BATON ROUGE, La. — Joe Burrow passed for 200 yards and had two short touchdown runs, LSU’s defense staggered Georgia’s normally prolific offense, and the 13th-ranked Tigers beat the No. 2 Bulldogs 36-16 to give Coach Ed Orgeron a signature victory Saturday.
Five fourth-down decisions by Orgeron influenced the result. LSU converted all four times it ran an offensive play on fourth down, sustaining three drives that produced a total of 13 points.
In another instance, Orgeron called a timeout and elected to punt on fourth-and-2 after the offense initially remained on the field. That decision pinned Georgia at its 4, and Kristian Fulton’s interception of Jake Fromm’s pass shortly after set up another of Cole Tracy’s five field goals against Georgia (6-1, 4-1 Southeastern).
Clyde Edwards-Helaire rushed for 133 yards for LSU (6-1, 3-1), and Justin Jefferson caught six passes for 108 yards, including a 41-yard snag of a pass rifled over the middle and between defenders. That catch set up Burrow’s second TD in the fourth quarter.
(3) OHIO STATE 30, MINNESOTA 14: Dwayne Haskins threw for 412 yards and three touchdowns as Ohio State (7-0, 4-0 Big Ten) held off persistent Minnesota (3-3, 0-3) at Columbus, Ohio, in a game where little went well for the Buckeyes beyond their passing game.
The Buckeyes needed a pair of Blake Haubiel second-half field goals and a late TD pass from Haskins to K.J. Hill to put away the Gophers.
(5) NOTRE DAME 19, PITTSBURGH 14: Ian Book threw a 35-yard touchdown pass to Miles Boykin with 5:43 remaining, and Notre Dame (7-0) came from behind then held off Pittsburgh (3-4) at South Bend, Indiana.
The Fighting Irish are 7-0 for the first time since 2012, the year they went to the BCS title game.
(17) OREGON 30, (7) WASHINGTON 27: C.J. Verdell scored on a 6-yard run in overtime and Oregon (5-1, 2-1 Pac-12) knocked off Washington (5-2, 3-1) at Eugene, Oregon.
Verdell finished with 111 yards for the Ducks.
MICHIGAN STATE 21, (8) PENN STATE 17: Brian Lewerke threw a 25-yard touchdown pass to Felton Davis with 19 seconds left to lift Michigan State (4-2, 2-1 Big Ten) past Penn State (4-2, 1-2) at State College, Pennsylvania, making it two consecutive seasons that the Spartans used a late score to hand the Nittany Lions a second straight loss.
(9) TEXAS 23, BAYLOR 17: Shane Buechele came on for injured quarterback Sam Ehlinger early in the first quarter and Texas (6-1, 4-0 Big 12) slugged out a win over Baylor (4-3, 2-2) at Austin, Texas, that ended when the Bears’ final pass sailed through the back of the end zone.
(10) CENTRAL FLORIDA 31, MEMPHIS 30: McKenzie Milton threw for 296 yards and ran for the go-ahead touchdown in the fourth quarter as visiting Central Florida (6-0, 3-0 American Athletic) weathered its first significant test of the season before beating Memphis (4-3, 1-3).
(14) FLORIDA 37, VANDERBILT 27: Jordan Scarlett ran 48 yards for the go-ahead touchdown on the first play of the fourth quarter, and Florida (6-1, 4-1 Southeastern) rallied from an 18-point deficit to beat Vanderbilt (3-4, 0-3) at Nashville, Tennessee, in a game marred by a near brawl, with both coaches yelling as each team spilled onto the field.
TENNESSEE 30, (21) AUBURN 24: Jarrett Guarantano passed for 328 yards and two touchdowns, and visiting Tennessee (3-3, 1-2) snapped an 11-game SEC losing streak with a victory against Auburn (4-3, 1-3).
(22) TEXAS A&M 26, SOUTH CAROLINA 23: Kellen Mond threw for 353 yards and freshman Seth Small had four field goals, including the go-ahead kick in the fourth quarter, to lift Texas A&M (5-2, 3-1 Southeastern) over South Carolina (3-3, 2-3) at Columbia, South Carolina.
BOSTON COLLEGE 38, LOUISVILLE 20: David Bailey ran for 112 yards and a touchdown, Travis Levy recovered a blocked punt in the end zone for a score for the second straight week and Boston College (5-2, 2-1 Atlantic Coast)beat visiting Louisville (2-5, 0-4).
STONY BROOK 35, NEW HAMPSHIRE 7: Joe Carbone threw for two touchdowns and Stony Brook (5-2, 3-1 Colonial Athletic) rolled past New Hampshire (1-5, 0-3) at Durham, New Hampshire.
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