Nashville, Tenn. – Vanderbilt, welcome to the big time.

Mackenzi Adams came off the bench and threw for 153 yards and two touchdowns, and Vanderbilt beat Auburn Saturday night to improve to 5-0 for the first time since 1943.

The Commodores also improved to 3-0 in the Southeastern Conference for only the third time – the first since 1950. This victory keeps them undefeated atop the SEC East while also snapping a 13-game skid to Auburn (4-2, 2-2). It was Vandy’s first victory in the series since the 1955 Gator Bowl.

Trying to preserve a one-point lead, Vandy had to punt the ball back to Auburn one last time with 2:16 left, but Brett Upson kicked it 55 yards, and Alan Strong downed it at the Tigers’ three. On the next play, Myron Lewis intercepted Chris Todd’s pass intended for Rodgeriqus Smith.

No. 2 Alabama 17, Kentucky 14

Tuscaloosa, Ala. – Glen Coffee rushed for 218 yards, Leigh Tiffin kicked a 24-yard field goal with 2:12 left, and Alabama held on.

Coffee and the Crimson Tide (6-0, 3-0 SEC) mounted a bruising 15-play drive from their own 17-yard line to set up the clinching field goal. Tiffin, who had missed two earlier kicks, drilled this one for a 17-7 lead, and the points proved necessary.

Mike Hartline hit DeMoreo Ford streaking down the right sideline for a 48-yard touchdown pass with 40 seconds left for the Wildcats (4-1, 0-1).

No. 6 Penn State 20, Purdue 6

West Lafayette, Ind. – Evan Royster ran for 141 yards and a touchdown for Penn State, which outgained Purdue 422 to 241 in its last test before Saturday’s showdown at Wisconsin.

Royster also had 53 yards on four catches for the Nittany Lions (6-0, 2-0 Big Ten).

Kory Sheets led Purdue (2-3, 0-1) with 59 rushing yards on 18 carries.

No. 9 USC 44, No. 23 Oregon 10

Los Angeles – Mark Sanchez threw for 332 yards and three touchdowns, and Southern California stormed back from a stunning loss to rout Oregon.

The Trojans (3-1, 1-1 Pac-10) shook off a defeat at Oregon State in Corvallis that knocked them out of the No. 1 ranking and dominated the Ducks (4-2, 2-1), who had been considered the better of Oregon’s two Pac-10 schools.

No. 12 Florida 38, Arkansas 7

Fayetteville, Ark. – Tim Tebow threw two touchdown passes, and Jeffrey Demps ran for 103 yards and two long TDs as the Gators rebounded from an upset loss to Ole Miss.

The Gators (4-1, 2-1) led 17-7 late in the third quarter when Jerry Franklin picked off Tebow, snapping the Heisman Trophy winner’s streak at 203 passes without an interception.

The Florida defense held, and Tebow came back to lead his team on an 83-yard touchdown drive to put it away.

Arkansas fell to 2-3 and 0-2 with the loss.

No. 14 Ohio State 20, No. 18 Wisconsin 17

Madison, Wis. – Terrelle Pryor ran for an 11-yard touchdown with 1:08 left, and Chris “Beanie” Wells had 168 yards rushing and a score as Ohio State’s new double-threat backfield led the Buckeyes to a victory over Wisconsin.

The last time the Buckeyes (4-1, 2-0 Big Ten) played a marquee game under the lights, they got pounded by Southern California last month.

Wells didn’t play in that game, and Pryor, the talented, ballyhooed freshman, wasn’t the starter.

The 19-year-old quarterback kept his poise, leading Ohio State on two fourth-quarter scoring drives, snapping Wisconsin’s 16-game home winning streak that evened coach Jim Tressel’s record to 3-3 against the Badgers (3-2, 0-2).

No. 20 Virginia Tech 27, Western Kentucky 13

Blacksburg, Va. – Darren Evans ran for two touchdowns, quarterback Tyrod Taylor threw for another, and the Hokies held on to beat the Hilltoppers.

Virginia Tech (5-1) led, 27-3, when Western Kentucky (2-4) added a field goal late in the third quarter.

The Hilltoppers recovered an onside kick, then drove 50 yards without a quarterback on the field, choosing instead to snap the ball to running back Dexter Taylor.

David Wolke came back on the field and threw a three-yard touchdown pass to Tristan Jones that made it 27-13 with 11:58 left in the game, but that was as close as Western Kentucky got.

North Carolina 38, No. 24 Connecticut 12

Chapel Hill, N.C. – Shawn Draughn rushed for a career-high 109 yards and a touchdown, defensive lineman Marvin Austin returned an interception 23 yards for another score, and North Carolina routed Connecticut.

Bruce Carter blocked three punts, Matt Merletti fell on one of them for a TD, and Draughn’s 39-yard touchdown started the game-breaking sequence that gave the Tar Heels their first win over a ranked team in three years.

Ryan Houston had a one-yard score, and Cameron Sexton threw a 13-yard touchdown pass to Hakeem Nicks for North Carolina (4-1), which overcame some shortcomings on the stat sheet by scoring 21 points off Husky mistakes. UConn (5-1) outgained the Tar Heels 378-263.