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Recap Alabama 21 LSU 0

Dave Johnson — Tue, 10 Jan 2012 00:09:03 +0000

Alabama won the rematch and the crystal trophy that came with it, shutting down No. 1 LSU, 21-0, to win the BCS National Championship on Monday at the Mercedes-Benz SuperDome in New Orleans.

The Crimson Tide (13-1) got five field goals from Jeremy Shelley and a clinching touchdown run by Trent Richardson to win their second national championship in the last three seasons under coach Nick Saban.

Saban becomes the first coach to win three BCS titles; he led LSU to the 2003 championship with a win over Oklahoma, also at the Superdome.

The Tigers (13-1) put together an ultra-impressive regular season that included a 9-6 overtime victory at Alabama in November, but could get nothing going in the rematch and were shut out for the first time since a 31-0 loss to the Crimson Tide in 2002.

Alabama came out throwing against LSU’s second-ranked defense and moved the ball. But, much like the earlier meeting, the Crimson Tide ended up settling for field goals.

Alabama led 9-0 at the half, despite outgaining LSU 225-42. But it didn’t matter, thanks to a smothering performance by the nation’s best defense.

LSU didn’t cross midfield until the fourth quarter and that drive ended with a sack and fumble. The Tigers finished with 92 yards of total offense.

Shelley tacked on a pair of field goals, and Richardson,
who was held in check for much of the game, sealed the win with a
34-yard touchdown run with 4:36 to play.

Recap Northern Illinois 38 Arkansas State 20

Dave Johnson — Mon, 09 Jan 2012 02:09:01 +0000

Senior quarterback Chandler Harnish completed his record-setting career by throwing for 270 yards and two touchdowns to lead Northern Illinois to a 38-20 win over Arkansas State in the Go Daddy.com Bowl in Mobile, Ala.

Harnish, voted the Most Outstanding Player in the Mid-American Conference after leading the Huskies to the conference title, completed 18 of 36 passes and became the school’s first player to pass for more than 3,000 yards in a season. Harnish threw scoring passes of 9 yards to Perez Ashford and 43 yards to Martel Moore. Ashford had seven catches for 74 yards, while Moore exploded for eight catches for 223 yards.

Northern Illinois (11-3) also scored on a 3-yard run by Jordan Lynch and 1-yard run by Jamal Womble. Mathew Sims added a 22-yard field goal.

Arkansas State (10-3) was unable to hold a 13-0 first-quarter lead thanks largely to five turnovers. The Red Wolves, who had a nine-game winning streak broken, got field goals of 33 and 36 yards from Brian Davis, a 2-yard touchdown run by quarterback Ryan Aplin, and a 17-yard scoring pass from Aplin to Taylor Stockemer.

Aplin, the Sun Belt Conference’s Offensive Player of the Year, completed 30 of 58 passes for 351 yards, but was intercepted three times. The last pick was returned by Dechane Durante for a 36-yard touchdown.

Recap SMU 28 Pittsburgh 6

Dave Johnson — Sat, 07 Jan 2012 18:09:04 +0000

Rishaad Wimbley rushed for a pair of touchdowns and Southern Methodist broke out to a big early lead and coasted to a 28-6 victory over Pittsburgh at the BBVA Compass Bowl in Birmingham, Ala.

The Mustangs (8-5) put the game out of reach early, building a 21-0 cushion in the first quarter. Darius Johnson began the onslaught with a 50-yard touchdown pass from J.J. McDermott, and SMU tacked on short scoring rushes by McDermott and Wimbley later in the period, with the latter set up by a Pitt fumble. The Panthers (6-7), playing under interim head coach Keith Patterson after Todd Graham left for Arizona State, were outgained, 159 to minus-6, in the quarter.

SMU was able to make its lead hold up with a strong defensive effort. The Mustangs sacked Pitt quarterback Tino Sunseri eight times and held the Panthers without a touchdown in three trips to the red zone. Pittsburgh's longest drive of the day ended with a Stephon Sanders interception at the 4-yard line.

Johnson caught seven passes for 121 yards to lead the SMU offense, while Cole Beasley added 86 yards on his seven receptions. Neither team fared particularly well on the ground, with Pittsburgh rushing for 10 yards on 29 carries and the Mustangs gaining 75 yards on 30 rushes.

Recap Arkansas 29 Kansas St 16

Dave Johnson — Sat, 07 Jan 2012 02:09:12 +0000

Tyler Wilson passed for 216 yards and a pair of touchdowns to lead No. 6 Arkansas to a 29-16 victory over No. 8 Kansas State on Friday in the AT&T Cotton Bowl Classic in Arlington, Texas.

Joe Adams made five catches and returned a punt for a touchdown for the Razorbacks (11-2), who tied a school record with 11 victories. Their lone setbacks came to Alabama and LSU, which will meet in the BCS National Championship Game.

Arkansas took control early in the second quarter, when Adams ran a punt back 51 yards for a touchdown. Zach Hocker added his second field goal five minutes later and Wilson hooked up with Jarius Wright for the big play of the day, a 45-yard touchdown pass with 4:10 left in the half.

That score actually got the Wildcats on the board as well, when they blocked the extra point attempt and ran it back for two points.

Kansas State gained some momentum going into the half when a sack of Wilson resulted in a fumble at the Razorbacks 13-yard line. The Wildcats needed three plays to get into the end zone, cutting it to 19-9 with 26 seconds left in the half.

Kansas State got the ball first out of the locker room and put together a seven-play, 60-yard drive capped by Collin Klein’s 6-yard quarterback draw for a touchdown.

Arkansas got that score back on Wilson’s 9-yard touchdown pass to Cobi Hamilton later in the third and the defense did not let up, sacking Klein six times to keep the Wildcats off the board the rest of the way.

Recap West Virginia 70 Clemson 33

Dave Johnson — Thu, 05 Jan 2012 02:09:16 +0000

Miami-area native Geno Smith threw a career-high six touchdown passes, four of them to favorite target Tavon Austin, leading West Virginia's record-setting romp in a 70-33 victory over ACC champion Clemson on Wednesday in the Discover Orange Bowl.

The Mountaineers (10-3) improved to 3-0 in BCS games and scored the most points in bowl game history, breaking Baylor's mark of 67 set in last week's Alamo Bowl win against Washington.

Smith put on a show in his homecoming, completing 31 of 42 passes for 401 yards to break Tom Brady's Orange Bowl record and become the first player in school history with 4,000 passing yards. Austin was on the receiving end of 11 passes for 117 yards, making him the first player in school history with 100 receptions in a season.

The Mountaineers didn't need any help getting their offense going — they scored touchdowns on three straight drives to take a 21-17 lead — but they got it anyway.

Darwin Cook stripped Clemson's Andre Ellington as he was surging toward the goal line and emerged from the pack to race 99 yards and make it 28-17, and West Virginia used two more turnovers to put up 21 points in the final five minutes of the half for a 49-20 lead.

The 49 first-half points were the most-ever in a bowl game, and the Mountaineers had broken their school record for points in a bowl game and Clemson's record for points allowed in a bowl by the time Smith threw the fourth of his six touchdown passes to make it 56-20 with 12:35 left in the third quarter.

The giveaways stalled a Clemson (10-4) offense that started off just as strong. The Tigers scored two touchdowns and a field goal in their first four drives and had a 17-14 lead at the end of a lively first quarter.

The Tigers' return to the Orange Bowl, where they capped a perfect season and won the school's only national championship with a 22-15 win over Nebraska on Jan. 1, 1982, went all sorts of wrong from there.

The 70 points allowed are the second most in Clemson history behind a 74-7 loss to Alabama in 1931.

After starting 8-0, the Tigers lost four of their final six games. West Virginia won four straight to end the season.

Recap Michigan 23 Virginia Tech 20 OT

Dave Johnson — Wed, 04 Jan 2012 02:09:22 +0000

Brendan Gibbons kicked a 37-yard field goal to lift Michigan to a 23-20 overtime victory against Virginia Tech at the Sugar Bowl in New Orleans.

The Wolverines (11-2) let a 17-6 lead slip away in the second half but gave themselves an opportunity to steal the win by opening the extra period with a defensive stop.

Justin Myer, who had helped the Hokies (11-3) force overtime by kicking a 25-yard field goal with two seconds left in regulation, missed from 37 yards in overtime after a diving touchdown catch by Danny Coale was nullified by replay review.

Virginia Tech, which rallied to tie the game twice in the fourth quarter, dug itself a hole with some uncharacteristic special teams mistakes. A roughing-the-punter penalty set up Michigan's first touchdown with 49 seconds remaining in the second quarter, and a fumble on the ensuing kickoff enabled Gibbons to end the half with the first of his three field goals.

Junior Hemingway caught touchdown passes of 45 and 18 yards to highlight an otherwise lackluster offensive performance by quarterback Denard Robinson (9-for-21, 117 yards) and the Wolverines, who finished with just 184 total yards.

Virginia Tech tied it at 17 on a 1-yard touchdown run by Logan Thomas and two-point conversion pass from Thomas to Marcus Davis early in the fourth. Coale paced the Hokies with eight receptions for 117 yards, while Myer was 4-for-4 on field goals in regulation.

Recap Oklahoma St 41 Stanford 38 OT

Dave Johnson — Tue, 03 Jan 2012 02:09:10 +0000

Stanford missed its chance to win in regulation, but Oklahoma State wasted little time seizing its opportunity in overtime as Quinn Sharp's 22-yard field goal gave the No. 3 Cowboys a 41-38 victory in the Tostitos Fiesta Bowl on Monday in Glendale, Ariz.

Andrew Luck led the No. 4 Cardinal (11-2) inside the 20 in the final minute, but freshman Jordan Williamson's 35-yard field goal attempt at the end of regulation hooked wide left to force overtime. It was only the second time in 72 trips inside the 20 this season that Stanford did not score.

Williamson missed again in overtime and the Cowboys (12-1) didn't give the Cardinal another chance. Brandon Weeden hit Colton Chelf for a 24-yard gain to the 1, then took a knee to set up Sharp's 22-yard kick for the win.

It took a while for the anticipated shootout to materialize. The defenses dominated early, but Stanford's success on the ground sucked in the Oklahoma State defense, allowing Luck to hit Ty Montgomery over the top for a 53-yard touchdown to open the scoring with 4:16 left in the first quarter.

And the points kept coming.

Luck was 27-of-31 for 347 yards and threw for a pair of scores and Stepfan Taylor rushed for 177 yards and two touchdowns for Stanford.

It was the duo of Weeden and star receiver Justin Blackmon that proved unstoppable, though. Weeden racked up 399 yards and three touchdowns – all to Blackmon, who caught eight passes for 186 yards.

Recap Oregon 45 Wisconsin 38

Dave Johnson — Mon, 02 Jan 2012 22:09:25 +0000

De'Anthony Thomas rushed twice – both for touchdowns totaling 155 yards – and Darron Thomas passed for 268 yards and three touchdowns as Oregon outlasted Wisconsin 45-38 in the Rose Bowl Game presented by Vizio on Monday.

LaMichael James ran for 159 yards and a score and Lavasier Tuinei caught two touchdown passes as the Ducks (12-2) piled up 621 yards against the No. 6 scoring defense in the country.

Oregon had lost back-to-back BCS Bowls, including the National Championship Game last season. The Ducks are 2-3 in the Rose Bowl – their other victory came in 1917.

The high-powered offenses traded scores throughout the first two quarters, going into the break tied at 28 when Darron Thomas hit Tuinei with a 3-yard touchdown pass with 30 seconds left in the second quarter.

The Ducks got the ball first in the third quarter and took their first lead 35-28 when De'Anthony Thomas broke for a 64-yard touchdown run. De'Anthony Thomas had the highlight run of the first half as well, scampering 91 yards at the close of the first quarter.

The Badgers (11-3) would get the lead back with a field goal and a touchdown pass from Russell Wilson to Nick Toon with 4:44 left in the third.

But the fourth quarter belonged to Oregon. Darron Thomas and Tuinei hooked up again for an 11-yard score to put the Ducks back on top 42-38 and Alejandro Maldonado kicked a 30-yard field goal with 6:50 left to provide the winning margin.

Tuinei finished out his career with eight catches for 158 yards, while De'Anthony Thomas added 34 receiving yards.

Recap Florida 24 Ohio State 17

Dave Johnson — Mon, 02 Jan 2012 18:09:08 +0000

Two special-teams touchdowns vaulted Florida to a 24-17 victory over Ohio State in the Gator Bowl in Jacksonville, Fla.

The Gators (7-6) broke a 7-7 tie on Andre Debose’s 99-yard kickoff return for a touchdown four minutes into the second quarter. Leading 14-10 at halftime, the Gators pushed their advantage to 21-10 on Chris Rainey’s blocked punt, returned by Graham Stewart 14 yards a touchdown four minutes into the third quarter.

Florida scored first on John Brantley’s 17-yard touchdown pass to Deonte Thompson with 56 seconds left in the first quarter. The Buckeyes (6-7) answered with Braxton Miller’s 5-yard touchdown pass to Devier Posey with 11:25 left before halftime, tying the game at 7-7.

The tie lasted just 12 seconds, as Debose broke loose on the ensuing kickoff for a Gator Bowl record 99-yard touchdown return down the left sideline.

Brantley finished 12-for-16 for 132 yards for the Gators, who won three of their final five after a four-game midseason losing streak. Rainey finished with 71 rushing yards and 31 receiving yards, and returned one punt for 31 yards.

Miller passed for 162 yards and two touchdowns on 18-for-24 passing for the Buckeyes, who ended the season on a four-game losing streak. Miller threw an 11-yard touchdown pass to Jordan Hall with 57 seconds left to bring the Buckeyes within 24-17, but Florida recovered the onside kick.

Former Florida head coach Urban Meyer will take over the Ohio State program next season. Five years ago, Meyer coached the Gators past the Buckeyes in the BCS National Championship game.

Recap South Carolina 30 Nebraska 13

Dave Johnson — Mon, 02 Jan 2012 18:09:05 +0000

Star receiver Alshon Jeffery made an early exit from what might have been his final game at South Carolina, but not before putting up big numbers and helping the Gamecocks set a school record with their 11th victory, a 30-13 win over Nebraska in the Capital One Bowl.

The ninth-ranked Gamecocks (11-2) took the lead for good on the final play of the first half, when Jeffery outjumped a pack of Nebraska defenders to catch Connor Shaw's desperate heave at the 3-yard line, turned to his left and dived into the end zone for a 51-yard touchdown.

It was Jeffery's last catch of the game, and perhaps his last for South Carolina. The junior is projected to be a first-round draft pick if he skips his senior year to jump to the NFL. He and Nebraska cornerback Alfonzo Dennard, another highly regarded NFL prospect, were ejected after a third-quarter skirmish in which each delivered blows to the other's helmet.

Before the ejections, Jeffery had dominated the matchup of potential first-round picks. He finished with four catches for 148 yards, his school-record 12th 100-yard game. If Jeffery's career is over, he finishes with 3,042 receiving yards — 51 yards shy of Terrence Edwards' Southeastern Conference record.

The Cornhuskers (9-4) scored on their first two possessions, but the offense subsequently stalled against one of the nation's top defenses. Nebraska managed only 253 total yards — 89 in the first quarter — and drove into South Carolina territory only once in the second half.

South Carolina put it away with a pair of fourth-quarter touchdowns by running back Kenny Miles, who is considering a transfer to another school to avoid another season playing behind injured star Marcus Lattimore. Miles had only one touchdown in his career — a 22-yard run in 2009 — before he caught a 9-yard touchdown pass from Shaw with 12:25 left and added a 3-yard scoring run with 3:05 remaining.

The game began on an odd note, as South Carolina blocked the extra-point attempt after Nebraska's first touchdown, and Gamecocks cornerback Stephon Gilmore returned it for two points to make it 6-2.