CHAMPAIGN, Ill. (AP) — Chez Mellusi ran for 145 yards and a touchdown, and Wisconsin beat Illinois 24-0. Braelon Allen rushed for 131 yards and a touchdown on 18 carries and John Chenal carried nine times for 38 yards and a touchdown for the Badgers. Wisconsin quarterback Graham Mertz was 10-of-19 passing for 100 yards with an interception. Wisconsin outgained Illinois 491-93 yards in total offense. Click here for more information on yesterday’s game.
Also in Illinois:
BROOKINGS, S.D. (AP) — Nic Baker threw for four touchdowns and Southern Illinois rallied from an early 20-point hole to beat host South Dakota State 42-41 in overtime in a matchup of FCS top-10 contenders. No. 8-ranked Southern Illinois maintained its place atop the conference standings with the stunning win over the Jackrabbits. Donovan Spencer’s 10-yard touchdown run to start overtime put Illinois State up 42-35 for its first lead of the day. South Dakota State, ranked third, responded when Chris Oladokun threw an 11-yard touchdown pass to Tucker Kraft. Opting to try for the win, Oladokun’s 2-point conversion attempt failed to end it.
TERRE HAUTE, Ind. (AP) — Anthony Thompson threw two touchdown passes and Peterson Kerlegrand ran for 178 yards and two scores to guide Indiana State to a 37-27 victory over Western Illinois in Missouri Valley Football Conference play. Indiana State (3-3, 1-2) led 10-0 after one quarter on the strength of Thompson’s 3-yard TD toss to Zach Larkin and Alan Selzer’s 35-yard field goal. Kerlegrand upped the Sycamores’ lead to 17-0 with a 3-yard TD run at the 9:09 mark of the second quarter. The Leathernecks (1-5, 1-2) got on the scoreboard when Connor Sampson passed to Jack Whyte for a 1-yard TD, but Kerlegrand scored on a 59-yard run just 50 seconds later and Indiana State took a 24-7 lead into halftime.
TOLEDO, Ohio (AP) — John Richardson kicked five field goals, including a 29-yarder with 26 seconds remaining in the game, and Northern Illinois rallied last in a 22-20 victory over Toledo in Mid-American Conference play. In a game that saw six lead changes, Toledo (3-3, 1-1) used Dequan Finn’s 11-yard TD toss to Devin Maddox to grab a 20-19 lead with 3:35 left to play. The Rockets were stopped on their two-point try. Rocky Lombardi took over from there, directing a nine-play, 60-yard game-winning drive. A pass interference penalty and Lombardi’s 34-yard strike to Tyrice Richie on back-to-back plays gave the Huskies (4-2, 2-0) the ball at the Rockets’ 7-yard line, setting the stage for Richardson.
Elsewhere in college football:
— You can expect to see a new No. 1 in Sunday’s Associated Press college football poll after Alabama ended its 19-game winning streak. Seth Small made a 28-yard field goal as time expired to give Texas A&M a 41-38 triumph over the top-ranked Crimson Tide. The Tide had scored 21 straight points to take a 38-31 lead, but the Aggies tied it when Zach Calzada connected with Ainias (ah-NEE’-uhs) Smith for a 25-yard touchdown strike with three minutes left. Calzada threw for 285 yards and three touchdowns as A&M handed Alabama its first loss since Nov. 30, 2019, against Auburn. Oklahoma and Texas just completed the highest-scoring game in the history of the Red River rivalry. Kennedy Brooks led the sixth-ranked Sooners to a 55-48 victory over No. 21 Texas. Brooks ran for 217 yards and two go-ahead touchdowns in the fourth quarter, including a 33-yard romp with three seconds left. The Sooners overcame a 21-point deficit, matching the second-largest comeback in program history. Caleb Williams completed 15 of 24 passes for 211 yards and two touchdowns after replacing Spencer Rattler, who had two turnovers in the first half that led to Texas touchdowns. The best matchup of the day had third-ranked Iowa rallying for a 23-20 win against No. 4 Penn State. Spencer Petras (PEE’-trahs) threw a 44-yard touchdown pass to Nico Ragaini (rah-GAY’-nee) to complete the Hawkeyes’ comeback from a two-touchdown deficit. Iowa picked off four passes and stifled the Nittany Lions after quarterback Sean Clifford was knocked out of the game in the first half. Backup Ta’Quan Roberson was just 7 of 21 for 34 yards, no touchdowns, and two interceptions.
— Stetson Bennett passed for 231 yards and two touchdowns in leading second-ranked Georgia past No. 18 Auburn, 34-10. The nation’s top defense gave up only its second touchdown of the year before beating the Tigers for the fifth straight time.
— CJ Stroud passed for five touchdowns and seventh-ranked Ohio State reached the end zone on its first eight possessions in a 66-17 crushing of Maryland. The Buckeyes freshman quarterback was 24 for 33 for 406 yards, including two touchdowns each to star wideouts Chris Olave (AH’-lah-vay) and Garrett Wilson.
— Ninth-ranked Michigan beat Nebraska, 32-29 on a 39-yard field goal by Jake Moody with 1:24 remaining. Moody’s fourth field goal came after Wolverines defensive back Brad Hawkins forced quarterback Adrian Martinez to fumble, returning it 19 yards to the Nebraska 18.
— Boise State pulled off an impressive upset as the Broncos forced four turnovers in a 26-17 win at No. 10 BYU. Cyrus Habibi-Likio ran for a season-high 75 yards and a touchdown in Boise’s first win in its last three meetings with the Cougars.
— Eleventh-ranked Michigan State earned a 31-13 win at Rutgers as Jalen Nailor caught touchdown passes of 63, 63, and 65 yards from Payton Thorne. Nailor rolled up a career-high 221 yards on five catches for the Spartans, who are 6-0 for the first time in six years.
— No. 14 Notre Dame completed two scoring drives over the final 2 ½ minutes to beat Virginia Tech, 32-29. Jonathan Doerer won it by nailing a 48-yard field goal with 17 seconds remaining. It came after Jack Coan threw for a touchdown and a two-point conversion to tie it with 2:26 left.
— No. 16 Kentucky is 6-0 for the first time since 1950 after Will Levis threw for three touchdowns and ran for two more scores in a 42-21 blowout of LSU. Chris Rodriguez Jr. rushed for 147 yards and a touchdown on 16 carries.
— Matt Corral threw a 68-yard touchdown pass to Braylon Sanders with 67 seconds remaining before 17th-ranked Mississippi stopped a two-point conversion try on the final play for a wild 52-51 win over No. 13 Arkansas. The Razorbacks scored a TD as time expired as Warren Thompson hauled in a nine-yard pass from KJ Jefferson.
— No. 19 Wake Forest pulled out a 40-37 overtime victory at Syracuse on A.T. Perry’s third TD of the afternoon. Perry caught a 22-yard pass from Sam Hartman in the left corner of the end zone, six plays after the Orange kicked a field goal to go ahead in OT.
— Emory Jones had a career-high four touchdown passes as 20th-rated Florida punished Vanderbilt, 42-0. Dameon Pierce ran for a pair of TDs and grabbed a scoring pass in helping the Gators beat the Commodores for the 30th time in their last 31 meetings.
— Tanner Mordecai threw for 324 yards and two touchdowns to help No. 24 SMU down Navy, 31-24. The Mustangs trailed by 14 in the second quarter until Bryan Massey scored on a 95-yard kickoff return.
— No. 25 San Diego State is 5-0 after Greg Bell rushed for 111 yards and a TD in their 31-7 pounding of New Mexico. Jordan Brookshire furnished a pair of rushing touchdowns and Chance Bell reached the end zone for the Aztecs.
