Southeastern Roundup : Ole Miss Upsets Florida

Chauncey Godwin, a former quarterback, picked on a former roommate with two pass interceptions that helped Mississippi upset Florida, 24-19, in a Southeastern Conference game Saturday at Gainesville, Fla.

Godwin returned one interception 58 yards for a touchdown and set up another with a 19-yard return, both off former Mississippi high school star Kyle Morris.

Morris and Godwin roomed together during the 1987 Mississippi high school all-star game.

Morris, who also was charged with a fumble on a bad pitch that Ole Miss recovered, was booed by the crowd of 70,014 throughout the game.

“He had a tough day with the crowd on him,” Godwin said. “I hope he bounces back.”

The Rebels, 2-0 overall and 1-0 in the SEC, used a 28-yard fake punt pass from Charles Childers to reserve defensive back Gerald Vaughn to set up another touchdown.

All the Rebels’ scoring followed turnovers by the Gators (0-1).

It was Mississippi’s first victory over Florida since 1973, ending a string of three losses in the series the Rebels lead, 9-7-1.

Emmitt Smith, who rushed for 117 yards to crack the 100-yard mark for a school-record 15th time, scored Florida’s touchdowns on a five-yard run early in the final quarter and a two-yard plunge with 1:37 left.

Mississippi St. 26, So. Mississippi 23--Joel Logan kicked a 34-yard field goal with four seconds left to give the Bulldogs an upset win over the 18th-ranked Golden Eagles at Hattiesburg, Miss.

Mississippi State, a one-touchdown underdog, got the ball with 1:18 to play and drove 46 yards in four plays to set up the winning kick. A 38-yard pass from Eric Underwood to tailback Kenny Robert was the key play.

Mississippi State, 1-10 last season, improved to 2-0. Southern Mississippi, an upset winner over then sixth-ranked Florida State last week, fell to 1-1.

Chuck Davis kicked a 35-yard field goal with 2:55 to play to give Southern Mississippi a tie. But unlike a week ago, the Golden Eagles couldn’t come up with the big drive when needed.

Auburn 55, Pacific 0--Alexander Wright caught four touchdown passes to set a Southeastern Conference yardage record as the fifth-ranked Tigers piled up 586 yards in total offense at Auburn, Ala.

Wright caught scoring passes of 78, 73 and 60 yards from quarterback Reggie Slack, who completed nine of 10 passes for 252 yards and four touchdowns in limited playing time. Wright also grabbed a 41-yard touchdown pass from backup Frank McIntosh.

Auburn (1-0) totally dominated Pacific (0-2). The Big West Conference team from Stockton, which hasn’t had a winning season since 1977, was held to just 92 yards in total offense.

Wright, a senior receiver who ran track for Auburn in the spring, set a conference record for receiving yards in a game with 263. The old mark of 239 was set by Carlos Alvarez of Florida in 1969.

Auburn scored on the first play of the game. Wright caught a pass on the left sideline and raced 78 yards for a touchdown.

Pacific, which lost to Pittsburgh, 38-3, in its season opener, had three turnovers and crossed midfield only once.

The Tigers, reached the Auburn 25 in the second quarter, but Jon Derr missed a 44-yard field goal.

Freshman quarterback David Henigan threw for just 42 yards and was sacked four times.