COLLEGE STATION, Texas (AP) — AJ McCarron threw four touchdown passes – one less than Johnny Manziel – and No. 1 Alabama beat No. 6 Texas A&M 49-42 on Saturday, paying back the Aggies for last season’s upset win. Vinnie Sunseri returned an interception 73 yards for a score – sidestepping Manziel on the way to the end zone – as the Crimson Tide (2-0, 1-0 Southeastern Conference) spotted the Aggies (2-1, 0-1) a 14-0 lead before scoring the next 35 points. McCarron tossed three touchdowns in the first half to put Alabama up 28-14. Sunseri’s score made it 35-14 less than 3 minutes into the third. Manziel threw for a career-best 464 yards but a first-half interception in the end zone swung the game the Tide’s way, and his third-quarter pick and whiff on the tackle put A&M in a deep hole. Alabama gained 568 yards and kept Manziel on the bench with a couple of long drives. Manziel found Mike Evans for a 95-yard pass and run that made it 42-35 with 8:04 left. Evans finished with 279 yards on seven catches. On third-and-goal from the 5, McCarron flipped to Jalston Fowler for the TD that made it 49-35 with 2:28 left. Manziel threw one more TD with 15 seconds left, but Alabama grabbed the onside kick. NO. 2 OREGON 59, TENNESSEE 14 EUGENE, Ore. (AP) – Marcus Mariota threw for a career-high 456 yards and four touchdowns and Oregon handed Tennessee its worst varsity loss since a 48-0 defeat to Mississippi State in 1910. Freshman Johnny Mundt, who replaced ailing tight end Colt Lyerla, had five catches for 121 yards and two TDs for the Ducks (3-0). Josh Huff added six catches for 125 yards and a score. Mariota, who completed 23 of 33 passes, was the first Oregon quarterback to throw for more than 400 yards in a game since Kellen Clemens in 2005. Oregon’s sloppy play at the start – four penalties for 35 yards in the first quarter – helped Tennessee (2-1) take an early lead, but it was fleeting and the Ducks led 38-7 at halftime. Justin Worley completed 13 of 25 passes for 127 yards and a touchdown for the Volunteers, who opened the season with easy home wins over Austin Peay and Western Kentucky. NO. 4 OHIO ST. 52, CALIFORNIA 34 BERKELEY, Calif. (AP) – Kenny Guiton threw three of his four touchdown passes in the first six minutes of his first career start and Ohio State rolled to its 15th straight victory with an easy victory over California. Guiton, a fifth-year senior, got the start in place of injured Braxton Miller, and there was no drop-off in performance for the Buckeyes (3-0). Guiton connected with Devin Smith on a 90-yard pass on Ohio State’s second offensive play for the longest play from scrimmage in school history. …
Continue Reading: Top 25 Rdp: McCarron leads Alabama over Texas A&M
