STARS
—Brian Robinson Jr., Alabama, rushed for career highs of 171 yards and four TDs and the top-ranked Crimson Tide shut down the nation’s top offense in a 42-21 victory over No. 12 Mississippi.
—Chase Brown, Illinois, rushed for 257 yards and two TDs and Illinois beat Charlotte 24-14.
—Mark Pappas, Morehead State, threw for a school-record 481 yards and six TDs in 45-38 victory over Dayton.
—Bijan Robinson, Texas, ran for a career-high 216 yards with two go-ahead TDs to help the Longhorns beat TCU 32-27.
—Brock Purdy, Iowa State, threw four TD passes in the first quarter as the Cyclones rolled past Big 12 Conference rival Kansas 59-7.
—Zamir White, Georgia, rushed for two TDs and recovered a blocked punt for another score, and the No. 2 Bulldogs pounded No. 8 Arkansas 37-0.
—Keaton Mitchell, East Carolina, rushed for a career-high 222 yards and two TDs to help the Pirates defeat Tulane 52-29.
—C.J. Stroud, Ohio State, threw for 330 yards and a career-high five TDs and the No. 11 Buckeyes won their 20th straight conference game with a 52-13 victory over Rutgers.
—Will Rogers, Mississippi State, threw for 408 yards and three TDs in a 26-22 win over No. 15 Texas A&M.
—Kenny Pickett, Pittsburgh, passed for 389 yards and four TDs to help the Panthers dominate Georgia Tech 52-21.
—De’Montre Tuggle, Ohio, ran for 201 yards and a TD in the Bobcats’ 34-17 win over Akron.
—Tanner Mordecai, SMU, threw two of his four TD passes in the first quarter as the undefeated Mustangs rolled to a 41-17 in over South Florida.
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BEARCATS BOLSTER RESUME
The last pass of the day by Desmond Ridder was a celebratory heave way up into stands toward the Cincinnati fans who came to Notre Dame to see their Bearcats make a statement.
Cincinnati wanted to use the first top-10, regular-season matchup in program history as a chance to show it belongs among the nation’s best before heading into its American Athletic Conference schedule.
Mission accomplished.
Ridder threw two touchdown passes and ran for score late in the fourth quarter as No. 7 Cincinnati capitalized on its big opportunity and beat No. 9 Notre Dame 24-13 in a game the Bearcats hope can be the centerpiece of a College Football Playoff resume.
No team from outside the Power Five conferences has reached the playoff in its seven seasons. Never even came close.
To break that barrier, the Bearcats almost certainly need to go undefeated and this trip to Notre Dame looked like the toughest test on their schedule. Not to mention the grandest stage they’ll appear on this season.
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CARDINAL DOWN DUCKS
Stanford’s comeback victory that stunned Oregon was enough of a roller-coaster that coach David Shaw felt the need to apologize to his parents and any other fans older than 70 for the emotional toll.
The Cardinal overcame a blown lead and had their banged-up quarterback stage an improbable rally before finally prevailing over the third-ranked Ducks.
Tanner McKee threw a TD pass on an untimed down at the end of regulation to tie the game and another on the opening possession of overtime to lead Stanford to a 31-24 victory.
McKee came back after leaving for a play on the final drive of regulation with injured ribs to tie it on a 2-yard pass to Elijah Higgins after a holding penalty by Oregon in the end zone extended the game one play.
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NUMBERS
22_Years since No. 22 Auburn’s last win at LSU before a 24-19 win.
24_Years since Nevada had won in Boise before a 41-31 win at Boise State.
35_Completiions by Temple’s D’Wan Mathis in a 34-31 win over Memphis to break the school record.
683_Total yards for Tennessee in a 62-24 win over Missouri.
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