Down they go: Gators, Trojans, unbeatens fall

NEW YORK: What a tough day to be a highly ranked team.
All sorts of ambitions came crashing down in a handful of Top 25 upsets on Saturday, none more costly than No. 3 Florida’s loss to Georgia.
The 12th-ranked Bulldogs stuffed the Gators, handing Florida its first loss of the season and damaging its chances of making the SEC title game, let alone the BCS title game.
Southern California’s national title hopes took another hit when it was upset in the desert. New Arizona coach Rich Rodriguez got a signature win of the sort that mostly eluded him at Michigan, bumping off the Trojans 39-36 thanks to a huge day by quarterback Matt Scott.
There were more losses for undefeated teams as the day wore on, including a pair of surprising victories for the Mid-American Conference. No. 18 Rutgers was beaten at home by Kent State and No. 23 Ohio lost to archrival Miami of Ohio across the state in Oxford. Those games burst the bubble on promising seasons for programs looking for a spot in the BCS chase.
No. 7 Oregon State and No. 13 Mississippi State also lost on Saturday night.
USC, meanwhile, was touted as a likely title contender and still could have made the BCS championship game if it ran the table following its loss to Stanford in September. Seemingly in control with a 28-13 lead, the Trojans let it slip away.
Scott scored on a 10-yard run, then found Dan Buckner on a 9-yard touchdown pass to pull Arizona within 28-26 after the Wildcats recovered a fumble.
The Wildcats sniffed out a double reverse on fourth-and-2, stopping Marqise Lee a yard short, and marched 72 yards for a 7-yard touchdown run by Ka’Deem Carey that put Arizona up 32-28 after the 2-point conversion failed.
Scott extended the lead to 39-28 with his TD pass to David Richards and — after Redd’s TD run and a 2-point conversion — the Wildcats defense held on the last play of the game, swatting down Barkley’s final heave into the end zone
Florida, which won the BCS championship game following the 2006 and 2008 seasons, let a golden opportunity slip through its fingers — along with the football a couple of times.
Jarvis Jones knocked the ball out of Jordan Reed’s hands near the goal line, and teammate Sanders Commings recovered in the end zone with 2:05 left, sealing consecutive wins in the border grudge match for Georgia for the first time since 1989.
Quarterback Jeff Driskel fumbled twice on Florida’s first three plays. Georgia recovered the second one, which set up Todd Gurley’s 10-yard touchdown run. Call it the World’s Largest Outdoor Turnover Party.
No. 1 Alabama 38 No. 13 Mississippi State 7: In Tuscaloosa, Alabama, AJ McCarron passed for 208 yards and two touchdowns and Alabama reached the end zone on its first three possessions.
The Crimson Tide (8-0, 5-0) quickly turned the meeting of unbeaten Southeastern Conference West teams into a mismatch, rolling toward a national title game rematch at No. 6 LSU. The Bulldogs (7-1, 3-1) came in averaging 36.7 points a game but didn’t score until the final minutes.
They had been leading the nation in turnover margin but lost two fumbles and an interception.
McCarron completed 16 of 23 passes before sitting out the fourth quarter. He headed to the locker room briefly early in the quarter briefly but returned to the sideline.
No. 2 Oregon 70 Colorado 14: In Eugne, Oregon, Kenjon Barner rushed for 104 yards and two touchdowns, and No. 2 Oregon easily took care of Colorado in advance of next weekend’s Pac-12 showdown with Southern California.
De’Anthony Thomas rushed for another score and added a 73-yard punt return for a touchdown before most of the Ducks’ offensive starters were pulled midway through the second quarter. Redshirt freshman Marcus Mariota passed for 136 yards and two TDs.
No. 12 Georgia 17 No. 3 Florida 9: In Jacksonville, Florida, the 12th-ranked Bulldogs stopped the No. 3 Gators from every angle, forcing six turnovers to put themselves on the cusp of the Southeastern Conference title game.
The victory gave Georgia consecutive wins in the series for the first time since 1989.
The Bulldogs (7-1, 5-1 Southeastern Conference) did little on offense until Aaron Murray found Malcolm Mitchell for a 45-yard touchdown with 7:11 remaining that put them ahead 17-9. Georgia sealed its fifth victory in the last 23 games in the rivalry with — what else? — a defensive play. Jarvis Jones knocked the ball out of Jordan Reed’s hands near the goal line, and teammate Sanders Commings recovered in the end zone with 2:05 left.
No. 4 Kansas State 55 No. 15 Texas Tech 24: In Manhattan, Kansas: Collin Klein accounted for four touchdowns, and Arthur Brown returned an interception 37 yards for another score.
Klein was 19 of 26 for 233 yards and two touchdowns, and had 83 yards and two more scores on the ground — bolstering his credentials for the Heisman Trophy. Most of the offense came in the second half as the Wildcats (5-0 Big 12) blew open a 13-10 game to improve to 8-0 for the first time since 1999.


No. 5 Notre Dame 30 No. 8 Oklahoma 13: In Norman, Oklahoma, Everett Golson threw for 177 yards and plunged in for the decisive 1-yard touchdown in the fourth quarter, Manti Te’o bolstered his Heisman Trophy candidacy with a late interception and Notre Dame remain undefeated.
Te’o, the standout linebacker who has a penchant for causing turnovers, dove when Landry Jones’ pass ricocheted off Jalen Saunders and got his gloved hands under it. Kyle Brindza tacked on his third field goal soon after, and Theo Riddick added a late touchdown run as the Fighting Irish (8-0) put it away with 20 fourth-quarter points.