College category, Page 10
Alabama can’t stage another CFP comeback in Rose Bowl rout
PASADENA, Calif. — Alabama rallied from a 17-point deficit once in the College Football Playoff, but there would not be a repeat performance against No. 1 Indiana in a quarterfinal at the Rose Bowl on Thursday. The Crimson Tide (11-4; No. 11 AP, No. 9 CFP) tried everything possible to...
Top-seeded Indiana routs Alabama for 1st Rose Bowl victory, roars into CFP semifinals
PASADENA, Calif. — Fernando Mendoza literally jumped for joy when the Heisman Trophy winner learned he was not the offensive MVP of Indiana’s dominant victory over Alabama in the Rose Bowl. The quarterback and his teammates ran across the celebration stage to mob 311-pound center Pat Coogan, who was visibly...
Big 12 commish says ‘everything is on the table’ when it comes to playoff reboot
MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. — While fans trickled into the Orange Bowl stadium for a quarterfinal where tickets were going for as little as $39, the commissioner of the Big 12 said “everything is on the table” when it comes to rebooting the College Football Playoff, including potentially moving more games...
Texas 2-step in CFP has Miami within a win of playing for national title at home
ARLINGTON, Texas — When Miami left Texas after an overtime loss to SMU at the start of November, the Hurricanes were at their lowest point of the season. There was a very dim forecast for getting into the College Football Playoff. By New Year’s Day, after a Texas two-step in...
Oregon advances to semifinals, where it looks for offense and defense to click on same day
MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. — The first thing Oregon quarterback Dante Moore did after winning the Orange Bowl was salute the thousands of fans who made the cross-country trip to South Florida. If the Ducks’ defense keeps playing like this, those fans might be back in Miami before long. Matayo Uiagalelei...
Miami beats defending national champ Ohio State in CFP quarterfinal at Cotton Bowl
ARLINGTON, Texas — Keionte Scott returned an interception 72 yards for a touchdown, Carson Beck threw a scoring pass and No. 10 Miami shocked defending champion Ohio State 24-14 on Wednesday night at the Cotton Bowl in the first College Football Playoff quarterfinal. The Hurricanes (12-2, CFP No. 10 seed)...
Devon Dampier leads No. 15 Utah past Nebraska in Las Vegas Bowl
LAS VEGAS — Devon Dampier threw for 310 yards and two touchdowns and ran for 148 yards and three scores, and No. 15 Utah won the Las Vegas Bowl in Morgan Scalley’s first game as coach, beating Nebraska 44-22 on Wednesday in the Las Vegas Bowl. Scalley was expected to...
Arch Manning uses arm and legs to lead No. 14 Texas to Citrus Bowl win over No. 18 Michigan
ORLANDO, Fla. — Arch Manning made big plays with his arm and his legs Wednesday in the Citrus Bowl, throwing two touchdown passes and putting it away with a 60-yard scoring run in a 41-27 victory that ended a rough month for No. 14 Michigan. Manning was an easy choice...
Iowa holds off Vanderbilt’s comeback bid for victory in the ReliaQuest Bowl
TAMPA, Fla. — Mark Gronowski threw two touchdowns and rushed for another to lead Iowa to a 34-27 win over No. 13 Vanderbilt in the ReliaQuest Bowl on Wednesday. Gronowski was 16 of 22 passing for 212 yards, throwing touchdowns passes of 10 and 21 yards to Reece Vander Zee...
Ken Seals, Jeremy Payne rally TCU past No. 16 USC for overtime victory in Alamo Bowl
SAN ANTONIO — Ken Seals had to bide time on the bench until his final college game to make his first start for his beloved TCU Horned Frogs, but it was truly worth the wait. Seals directed two scoring drives in the final five minutes of regulation and threw the...
Illinois beats Tennessee in the Music City Bowl to keep Big Ten undefeated this bowl season
NASHVILLE, Tenn. — David Olano kicked a 29-yard field goal as time expired, and Illinois beat Tennessee, 30-28, on Tuesday night in the Music City Bowl. Illinois (9-4) posted the first back-to-back nine-win seasons in program history along with winning the first game between these programs. Olano’s winning kick was...
No. 3 Georgia eager to make better Sugar Bowl memories; No. 6 Ole Miss eyes payback
NEW ORLEANS — For the Georgia Bulldogs and coach Kirby Smart, last year’s Sugar Bowl brought a heavy dose of sadness that had more to do with life — and the loss of it — than football. As fate would have it, the third-ranked Bulldogs (12-1, No. 3 seed CFP)...
Role reversals: Alabama returns to the Rose Bowl as a CFP underdog to face powerhouse Indiana
LOS ANGELES — Nick Saban coached his final game for Alabama just two years ago in the Rose Bowl. Although the sport didn’t know it at the time, an era ended for the 21st century’s most dominant program to date when Jalen Milroe got stopped on fourth down in overtime...
Louisiana Tech rallies to beat Coastal Carolina 23-14 in Independence Bowl
SHREVEPORT, La. — Trey Kukuk followed his fourth-quarter touchdown pass with a big run to set up Andrew Burnette’s go-ahead plunge in a 17-point fourth quarter, and Louisiana Tech rallied to beat Coastal Carolina, 23-14, on Tuesday to win the Independence Bowl. Louisiana Tech (8-5) trailed 14-6 heading to the...
Mirror images Texas Tech, Oregon set to face off in Orange Bowl in CFP quarterfinals
MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. — The formula for getting to this season’s Orange Bowl apparently went like this: Score a ton of points, allow very few points, have a big play on basically every possession, excel on third downs offensively, be stingy on third downs defensively. That was Texas Tech’s path....
Rested or rusty? Top 4 playoff seeds eager to show they are ready as CFP quarterfinals arrive
No. 1 Indiana spent several December weeks reveling in the luster of the best season in school history. They sung the school’s fight song in the confetti celebration following their first Big Ten championship since 1967 and first outright title since 1945. They were featured on “60 Minutes.” They signed...
Marcus Freeman will return to Notre Dame after having his contract restructured, school confirms
SOUTH BEND, Ind. — Notre Dame has restructured coach Marcus Freeman’s contract, and he will coach the Fighting Irish next season, the school confirmed Monday. SI.com first reported Freeman’s new contract and that he notified two NFL teams that had contacted him about jobs that he would stay at Notre...
Defending national champ Ohio State will try to fend off CFP 1st-timer Miami in Cotton BowlVideo
ARLINGTON, Texas — The Cotton Bowl has certainly gotten much more significant for Ohio State during three trips in a row to the game. This time, the second-seeded Buckeyes (12-1) are defending national champions as they get ready to play College Football Playoff first-timer Miami (11-2, CFP No. 10 seed)...
Georgia Southern beats Appalachian State 29-10, wins Birmingham Bowl
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. — OJ Arnold had 152 yards rushing on 11 carries, Terrance Gibbs and Weston Bryant each had a rushing touchdown and Georgia Southern beat Appalachian State, 29-10, on Monday in the Birmingham Bowl. Georgia Southern (7-6) has made a bowl appearance in four consecutive seasons — all under...
Ole Miss defense looks to redeem humiliating showing against Georgia in Sugar Bowl
Redemption will be on the minds of Mississippi Rebels defensive players when they meet third-ranked Georgia at Thursday’s Sugar Bowl in the quarterfinals of the College Football Playoff. “We all wanted to play them again,” said Ole Miss defensive back Wydett Williams Jr., whose unit labored through a season-worst performance...
Lone loss sparked Dante Moore, Oregon toward College Football Playoff run
A loss changed Dante Moore’s mindset and fueled Oregon’s run to the College Football Playoff. Frustrated by an uneven performance against top-ranked Indiana in October, Moore vowed not to put enormous pressure on himself again and he’s been stellar ever since. “I made that game bigger than what it was,...
Kyle Whittingham confident his style will be a familiar fit as Michigan’s next football coach
ORLANDO, Fla. — Kyle Whittingham brought plenty of energy on four hours’ sleep Sunday when he was introduced as Michigan’s football coach, saying it was one of five jobs that could bring him out of a short retirement and offering no hesitation about joining a program in the midst of...
Houston passing game too much for LSU in Texas Bowl
HOUSTON — Conner Weigman threw for 236 yards and four touchdowns as Houston rallied from an early deficit for a 38-35 victory over LSU in the Texas Bowl on Saturday night. It was the final game for LSU before new coach Lane Kiffin takes over on the sideline next year....
No. 20 Virginia notches 1st 11-win season by beating No. 25 Missouri in Gator Bowl
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — Harrison Waylee ran for a touchdown, Chandler Morris threw for 198 yards and No. 20 Virginia edged 25th-ranked Missouri, 13-7, in the Gator Bowl on Saturday night. The Cavaliers bounced back from a crushing loss to Duke in the ACC title game — an overtime stunner that...
No. 23 North Texas beats San Diego State 49-47 in high-scoring New Mexico Bowl
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. — Caleb Hawkins ran for two touchdowns and caught a scoring pass, Ashton Gray added a pair of rushing touchdowns and Cameron Dormer had two scoring catches as No. 23 North Texas beat San Diego State, 49-47, in the New Mexico Bowl on Saturday night. Hawkins carried 30...
