Stafford converted the two-point try on a pass to Kris Durham and Georgia led 14-7.
(7) LSU 41, North Texas 3: At Baton Rouge, La., Charles Scott ran for touchdowns of 39 and 43 yards, Trindon Holliday scored on a 92-yard punt return, and the Tigers (2-0) cruised to a victory over the Mean Green (0-2).
The dominant victory came at a price for LSU. Starting linebacker Darry Beckwith left the game with an apparent right knee injury. Beckwith could not put any pressure on his injured leg as two trainers helped him to the sideline, where he was given crutches. LSU officials did not specify the extent of the injury.
Andrew Hatch and Quinn Johnson also ran for short touchdowns for LSU, which won handily for the second time in as many games. Scott finished with 102 yards rushing on only seven carries.
(8) Texas vs. Arkansas: At Austin Texas, Hurricane Ike caused this game to be pushed back to Sept. 27.
(9) Auburn 3, Mississippi State 2: At Starkville, Miss., Wes Byrum kicked a 36-yard field goal in the second quarter and that was all the Tigers (3-0, 1-0 Southeastern Conference) needed to defeat the Bulldogs (1-2, 0-1).
Auburn committed three turnovers, missed two field goals and handed Mississippi State its only points with a safety. But the Tigers held the Bulldogs to only 116 yards.
Chris Todd was 14 for 26 for 154 yards and Ben Tate ran for 92 yards on 20 carries for Auburn.
(11) Alabama 41, Western Kentucky 7: At Tuscaloosa, Ala., John Parker Wilson passed for 215 yards and two touchdowns and freshman Mark Ingram ran for two scores, leading the Crimson Tide (3-0) to a win over the Hilltoppers (1-2).
Alabama got the kind of start-to-finish effort coach Nick Saban had been seeking against a team that began moving up to the Football Bowl Subdivision last season.
Alabama rolled to 557 yards a week after getting held to 172 by Tulane to enter Southeastern Conference play on a high note.
Key players got a chance to rest up, too. Glen Coffee rushed for 97 yards on 11 carries before sitting out the second half. His career-long 51-yarder set up a touchdown.
(12) Texas Tech 43, Southern Methodist 7: At Lubbock, Texas, Graham Harrell threw for 418 yards and five touchdowns, three to Michael Crabtree, to help the Red Raiders (2-0) rout the Mustangs (1-1).
SMU and first-year coach June Jones were overmatched from the outset and turnovers – five interceptions – hurt the Mustangs mightily. Safety Daniel Charbonnet had three interceptions to set a Texas Tech record for a game.
(14) East Carolina 28, Tulane 24: At New Orleans, the Pirates (3-0, 1-0 Conference USA) rallied for the victory over the Green Wave (0-2) when Patrick Pinkney threw a 24-yard touchdown pass to Jamar Bryant with 1:41 left to play.
East Carolina vaulted into the national rankings and national spotlight by upsetting Virginia Tech and West Virginia in consecutive weeks, and almost had Tulane pull the same trick on them.
Pinkney completed 22 of 32 passes for 260 yards and two touchdowns, and the Pirates improved to 3-0 for the first time since 1999. ECU secured the victory when Pierre Bell intercepted Kevin Moore’s pass at the Green Wave 45 with 28 seconds left.
(17) Penn State 55, Syracuse 13: At Syracuse, N.Y., Jordan Norwood and Deon Butler each caught a pair of touchdown passes in the first half and the Nittany Lions (3-0) humbled the Orange (0-3) in the first game between the old rivals in 18 years.
The victory was the 375th for Penn State coach Joe Paterno, keeping pace with Florida State’s Bobby Bowden, whose Seminoles beat Chattanooga. Fourth-year Syracuse coach Greg Robinson, his job on the line, had his record drop to 7-31.
Penn State outgained Syracuse 191-5 in the first quarter. The Orange did not get a first down until Cam Dantley hit Grant Mayes for a 26-yard gain early in the second with Syracuse already trailing 28-0.
(24) Illinois 20, Louisiana-Lafayette 17: At Champaign, Ill., Daniel Dufrene had a career-high 126 yards rushing and Matt Eller’s late field goal helped the Illini (2-1) hold off the Ragin’ Cajuns (0-2).
Illinois took a 20-10 lead on Eller’s 27-yard kick with 1:40 left, but it didn’t put the game away until Garrett Edwards recovered an onside kick attempt by Louisiana-Lafayette with less than 20 seconds left.
Illini quarterback Juice Williams, who entered the game averaging 92 yards rushing and 287 yards passing, completed 13 of 25 passes for 147 yards, one TD and an interception. He rushed 11 times for 35 yards.