Gunner Stockton threw three touchdown passes as No. 3 Georgia solidified its position for a first-round bye in the College Football Playoff and beat Alabama in the Southeastern Conference championship game for the first time, pounding the 10th-ranked Crimson Tide 28-7 on Saturday in Atlanta.

Georgia (12-1, No. 3 CFP), had been 0-4 against Alabama in the SEC title game and 1-7 against the Crimson Tide under coach Kirby Smart. Playing in their fifth straight league championship game, the Bulldogs earned their fourth title under Smart and 16th overall.

The lopsided loss forces Alabama (10-3, No. 9 CFP) to worry about its standing with the College Football Playoff selection committee. The Crimson Tide were believed to be in good position when they moved up one spot in last week’s CFP ranking, but the loss to the Bulldogs provides renewed cause for concern that the Crimson Tide could miss the playoff for the second consecutive season under coach Kalen DeBoer.

Georgia led 21-0 before Alabama’s Ty Simpson threw a 23-yard touchdown pass to Germie Bernard early in the fourth quarter.

The Bulldogs turned two game-changing plays into first-half touchdowns.

Cole Speer’s block of Blake Doud’s punt in the first quarter allowed Georgia to start a drive at the Alabama 21. Nate Frazier ran for 14 yards on first down. On third down from the 1, Stockton faked a handoff, rolled right and passed to Roderick Robinson II for the touchdown.

Late in the first quarter, Daylon Everette’s interception of Simpson’s pass deflected by KJ Bolden gave the Bulldogs the ball near midfield. Stockton’s 1-yard scoring pass to Dillon Bell gave Georgia a 14-0 lead.

Nate Frazier scored on a 9-yard run to cap Georgia’s first possession of the second half, extending the lead to three touchdowns.

After Simpson’s fourth-and-2 pass from the Alabama 12 was incomplete with 8:17 remaining, Georgia put the game away on Stockton’s 13-yard touchdown pass to Zachariah Branch.

With running back Jam Miller (lower leg) held out, the Crimson Tide struggled to establish a ground game. Alabama finished with minus-3 rushing yards. The team’s nine carries for 17 yards in the first half included two by wide receivers and one by Simpson. Alabama was 3 for 13 on third down.

BIG 12

Cameron Dickey scored right after the first of linebacker Ben Roberts’ two interceptions in the second half as No. 5 Texas Tech won the Big 12 championship game, and almost certainly locked up a first-round bye in the College Football Playoff, with a 34-7 victory over 11th-ranked BYU in Arlington, Texas.

After investing millions of dollars in the transfer portal, the Red Raiders (12-1, No. 4 CFP) have their first Big 12 title — they are one of only six schools that have been part of all 30 Big 12 seasons. They are also going to the CFP for the first time, though their win likely prevented the Big 12 from getting a second team in the playoff.

Behren Morton, who didn’t play in Tech’s only loss at Arizona State, threw two TDs to Cody Eakin and Stone Harrington kicked four field goals for the Red Raiders.

The only losses by BYU (11-2, No. 11 CFP) are to the Red Raiders, including 29-7 in Lubbock four weeks ago before four turnovers in the second half this time. The Cougars will fall out of the top 12 instead of moving up when the new CFP rankings come out today. They likely needed to be in the top 10 for a playoff spot.

Roberts, one of the holdovers on the Tech defense along with fellow linebacker Jacob Rodriguez (13 tackles), got his first interception with about 3 1/2 minutes left in the third quarter when he reached up and deflected the pass by true freshman Bear Bachmeier. On the next play, Dickey took a direct snap and ran untouched 11 yards for a touchdown and a 21-7 lead after making the 2-point conversion.

MID-AMERICAN

Jalen Buckley had touchdown runs of 67 and 64 yards and Western Michigan won the MAC championship, defeating Miami of Ohio 23-13 in Detroit.

Buckley’s 67-yard touchdown burst on the third play of the game gave the Broncos (9-4) the early lead. Palmer Domschke added three field goals in the first half, the last from 50 yards, and the Broncos led 16-6 at halftime. Buckley’s 64-yard TD run made it 23-6 early in the third quarter.

In the regular-season matchup between the two, Miami scored 17 points in the fourth, rallying to a 26-17 victory. This time, Western Michigan did not falter.

Late in the fourth quarter, Western Michigan drove to the 1-yard line before turning the ball over on downs. Facing a 10-point deficit and 99 yards to go in less than two minutes, the RedHawks (7-6) only reached their own 16-yard line.

MOUNTAIN WEST

Maddux Madsen delivered four first-half touchdowns and Boise State claimed its third straight Mountain West Conference championship, overpowering UNLV 38–21 on Friday night in Boise, Idaho.

Madsen had a 10-yard TD keeper and added touchdown throws to Dylan Riley, Cameron Bates and Malik Sherrod as the Broncos (9-4) built a 28–14 lead.