Top-25 College Football Game Capsules
Syracuse, NY (SportsNetwork.com) – Jameis Winston threw for 317 yards with three touchdowns, as top-ranked Florida State extended the nation’s longest winning streak to 22 games with a 38-20 victory over Syracuse on Saturday at the Carrier Dome. Winston played nearly flawless football under another cloud of potential controversy, as he is facing a student code of conduct hearing stemming from a December 2012 accusation of sexual misconduct. He was not arrested or charged after the state attorney concluded an investigation in December 2013. A date for the latest inquiry has not yet been set. The reigning Heisman Trophy winner completed 30-of-36 passes and Rashad Greene became Florida State’s all-time leader in receptions after catching six passes for 107 yards. Tight end Nick O’Leary hauled in a career-best eight balls for 97 yards with a touchdown for the Seminoles (6-0, 4-0 ACC), who will face a stiffer test next week when Notre Dame visits Doak Campbell Stadium. Austin Wilson and A.J. Long split duties at quarterback in place of the injured Terrel Hunt for Syracuse (2-4, 0-2), which has lost four straight since a 2-0 start. Hunt suffered a broken leg last week against Louisville and will be sidelined for the next 4-to-6 weeks. Wilson started under center and threw for 89 yards with an interception, while Long completed 16-of-27 throws for 167 yards with a pair of touchdowns and interceptions.
Final Score: (3) Mississippi State 38, (2) Auburn 23
Starkville, MS (SportsNetwork.com) – The cowbells were deafening in Starkville, even when a heavy downpour pounded the field late in the first half. There was certainly plenty to cheer about. Dak Prescott and Josh Robinson each ran for a pair of touchdowns and No. 3 Mississippi State defeated No. 2 Auburn 38-23 on Saturday afternoon. The Bulldogs (6-0, 3-0 SEC) raced out to a 21-0 first-quarter lead and held on to record their third straight win over a top-10 team for the first time in school history. Prescott carried the ball 21 times for 121 yards and completed 18-of-34 passes for 246 yards with a touchdown and two interceptions. Robinson gained 97 yards on 19 totes for Mississippi State, which knocked off then-No. 8 LSU before taking care of then-No. 6 Texas A&M last Saturday in its prior two weeks. De’Runnya Wilson caught four passes for 72 yards and a score and Malcolm Johnson hauled in five receptions for 60 yards in the triumph. Nick Marshall was 17-of-35 for 209 yards with two touchdowns and two interceptions and added 100 yards on the ground on 17 carries for the Tigers (5-1, 2-1), who turned the ball over four times after giving it away just five times coming in. D’haquille Williams caught both of Marshall’s TD passes, totaling 108 yards on six receptions, while Cameron Artis-Payne racked up 70 yards rushing on 16 carries in defeat.
Final Score: (3) Ole Miss 35, (14) Texas A&M 20
College Station, TX (SportsNetwork.com) – There was no letdown for Ole Miss on Saturday, as the No. 3 Rebels rolled to a 35-20 win over 14th-ranked Texas A&M at Kyle Field. Coming into the game off a 23-17 win over Alabama that moved the team eight spots in the poll, the Rebels (6-0, 3-0 SEC) scored two touchdowns on defense and Bo Wallace tossed one score and ran in two others. Wallace finished the game 13-for-19 for 178 yards and added 50 yards on 14 carries. Quincy Adeboyejo caught the lone touchdown pass from Wallace. The Aggies (5-2, 2-2) have now dropped their past two games after losing to Mississippi State last week. Kenny Hill went 42-for-53 for 401 yards with two touchdown passes and two interceptions while Trey Williams added a score on the ground in the loss.
Final Score: (5) Baylor 61, (9) TCU 58
Waco, TX (SportsNetwork.com) – Chris Callahan made a 28-yard field goal on the final play of the contest to send No. 5 Baylor past No. 9 TCU, 61-58, in a clash of high-octane Big 12 rivals on Saturday. Trailing 58-37 in the fourth quarter, Baylor came all the way back as Devin Chafin posted a 7-yard TD run, Bryce Petty threw a 28-yard touchdown pass to Antwan Goodley, Corey Coleman hauled in a 25-yard pass and a defensive stop near midfield helped set up Callahan’s winning boot. Petty ended up throwing for 510 yards and six touchdowns on 28-of-55 passing for the Bears (6-0, 3-0 Big 12). Goodley and Coleman each posted a pair of TD receptions, while K.D. Cannon and Jay Lee also reached the end zone once through the air. Baylor’s Shock Linwood led all players with 178 yards rushing on 29 attempts and Chafin finished with 43 yards on 10 carries. Trevone Boykin completed just 21 of his 47 attempts for 287 yards and one score for the Horned Frogs (4-1, 1-1). He added 45 yards on 18 carries. B.J. Catalon contributed 71 yards on two receptions, 48 rushing yards and two TDs on 13 totes and a 94-yard kickoff return touchdown in defeat. Aaron Green also scored on a rush for TCU. Kolby Listenbee racked up 146 yards and a touchdown on just four grabs for the Horned Frogs and Marcus Mallett returned a Petty pick for another touchdown.
Final Score: (6) Notre Dame 50, North Carolina 43
South Bend, IN (SportsNetwork.com) – Everett Golson turned the ball over three times, but No. 6 Notre Dame pulled away to beat North Carolina 50-43 Saturday with the help of an uncommon penalty. All three of Golson’s turnovers led to North Carolina touchdowns, including a fumble three plays into the game that set up Elijah Hood’s 6-yard touchdown run and an interception that linebacker Jeff Schoettmer returned 29 yards for a score to make it 14-0 in the first quarter. Golson fumbled again late in the third and North Carolina quarterback Marquise Williams caught a 23-yard touchdown pass from wide receiver Quinshad Davis on the next play to give the Tar Heels a 36-35 lead. The Irish responded with a 15-play drive for the go-ahead score — much of it coming after the Tar Heels were whistled for a roughing the snapper penalty on a punt from the Notre Dame 32 on 4th-and-18. Golson found Tarean Folston for a 9-yard touchdown and Ben Koyack caught the two-point conversion to give the Irish a 43-36 lead with 10:39 remaining. Williams was then picked off by Irish cornerback Cole Luke after he tried to flip a pass to Bug Howard near the sideline while under pressure, and Folston scored his third touchdown on a 6-yard run with 2:19 remaining to put the game out of reach. The last two Irish (6-0) scoring drives included pass interference penalties on North Carolina in the end zone. Williams threw an 18-yard touchdown pass to Mack Hollins with 47 seconds left but the Tar Heels (2-4) couldn’t recover an onside kick and lost their fourth game in a row.
Final Score: (7) Alabama 14, Arkansas 13
Fayetteville, AR (SportsNetwork.com) – Arkansas head coach Bret Bielema raced past the numbers, frantically attempting to call a timeout. He was unable to get it in time. DeAndrew White caught a go-ahead 6-yard touchdown pass from Blake Sims with 12:36 remaining in the fourth quarter and No. 7 Alabama hung on for a 14-13 win over Arkansas. As Bielema was out on the field, Sims rolled to his right and tossed his score to a wide open White in the front part of the end zone. Arkansas recorded just one first down the rest of the way. Despite being outgained 335-227, the Crimson Tide (5-1, 2-1 SEC) did just enough to avoid consecutive SEC losses for the first time since 2007, Nick Saban’s first year as head coach. Alabama was coming off a 23-17 loss at Mississippi last Saturday. Sims finished 11-of-21 for 161 yards with two touchdown passes. T.J. Yeldon carried the ball 16 times for 45 yards and added 35 receiving yards and a score for Alabama, which won its 53rd straight game against an unranked opponent. Brandon Allen was 21-of-40 for 246 yards with a touchdown and an interception, A.J. Derby caught four passes for 77 yards and a score and Jonathan Williams posted 83 yards and a touchdown on the ground on 20 totes for the Razorbacks (3-3, 0-3), who have dropped 15 SEC games in a row.
Final Score: (8) Michigan State 45, Purdue 31
West Lafayette, IN (SportsNetwork.com) – Darien Harris’ interception return for a touchdown with 1:22 remaining helped No. 8 Michigan State hold off Purdue’s late push and record a 45-31 victory. Connor Cook threw for 238 yards with three touchdowns and an interception on 19-of-37 passing and Nick Hill ran for two scores and 72 yards on nine carries for the Spartans (5-1, 2-0 Big Ten), who won their 11th straight game in Big Ten play. Jeremy Langford amassed 104 yards on 13 carries, Tony Lippett had a game-high 138 yards with a touchdown on seven catches and Aaron Burbridge and Josiah Price each hauled in a TD pass in the win. Austin Appleby completed 24 of his 37 passes for 211 yards with a touchdown and an interception for the Boilermakers (3-4, 1-2), while Akeem Hunt scored three times and rushed for 96 yards on 12 carries. Danny Anthrop led Purdue receivers with 133 yards on nine catches and B.J. Knauf added a receiving score.
Final Score: Southern California 28, (10) Arizona 26
Tucson, AZ (SportsNetwork.com) – Javorius Allen rushed for a career-high 206 yards with three touchdowns and the USC Trojans held off a furious fourth- quarter comeback to upset the 10th-ranked Arizona, 28-26, on Saturday. The Trojans led by 15 entering the fourth and Jared Baker scored a pair of touchdowns in the final quarter to cut the deficit to two. Arizona was unsuccesful on its two-point conversion attempt, but the hosts recovered a perfect onside kick with just over a minute to play. Anu Solomon, who threw for 395 yards and one touchdown, drove the Wildcats to the USC 22 after successive completions to David Richards. Baker rushed for three yards to move the ball a little closer and set up a game-winning field goal attempt. Casey Skowron split the uprights on his 36-yard try, but the Trojans called their final timeout to ice him. And it worked. Skowron thought about it and his second try went wide right as USC (4-2, 3-1 Pac-12) held on for the win. Cody Kessler tossed for 185 yards with a touchdown and an interception, while Nelson Agholor caught seven passes for 81 yards and a touchdown in the win. Baker scored three total touchdowns — two on the ground and one receiving — for the Wildcats (5-1, 2-1), who looked to win their first six games since starting 7-0 in 1993.
Final Score: (11) Oklahoma 31, Texas 26
Dallas, TX (SportsNetwork.com) – It took more than two quarters for Oklahoma to score an offensive touchdown against Texas on Saturday. Despite that, the Sooners only trailed for 12 seconds. That’s how long Alex Ross needed to return a kickoff 91 yards for a touchdown in the first quarter to put the No. 11 Sooners on top for good. Zack Sanchez added a 43-yard interception return for a touchdown in the first half and Oklahoma held on down the stretch for a 31-26 win over Texas at the Cotton Bowl. The Sooners (5-1, 2-1 Big 12) bounced back from last week’s loss at TCU to win the Red River rivalry game for the fourth time in five years, the only blemish being last season’s 16- point loss to an underdog Longhorns squad. The Longhorns (2-4, 1-2) cut a 31-13 deficit to five points on quarterback Tyrone Swoopes’ 12-yard touchdown with five minutes left, but blew a timeout on the two-point conversion try, which failed, and only had one left on Oklahoma’s last drive. The Sooners burned all but 18 seconds of the remaining time before punting. Oklahoma fell seven spots in the Associated Press poll following last week’s 37-33 loss in Fort Worth and didn’t have an offensive touchdown against Texas until Trevor Knight threw a 24-yard touchdown pass to Sterling Shepard with 4:17 left in the third quarter. Knight passed for 129 yards and Samaje Perine had a 13-yard touchdown run that gave the Sooners their 31-13 lead with 12:50 remaining. Swoopes completed 26 of his 43 passes for 308 yards and a pair of touchdown throws to John Harris, but the Longhorns committed 11 penalties for 85 yards — most of them coming early on.
Final Score: (12) Oregon 42, (18) UCLA 30
Pasadena, CA (SportsNetwork.com) – Marcus Mariota threw two touchdown passes and ran for two more as No. 12 Oregon bounced back after its first loss of the season to topple 18th-ranked UCLA, 42-30, at the Rose Bowl on Saturday. Mariota completed 17-of-27 passes for 210 yards while racking up 75 yards on seven carries for Oregon (5-1, 2-1 Pac-12), which avoided losing back-to-back games for the first time since 2007. Royce Freeman gained a career-high 121 rushing yards and a pair of scores on 18 attempts and Pharaoh Brown made five catches for 84 yards and a touchdown, as Oregon improved to 6-1 in its last seven games against Top-25 opponents. UCLA quarterback Brett Hundley accounted for three touchdowns and Paul Perkins ran for 190 yards in the setback. The Bruins (4-2, 1-2) have dropped consecutive games after starting the season 4-0.
Final Score: (13) Georgia 34, (23) Missouri 0
Columbia, MO (SportsNetwork.com) – No Todd Gurley, no problem. Georgia went to Missouri without its Heisman Trophy candidate, but a stout defensive effort and a 143-yard rushing performance from freshman Nick Chubb lifted the 13th-ranked Bulldogs to a dominating 34-0 victory over the 23rd-ranked Tigers in an SEC East showdown on Saturday at Faurot Field. Gurley was suspended by the school earlier this week while an investigation into possible extra benefits is conducted. The running back reportedly was paid for signing items and memorabilia. Chubb ran the ball 38 times with a touchdown to lead a Georgia ground attack that racked up 210 yards. Brendan Douglas also rushed for a score, as did quarterback Hutson Mason, who threw for 156 yards with a touchdown on an efficient 22-of-28 passing for the Bulldogs (5-1, 3-1 SEC), who have won four in a row since a 38-35 loss at South Carolina. The Georgia defense intercepted Missouri quarterback Maty Mauk four times, twice by Quincy Mauger, and also forced him to fumble. Mauk finished the contest just 9-of-21 passing for 97 yards. Missouri (4-2, 1-1), coming off a bye after a 21-20 win at South Carolina, managed just 147 total yards and only 10 first downs. The Tigers had a stark differential in time of possession, holding the ball for just over 17 1/2 minutes, while Georgia controlled it for nearly 42 1/2 minutes.
Final Score: (16) Oklahoma State 27, Kansas 20
Lawrence, KS (SportsNetwork.com) – Tyreek Hill returned a kickoff 99 yards for the decisive touchdown in the fourth quarter as the 16th-ranked Oklahoma State Cowboys edged the Kansas Jayhawks 27-20 at Memorial Stadium. The Jayhawks, looking to pull off the shocker in the second game under interim head coach Clint Bowen, scored 13 straight points in the second half and tied the game at 20-20 on Matthew Wyman’s 35-yard field goal with 6:55 remaining. Hill, though, sprinted down the left sideline on the ensuing kickoff to put Oklahoma State back in front. Kansas got the ball back with 2:04 to play, but Josh Furman sealed the win by picking off Michael Cummings’ pass near midfield. Daxx Garman completed 17-of-31 passes for 161 yards, a touchdown and one interception for the Cowboys (5-1, 3-0 Big 12), who have won five straight since beginning the season with a neutral-site loss to top-ranked Florida State. Cummings finished with 288 yards on 20-of-37 passing and had a rushing touchdown for Kansas (2-4, 0-3), which dropped its third game in a row.
Final Score: (19) East Carolina 28, South Florida 17
Tampa, FL (SportsNetwork.com) – Shane Carden passed for a season-low 250 yards, but No. 19 East Carolina held off South Florida 28-17 to remain unbeaten in the American Athletic Conference. Carden, who joined the Heisman Trophy discussion following back-to-back four touchdown games against North Carolina and SMU, completed 24-of-33 passes with a touchdown and an interception. Breon Allen led a potent ground attack with 124 yards and a rushing score, while Marquez Grayson and Anthony Scott also added touchdown runs in the triumph. East Carolina (5-1, 2-0 AAC) overcame 12 penalties for 148 yards and kept South Florida off the scoreboard in the second half. The Pirates have won four straight games. Mike White passed for 257 yards, a touchdown and a pick on 21-of-41 efficiency. Andre Davis, who led the club in receiving each of the past two years, returned to the lineup after missing four games with a bruised sternum and made six catches for 124 yards and a touchdown. South Florida (2-4, 1-1) lost to ECU for the first time in program history.
Final Score: Duke 31, (22) Georgia Tech 25
Atlanta, GA (SportsNetwork.com) – Backup quarterback Thomas Sirk rushed for two short touchdowns and Duke beat Georgia Tech for the first time in 11 years, holding off the No. 22 Yellow Jackets 31-25 on Saturday. The Blue Devils (5-1, 1-1 ACC) showed no rust after a thunderstorm sent the teams back inside for a 77-minute delay after halftime. They scored the only 10 points in the third quarter to build a 24-12 lead. The Yellow Jackets (5-1, 2-1) had won 10 in a row in the series since a 41-17 loss in 2003. They were trying to match the 2011 team’s 6-0 record — the only time the program has hit that mark in the last 48 years — but fell down 31-12 after Justin Thomas was intercepted on consecutive possessions, leading to Sirk’s second touchdown with 8:18 remaining. Tim Byerly took over at quarterback for Thomas and led two scoring drives, running the ball into the end zone himself both times, but the Yellow Jackets failed to recover an onside kick after the second one and Duke ran out the clock. Starter Anthony Boone threw for 123 yards with a 4-yard touchdown pass to Max McCaffrey and Josh Snead rushed for 102 yards and a score for Duke, which was coming off a bye. Thomas completed just six of his 15 pass attempts for 61 yards but also ran for a game-high 119 on 15 scrambles. Byerly passed for 125 yards on seven completions in 10 attempts and Zach Laskey ran for 72 with a 4-yard score.
Categorized in: NCAA Football