COLUMBIA, Mo. (AP) — Ty Simpson threw for 200 yards and three touchdowns, including the clincher on fourth down to Daniel Hill with 3:16 to go, and eighth-ranked Alabama held off No. 14 Missouri 27-24 on Saturday to give the Crimson Tide their fifth consecutive win.
Jam Miller added 85 yards rushing before leaving with an injury in the fourth quarter, and Kevin Riley and Isaiah Horton also had TD catches for Alabama (5-1, 3-0 SEC), which has won seven straight over Missouri dating to Sept. 8, 1975.
Beau Pribula tried to rally the Tigers (5-1, 1-1) late, hitting Donovan Olugbode for a touchdown with 1:39 to go. And after Alabama pounced on the onside kick, Missouri was able to force a quick punt, getting the ball back with 1:17 left and no timeouts.
Pribula connected with Olugbode again on fourth down to get close to midfield, but he followed with a pair of incompletions, then overshot his intended target and was picked off by Alabama defensive back Dijon Lee Jr. to put the game away.
The loss ended the Tigers’ 15-game home winning streak, the second-longest nationally.
Pribula finished with 167 yards passing with two touchdowns and two interceptions, and he also was the Tigers’ most effective runner with 61 yards and another score. The nation’s top rusher, Ahmad Hardy, was held to just 52 yards.
Missouri got off to a good start, seemingly stunning Alabama on its opening drive. It took just six plays to march 78 yards, and Pribula threw a nifty lob to tight end Brett Norfleet down the sideline for a 26-yard touchdown and a 7-0 lead.
Yet the Crimson Tide not only regained their composure, they regained control.
Simpson was nearly perfect on an answering touchdown drive. And after Alabama forced a three-and-out, the junior QB drove the Crimson Tide downfield again, zipping a pass to Horton on third-and-long for a 16-yard touchdown pass and a 14-7 lead.
After each team added a field goal before halftime, Missouri took advantage of Simpson’s fumble — his only big mistake — on the first play of the second half. Pribula juked his way into the end zone three plays later to tie the game 17-all.
But after Conor Talty added a go-ahead field goal later in the third quarter for Alabama, the Crimson Tide stopped Missouri on fourth down midway through the fourth quarter, shoving Jamal Roberts out of bounds just shy of the marker; replays appeared to show the running back reaching the ball far enough for a first down, but the spot was upheld by the officials.
Alabama took over and, after Simpson converted on fourth-and-8 with a throw to freshman Lotzeir Brooks, the SEC’s top passer found Hill in the end zone on fourth-and-goal from the Missouri 2 with just over 3 minutes remaining.
NO. 1 OHIO STATE 34, ILLINOIS 16
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. (AP) — Julian Sayin passed for two touchdowns, C.J. Donaldson ran for two more scores, and the Ohio State defense forced three turnovers that resulted in 21 points as the No. 1-ranked Buckeyes defeated No. 17 Illinois.
Sayin completed 19 of 27 passes for 166 yards in leading Ohio State (6-0, 3-0 Big Ten). Donaldson rushed for 44 yards. Jeremiah Smith had five catches for 42 yards and a TD.
Illinois’ Luke Altmyer threw for 248 yards and a touchdown with an interception. Aidan Laughery ran for 50 yards and a TD. Collin Dixon had four catches for 46 yards and a TD.
Illinois (5-2, 2-2) scored two TDs in the second half, doubling the number of touchdowns given up by Ohio State this season.
NO. 4 MISSISSIPPI 24, WASHINGTON STATE 21
OXFORD, Miss. (AP) — Trinidad Chambliss threw for two touchdowns and ran for another score to lead No. 4 Mississippi over Washington State.
Ole Miss (6-0) trailed 14-10 late in the third period before Chambliss scored on a 17-yard touchdown scramble. Chambliss threw a 35-yard touchdown pass to Cayden Lee to build a 24-14 lead with 6:51 remaining.
Washington State (3-3) led for a majority of the first three quarters. The Cougars scored late on a 19-yard touchdown pass from Zevi Eckhaus to Tony Freeman, bringing them a field goal away from tying the game. They had a final possession with just over a minute remaining, but were unable to score.
Chambliss went 20-of-29 passing for 253 yards, including a 2-yard touchdown pass to Dae’Quan Wright to take a 10-7 halftime lead. Kewan Lacy had 24 rushes for 142 yards. Ole Miss finished with 439 yards of total offense.
PITTSBURGH 34, NO. 25 FLORIDA STATE 31
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (AP) — Mason Heintschel threw for 321 yards and connected with Desmond Reid on a pair of touchdown passes as Pittsburgh defeated No. 25 Florida State.
A true freshman, Heintschel completed 21 of 29 passes and tossed a pair of second-quarter interceptions. But he has surpassed 300 passing yards in both of his starts, building off a rout of Boston College last week with a road upset of the Seminoles.
Reid had eight catches for 155 yards and 10 carries for 38 yards for Pittsburgh (4-2, 2-1 Atlantic Coast Conference).
Tommy Castellanos completed 16 of 23 passes for 245 yards for Florida State, including a pair of touchdowns to Micahi Danzy — 58 yards in the fourth quarter and 33 yards in the second quarter.
The Associated Press
