Week 12 Top 25 Team Performances

GAMES NOTES:

Ball St solidified its bowl standing and Ohio’s banged up team kept sliding. The Bobcats missed as many as 10 players due to injury but did only trail 21-17 at the half. Ball St lost their starting QB Keith Wenning who hit 16-20-172. Veteran Kelly Page came in and ran 7 yards for a td on his only play of the 1H and OU did get to the BSU12 with :12 left in the half but was sacked on the final play and did not score. OU got a 58 yd td run by Blankenship on the first drive of the 2H to take a 24-21 lead but Ball got a 68 yd Edwards run keying a 71/2pl drive for a td and OU missed a 27 yd FG. After 2 punts, BSU went 59/10pl for a 38 yd FG and OU went on an 11pl drive for a 34 yd FG, 31-27. Ball, after a 46 yard KR and a 15 yd penalty on a personal foul, drove 38/1pl for a td then after a punt went 65/6pl for a td and after OU went 3&out again, went 77/8pl for a td and turned it into a 52-27 rout with 2:18 left. Page hit just 5-7-41 rushing 4x’s for 34 yards.

Toledo/Northern Illinois was a story of 2 halves. In the 1H UT led 14-7 and had a 233-151 yd edge. NI’s only td came on a 34/9pl drive where they got a 5 yd IR to the UT34 setting up the drive and converted on 4&1 at the beginning. On the first play of the 3Q, Jordan Lynch, who had a phenomenal game hitting 25-36-407 with 3 td’s and rushed for 32-162 hit a 73 yd td pass. UT was int’d at the NI1 and NI went 99/9pl for a td to take the lead, 21-14. UT was SOD at the NI28 and NI was int’d at the UT3 and ret’d 63 yds but UT was int’d right back at the NIU3. NI then went 97/7pl and 24/8pl for a td and a 43 yd FG to break it open, 31-14. UT went 61/9pl for a td with 10:05 left, recovered a fumble with 8:15 left at the NI45 and got a 34 yd FG with 5:57 left. NI’s final drive got 2 FD’s and on 2&2, Lynch gained 26 yds to the UT18 on a 53/10pl drive and they took a knee 2x.

North Carolina’s defense had allowed 588 yards and 68 points to Georgia Tech the previous week but had a much better week vs Virginia in the 2H. They did give up 202 yards in the 1H but yielded just 148 yards in the 2H. NC was without their starting FG kicker and Thomas Moore missed from 40 yards late in the 2Q but 2 plays later NC got a 36 yard IR td to lead 20-10 at the half and had a 261-202 yard edge. NC fumbled a punt at its own 12 and held UVA to a 28 yd FG. The key play happened when UVA, trailing 20-13 on the next drive, were SOD on 4&gl at the 1. NC went 97/12pl for a td. UVA dropped what would have been a td pass (81 yds) on 3rd down and NC went 47/5pl for a td after a 28 yd punt. UVA fumbled the KO and NC added a 30 yd FG with 7:07 left, 37-13. UVA’s last 2 drives were SOD at the NC4 and NC46 yd lines on 4&3 and 4&7. WR Quinshad Davis had tied an ACC record with 16 receptions and Fedora on the last play of the game, on 3&1 with backup QB Williams in, tried to get him the record by throwing a pass to the outside at the line but the pass was short and incomplete.

The Air Force/Hawaii game was interesting in a couple of areas. First, AF did not pass the ball once all game. It was the first time they had not thrown a pass in a game since 1992. After the game, AF accepted a bid to the Armed Forces bowl. UH scored a td on their opening drive for the 1st time all season as they gave Jeremy Higgins his first start and he hit 14-23-125. It was 7-7 at the half but UH had a 123-101 yd edge and missed a 60 yd FG on the final play of the half. AF went 81/7 and 80/8pl for td’s in the 3Q to lead 21-7 but fumbled at their own 43 and punted on their next 2 poss. AF’s final drive started with 2:38 left at their own 33 and they got 1 FD and took a knee and finished with a 338-162 yd edge.

With FIU moving to another conference, it may have been the last game in the FIU/FAU Shula Bowl for quite some time. FIU was pinned at its own 1 after a punt early and hit a 46 yd pass on 2&10 and later a 3&17, 38 yd td pass to lead 7-0. The next 6 poss were punts and each team scored a td. FIU fumbled the punt at their own 33 with 2:32 left and FAU got a 37 yd FG to pull within 14-10. At the half FIU had 198-137 yd edge. FAU’s 2nd 3Q poss went 61/6pl for a td but FIU ret’d the KO 100 yds for a td. After an exchange of td’s, FIU went 71/9pl for a td, 34-24. FAU was int’d at the 2, SOD at the FIU45. FIU had a 36 yd FG blk’d with 3:34 left and FAU went 53/10pl but missed a 45 yd FG with 1:04 left and FIU ran out the clock.

Alabama was off its loss to Texas A&M and finished with a 460-163 yd edge and 22-8 FD edge. AJ McCarron only attempted 6 passes hitting all 6 for 133 yards. Keep in mind, Western Carolina came into the game a poor FCS team at 1-9 but Bama reached 10 wins for the 5th season in a row, their longest streak since 1971-’75. Bama scored td’s on their first 5 poss of the game and added a 57 yd FR td with :14 left in the half for a 42-0 lead with a 388-48 yd edge. Their 6th poss also went for a td on a 61/10pl drive. WC’s best chance was a 61/10pl drive but on 4&1 were SOD at the 14. Bama did punt on their final 3 drives and took a knee.

Maryland came in 4-6 and was playing for bowl eligibility. Florida St dominated even more than the final with a 226-27 yd edge in the 1H but only led 27-0. MD surprisingly went 81/9pl for a td to open the 3Q. FSU reestablished themselves. FSU led 41-7 when they got the ball at their own 42 with 2:19 left. On 3&3, they fumbled with :37 left and that could have been the last play of the game but Maryland on 2&10, threw a 42 yd td pass with :25 left in the game which made some Terp backers VERY happy.

Penn St lost LB Michael Mauti in the 1Q to a left knee injury and Indiana would roll up 478 yards with Cameron Coffman hitting 33-59-454 yards vs Indiana. PSU’s offense rolled up 546 yards. PSU only led 14-13 with 7:06 left in the half and went 77/4pl and 62/3pl, the latter a td with :31 left in the half to give them some momentum and a 28-13 lead. IU hit a 79 yd td pass to open the 3Q and recovered an onside kick but missed a 55 yd FG. They recovered a fumble and got a 46 yd FG and were within 28-22 but PSU went 75/9pl, 52/8pl for td’s and IU was int’d at the 6 on their next drive. PSU got a 28 yd FG with 3:56 left to go up by 23 and IU got to the PSU3 yd line but on 4&gl fired incomplete with :40 left.

Dri Archer had exciting runs and this guy is fast! He got 79 and 74 yd td’s vs Bowling Green so despite the fact Kent St was outFD’d 19-14 and outgained 438-425, they won 31-24. Kent St wrapped up the MAC East Title and a key play was when DT Roosevelt Nix dropped back in coverage and broke up a 4th down pass late in the game. BG missed a 43 yd FG and was int’d at their own 23 setting up a Kent St FG. After Archer’s 79 yd td run, WR Gallon got an exciting 72 yd td rec where he stiff armed the DB at the 25 and went the distance for the td. It was 10-10 at the half. BG led 17-10 scoring on their first drive of the 3Q but Kent St got a td to tie and then a 75 yd td run by Archer at the start of the 4Q. BG tied it again at 24, but Schilz had a pass deflected at the line of scrimmage and int’d at the 20 and Kent St got a td 4pl later. BG got down to a 4&2 but Nix deflected the pass with 5:00 left at the Kent St 17. BG got it back 1 more time but on 4&13 from the Kent St 17, fired incomplete.

Rutgers’ Jawan Jamison, the leading rusher and 3rd leading receiver, was questionable coming in. He rushed for 37 yards on 7 carries but it was Savon Huggins who got the bulk of the work and he rushed for 179 yards on 41 carries vs Cincinnati. RU had a 420-341 yd edge. Butch Jones spent the week lobbing for fans to fill the stadium which only seats 35,000 and 34,526 were on hand. RU even blew a couple of opportunities as they were int’d at the 7 on their opening drive, UC did miss a 34 yd FG. RU got a 71 yd td pass to Harrison to lead 7-0 but then went 57/10 and on 3&8 with :25 left, they floated the ball into double coverage in the EZ and was int’d and didn’t have any points. At the half RU only led by 7 despite a 285-146 yd edge. UC was SOD at the RU8 and int’d a the RU38 but RU went 39/10pl and had a 22 yd FG blk’d. RU went 62/12pl for a 42 yd FG, 10-0. UC was SOD at the RU44, RU was SOD at the UC29 and UC got a 36 yd FG with :10 left to avoid the shutout and RU rec’d the onside kick.

Miami, Oh had a 434-336 yd edge in what was a bowl elimination game vs Central Michigan as each team came in with 6 losses. MU had a couple of blown opportunities. They fumbled at the CM49 on their first drive and on their 3rd were SOD on 4&1 at the CM36. Tied at 7, MU had a 1st & gl at the CM9 but was int’d at the 5 and CM actually got 2 TD’s in the last 5:35 of the half, 21-7 despite only having a 234-225 yd edge. MU pulled back to 21-16 but trailing 28-16 on 4&4, were SOD at the CM15 with 5:38 left. MU was tkl’d for a safety with 1:05 left and CM rec’d the onside free kick.

For Temple, Matt Brown started the game and rushed for 2 td’s but left with injury. Amazingly, despite not starting and missing half of the 1Q, his replacement Montel Harris rushed for 351 yards and 7 td’s. Army came in the #1 ranked rush offense in the country but TU rushed for 534 yards on 57 carries. It was the final home game for 22 Army seniors including QB Trent Steelman. TU gave Clinton Granger a surprise start at QB and they only let him pass 4x, he hit 2 for 31 yards. TU led 28-10 at the half with a 290-219 yd edge with Montel Harris getting a 1 yd td run with :28 left in the half. It was TU’s 2nd score in the final 4:02 in the half giving them momentum in the 2H. Harris would have td’s on 7 consecutive drives incl the first 5 of the 2H before they finally punted with 4:12 left leading 63-32.

Marshall had a 665-430 yard edge vs Houston. A surprise was that QB David Piland was benched and they opted to go with Crawford Jones at QB and he did hit 31-44-316 yards but MU built a 31-10 halftime lead getting a 69 yard td run with 1:05 left and MU had a 385-148 yd edge at the half. MU led 38-24 at the end of the 3Q’s but Houston went 75/3pl and 89/10pl for a pair of td’s to tie it. MU got a 26 yd FG with 5:44 left, UH went 40/11pl getting a 28 yd FG with 1:18 left and then MU35 went 37/8pl for a 45 yd FG with :07 left for the win.

All 7 of Michigan St’s Big Ten games have been decided by 4 points or less and MSU is now in danger of not making a bowl as they fell to 5-6. MSU had a 419-303 yd edge and a 23-17 FD edge vs Northwestern and much like their game vs Boise, blew numerous scoring opportunities and this time it actually came back to bite them. They just missed a td pass and settled for a 35 yd FG to lead 5-3. MSU came close to a td on 3&gl from the 2 as it looked like the ball broke the plane but was spotted short and on the down they were stuffed. MSU missed a 37 yd FG with :02 left 1H and despite a 191-128 yd edge they trailed 6-5. Northwestern got a 43 yd IR td to open the 3Q. MSU fumbled at the NW35 and was int’d at the NU16 in the 3Q. Trailing 23-20 they punted on 4&8 with 2:46 left and after NW got 2 FD they got it back with 1:29 left and no time-outs but on 4&10 were SOD at their own 20.

Virginia Tech avoided bowl elimination but it wasn’t easy vs Boston College. VT came in with a 7 game losing streak away from home after having been one of the best teams in the country on the road in their first several years in the ACC. BC went 86/7pl for a td to lead 10-3 and after VT was SOD on 4&3 at the BC40 with 1:40 left in the half, 2pl later BC added a 35 yd FG for a 13-3 lead. VT got a 75 yd KR to open the 3Q setting up a 4&1 and scored td’s on 2 of their first three 3Q poss to lead 17-13 but BC battled back and took the lead with 4:11 left, 23-20 with a td. VT15 went 61/10pl for a 42 yd FG that bounced off the upright and in with 1:05 left to force OT. VT got a td and BC on 4&12 gained 8 yds.

Michigan’s Devin Gardner hit 18-23-314 yards. Denard Robinson started at RB and had 98 yards rushing on 13 carries. Iowa was officially eliminated from the post season with their 7th loss. Michigan had a 513-309 yd edge. The teams actually opened tied at 7 and UM only led 14-10 after UI settled for a 27 yd FG but UM went 75/8pl for a td with 5:20 left in the half, 87/7pl for a td with :40 left and UM led 28-10 with a 331-153 yd edge at the half. They converted on 4&1 on their opening 3Q drive and then on their 6th drive of the game, got their 6th td to lead 42-10 with 4:33 left in the 3Q. Finally, on their 7th drive they were int’d a the 12 in the 42-17 final.

As expected, South Carolina was in a flat spot. There were outgained by Wofford 330-293 and the 24-7 final does not sum up the game. SC got their 11th straight home win and it was their first perfect season at home since 1987. Jadeveon Clowney did not play for the Gamecocks due to a sprained foot, perhaps also due to the fact WCU runs the option. Remember, last year vs Navy, SC struggled facing the option and the cut blocks. SC’s first drive ended on an int at the 12. They scored a td on their 2nd and then fumbled a the WCU1 on their 3rd or could have been up big. WCU fumbled at their own 43 but then WCU went 85/12pl and got a td with :32 left to tie it at 7. At half SC only had a 158-128 yd edge. WCU went 71/15pl but fumbled at the SC27 and SC went 68/15pl for a 23 yd FG to lead 10-7. WCU was SOD at their own 34 on 4&1 and SC went 34/5pl for a td and 2pl later had a 31 yd FR td, 24-7. WCU’s final 2 drives went 82/6pl where they were SOD at the SC5 and 31/7pl where they were SOD at the SC13.

Tulsa did finish with a 26-14 FD edge and 461-235 yd edge and clinched the CUSA West Title and will be hosting the CUSA Title game due to their win over UCF. TU jumped to a 10-0 lead but UCF led 14-10 at the half. TU punted on their first 3Q poss then went 80/9pl and 87/12pl for td’s to lead 23-14. UCF pulled within 23-21 with 9:01 left and blocked a 29 yd FG with 3:50 left but on 4&15, fired incomplete from their own 15 and TU took a knee.

Keith Price had 5 td’s to 5 different receivers tying the school record set by Chris Rowland in 1973 and tied by Jake Locker in 2010. Colorado played with Washington in the 1H but ended up being outgained 476-141. UW only led 7-0 getting a td with 1:02 left in the 1H and that came 4pl after converting on 4&1. They did have a 190-71 yd edge. UW punted on their first poss of the 2H but CU fumbled the punt and that would be the key play of the game. UW scored td’s on the next 5 poss to roll to the 38-3 lead and rout.

Florida’s offense was led by Jacoby Brissett but continued to struggle. Amazingly, Jacksonville St had a 234-204 yd edge in the 1H, missing a 25 yd FG then missing a 36 yd FG at the end of a 71/10pl drive. UF did have a 27 yd FG blk’d and led 10-0 at the half. As usual, UF’s D took over in the 2H allowing just 7 yards in the 23-0 lackluster win.

Georgia had an advantage playing Georgia Southern at 8-2 in the fact that they were playing an option team (GA Tech) the next week and could use this as a practice game for it so Richt knew he could keep his players focused. Still, at the half UGA only had a 229-165 yd edge. Every week I write about the key momentum plays right before the half and UGA had one. GS, trailing 10-7, missed a 39 yd FG with 1:03 left in the half. UGA went 78/6pl and on 3&10 got a 24 yd td pass with :04 left in the half which was just like the previous week vs Mississippi scoring on basically the last play of the half to take the momentum. UGA started the 2H scoring td’s on their first 3 poss and rolled to a 45-14 win. Aaron Murray hit 18-28-330 yards.

Mississippi St had a 505-359 yd edge and benefited from 5 Arkansas TO’s. UA led 14-10 when MSU got a td with 4:48 left in the half to lead 17-14. They only had a 216-213 yd edge but the Hogs were int’d on their opening 3Q drive. MSU went 69/8pl on their 2nd 3Q drive then UA was SOD on 4&8 gaining 7 yds to the MSU32, fmbl’d at their own 37 setting up a MSU td, fmbl’d at their own 45 setting up a MSU td and was int’d a the MSU40 and MSU got a 60 yd td run to blow it open 45-14. MSU’s final drive ended just running into the line on 4&14 gaining 2 yds to the Hogs’ 17 with :35 left.

Memphis only had a 333-213 yard edge but not only won a road game in CUSA play but beat UAB 46-9. They went 66/10pl, 70/6pl and after blocking a punt, 24/2pl all for td’s. Their 4th poss was 75/9pl for a td and they led 28-3 at the half with a 222-106 yd edge. UM went on a 49/11pl drive for a 51 yd FG and a 31-3 lead then after a 57 yd PR, missed a 42 yd FG but recovered a fumble and went 18/2pl for a td and after a 21 yd PR went 49/3pl for a 44-3 lead. Their last score of the game came after giving up a td with 6:00 left to UAB and they blk’d the xp and ret’d it for 2 for the 46-9 final.

Washington St was in the headlines this past week but not for any good reasons with Marquess Wilson’s accusations against the coaching staff and WSU of course limped in with a 2-8 record. Arizona St needed a win to wrap up bowl eligibility and it was their final home game. ASU dominated as you can tell by the final score. Taylor Kelly hit 20-23-4467 while Connor Halliday and Jeff Tuel combined for 21-49-240. WSU’s P fumbled the snap on their opening poss and it was Katy bar the door. ASU did settle for a 21 yd FG and drove 41/8 for a td after a 30 yd punt and punted on the 3rd poss then drove 47/6pl for a td and an 18-0 lead. It was still 18-0 when they got a td with 6:19 left in the half then after an int, got a 29 yd td pass with 3:57 left. WSU was SOD on 4&4 at the ASU6 and ASU had a 279-119 yd edge and led 32-0 at the half. They extended it to 46-0 before WSU got a td with 1:01 left in the game.

USF clinched a losing season against a rival and actually allowed 3 WR’s to top 100 yards vs them. Phillip Dorsett 11-104, Herb Waters 4-130 and Clive Walford 3-135. Miami clinched bowl eligibility but declared themselves ineligible today. While the FD’s were even at 22, UM had a 548-358 yd edge. USF had a 39 yd FG blocked on its 2nd poss when trying to tie and UM settled for FG’s of 39, 22 and 37 yards to lead 9-0 then after an int got a 15 yd td pass, 16-0. USF was int’d in the EZ and then settled for a 23 yd FG on the last play of the half after having a FD at the7. At the half UM led 16-3 with only a 228-195 yd edge. UM went 76/9pl for a td, got an 87 yd td pass to go up 30-3 and USF missed a 43 yd FG, settled for a 25 yd FG and UM got a 65 yd td pass and a 35 yd FG to go up 40-6. On 4&7 USF opted for a 32 yd FG with 2:09 left to close it to 40-9.

Colorado St RB Donnell Alexander who had moved ahead in the Preseason 1st Tm MW pick in front of Chris Nwoke topped 100 yards for a 2nd straight game. On Boise St’s first offensive play of the game they got an 80 yd td run and finished with a 25-10 FD edge and 503-229 yd edge. At the half BSU led 35-0 with 17-4 FD and 347-52 yd edges and they would extend it to 42-0. Colorado St fumbled at the BSU26, got a 72 yd td run by Chris Nwoke with 2:09 left in the 3Q to break the shutout, 42-7. The next 4 poss were punts but BSU fumbled the punt with 5:22 left and on 4&12 CSU got a 30 yd td pass which made some Ram backers very happy as they “only” lost by 28 with a td coming with 4:09 left. BSU23 got 1 FD and used 6 plays to run out the final 4:09 ending at the 43 yd line.

Congratulations to Arkansas St’s Ryan Aplin who is now the Sun Belt Conference’s all-time leading passer. Rusty Smith had held that title throwing for 10,112 yards for FAU from 2006-2009. Aplin had 369 yards passing and 4 td’s and added 85 yards rushing to finish with 454 yards total offense vs Troy. Corey Robinson did hit 26-35-417 for Troy. Troy had a couple of blown opportunities in the 1H as they fumbled at the ASU8 but ASU missed a 39 yd FG. Troy had a 4&gl at the 2 and settled for a 19 yd FG with 2:05 left in the half. A td would have given them a 21-13 lead but the FG only put them up 17-13 and Aplin led ASU 75/11pl for a td with :12 left in the half for the momentum. Troy opened the 3Q with a similar drive going 91/14. Again, on 4&gl from the 1 they opted for the short FG from 18 yds. Troy’s next drive went 12 plays and settled for a 38 yd FG. Meanwhile, ASU got a couple of td’s to lead 34-23. Troy got a 70 yd IR td to pull within 34-31 with 10:23 left but ASU drove 75/9pl for a td and a 41-31 lead. Troy went 65/6pl and settled for a 29 yd FG to pull within 7 with 3:31 left and ASU got 2 FD’s running out the clock. ASU did have a 33-23 FD edge and 595-518 yd edge.

Navy blew some scoring opportunities vs Texas St. They fumbled at the TS25 on their opening drive of the game but went 73/6pl for a td on their next. Navy went for it on 4&5 from the TS42 but lost 3 yards. Texas St went 42/9pl and they were SOD on 4&1 at the N13. At the half Navy had a 248-125 yd edge but only led 7-0. Texas St fumbled the KO of the 3Q and Navy went 15 yards for a td, 14-0. Navy then went 58/10pl and missed a 33 yd FG. The Mids got a 10 yd td run with 13:02 left to go up 21-3 but Texas St had a 62 yd td pass on the next play, 21-10. Texas St recovered the onside kick but on 4&14 gained 11 yards to the N35. Texas St was SOD on 4&2 at the N46. Navy had a chance to go up by 14 but with 3:22 left missed a 36 yd FG. Texas St went 77/17pl and on 4&3 fired incomplete from the 3 yd line. Navy had a 442-405 yd edge.

Texas A&M’s Johnny Manziel broke the NCAA frosh rushing record which had been held by Brad Smith (2002) and also the frosh record for total offense, which had been held by Jared Lorenzen (2000). He became the 5th player and first frosh in FBS history to pass for 3,000 with at least 1,000 yards rushing in a season and already is the school record holder for total offense in a season with 4,161 yards. Sam Houston St is in the FCS Playoffs and a team that played for the FCS Title game last year. Trailing 14-0, SH fumbled on its own 13 and A&M got a td with 4:11 left in the half, 20-0. A&M then went 71/4pl for a td with 1:49 left and rec’d another fumble and added another td on a 20 yd drive with 1:24 left in the half to blow it open, 34-0. At the half A&M did have a 312-67 yd edge. A&M opened the 3Q with an 89 yd td pass and on their next offensive play an 80 yd td pass for a 47-0 lead but SHS put together a 75/18pl drive for a td then recovered the onside kick and went 49/4pl for a td, 47-14. Two poss later SHS went 55/8pl for a td, 47-21 then recovered a fumble and went 56/4pl for a td, 47-28. A&M was favored by nearly 40 points in the game and they won by 19.

Duke WR Conner Vernon became the ACC’s all-time leader in receiving yards topping Florida St’s Peter Warrick. Duke was the 2nd straight team that had an extra week to prepare for Georgia Tech but GT still finished with a 449-275 yd edge and ran the ball on 72 of their 80 plays. Duke only had five 1H poss and GT 4 and after a Duke punt on their opening drive, the next 6 poss all went for scores with the first 5 being td’s but Duke got a 50 yd FG with :53 left in the half and trailed 21-17. GT had a 243-154 yd edge. The offenses continued with td drives on the first 3 poss of the 2H but GT built the lead to 35-24. Duke faked a punt from its own 23 which was huge and GT after 1 FD on 4&5, got a 27 yd td pass to put them up by 18 points which made their backers very happy with 8:17 left. Duke26 got 1 FD and was int’d at the GT28 with 1:52 left. With Miami declaring themselves bowl ineligible, GT is going t to the ACC Title game and Jimbo Fisher has already said he does not want to face GT in that game.

Rice’s K Chris Boswell hit three 50+ (incl 56) yd FG’s hitting 5-6 on the day. Earlier in the day when TU beat UCF it eliminated SMU from the CUSA West Title hopes and perhaps had accounted for their sluggish 2H. Trailing 7-6 with 2:45 left in the half, SMU had the ball and was sacked and fumbled. Rice got a 19 yd td pass with 2:35 left in the half then after a punt, drove 80/6pl, connected on 3&20 with a 38 yd pass to the 7 and got a 7 yd td pass with :20 left to take the momentum, 20-7 with a 240-143 yd edge. SMU had a 1st & gl at the 7 but fumbled into the EZ for a tb. They got as close as 23-14 after a td with 3:32 left in the 3Q but Rice got 53 and 28 yd FG’s then went 57/8pl and tacked on a td with 1:12 left for the 36-14 win.

Middle Tennessee won its 5th game on the road, the most since 1992. MT finished with a 445-338 yd edge vs South Alabama. USA went 74/14 settling for a 19 yd FG. MT got a 50 yd td pass, 7-3. USA punted and was int’d on its next 2 drives and MT went 82/11pl but settled for a 27 yd FG to lead 10-3. USA gained some momentum going 47/11pl getting a 45 yd FG that just snuck in with :04 left, 10-6. MT opened the 3Q with a 75/10pl drive for a td then after recovering a fumble, went 23/9pl but missed a 35 yd FG that the holder had a tough time getting down. USA went 80/6pl for a td to pull within 17-12 (2 pt ng) and MT was SOD at the USA38 but USA was SOD at the MT37. After 2 punts, MT went 51/5pl but settled for a 19 yd FG on 1&gl and a 20-12 lead and then missed a 47 yd FG with 3:20 left. MT ended the game with a FD at the USA3 taking a knee.

W Michigan had been eliminated from a bowl and finished a disappointing season with a disappointing loss. The loss mirrored all of their season as they outgained E Michigan 443-339, had a 24-20 FD edge but had numerous blown opportunities. WM was SOD at the EM36. They trailed 17-14 at the half with EM having a 220-212 yd edge. Each team got a FG to open the 3Q and then EM got a td to lead 26-17. WM went 81/16pl but on 4&gl from the 1 opted for a short 19 yd FG to get within 6 since they were 2 scores down with 7:59 left. EM got a 34 yd FG to go back up 2 scores with 2:33 left and WM got a FG with :49 left capping a 78/10pl drive but EM rec’d the onside kick. After the game, WM fired head coach Cubit.

Wake Forest top rusher Josh Harris was injured on their opening drive (head) and did not return and had just 1 carry for 1 yard. Notre Dame avoided the trap the other two top 3 teams fell into in their final home game. Just like the final score would indicate, the Irish dominated with a 584-209 yd edge and 23-9 FD edge. ND opened the game with 91/4pl, 52/8, 78/6pl drives all for td’s and a 21-0 lead. WF did go on an 11pl drive but punted and ND’s 4th poss went 70/7pl but they were int’d in the EZ. Their 5th went 75/6pl for a td, 28-0 and they had a 430-113 yd edge at the half. ND missed a 40 yd FG to open the 3Q but went 80/7pl for a td with Tommy Rees in at QB. Rees QB’d 1 more series which ended in a punt and Andrew Hendrix came in and piloted two 3&out poss in the dominating win.

New Mexico’s QB Cole Gautsche rushed 16-72 but only attempted 2 passes not hitting either. NM had its opportunities vs Nevada as they led 17-14. NV got a td on 4&1 with 4:30 left, 21-17. At the half NV had a 273-216 yd edge. The first 3 poss of the 3Q all resulted in scores with NV leading 31-24. NM was SOD on 4&1 at the NV30 early 4Q and fumbled at the NV13 with 3:44 left. NV went on a 9 play drive running out the clock at the NM11 escaping with a 7 point win. NV had a 491-352 yd edge and Cody Farjardo rushed for a career high 186 yards.