And the Spartans barely escaped a close call against Minnesota.
In Iowa City, the Hawkeyes made a late goal line stand to preserve a 24-16 lead and beat No. 13 Michigan.
That was a mild upset because just last week Iowa had lost to Minnesota. What happened in Lincoln, Nebraska, was far more surprising.
With backup quarterback Cain Colter playing for Dan Persa, Northwestern upset the ninth-ranked Cornhuskers 28-25.
The loss by Nebraska put No. 15 Michigan State (4-1) alone in first in the Legends Division, the only team with one loss. The Spartans rallied in the second half to beat Minnesota 31-24.
Michigan, Iowa and Nebraska are all 3-2.
In Tuscaloosa, Alabama, No. 1 LSU gained the inside track to the BCS title game, beating No. 2 Alabama 9-6 on Drew Alleman’s 25-yard field goal in overtime after a fierce defensive struggle in which neither team reached the end zone.
The Crimson Tide missed four field goals, including Cade Foster’s 52-yard attempt after Alabama got the ball first in the extra period. LSU appeared to win the game on Michael Ford’s run around left end after taking a pitch, but he stepped out of bounds at the 7.
After two plays gained nothing, LSU (9-0, 6-0 Southeastern Conference) sent on Alleman to attempt his third field goal of the game on third down. Alabama (8-1, 5-1) tried to freeze him by calling timeout, but he calmly knocked it through to set off a wild celebration by the visiting team.
The crowd of more than 100,000 at Bryant-Denny Stadium — most of them dressed in crimson — sat in stunned silence as LSU celebrated its victory in only the 23rd regular-season matchup between the top two teams in The Associated Press rankings.
In Stillwater, Oklahoma, Brandon Weeden threw for a school-record 502 yards and four touchdowns, and Joseph Randle scored the tiebreaking 23-yard touchdown with 2:16 remaining to lift Oklahoma State over Kansas State.
The Cowboys (9-0, 6-0 Big 12) matched the best start in school history and withstood quite a scare from K-State (7-2, 4-2), which had three shots at the end zone in the final 12 seconds.
Collin Klein missed on 5-yard passes intended for Tyler Lockett and Chris Harper and then overshot Tramaine Thompson as time expired.
In Corvallis, Oregon, Andrew Luck shook off the rain and the chill to throw for 206 yards and three touchdowns as Stanford extended the nation’s longest winning streak to 17 games.
The victory was costly for the Cardinal, who lost senior receiver Chris Owusu to a concussion in the second quarter after a helmet-to-helmet collision with Beavers cornerback Jordan Poyer. Owusu was taken from the field by ambulance.
The Cardinal (9-0, 7-0 Pac-12) are off to their best start since 1952.
In Las Vegas, Kellen Moore threw five touchdown passes to become college football’s winningest quarterback and Boise State brushed off a first-half scare from UNLV.
Moore threw two touchdowns each to Tyler Shoemaker and Matt Miller, racking up 224 yards through the air on 18-of-31 passing for Boise State (8-0, 3-0 Mountain West Conference) despite leaving the game early in the fourth quarter.
The victory gave Moore 46 career wins, one more than former Texas star Colt McCoy.
Moore, in his fourth year as Boise State’s starting quarterback, is 46-2, tops all-time among FBS quarterbacks in winning percentage (95.8 percent). Stanford’s Andrew Luck is second at 85.3 percent (29-5).
In Seattle, Oregon’s LaMichael James ran for 156 yards and a touchdown, and the sixth-ranked Ducks forced three key turnovers and extended the longest win streak in the rivalry with their foes to the north.
On a night filled with Washington nostalgia as the school honored the 1991 co-national championship team and said goodbye to Husky Stadium in its current incarnation before a $250 million renovation, the Ducks (8-1, 6-0) ruined the party.
Eddie Pleasant picked off Keith Price twice in the first half and Terrance Mitchell stripped tight end Michael Hartvigson late in the third quarter. The Ducks converted the three turnovers by Washington (6-3, 4-2 Pac-12) into 14 points.
In Norman, Oklahoma, Landry Jones threw two touchdown passes during Oklahoma’s 28-point third-quarter surge, but the Sooners lost All-America receiver Ryan Broyles for the year with a knee injury.
Broyles came out in the third quarter and the school announced after the game the senior had torn a ligament in his left knee. He had two catches for 87 yards and both helped set up touchdowns.
The Sooners (8-1, 5-1 Big 12) led just 13-10 at halftime, but Texas A&M (5-4, 3-3) had its second-half troubles continue — the Aggies gave up big second-half leads in its previous three losses.
In Fayetteville, Arkansas, Tyler Wilson threw for 299 yards and two touchdowns as No. 8 Arkansas held on for a win.
Jarius Wright added four catches for 103 yards and a pair of touchdowns, and Dennis Johnson had a 98-yard kickoff return for a touchdown for the Razorbacks, who won their fifth straight.
Arkansas (8-1, 4-1 Southeastern Conference) outgained the Gamecocks (7-2, 5-2) 435-207, but a pair of missed field goals and key dropped passes kept the Razorbacks from securing the win until late.
In Lincoln, Nebraska, second-string quarterback Kain Colter ran for two touchdowns and passed for another to lead Northwestern to an upset.
Filling in for injured starter Dan Persa in the second half, Colter scored from the 1 with 1:34 left to finish a 13-play, 66-yard drive that chewed more than 7 minutes off the clock after the Cornhuskers had pulled to 21-18.
Taylor Martinez, who passed for 289 yards and two scores, hurriedly moved Nebraska (7-2, 3-2 Big Ten) down the field. He hit Kenny Bell for a 14-yard touchdown with 18 seconds to play, but Charles Brown recovered the onside kick and Northwestern (4-5, 2-4) ran out the clock.
Persa injured his left shoulder in the second quarter when he was slammed to the ground by Eric Martin.
