GAINESVILLE, Fla. - After starting quarterback Jeff Driskel was lost for the season with a broken leg, Tyler Murphy led No. 19 Florida to five scores and helped the Gators open SEC play with a 31-17 victory over Tennessee on Saturday.
Murphy had a 52-yard touchdown pass to Solomon Patton, a swing pass that went the distance, and made several plays with his legs as Florida (2-1, 1-0 SEC) won its ninth consecutive game in the series.
Murphy’s 7-yard touchdown run in the fourth quarter made it 31-10.
The Volunteers (2-2, 0-1) had hoped to rebound from an embarrassing 59-14 loss at No. 2 Oregon a week ago. Instead, Tennessee and first year Coach Butch Jones left Gainesville with another double-digit setback.
Jones’ strangest decision might have been to bench Justin Worley and give redshirt freshman Nathan Peterman his first career start on the road and in front of 90,000.
Peterman, who grew up in nearby Jacksonville, had three turnovers in a 17-minute span in the first half and was benched at the break.
Murphy completed 8 of 14 passes for 134 yards. He also ran 10 times for 84 yards. His biggest mistake was taking a snap off his face mask, a botched play that resulted in a fumble.
NO. 9 GEORGIA 45, NORTH TEXAS 21
ATHENS, Ga. - Aaron Murray threw for 408 yards and three touchdowns and ran for another score while leading the Bulldogs to a victory over pesky North Texas.
Along the way, he became only the second SEC quarterback with 100 career scoring passes. The three touchdowns pushed his total to 102, trailing only 1996 Heisman Trophy winner Danny Wuerffel of Florida (114).
Murray overcame an early interception in the end zone, hooking up with freshman Reggie Davis on a 98-yard touchdown - the longest pass play in school history. Arthur Lynch and Chris Conley also had touchdown catches for the Bulldogs (2-1).
The Mean Green (2-2) came in as a 33-point underdog, but big plays on special teams helped make a game of it. Brelan Chancellor returned a kickoff 99 yards for a touchdown, and Zac Whitfield fell on a blocked punt in the end zone early in the second half to even the score at 21.
Murray made sure the Bulldogs avoided the upset. He scored on a 1-yard sneak and went to Conley on a 4-yard touchdown.
Georgia out gained North Texas 641-245, the fourth-most in school history.
VANDERBILT 24, MASSACHUSETTS 7
FOXBOROUGH, Mass. - Vanderbilt needed 45 minutes to wear down Massachusetts and set up a dominant fourth quarter.
The Commodores scored two touchdowns in the fourth quarter and held the Minutemen to just 17 yards of offense in the final period, pulling away late for a victory.
Austyn Carta-Samuels threw for two touchdowns and Jerron Seymour added a 1-yard touchdown run with 4:41 left in the game to seal the victory for Vanderbilt (2-2).
Carta-Samuels completed 18 of 27 passes for 219 yards and rushed for 38 yards. He also caught a pass for a 21-yard gain that set up his 11-yard touchdown pass to Jordan Matthews to put the Commodores up 17-7 with 13:44 left to play.
MISSOURI 45, INDIANA 28
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. - James Franklin threw for 343 yards and two touchdowns, and defensive end Kony Ealy returned an interception 49 yards for a score to lead Missouri past Indiana.
The Tigers (3-0) won in Bloomington for the first time since 1953 and ended an eight-game winless streak in this series, though the teams hadn’t played since 1992.
Indiana (2-2) was led by Nate Sudfeld, who threw for 229 yards and one touchdown, but he was intercepted three times.
Franklin finished 32 of 47. Marcus Lucas caught 10 passes for 101 yards, Dorial Green-Beckham had 8 catches for 105 yards and 1 score, and Russell Hansbrough ran 13 times for 104 yards and scored 1 touchdown.
Sudfeld was 21 of 39. Cody Latimer had 8 catches for 139 yards and 1 score, while Shane Wynn caught 5 passes for 90 yards and 1 touchdown.
MISSISSIPPI ST. 62, TROY 7
STARKVILLE, Miss. - Dak Prescott threw for 233 yards and 1 touchdown, rushed for 53 yards and 2 touchdowns and caught a 36-yard touchdown pass to lead Mississippi State over Troy.
Prescott’s diverse and efficient performance was matched by Jameon Lewis, who caught a 50-yard touchdown pass, rushed for an 8-yard touchdown and threw the 36-yard touchdown that Prescott caught on a trick play.
Prescott, who was starting just his third career game, completed 13 of 21 passes.
Mississippi State (2-2) led 10-7 after the first quarter but erupted for 35 points in the second quarter to take a 45-7 lead into halftime.
Corey Robinson completed 15 of 25 passes for 105 yards with 1 touchdown and 1 interception.
Sports, Pages 34 on 09/22/2013