AUSTIN, Texas — Will Reichard kicked a 33-yard field goal with 10 seconds left, and Bryce Young and No. 1 Alabama overcame a stifling defensive effort by Texas to earn a hard-fought 20-19 victory Saturday.
Young was hit and harassed by the Texas defense most of the game, but the Heisman Trophy-winning quarterback put together a big fourth quarter.
He had a twisting, off-balance touchdown pass, and then a 20-yard scramble in the final minute to set up Reichard’s winning kick. Young easily dodged a blitzing defender, then had wide open field ahead of him to scamper.
Young’s clutch play rescued Alabama on an uncharacteristically sloppy day when the Crimson Tide (2-0) struggled with penalties and dropped passes and was forced into six consecutive punts in one stretch. Texas (1-1) stuffed Alabama on fourth-and-inches late to set up a go-ahead field goal by Bert Auburn with 1:39 remaining.
Young also spoiled what could have been a program-defining victory for Texas and second-year coach Steve Sarkisian. Longhorns quarterback Quinn Ewers was knocked out with a shoulder injury at the end of the first quarter.
(2) GEORGIA 33, SAMFORD 0: Stetson Bennett passed for 300 yards while throwing and running for touchdowns and No. 2 Georgia’s rebuilt defense delivered another dominant performance in a win over Samford (1-1) in Athens, Georgia.
One week after giving up only a field goal in a 49-3 season-opening rout of then-No. 11 Oregon, Georgia’s defense again played up to the standard it set while winning last season’s national championship. Samford (1-1) was held to 128 yards and three first downs.
Georgia (2-0) has reloaded on defense after losing eight players in this year’s NFL draft, including five in the first round. Overall, Georgia had a record 15 players taken in the draft.
(3) OHIO STATE 54, ARKANSAS STATE 12: C.J. Stroud threw three touchdown passes to Marvin Harrison Jr., TreVeyon Henderson ran for another two scores and the Buckeyes (2-0) raced past the Red Wolves (1-1) in Columbus, Ohio.
Harrison had a career-best seven catches for 184 yards. Coupled with his three-touchdown performance as a first-year player in the Rose Bowl last season, Harrison became only the second Ohio State receiver to have a pair of three-touchdown games in his career. Joey Galloway had multiple touchdown games in 1993 and ’94.
(5) CLEMSON 35, FURMAN 12: DJ Uiagalelei threw for 231 yards and two touchdowns, Will Shipley ran for two scores and the Tigers (2-0) moved to 37-0 against FCS opponents with a win over the Paladins (1-1) in Clemson, South Carolina.
It was a satisfying showing for Uiagalelei, who’s been dogged by questions whether he can lead the Tigers back to championship form.
Things might be quieter this week after Uiagalelei directed the Tigers (2-0) to touchdowns on his first five drives. Clemson was up 21-3 early in the second quarter to remain perfect over teams from the Football Championship Subdivision.
APPALACHIAN STATE 17, (6) TEXAS A&M 14: Chase Brice threw for 134 yards and a touchdown and the Mountaineers (1-1) took advantage of two turnovers to stun the Aggies (1-1) in College Station, Texas.
Appalachian State won a week after scoring six touchdowns and 40 points in the fourth quarter in a 63-61 opening loss to North Carolina.
Appalachian State settled for a 29-yard field goal by Michael Hughes to take a 17-14 lead with about eight minutes left after Christian Wells was wide open but dropped a touchdown pass on third down.
The Aggies had a chance to tie it with about 3 1/2 minutes to go, but a 47-yard field goal attempt by Caden Davis was short.
MARSHALL 26, (8) NOTRE DAME 21: Steven Gilmore returned an interception 37 yards for a touchdown late in the fourth quarter and Khalan Labron ran for 163 yards as the Thundering Herd (2-0) shocked Notre Dame in South Bend, Indiana, making Marcus Freeman the first Fighting Irish coach to lose his first three games.
Gilmore, the brother of Stephon Gilmore of the Indianapolis Colts, picked off a pass by Tyler Buchner with 4:35 left, raced to the end zone and then jumped into the stands where Marshall fans were already celebrating the victory.
(13) UTAH 73, SOUTHERN UTAH 7: Cameron Rising threw for 254 yards in the first half, Dalton Kincaid had 107 yards receiving and two touchdowns and the Utes (1-1) the Thunderbirds (1-1) in Salt Lake City.
Coming off an opening loss last week at Florida, Utah scored on nine consecutive drives, including eight touchdowns, over the final three quarters against the FCS Thunderbirds. The Utes had 599 yards of total offense.
(14) MICHIGAN STATE 52, ARKON 0: Jalen Berger ran for 107 yards and three touchdowns and Michigan State’s defense forced four fumbles to help the 14th-ranked Spartans (2-0) to a win over Zips (1-1) in East Lansing, Michigan..
It was the largest margin of victory for Michigan State since beating Eastern Michigan by 59 points in 2014.
Kendell Brooks, filling in for injured starting safety Xavier Henderson, forced the ball out twice in the first quarter. He has forced three fumbles in the Spartans’ first two games.
(15) MIAMI 30, SOUTHER MISS 7: Key’Shawn Smith caught a 35-yard flea-flicker touchdown from Tyler Van Dyke, part of a third-quarter burst that lifted the Hurricanes (2-0) past the Golden Eagles (0-2) in Miami Gardens, Florida.
Smith’s scoring grab – the only play of that drive – came 2:14 after Thaddius Franklin Jr.’s 7-yard touchdown run gave Miami (2-0) a bit of breathing room after the Hurricanes trailed for almost the entire second quarter.
(16) ARKANSAS 44, SOUTH CAROLINA 30: Rocket Sanders ran for a career-high 156 yards and scored Arkansas’ first two touchdowns, and KJ Jefferson ran for a score and threw for another to lift the No. 16 Razorbacks (2-0, 1-0 SEC) past the Gamecocks (1-1, 0-1) in Fayetteville, Arkansas.
Jefferson led Arkansas on three scoring drives in the fourth quarter, never allowing South Carolina to rally.
(18) NORTH CAROLINA STATE 55, CHARLESTON SOUTHERN 3: Devin Leary tied a program record by accounting for six touchdowns and No. 18 North Carolina State’s defense surrendered 150 total yards as the Wolfpack (2-0) beat the Buccaneers (0-2) in Raleigh, North Carolina.
Leary threw four TD passes, including a perfect 24-yard wheel route to Jordan Houston down the left side and then a 40-yard strike over the middle to Anthony Smith after he shrugged blitzer Nick Perry off his back. Leary’s two rushing scores included a 12-yard keeper in the first quarter, when the preseason Atlantic Coast Conference player of the year bounced off three hard hits before hitting the end zone for the game’s first TD.
WASHINGTON STATE 17, (19) WISCONSIN 14: Nakia Watson scored two touchdowns against his former team as the Cougars (2-0) beat the Badgers (1-1) in Madison, Wisconsin.
Watson scored on a 2-yard run in the second quarter and put the Cougars ahead for good by turning a short completion into a 31-yard score with 5:12 left in the third quarter. Watson rushed for 522 yards and five touchdowns at Wisconsin from 2019-20 before transferring.
(23) WAKE FOREST 45, VANDERBILT 35: Sam Hartman passed for 300 yards and four touchdowns, and the Demon Deacons (2-0) beat the Commodores (2-1) in Nashville, Tennessee.
Hartman connected on 18 of 27 passes after he missed Wake Forest’s opener against VMI because of a blood clot. The fifth-year quarterback directed the Demon Deacons to 11 wins and a trip to the Atlantic Coast Conference championship game last season.
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