College football notebook

Notre Dame avoids shocking upset loss to Toledo

Notre Dame's Michael Mayer crosses the goal line with what proved to be the winning touchdown in the fourth quarter Saturday. Michael Hickey/Getty

Jack Coan has played in only two games for No. 8 Notre Dame, yet he already has a place in Fighting Irish lore by leading them to a come-from-behind 32-29 victory over Toledo on Saturday despite dislocating a finger.

The grad transfer from Wisconsin, after having the finger on his throwing hand popped back into place by a trainer, hit Michael Mayer with the winning 18-yard touchdown pass with 1:09 remaining for the third lead change in a wild fourth quarter. The comeback by Brian Kelly’s Irish (2-0) preserved Notre Dame’s home winning streak at 25 games.

“I thought Jack was poised in the pocket and decisive with his throws,” Kelly said. “During a break [at 1:13], our assistant trainer Mike Bean went out there and performed a pull-the-finger thing. He got it back in place. Jack stepped up and felt he could keep going. On that last drive, he was outstanding.”

Coan shared playing time with true freshman Tyler Buchner. Coan finished with 239 yards and two touchdowns but was sacked six times, threw an interception that was returned for a touchdown, and fumbled the ball on another possession.

“Hats off to Toledo — Jason and his staff did a terrific job,” Kelly said of Jason Candle, coach of the Rockets (1-1). “From our perspective, we’re happy with the win, but I can’t even begin with the work we have to do to get better.”

Coan’s second TD pass to Mayer came after Toledo freshman QB Dequan Finn scooted 26 yards on a bootleg run to put Toledo ahead, 29-24, with 1:35 remaining. Finn split playing time with sophomore Carter Bradley, who threw for 213 yards.

The winning drive took just 26 seconds to go 75 yards on three plays and was aided by two Toledo penalties. Buchner rushed for 68 yards on seven carries and was 3 for 3 passing for 78 yards, including a 55-yard TD pass to Chris Tyree that gave the Irish a 24-16 lead with 10:57 to play.

Toledo answered with an 8-yard TD run by Bryant Koback (21 carries for 122 yards) with 7:48 left to pull the Rockets to within two. Then, after Kyren Williams fumbled for Notre Dame, the Rockets went 73 yards to the end zone, with Finn putting his team ahead. The Irish outgained the Rockets, 449-353.

The Irish were their own worst enemy in the first half. The Rockets went to the locker room up, 16-14, after Chris McDonald intercepted Coan’s pass intended for Mayer and returned it 27 yards for a touchdown with 46 seconds remaining. Toledo’s other points in the half came on three field goals by Thomas Cluckey.

No. 1 Alabama warms up for showdown

Bryce Young threw three touchdown passes and Jase McClellan scored three times to help fuel No. 1 Alabama to a 48-14 home rout of FCS Mercer.

Special teams struck before Young and the offense. Chris Braswell blocked a punt, which McClellan scooped up for a 33-yard touchdown, and the expected rout was on against the Bears (1-1).

The Crimson Tide (2-0) started sluggishly on offense in what amounted to a warm-up game before the Southeastern Conference opener at No. 13 Florida, but potentially more notably had star linebacker Will Anderson Jr. leave with an apparent right leg injury.

Anderson, a preseason All-American, headed to the locker room, coming up limping after a cut block to the right leg. The defense was already without fellow outside linebacker Chris Allen, expected to miss the rest of the season with a foot injury sustained in the opener.

Two QBs add up to one win for Florida

No. 13 Florida tuned up for the start of Southeastern Conference play with a 42-20 rout of overmatched South Florida at Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, Fla. However, it did little to answer the question of whether starter Emory Jones or backup Anthony Richardson is best suited to run the Gators’ offense next week against Alabama.

“We have two quarterbacks that are pretty talented guys that can make things happen on the field, but there are a lot of things quarterback have to do,” said coach Dan Mullen, who insists his team doesn’t have a QB controversy or a reason to change the depth chart.

Jones and Richardson shared playing time for the second straight week, with each having his way in the opening half against a USF defense that allowed touchdowns on five consecutive possessions after producing a three-and-out to start the game.

Jones threw a 35-yard TD pass to Xzavier Henderson and scored on a 33-yard run on the way to a 35-3 halftime lead before a crowd of 66,646 at Raymond James Stadium.

The redshirt junior from LaGrange, Ga., was not nearly as effective the rest of the way, though, tossing a pair of interceptions and turning the ball over on downs on four straight possessions to begin the second half.

Richardson, meanwhile, took an astounding passer rating of 917.2 into the fourth quarter after completing his first two attempts to Jacob Copeland on scoring plays of 75 and 41 yards before halftime.

The 6-foot-4-inch, 236-pound backup from Gainesville, Fla., completed his only pass of the second half for 36 yards to finish 3 of 3 for 152 yards, two TDs and a 745.6 rating that seemingly would be difficult for Mullen to ignore with top-ranked and defending champion Alabama visiting The Swamp next Saturday.

“I thought both of them were pretty efficient in the first half. It’s a long season and we have young quarterbacks that I have to continue to grow and develop into being good football players,” said Mullen, who enjoyed his 100th career victory.

Jones finished 14 of 22 for 151 yards, one TD and two interceptions. He’s thrown four picks in two games against overmatched opponents after Kyle Trask threw eight all of last season against the all-SEC schedule the Gators played because of the coronavirus pandemic.

No. 25 Auburn, No. 4 Oklahoma run wild

Demetris Robertson scored three touchdowns and Jarquez Hunter rushed for 147 yards as No. 25 Auburn raced past visiting Alabama State, 62-0.

After a fast start in Bryan Harsin’s first game as head coach last week, Auburn (2-0) was held to just one offensive touchdown and fewer than 200 yards in the first half. But the Tigers erupted for 35 points in the third quarter to pull away with ease.

Robertson, who transferred from SEC rival Georgia this summer, had three catches for 61 yards and two touchdowns and added a 36-yard touchdown run on a sweep in the third. Hunter, a freshman, set the Auburn record for longest run with a 94-yard touchdown later in the quarter.

Auburn had a quiet first half but special teams excelled with a punt block and a field-goal block that was returned 80 yards for a touchdown by Nehemiah Pritchett.

In Norman, Spencer Rattler threw five touchdown passes, and No. 4 Oklahoma (2-0) rolled past Western Carolina, 76-0. Oklahoma matched its fifth-highest point total in school history. The Sooners led, 62-0, after three quarters, and the fourth quarter was shortened to 12 minutes.

Rattler completed 20 of 26 passes for 243 yards before resting in the second half of Oklahoma’s 10th straight victory. He joined Jason White as the only Sooners to pass for five touchdowns in a half.

Jadon Haselwood caught two touchdown passes and Jaden Knowles had 102 yards from scrimmage and ran for two touchdowns for the Sooners.

Rogan Wells completed 16 of 29 passes for 86 yards for Western Carolina (0-2), a Championship Subdivision program that fell to 0-60 all time against Bowl Subdivision teams.

Stetson Bennett (5 TD passes) carries Georgia

Stetson Bennett tied a school record with five touchdown passes filling in for injured starter JT Daniels, leading No. 2 Georgia to a 56-7 rout of visiting UAB.

Bennett completed his first six passes — four of them going all the way to the end zone for the Bulldogs (2-0), who didn’t show any signs of a letdown after a 10-3 victory over Clemson despite the absence of their No. 1 quarterback.

Jermaine Burton set the tone by slipping behind the secondary to haul in a 73-yard TD from Bennett on Georgia’s second offensive play, thrilling the raucous crowd of nearly 93,000 at Sanford Stadium. It was the first full house between the hedges since the 2019 season. Crowds were limited to about 20,000 last season because of the pandemic.

By the opening minute of the second quarter, Bennett had tacked on scoring passes of 12 yards to Kenny McIntosh, 89 yards to Brock Bowers, and 61 yards to Arian Smith.

Cincinnati enjoys halfway decent win

Jerome Ford rushed for 113 yards and three touchdowns, Desmond Ridder passed for 243 yards and two TDs, and No. 7 Cincinnati beat visiting Murray State, 42-7, in the first meeting between the schools

The Bearcats (2-0) were heavy favorites coming in, but the Racers (1-1) outgained them 190-83 in the first half and led 7-0 in the second quarter. The score was tied at halftime before the Bearcats scored touchdowns on four of their first five possessions in the second half.

Virginia Tech finds its second gear

Raheem Blackshear rushed for two touchdowns to lead No. 19 Virginia Tech to a 35-14 victory over visiting Middle Tennessee. The Hokies (2-0) scored on their first three possessions of the second half, including back-to-back TDs by Blackshear, in a game they led 14-7 at halftime. Virginia Tech broke open the game when Jalen Holston scored on a 29-yard, third-quarter run to take a 21-7 lead. Blackshear, who rushed for 58 yards, then scored on runs of 6 yards and 1 yard on ensuing possessions to help the Hokies build a 35-7 cushion . . . Payton Thorne threw for four touchdowns, including two long strikes to Jayden Reed, and ran for another score as host Michigan State (2-0) rolled to a 42-14 victory over Youngstown State. Thorne connected with Reed on Michigan State’s first play from scrimmage, the second straight game in which the Spartans scored from 75 yards out on its opening play. They also combined on an 85-yard score during the second quarter. The Spartans racked up 408 yards of offense in the first half. Thorne completed 15-of-21 passes for 280 yards. The duo built chemistry long ago. They were high school teammates at Naperville (Ill.) Central. Reed caught four passes for 181 yards, while Jordon Simmons rushed for 140 yards on 19 carries for the Spartans (2-0), who led 35-7 at halftime . . . Montre Miller intercepted three passes, seven players scored rushing touchdowns, and Kent State cruised to a 60-10 win over visiting VMI. The Golden Flashes (1-1) piled up 698 total yards, 494 on the ground. Marquez Cooper led the way with 119 yards on 12 carries and scored the opening touchdown 1½ minutes into the game. Joachim Bangda scored on a 60-yard run and Daniel Bangura closed it out with a 49-yard scamper. Receiver Nykeim Johnson, a Syracuse transfer, had a touchdown rushing and receiving.Elvis Hines also had an interception, the second consecutive week Kent State picked off four passes.

Purdue blows out UConn

Purdue quarterback Jack Plummer threw four touchdown passes in the first half, three to wide receiver David Bell, as the Boilermakers rolled over winless UConn, 49-0, at Pratt & Whitney Stadium in East Hatford. After punting on its first possession, Purdue (2-0), making their farthest foray east since a 1947 trip to play Boston University, scored touchdowns on each of its next five to take a 35-0 lead at halftime. In their first game under interim coach Lou Spanos, who took over Monday following Randy Edsall’s abrupt retirement, the Huskies (0-3) advanced inside Purdue’s 20-yard line only once in the game. UConn has lost 28 of its last 29 games against FBS competition. It was UConn’s most lopsided shutout loss since a 49-0 loss to New Hampshire Nov. 7, 1931 . . . Westin Elliott sandwiched a pair of second-quarter touchdown passes around teammate Anthony Witherstone’s 35-yard interception return for a score as Merrimack stunned Holy Cross (1-1), 35-21, in Worcester, to give the Warriors their first 2-0 start . . . Fifth-year senior Stephen Sturm threw touchdown passes in each of the first three quarters as Bentley (2-0) defeated Assumption (0-2), 40-21, in Worcester. Bentley extended its winning streak to seven games, dating to October 2019. During the team’s longest win streak since 2012, the Falcons have averaged 41 points a game . . . Bret Edwards threw for 261 yards and two touchdowns and Evan Horn had two of the Wildcats’ four interceptions to lead host UNH (2-0, 2-0 CAA) to a 26-14 victory over Towson (1-1, 0-1).

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