Georgia Tech coaches believed the best way to beat Cam Ward and No. 4 Miami was to keep the ball away from the quarterback.
Despite losing their top two running backs and having their starting quarterback operate primarily as a runner, the Yellow Jackets’ game plan was successful.
Ward and Miami finally ran out of second-half comebacks as Haynes King led Georgia Tech to a 28-23 win over the previously unbeaten Hurricanes on Saturday for the Yellow Jackets’ first victory over a top-five team in 15 years.
Fans rushed the field, toppling both goalposts, after the game.
Miami (9-1, 5-1 Atlantic Coast Conference, No. 4 College Football Playoff) was denied its first 10-0 start since 2017. Georgia Tech (6-4, 4-3) became bowl-eligible and ended a two-game losing streak.
King rushed for 93 yards and ran and passed for touchdowns as Georgia Tech held the ball almost 10 minutes longer than Miami. The Yellow Jackets held the Hurricanes to a season low in points — less than half of their top-ranked average of 47.4 per game.
King threw only six passes, completing them all for only 32 yards, in his return after missing two games with a right shoulder injury. The Yellow Jackets outrushed the Hurricanes 271-88.
“The way they ran the football, knowing that they were banged up at quarterback, they did a better job than we did,” said Miami coach Mario Cristobal.
The Yellow Jackets overcame 347 passing yards and three touchdown passes by Ward, the Heisman Trophy contender.
“Good football game, if you believe in running the ball and stopping the run and time of possession,” said Georgia Tech coach Brent Key. “Those type of things still work.”
No. 16 Mississippi 28, No. 2 Georgia 10 >> Jaxson Dart threw a 10-yard touchdown pass to Antwane Wells Jr. in the third quarter, and No. 16 Mississippi shut down No. 2 Georgia.
Caden Davis kicked five field goals as Mississippi (8-2, 4-2 SEC, No. 16 CFP) earned its third consecutive win. Ulysses Bentley had a 9-yard touchdown run in the first quarter.
A rain-soaked Ole Miss student section stormed the field with 16 seconds left, leading to a delay. The scene was repeated after Dart’s kneeldown closed it out.
Georgia (7-2, 5-2, No. 3 CFP) scored on a 2-yard run by Nate Frazier early in the first quarter. But Mississippi grabbed control from there.
After the opening series, Ole Miss recorded five sacks and nine tackles for loss, forced four fumbles and intercepted a Carson Beck pass.
Dart was 13-of-22 passing for 199 yards with an interception. He also rushed for 50 yards as the Rebels finished with 397 total yards.
Georgia lost for the second time in a regular season since 2020. The Bulldogs are 1-2 against ranked teams on the road after defeating Texas 30-15 in October.
Beck was 20-of-31 passing for 186 yards. Georgia was limited to 245 yards of total offense.
No. 5 Texas 49, Florida 17 >> Quinn Ewers passed for 333 yards and five touchdowns and No. 5 Texas rolled over struggling Florida, two days after third-year Gators coach Billy Napier was given a public statement of support from the school’s athletic director.
Ewers connected on open passes to Matthew Golden and Gunnar Helm for touchdowns in the first quarter. Quintrevion Wisner took a screen pass 50 yards for a score before Ewers connected with Golden again for a 32-yard strike in the second.
Texas (8-1, 4-1 Southeastern Conference, No. 5 CFP) led 35-0 at halftime.
The five TDs were a career high for Ewers and one shy of a school record.
Florida (4-5, 2-4) started Yale transfer Aidan Warner at quarterback because freshman DJ Lagway is still recovering from a hamstring injury. Warner, who was third team when the season started, was 12 of 25 passing for 132 yards and two interceptions.
Kansas 45, No. 17 Iowa State 36 >> Devin Neal ran for 116 yards and two scores and became Kansas’ all-time leader in rushing yards and rushing touchdowns in a win over No. 17 Iowa State at Arrowhead Stadium.
Neal broke June Henley’s rushing record with a 14-yard run on his first carry and now has 3,951. Neal’s touchdown runs of 13 and 10 yards gave him 43, breaking Henlsey’s mark of 41.
Jalon Daniels finished 12 of 24 for 295 yards and two touchdowns for Kansas (3-6, 2-4 Big 12).
Rocco Becht was 24 of 37 for 383 yards and three touchdowns for Iowa State (7-2, 4-2, No. 17 CFP), which has lost two straight after a 7-0 start.
No. 18 Army 14, North Texas 3 >> Quarterback Bryson Daily ran for 153 yards and two touchdowns, and No. 18 Army extended the nation’s longest winning streak to 13 games with a victory over North Texas.
The Black Knights (9-0, 7-0 American Athletic) trailed for the first time during a winning streak that goes back to last November after North Texas kicked a field goal on the opening drive.
Chandler Morris, the FBS passing leader coming in at 359 yards per game, finished with 214 and threw two interceptions in the Army end zone in the fourth quarter.
The Mean Green (5-4, 2-3) lost a third consecutive game with a chance to become bowl-eligible and were held without an offensive touchdown for the first time since a 32-0 loss to Florida in 2016.
North Texas, which was third nationally in total offense, was held to a season-low 283 yards by the No. 5 defense in the country.
No. 19 Clemson 24, Virginia Tech 14 >> Cade Klubnik threw three touchdown passes to help No. 19 Clemson beat Virginia Tech.
The Tigers (7-2, 6-1) used Klubnik’s arm and a terrific performance by their defense, which held Virginia Tech to a season-low 228 yards, to bounce back from a home loss to Louisville and remain in the ACC title race. Clemson also beat Virginia Tech for the seventh straight time.
Kyron Drones paced Virginia Tech (5-5, 3-3) with 115 yards passing, but he was replaced in the fourth quarter after the Hokies fell behind 21-7.
No. 21 Colorado 41, Texas Tech 27 >> Shedeur Sanders threw two touchdown passes and ran for a score, two-way star Travis Hunter had nine catches for 99 yards and a TD and No. 21 Colorado overcame an early deficit to beat Texas Tech.
Sanders was 30 of 43 for 291 yards. Shilo Sanders, the other son of Buffaloes coach Deion Sanders on the team, recovered a fumble in the end zone with 51 seconds left.
Colorado (7-2, 5-1 Big 12, No. 20 CFP) won its third consecutive game and is on pace to play in the Big 12 Championship Game with a chance to qualify for the 12-team College Football Playoff.
South Carolina 28, No. 24 Vanderbilt 7 >> Raheim Sanders ran for 126 yards and two touchdowns and scored a 43-yard TD catch as South Carolina thumped No. 24 Vanderbilt for the Gamecocks’ second straight win over a Top 25 team.
The Gamecocks (6-3, 4-3 Southeastern Conference) followed up their rout of then-No. 10 Texas A&M by going on the road and dominating Vanderbilt (6-4, 3-3). They outgained Vandy 452-274.
South Carolina is bowl eligible with the win.
The Commodores now have lost 16 straight to their former SEC Eastern Division rival. Worse, this was their biggest loss this season after losing their first three games by a combined 10 points — two of those to teams ranked inside the Top 10.