Penn State left nothing to chance with a championship chase still on the line. The Nittany Lions were determined to end this game with the ball in their hands.
Drew Allar passed for 244 yards and a touchdown, rushed for a score and led two late fourth-down conversions to help No. 4 (CFP) Penn State fend off Minnesota 26-25 on Saturday and stay on track for a spot in the College Football Playoff.
Tyler Warren had eight receptions for 102 yards for the Nittany Lions (10-1, 7-1 Big Ten), who dodged the upset on an afternoon when three other teams in the projected 12-team playoff were beaten and secured a third straight 10-win season. Penn State is 5-0 on the road for the first time since 1985.
“Records and stats are one thing, but they’re a physical team, they’re a tough team and they brought their ‘A’ game,” Nittany Lions center Nick Dawkins said.
Dragan Kesich’s third field goal of the game with 5:48 left brought the Gophers (6-5, 4-4) within one after they had first-and-goal from the 7. They tried to get tricky with a second-down screen pass to left tackle Aireontae Ersery, but it fell incomplete.
Minnesota coach P.J. Fleck trusted his defense enough to kick, a strategy that almost paid off until Penn State’s Luke Reynolds ran 32 yards on a fake punt to make up for two special teams gaffes in the first half. Reynolds’ run was the first of three fourth-and-1 conversions on the Nittany Lions’ final drive. Allar converted the second on a keeper from the Minnesota 25 just before the two-minute warning and ended the game on the third conversion with an 11-yard pass to star tight end Warren.
Neal scores 4 times, Kansas beats Colorado as Buffs’ Big 12 title hopes take hit: Devin Neal ran for 207 yards and three touchdowns, caught four passes for 80 yards and another score, and led Kansas to a 37-21 victory over No. 16 Colorado on Saturday that dealt a big blow to the Buffaloes’ hopes of playing for the Big 12 title. Jalon Daniels threw for 189 yards and a touchdown, and the Jayhawks (5-6, 4-4) scored on every offensive series but their last.
SMU routs Virginia to clinch a spot in the ACC title game: Kevin Jennings threw for a career-high 323 yards and two touchdowns and ran for another, and No. 13 SMU clinched a spot in the Atlantic Coast Conference championship game by routing Virginia 33-7 on Saturday.
Isaiah Smith and Jared Harrison-Hunte each had two sacks to help the Mustangs (10-1, 7-0) extend their winning streak to eight.
Beck throws 4 TD passes and Frazier runs for 3 scores to lead Georgia past UMass: Coach Kirby Smart hopes some ugly breakdowns by his defense in No. 10 Georgia’s otherwise dominant 59-21 win over Massachusetts on Saturday will provide lessons his team can use in its final regular-season game.
Smart says the most important lesson is about more than missed tackles. He says his players lacked the energy he saw from visiting UMass and that Georgia can’t make the same mistake when it plays in-state rival Georgia Tech on Friday night. Ultimately, Georgia’s advantage in talent was the difference.
Iamaleava throws 4 TD passes to lead Tennessee over UTEP: Nico Iamaleava threw for 209 yards and four touchdowns to lead No. 11 Tennessee to a 56-0 victory over UTEP on Saturday.
Miami pulls away late to beat Wake Forest: Wake Forest figured it wouldn’t keep Miami’s offense quiet forever. To their chagrin, the Demon Deacons were right. Cam Ward passed for 280 yards and threw two touchdowns to Jacolby George on another record-breaking day, Mishael Powell ran an interception back 76 yards for a touchdown and No. 8 Miami pulled away with 22 fourth-quarter points to beat Wake Forest 42-14 on Saturday.
Helm’s 2 TD catches power Texas over Kentucky: Quinn Ewers threw two first-half touchdown passes to Gunnar Helm and No. 3 Texas beat Kentucky 31-14 on Saturday to stay tied for first in the Southeastern Conference in the Longhorns’ first year in the league.
After fans storm field early, Arizona St stops Hail Mary try for win over BYU: Cam Skattebo ran for 147 yards and three touchdowns, Sam Leavitt threw for 247 yards and a score, and No. 21 Arizona State held on in the final minutes to beat No. 14 BYU 28-23 on Saturday.
The tight finish was capped by a bizarre final minute, including a premature field storming by Arizona State’s fans.
Javan Robinson’s interception with 1:04 left looked as if it would close it out for ASU, but the Sun Devils stalled on the ensuing offensive drive. Leavitt threw the ball out of bounds on fourth down and Arizona State’s student section — believing the game was over — rushed the field.
But officials ruled that there was 1 second left and BYU had a shot at the Hail Mary attempt.