NCAA College Football Week 3 Scores: Weather Delays and Last-Second Drama

Weather disrupts Saturday's slate

On Saturday, September 19, lightning and storms disrupted multiple Week 3 games of the 2026 college football season. According to NCAA.com, the matchup between Alabama and Florida State, originally scheduled to kick off at 3:30 p.m. local time, was delayed, as was the Mississippi State–South Carolina game. The Clemson–North Carolina (UNC) game was suspended for nearly three hours.

Clemson pulls off a comeback win

When the Clemson–UNC game was halted, North Carolina led 17-15 with 8:11 remaining in the fourth quarter. After play resumed, UNC extended its lead to five points with a field goal, but Clemson answered with 13 unanswered points and sealed a 28-20 win with an interception.

Vanderbilt's stunning turnaround

An even more dramatic finish came in the Vanderbilt–NC State game. With six seconds left and NC State leading 31-28, the Wolfpack deliberately backed into their own end zone intending to take a safety and run out the clock, but quarterback CJ Bailey was stripped of the ball by Vanderbilt's defense, which recovered it for a touchdown and the win. NCAA.com notes this was Vanderbilt's largest comeback since a 2012 win over Ole Miss, and it marked the team's 10th consecutive home victory.

Other results

Several other games wrapped up Saturday: Ohio State routed Kent State 59-3, Penn State demolished Buffalo 55-13, and Georgia defeated Arkansas 45-17, according to Bleacher Report. Iowa State beat Bowling Green 55-7, with running back Aiden Flora scoring three touchdowns, including a 65-yard punt return. In the FCS ranks, Lehigh preserved its winning streak with a late interception against Dartmouth.

Several other Top 25 matchups, including Arizona State's win over Kansas, were still in progress or had unspecified final scores as of the latest reports. Yahoo Sports noted the Week 3 schedule also featured other highly anticipated matchups, such as LSU-Ole Miss and an SMU game, though exact results for those were not included in the available reports.