Maine news, sports, weather from Portland Press Herald / Maine Sunday Telegram, Portland, Maine

October 21, 2012

Top 25 Football: Florida still perfect with 44-11 victory

The Associated Press

GAINESVILLE, Fla. - Jeff Driskel threw four touchdown passes -- three of them after turnovers -- and No. 3 Florida matched its win total from last season with a 44-11 drubbing of ninth-ranked South Carolina on Saturday at Gainesville, Fla.

The Gators avenged consecutive losses to the Gamecocks, including one two years ago that ended with Steve Spurrier and his players celebrating a division title in The Swamp.

Florida's latest whatever-it-takes win kept Coach Will Muschamp's team undefeated and put it on the cusp of the Southeasten Conference's Eastern Division title. The Gators (7-0, 6-0 SEC) can clinch a spot in the SEC championship game by beating No. 13 Georgia next week in nearby Jacksonville.

South Carolina (6-2, 4-2) lost its second straight.

(5) NOTRE DAME 17, BYU 14: Theo Riddick ran for a career-high 143 yards and Cierre Wood added 114 yards as the Irish had to rally for a win at South Bend, Ind.

Riddick had runs of 55 and 27 yards, the two longest rushes of his career, to pace Notre Dame (7-0), which is off to its best start in a decade and has a big game ahead against No. 10 Oklahoma next week.

The Cougars (4-4) fell to 0-3 on the road as they surrendered a season-high 270 yards rushing by an opponent.

(6) LSU 24, TEXAS A&M 19: Jeremy Hill rushed for a career-high 127 yards and a touchdown, and LSU rallied from an early deficit at College Station, Texas.

Michael Ford also had a touchdown run and Zach Mettenberger threw a TD pass to Kadron Boone for the Tigers (7-1, 3-1 Southeastern Conference).

A&M (5-2, 2-2) outplayed the Tigers for much of the first half and led 12-0, but gave away two costly turnovers just before halftime.

(7) OHIO STATE 29, PURDUE 22: Ohio State quarterback Braxton Miller was "doing fine" after being taken to a hospital and undergoing tests in the wake of an injury sustained late in the third quarter of the Buckeyes' win over Purdue (3-4, 0-3 Big Ten) at Columbus, Ohio.

Miller, among the top Heisman Trophy contenders, was at the end of a 37-yard run when he was thrown to the turf by cornerback Josh Johnson.

Miller's replacement, Kenny Guiton, led Ohio State (8-0, 4-0) to a touchdown with three seconds left; after that scoring pass he threw a 2-point conversion pass to send the game into overtime.

In overtime, Carlos Hyde scored on a 1-yard plunge for the Buckeyes.

(11) USC 50, COLORADO 6: Matt Barkley threw for 298 yards and six touchdowns while setting Southern California's career record for TD passes, and Robert Woods caught a school-record four scoring passes while also surpassing USC's career receptions mark in the Trojans' win at Los Angeles.

Barkley and Woods climbed atop the Trojans' record books during the most prolific day of their three-year partnership at USC (6-1, 4-1 Pac-12), connecting on scoring throws of 39, 29, 17 and 3 yards in the first 35 minutes against hapless Colorado (1-6, 1-3).

Barkley hit Woods with his 100th career TD pass in the second quarter to surpass Matt Leinart's USC and conference records. Woods passed Dwayne Jarrett on USC's career receptions list a few minutes later with his 217th career catch, going 17 yards for another TD.

(14) CLEMSON 38, VIRGINIA TECH 17: Tajh Boyd ran for two touchdowns and passed for another, and Jonathan Meeks had a 74-yard interception for a score at Clemson, S.C., as the Tigers won their third straight over Virginia Tech (4-4, 2-2).

(Continued on page 2)

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