TUSCALOOSA, Ala. (AP) — Quinn Ewers finished what he started last season, passing for 349 yards and three touchdowns to lead No. 11 Texas to a 34-24 victory over third-ranked Alabama on Saturday night in a huge win for a program trying to climb back into national championship contention. The Longhorns delivered the biggest victory under Steve Sarkisian in a game that slipped away last season after a red-hot Ewers exited with a first-quarter shoulder injury. He was back and with another big weapon in Adonai Mitchell. This amounted to a welcome-to-the-Southeastern Conference moment for a program set to join Alabama & Co. next season.
BOULDER, Colo. (AP) — Shedeur Sanders accounted for three scores, Colorado’s defense forced four turnovers and the 22nd-ranked Buffaloes beat longtime rival Nebraska 36-14 in the home debut of Deion Sanders at sold-out Folsom Field. Shedeur Sanders threw for 393 yards and two scores, while running for another touchdown. He capped his 6-yard romp with the dance moves his dad made famous during his playing days. The 2-0 Buffaloes needed a moment to wake up given the early kickoff. But once they did, they were unstoppable. After punting on their first four drives, Sanders and the offense scored on seven of eight possessions to turn the game into a rout. Matt Rhule is still looking for his first win at Nebraska.
LOS ANGELES (AP) — No. 6 Southern California routed Stanford 56-10 in this century-old rivalry’s final chapter for the foreseeable future. Caleb Williams passed for 281 yards and three touchdowns and ran for another score while playing only the first half, and Zachariah Branch returned a punt 75 yards for a touchdown. The Trojans racked up 433 yards of offense and seven touchdowns by seven players while building a 49-3 halftime lead — the third-largest in Pac-12 history. USC generously used backups in the second half of their blowout of the Cardinal, who lost for the first time under new coach Troy Taylor.
