A 4-0 start and top-10 ranking are becoming distant memories for No. 16 Florida. A week after a 28-point loss to Missouri, the Gators fell 38-19 at home to South Carolina.
A weather delay with Florida trailing 17-10 at halftime did little to help the Gators, who were outscored 21-9 in the second half.
Running back Jadan Baugh was held under 60 yards for the second straight week after averaging 150 yards through the first four games.
Florida quarterback Aaron Philo was pulled in the fourth quarter after losing a fumble and taking a hard hit on the ensuing drive. Backup Tramell Jones Jr. entered the game with eight minutes remaining but threw an interception four plays later, South Carolina's third takeaway.
South Carolina quarterback LaNorris Sellers threw for 279 yards and four touchdowns and added a rushing score.
The Gamecocks improved to 3-3 on the season, potentially quieting questions about Shane Beamer's job security for another week.
Indiana improves to 6-0 — barely
The No. 7-ranked Indiana Hoosiers remained unbeaten on Saturday, but needed a fourth-quarter rally and two late defensive stops to escape Nebraska with a 20-17 win.
The defending national champions erased an 11-point fourth-quarter deficit with back-to-back touchdown drives. Quarterback Josh Hoover connected with Nick Marsh on both, first for a 75-yard score, then on a fourth-down conversion for a 44-yard touchdown.
But Indiana’s narrow escape could be an appetizer for what’s to come.
No. 2 Georgia visits No. 6 Alabama
It might be soggy. It might be windy. And it might be one of the best games of the year.
Saturday night's showdown carries the usual high stakes that tend to come when the Bulldogs (5-0, 3-0 SEC) and Crimson Tide (5-0, 3-0) get together of late: The winner gets a boost in making the SEC championship game, a top resume-builder for College Football Playoff seeding and perhaps a chance at bumping No. 1 Texas out of the top spot in The Associated Press Top 25 on Sunday.
Seven of the last 11 meetings have taken place at neutral sites, including five SEC championship games and two national title games. Georgia has not won in Tuscaloosa since 2007, but it brings a suffocating defense and under-the-radar quarterback Gunner Stockton, who averages a nation-best 51.4 points per game.
Alabama counters with Heisman Trophy contender Keelon Russell at QB and an offense averaging 49.6 points per game, third nationally. Its defense was lights out a week ago while shutting down Mississippi State, turning a highly anticipated game into a blowout.
The undercard
— The SEC's third unbeaten team is top-ranked Texas (4-0, 1-0), which faces Oklahoma (2-2, 0-1) in the annual Red River Rivalry game at the Cotton Bowl in Dallas at 3:30 p.m. Eastern. Neither offense is firing on all cylinders, and the Sooners will need to protect QB John Mateer from Texas pass-rusher extraordinaire Colin Simmons.
— No. 21 UCLA (4-0, 2-0 Big Ten) visits No. 13 Oregon (3-1, 1-0) in an intriguing game that kicks off at 3:30 p.m. Eastern. First-year UCLA coach Bob Chesney was at James Madison last year when his Dukes lost 51-34 to Oregon in the first round of the playoff. The Ducks will start backup Dylan Raiola in place of injured QB Dante Moore, but Oregon should give UCLA a true measure of how far it has come after beating its first four opponents by an average margin of 26 points.
— No. 22 Houston (4-1, 1-1 Big 12) is at Kansas State (3-1, 0-1) in another 3:30 p.m. Eastern game that will help set the pecking order in a conference top-heavy with No. 8 BYU, No. 11 Texas Tech and No. 12 Utah. Houston's only loss came when the Cougars missed by inches on a 2-point conversion in the final minute of a 28-26 loss at Texas Tech. Kansas State is one of eight Bowl Subdivision teams ranked in the top 25 in total offense, total defense, scoring offense and scoring defense.
— Big Ten after dark? No. 19 Southern California (5-1, 2-1 Big Ten) is at Penn State (3-2, 0-2) in the home team’s annual “White Out” game with an 8:30 p.m. Eastern kickoff. The Trojans make their first trip to Penn State since 1994 while the home team and first-year coach Matt Campbell try to snap a two-game skid that dropped the Nittany Lions out of the Top 25.
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