GAINESVILLE, Fla. — Bryce Young’s first collegiate road start was a rousing success, a three-touchdown performance that helped top-ranked Alabama hold off No. 11 Florida 31-29 in the Southeastern Conference opener for both teams Saturday.

The defending national champion Crimson Tide stopped a 2-point conversion with 3:10 left and extended its winning streak to 17, making it 32 in a row against teams from the SEC’s Eastern Division.

The Gators (2-1, 0-1 SEC) have now dropped eight straight in the series and fell to 0-5 against No. 1-ranked teams at Florida Field.

This one was closer than oddsmakers and just about everyone else expected, with 14 1/2-point underdog Florida having a chance to tie the game in the closing minutes despite playing without dynamic backup quarterback Anthony Richardson.

(2) GEORGIA 40, SOUTH CAROLINA 13: JT Daniels returned to the lineup with three touchdown passes, Georgia’s fearsome defense nearly made it three straight games without allowing a TD and the Bulldogs (3-0, 1-0 Southeastern Conference) romped to a victory over the Gamecocks (2-1, 0-1) in Athens, Georgia.

Daniels completed 23 of 31 for 303 yards, including scoring throws of 43 yards to Jermaine Burton, 38 yards to freshman Adonai Mitchell and 4 yards to James Cook.

Georgia finally gave up a touchdown while on defense when Luke Doty, getting the ball on the Bulldogs’ side of the field after a fumble, connected with Josh Vann on a 36-yard touchdown pass with 10:55 remaining.

(3) OKLAHOMA 23, NEBRASKA 16: Spencer Rattler passed for a touchdown and ran for another, and the Sooners (3-0) held on to beat the Cornhuskers (2-2) in Norman, Oklahoma.

Celebrating the 50-year anniversary of the “Game of the Century” – No. 1 Nebraska’s 35-31 win over No. 2 Oklahoma in 1971, the teams rewarded their nostalgic fans with a competitive contest.

In the first meeting between the former conference rivals since 2010, Nebraska got the ball trailing by a touchdown with 57 seconds remaining and no timeouts. The Cornhuskers could not manage a first down.

Eric Gray ran for 84 yards on 15 carries and Kennedy Brooks added 75 yards on 14 attempts for the Sooners (3-0).

Adrian Martinez passed for 289 yards and a touchdown for Nebraska (2-2), which was seeking its first win over a ranked team since 2015.

(5) IOWA 30, KENT STATE 7: Tyler Goodson ran for a career-high 153 yards and three touchdowns and the Hawkeyes (3-0) beat the Golden Flashes (1-2) in Iowa City, Iowa.

The Hawkeyes have won nine straight games. They have won 14th consecutive nonconference games, the second-longest current streak in the nation.

Goodson had a 46-yard touchdown run in the first quarter to give Iowa a 9-0 lead, then added a 35-yard scoring run in the third quarter. He had a 2-yard touchdown run in the fourth quarter to close the scoring.

(6) CLEMSON 14, GEORGIA TECH 8: Will Shipley ran for two touchdowns and the Tigers (2-1, 1-0 ACC) had a goal-line stand in the final seconds in wild victory over the Yellow Jackets (1-2, 0-1) in Clemson, South Carolina.

The Yellow Jackets had a chance to force overtime after recovering an onside kick with 1:19 to play. But they were held out of the end zone on four plays from the Clemson 2 in the closing seconds — the last when linebacker James Skalski tackled Dylan Deveney a yard short.

The chaos continued, though, when Shipley fumbled in the end zone with Clemson attempting to run out the clock and was tackled after recovering for a safety with seven seconds left.

(7) TEXAS A&M 34, NEW MEXICO 0: Zach Calzada threw for 275 yards and three touchdowns in his first career start to power the Aggies (3-0) in a rout of the Lobos (2-1) in College Station, Texas.

The victory extends A&M’s winning streak to 11 games and gives the Aggies a 3-0 start for the first time since opening the 2016 season with six consecutive wins.

(8) CINCINNATI 38, INDIANA 24: Desmond Ridder threw the go-ahead touchdown pass early in the fourth quarter, then scored on a 7-yard TD run to help the Bearcats (3-0) seal a come-from-behind win over the Hoosiers (1-2) in Bloomington, Indiana.

Jerome Ford ran for two scores and Tre Tucker scored on a 99-yard kickoff return as the Bearcats won their first road game of the season. They’ve won 12 of 13 since the start of 2020.

Indiana lost despite taking a 14-0 lead – and playing in front of its largest crowd for a non-conference game since September 1987.

(9) OHIO STATE 41, TULSA 20: TreVeyon Henderson broke Archie Griffin’s 49-year-old freshman rushing record, romping for 277 yards and three touchdowns as the Buckeyes (2-1) pulled away late to beat the Golden Hurricane (0-3) in Columbus, Ohio.

Henderson ran for scores of 5, 48 and 52 yards, which managed to paper over some of the same weaknesses Ohio State showed in the 32-25 upset by Oregon last week that sent the Buckeyes tumbling in the AP Top 25 poll.

(10) PENN STATE 28, (22) AUBURN 20: Jaquan Brisker broke up a desperation pass toward the end zone by Auburn’s Bo Nix as time expired and the Nittany Lions (3-0) held on to beat the visiting Tigers (2-1).

Sean Clifford completed 28 of 32 passes for 280 yards and two touchdowns as Penn State welcomed back its white out crowd to Beaver Stadium for a rare visit from a Southeastern Conference teams.

(12) NOTRE DAME 27, PURDUE 13: Kyren Williams scored two long touchdowns, the second a 51-yard run with 6:05 remaining, as the Fighting Irish (3-0) held off the Boilermakers (2-1) for their 26th straight victory at home.

The victory was the 105th in Brian Kelly’s 12-year career at Notre Dame, tying him with Knute Rockne as the winningest coach in school history. The Fighting Irish won their eighth straight over Purdue and first since 2014.

WEST VIRGINIA 27, (15) VIRGINIA TECH 21: Jarret Doege threw two touchdown passes, Leddie Brown rushed for 106 yards and a score and the Mountaineers (2-1) survived No. 15 Virginia Tech’s furious rally from a 20-point deficit to beat the Hokies (2-1) in Morgantown, West Virginia.

The Mountaineers built a 27-7-point lead midway through the third quarter but saw that mostly evaporate behind Virginia Tech’s Braxton Burmeister.

(16) COASTAL CAROLINA 28, BUFFALO 25: Grayson McCall threw for three touchdowns, Shermari Jones ran for 149 yards and another score, and the Chanticleers (3-0) held on to beat the Bulls (1-2) for their first road win of the season.

McCall, who entered the day leading the nation in passing efficiency and completion rate, was 13-of-19 passing for 232 yards with his first interception of the season.

Jaivon Heiligh caught four passes for 91 yards and a touchdown for the Chanticleers, becoming the fourth receiver in school history to surpass 2,000 career yards.

Buffalo got within a field goal with 2:41 remaining. Kevin Marks’ 7-yard touchdown run capped a 92-yard drive that started when Logic Hudgens intercepted McCall in the end zone.

(20) ARKANSAS 45, GEORGIA SOUTHERN 10: KJ Jefferson threw for a career-high 366 yards and tied a career high with three touchdowns to lead the Razorbacks (3-0) to a win over the Eagles (1-2) in Fayetteville, Arkansas.

Arkansas all but clinched the win on a 91-yard pass from Jefferson to preseason All-SEC wide receiver Treylon Burks with 11:18 left in the third quarter. It was Jefferson’s final touchdown pass of the game and gave Arkansas a 38-10 lead.

(21) NORTH CAROLINA 59, VIRGINIA 39: Sam Howell threw five touchdown passes and ran for a career-best 112 yards, and the Tar Heels (2-1, 1-1 Atlantic Coast Conference) scored touchdowns on all five of their second-half drives to beat the Cavaliers (2-1, 0-1) in Chapel Hill, North Carolina.

MICHIGAN STATE 38, (24) MIAMI 17: Payton Thorne passed for 261 yards and four touchdowns, two of those scoring throws going to Jalen Nailor, and the Spartans (3-0) extended their unbeaten start by topping the Hurricanes (1-2) in Miami Gardens, Florida.

Kenneth Walker III rushed for 172 yards and caught a touchdown pass for the Spartans (3-0), who are off to their best start since 2015.

Jayden Reed also had a scoring catch and a touchdown run for Michigan State, which forced Miami quarterback D’Eriq King into four turnovers.

(25) MICHIGAN 63, NORTHERN ILLINOIS 10: Blake Corum rushed for 123 yards and three touchdowns as the Wolverines (3-0) routed the Huskies (1-2) in Ann Arbor, Michigan.

The Wolverines scored touchdowns on their first nine drives, eight of them on the ground. The 10th drive also included a touchdown run, but it was called back for a holding penalty and Michigan turned the ball over on downs. The Wolverines never punted.

BOSTON COLLEGE 28, TEMPLE 3: Pat Garwo, Travis Levy and Dennis Grosel scored rushing touchdowns as the Eagles (3-0) cruised to a win over the Owls (1-2) in a non-conference clash in Philadelphia.

Grosel – who stepped into the quarterback spot following the injury to starter Phil Jurkovec during last week’s win over UMass – also added a touchdown pass to Jaden Williams.

NEW HAMPSHIRE 19, LAFAYETTE 13: Bret Edwards threw a pair of touchdowns to Brian Espanet and the Wildcats (3-0) overtook the Leopards (0-3) in the second half for a win in Easton, Pennsylvania.

Dylan Laube found the edge and raced down the right sideline for a 50-yard touchdown to expand the Wildcats’ lead to 19-10 on the second play of the final quarter.

Micah Pettit kicked a 41-yard field goal to cut Lafayette’s deficit to 19-13 with under two minutes remaining but the Leopards failed to recover an onside kick.

RHODE ISLAND 45, BROWN 24: Kasim Hill threw for three touchdowns and ran for another, and Jordan Jones returned an interception 100 yards as the Rams (3-0) raced to a win over the Bears (0-1) in Providence, Rhode Island.

Hill had touchdown passes of 7 yards to Caleb Warren and 80 yards to Matt Pires sandwiched around a Justin Antrum 1-yard plunge in a 21-point third quarter that broke the game open.

SYRACUSE 62, ALBANY 24: Sean Tucker scored five touchdowns, the Syracuse defense recorded eight sacks and yielded just 135 total yards and the Orange (2-1) defeated the Great Danes (0-3) in Syracuse, New York.

WILLIAM & MARY 27, COLGATE 7: Donavyn Lester rushed for 117 yards with a touchdown, Darius Wilson ran for another and the Tribe (2-1) defeated the Raiders (0-3) in Hamilton, New York.

VILLANOVA 34, RICHMOND 27: Daniel Smith led a three-touchdown blitz in the final five minutes and the Wildcats (3-0) stunned the Spiders (2-1) in the Colonial Athletic Association opener for both of the FCS-ranked teams in Villanova, Pennsylvania.

The Wildcats had a 13-0 first-half lead obliterated by a 24-point deluge by the Spiders in the third quarter. Jake Larson added a fourth-quarter field goal with nine minutes left in the game.

Then Smith and the Wildcats went to work with the quarterback finishing a 10-play drive with a 1-yard touchdown run, then throwing a 44-yard TD pass to Jaaron Hayek followed by a 47-yard score to Rayjoun Pringle to take the lead with 38 seconds left.

Richmond drove into Villanova territory, but Joe Mancuso was intercepted by Darius Pickett to save the Wildcats’ victory.

APPLACHIAN STATE 44, ELON 10: Chase Brice ran for one touchdown and passed for another to lead the Mountaineers (2-1) to a win over the Phoenix (1-2) in Boone, North Carolina.

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