INDEPENDENCE BOWL Monday, December 26th @ 5:00 p.m. Click on the bowl logo for MORE info!!!!

News and Notes Bowl Games Part 1

LAS VEGAS BOWL Boise St  56 Arizona St 24 - Kellen Moore finished his final game with 50 career wins in the NCAA, a record that we cannot foresee being broken. He hit 26-34-293 yds. BS did get a couple of big plays to turn this into a blowout. Many questioned the attitude of ASU coming in as they had fired their HC Erickson and anointed Todd Graham as the HC. Any notions of ASU giving a huge performance for their outgoing coach probably went away on the opening KO when BS deflated ASU with a 100 yd KR TD. The next 3 poss were punts then BSU went 54/8pl for a TD. BS was int’d at the ASU25 but on their next drive went 80/8pl and got a 2 yd TD pass with 12:03 left 2Q, 21-0. 2 punts. ASU went 66/12pl but settled for a 32 yd FG. BS went 72/12pl and converted on 4&5 for a FD to the ASU5 and brought Moore out and their bkp QB handed off to Miller who threw a 5 yd TD pass with :43 left 1H, 28-3. At half BSU had a 269-111 yd edge. ASU threatened to get into it. They got a 98 yd KR by Ross to open the 3Q for a TD, 28-10. They got an int but on 4th & 4 Erickson sent the punt team in. Osweiler waved them off and went for it but his pass fell incomplete from the BS39. BSU fmbl’d and ASU went 49/7pl. They had a 1st & gl at the 5. They had 2 shotgun runs from the 1 which were both stopped and then with Erickson trying to call time-out for at least :05, the refs did not call time-out and Osweiler’s pass into the EZ which would have made it 28-17 was int’d and ret’d 105 yds for a TD and blew open what would have been an 11 pt game to a 35-10 lead. BSU took their next poss 80/10pl for a TD, 42-10 then got a 26 yd FR TD 2pl later, 49-10. ASU went 54/3pl for a 21 yd TD pass, 49-17 and then went 60/6pl but was SOD at the BSU26. BSU went 74/12pl for a TD with 2:24 left then ASU went 75/7pl getting a TD with :28 left on a 30 yd pass. Boise finished with a 460-384 yd edge.

IDAHO POTATO BOWL Ohio 24 Utah St 23 - OU got their first 10 win season since 1968 and had been winless in their 5 bowl appearances. They had to overcome a 23-10 deficit. USt’s opening drive went 73/12pl but on 4&gl from the 1 they were SOD. On 3&8 OU QB Tettleton had the ball slip out of his hands and he scooped it up in the EZ and ran out of the back of the EZ for a safety. USt went 50/9pl for a TD after the free kick, 9-0. 4 punts. OU went 56/7pl and got a 26 yd TD pass, 9-7 (4:40). US33 went 45/10pl but missed a 39 yd FG wide right with 1:42 left in the half. At half US had a 184-119 yd edge. After an OU punt to open the 3Q US on 2&1 got a 63 yd TD run by Smith, 16-7. OU25 went 60/8pl but settled for a 32 yd FG, 16-10 (9:52). USt went 83/9pl and an 11 yd TD run by Smith put them up comfortably 23-10 (5:51 3Q). OU answered going 66/5pl. Tettleton ran right on a possible option, stepped back and hit Brazill for a 44 yd TD pass, 23-17 (3:45 3Q). 4 punts. US7 took over with 4:23 left but were forced to punt 4 plays later on 4&9 and OU went 61/9pl and on 4&6 they got a 13 yd pass to Brazill that was ruled a TD at one point but spotted at the 1. Two plays later Tettleton’s 1 yd TD run gave OU its first lead of the game and the win, 24-23 with just :13 left.

NEW MEXICO BOWL Temple 37 Wyoming 15 - WY had to be concerned about their weak rush D vs TU’s strong rush offense but TU’s def front 7 also did a fine job holding WY to 267 yds. TU’s opening drive went 90/13pl taking up half the first quarter and made it 7-0. WY answered with an 11 play drive but missed a 49 yd FG and TU went 69/9pl for a 1 yd TD run, 14-0. WY was int’d from midfield and ret’d 30 yds. TU went 35/6pl for a TD, 21-0. 2 punts. WY went 62/11pl and on 4&3 got a 21 yd TD pass with :37 left and it appeared they would be taking momentum to the locker room but on the next play, TU got a 61 yd TD pass to Streeter as the DB feel down and TU had reestablished momentum and pretty much snuffed out WY’s hopes, 28-7. At the half TU had a 278-160 yd edge. WY opened the 3Q with a 13pl drive but punted. TU went 60/13pl for a 34 yd FG then went 47/7pl for a 37 yd FG to lead 34-7 (12:50). WY got 1 FD and was int’d and TU would go 56/13pl getting a 34 yd FG with 3:22 left to lead 37-7. WY29 showed some heart (using all 3 time-outs on their final drive) and went 71/10pl and got a 14 yd TD pass with :03 left and their 2 pt conversion made it 37-15.
Navy 27 Army (+7) 21 - Navy defeated Army for a 10th straight year in the only college game played that weekend (Dec 10). Navy opened with a 58/13pl drive but fmbl’d at the 19. Army, however, fmbl’d it back 3pl later so Navy went just 26/6pl for a TD, 7-0 (1:06 1Q). 2 punts. Army fmbl’d at the Navy45 and Navy went 55/7pl for a TD, 14-0 (7:05). Army went 67/8pl and got a 34 yd TD run by Steelman, 14-7 (3:34). Navy went 3&out punting with 2:45 left and Army went 63/7pl and got a 5 yd TD run by Brown with :49 left in the half to make it 14-14. Navy opened the 3Q with a 48 yd KR and went 48/5pl for a TD. Army went 74/6pl and got a 25 yd TD pass, 21-21. Navy got 1 FD and fmbl’d but on their next drive went 75/18pl incl a 4&1 conv at the Army14. They settled for a 23 yd FG on 4&gl from the 6, 24-21 (12:03). Army fmbl’d the ensuing KO at their own 27 and Navy added a 44 yd FG to lead 27-21 (10:26). Army still had a shot. At their 23 they went 51/12pl but on 4&7 with 4:31 left, Steelman was tkl’d. Navy got 1 FD. They lined up like they were going for it on 4&1 and Army jumped offsides. That allowed Navy to run 4 more plays and punt with only :02 left in the game and Army’s last play from its own 10 gained 29 yds.

ST PETERSBURG BOWL Marshall 20 Fiu 10 - This was closer than the final as MU at the end of the game, faced a 4th & 5 at the FIU35 trying to run the clock and opted to go for it and got a 35 yd TD pass with :30 left. It was a def struggle as MU had just a 14-12 FD edge. MU took its 2nd poss 45/10pl but settled for a 37 yd FG. MU got a 39 yd PR to the FIU44 but on the first play Cato was int’d at the 19 and ret’d 34 yds. FIU went 47/8pl for a TD, 7-3 (1:31). 2 punts. MU went 22/6pl but passed incomplete on 4&4 at the FIU35 (8:59). FIU went 36/8pl and got a 46 yd FG, 10-3. 2 punts. MU went 55/6pl. On 1st & 15 they got a 31 yd TD pass with :23 left in the half to tie it at 10. At half MU, thanks to that drive, had a 166-137 yd edge. The 2H opened with 9 punts with the teams combining for 7 FD’s on those drives. With 7:35 left in the half MU blk’d a punt and ret’d it 8 yds to the 3 and it was orig ruled a td but MU was called for ill forward pass as the RM tried to lateral it forward and then a PF and instead of getting a td they were backed up to the 23. MU gained 1 yd and got a 39 yd FG that bounced off the upright and in, 13-10 (5:16). FIU got a FD pass to Hilton but he fmbl’d at the end of it at the MU40 with 4:24 left. MU got 1 FD and thought about punting it from the FIU35 with :38 left but opted to go for it, Cato avoided the sk, hit a wide open Dobson as the DB fell down and got a 35 yd td pass with :30 left. MU avoided a losing season as they came in 6-6 and it was the 4th time this year MU blk’d a punt and the 4th time they won with Coach Holiday preaching that if they block, they win 90% of their games.

POINSETTIA BOWL TCU 31 Louisiana Tech 24 - Many wondered how TCU would fair without record setting QB Andy Dalton but Casey Pachall set single season school records with 228 completions, 2921 yds and a comp% of 66.5%. LT had come in on a 7 game win streak and had signed Coach Dykes to a contract extension through 2017. LT appeared on its way to winning the game as they were up 24-17 after 3Q’s. There were 4 long drives that resulted in 6 pts which made this game’s final a lot lower than it should have been. LT went on a 67/13pl drive and made a 29 yd FG but had it taken off the board for a pers foul but still settled for a 23 yd FG, 3-0 (8:30). LT went 57/9pl but fmbl’d at the TCU35. TCU went 57/8pl for a 25 yd FG, 3-3. LT went 59/7pl and got a 2 yd TD pass, 10-3. LT’s next drive went 60/10pl but they settled for a 43 yd FG and it bounced off the upright. LT’s next drive (14) went 3&out. Roughing the P gave them a FD but they were int’d with 1:21 left in the half and ret’d 24 yds to their 25. TCU went 25/4pl for a TD and despite the fact that LT had a 266-144 yd edge at the half, the score was tied at 10. TCU opened the 3Q with a 55/11pl drive for a TD. TCU fmbl’d a punt at its own 12 setting up an LT 12/3pl TD drive, 17-17. 2 punts. TCU26 got 1 FD and was int’d at the LT39. On 3&10 Cameron hit White with a 61 yd TD pass, 24-17 (2:10). TCU28 went 72/18pl converting on two 4&1 and got a TD with 7:49 left to tie it. LT went 3 &out punting with 6:24 left and TCU went 69/5pl with a 42 yd td pass to Dawson, 31-24. LT opted to punt on 4&7 with 3:33 left and TCU got 2 FD’s running out the clock.

New Orleans Bowl Louisiana 32 San Diego St 30 - The largest crowd edge for any of the opening 6 bowls was clearly in the New Orleans Bowl. UL fans were probably about 40,000 strong (42,841 ttl attendance) which is 10,000 more than what they avg at home games. Blaine Gautier broke Jake Delhomme’s single season school records for yds passing (2,958) and td’s (23) with those records standing since 1996. Gautier hit 24-40-470 yds shattering the New Orleans Bowl record for yards passing. UL needed a 50 yd FG as time ran out which would have been a 55 yd FG but SDSt was called for ill procedure on the 55 yd att despite being on defense. SDSt missed a 36 yd FG with 10:00 left and had a 29-25 FD edge but UL had a 236-200 yd edge. SDSt opened with a 53/11pl drive but settled for a 27 yd FG. 2 punts. UL went 80/10pl and got an 18 yd TD pass, 6-3 (xp blk’d, :25 1Q). UL got an 87 yd PR TD, 13-3 (14:00 2Q). SDSt went 71/16pl and on 4&1 they got a FD to the UL6 but the play was reviewed and spotted short. UL went 93/13pl but they on 4&gl from the 1 were int’d at the 4. At half UL had a 219-190 yd edge. UL opened the 3Q with a 73/3pl drive and got a 20 yd TD pass to Green, 19-3. SDS went 41/2pl for a TD, 19-10 which came on a 16 yd TD pass. 3 punts. SDSt was pinned at their 1 and went 99/7pl and got a 16 yd TD pass to Lockett, 19-17 (3:40). UL went 78/14pl for an 11 yd TD pass with 12:48 left, 26-17. SDS38 went 43/7pl but missed a 36 yd FG with 10:14 left. SDSt went 55/10pl for a TD with 5:40 left, 26-24. UL went 72/10pl and had a 1st & gl at the 3 but settled for a 22 yd FG, 29-24. SDS31 went 69/10pl. They converted on 4&2 at their own 44 and got a 12 yd TD pass with :35 left to apparently pull out the win. They missed the 2 pt conv and UL got 13 and 26 yd passes on 3&5 they lined up for a 55 yd FG but SDS was called for ill snap and UL got a 50 yd FG on the final play.