Texas kept rolling through another major exam, and the Longhorns did it the hard way in their first SEC road game of the season. A 20-17 win over Tennessee came with a defensive edge that never let go: 10 sacks, just 221 total yards allowed, and another proof point that this group can travel.
Arch Manning did his part, too, completing 14 of 19 passes for 201 yards as Texas moved to 4-0 overall and 1-0 in SEC play. The Longhorns get a bye now before the Red River Rivalry against Oklahoma at the Cotton Bowl.
Georgia delivered the kind of statement that turns heads, crushing Oklahoma 41-13 in its SEC home opener. The defense set the tone by forcing four turnovers and limiting the Sooners to 65 rushing yards.
Chris Cole was everywhere, recovering two fumbles and taking one back 85 yards for a touchdown. Gunner Stockton added 171 passing yards and a touchdown on 14-of-25 passing.
Next up, the Dawgs stay home to host Vanderbilt for Homecoming.
Notre Dame stayed on the same track with a 49-10 road win over Purdue. CJ Carr kept stacking strong performances, throwing three touchdown passes and adding a rushing score.
The defense kept Purdue quarterback Ryan Browne under constant pressure and held the Boilermakers to 90 yards in the first half. The Irish now head to Chapel Hill for North Carolina.
Miami remained unbeaten with a 52-3 rout of Central Michigan. Darian Mensah continued to look like one of the best quarterbacks in the country, while Malachi Toney kept carving out a bigger role as one of the Hurricanes’ top offensive threats. Miami has now put up at least 45 points in three of its first four games, and the next test is a big one: a trip to Death Valley to face Clemson.
Alabama kept its strong start humming with a 49-18 win over South Carolina. Keelon Russell had the best outing of his young career, throwing for 365 yards and four touchdowns while also scoring on the ground.
He finished with 400 total yards, and he has now produced at least 300 yards of offense in three of Alabama’s first four games. The Crimson Tide are 4-0 overall, 2-0 in SEC play, and have scored at least 45 points in every game this season.
They head to Mississippi State next before coming home to host the Dawgs.
Ohio State turned in another sharp performance in a 42-19 win over Illinois in its Big Ten opener. Julian Sayin posted his best game yet, throwing for 367 yards and four touchdowns and adding another score on the ground.
Jeremiah Smith was nearly unstoppable, catching 12 passes for 217 yards and four touchdowns as the Buckeyes piled up 518 total yards. Ohio State is 3-1 and now goes on the road for a Big Ten matchup at Iowa.
Indiana had to sweat a little more than it had in the opening month, but the Hoosiers still handled business, beating Northwestern 29-23 to open Big Ten play and move to 4-0. Indiana led 12-0 at halftime before Northwestern pushed back in the second half, forcing Curt Cignetti’s team to finish the job.
After winning its first three games by a combined 145-16, Indiana finally ran into some resistance and answered it. Rutgers is next, and it will be the Hoosiers’ first road game of the season.
Florida made one of the loudest statements of the weekend, hammering Ole Miss 52-28 in Gainesville to improve to 4-0. The offense kept humming, and Jadan Baugh powered the day with 142 rushing yards and three touchdowns.
Florida has scored at least 44 points in every game this season, and this was easily its biggest win so far. The Gators now head to Missouri for another SEC test.
LSU bounced back in emphatic fashion with a 35-6 win over No. 23 Texas A&M in Death Valley.
Sam Leavitt threw for 312 yards and two touchdowns, and Jackson Harris had a breakout night with 163 receiving yards and two scores. But the headline was the defense, which held Texas A&M to 197 total yards and minus-13 rushing yards.
LSU returns home for McNeese before diving back into SEC play.
Texas Tech stayed unbeaten with a 49-14 win over Sam Houston, improving to 4-0 on the year. Austin Romaine made history with two interception returns for touchdowns on consecutive throws, while Cameron Dickey added two rushing scores.
Will Hammond threw for 224 yards and a touchdown and ran for another, and the Red Raiders finished with 470 total yards. Their next challenge is bigger: a road trip to Colorado for their first Big 12 road game of the season.
Utah opened Big 12 play with a 31-17 road win over Iowa State and moved to 4-0. Wayshawn Parker delivered a big day with 152 rushing yards and three total touchdowns, while Devon Dampier threw for 206 yards and two touchdowns.
The Utes also held Iowa State to 111 rushing yards and forced two interceptions. Utah has a bye before hosting Kansas at Rice-Eccles Stadium, and the Utes have now scored at least 30 points in 10 straight games dating back to last season.
Iowa pulled off one of the weekend’s biggest wins, sneaking past No. 18 Michigan 20-19 in Ann Arbor to get to 4-0.
Down 19-14 late in the fourth quarter, the Hawkeyes put together a 91-yard drive, and Hank Brown finished it by hitting Reece Vander Zee on a 16-yard touchdown on fourth down with two seconds left. Brown threw for 227 yards and two touchdowns, both to Vander Zee.
Iowa now returns home for a massive showdown with Ohio State, and ESPN College GameDay will be in Iowa City for the first time in 20 years.
In Other News...
Kirby Smart Seemed To Send A Message In Georgias Vanderbilt Win
Jared Curtis did not suit up in Vanderbilts recent meeting with Georgia after the quarterback, who had flipped his commitment from the Bulldogs to the Commodores last year, was injured. Georgia handled the game the way a team trying to stay in the thick of the national title race needed to, while Vanderbilt came away with its season outlook looking far less secure than the one in Athens.
Afterward, Curtis made his way toward Kirby Smart, setting up a moment that drew attention for what happened as much as what did not. Smarts body language suggested he was not eager to linger, and the interaction felt like the sort of understated sideline scene that can say plenty without anyone having to say much at all. [Read more 🡒]
Georgia Left Vanderbilt With Two Concerns Alabama Will Test
Georgia left Nashville with a win and a cleaner record, but not a clean bill of health on the details that usually travel with them into bigger games. The Bulldogs beat Vanderbilt 38-14 to move to 5-0, and Carson Beck turned in another efficient day by completing 25 of 32 passes for 295 yards and three touchdowns. Even so, the outing had the kind of uneven stretches Georgia cannot ignore when the schedule sharpens, especially with the ground game not finding much rhythm.
The defense also had its lapses, most notably on third downs, and Alabama is the sort of opponent that tends to expose those cracks quickly. Georgia did settle in after halftime and looked more like itself down the stretch, but next weekend brings a far sterner test of whether those second-half corrections can carry over. For a team that has mostly handled business through September, the trip to face Alabama now feels less like a checkpoint and more like a revealing exam. [Read more 🡒]
Kirby Smart Is Already Pressing Georgia On One Concern Before Alabama
Vanderbilt kept things interesting for a half before Georgia pulled away for a 38-14 win, scoring the final 17 points to close it out. Clark Lea had reasons to point to some progress on the Commodores side, especially in protection and the run game, while Kirby Smart came away talking about the kind of things he likes to see from his own team this time of year: conditioning, execution and the steadier finish that can matter when the schedule tightens.
Smarts focus now turns quickly to Alabama, and it sounds like he is already sharpening one concern before that matchup arrives. Even after a comfortable win, Georgia is still looking to clean up areas that can become costly against a better opponent, and Smart did not hide that there is more work to do before the next test. [Read more 🡒]