DALLAS (AP) — Kevin Jennings threw for 337 yards and a career-high five touchdowns while playing just the first half, and No. 17 SMU rolled to a 56-10 victory over UC Davis of the FCS. The teams agreed to play two 12-minute quarters after halftime with SMU leading 42-0. The temperature for the midafternoon kickoff was 100 degrees. Yannick Smith had a 44-yard catch to cap the first-half scoring. Derrick McFall was all alone down the middle on a 52-yard touchdown. Treynor Cleeland was 11 of 25 for 83 yards with an interception a week after throwing five TD passes for the Aggies.
ATLANTA (AP) — DeSean Bishop rushed for 147 yards and two touchdowns and freshman Faizon Brandon threw for two scores, leading No. 18 Tennessee to a 45-24 victory over Georgia Tech. Brandon went 10 of 21 for 148 yards, and his 20-yard TD pass to Braydon Staley gave Tennessee a 24-10 lead late in the second quarter. The Volunteers took the lead for good earlier in the quarter when Dejuan Lane picked off Alberto Mendoza and returned it 41 yards for a touchdown. Mendoza, the younger brother of last season’s Heisman Trophy winner Fernando Mendoza, threw for 221 yards and a touchdown with two interceptions.
ATLANTA (AP) — Georgia Tech coach Brent Key says Jaylen Mbakwe is talking and responsive after a scary collision on Saturday night. Mbakwe was stretchered off the field in the third quarter of the Yellow Jackets' 45-24 loss to No. 18 Tennessee. He collided head-first with Jordan Walker's knee. Walker was carried off the field, unable to put weight on his leg. Mbakwe lay motionless for several minutes before giving a thumbs-up. He was taken to Grady Hospital, three miles from Georgia Tech's stadium. Key plans to check on him, saying Mbakwe was talking and moving when carried off.
CLEMSON, S.C. (AP) — Freshman Tait Reynolds took over for an injured Christopher Vizzina at quarterback in the first quarter and threw for 178 yards and led five scoring drives as Clemson defeated Georgia Southern 22-7. T.J. Moore had seven catches for 103 yards and a touchdown and Nolan Hauser was 5 for 5 on field goal attempts for Clemson, which rebounded from a 51-10 thrashing at the hands of No. 11 LSU last week. That loss, combined with a seventh place finish in the ACC last year, left fans and former players frustrated with the Tigers’ sharp falloff under longtime head coach Dabo Swinney. Max Johnson had a TD pass for Georgia Southern.
PITTSBURGH (AP) — Damon Ferguson Jr. scored a touchdown and Pittsburgh’s defense held on to beat UCF 12-7 on Saturday. Ferguson rushed for 59 yards as Pitt held out sophomore running back Ja’Kyrian Turner with an undisclosed injury. Mason Heintschel completed 18 of 29 passes for 212 yards in a steady downpour for Pitt. The game started late because of a 65-minute weather delay. Alonza Barnett III completed 20 of 31 passes for 186 yards for UCF, as the Knights struggled offensively one week after a romp of Bethune-Cookman in their season-opener. Barnett threw a 19-yard touchdown to Waden Charles in the final three minutes. UCF had a chance at a game-winning drive, but DeMarco Ward and Jeremiah Marcelin sacked Keyone Jenkins on fourth down to end the threat.
CHAPEL HILL, N.C. (AP) — Demon June ran for three touchdowns and Billy Edwards threw for 244 yards and two scores as North Carolina beat East Tennessee State 35-3 on Saturday in its home opener. Jelani Thurman and Benjamin Hall added touchdown catches for the Tar Heels, who improved to 2-0 for the fourth time in the last five seasons. The game included a one-hour, 19-minute lightning delay in the second half.
BLACKSBURG, Va. (AP) — Ethan Grunkemeyer threw for 327 yards and two touchdowns and rushed for another to lead Virginia Tech to a 44-21 victory over Old Dominion on Saturday. Grunkemeyer set career highs for yards, completions (31) and attempts (42) for the Hokies, who are 2-0 for the first time since 2021. Old Dominion was led by quarterback Quinn Henicle, who threw for 187 yards and a touchdown and scored on a 76-yard run.
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. (AP) — Wake Forest quarterback Gio Lopez ran for a 3-yard touchdown and the two-point conversion to lift the Demon Deacons to a 38-36 in double-overtime victory over Purdue Saturday The Boilermakers had thought they had stopped on fourth down-and-15 when Carlos Hernandez was originally ruled short of the first down after a catch, but it was overturned. Gio Lopez completed 16 of 27 passes for 225 yards and ran for 59 yards and two touchdown.
