Vandy Nearly Swamps Gators

Across the nation

It began with the sun shining brightly in Nashville, Tenn., a postcard-like fall day for college football. It ended under cloud cover, in biting cold, and with the top-ranked Florida Gators staving off a bid at one of the biggest upsets in history.

Danny Wuerffel’s four touchdown passes were long forgotten by the time he plunged forward - on fourthand-1 with 1:15 to play - to claim one of the most crucial first downs of his career and thus preserve a 28-21 victory Saturday against Vanderbilt.

In overcoming 17 penalties and another injury to the offensive line, the Gators (9-0, 7-0 SEC) captured their fifth consecutive SEC Eastern Division crown and a berth in the league’s title game Dec. 7 at Atlanta.

“Sometimes we can’t always win 50-something to 10,” Gators coach Steve Spurrier said. “It doesn’t go perfectly every day, but we got out of here with a victory somehow and we feel pretty good about it.”

The Gators jumped to a 28-6 lead halfway through the third period. In hitting 18 of 29 passes for 283 yards, Wuerffel locked in on Reidel Anthony for two scores and Ike Hilliard and Jacquez Green for one each.

Late in the third quarter, Vanderbilt linebacker Jamie Duncan smacked Wuerffel, forcing a fumble, then scooped it and raced 31 yards for a touchdown. The Commodores (2-7, 0-6) scored again four minutes later when halfback Jason Dunnavant broke through a group of UF defenders for a 34-yard touchdown run.

East

Army 23, Air Force 7: At West Point N.Y., fullback Joe Hewitt rushed for a career-best 161 yards and scored two touchdowns as undefeated Army broke the Air Force jinx.

It was a sweet victory for Army (9-0), which had lost seven consecutive games to Air Force (5-4).

West Virginia 55, Rutgers 14: Chad Johnston threw three TD passes in the first half to lead the Mountaineers (8-2, 4-2 Big East) over the Knights (2-7, 1-5) at Piscataway, N.J.

Navy 30, Delaware 14: At Annapolis, Md., Chris McCoy ran for 201 yards and Navy (6-2), off to its best start in 17 years, pulled away from Delaware (7-3) in the second half.

South

(3) Florida State 44, Wake Forest 7 At Orlando, Fla., freshman quarterback Dan Kendra threw for 286 yards and three touchdowns in his first college start as the Seminoles (8-0, 7-0 ACC) defeated the Demon Deacons (2-7, 0-6).

(8) North Carolina 28, Louisville 10: At Chapel Hill, N.C., Chris Keldorf threw two touchdown passes as the Tar Heels (8-1) defeated the Cardinals (5-5).

(10) Alabama 26, (11) LSU 0: At Baton Rouge, La., redshirt freshman Shaun Alexander ran for 291 yards and scored four TDs, including runs of 73 and 72 yards, as the Crimson Tide (8-1, 5-1 SEC) took control of first place in the West.

The Tigers (6-2, 4-2) are tied with Auburn for second.

Clemson 24, (15) Virginia 16: At Charlottesville, Va., Kelton Dunnican recovered a muffed punt at Virginia’s 1 to set up a touchdown and ran 54 yards for a score as the Tigers (6-3, 5-2 ACC) upset the Cavaliers (6-3, 4-3 ACC).

(22) Auburn 28, NE Louisiana 24: At Auburn, Ala., Dameyune Craig engineered a late 70-yard TD drive and threw the key block on Kevin McLeod’s game-winning run as the Tigers (7-2), favored by 41 points, held off the Indians (4-5).

(24) Syracuse 31, Tulane 7: At New Orleans, Donovan McNabb threw for 271 yards and three touchdowns as the Orangemen (6-2) extended their winning streak to six with the victory over the Green Wave (2-7).

(25) Virginia Tech 35, East Carolina 14: At Blacksburg, Va., Jim Druckenmiller passed for 268 yards and three TDs to help Hokies (7-1) defeat the Pirates (5-3).

N. Carolina St. 44, Duke 22: At Raleigh, N.C., Carlos King scored two second-quarter touchdowns and set up a third, helping the Wolfpack (2-6, 2-4 ACC) snap a three-game losing streak with the victory over the Blue Devils (0-9, 0-6).

Kentucky 24, Mississippi St. 21: Billy Jack Haskins threw two TD passes to Norman Mason, including a 24-yard strike with 7:03 to go, to lift the Wildcats (3-6, 2-4 SEC) to victory over the Bulldogs (3-5, 1-4) at Lexington, Ky.

Midwest

(2) Ohio State 48, Illinois 0: At Champaign, Ill., Joe Germaine threw three touchdown passes and tailbacks Pepe Pearson and Jermon Jackson scored two TDs each as the Buckeyes (9-0, 6-0 Big Ten) scored touchdowns on seven consecutive possessions against the Illini (2-7, 1-5).

(5) Nebraska 51, Missouri 7: In Lincoln, Neb., quarterback Scott Frost passed for one touchdown and rushed for one for the Cornhuskers (8-1, 6-0 Big 12).

The Cornhuskers couldn’t sustain a drive in the first half but led 23-0 at halftime on the strength of three touchdowns and a safety, all stemming from Tigers (3-6, 1-5) mistakes.

(13) Kansas State 38, Kansas 12: At Lawrence, Kan., Brian Kavanagh threw for four touchdowns and ran for one as the Wildcats (8-1, 5-1 Big 12) beat the Jayhawks 4-5, 2-4) for the fourth consecutive time.

Kansas State, whose only loss was to Nebraska, is hoping for the first Jan. 1 bowl bid in its history.

(18) Northwestern 40, (23) Iowa 13: At Iowa City, Iowa, Darnell Autry ran for a career-high 240 yards and scored four TDs as the Wildcats (8-2 overall, 6-1 Big Ten) defeated the Hawkeyes (6-3, 4-2).

Michigan St. 38, Indiana 15: Freshman Sedrick Irvin rushed for 158 yards and four TDs to lead the Spartans (6-4, 5-2 Big Ten) over the Hoosiers (2-7, 0-6) at East Lansing, Mich.

Wisconsin 45, Minnesota 28: At Madison, Wis., freshman Ron Dayne rushed 50 times for 297 yards and three touchdowns as the Badgers (5-4, 2-4 Big Ten) handed the Golden Gophers (3-6, 0-6) their sixth consecutive defeat.

Southwest

Oklahoma 27, Oklahoma St. 17: At Stillwater, Okla., QB Eric Moore came off the bench to energize Oklahoma’s offense, and De’Mond Parker scored twice as the Sooners (3-6, 3-3 Big 12) avenged last year’s loss to the Cowboys(4-6, 1-6).

Houston 56, (20) Southern Mississippi 49: At Houston, Antowain Smith scored six TDs, the last a 12-yard run in overtime, and the Cougars (6-4, 3-1 Conference USA) kept the Golden Eagles (8-2, 4-1) from clinching the league title.

Arkansas 13, Mississippi 7: At Fayetteville, Ark., wide receiver Anthony Eubanks eluded linebacker Walker Jones and caught Pete Burks’ 12-yard touchdown pass that lifted the Razorbacks (3-5, 1-4 SEC) over the Rebels (4-4, 1-4).

Texas A&M 24, Baylor 7: D’Andre Hardeman ran a school-record 95 yards for a TD and the Aggies (5-5, 3-3 Big 12) rallied to defeat the Bears (4-5, 1-5) at Waco, Texas.

Texas Christian 31, Tulsa 24: At Tulsa, Okla., Basil Mitchell rushed for 215 yards and three TDs, including a late 74-yard dash, as the Horned Frogs (4-5, 3-3 WAC) ralled to defeat the Golden Hurricane (3-6, 1-5), which had led 10-0.

SMU 30, UTEP 0: At El Paso, Texas, Donte Womack rushed for a career-high 157 yards and two touchdowns as the Mustangs (4-6, 3-4 WAC) defeated the Miners (2-7, 0-6).

Texas 38, Texas Tech 32: At Lubbock, Texas, Shon Mitchell and Ricky Williams combined for 293 rushing yards and three touchdowns as the Longhorns (5-4, 4-2 Big 12) held off the Red Raiders (5-4, 4-3) after leading 28-3.

West

(7) Colorado 49, Iowa St. 42: At Boulder, Colo., Koy Detmer passed for 401 yards and five TDs, and Herchell Troutman ran for the tying and go-ahead scores in the second half as the Buffaloes (8-1, 6-0 Big 12) beat the Cyclones (2-7, 1-5).

(12) BYU 49, Rice 0: At Provo, Utah, Steve Sarkisian threw for two TDs, Brian McKenzie ran for two and the Cougars (10-1, 6-0 WAC) stopped the running of the Owls (5-4, 4-2).

Colorado St. 42, Fresno St. 20: Calvin Branch rushed for 191 yards and three touchdowns to lead the Rams (7-4, 6-1 WAC) over the Bulldogs (4-5, 3-3) at Fresno, Calif.

Utah 31, New Mexico 24: Mike Fouts threw for two touchdowns and ran for another to lead the Utes (8-2, 6-1 WAC) over the Lobos (5-5, 2-5) at Albuquerque.