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CFB Recaps: Gators down Vols on Hail Mary

The Sports Xchange

September 16, 2017 at 7:10 pm.

Sep 16, 2017; Gainesville, FL, USA; Florida Gators wide receiver Tyrie Cleveland (89) catches the ball for a touchdown as time expires to win the game as Tennessee Volunteers defensive back Micah Abernathy (22) attempted to defend during the second half at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium. Photo Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports

Sep 16, 2017; Gainesville, FL, USA; Florida Gators wide receiver Tyrie Cleveland (89) catches the ball for a touchdown as time expires to win the game as Tennessee Volunteers defensive back Micah Abernathy (22) attempted to defend during the second half at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium. Photo Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports

GAINESVILLE, Fla. — Sophomore Tyrie Cleveland hauled in a 63-yard touchdown catch on a Hail Mary pass from Feleipe Franks to give No. 24 Florida a 26-20 win over No. 23 Tennessee on Saturday afternoon at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium in Gainesville, Fla.

The 24th-ranked Gators (1-1, 1-0 SEC) led 20-10 with 5:13 left after Brandon Powell’s 5-yard TD catch, their first offensive touchdown of the season. Prior to that, their scoring had all been via field goals and their defense, including a 16-yard interception return for a touchdown by freshman cornerback C.J. Henderson early in the fourth quarter that put Florida up 13-3.

No. 23 Tennessee (2-1, 0-1) rallied from 10 points down twice, tying it at 20 on a 27-yard Aaron Medley field goal with 50 seconds left. John Kelly had a 39-yard scoring run as part of a career-high 141-yard effort, and Ethan Wolfe hauled in a 28-yard TD pass from junior Quinten Dormady one play after Kelly broke off a 52-yard run. Kelly had 237 all-purpose yards, including six catches for 96 yards.

Franks threw for 212 yards on 18-of-28 passing with two TDs, but his interception with 3:57 left set up Tennessee’s game-tying score. Dormady threw for 259 yards on 21-of-39 passing but he was intercepted three times, including by Florida senior Duke Dawson at the goal line midway through the third quarter.

No. 7 Michigan 29, Air Force 13

ANN ARBOR, Mich. — Freshman Donovan Peoples-Jones scored on a 79-yard punt return for his first career touchdown, lifting No. 7 Michigan to a 29-13 victory over Air Force.

People-Jones also made the first two receptions of his career for 52 yards. Sophomore Quinn Nordin tied the school record with five field goals, bailing out an offense that didn’t score a touchdown until Karan Higdon’s 36-yard run with 1:02 remaining.

Quarterback Wilton Speight completed 14 of 23 passes for 169 yards as Michigan (3-0) finished off its non-conference schedule. Ty Isaac led the ground attack with 89 yards on 16 carries. Quarterback Arion Worthman rushed for 60 yards on 26 carries and also completed a 64-yard touchdown pass to Ronald Cleveland for Air Force (1-1).

No. 8 Ohio State 38, Army 7

COLUMBUS, Ohio — Ohio State senior quarterback J.T. Barrett accounted for three touchdowns to set a Big Ten record, and freshman J.K. Dobbins ran for two scores as No. 8 Ohio State defeated Army.

Dobbins’ 52-yard score early in the third quarter opened a 24-7 lead for the Buckeyes (2-1), who were coming off a 31-16 home loss to Oklahoma on Sept. 9. Army (2-1) had a five-game winning streak snapped. Barrett, who ran for a TD in the first half, passed 20 yards to Terry McLaurin to make it 31-7 in the third quarter.

With 7:01 left in the game, Barrett (25 of 33, 270 yards) added a 9-yard scoring strike to Austin Mack to break former Purdue quarterback Drew Brees’ conference record of 106 TDs responsible for in a career. Dobbins rushed for 172 yards on 13 attempts.

No. 9 Oklahoma State 59, Pittsburgh 21

PITTSBURGH — Quarterback Mason Rudolph threw for five touchdowns in the first half to lead No. 9 Oklahoma State to a drubbing of Pittsburgh (1-2).

The Cowboys (3-0) scored on each of its first six drives of the game and jumped out to a 49-14 lead at the half, with most of the damage to the Panthers’ defense coming from Rudolph’s right arm. He shredded the Pitt secondary for 497 yards and five touchdowns and had four different receivers cross the 100-yard plateau, the first time an FBS team has achieved that feat since 2005. Pitt didn’t get a defensive stop until Rudolph kneeled down to end the first half.

Oklahoma State slot receiver Jalen McCleskey had three touchdowns, including a 48-yard catch-and-run as part of his 162 receiving yards. Dillon Stoner had five catches for 100 yards, including a 54-yard touchdown. Marcell Ateman had the biggest gain of the day with a 69-yard touchdown. He finished with four catches for 109 yards.

No. 10 Wisconsin 40, BYU 6

PROVO, Utah — Alex Hornibrook threw for 256 yards and four touchdowns on 18-of-19 passing, and Jonathan Taylor added 128 rushing yards and a touchdown to lead No. 10 Wisconsin over BYU.

The Badgers (3-0) scored on all four of their drives before halftime and never trailed. Wisconsin totaled 267 yards and averaged 8.9 yards per play in the first half. The Badgers finished with 491 yards while holding the Cougars to 192 yards.

Beau Hoge made his first start at quarterback for BYU (1-3). The sophomore filled in for Tanner Mangum, who injured his ankle in a 19-13 loss to Utah a week earlier. Hoge completed 11 of 20 passes for 111 yards with two interceptions. The Cougars (1-3) gained just 11 first downs.

No. 15 Auburn 24, Mercer 10

AUBURN, Ala. — Kamryn Pettway scored three touchdowns to help No. 15 Auburn overcome five turnovers in win over FCS opponent Mercer (1-2).

Auburn lost four fumbles and sophomore quarterback Jarrett Stidham threw an interception in the second half to keep the score closer than expected. The Tigers (2-1) moved the ball up and down the field, racking up 515 total yards.

Pettway finished with 128 yards on 34 carries, with touchdown runs of 9, 4 and 4 yards. Stidham completed 32 of 37 passes for 364 yards but with no touchdowns and the one interception.

No. 16 Virginia Tech 64, East Carolina 17

GREENVILLE, N.C. — Freshman quarterback Josh Jackson threw five touchdown passes and Cam Phillips set a school record with 14 receptions as No. 16 Virginia Tech absorbed an early punch by East Carolina and steamrolled to victory.

East Carolina (0-3) scored on its first three possessions to build a 17-7 lead, but the Hokies (3-0) scored on their next nine possessions — six touchdowns and three field goals — then added a late touchdown for 57 unanswered points.

Jackson completed 24 of 31 passes for 372 yards, throwing touchdown passes of 45, 31 and 10 yards to Phillips, 70 yards to Travon McMillian and 9 yards to Sean Savoy — all in the first three quarters. Phillips had 11 catches for 109 yards by halftime and finished with a school-record 14 for a career-high 189 yards — also in three quarters.

No. 20 TCU 56, SMU 36

FORT WORTH, Texas — Kenny Hill threw for four touchdowns as No. 20 TCU stormed back to thrash longtime rival SMU (2-1).

The Horned Frogs (3-0) rallied from an early 12-point deficit with a flurry largely piloted by Hill, whose Hail Mary touchdown to close out the first half gave TCU a lead it did not relinquish. Hill completed an efficient 24 of 30 passes for 365 yards and did not throw a pick.

TCU running backs Darius Anderson and Kyle Hicks combined for 173 yards rushing. Anderson scored twice and helped put the game away with a 38-yard score in the fourth quarter. Reserve running back Kenedy Snell also had two touchdowns.

Memphis 48, No. 25 UCLA 45

MEMPHIS, Tenn. — Memphis quarterback Riley Ferguson threw for 398 yards and six touchdowns, but it was the Tigers’ defense that picked off two second-half Josh Rosen passes and knocked down a third to secure an upset of No. 25 UCLA.

Ferguson finished one touchdown shy of a school record in leading the Tigers (2-0) to their third victory over a Top 25 Power Five conference opponent in as many seasons. Rosen, a Heisman Trophy candidate, passed for 463 yards and four touchdowns but was undone by several errant throws.

Memphis receiver Anthony Miller had nine catches for 185 yards and two touchdowns to spark the offense. Running back Darrell Henderson rushed for a game-high 105 yards on 14 carries. UCLA (2-1) finished with 633 yards and ran 91 plays — 15 more than Memphis.