Top 25 Game Performances

News and Notes

At the half Indiana had a 205-170 yd edge vs Northwestern and had gotten a TD with :48 left to lead 10-7 but NW got a 23 yd FG to tie it at 10. NW went 87/11pl for a TD on their opening 3Q drive to lead 17-10. IU missed a 40 yd FG and NW drove 47/10pl for a 45 yd FG, 20-10. NW took over with 6:19 left up by 10 pts and went on a 10pl drive but on 4&4 ran for 1 yd. IU, after a 27 yd pass on 4&10 got a 39 yd TD pass with :44 left but NW rec’d the onside kick.

The key to the Miami/Virginia game was UM QB Jacory Harris getting inj’d early 2Q. UM finished with 24-18 FD and 448-361 yd edges. While Harris threw an int, his backups threw 4 with UVA tying a school record with 5 int. Most of UVA’s scores were set up by the beneficial TO’s. A 46 yd IR set up UVA for a 48 yd TD drive and they led 14-0 at the half despite UM having a 210-176 yd edge. Trailing 17-0 UM had a FD at the 16 but was int’d in the EZ. Their next drive ended on an int that was ret’d 25 yds to the 5 and UVA got a TD on the next play, 24-0. UM went 65/4pl getting a TD but missed the 2 pt conversion, 24-6. UM went 90/15pl for a TD but missed the xp, 24-12. UM rec’d the onside kick and got a 60 yd TD pass and had plenty of time as it was 24-19 with 4:39 left but their D allowed conversions on 3&4 and 3&8 giving up a 20 yd pass and UVA ran out the clock.

Pittsburgh only had a 15-14 FD edge but had a 255-185 yd edge. Pitt missed a 28 yd FG before the half and only led 6-3 but the key play of the game happened with Pitt leading 14-3. UL got to Pitt’s 34 when Froman had the ball slapped out of his hand and picked up by NT Myles Caragein who lumbered 56 yds to the 5 setting up the TD for the 20-3 lead. UL missed a 30 yd FG and didn’t cross midfield after that with Pitt even being SOD on 4&20 at the UL24 with :56 left.

Boston College ended its longest losing streak since 1998 (5). Montel Harris rushed 36 times for 132 yards. BC finished with a 304-262 yd edge and in the 1H had a 221-94 yd edge. Clemson got a 55 yd IR TD to take a 7-0 lead and BC settled for 21 and 37 yd FG’s. CU did miss a 43 yd FG in the 1H. CU also missed a 36 yd FG in the 3Q and on 3&16, a tipped pass was int’d at the BC13 early 4Q. CU was SOD on 4&6 at the BC32 and int’d at the BC45 and on their final drive only got to their own 33 where their Hail Mary pass was int’d with :05 left.

Illinois finished with 24-9 FD and 391-205 yd edges. The Illini went 80/10pl and 58/11pl for TD’s in the 1Q to lead 14-0 and Purdue’s best scoring chance came when they were SOD on 4&3 at the UI28. UI got a 23 yd FG on the final play of the half to lead 17-0. UI went 64/8pl on their opening drive of the 3Q then after a fmbl, went 26/4pl for a TD and after a 12 yd punt, 32/3pl for a TD to lead 37-0 and won easily 44-10.

Michigan St was lucky to get past Northwestern the previous week thanks in part to a fake punt and thanks in part to a fake punt Iowa was upset at home to Wisconsin. Iowa was undervalued last week and knocked off unbeaten #5 MSU in dominating fashion. The Hawkeyes scored a TD and a FG on 12 & 10 play drives on their first 2 poss then got a 66 yd IR TD and a 43 yd TD drive after an int. They added a 70 yd TD drive to lead 30-0 at the half. MSU trailed 37-0 before they got a TD with 14:56 left and only crossed midfield once being SOD at the UI39.

Maryland had 28-9 FD and 446-155 yd edges. Their 62 pts tied the school record for most pts ever in a conf game tying their 1975 school record and their 48 pt rout was their most lopsided ACC win since 2002. Maryland did benefit from some big plays as they blocked 2 punts, one of which set up a 27 yd drive for a 22 yd FG and the other set up a 13 yd TD drive. MD also got 25 and 8 yd IR TD’s and after 25 & 18 yd punts, drove 61 and 58 yds for TD’s. MD led 55-7 after 3Q’s.

Arizona had a 374-104 yd edge at the half but only led 19-7 as they settled for a 42 yd FG, fmbl’d at the UCLA14 and settled for a 24 yd FG. UCLA got a 68 yd TD pass then a fleaflicker for a 49 yd TD to pull within 5. UA was int’d in the EZ and then settled for a 30 yd FG to lead 29-21 with 1:18 left. LA got to its own 46 but was sk’d & fmbl’d and UA rec’d at the LA24 and took a knee.

Navy was off their big win over Notre Dame and was flat. In the 1H Duke led 24-0 and had a 268-67 yd edge. Duke led 34-15 with 8:38 left and it was 34-24 when they were SOD at the Navy33 with 4:35 left. Navy converted on 4&10 twice on a 68/10pl drive for a TD to get to 34-31. Duke rec’d the onside kick but opted to punt 36 yds for a TB. Navy got to their 43 but were SOD.

Missouri came in unbeaten and ranked #7 but Nebraska jumped out to a 24-0 lead with Missouri having 1 FD and the Huskers scoring on each of their first 4 drives. NU had a 300-166 yd edge at the half. Roy Helu rushed for a school record 307 yds with TD runs of 66, 73 and 53 yds. MO did get within 31-17 but punted with 8:40 left and NU went on a 14 play drive eating up the rest of the clock.

Tulane and SMU left some points off the board. The opening drive of the game went 71/9pl but SMU fmbl’d at the TU5. TU took its opening drive 85/12pl but missed a 27 yd FG so they had 166 yds offense in the first 10:00 and zero pts. SMU settled for a 25 yd FG and TU opened the 3Q with an 18pl drive and settled for a 25 yd FG and at the end of the game, TU - down 24-17, was int’d in the EZ on 4&5 with 4:50 left and SMU went 80/5pl for a TD. SMU, which trailed 17-3 late 3Q, won by 14.

Tennessee WR Denarius Moore had 6 catches for 228 yards, 2nd best in UT history vs #17 South Carolina last week. Marcus Lattimore returned to form with 184 yards rushing for the Gamecocks. It was 10-10 at the half and UT pulled Matt Simms for Tyler Bray one play after Simms fmbl’d and SC drove 27/6pl for a TD. Bray’s first pass was int’d and ret’d 24 yds for a TD. He did rally UT to a 24-24 tie but SC got a 70 yd TD pass and a 92/8pl drive for a TD. UT was SOD at their own 42 with 2:09 left.

It was a game of 2 desperate teams in Florida/Georgia. The team off a bye generally wins this rivalry and UF had that advantage which allowed RB Demps to be close to 100% healthy and also they got susp’d WR Rainey back in the lineup. UF jumped out to a 21-7 halftime lead but only had a 248-195 yd edge. For the game they benefitted from a 4-1 TO advantage. UGA tied it at 24 with 9:01 left then Burton got a 51 yd TD run with 6:56 left, 31-24. UGA tied it again with 4:36 left and it went to OT. UGA was int’d and nearly ret’d for a TD as the player dove for the EZ but was ruled out at the 4. UF got a 37 yd FG 4pl later for the win.

Since Ohio St lost to Wisconsin they have beaten their last 2 foes by a 101-10 margin. Minnesota was competitive early scoring a TD and missing a 35 yd FG on their first 2 poss only trailing 14-7. It was 24-7 when UM got off an 11 yd punt with :36 left in the half and OSU got a 38 yd TD pass 2pl later. While OSU missed a 23 yd FG and was int’d in the EZ from the 2, they did blk a punt for a TD in the 3Q and then ret’d a fmbl 30 yds for a TD in the 4Q and had a 24-10 FD edge.

Last week was a great situation for Texas as they were coming off a loss and Baylor came in as a ranked team for the first time since ‘93. UT spent the entire 1H basically in BU terr but settled for 4 FG’s and BU got some big plays beating the UT blitz. With UT up 9-3 and :43 left in the 1H, BU faced a 3&10 and got a 59 yd TD pass on a slant to Williams where he ran untouched to the EZ. UT only led 12-10 at the half and opened the 3Q with an 80/9pl TD drive to go up 19-10. UT later missed a 47 yd FG. On the next play BU got its 2nd big play when Finley raced 69 yds for a TD to get them within 19-17. UT was int’d and ret’d to the 11 setting up a TD and BU would then drive 85/7pl. On 3&10 another slant went 31 yds for a TD untouched, 30-19. UT went on a 15pl drive and settled for a 21 yd FG and then fmbl’d at their own 35 on their last poss.

Big plays were the key to Toledo’s rout of E Michigan. EM actually had a 17-14 FD edge. UT got a 74 yd TD pass in the 1H and in the 2H got a 73 yd TD pass, 53 yd TD pass, which was 2pl after an int, 55 yd run which set up a TD and then got a 3 yd TD drive after an int. EM was SOD after 9 and 10 pl drives at the UT15 and 17.

Penn St was down to 3rd string McGloin and an underdog at home to Michigan. McGloin hit 17-28-250 yds vs the UM D. PSU led comfortably throughout as they were up 28-10 at the half. In the 2H they led 38-17 but UM chipped away to 38-31 with 9:20 left. A pers foul on the KO set up PSU at the UM49 and they got a FG 7pl later to make it a 2 score game. UM as SOD on 4&8 at its own 28 and PSU got 2 FD’s to the 3 but opted to take a knee.

Oklahoma St was playing without WR Justin Blackmon. Kansas St led this one 7-0 when OSU took over at their 33 with 2:08 left in the 1H. On 3&10 they got a 16 yd TD catch with :56 left to tie it. KSU opened the 3Q with a 60/11pl drive but missed a 24 yd FG. OSU went 80/10pl for a TD, 65/10pl for a FG to lead 17-7. KSU was int’d at the OSU15 and then fmbl’d at the OSU25. A 26 yd IR TD by OSU opened it to 24-7 with 7:06 left.

Temple did finish with 21-8 FD and 399-154 yd edges. TU also got B2B shutouts for the first time since 1971 but only led 6-0 at the half over Akron despite a 205-90 yd edge. In the 2H, a 38 yd PR set up a 37 yd drive for a TD but then int set up a -4 yd drive for a 45 yd FG. With 12:00 left, TU only led 16-0 when they drove 64/6pl for a TD with 9:03 left. TU then drove 56/9pl for a TD with 2:37 left and Akron punted on 4&17 from its own 31.

San Diego St’s first 3 drives vs Wyoming ended on an int at the 5 and they settled for FG’s from the 4 & 11 yd lines and only led 6-0. WY benefitted from a fmbl’d PR to drive 13 yds for a TD then blk’d a punt to drive 2 yds for a 30 yd FG and actually led 10-6 despite SDSt controlling play. The Aztecs rallied to lead 20-17 at the half. The Aztecs would increase their lead to 41-24 with 12:26 left. WY on 4&1 got a 21 yd TD run then 3pl later an int set up a 35/3pl drive for a TD and they pulled within 41-38 with 7:32 left. SDS got a 59 yd TD pass with 4:56 left and then WY on 4&12 was sk’d for a 13 yd loss back to their own 29 and SDSt’s 4 runs got them to the 11 as the clock ran out.

INJURIES OF NOTE:

RB Bilal Powell of Louisville had a right knee injury and only played 2 plays in the 2H.

QB Sean Robinson got his first start for Purdue and hit 7-20-52. Rob Henry still played but did not throw a pass rushing 2 times for 9 yards as he had a badly hurt forefinger on his throwing hand after cutting it and losing a nail vs Ohio St.

The key injury in the Cal/Oregon St game happened early. OSU did lead 6-0 when Cal QB Kevin Riley hit a 32 yd pass on 3&15 out to the Cal37. Unfortunately he was inj’d and missed the rest of the game. The next 4 poss resulted in 3 punts and a fmbl and OSU scored 3 TD’s. In the 4Q Cal was SOD at their own 42 but got a 45 yd TD pass with :20 left to close the scoring. Brock Mansion hit 14-24-138.

Syracuse got off to their best start in 9 years with a 31-7 win vs Cincinnati. UC QB Collaros DNP and Chazz Anderson hit 18-33-148 yds. SU went 80/14pl for a TD then benefitted from a pair of UC fmbl’s to go 19 yds for a TD where they fmbl’d into the EZ but rec’d for a TD and rec’d at the UC19 and got a 26 yd FG to lead 17-0. It was 17-7 at the half. UC was int’d on 2&gl from the 6 and ret’d 60 yds and SU added a 37/4pl drive for a TD to lead 24-7. UC was SOD at its own 42 at the start of the 4Q and SU added another TD to lead 31-7.

Kansas was down to 3rd string QB Quinn Mecham who was making his first start after they took his RS off. He hit 22-33 but for just 149 yds. Iowa St was coming off their upset of Texas and in the 1H KU dominated. KU had a 10-5 FD edge but settled for a 35, 42 and 38 yd FG’s. ISU also got a 62 yd PR TD so they only trailed 9-7. ISU scored TD’s on their first 3 poss of the 2H and went on to a 12 pt win.

UAB had numerous opportunities to put it away. They did lead 14-6 when SM opted to go for it on the 1H's final play 3&gl from the UAB1 with :08 left in the half and were stopped. UAB led 35-21 after getting a TD with 7:13 left. SM converted on 4&7 with a 15 yd pass to get a TD with 5:31 left and then on 4&gl, an 8 yd TD pass with :28 left. In OT, UAB got a 4&gl 7 yd TD pass in the 1st OT to tie. After each scored a TD in the 2OT, SM went for 2 and got it.

There were a couple of key plays in the Tulsa/Notre Dame game. ND QB Crist was inj’d but Tommy Rees did fill in well hitting 33-54-334 yds. After ND scored an apparent tying TD early, their xp was not only blk’d but ret’d for 2 and instead of 7-7, the Irish trailed 9-6. ND got a fake punt on 4&10 from its own 41 keying an 80/13pl drive for a TD. ND led 20-12 with :45 left in the half and had a FD at the TU30 when they were int’d and ret’d 66 yds for a TD and only led 20-18 at the half. TU did fmbl at the ND19 but got a 59 yd PR TD to pull within 27-25 with 4:59 left 3Q. The next 7 poss were punts. TU went 57/12pl incl a crucial 3&26, 31 yd pass and their 27 yd FG gave them the lead. The Irish went 59/9pl. Their K was perfect on FG’s on the season but did have that blk’d xp. ND needing only a FG had a 2&8 at the TU19 which would have been a 36 yd FG but tried a pass to the EZ to Floyd which was int’d and TU pulled the upset.

Bowling Green did control the game vs C Michigan but needed a fortuitous fmbl at the end and a TD with :21 left to pull out the win. In the 1H BG had a 144-87 yd edge and led 10-0. CM got a 3&12, 18 yd TD pass early 3Q when the key play, a 63 yd IR TD at the start of the 4Q to actually take a 14-10 lead. CM got a FD to the BG41 but on 3&7 with 2:26 left, fmbl’d and BG went 59/7pl getting a 1 yd TD run with :21 left to pull out the win.