COLUMBIA, S.C. -- Spencer Rattler had the best day of his unpredictable career, throwing for 438 yards and six touchdowns as South Carolina beat No. 5 Tennessee 63-38 on Saturday night, all but eliminating the Volunteers from the playoffs.
Tennessee (9-2, 6-2) may have also lost Heisman Trophy candidate Hendon Hooker, who left the game in the fourth quarter with a leg injury, falling and fumbling without being hit.
Even before the injury, the quarterback of the night was Rattler, who went from Heisman contender to the bench at Oklahoma in 2021.
"That was probably the best I've ever felt in a game. I felt unstoppable," said Rattler, adding he thought it was one of the best wins in college football history.
"This game and the next one could change the narrative of this program forever," Rattler said.
The junior came into the night with nine interceptions and eight touchdowns and averaging 198 yards a game passing. There were questions about whether the Gamecocks (7-4, 4-4) might want to test out the backup.
But Rattler was patient in the pocket, dropping passes into the narrowest of windows. He completed 30 of 37 passes and ran when he had to with five carries for 16 yards. And he even caught a pass in the red zone from Dakeron Joyner, who South Carolina typically uses as a running threat under center.
In other games involving SEC teams, Kenny McIntosh rushed for a career-best 143 yards, including a crucial 9-yard score late in the third quarter, and No. 1 Georgia withstood Kentucky's fourth-quarter rally for a 16-6 victory in Lexington, Ky. McIntosh rushed 19 times with a 26-yarder for the Bulldogs (11-0, 8-0), who outgained Kentucky 365-297. Georgia quarterback Stetson Bennett completed 13 of 19 for 116 yards with an interception. Kentucky (6-5, 3-5) lost for the fifth time in seven games. ... No. 8 Alabama (9-2) got breakout performances from Jase McClellan and Jermaine Burton against an overmatched Austin Peay 34-0 in Tuscaloosa, Ala. McClellan rushed for a career-high 156 yards and two touchdowns and Burton caught a pair of scoring passes from Bryce Young. ... Mike Wright threw three touchdown passes and Vanderbilt upset Florida 31-24 for its second consecutive SEC victory. Vanderbilt (5-6, 2-5) took a 7-3 lead and never looked back against Florida (6-5, 3-5). The loss ended a two-game win streak for the Gators, who had won their last eight games against Vanderbilt. ... Conner Weigman threw for 191 yards and a touchdown and Texas A&M overcame a sloppy and mistake-filled performance to snap a six-game skid with a 20-3 win over UMass Saturday. Texas A&M (4-7) entered the game as 33 ½ point favorites against the Minutemen, who have won just one game this season. But the Aggies lost four fumbles and struggled to move the ball while playing without top running back Devon Achane and leading receiver Evan Stewart on a soggy and cold day. ... Tank Bigsby and Jarquez Hunter combined for 229 rushing yards and four total touchdowns as Auburn defeated Western Kentucky 41-17. After Western Kentucky (7-5) generated 290 yards and 17 points in the first half, Auburn's defense held the pass-happy Hilltoppers to 105 yards and allowed zero points after halftime. Bigsby and Hunter both scored long rushing touchdowns, and D.J. James returned an interception 25 yards to cap 24 unanswered points for the Tigers in the second half. Auburn (5-6) has now won back-to-back games under interim Coach Carnell Williams as it heads into its annual Iron Bowl matchup with rival Alabama. ... Will Rogers threw for 301 yards and five touchdowns as Mississippi State rolled over East Tennessee State, 56-7 in Starkville, Miss. Rogers is now No. 9 in SEC history with 10,189 yards, moving past Ole Miss' Eli Manning heading into the Bulldogs' Thanksgiving Day showdown with the Rebels in Oxford. ... Freezing temperatures couldn't chill Missouri. Brady Cook tossed three touchdown passes, Luther Burden and Cody Schrader both scored twice and the Tigers rolled to a 45-14 victory over New Mexico State (4-6). The Tigers' offense, for a change, clicked from the opening drive. Cook led an 11-play scoring drive capped off with a 12-yard touchdown pass to Burden. The freshman receiver took the tunnel screen from Cook and hurdled a defender in reaching the end zone, putting the Tigers (5-6) on top 7-0.
TOP 25
In games involving Top 25 teams, Dallan Hayden scored three touchdowns in the second half of No. 2 Ohio State's 43-30 victory over Maryland in College Park, Md., to set up a monumental matchup of unbeatens next weekend between the Buckeyes and rival No. 3 Michigan. Maryland (6-5, 3-5) led 13-10 at halftime, and the Buckeyes were up just 33-30 when they turned the ball over on downs at the Maryland 42 with 6:36 remaining in the game. Ohio State (11-0, 8-0) forced a three-and-out and then ran out much of the clock before making a field goal and scoring a defensive touchdown with 9 seconds remaining. ... Jake Moody made a go-ahead, 35-yard field goal with nine seconds left, lifting Michigan to a 19-17 win over Illinois. The Wolverines (11-0, 8-0) played much of the second half without star running back Blake Corum, who grabbed his left knee after being tackled just before halftime. ... Caleb Williams passed for a career-high 470 yards, Austin Jones rushed for a season-high 120 yards and No. 7 Southern California clinched a spot on the Pac-12 Championship game with a 48-45 victory over No. 16 UCLA. Williams also rushed for 32 yards and finished with 503 yards of total offense. The Trojans (10-1, 8-1) had a season-high 648 yards of total offense and took advantage of four Bruins turnovers. Williams completed 32 of 43 passes with two touchdowns and an interception. His favorite target was Jordan Addison, who had 11 receptions for 178 yards and a touchdown. ,,, DJ Uiagalelei threw for two touchdowns and ran for a third as No. 9 Clemson wrapped up an undefeated ACC regular season by beating Miami 40-10. The Tigers (10-1, 8-0) have won at least 10 games in 12 consecutive seasons and -- for a half -- had their most dominant showing on both sides of the ball. ... Sean Clifford ran for a touchdown and threw for another and No. 11 Penn State scored twice on fumble returns and once on a kickoff return in beating Rutgers 55-10 in Piscataway, N.J. Freshman Nick Singleton scored on a 100-yard kickoff return, Kobe King gave Penn State (9-2, 6-2) the lead for good with a 14-yard fumble return and Ji'Ayir Brown rumbled 70 yards with another fumble as the Nittany Lions blew it open in the second half. ... Zach Gibson threw for 174 yards and Georgia Tech scored 21 unanswered points for a 21-17 road win against No. 13 North Carolina. Georgia Tech (5-6, 4-4) trailed 17-0 late in the first half, but started to methodically move the ball. All three of its scoring drives were for 68-plus yards and culminated with rushing touchdowns. ... Will Howard threw two touchdown passes and ran for another score, Cincere Mason returned an interception for a TD and No. 15 Kansas State moved closer to a berth in the Big 12 championship game by beating West Virginia 48-31 in Morgantown, W. Va. Kansas State (8-3, 6-2) can clinch a title game spot alongside No. 4 TCU on Dec. 3 with a win in its regular season finale at home against Kansas. ... Cornerback Benjamin Morrison had three interceptions, the No. 18 Notre Dame defense forced two fumbles and the Fighting Irish scored on their first eight possessions to beat Boston College 44-0 in South Bend, Ind. The Fighting Irish (8-3) won their ninth in a row against Boston College (3-8). ... Jordan Travis and Treshaun Ward each had a pair of touchdown runs in the first half and No. 19 Florida State ran for 251 yards, routing Louisiana-Lafayette in Tallahassee, Fla. Florida State (8-3) scored a season high in points and surpassed 200 rushing yards for a sixth consecutive time. ... Fullback Daba Fofana rushed for 114 yards and Navy beat No. 20 UCF 17-14 without completing a pass. Navy (4-7, 4-4) possessed the ball for nearly 40 minutes and gained 248 yards, all on the ground. The loss dropped UCF (8-3, 5-2) out of first place in the AAC and all but eliminated the Knights' chances of playing at home in the conference championship game. ...Dillon Gabriel passed for two touchdowns and ran for another and Oklahoma became bowl eligible after knocking off No. 22 Oklahoma State 28-13. Eric Gray rushed for 90 yards and a touchdown and Drake Stoops had a career-high six catches for 89 yards for the Sooners (6-5, 3-5), who jumped out to a 28-0 first-quarter lead and held on. Spencer Sanders passed for 381 yards and a touchdown for Oklahoma State, but he threw four interceptions. Brennan Presley had nine catches for 118 yards and Braydon Johnson had seven receptions for 109 yards for the Cowboys (7-4, 4-4). ... Damien Martinez ran for 137 yards and two touchdowns in No. 23 Oregon State's 31-7 win over Arizona State. The Beavers (8-3, 5-3) won for just the second time at ASU since 1972. ... Jacob Dingel and Bryon Threats intercepted passes, Noah Potter and Dontay Corleone recovered fumbles and No. 24 Cincinnati beat Temple 23-3 in Philadelphia. Cincinnati (9-2, 6-1) can guarantee a berth in its fourth consecutive conference title game with a win in its regular-season finale Friday against Tulane, with whom it is presently tied atop the standings.
TCU head coach Sonny Dykes hugs quarterback Max Duggan (15) after an NCAA college football game against Bayor in Waco, Texas, Saturday, Nov. 19, 2022. TCU won 29-28. (AP Photo/LM Otero)
TCU place kicker Griffin Kell (39) kicks a field goal with teammate Jordy Sandy (31) in the final seconds of an NCAA college football game in Waco, Texas, Saturday, Nov. 19, 2022. TCU won 29-28. (AP Photo/LM Otero)
TCU place kicker Griffin Kell (39) celebrates with Jordy Sandy (31) and other teammates after hitting a field goal in the final seconds of an NCAA college football game against Bayor in Waco, Texas, Saturday, Nov. 19, 2022. TCU won 29-28. (AP Photo/LM Otero)
TCU place kicker Griffin Kell, center, celebrates with teammates Jordy Sandy (31) and Kee'Yon Stewart after Kell scored a field goal in the final seconds of an NCAA college football game against Baylor in Waco, Texas, Saturday, Nov. 19, 2022. TCU won 29-28. (AP Photo/LM Otero)