EAST LANSING, Mich. (AP) — Matt Coghlin made a tiebreaking 48-yard field goal with 3:35 left, and Michigan State handed No. 11 Northwestern its first loss of the season with a 29-20 victory.
The Wildcats were coming off a 17-7 victory over Wisconsin that put them in contention for a spot in the College Football Playoff. That prospect was all but eliminated with the loss to the Spartans, but they remain in control of the Big Ten West.
The Spartans lost a 17-0 lead but went back ahead by forcing three turnovers in the fourth quarter and making the most of two big kicks by Coghlin.
Alabama blasts Auburn
UNDATED (AP) — Top-ranked Alabama had absolutely no problem winning the Iron Bowl without its head coach.
With Nick Saban sidelined by the coronavirus, Mac Jones passed for 302 yards and a career-high five touchdowns as the Crimson Tide manhandled No. 22 Auburn, 42-13. Alabama started a string of three straight touchdowns with Jones’s 66-yard touchdown to DeVonta Smith, who had seven catches for 171 yards.
Najee Harris ran for 96 yards, including a 39-yard touchdown. John Metchie III caught a pair of scoring passes while assistant Steve Sarkisian ran the team in Saban’s absence.
The Tide improved to 9-0 and dropped the Tigers to 5-3.
In other Top 25 games:
— Trevor Lawrence shook off a five-week absence by throwing for 403 yards and two touchdowns in leading fourth-ranked Clemson to a 52-17 romp over Pittsburgh. The Heisman Trophy candidate was back in action for the first time since October 24, missing two games due to a positive test for the coronavirus. Cornell Powell had five catches for 176 yards, including a 43-yard TD catch off a flea-flicker pass from Lawrence for the 8-1 Tigers.
— Fifth-ranked Texas A&M earned its fifth straight win as Isaiah Spiller ran for 141 yards and a touchdown in a 20-7 decision over LSU. Buddy Johnson returned an interception for a score, causing the Tigers to replace TJ Finley with Max Johnson. The Aggies limited LSU to 36 yards rushing and allowed just two of 16 third-down conversions.
— Sixth-ranked Florida is on the verge of a berth in the SEC title game following a 34-10 win over Kentucky. Kyle Trask found Kyle Pitts for three touchdowns, including a 56-yarder in which the tight end outraced a cornerback to the goal line. Trask has 34 TD passes this season, moving him past 2007 Heisman Trophy winner Tim Tebow and into a tie for third on the school’s single-season list.
— Stevie Scott III ran for three touchdowns and Tim Baldwin Jr. ran for a season-high 106 yards as 12th-ranked Indiana stifled Maryland, 27-11. The Hoosiers improved to 5-1 with their fourth consecutive home win, but they finished the game without injured Michael Penix (PEH’-nihks) Jr.
— James Cook ran for 104 yards on just six carries as part of No. 13 Georgia’s 45-16 assault on South Carolina. Three other Bulldogs had at least 77 yards on the ground as part of a 332-yard rushing attack.
— Coastal Carolina wrapped up the Sun Belt East Division title as C.J. Marable ran for 157 yards and three touchdowns to lead the 16th-ranked Chanticleers over Texas State, 48-14. The 9-0 Chanticleers had 572 yards of offense in extending their winning streak to 10 games, just three years after moving up to the Football Bowl Subdivision.
— No. 21 Oklahoma State outscored Texas Tech, 50-44 behind Dezmon Jackson, who rushed for career highs of 235 yards and three touchdowns. Jackson carried the load and the Cowboys racked up 317 yards on the ground while starting backs Chuba Hubbard and LD Brown sat out the game.
— Levi Lewis passed for three touchdowns and ran for two more in less than three quarters of No. 23 Louisiana-Lafayette’s 70-20 thrashing of winless Louisiana-Monroe. Running backs Trey Regas and Elijah Mitchell each rushed for more than 90 yards and scored one touchdown apiece as the Ragin’ Cajuns picked up their fifth straight win.
