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MADISON, Wis. — Jalen Milroe already had established himself as one of the nation’s most dynamic players while working behind an injury-riddled offensive line.
With all his blockers finally healthy Saturday, Milroe got even more opportunities to showcase his explosiveness and his passion for the game.
Milroe threw three touchdowns and ran for two more as No. 4 Alabama made a rare trip north and won 42-10 over Wisconsin, which lost quarterback Tyler Van Dyke to an injury on the game’s first series.
“Every time I get to touch the football field, I’m just very blessed, very passionate about the game of football,” Milroe said. “Whenever we have an opportunity to make an explosive (play), it’s all about just having fun, just falling back to why I play the game – just to have fun, have moments like that.”
Milroe went 12 of 17 for 196 yards with touchdown passes of 31 yards to Ryan Williams, 26 yards to Germie Bernard and 37 yards to Josh Cuevas. He also rushed for 75 yards on 14 carries, scoring on runs of 3 and 10 yards.
Alabama (3-0) was playing its first true road game against a team from north of the Mason-Dixon Line since a 27-11 victory at Penn State in 2011. It also marked the Crimson Tide’s first trip to Camp Randall Stadium since a 15-0 loss to Wisconsin in 1928.
Wisconsin (2-1) suffered its most lopsided home loss since a 48-7 defeat against Penn State in 2008.
Van Dyke was hurt when he was tackled on a scramble. He clutched his right knee at the end of the run and eventually was carted into the locker room. He watched the second half from Wisconsin’s sideline while walking with crutches.
Wisconsin coach Luke Fickell didn’t have any definitive word after the game regarding the severity of Van Dyke’s injury.
“We’ll get a little more clarity hopefully here soon, get an MRI and things like that,” Fickell said. “I don’t think it looks real good for us, for him.”
The Badgers’ opening drive ended with Nathanial Vakos kicking a 53-yard field goal to put Wisconsin ahead 3-0, but Alabama scored the next 28 points and never looked back.
After finishing sixth in last year’s Heisman Trophy balloting, Milroe has accounted for 14 total touchdowns (eight passing, six rushing) through Alabama’s first three games. Williams, a 17-year-old freshman, already has four touchdown catches.
Braedyn Locke stepped in for Van Dyke and went 13 of 26 for 125 yards, including a 3-yard touchdown to Will Pauling.
No. 9 OREGON 49, OREGON STATE 14
CORVALLIS, Ore. — Dillon Gabriel threw for 291 yards and two touchdowns and ran for 64 yards with another score to lead Oregon to a win over rival Oregon State.
Jordan James had 12 carries for 86 yards and two touchdowns, and the Ducks improved to 3-0 in their first Big Ten season after the demise of the Pac-12.
It was the 128th meeting in the rivalry between the two former conference foes. Formerly known as the Civil War, the rivalry was normally held over Thanksgiving weekend. It had never before been played in September.
Oregon, ranked No. 3 in the preseason AP Top 25, had struggled in underwhelming victories over Idaho and Boise State to start the season. But the Ducks got their ground game going against the Beavers with 240 rushing yards, more than they had against the Vandals and Broncos combined.
No. 17 MICHIGAN 28, ARKANSAS STATE 18
ANN ARBOR, Mich. — Kalel Mullings ran for a career-high 153 yards and two touchdowns to help Michigan overcome Davis Warren’s three interceptions.
The Wolverines (2-1) scored three times on the ground after entering the game without a rushing touchdown in two games, including last week’s loss to then-No. 3 Texas that ended a 28-game regular season winning streak and a 23-game stretch of success at home.
Running was much more effective than throwing for the defending national champions.
Warren threw an interception in each of the first three quarters and finished 11 of 14 for 122 yards, mostly relegated to completing short passes.
Alex Orji replaced Warren and took advantage, throwing a 9-yard touchdown pass to Hogan Hansen to give the Wolverines a 28-3 lead early in the fourth quarter.
WASHINGTON STATE 24, WASHINGTON 19
SEATTLE — John Mateer ran for two touchdowns and threw for one more, Washington State made a goal line stand with 1:07 remaining, and the Cougars reclaimed the Apple Cup.
Playing in September rather than November or December, and meeting in a non-conference matchup for the first time since 1961, the Cougars relied on their dual-threat quarterback and some key defensive plays in the final moments to claim the Apple Cup for just the third time since 2008.
Mateer ran for touchdowns of 23 and 25 yards and threw a 16-yard touchdown to Josh Meredith in the third quarter that gave the Cougars (3-0) a 24-16 lead. Mateer finished 17 of 34 passing for 245 yards and added 62 yards rushing.
Playing at Seattle’s Lumen Field was part of a five-year agreement to continue the rivalry despite no longer being in the same conference. Purple outnumbered crimson in the crowd, but it was the Cougars sticking around for the post-game celebration.
ILLINOIS 30, CENTRAL MICHIGAN 9
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. — Luke Altmyer threw for 242 yards and two touchdowns, both to Pat Bryant, to lead Illinois. Bryant had seven catches for 102 yards and Zakhari Franklin caught five passes for 66 yards.
Josh McCray ran for 54 yards on eight carries and Ca’Lil Valentine had 53 yards on five rushes for the Illini (3-0), who have won three straight games to start the season for the first time since 2011.
MINNESOTA 27, NEVADA 0
MINNEAPOLIS — Darius Taylor ran for 124 yards and two scores and caught a touchdown pass as Minnesota geared up for Big Ten play by beating Nevada.
Kerry Brown had two interceptions and Ethan Robinson one for Minnesota, which blanked its second straight overmatched opponent and has allowed one touchdown in three games. It beat FCS Rhode Island 48-0 last week after losing 19-17 to North Carolina.
Minnesota last shut out consecutive opponents in October 1962.
IOWA 38, TROY 21
IOWA CITY, Iowa — Kaleb Johnson rushed for 173 yards and two touchdowns as Iowa rallied in the second half for a win. It was the third consecutive 100-yard rushing game to start the season for Johnson, who came into the game ranked third nationally at 153 yards per game.
Johnson opened the scoring with a 4-yard touchdown run on Iowa’s first possession then his 33-yard touchdown run with 12:05 left in the game gave the Hawkeyes a 31-21 lead.
The Hawkeyes (2-1) were able to shake off the Trojans (0-3), who got three big scoring plays from receiver Devonte Ross.
MICHIGAN STATE 40, PRAIRIE VIEW A&M 0
EAST LANSING, Mich. — Aidan Chiles ran for a touchdown and threw for another, and Charles Brantley returned an interception a school-record 100 yards as Michigan State beat FCS Prairie View A&M.
It is the first time the Spartans (3-0, 1-0 Big Ten) have opened the season with three straight wins since 2021. Their last shutout was 52-0 over Akron in 2022. Michigan State is 9-0 all-time against FCS opponents and has outscored them 372-81.