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Late touchdown lifts Auburn over Washington

5 min read

Jatarvious Whitlow ran 10 yards for a touchdown with 6:15 remaining and the Auburn defense came through at the end, leading the No. 9 Tigers a 21-16 victory over No. 6 Washington that provided a big boost to their resume in the very first game of the season Saturday.

Trailing 16-15 after missing a two-point conversion on their opening possession of the Chick-fil-A Kickoff Game, Auburn drove 76 yards in 10 plays for the winning score. Jarrett Stidham kept it going with a 12-yard pass to Chandler Cox on third-and-9.

Then, facing third-and-7 deep in Washington territory, Auburn handed off inside to Whitlow, who knocked over a Washington safety as he barreled into the end zone.

Washington drove to the Auburn 37 with plenty of time to pull off the comeback, but Myles Gaskin was thrown for a 3-yard loss and Jake Browning was stymied by a fierce pass rush on back-to-back plays to preserve the Tigers’ victory.

“We beat one of the better teams in the country,” Auburn coach Gus Malzahn said. “We’ve got a lot of things we can correct. But I’m proud of our team, the way they won. Sometimes, it’s how you win a game that helps you later in the season.”

Stidham was 26 of 36 for 273 yards, including a 10-yard touchdown pass to Sal Cannella, who made a leaping grab in the end zone before landing flat on his back .

Browning, looking to bounce back from a disappointing junior season, completed 18 of 32 for 296 yards.

No. 2 Clemson 48, Furman 7: Freshman Trevor Lawrence threw three touchdown passes and Clemson scored on all five of his drives in the season-opening rout over Furman, 48-7.

Lawrence was going 9 for 15 for 137 yards and no interceptions, and senior starter Kelly Bryant was 10 for 16 for 127 yards and a touchdown and ran five times for 44 yards and another score.

The Tigers’ front four on defense – who may all end up as NFL first-rounders – dominated Furman’s option attack. The Paladins gained just 163 yards and the one touchdown came with 1:18 left after Clemson emptied its bench on a steamy afternoon.

No. 3 Georgia 45, Austin Peay 0: Jake Fromm threw two scoring passes while sharing time with freshman Justin Fields and Georgia showed off some new firepower in a 45-0 win over Austin Peay.

Georgia flashed big-play potential, including a 59-yard touchdown pass from Fromm to Mecole Hardman and a 72-yard scoring run by Demetris Robertson, who was making his debut.

Fromm completed 12 of 16 passes for 157 yards, including a 10-yard scoring pass to Riley Ridley. Fields, one of the headliners in coach Kirby Smart’s top-ranked class of signees, made his debut on the Bulldogs’ first second-quarter possession and started the second half.

No. 5 Ohio State 77, Oregon State 31: With coach Urban Meyer serving a suspension, new starting quarterback Dwayne Haskins Jr. had a record-setting day, throwing five touchdown passes to help Ohio State rout Oregon State in the opener for both teams.

Meyer will be allowed to return to practice Monday, although his suspension by the university will last for two more games. He was sanctioned after an investigation showed he mismanaged former assistant Zach Smith, who was accused of domestic violence and other bad behavior.

Haskins was 22 for 30 for 313 yards. The five touchdowns and yards gained are records for a first-time Ohio State starter. Mike Weber rushed 20 times for 186 yards and three touchdowns.

No. 7 Oklahoma 63, Florida Atlantic 14: Kyler Murray, taking over for Heisman Trophy winner Baker Mayfield, passed for 209 yards and two touchdowns to lead Oklahoma over Florida Atlantic 63-14.

Murray connected on 9 of 11 passes in just under one half. The first-round Major League Baseball draft pick also ran for 23 yards on four carries. It was Murray’s second college start since transferring from Texas A&M after the 2015 season.

Marquise Brown caught six passes for 133 yards and a touchdown, and Rodney Anderson rushed for 100 yards and two touchdowns on just five carries.

No. 15 Southern California 45, UNLV 21: JT Daniels, the second freshman to start at quarterback in a season opener for Southern California, threw for 282 yards, and had a 43-yard touchdown pass to Amon-Ra St. Brown as the Trojans defeated UNLV, 45-21.

Daniels was 22 of 35, and fellow freshman St. Brown making seven receptions for 98 yards. The former Mater Dei High School teammates connected for their first college touchdown on the first play of the fourth quarter, with St.

Aca’Cedric Ware rushed for 100 yards and a touchdown, and Vavae Malepeai scored the first of two touchdowns on a 2-yard run late in the second quarter that gave USC a lead it would not relinquish.

Maryland 34, No. 23 Texas 29: Maryland emerged from a trying offseason with an emotionally charged upset of Texas, 34-29, shaking off a lengthy weather delay to provide Matt Canada a satisfying victory in his debut at the Terrapins’ interim coach.

After blowing a 24-7 lead, Maryland forced three turnovers in the final 6:09 and scored the game’s final 10 points to stun the Longhorns in the opener for the second year in a row. This one was even more impressive because of what the Terrapins endured this summer.

Maryland has dedicated its season to Jordan McNair, the offensive lineman who collapsed on the practice field on May 29 and died two weeks later of heatstroke. The Terrapins paid tribute to McNair by lining up with 10 players on their first offensive play of the game. Maryland waited for a delay of game to be called, and Texas declined the penalty in a show of sportsmanship.

Canada, the offensive coordinator, was named the interim coach.

Freshman Jeshaun Jones ran for a score, threw for one and caught a 65-yard TD pass. Quarterback Kasim Hill went 17 for 29 for 222 yards.

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