Top 25: No. 1 Oklahoma holds off No. 5 Florida State
Landry Jones’ pass seemed like it would never come down.
Kenny Stills waited in the end zone for what must have felt like an eternity, then reached high for a touchdown that gave No. 1 Oklahoma the type of rugged road victory that teams need to win national championships.
Stills, playing for the first time this season after being suspended for the opener because of an offseason DUI arrest, grabbed a 37-yard scoring pass midway through the fourth quarter for the tiebreaking score, and Oklahoma’s defense made the lead stand as the Sooners beat No. 5 Florida State 23-13 on Saturday night in Tallahassee, Fla.
“We won ugly, but that’s OK,” said Jones, who came in 3-5 as a starter the past two seasons in true road games. “That’s what No. 1 teams do, that’s for sure.”
Javon Harris picked off two passes for the Sooners (2-0), who forced three turnovers and had six sacks against two Florida State quarterbacks.
The Seminoles (2-1) played the final 20 minutes without starting quarterback E.J. Manuel, who left in the third with a left shoulder injury.
Backup Clint Trickett kept the Seminoles in it. He hooked up with freshman Rashad Greene for a 56-yard touchdown on a third-and-28 with 9:32 left in the fourth quarter to tie the game 13-13.
But on the next possession, Jones went high and deep down the sideline to the 6-foot-1 Stills, who easily outleaped the 5-8 Greg Reid for the touchdown.
Trickett couldn’t respond. On the next drive, he had a pass tipped at the line by Ronnell Lewis, and Harris came up with his second interception near midfield. Just like the first pick, Oklahoma turned it into a field goal, this one from 31 yards out by Jimmy Stevens.
“All of a sudden the crowd’s on you, they tie it up at home,” said OU coach Bob Stoops, who shared a hug with his brother, Mark, the Florida State defensive coordinator, after the game. “We come back … with the big drive, defense gets the turnover, we eat up the clock and get a field goal. I’m really proud of ’em. Our kids really answered the bell when they had to.”
And maybe we can start calling Stoops “Big Game Bob” again, too.
Jones finished 18 for 27 for 199 yards with two interceptions, though he did become the school’s career passing leader, moving past Heisman Trophy winner Sam Bradford.
“All great games come down to two or three plays,” second-year Florida State coach Jimbo Fisher said. “They made plays; we didn’t.”
A rematch of a lopsided 47-17 Oklahoma victory in Norman last season, this was more reminiscent of the most important game these two heavyweight programs have played. The Sooners won their last national championship in 2000 by beating the Seminoles 13-2 in the Orange Bowl.
(2) Alabama 41, North Texas 0: Trent Richardson and Eddie Lacy each had two long TD runs and career rushing highs and the Crimson Tide (3-0) smothered the Mean Green (0-3) in Tuscaloosa, Ala.
Richardson scored three times – including a 58-yarder and a career-long 71-yarder – and rushed for 167 yards. Lacy scored on runs of 43 and 67 yards and gained 161 yards.
(7) Wisconsin 49, Northern Illinois 7: Russell Wilson threw for 347 yards and three scores, Montee Ball rushed for two TDs and the Badgers (3-0) piled up more than 600 yards of total offense in a rout of the Huskies (1-2) at Soldier Field in Chicago.
Ball finished with 91 yards on 18 carries, James White added 100 yards and another score, and Nick Toon had two touchdown catches for the Badgers, who have won 31 straight against nonconference opponents in the regular season.
(10) South Carolina 24, Navy 21: Marcus Lattimore ran for a career-high 246 yards and three TDs to help the Gamecocks (3-0) slip past the Midshipmen (2-1) in Columbia, S.C.
Lattimore carried 37 times and averaged 6.6 yards a carry.
(13) Virginia Tech 26, Arkansas St. 7: Logan Thomas threw for 292 yards and two TDs and the Hokies (3-0) topped the Red Wolves (1-2) in Blacksburg, Va.
(14) Arkansas 38, Troy 28: Ronnie Wingo rushed for a career-high 110 yards and scored 3 TDs as the Razorbacks (3-0) defeated the Trojans (0-2) in Fayetteville, Ark.
(16) Florida 33, Tennessee 22: Chris Rainey had 233 total yards, including an 83-yard TD catch, and the Gators (3-0, 1-0 SEC) beat the Volunteers (2-1, 0-1) in Gainesville, Fla.
Rainey finished with 108 yards rushing, 104 yards receiving and blocked a punt that led to a field goal.
Miami 24, (17) Ohio State 6: Lamar Miller ran for 184 yards, Jacory Harris threw two first-quarter TD passes to Allen Hurns and the Hurricanes (1-1) topped the Buckeyes (2-1) in Miami.
Ohio State quarterbacks Joe Bauserman and Braxton Miller combined to complete 4 of 18 passes.
(18) West Virginia 37, Maryland 31: Geno Smith threw for a career-high 388 yards, and the Mountaineers (3-0) withstood a furious comeback by the Terrapins (1-1) to pull out a victory in College Park, Md.
After the Mountaineers let a 24-point lead dwindle to 34-31 with 10:29 remaining, Smith directed a 14-play, 65-yard drive that produced a field goal with 4:42 left.
(19) Baylor 48, Stephen F. Austin 0: Robert Griffin III continued his sterling start to the season and the Bears (2-0) celebrated their highest ranking since October 1991 by routing the Lumberjacks (1-2) in a game in Waco, Texas, that was ended early because of lightning.
The game was halted for a second time with 2:58 left in the third quarter. Rather than wait it out, the coaches met at midfield, shook hands and decided to let the clock run out.
(20) South Florida 70, Florida A&M 17: B.J. Daniels threw for a career-high 382 yards and four TDs, pacing the Bulls (3-0) to a rout of the Rattlers (1-2) in Tampa, Fla.
Daniels led the Bulls to TDs on eight of 10 drives he led before leaving the game for good in the third quarter. He hit 21 of 33 passes and scored on a 5-yard run.
Clemson 38, (21) Auburn 24: Auburn’s luck ended in Clemson, S.C., along with their 17-game winning streak as Tajh Boyd threw for 386 yards and four TDs in Clemson’s victory over the defending national champions in a battle of Tigers.
Auburn (2-1) took a 14-0 lead in the first quarter before Boyd began hitting his targets over the final three periods. Clemson converted 10 straight third-down attempts and is 3-0 for the first time since 2007.
(23) TCU 38, Louisiana-Monroe 17: Greg McCoy returned the opening kickoff of the second-half 94 yards for a TD as the Horned Frogs (2-1) took control in a victory over the Warhawks (1-2) in Fort Worth, Texas.
TCU matched a Mountain West Conference record with its 21st consecutive home win. It was also coach Gary Patterson’s 100th win at TCU.