Top 25 roundup: USC stifles No. 2 Ohio State for statement win

Southern California offensive lineman Elijah Vaikona (79) leaves the field after his team's defeat of Ohio State at Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum on Oct. 31, 2026. Jayden Maiava passed for 222 yards and a touchdown, and Trent Mosley had 145 all-purpose yards and a receiving touchdown as Southern California defeated No. 2 Ohio State 30-18 in Los Angeles on Saturday. Ohio State freshman quarterback Luke Fahey made his first start in place of Julian Sayin, who was injured in the previous game against Indiana. The Buckeyes (6-2, 4-1 Big Ten) were hoping to ease Fahey into the game, but the Trojans (7-2, 4-2) had other ideas. Mosley took a short pass and raced untouched for a 69-yard touchdown 39 seconds into the game as Southern California led wire-to-wire, taking a 20-9 halftime lead. The Buckeyes had to settle for field goals of 39, 34 and 23 yards by Connor Hawkins, the latter coming after Ohio State had a first-and-goal from the 1-yard line. Maiava completed 15 of 22 passes. Mosley made five catches for 101 yards in addition to his punt return. Fahey was 21 of 38 for 260 yards and a touchdown, with Jeremiah Smith making 10 catches for 83 yards and a score. No. 1 Miami 38, North Carolina 35 Darian Mensah threw for three touchdowns, and the top-ranked Hurricanes scored twice in the final eight minutes to pull out a victory over the Tar Heels in Chapel Hill, N.C. Mark Fletcher Jr. scored three touchdowns, and Malachi Toney had two scoring receptions, including a 9-yarder, which was set up by Marquise Lightfoot's strip-sack, with 2:33 remaining that gave the Hurricanes (8-0, 6-0 Atlantic Coast Conference) their first double-digit lead. Billy Edwards Jr. threw two of his four touchdown passes to Jelani Thurman in the first half for the Tar Heels (4-4, 2-3). Edwards completed 28 of 34 passes for 341 yards, including a 15-yard scoring strike to Trech Kekahuna with 1:38 left. Miami ran out the clock after the score. North Carolina recovered a pair of onside kicks following the touchdown, but committed a penalty on each play. No. 3 Georgia 27, No. 17 Florida 8 Nate Frazier and Bo Walker each scored a rushing touchdown to help the Bulldogs cruise to a victory over the Gators in Atlanta. Gunner Stockton threw for just 101 yards, but Georgia (7-1, 5-1 Southeastern Conference) forced four turnovers in its sixth straight win over Florida. Georgia outrushed Florida 217-48. Frazier and Dwight Phillips Jr. each rushed for 67 yards. Aaron Philo started at quarterback for Florida (5-3, 3-3) and threw two interceptions before being replaced by Tramell Jones Jr., who completed 17 of 24 passes for 172 yards. Jones also threw an interception and lost a fumble for the Gators, who dropped their third game in four tries after a 4-0 start. No. 4 Indiana 23, Minnesota 16, OT Grant Wilson threw a 25-yard touchdown pass to Charlie Becker on the first play of overtime, and the Hoosiers escaped with a 23-16 win in Bloomington, Ind. Wilson, who replaced an ineffective Josh Hoover to start the second half, completed 9 of 17 passes for 156 yards and a touchdown for Indiana (8-1, 5-1 Big Ten). Drake Lindsey completed 20 of 37 passes for 120 yards and a touchdown for Minnesota (5-3, 3-2). Roman Voss hauled in the Golden Gophers' lone touchdown. Becker made the winning play on a perfect pass from Wilson. He caught an arching spiral along the right side of the end zone for the go-ahead score. The Golden Gophers fell short on their overtime drive as Lindsey was sacked on the final two plays after reaching the Indiana 3-yard line. The teams traded 60-yard field goals in a stunning final 19 seconds of regulation. No. 5 Notre Dame 35, Navy 13 Nolan James Jr. rushed for 107 yards and two touchdowns as the slow-starting Fighting Irish dominated the second half to earn a win over the Midshipmen in Foxborough, Mass. C.J. Carr completed 19 of 29 passes for 210 yards and two touchdowns as Notre Dame (7-1) reeled off the game's last 28 points. Jonaz Walton added 51 yards and a touchdown on the ground. Quarterback Jackson Gutierrez rushed 28 times for 110 yards and a touchdown for Navy (2-6), which has dropped six of seven for the first time since 2021. The Midshipmen held the ball for 23:33 of the first half, but just 9:07 after halftime. No. 6 Utah 49, Cincinnati 25 The Utes returned a fumble and an interception for first-half touchdowns en route to a 36-point halftime lead and their eighth straight victory, a blowout of the host Bearcats. Hunter Andrews had two touchdown catches and 112 yards on five receptions, while Daniel Bray caught a touchdown pass and ran for another score for Utah (8-0, 5-0 Big 12), which set the stage for next week's showdown with No. 8 BYU in Salt Lake City. Utah quarterback Devon Dampier completed 22 of 29 passes for 260 yards and three touchdowns with one interception. Wayshawn Parker rushed for 82 yards and a touchdown on seven carries. Cole Tabb finished with 131 rushing yards and a touchdown on 14 carries for Cincinnati (5-3, 2-3). No. 7 UCLA 27, Nevada 0 The Bruins matched the program's best start since 2005, using a stifling defensive effort to rout the visiting Wolf Pack in Pasadena, California. The Bruins (8-0) held the Wolf Pack to just 176 total yards of offense and intercepted Wolf Pack quarterback Luke Duncan on each of Nevada's first three drives -- the last of which resulted in a Derrick Barksdale pick-six. Ty Dieffenbach, making his third start in place of the injured Nico Iamaleava, finished 16-of-30 passing for 178 yards. Wayne Knight was held without a rushing TD for the first time this season but caught a 12-yard score from Dieffenbach. The Wolf Pack (3-5) crossed into UCLA territory on just two of their first seven possessions and threatened to score only once in those opportunities. AJ Bianco replaced Duncan, avoiding more interceptions but completing just 6 of 13 passes for 71 yards. No. 8 BYU 27, Arizona State 20 Bear Bachmeier threw for 236 yards and a touchdown to lead the Cougars to a victory over the Sun Devils in Provo, Utah. BYU (7-1, 4-1 Big 12) scored the first ten points of the fourth quarter after Arizona State scored 14 straight points in the third to tie the game at 17. Sione Moa ran for two touchdowns and Legend Glasker had a game-high 87 receiving yards for the Cougars. Cardae Mack had 170 all-purpose yards, including 123 on the ground, to lead Arizona State. Jake Fette threw for 166 yards and two touchdowns. Sun Devils (4-4, 2-3) kicker Carson Smith converted a 44-yard field goal with 57 seconds left, but his onside kick was recovered by BYU to clinch the result. No. 11 Texas 31, Mississippi State 3 Arch Manning passed for 220 yards and three touchdowns and 333-pound defensive tackle Maraad Watson scored on a 61-yard fumble return as the Longhorns dismantled the short-handed Bulldogs in Austin, Texas. Manning was 16-of-20 passing and finalized the win with a 42-yard TD pass to Emmett Mosley V with 7:56 to play. Texas was not great on offense, amassing just 280 yards, but timely explosive plays combined with a dynamite defensive effort which allowed just 187 yards to keep the Longhorns firmly in College Football Playoff contention. Mississippi State's AJ Swann passed for 97 yards before being forced from the game with an injury late in the first half. His backup Parker Puckett managed just 22 yards through the air. The Bulldogs (4-4, 2-4) also lost star running back Fluff Bothwell to a leg injury in the third quarter and dropped their fourth straight game. No. 12 Ole Miss 45, Auburn 15 Trinidad Chambliss accounted for three second-half touchdowns as the Rebels pulled away from the Tigers in SEC action in Oxford, Miss. Chambliss completed 22 of 34 for 263 yards and two touchdowns while rushing for 65 yards and another score as Ole Miss (6-2, 4-2) blew it open after leading 14-9 at halftime. Shekai Mills-Knight rushed for 71 yards and a touchdown while Horatio Fields caught six passes for 73 yards and a score. Byrum Brown hit 25 of 38 passing for 195 yards and a touchdown for Auburn (4-4, 2-4), which rushed for just 63 yards. Christian Neptune had five receptions for 53 yards and Chas Nimrod had four receptions for 62 yards and a score. No. 13 Texas Tech 34, No. 22 Arizona 26 Thomas Castellanos threw for two touchdowns and rushed for a third to rally the Red Raiders past the Wildcats in Big 12 action in Lubbock, Texas. Castellanos hit 11 of 24 passes for 144 yards while rushing for 117 yards for Texas Tech (7-1, 4-1), which tied a school record with its 13th straight home win. J'Koby Williams rushed for 175 yards, including a 64-yard touchdown sprint to clinch the game with 2:05 to play. Noah Fifita completed 33 of 45 passes for 417 yards and one touchdown for Arizona (6-2, 3-2), which had its four-game winning streak snapped. Isaiah Mizell caught seven passes for 182 yards, which included a 94-yard touchdown, while Kedrick Reescano rushed for two scores. No. 14 Wake Forest 51, Virginia 7 The Demon Deacons extended their winning streak to five games with a rout of the Cavaliers in Winston-Salem, N.C. Gio Lopez completed 13 of 21 passes for 229 yards and a touchdown and rushed for 64 yards. Ty Clark III set a career high with three rushing TDs and Carlos Hernandez had eight catches for 136 yards and a score. It's the longest winning streak for Wake Forest (7-1, 5-1 ACC) since an 8-0 start in 2021. Lopez limped off the field with 2:29 left in the third quarter after taking a hit to his lower right leg. With the win already assured, he did not return. Beau Pribula passed for 212 yards with a touchdown and an interception for Virginia (4-5, 2-4), which dropped its third straight game and now must win two of its last three contests to become bowl eligible. The Demon Deacons outgained the Cavaliers 538-330, including 309-16 on the ground. Syracuse 30, No. 19 SMU 27 Steve Angeli found an open Noah Meyers in the left side of the end zone with 17 seconds left as the host Orange outlasted the Mustangs. Playing in his second game back after missing three games, Angeli completed 21 of 34 passes for 200 yards to help Syracuse (4-4, 2-4 ACC) win its second straight dramatic finish after beating North Carolina in overtime last week. Angeli was 7 of 8 on the game-winning drive, including consecutive 15-yard passes to Calvin Russell III and Daunte Bacheyie that moved Syracuse to the 2-yard line. After Ju'Juan Johnson rushed for no gain, Syracuse used a timeout before Angeli faked a handoff to Ahmad Miller. He rolled out and Meyers got a step on SMU (6-2, 4-2) linebacker Alexander Kilgore to easily haul in the pass for a 29-27 lead. After the extra point, the Orange clinched the win by forcing a fumble from SMU's Randy Pittman Jr. Oregon 34, No. 20 Northwestern 26 Dylan Raiola threw for 336 yards and three touchdowns as the Ducks rallied from a 14-point deficit to defeat the Wildcats in Eugene, Ore. Raiola's 75-yard touchdown pass to Dakorien Moore early in the fourth quarter was the big play of the game, giving Oregon an eight-point lead immediately after a Northwestern field goal cut the score to 27-26. Moore caught seven passes for 128 yards and a pair of touchdowns. Oregon (5-3, 3-2 Big Ten) won despite losing its top two running backs, Jordon Davison and Dierre Hill, to injury during the game. Backup running back Brandon Smith ran for 82 yards. Quarterback Aidan Chiles threw for 281 yards and ran for 93, accounting for a touchdown through the air and another on the ground for Northwestern (6-2, 3-2). No. 23 Missouri 34, Arkansas 10 Jamal Roberts ran for 138 yards and scored twice, and Darris Smith recovered a fumble in the end zone for a score as the Tigers topped the Razorbacks in Fayetteville, Ark. Missouri (6-2, 3-2 SEC) scored 24 points off four Arkansas turnovers. Linebacker Nick Rodriguez forced a fumble and Trajen Greco added an interception. KJ Jackson scored on a 2-yard run and Antonio Jordan added 106 receiving yards on seven receptions for Arkansas (3-5, 1-4). Austin Simmons threw for a pair of touchdowns and finished with 179 passing yards for the Tigers. Mizzou's Ahmad Hardy had three carries for 42 yards in his first action after sustaining a gunshot wound in his left leg in May. The SEC's leading rusher a season ago, Hardy had a 4-yard run to pick up a first down in the second quarter, then broke off a 37-yarder in the game's closing moments. Iowa State 51, No. 24 Oklahoma State 49 Kyle Konrardy hit a 34-yard field goal as time expired to give the Cyclones an upset win over the Cowboys in Ames, Iowa. Jaylen Raynor, who threw for 309 yards and three scores, found Jamal Polite on a 33-yard pass to set up the game-winning kick for the Cyclones (4-4, 2-3 Big 12). Polite had six catches for 171 yards with a TD while Aiden Flora was a force in the Iowa State backfield, rushing for 221 yards and two scores on 29 carries. The Cowboys (5-3, 3-2) had taken their first lead of the second half on Wyatt Young's 7-yard touchdown reception with 53 seconds left. Drew Mestemaker was 27-of-42 passing for 323 yards. Young and Justin Bowick each caught two of Mestemaker's five touchdown passes. Caleb Hawkins ran for 194 yards on 25 carries with two scores. Iowa 30, No. 25 Wisconsin 0 Hank Brown threw two first-half touchdown passes and the Hawkeyes' defense dominated the Badgers en route to a victory in the battle for the annual Heartland Trophy in Iowa City. Iowa (6-2, 3-2 Big Ten) has won five consecutive games against Wisconsin, outscoring the Badgers 109-10 in the last three meetings. Iowa also evened the historic series that dates to 1894 at 49-49-2 in the 100th meeting. Brown completed 20 of 24 passes for 222 yards and the two scores. Wisconsin (5-3, 3-2) had previously lost only to No. 5 Notre Dame in the season opener and seventh-ranked UCLA. Wisconsin quarterback Colton Joseph struggled, completing 5 of 14 passes for 90 yards before being replaced by freshman Ryan Hopkins, who completed 8 of 13 passes for 93 yards and an interception. --Field Level Media