NCAA 128: Battle to ONE (2011 Football Replay)
 

Lee’s 2011 Season What-If Mega Tournament

"In the beginning, God created college football. And it was good." - Anonymous

INTRODUCTION

Technology is an amazing thing. And so is a creative mind in our world of possibilities. Hi, again, guys and gals interested in another of those “what if” dynasties. This time I am turning the BCS on its heels and making the entire NCAA football experience one big tournament. But it’s not that simple.

I imagined that I could eventually find a sports simulation where the NCAA would have 128 teams and I could set up eight super conferences to compete for the ultimate championship. Well, that has yet to happen, though I believe it will one day. In the mean time, I decided to create my own simulation using whatifsports.com.

THE SET UP

Welcome to an alternative NCAA Football 2011 season! In this world, some of the FBS’ newest teams decided to join early. Therefore, let’s welcome the newest members of the FBS: the University of Massachusetts, Old Dominion University, the University of North Carolina at Charlotte, Georgia Southern University, Georgia State University, the University of South Alabama, Texas State University-San Marcos, and the University of Texas at San Antonio. These seven programs are fine additions to the 2011 alternative season.

Because the NCAA has realigned, there are now eight super conferences of sixteen teams each aligned in regional brackets in a clocklike order: West, Northwest, North, Northeast, East, Southeast, South Central, and Southwest. Each conference is divided into two divisions.

THE SCHEDULE

For the season, each division plays a round-robin style schedule of seven games. After those games are played, teams are ranked 1-8 in their divisions and play the equivalent ranked team of the other division in a placement playoff. Therefore, in the West Conference, the top teams of each division will play for the conference championship. The second place teams will play each other, the third, etc. Once all games are played, each team will be individually ranked 1-16 in their conference and then placed into the Mega Tournament to crown football’s top team.

Therefore, before entering the Mega Tournament, each team will have played 8 conference games.

THE TOURNAMENT
In the Mega Tournament, all 128 teams will be placed into eight sixteen-team brackets and through elimination make it to the College Elite Series, where the last eight teams will battle it out for college football’s ultimate crown, The Golden Sphinx.



Each team will play four games in the Mega Tournament, giving every team a 12-game schedule for the season. Only the winner of each of the eight brackets will move on.

Those eight regional champions will then play in the College Elite Series, a single-elimination fight for the Golden Sphinx. Only ONE team can be crowned National Champions!

CONFERENCE ALIGNMENTS



SPECIAL NOTE

I am using Whatifsports.com to run this simulation. For this play through, I will not keep extensive statistics to save time, though I may plan to replay it and keep extensive stats. However, I am just “testing” my NCAA 128. HOWEVER, if any of you are reading this dynasty and particularly interested in stats of certain players and/or teams, PLEASE LET ME KNOW. I have simmed ahead a bit, but since I am using whatifsports.com, I can rewind if need be, too.

THE DICE

For the added teams, I decided to use a system of dice rolls to determine where they would stand. There is no way to create generic teams or even use current Division I-AA teams on whatifsports.com, so I had to find a way to sim those teams' games.

The first dice roll was a win potential roll (1-6). The second was an equivalency roll (1-6) where I would determine how many years back I would go to find a team with the same number of wins as the team’s win potential. That equivalent team will be used for the new team’s simulation, and the equivalent team cannot be in a BCS conference (to limit actual wins in this simulation).

These were the roll results:
UMass – Win potential (WP) = 6. 2008 equivalency (e). Sim team (ST) = BGSU.
Old Dominion – WP = 1. 2008 e. ST = SMU.
UNCC – WP = 4. 2006 e. ST = UCF.
Georgia St. – WP = 6. 2006 e. ST = Arkansas St.
Georgia Southern – WP = 4. 2009 e. ST = San Diego St.
South Alabama – WP = 5. 2010 e. ST = Kent St.
Texas St. – WP = 5. 2007 e. ST = Buffalo.
UTSA – WP = 4. 2010 e. ST = FAU.

Therefore, when UMass plays, I will use the 2008 Bowling Green team for simulations. I hope this is clear!

COLLEGE ELITE SERIES

I decided to make the College Elite Series on neutral sites using the old bowl tier of highest grossing games. The only change is that I added the Golden Sphinx Bowl, which will be played in Nashville.

Golden Sphinx Bowl, Nashville, Tennessee (Championship Game)
Sugar Bowl, New Orleans, Louisiana (Semifinal Game 1)
Rose Bowl, Pasadena, California (Semifinal Game 2)
Fiesta Bowl, Tempe, Arizona (Quarterfinal Game 1)
Orange Bowl, Miami, Florida (Quarterfinal Game 2)
Cotton Bowl, Dallas, Texas (Quarterfinal Game 3)
Capital One Bowl, Orlando, Florida (Quarterfinal Game 4)

I am still considering doling out bowl spots to teams that are not in the College Elite Series to allow a 13th game. What do you think?

LAST NOTE BEFORE I POST SIM RESULTS

At first, I started simming games and then writing a brief recap of the top players in the game (300+ yard passers, 100+ yard rushers or receivers), but it was taking too long where it would take me over a week to play each round of the season. Therefore, I won't throw those away for the game recaps I wrote in Round 1 (I am using the word "round" instead of "week"), but I will not continue those types of write ups except for three reasons:
1) Great games, like really close games or amazing stats/scores
2) The College Elite Series and other important eliminator and ranking games
3) Games where readers request more information

Otherwise, I will only post the quarter-by-quarter score along with the final.

LET THE GAMES BEGIN. THE BATTLE FROM 128 TO 1 STARTS NOW!

Round 1 - West Division
 

Round 1 - West Conference (Not "Division," as it states above)

Arizona 49 at USC 52
Attachment 4293

USC squeaked by the Wildcats by outscoring Arizona 17-7 in the 4th quarter. Matt Barkley led the Trojans charge by completing 30 of 46 passes for 358 yards, with 4 TDs and 2 INTs. The player of the game, however, was Nick Foles who connected on TD passes with 6 different players and finished 30 of 49 for 394 yards. Curtis McNeal had a big day for USC, rushing for 138 yards on 17 carries, with 3 TDs.

Arizona State 35 at UNLV 21
Attachment 4294

The Sun Devils rode on the backs of Jamal Miles and Cameron Marshall to rush for 223 yards and win at UNLV. Miles finished with 97 yards on just 7 carries and 2 TDs. Marshall added another 92 yards on 25 carries and a TD.

Fresno State 21 at UCLA 24
Attachment 4295

UCLA got a late field goal by Tyler Gonzalez to eek out a victory at home. The Bruins were led by Johnathan Franklin who rushed for 113 yards on 17 carries and a TD. Kevin Prince was 14 of 20 for 224 yards with 2 TDs and 2 INTS. Derek Carr led the Bulldogs with 360 yards passing (26 of 39) and 3 TDs.

San Diego State 41 at San Jose State 23
Attachment 4296

Ryan Lindley threw for 3 TDs on 24 of 38 passing and Ronnie Hillman ran for 168 yards and 2 TDs as the Aztecs ran away from San Jose State. Matt Faulkner was 28 of 49, 334 yards with a TD and 3 INTs.

Washington 39 at Stanford 34
Attachment 4297

The Huskies scored the last nine points of the game to pull the upset at Stanford. Chris Polk ran for 145 yards and a TD. Keith Price was 26 of 42 for 284 yards with 3 TDs and 2 INTs. Andrew Luck was only 15 of 30 for 203 yards with a TD and 2 INTs. Stepfan Taylor led the Cardinal with 97 yards rushing and 2 TDs.

Washington State 44 at California 41, 2 OT
Attachment 4298

In the second OT, Andrew Furney kicked a 42-yard field goal to give Washington State n upset win at the Golden Bears. Marshall Lobbestael led the way for the Cougars by going 31 of 52 for 377 yards with 4 TDs and 2 INTs. Zach Maynard led California by going 36 of 48 yards for 415 yards with 3 TDs and 2 INTs.

Hawaii 19 at Oregon 59
Attachment 4299

The Warriors never threatened as Oregon was able to take an early lead and pull away in this one. Darron Thomas was 18 of 24 for 304 yards and 4 TDs. LaMichael James added 171 yards rushing and 2 TDs, including a 69-yard romp early in the game. Hawaii was led y Bryant Moniz who went 24 of 42 for 297 yards with 2 TDs and an INT.

Nevada 20 at Oregon State 38
Attachment 4300

The Beaver were able to build a 20-10 halftime lead and cruise for the victory over the Wolf Pack. Sean Mannion was 28 of 43 for 403 yards with 2 TDs and an INT to lead Oregon State. Malcolm Agnew added 119 yards rushing and a TD, and James Rodgers had 101 yards on 6 catches. Cody Fajardo led Nevada with 227 passing yards and a TD. His primary targets were Rishard Matthews (5-104( and Kolby Arendse (2-87-1).

Round 1 - Northwest Division
 

Round 1 - Northwest Conference

Boise State 51 at Utah State 21
Attachment 4301

The Broncos scored 5 first-half TDs and held Utah State scoreless in the second half to secure the road win. Kellen Moore led Boise State with 380 yards passing, 4 TDs, and an INT. Robert Turbin was the Aggies’ top performer, rushing for 103 yards and a TD.

Idaho 10 at Utah 48
Attachment 4302

The Utes jumped out to an early 17-0 lead and never looked back in routing the Vandals. Jon Hays threw for 341 yards and 4 TDs but threw 3 picks. John White ran for 125 yards and a TD for Utah.

Air Force 34 at BYU 38
Oops. Forgot to save the box score!

After an Air Force field goal for a 34-31 lead, the Cougars’ Josh Quezada ran it in to give BYU the win. The Cougars were led by the rushing of JJ Di Luigi (14-104-2) and Michael Alisa (12-102). Asher Clark led the Air Force rushing arsenal with 155 yards and 2 TDs.

Colorado 41 at Colorado State 7
Attachment 4303

The Buffaloes steamrolled their in-state rivals for the easy victory. Tyler Hansen threw for 348 yards and 3 TDs and Rodney Stewart ran for 196 yards and 2 TDs to lead Colorado. The Rams did not have much offense except for the rushing of Chris Nwoke (17-90-1).

Iowa 31 at Northwestern 24
Attachment 4304

The Hawkeyes broke a fourth-quarter tie by scoring 14 points to lead them to a victory over the Wildcats. Marcus Coker dominated the game, rushing for 228 yards on 35 carries and 2 TDs. James Vandenberg added 268 yards passing, 2 TDs, and 2 INTs. Dan Persa threw for 315 yards, 3 TDs, and an INT. Rashad Lawrence led Northwestern with 4 catched for 113 yards and a TD.

Iowa State 3 at Missouri 34
Attachment 4305

The Tigers dominated the Cyclones with a controlling 31-point victory at home. James Franklin passed for only 138 yards but connected on 2 TDs. Kendial Lawrence led Missouri with 124 yards rushing. The Cyclones were held to only 203 yards of total offense in the game.

Minnesota 19 at Wisconsin 49
Attachment 4306

Wisconsin’s high-powered offense racked up 542 yards on its way to a dominating victory over Minnesota. Russell Wilson was the game’s MVP with 317 yards passing (22 of 28) and 5 TDs. Montee Ball rushed for 148 yards and 2 TDs. MarQueis Gray led the way for the Golden Gophers on 138 yards rushing.

Wyoming 9 at Nebraska 7
Attachment 4307

The Cowboys pulled off a shocking victory at Nebraska. The Cornhuskers could not get anything going offensively, scoring their only points in the fourth quarter. Neither team had much going on offense, with Rex Burkhead (30-139) the only player to gain over 100 yards on the day.

Round 1 - North Conference
 

Ball State 34 at Cincinnati 38, 2 OT
Attachment 4308

The Bearcats answered a Ball State field goal with a touchdown to pull off the win in two overtimes. Cincinnati led 24-0 at halftime but could not hold on to the big lead, going into overtime tied 24-24. Keith Wenning led the Cardinals by going 20 of 38 for 296 yards with a TD and INT. Isaiah Pead led the Bearcats with 116 yards rushing and 2 TDs.

Indiana 23 at Toledo 56
Attachment 4309

In a high-scoring game, the Rockets kept scoring to stay far ahead of Indiana. Adonis Thomas rushed for 136 yards and 3 TDs and Terrance Owens added 263 yards passing and 2 TDs for Toledo. Edward Wright-Baker was 20-36, 300 yards, 2 TDs, and 3 INTs for the Hoosiers.

Ohio State 10 at Louisville 42
Attachment 4310

The Cardinals scored the first 21 points and then cruised to victory over the short-handed Buckeyes. Teddy Bridgewater led the way for Louisville, going 26 of 36 for 341 yards and 3 TDs. Dan Herron was the only bright spot for Ohio State, rushing for 81 yards ad a TD.

Purdue 7 at Miami (OH) 28
Attachment 4311

The Red Hawks broke a 7-7 halftime tie, outscoring Purdue 21-0 in the second half. Zac Dysert led Miami with 319 yards passing and 3 TDs. Nick Harwell was his main target, catching 10 passes for 180 yards and a TD. The Boilermakers were led by Ralph Bolde who rushed for 93 yards and a TD.

Western Michigan 27 at Illinois 17
Attachment 4312

The Broncos built a 14-3 halftime lead and went up 27-10 late to hold on over Illinois. Alex Carder passed for 312 yards, 3 TDs, and an INT to lead Western Michigan. Jason Ford led the Illini with 127 yards rushing and 2 TDs.

Eastern Michigan 16 at Notre Dame 31
Attachment 4313

Notre Dame overcame a 6-3 halftime deficit to score four second-half TDs in the win. Cierre Wood led the Irish with 163 yards rushing and a TD. Tommy Rees was 23 of 39 for 289 yards, 3 TDs, and 3 INTs. Michael Floyd had 9 receptions for 137 yards and a TD. Javonti Greene led the Eagles with 134 yards rushing.

Central Michigan 17 at Michigan 42
Attachment 4314

The Wolverines jumped out to a 21-0 lead on their way to an easy victory over Central Michigan. Fitzgerald Toussaint led the way for Michigan by rushing 20 times for 164 yards and 3 TDs. Ryan Radcliff threw for 341 yards, a TD, and 2 INTs for the Chippewas.

Northern Illinois 24 at Michigan State 44
Attachment 4315

The Spartans pulled away in the fourth quarter of what was a tight game until then. Kirk Cousins dominated the game for Michigan State, throwing for 389 yards and 4 TDs. Jasmin Hopkins led the Huskies with 104 yards rushing and 2 TDs.

Your image links appear all be broken.

Love the concept. Couple of thoughts

1) Where in Nashville is there a Golden Sphinx? I've been to the Parthenon and it seems like it would have been there and maybe I completely missed it.

2) Maybe highlight the biggest game in the region and give it a little bigger writeup. Maybe give us a full paragraph or two on the most exciting game in the region: kindof like the first weekend of the NCAA tourney. Sure, there are highlights of every game but the one that was close late gets a lot more play.

SI

Hmm... I don't know what the problem is. They appear fine from this end. I used the attachments feature of the forum.


As far as I know, nowhere. I was trying to think of something besides the Crystal Football as a championship trophy. I started doing a search, and during that search got the idea for a Golden Sphinx. I found the image in Google search and went with it.

I picked Nashville as a place with a good stadium that wasn't a location of one of the major bowls. I considered the Giants/Jets' stadium, too, but just went ahead with Nashville. Better weather and decently centrally located.


I like this idea and it gives me a good way to sim all the games and still get to write about the action. I'll make a wrap-up paragraph for the round for each conference and then have a featured game from each conference where I can display more graphics (assuming they work!) and words. I'll do more of this starting in Round 2 since I already have my mini write ups for all of Round 1. I will, however, give one digest feedback of best games and features for Round 1.

Thanks for the feedback!

Round 1 - Northeast Conference
 

Army 8 at Bowling Green 27
Attachment 4319

The Falcons jumped out to a 24-0 lead on their way to victory. Anthon Samuel led BGSU with 178 yards rushing and a TD. Jared Hassin rushed for 106 yards for the Black Knights.

Buffalo 13 at Boston College 34
Attachment 4320

The Eagles outscored Buffalo 24-3 in the second half to secure the win. Andre Williams ran for 115 yards and 3 TDs to pace the Eagles, while Chase Rettig added 244 yards passing and a TD. The Bulls were led by Chazz Anderson who threw for 263 yards and a pick.

Syracuse 23 at Connecticut 31
Attachment 4321

UConn jumped out to a 14-0 lead in the first and held on the rest of the way to top the Orange. Johnny McEntee passed for 308 yards and 2 TDs and Lyle McCombs rushed for 133 yards and 2 TDs for the Huskies. Antwon Bailey rushed for 126 yards for Syracuse.

Rutgers 27 at Massachusetts 22
Attachment 4322

The Scarlet Knights avoided the upset, scoring the game-winning touchdown on a 13-yard Jawan Jamison run with two seconds left. Jamison paced Rutgers with 122 yards rushing and 2 TDs. Chas Dodd added 2 more passing TDs on 288 yards. Jonathan Hernandez rushed for 106 yards and a TD for the Minutemen.

Akron 9 at Penn State 36
Attachment 4323

The Nittany Lions held Akron to field goals and scored touchdowns in their stead for the easy home victory. Silas Redd led the way with 178 yards rushing and a TD. Matt McGloin added 2 TDs on 225 yards passing for Penn State.

Kent State 18 at Pittsburgh 14
Attachment 4324

Freddy Cortex kicked four field goals, including scoring the only six points of the second half in giving the Golden Flashes a road win over Pittsburgh. Spencer Keith paved the way for Kent State, throwing for 229 yards, a TD, and an INT. Tino Sunseri led the Panthers with 226 yards passing, a TD, and an INT. Kevin Harper missed all three field goal attempts for the difference in the game.

Ohio 13 at Temple 27
Attachment 4326

Temple took a 17-6 halftime lead and held off Ohio. Matt Brown rushed for 133 yards and a TD for the Owls. The Bobcats were led by Donte Harden who rushed for 126 yards in the game.

Maryland 10 at West Virginia 30
Attachment 4325

The Mountaineers overpowered Maryland behind the arm of Geno Smith (23 of 36, 298 yards, TD).

East Conference
 

UNC-Charlotte 15 at North Carolina 23
Attachment 4327

The Tarheels jumped out to a 23-0 lead through three quarters ad survived a late surge by the 49ers. Bryn Renner threw for 326 yards and a TD for North Carolina but added 2 INTs. Giovani Bernard rushed for 125 yards and a TD.

Duke 3 at North Carolina State 31
Attachment 4328

The Wolfpack pounded Duke early and often in an in-state matchup. James Washington led North Carolina State with 99 yards rushing and a TD. Sean Renfree threw for 270 yards for the Blue Devils, but he was picked off 2 times.

East Carolina 13 at Clemson 31
Attachment 4329

The Tigers jumped out to a 14-3 halftime lead and then dominated the second half for the win. Tajh Boyd passed for 288 yards and 2 TDs and Andre Ellington rushed for 145 yards and a TD for Clemson.

Wake Forest 27 at South Carolina 38
Attachment 4330

A game expected to be a low-scoring game instead turned into a bit of a high-scoring affair. The Gamecocks outscored Wake Forest 21-10 in the second half for the 11-point difference. Connor Shaw threw for 250 yards and 3 TDs and added another 48 yards on the ground. Tanner Price led the Demon Deacons with 390 yards passing and 3 TDs.

Virginia 27 at Navy 13
Attachment 4331

The Cavaliers outscored the Midshipmen 13-3 in the fourth quarter for the two-touchdown difference. Navy rushed for 252 yards in the game.

Virginia Tech 27 at Florida International 13
Attachment 4332

The Hokies took a 17-0 lead and cruised to the win. David Wilson rushed for 136 yards and 2 TDs to lead Virginia Tech. Wesley Carroll passed for 259 yards but threw 3 picks for the Golden Panthers.

Marshall 23 at Florida State 38
Attachment 4333

The Seminoles scored 21 second-quarter points and cruised in the second half for the win. Devonta Freeman overcame the poor passing day for EJ Manuel by rushing for 122 yards and 3 TDs. Marshall’s Rakeem Cato threw five picks in the game.

Old Dominion 24 at Miami (FL) 31
Attachment 4334

The Hurricanes got a rushing TD from Mike James with just over a minute left to down the upstart Monarchs. Lamar Miller led Miami in rushing with 112 yards and 2 TDs. Taylor Heinicke led Old Dominion with 368 yards passing, 3 TDs, and 3 INTs. Nick Mayers added 7 catches for 119 yards and 2 TDs.

Round 1 - Southeast Conference
 

Georgia 31 at Florida Atlantic 15
Attachment 4335

The Bulldogs struggled on the road in beating an over matched Florida Atlantic team. Aaron Murray threw for 238 yards, 3 TDs and an INT. Isaiah Crowell rushed for 108 yards and a TD. Alfred Morris paced the Owls with 239 yards rushing and a TD.

Georgia State 16 at UCF 34
Attachment 4336

The Golden Knights kept the pedal to the metal in beating Georgia State. Jeff Godfrey passed for 244 yards and 2 TDS for UCF.

Georgia Tech 31 at Florida 52
Attachment 4337

Florida outscored the Yellow Jackets 31-14 in the second half to pull away in their home debut. The Gators outrushed Georgia Tech 353-350 and passed for another 272 yards. Chris Rainey (21-174-2) and Mike Gillislee (9-147-1) each rushed for over 100 yards for the Gators. Jeff Demps added two more rushing TDs. David Sims led the Yellow Jackets with 113 yards rushing. Tevin Washington rushed for 2 TDs.

Georgia Southern 23 at South Florida 48
Attachment 4338

The Bulls scored at least one touchdown every quarter and led the whole way to beat the Eagles. BJ Daniels led the way for South Florida, throwing for 351 yards, 4 TDs, and an INT. Jaybo Shaw passed for 380 yards for Georgia Southern with 3 TDs and 3 INTS.

Kentucky 10 at Vanderbilt 24
Attachment 4339

The Commodores took a 14-0 lead into halftime and held off the Wildcats for the home win. Zac Stacy rushed for 104 yards and 2 TDs for Vanderbilt.

Western Kentucky 21 at Troy 24
Attachment 4340

The Trojans stormed out to a 24-7 lead and held on for the victory. Corey Robinson passed for 306 yards and 3 first-half TDs to lead Troy to the win. Bobby Rainey was the most outstanding player for the Hilltoppers, rushing for 145 yards and a TD.

Tennessee 13 at Alabama 37
Attachment 4341

Bama rode the legs of Trent Richardson to cruise past the Volunteers. Richardson had 124 yards rushing and 2 TDs. He also added 2 more TDs on 3 catches. Tennessee was held to only 212 total yards in the game.

Middle Tennessee 24 at Auburn 36
Attachment 4342

The Tigers overcame a 21-19 MTSU halftime lead and scored the last 17 points in the win. Barrett Trotter passed for 320 yards, 3 TDs, and an INT in the win. Logan Kilgore led the Blue Raiders with 317 yards passing and 3 TDs. Malcolm Beyah caught 7 passes for 137 yards and a TD.

Round 1 - South Central Conference
 

LSU 34 at UL-Lafayette 17
Attachment 4343

LSU trailed late in the first half, but scored with 28 seconds left and then never looked back in the road victory. The Tigers’ Jordan Jefferson passed for 274 yards and 3 TDs along with 1 INT. Blaine Gautier led the Ragin’ Cajuns with 229 yards passing and 2 TDs.

Louisiana Tech 21 at Houston 55
Attachment 4344

The Cougars scored 42 first-half points to cruise to the easy victory. Case Keenum passed for 428 yards, 4 TDs, and an INT. Patrick Edwards led Houston in receiving with 114 yards on 7 catches. Justin Johnson added 5 catches for 101 yards and 2 TDs. Michael Hayes added to the Cougars trifecta with 108 yards rushing and a TD. In the loss, the Bulldogs’ Colby Cameron passed for 294 yards, 2 TDs, and an INT.

Tulane 17 at Rice 31
Attachment 4345

Rice overcame a 10-0 first-half deficit and outscored the Green Wave 21-7 in the fourth quarter to pull out the win. Nick Fanuzzi passed for 238 yards and 2 TDs, and Tyler Smith rushed for 128 yards and 2 TDs to lead the Owls. Ryan Griffin passed for 298 yards, a TD, and an INT for Tulane.

UL-Monroe 10 at Texas A&M 53
Attachment 4346

The Aggies scored 40 second-half points on their way to a blow out victory. Ryan Tannehill threw for 349 yards, 4 TDs, and an INT to lead Texas A&M. His leading receivers were Jeff Fuller (4-114-3 TDs) and Ryan Swope (7-101). Cyrus Gray added 136 yards rushing and 3 TDs. Jyruss Edwards was the brightest spot for the Warhawks, rushing for 128 yards.

Arkansas 21 at South Alabama 9
Attachment 4347

The Razorbacks took a 21-3 halftime lead and held the Jaguars to a couple of second-half field goals. Dennis Johnson was the player of the game, rushing for 103 yards and 3 TDs in the win. Tyler Wilson complete 23 of 38 passes for 316 yards. Jarius Wright had 124 yards receiving on 7 catches. CJ Bennett struggled for USA, going 14 of 36 for 174 yards and 2 INTs.

Arkansas State 13 at Memphis 24
Attachment 4348

In a slight upset, the Red Wolves came up short in Memphis thanks to a bad day by Ryan Aplin. He threw for 265 yards, a TD, and 2 INTs. Billy Foster led the Tigers with 40 yards rushing and a TD and 3 catches for 53 yards.

UAB 20 at Ole Miss 45
Attachment 4349

Ole Miss jumped out to a 17-0 first-quarter lead and cruised to the win over the Blazers. Randall Mackey threw for 330 yards, 5 TDs, and an INT for the Rebels. Jeff Scott added 112 yards rushing for Ole Miss. UAB was led by Greg Franklin’s 123 yards rushing and a TD.

Southern Miss 14 at Mississippi State 28
Attachment 4350

The Bulldogs scored 21 second-quarter points to propel themselves to a win. Vick Ballard led the Bulldogs with 189 yards rushing and 2 TDs. Austin Davis led the Golden Eagles with 285 yards passing, 2 TDs, and 2 INTs.

Round 1 - Southwest Conference
 

Baylor 45 at Texas State 31
Attachment 4358

The Bears overcame a 24-7 first-half deficit by scoring 24 straight points and then the final 14 points of the game. Robert Griffin III led the way for Baylor with 297 yards passing (22 of 27) for 6 TDs and an INT. Kendall Wright had 143 yards receiving on 10 catches and 4 TDs. Terrance Ganaway added 145 yards rushing for the Bears.

UTEP 21 at Texas Tech 38
Attachment 4357

The Red Raiders opened with a 21-0 first-half lead before being tied at 21 with UTEP after three quarters. However, Texas Tech outscored the Miners 17-0 in the fourth to gain the win. Seth Doege led Texas Tech with 386 yards passing, 2 TDs, and an INT. Alex Torres had 6 catches for 120 yards and a TD.

UTSA 41 at New Mexico 3
Attachment 4356

Welcome to Division I-A football, Texas-San Antonio! The Roadrunners steamrolled the hosting Lobos behind the rushing attack of Evans Okotcha. Okotcha rushed for 184 yards and 4 TDs to lead UTSA.

Texas 42 at New Mexico State 16
Attachment 4355

The Longhorns took a 35-7 halftime lead in their road win. Malcolm Brown led Texas with 153 yards rushing and a TD.

Kansas 7 at SMU 51
Attachment 4354

Jared Williams started off hot and led the way with 175 yards and 2 TDs in the Mustangs’ home win. JJ McDermott did not have a great day for SMU but still passed for 310 yards (20 of 30), 2 TDs, and 3 INTs. Cole Beasley was McDermott’s top target with 6 catches for 109 yards.

Kansas State 21 at TCU 33
Attachment 4353

The Horned Frogs pulled away in a tight game with 13 straight fourth-quarter points to get the win over Kansas State. Ross Evans was the Most Outstanding Player of the game, connecting all four of his field goal attempts for TCU to make the difference in the game.

Tulsa 14 at Oklahoma 41
Attachment 4352

The Sooners jumped out to a 17-0 lead and cruised for the easy win over the Golden Hurricane. Landry Jones was 20 of 28 for 300 yards and 3 TDs. His top target was Kenny Stills who caught 7 passes for 113 yards. Roy Finch added 117 yards rushing and a TD for the Sooners. Tulsa was led by Trey Watts who rushed for 98 yards and a TD.

North Texas 17 at Oklahoma State 45
Attachment 4351

The Cowboys scored 21 straight second quarter points and dominated the scoreboard to get the home win. Brandon Weeded was 25 of 36 for 268 yards, 6 TDs, and an INT. Joseph Randle rushed for 130 yards for the Cowboys. Lance Dunbar was the leader for the Mean Green, rushing for 133 yards and a TD. Derek Thompson threw for 306 yards, a TD, and 2 INTs.

Round 1 Wrap Up
 

National Game of the Week: Arizona 49 at USC 52, West Conference
Attachment 4359

National Player of the Week: Nick Foles, QB, Arizona


National Top 5:
1. Oregon, 2. Oklahoma, 3. Alabama, 4. Florida State, 5. Wisconsin

West Conference:
There were several tight games, with Oregon earning the only win by more than three scores. In the 52-49 loss to USC, Arizona’s Nick Foles earned player of the week honors with 394 yards passing and 6 TDs. Despite his effort, USC looks to be built to score points on offense. The Ducks look to be the class of the conference, though, and will be tough on both sides of the ball all season.

West Conference Top Three:
1. Oregon, 2. USC, 3. Oregon State

Northwest Conference:
The Northwest Conference might not be one of the more highly regarded conferences in the nation, but there was lots of good QB play in the first round. Wisconsin’s transfer QB, Russell Wilson was the conference player of the week, throwing for 317 yards and 5 TDs. He was closely contested by Boise State’s Kellen Moore. Missouri showed some outstanding defense in their dominant 34-3 victory over Iowa State.

Northwest Conference Top Three:
1. Wisconsin, 2. Boise State, 3. Missouri

North Conference:
The North Conference may be one of the most hotly contested conferences, especially with QB play like Louisville’s Teddy Bridgewater who threw 3 TD passes in Louisville’s 42-10 domination of Ohio State. Despite Bridgewater’s outstanding play, at least one player did better. Michigan State’s Kirk Cousins was the player of the week, throwing for 389 yards and 4 TDs.

North Conference Top Three:
1. Michigan, 2. Michigan State, 3. Notre Dame

Northeast Conference:
The Northeast Conference will probably be regarded as the weakest conference in the nation, but there were some good football games played in the first round. Rutgers struggled with Massachusetts, but found a way to get a road victory with just two seconds left. Penn State and West Virginia got easy victories as they were expected to do. No player stood out in the week, so our editors have selected Rutger’s Jawan Jamison as player of the week, thanks to his 122 yards rushing and 2 TDs, including the game-winner with just two seconds left.

Northeast Conference Top Three:
1. West Virginia, 2. Penn State, 3. Connecticut


East Conference:
There were few surprises in the East Conference, though new teams to Division I-A, Old Dominion and UNC-Charlotte, played well against superior foes. South Carolina’s Connor Shaw was named player of the week, throwing for 250 yards and 3 TDs and rushing for 48 yards.

East Conference Top Three:
1. Florida State, 2. South Carolina, 3. Clemson

Southeast Conference:
The story of the Southeast Conference in Round 1 was the rushing attacks. Georgia Tech, Florida, and Alabama all showed dominating rushing games. Alfred Morris of Florida Atlantic had an outstanding week, rushing for 239 yards and a TD. However, the player of the week was Alabama’s Trent Richardson. He rushed for only 124 yards but had 2 TDs on the ground and added another 2 TDs receiving.

South Central Conference:
The 1-2 punch of Arkansas and LSU may be tough for other teams in the conference to overcome, but neither the Razorbacks nor Tigers dominated the first week of the season. The surprise of the week was in player of the week Randall Mackey of Ole Miss, throwing for 330 yards and 5 TDs in the Rebels’ 45-20 win over UAB. Houston’s Case Keenum also had a big day, passing for 428 yards and 4 TDs in the Cougars’ 55-21 win over Louisiana Tech.

South Central Conference Top Three:
1. Arkansas, 2. LSU, 3. Texas A&M

Southwest Conference:
The Southwest Conference looks to be the offensive powerhouse conference of the nation, with all winning teams scoring at least 33 points. Robert Griffin III took player of the week honors with his 6-TD performance in Baylor’s 45-31 win at Texas State. Although all games finished with at least a 12-point deficit, the Kansas State-TCU game remained close until late. Kansas State looks to have a decent defense, but they will have a tough time containing the high-scoring offenses in that conference.

Southwest Conference Top Three:
1. Oklahoma, 2. Texas, 3. TCU

Round 2 - West Conference
 

I am going to take the plunge into direct links to the whatifsports.com site. If this works smoothly, I will only need to graphically edit the eight new teams' games since they don't appear on whatifsports.com.

After all games are posted each round, I will post my digest.

Here's are the first two games from the West Conference:

San Jose State 20 at Arizona 27


UCLA 18 at San Diego State 48

Round 2 - West Conference
 

This works for me, so I will post box scores and play-by-play for the remaining games... Sorry! I am working my way through this and have lots of ideas for my second play through already.

However, let's continue with this play through.

UCLA 18 at San Diego State 48

UNLV 7 at Fresno State 23

USC 28 at Arizona State 33

Oregon State 28 at Washington 34

Oregon 42 at Nevada 21

California 22 at Hawaii 14

Stanford 55 at Washington State 12

Round 2 - Northwest Conference
 

Colorado State 20 at Boise State 45

BYU 50 at Colorado 27

Utah 34 at Air Force 3

Utah State 34 at Idaho 50

Nebraska 28 at Iowa 35, OT

Wisconsin 41 at Wyoming 20

Missouri 31 at Minnesota 10

Northwestern 7 at Iowa State 24

Round 2 - North Conference
 

So, I checked my page on my phone as I do sometimes and discovered that posting the quarter-by-quarter links is redundant since they are available inside the box score. Therefore, I can move through a few more sims faster and then work towards my weekly wrap up.

Here are the North Conference results for Round 2:

Miami (Ohio) 21 at Ball State 18

Louisville 14 at Purdue 26

Toledo 21 at Ohio State 45

Cincinnati 41 at Indiana 17

Michigan State 29 at Western Michigan 17

Michigan 13 at Northern Illinois 30

Notre Dame 42 at Central Michigan 41

Illinois 10 at Eastern Michigan 32

Round 2 - Northeast Conference
 

UConn 10 at Rutgers 27

Boston College 7 at Syracuse 27

Bowling Green 17 at Buffalo 38

West Virginia 38 at Akron 9

Temple 23 at Maryland 6

Pittsburgh 26 at Ohio 27, OT


Penn State 28 at Kent State 9

UMass 13 at Army28

Attachment 4363

Attachment 4364

Round 2 - East Conference
 

Clemson 27 at Wake Forest 17

North Carolina State 28 at East Carolina 24

North Carolina 31 at Duke 10

Miami 6 at Virginia 27

Florida International 31 at Marshall 17

Navy 10 at Virginia Tech 23

South Carolina 17 at UNC-Charlotte 0

Florida State 48 at Old Dominion 10

Round 2 - Southeast Conference
 

South Florida 24 at Georgia 38

UCF 19 at Georgia Tech 21

Auburn 33 at Kentucky 13

Alabama 54 at MTSU 7

Troy 17 at Tennessee 34

Vanderbilt 28 at Western Kentucky 21, OT

Florida 34 at Georgia Southern 24

Florida Atlantic 31 at Georgia State 6

Round 2 - South Central Conference
 

Rice 17 at UL-Monroe 24, OT

Texas A&M 13 at LSU 27

Houston 51 at Tulane 17

UL-Lafayette 29 at Louisiana Tech 30

Mississippi State 14 at Arkansas 36

Ole Miss 34 at Southern Miss 37

Memphis 23 at UAB 30, OT

South Alabama 10 at Arkansas State 34

Round 2 - Southwest Conference
 

NMSU 10 at Baylor 48

New Mexico 14 at Texas 52

Oklahoma State 55 at Kansas 28

Oklahoma 28 at North Texas 7

TCU 37 at Tulsa 24

SMU 34 at Kansas State 10

Texas Tech 35 at UT-San Antonio 30

Texas State 34 at UTEP 37

Round 2 - Standings
 

A few of the divisions could come down to the wire. However, we still have a lot of season to go.

Here are the standings after two rounds:

WTF?!? I am going back to look over box scores and stats, and I see that whatifsports flushes games after a few days. Dammit... I am just going to keep the scores of the round and move on.

Lesson learned that I have to keep a snapshot of each game myself.

That's what it looks like. I wonder if each account has a limit or something

SI

The box scores there are definitely on a timed basis, so I cannot access box scores after a few days. Because of that, I am going to try to steam through the conference round robins as much as possible for this first play through (I do plan to have more play throughs, especially when I have more time!) and give more detailed postings of the playoffs. I have been quite busy lately, but I want to complete at least one round per week.

So, here goes Round 3...

Round 3 - West Conference
 

USC 26 at San Diego State 24
Matt Barkley completed a desperation pass to Robert Woods from 30 yards out at the buzzer.

Arizona State 31 at Fresno State 51
Robbie Rouse rushed for 121 yards and 2 TDs and caught 4 passes for 78 yards and another TD.

Washington 14 at Oregon 41
LaMichael James dominated the game with 224 yards rushing and 2 TDs and caught 3 passes for 48 yards.

Washington State 44 at Hawaii 41
Rickey Galvin caught a 9-yard pass from Marshall Lobbestael with just one second left to give the Cougars the win in Hawaii.

Other scores:

Arizona 10 at UCLA 24

UNLV 3 at San Jose State 29

California 20 at Oregon State 45

Stanford 44 at Nevada 30

Round 3 - Northwest Conference
 

Boise State 39 at BYU 21
Doug Martin rushed for 217 yards and 2 TDs and caught 2 passes for 21 yards

Utah 23 at Colorado State 28

Utah State 44 at Colorado 17
Robert Turbin rushed for 208 yards and 3 TDs

Idaho 6 at Air Force 37

Iowa 21 at Wisconsin 31

Missouri 13 at Nebraska 3

Northwestern 31 at Wyoming 41
Alvester Alexander had 76 yards rushing and 2 TDs and 3 catches for 84 yards and a TD.

Iowa State 0 at Minnesota 16

Round 3 - North Conference
 

Ball State 45 at Louisville 14
Jahwan Edwards had 203 yards rushing with 2 TDs and 17 yards receiving with a TD.

Toledo 28 at Miami (Ohio) 27, OT
Mason Krysinski missed two field goals for the Red Hawks and an extra point in OT.

Cincinnati 40 at Purdue 7

Indiana 13 at Ohio State 24

Western Michigan 19 at Michigan 38

Notre Dame 20 at Michigan State 30
Kirk Cousins was 26 of 36 for 355 yards and 2 TDs.

Illinois 17 at Northern Illinois 20

Eastern Michigan 38 at Central Michigan 31, OT

Round 3 - Northeast Conference
 

Army 16 at Connecticut 36
Lyle McCombs rushed for 192 yards and 2 TDs and caught 4 passes for 34 yards.

Boston College 30 at Massachusetts 14
Chase Rettig passed for 256 yards and 3 TDs.

Bowling Green 24 at Rutgers 21

Buffalo 40 at Syracuse 20

Akron 10 at Temple 37

Pittsburgh 10 at West Virginia 27

Penn State 41 at Maryland 9

Kent State 3 at Ohio 16

Round 3 - East Conference
 

UNC-Charlotte 6 at Clemson 43
Tajh Boyd was 18 of 30 for 267 yards and 2 TDs and ran for 39 yards.

North Carolina State 13 at South Carolina 20, OT
The Gamecocks trailed 13-0 with 7 minutes left, but scored two touchdowns before the end of regulation, the second a Brandon Wilds reception with just 19 seconds left. In overtime, Wilds scored on a 14-yard run.

Duke 10 at East Carolina 28

North Carolina 21 at Wake Forest 17
Bryn Renner threw for 334 yards on 24 of 35 passing with 3 TDs.

Virginia 20 at Florida State 27

Florida International 34 at Miami (Florida) 41
Jacory Harris passed for 327 yards and 4 TDs.

Navy 32 at Old Dominion 22
Navy’s Ryan Paulson had 4 sacks

Virginia Tech 41 at Marshall 20

Round 3 - Southeast Conference
 

Georgia 20 at Florida 40
John Brantley threw for 331 yards and a TD.

Central Florida 10 at South Florida 29

Florida Atlantic 13 at Georgia Southern 39
Jerick McKinnon rushed for 164 yards and 2 TDs and caught 3 passes for 19 yards and a TD.

Georgia State 20 at Georgia Tech 31

Kentucky 6 at Alabama 43
Trent Richardson rushed for 215 yards and 2 TDs and caught 3 passes for 33 yards.

Troy 12 at Auburn 27
Barrett Trotter was 27 of 53 for 454 yards, 3 TDs, and 2 INTs.

Western Kentucky 3 at Tennessee 62
Tyler Bray was 36 of 48 for 506 yards and 7 TDs. *

Vanderbilt 28 at MTSU 16

Round 3 - South Central Conference
 

LSU 45 at Rice 20
Spencer Ware rushed for 129 yards and 2 TDs.

Houston 31 at Texas A&M 28
Case Keenum was 25 of 37 for 325 yards and 4 TDs.

UL-Lafayette 30 at UL-Monroe 6

Louisiana Tech 28 at Tulane 20

Arkansas 38 at Ole Miss 19
Tyler Wilson threw for 284 yards and 4 TDs.

Memphis 13 at Mississippi State 35

South Alabama 12 at Southern Miss 47
Desmond Johnson rushed for 125 yards and 3 TDs.

Arkansas State 25 at UAB 23
Derek Lawson caught a 19-yard pass from Ryan Aplin with 1:34 left to lift the Red Wolves over UAB.

Round 3 - Southwest Conference
 

Baylor 40 at New Mexico 17
Robert Griffin passed for 273 yards and 4 TDs and ran for another 35 yards.

Texas Tech 7 at New Mexico State 16

Texas State 9 at Texas 54
Malcolm Brown rushed for 143 yards and 2 TDs and caught a pass for 17 yards.

UTEP 30 at UT-San Antonio 27
Dakota Warren kicked a 19-yard field goal as time expired to give the Miners the road victory.

Kansas 3 at Oklahoma 57
Roy Finch rushed for 259 yards and 5 TDs.*

TCU 42 at Oklahoma State 56
Brandon Weeden was 37 of 57 for 570 yards, 7 TDs, and 3 INTs.*

SMU 26 at North Texas 16

Kansas State 30 at Tulsa 27
Anthony Cantele kicked the game-winning field goal from 30 yards out with 2:55 left in the game.

Round 3 Wrap Up
 

We are nearly through the halfway point of the conference divisional slate, and we are starting to see a few conferences take shape, though many conferences are still muddled.

The East Conference looks to be the conference shaping up for its top contenders in a nice, orderly fashion. Five teams are currently 3-0 in that conference, and another five are 0-3, showing who the haves and have-nots are.

Two divisions have no undefeated teams through three games. The West Conference Division 1 currently has five teams all tied for first at 2-1: Arizona State, Fresno State, San Diego State, UCLA, and USC. We also would not count out Arizona at 1-2. Similarly, the Northeast Conference Division 1 has five teams at 2-1: Boston College, Bowling Green, Buffalo, Connecticut, and Rutgers.

The North Conference has one team each in its divisions at 3-0. Cincinnati leads Division 1 and Michigan State leads Division 2 after its win over previously unbeaten Notre Dame.

The National Player of the Week came down to three outstanding players. Oklahoma State’s Brandon Weeden was 37 of 57 for 570 yards and 7 TDs, but he also threw 3 interceptions in the Cowboys’ 56-42 win over TCU. Roy Finch of Oklahoma had a big day by rushing for 259 yards and 5 TDs in the Sooners’ 57-3 win over Kansas. The best day, however, was Tennessee’s Tyler Bray. He was 36 of 48 for 506 yards and 7 TDs with no interceptions in the Volunteers romp over Western Kentucky, 62-3.



Here are our conference-by-conference rankings, followed by the season standings:

West Conference: 1. Oregon, 2. Stanford, 3. USC
Northwest Conference: 1. Boise State, 2. Wisconsin, 3. Missouri
North Conference: 1. Michigan State, 2. Michigan, 3. Notre Dame
Northeast Conference: 1. West Virginia, 2. Penn State, 3. Rutgers
East Conference: 1. Florida State, 2. South Carolina, 3. Clemson
Southeast Conference: 1. Alabama, 2. Florida, 3. Georgia
South Central Conference: 1. Arkansas, 2. LSU, 3. Houston
Southwest Conference: 1. Oklahoma, 2. Oklahoma State, 3. SMU

Attachment 4373

Due to having some deadlines to meet at work and being busy with my wife's birthday and trying to celebrate American Thanksgiving in Korea, I will not have the time to update the season this week. However, I will try to catch up and get ahead of schedule sooner than later. I hope to determine my national champion replay around the same time the BCS Championship game is played.

It can just be a vacation week. No need to speed up

SI

Round 4 - West Conference
 

Arizona 31 at San Diego State 28
Leading Passer: Nick Foles, Arizona, 28-49, 369-3-2
Leading Rusher: Ronnie Hillman, SDSU, 25-109
Leading Receiver: Juron Criner, Arizona, 7-130-2

San Jose State 27 at Fresno State 21
Leading Passer: Derek Carr, Fresno State, 22-37, 289-3-1
Leading Rusher: Robbie Rouse, Fresno State, 31-126
Leading Receiver: Jalen Saunders, Fresno State, 5-142-2

UCLA 29 at Arizona State 27
Leading Passer: Brock Osweiler, ASU, 23-38, 269-1-0
Leading Rusher: Johnathan Franklin, UCLA, 17-113-3
Leading Receiver: Gerell Robinson, ASU, 6-104

UNLV 13 at USC 47
Leading Passer: Matt Barkley, USC, 27-38, 311-2-2
Leading Rusher: Marc Tyler, USC, 19-123-2
Leading Receiver: Phillip Payne, UNLV, 3-109-1

Washington 24 at Nevada 31
Leading Passer: Keith Price, Washington, 17-31, 257-1-2
Leading Rusher: Chris Polk, Washington, 25-158
Leading Receiver: Rishard Matthews, Nevada, 6-142-1

Oregon State 43 at Hawaii 23
Oregon State’s Sean Mannon put on a passing clinic in the third quarter, connecting on touchdown passes of 8, 25, and 26 yards in leading the Beavers to a blowout win on the road against Hawaii.
Leading Passer: Sean Mannon, OSU, 30-42, 373-4-1
Leading Rusher: Malcolm Agnew, OSU, 19-127
Leading Receiver: Billy Ray Stutzmann, Hawaii, 6-102-1

Oregon 47 at Washington 44
After a Marquess Wilson receiving touchdown with 1:09 left tied the game, Oregon drove down the field and Alejandro Maldonado connected on a 23-yard field goal with no time left to give the Ducks the edge on the road.

The Cougars took a surprising early 14-3 lead on Oregon and held on to a 21-13 halftie lead. After falling behind 28-16, the Ducks started to take control by scoring two late TDs in the third quarter for a 30-28 lead.

The fourth quarter was back and forth, with the lead changing five times before Oregon’s game-winning field goal.

Leading Passer: Marshall Lobbestael, WSU, 26-46, 420-5-2
Leading Rusher: LaMichael James, Oregon, 27-170-2
Leading Receiver: Marquess Wilson, WSU, 8-134-1

California 27 at Stanford 31
Trailing 24-17 going into the final quarter, Cal scored 10 straight, including Giorgio Tavecchio’s 40-yard field goal with 6:53 left to give the Golden Bears the lead. However, the Cardinal were able to find a way to win on Stepfan Taylor’s 5-yard run with 55 seconds left.
Leading Passer: Zach Maynard, Cal, 23-30, 378-1-0
Leading Rusher: Stepfan Taylor, Stanford 24-85-1
Leading Receiver: Keenan Allen, Cal, 8-109


West Conference Report:
The top three teams in the conference kept up their winning ways, though both Oregon and Stanford had scares against inferior opponents. The keys in the two close games came from outstanding QB play, something there is no shortage of in the West Conference.

Washington State's Marshall Lobbestael was 26 of 46 for 420 yards with 5 TDs and 2 interceptions. Cal's Zach Maynard did not have as impressive of a day, but he did help the Golden Bears in a late loss to the Cardinal. Maynard finished 23 of 30 for 378 yards with a touchdown toss.

Oregon State's Sean Mannon also had some outstanding quarterback play in the Beaver's 20-point win at Hawaii. Mannon threw for 373 yards on 30 of 42 passing, with 4 TDs and an interception.

The West Player of the Week award goes to UCLA's Johnathan Franklin. The back carried the ball 17 times for 113 yards. His three rushing touchdowns made the difference in the Bruins; 29-27 road win at Arizona State.

Round 4 - Northwest Conference
 

Boise State 30 at Colorado 24
The Broncos got quite a shock in Boulder, falling behind 17-6 late in the third quarter before mounting a come back. Kellen Moore passed for two late TDs and D.J. Harper ran in from 15 yards out to give Boise State a lead it would not relinquish midway through the fourth quarter.
Leading Passer: Tyler Hansen, Colorado, 24-43, 276-1-1
Leading Rusher: Doug Martin, BSU, 24-178
Leading Receiver: Paul Richardson, Colorado, 5-74

Colorado State 21 at Air Force 27
Leading Passer: Tim Jefferson, AFU, 10-16, 154-0-0
Leading Rusher: Asher Clark, AFU, 21-156-1
Leading Receiver: Joshua Freeman, AFU, 5-62

BYU 51 at Idaho 14
Leading Passer: Jake Heaps, BYU, 18-32, 196-2-1 and Brian Reader, Idaho, 17-40, 196-0-1
Leading Rusher: JJ Di Luigi, BYU, 17-132-1
Leading Receiver: JD Faisley, BYU, 5-54-1

Utah 20 at Utah State 34
The Aggies trailed 20-13 at halftime, but scored all 21 second-half points to earn the win over state rival Utah.
Leading Passer: Jon Hays, Utah, 18-31-222-0-3
Leading Rusher: Robert Turbin, USU, 26-152-1
Leading Receiver: Eric Moats, USU, 3-65

Iowa 44 at Wyoming 21
Leading Passer: James Vandenberg, Iowa, 20-35, 349-4-0
Leading Rusher: Marcus Coker, Iowa, 27-108-1
Leading Receiver: Marvin McNutt, Iowa, 6-129-1

Nebraska 28 at Minnesota 21, OT
The Cornhuskers needed OT to earn their first win of the season. The Golden Gophers trailed 21-11 in the fourth quarter, but a field goal and then touchdown with 37 seconds left in regulation tied the game at 21. Rex Burkhead changed Minnesota’s fortune in overtime, though, when the Nebraska back scampered 20 yards for a touchdown. Minnesota then went 4 and out to seal the Nebraska win.
Leading Passer: MarQuies Gray, Minnesota, 11-16, 238-2-0
Leading Rusher: Rex Burkhead, Nebraska, 28-149-2
Leading Receiver: Da’Jon McKnight, Minnesota, 4-91

Wisconsin 38 at Iowa State 19
Leading Passer: Jared Barnett, ISU, 16-31, 183-0-0
Leading Rusher: Montee Ball, Wisconsin, 23-215-3
Leading Receiver: Darius Reynolds, ISU, 4-71

Missouri 31 at Northwestern 14
Mizzou had 296 rushing yards.
Leading Passer: Dan Persa, Northwestern, 16-28, 191-1-0
Leading Rusher: Jared Culver, Mizzou, 6-97-1
Leading Receiver: Jeremy Ebert, Northwestern, 5-78-1



Northwest Conference Report:

Boise State, Wisconsin, and Missouri continued their strong play, all picking up victories to improve to 4-0. On the other hand, a team expected to compete, Northwestern, has now dropped to 0-4, including its blowout loss at the hands of Missouri.

Quarterback play was not outstanding in the conference, with the one exception being Iowa's James Vandenberg. He was 20 of 35 for 349 yards with 4 touchdowns in the Hawkeyes' 44-21 win at Wyoming.

Vandenberg's performance was not as good as this week's Northwest Conference Player of the Week. Wisconsin's Montee Ball ran wild in the Badgers' 38-19 win at Iowa State. Ball rushed for 215 yards on just 23 carries and had three touchdowns to help Wisconsin blow out the Cyclones.

Round 4 - North Conference
 

Ball State 16 at Purdue 41
Leading Passer: Caleb TerBush, Purdue, 14-28, 272-3-0
Leading Rusher: Ralph Bolden, Purdue, 18-107-2
Leading Receiver: Briggs Orsbon, Ball State, 6-94

Miami (OH) 20 at Ohio State 34
The Red Hawks took a 20-19 lead with 9:09 left on a 58-yard reception by Nick Harwell from Zac Dysert. However, the Buckeyes answered to score the game’s final 15 points and earn the victory at home.
Leading Passer: Zac Dysert, Miami (OH), 22-46-353-3-2
Leading Rusher: Erik Finklea, Miami (OH), 16-113
Leading Receiver: Nick Harwell, Miami (OH), 10-222-1

Louisville 41 at Indiana 34
The Cardinals survived a close call at Indiana, scoring the game’s last 10 points.
Leading Passer: Teddy Bridgewater, Louisville, 23-37, 251-3-2
Leading Rusher: Stephen Houston, Indiana, 18-143-1
Leading Receiver: Josh Chichester, Louisville, 5-76-2

Toledo 23 at Cincinnati 27
The Bearcats jumped out to a 20-6 halftime lead, but fell behind 23-20 late in the fourth quarter before Munchie Legaux connected with DJ Woods on a 2-yard pass with 34 seconds left.
Leading Passer: Terrance Owens, Toledo, 26-44, 390-1-2
Leading Rusher: Isaiah Pead, Cincy, 21-116
Leading Receiver: Eric Page, Toledo, 11-128

Western Michigan 10 at Northern Illinois 20
Leading Passer: Alex Carder, WMU, 18-33, 208-1-1
Leading Rusher: Jasmin Hopkins, NIU, 17-78-1
Leading Receiver: Jordan White, WMU, 8-86-1

Michigan State 56 at Central Michigan 27
Edwin Baker blew up for the Spartans’ last five touchdowns in the blowout win at Central Michigan.
Leading Passer: Kirk Cousins, MSU, 21-31, 407-2-1
Leading Rusher: Edwin Baker, MSU, 16-112-5
Leading Receiver: Brian Linthicum, MSU, 4-96

Michigan 27 at Eastern Michigan 13
The Eagles took a 10-0 lead and held a 13-10 lead in the fourth quarter before the Wolverines were able to overpower them.
Leading Passer: Denard Robinson, Michigan, 7-14, 78-1-0
Leading Rusher: Fitzgerald Toussaint, Michigan, 23-138-1
Leading Receiver: Jeremy Gallon, Michigan, 2-34-1

Notre Dame 30 at Illinois 17
Leading Passer: Tommy Rees, Notre Dame, 30-51, 343-1-1
Leading Rusher: Cierre Wood, Notre Dame, 27-152-2
Leading Receiver: Michael Floyd, Notre Dame, 10-148


North Conference Report:
Division 2 is shaping up into an exciting race as we pass the midway point of the regular season. Michigan State leads the division with a 4-0 record, but they will have to travel to Michigan in their last game. Michigan, Notre Dame, and Northern Illinois all trail the Spartans with 3-1 records.

Their was a lot of offensive power in the North Conference this week, with 7 of the 8 winners scoring at least 27 points. Northern Illinois was the lone exception in its 20-10 win over Western Michigan.

There were lots of candidates for North Conference Player of the Week this week, but it is hard to deny the performance of Edwin Baker in Michigan State's 56-27 road win at Central Michigan. Baker rushed 16 times for 112 yards, but the big story was his 5 rushing touchdowns.

Round 4 - Northeast Conference
 

Army 10 at Rutgers 42
Leading Passer: Chas Dodd, Rutgers, 24-36, 403-2-0
Leading Rusher: Jawan Jamison, Rutgers, 27-130-2
Leading Receiver: Mohamed Sanu, Rutgers, 10-154-1

Massachusetts 14 at Syracuse 33
Leading Passer: Ryan Nassib, Syracuse, 20-26, 304-3-1
Leading Rusher: Antwon Bailey, Syracuse, 28-136-1
Leading Receiver: Julian Talley, UMass, 5-105

Connecticut 37 at Buffalo 10
Leading Passer: Johnny McEntee, UConn, 17-29, 304-2-0
Leading Rusher: Lyle McCombs, UConn, 30-109-1
Leading Receiver: Lyle McCombs, UConn, 3-77

Boston College 47 at Bowling Green 28
Leading Passer: Chase Rettig, BCU, 21-36, 260-3-1
Leading Rusher: Anthon Samuel, BGSU, 23-150-1
Leading Receiver: Eugene Cooper, BGSU, 6-69-2

Akron 20 at Maryland 45
Leading Passer: Danny O’Brien, Maryland, 32-48, 315-3-2
Leading Rusher: Davin Meggett, Maryland, 24-115-1
Leading Receiver: Keith Sconiers, Akron, 4-100

West Virginia 40 at Ohio 23
Leading Passer: Geno Smith, WVU, 24-37, 336-2-0
Leading Rusher: Donte Harden, Ohio, 21-191
Leading Receiver: Tavon Austin, WVU, 7-91

Temple 28 at Kent State 10
Leading Passer: Chester Stewart, Temple, 8-12, 120-1-0
Leading Rusher: Bernard Pierce, Temple, 33-118
Leading Receiver: Sam Kirkland, Kent State, 5-38

Pittsburgh 10 at Penn State 27
Leading Passer: Matt McGloin, PSU, 21-42, 257-1-4
Leading Rusher: Silas Redd, PSU, 30-158-2
Leading Receiver: Devon Smith, PSU, 4-62-1



Northeast Conference Report:
The Northeast Conference failed to deliver any exciting games with the lowest margin of victory of the eight games being 17 points in two games.

The biggest story of the week is that West Virginia, Penn State and Temple are all 4-0 in Division 2, and all three will face each other in the coming weeks. In Round 5, Penn State will travel to Temple, West Virginia travels to Penn State in Round 6, and Temple hosts the Mountaineers in the final round.

Boston College, Connecticut, and Rutgers are all 3-1 in Division 1, with the Eagles having to play both Rutgers and Connecticut in the final two rounds.

For player of the week honors, the award goes to Rutgers' Chas Dodd. He was 24 of 36 for 403 yards and 2 touchdowns in the Scarlet Knights' 42-10 win over Army.

Round 4 - East Conference
 

UNC-Charlotte 13 at Wake Forest 34
Leading Passer: Tanner Price, WF, 23-35, 324-1-1
Leading Rusher: Brandon Pendergrass, WF, 26-92-3
Leading Receiver: Chris Givens, WF, 7-116-1

South Carolina 41 at East Carolina 27
Leading Passer: Dominique Davis, ECU, 23-53, 245-2-6
Leading Rusher: Brandon Wilds, S. Carolina, 17-167
Leading Receiver: Justin Hardy, ECU, 7-105

Clemson 24 at Duke 41
In a huge surprise, the Blue Devils outmuscled Clemson for the home victory despite Sammy Watkins gaining 188 total yards and scoring 2 TDs.
Leading Passer: Sean Renfree, Duke, 31-53, 410-2-1
Leading Rusher: Sammy Watkins, Clemson, 5-121-2
Leading Receiver: Conner Vernon, Duke, 7-103

North Carolina State 13 at North Carolina 37
Leading Passer: Bryn Renner, UNC, 15-25-232-0-0
Leading Rusher: Giovani Bernard, UNC, 25-185-2
Leading Receiver: Dwight Jones, UNC, 5-94

Virginia 55 at Old Dominion 20
Leading Passer: Michael Rocco, UVA, 23-37, 293-5-1
Leading Rusher: Perry Jones, UVA, 22-134-2
Leading Receiver: Nick Mayers, ODU, 8-161

Miami (FL) 16 at Marshall 36
Leading Passer: Rakeem Cato, Marshall, 21-34, 260-2-1
Leading Rusher: Lamar Miller, Miami, 22-129-1
Leading Receiver: Troy Evans, Marshall, 3-53-1

Florida State 16 at Virginia Tech 17
The game of the week ended on quite a dud. Virginia Tech took the lead with 2:22 left in the fourth quarter on a 5-yard David Wilson run. Danny Coale then ran in for the two-point conversion to give the Hokies a 17-10 lead at home. However, the Seminoles answered with a touchdown of their own with just 1:09 left when Devonta Freeman ran in from 3 yards out. Florida State had a chance to tie with the extra point, but Dustin Hopkins missed it wide right, and Virginia Tech held on to win at home.

Leading Passer: EJ Manuel, FSU, 16-28, 270-1-1
Leading Rusher: Devonta Freeman, FSU, 22-180-1
Leading Receiver: Rodney Smith, FSU, 5-116

Florida International 31 at Navy 17
Leading Passer: Wesley Carroll, FIU, 29-34, 314-3-0
Leading Rusher: Alexander Teich, Navy, 21-122
Leading Receiver: Wayne Times, FIU, 5-55-1



East Conference Report:
Round 4 was highlighted with the big disappointment and the big upset.

The big disappointment came at the hands of Florida State losing by a point thanks to a missed extra point attempt, giving Virginia Tech the inside track to winning Division 2 with a 4-0 record.

The big upset came at Duke where the Blue Devils blew out Clemson 41-24. Clemson has been in a battle with North Carolina and South Carolina, and now the Tigers will have to win out to win the Division 1 title.

There were lots of finalists for the East Conference Player of the Week Award, including Wake Forest's Brandon Pendergrass, Clemson's Sammy Watkins, Virginia's Michael Rocco, and Florida International's Wesley Carroll. However, the player most deserving of the award this week is Duke QB Sean Renfree. He did not have outstanding stats, going 31 of 53 for 410 yards with 2 TDs and an interception, but he did guide the Blue Devils to a huge upset victory over Clemson.

Round 4 - Southeast Conference
 

Georgia 56 at Georgia Southern 24
Leading Passer: Aaron Murray, UGA, 14-25, 190-2-1
Leading Rusher: Isaiah Crowell, UGA, 30-254-4
Leading Receiver: Kentrellis Showers, GSU, 2-78-1

South Florida 13 at Georgia Tech 40
Leading Passer: Tevin Washington, GT, 3-4, 73-1-0
Leading Rusher: Orwin Smith, GT, 11-149
Leading Receiver: Stephen Hill, GT, 2-68-1

Florida 50 at Georgia State 0
The Gators scored early and often at Georgia State, jumping out to a 24-0 first-quarter lead and a 37-0 lead at halftime before cruising to the victory.
Leading Passer: John Brantley, Florida, 33-47, 470-3-1
Leading Rusher: Chris Rainey, Florida, 24-81-1
Leading Receiver: Chris Rainey, Florida, 5-81-1

UCF 41 at Florida Atlantic 17
Brynn Harvey rushed for 160 yards on 18 carries and 2 TDs and caught 2 passes for 18 yards and a TD to lead the Knights to an easy road victory.
Leading Passer: Jeff Godfrey, UCF, 15-26, 233-3-1
Leading Rusher: Alfred Morris, FAU, 27-191-1
Leading Receiver: JJ Worton, UCF, 4-72-1

Kentucky 16 at MTSU 19
Logan Kilgore connected with Tavarres Jefferson on an 8-yard TD with 6:19 left to give the Blue Raiders a win over Kentucky.
Leading Passer: Morgan Newton, UK, 11-21, 194-2-0
Leading Rusher: Benjamin Cunningham, MTSU, 18-128-1
Leading Receiver: Malcolm Beyah, MTSU, 6-71

Auburn 23 at Tennessee 41
Leading Passer: Tyler Bray, UT, 24-35, 309-3-0
Leading Rusher: Tauren Poole, UT, 24-154-2
Leading Receiver: Onterio McCalebb, Auburn, 5-99-1

Alabama 52 at Western Kentucky 0
Leading Passer: AJ McCarron, Alabama, 27-46, 370-2-1
Leading Rusher: Trent Richardson, Alabama, 27-97-1
Leading Receiver: Brad Smelley, Alabama, 5-103

Troy 27 at Vanderbilt 34
The game went back and forth throughout, before Vanderbilt finally came away with the victory in overtime on a 1-yard reception by Jordan Matthews, his second touchdown of the game.
Leading Passer: Corey Robinson, Troy, 29-56, 378-3-0
Leading Rusher: Zac Stacy, Vandy, 23-75
Leading Receiver: Eric Thomas, Troy, 6-75-2


Southeast Conference Report:
Vanderbilt remains the biggest surprise of the Southeast Conference by moving to 4-0. However, their schedule gets considerably tougher with matches at Alabama and then at home against Auburn and Tennessee.

Florida and Alabama also remained undefeated in the conference with shutouts in Round 4. Florida went to Georgia State and cruised to a 50-0 victory. Alabama also went on the road to blow out Western Kentucky 52-0. In the last two weeks, the winless Hilltoppers have been outscored 114-3, showing that they are grossly overmatched in the Southeast Conference this season.

There were no real surprises in Round 4 other than Middle Tennessee State's 19-16 victory over Kentucky. Kentucky was expected to be competitive for the middle of Division 2, but they currently sit at 0-4 along with Western Kentucky.

There were no shortage of great offensive performances this week, with five quarterbacks topping 300 yards, including Florida's John Brantley who threw for an uncharacteristic 470 yards. However, the top performer in the conference and player of the week is Georgia running back Isaiah Crowell. He ran 30 times for 254 and 4 touchdowns in the Bulldogs' 56-24 win at Georgia Southern.

Round 4 - South Central Conference
 

LSU 20 at UL-Monroe 0
Leading Passer: Jordan Jefferson, LSU, 19-29, 288-1-0
Leading Rusher: Spencer Ware, LSU, 21-71-1
Leading Receiver: Odell Beckham, LSU, 4-66

Texas A&M 42 at Tulane 21
Leading Passer: Ryan Griffin, Tulane, 25-43, 305-2-0
Leading Rusher: Cyrus Gray, TAMU, 23-198-5
Leading Receiver: Ryan Swope, TAMU, 8-82

Rice 14 at Louisiana Tech 31
Leading Passer: Colby Cameron, LTU, 19-34-248-2-0
Leading Rusher: Lennon Creer, LTU, 32-152-2
Leading Receiver: Hunter Lee, LTU, 3-75-1

Houston 50 at UL-Lafayette 17
Leading Passer: Case Keenum, Houston, 26-31, 347-2-0
Leading Rusher: Alonzo Harris, ULL, 20-73-1
Leading Receiver: Javone Lawson, ULL, 5-86

Arkansas 31 at Southern Miss 20
Leading Passer: Tyler Wilson, Arkansas, 25-36, 373-4-2
Leading Rusher: Dennis Johnson, Arkansas, 16-59
Leading Receiver: Jarius Wright, Arkansas, 7-126-2

Mississippi State 38 at UAB 33
The Bulldogs scored with 1:37 left on a 59-yard Vick Ballard run to edge the Blazers in Birmingham. Ballard’s game-winning run was his fourth touchdown of the game.
Leading Passer: Chris Relf, MSU, 17-26, 255-1-3
Leading Rusher: Vick Ballard, MSU, 20-186-4
Leading Receiver: Arceto Clark, MSU, 4-81-1

Ole Miss 17 at Arkansas State 33
Leading Passer: Ryan Aplin, ASU, 17-24, 233-2-0
Leading Rusher: Jeff Scott, Miss, 15-70-1
Leading Receiver: Dwayne Frampton, ASU, 6-81

Memphis 7 at South Alabama 30
Leading Passer: CJ Bennett, USA, 17-28, 279-3-0
Leading Rusher: Jerrell Rhodes, Memphis, 13-93
Leading Receiver: Billy Foster, Memphis 4-87



South Central Conference Report:
Two 4-0 teams in Division 1, LSU and Houston, are all set to meet in Round 5 for what could be for the division crown. LSU showed its defensive prowess by shutting out in-state school UL-Monroe. Meanwhile, the Cougars continued their offensive barrage with another 50-plus point performance, their third of the season, in a 50-17 win at UL-Lafayette.

In Division 2, Arkansas cruised to yet another win to move to 4-0. The Razorbacks are thought to have the easiest path in the nation towards earning a #1 seed in the tournament. If things continue as they are, Arkansas should be 7-0 when they face off against either LSU or Houston.

There's no denying that the Tigers of Baton Rouge will have their problems next week. Once again, Case Keenum of Houston is the South Central Conference Player of the Week. He earned his keep this week by connecting on 26 of 31 passes for 347 yards and 2 touchdowns.

Round 4 - Southwest Conference
 

Baylor 38 at Texas 45
The game was back and forth until late in the fourth when Texas scored 14 straight to take a 45-31 lead. Baylor scored meaningless points with 7 seconds left for the 45-38 final.
Both teams had some great offensive performances coupled with poor defense. Each team had a 100-yard rusher. Terrance Ganaway led the Bears with 158 yards rushing on 23 carries and a touchdown. The Longhorns were led by Malcolm Brown with 162 yards on 23 carries.
Each team also had a great QB performance. Robert Griffin completed 17 of 21 passes for 364 yards and 4 TDs, but he did have a costly interception. Case McCoy outplayed Griffin by going 16 of 24 for 353 yards, 4 TDs, and no interceptions.
Leading Passer: Case McCoy, Texas, 16-24, 353-4-0
Leading Rusher: Terrance Ganaway, Baylor, 23-158-1
Leading Receiver: Kendall Wright, Baylor, 5-116-1

New Mexico State 30 at UTSA 34
The Roadrunners scored the winning touchdown with 4:27 left when Eric Soza connected with Jake Wanamaker on a 5-yard pass.
Leading Passer: Matt Christian, NMSU, 23-41, 353-2-0
Leading Rusher: Evans Okotcha, UTSA, 26-161-1
Leading Receiver: Todd Lee, NMSU, 4-89-1


Out of time for the day. I'll continue the Southwest Conference tomorrow.

NO! Right before I could miss another Kansas loss!

SI

Round 4 - Southwest Conference (cont.)
 

Not this week! :D

New Mexico 3 at UTEP 28
Leading Passer: Nick Lamaison, UTEP, 21-35-231-2-0
Leading Rusher: Leilyon Myers, UTEP, 14-86-2
Leading Receiver: Ty Kirk, NM, 6-57

Texas Tech 48 at Texas State 24
Texas Tech racked up nearly 500 yards in doubling up the Bobcats. Seth Doege went 24 of 40 for 255 yards and threw 3 TDs, two to Eric Ward. Eric Stephens only rushed for 54 yards for the Red Raiders, but he ran for three scores to help Texas Tech improve to 3-1.
Leading Passer: Shaun Rutherford, TSU, 26-37-324-2-0
Leading Rusher: Marcus Curry, TSU, 29-115
Leading Receiver: Eric Ward, TTU, 6-74-2

Kansas 38 at North Texas 22
Leading Passer: Derek Thompson, NT, 17-33-206-1-0
Leading Rusher: James Sims, KU, 23-172
Leading Receiver: Lance Dunbar, NT, 3-54

Oklahoma State 48 at Tulsa 35
Joseph Randle rushed for 134 yards on 19 carries with a TD and caught 3 passes for 27 yards and a TD to lead the Cowboys in their road win on a day when Brandon Weeden’s turnovers kept the Golden Hurricane in the game.
Leading Passer: Brandon Weeden, OSU, 30-46-461-3-3
Leading Rusher: Ja’Terian Douglas, Tulsa, 12-167-1
Leading Receiver: Justin Blackmon, OSU, 10-142

Oklahoma 34 at Kansas State 29
The Sooners took a 24-13 lead into halftime and got just enough in the second half to hold off the Wildcats.
Leading Passer: Landry Jones, OU, 18-30-243-2-1
Leading Rusher: Roy Finch, OU, 25-145-1
Leading Receiver: Chris Harper, KSU, 1-83-1

TCU 64 at SMU 34
In a high-scoring affair, the Mustangs went into halftime with a 31-28 lead. However, TCU outscored SMU 36-3 in the second half for the blowout win. Casey Pachall led the way for the Horned Frogs by going 21 of 31 for 304 yards and 3 TDs. The Mustangs were paced by the play of quarterback JJ McDermott, who threw for 447 yards, 4 TDs and 2 interceptions. He had three players with around or over 100 yards receiving. Darius Johnson led the way with 7 catches for 166 yards and 2 TDs. Cole Beasley had 8 catches for 133 yards and a TD> Der’rikk Thompson added 5 receptions for 89 yards and a TD.
Leading Passer: JJ McDermott, SMU, 26-51-447-4-2
Leading Rusher: Waymon James, TCU, 12-86-1
Leading Receiver: Darius Johnson, SMU 7-166-2



Southwest Conference Report:
Did someone say defense? We didn't think so!

Except for the 28-3 UTEP win over New Mexico, every other Southwest Conference game featured the winner scoring at least 34 points and four losers scoring over 30. Kansas State just missed out on that category by scoring 29 against Oklahoma.

With the flux of scoring, we have real battle on our hands determining this week's player of the week award. Maybe listing the finalists might help us decide.
RB Evans Okotcha, UTSA, 26-161-1
QB Case McCoy, Texas, 16-24, 353-4-0
QB Robert Griffin, Baylor, 17-21, 364-4-1
QB Matt Christian, NMSU, 23-41, 353-2-0
RB James Sims, KU, 23-172
QB Shaun Rutherford, TSU, 26-37-324-2-0
RB Ja’Terian Douglas, Tulsa, 12-167-1
RB Joseph Randle, OSU, 161 total yards, 2 TDs
WR Darius Johnson, SMU 7-166-2
QB JJ McDermott, SMU, 26-51-447-4-2
QB Brandon Weeden, OSU, 30-46-461-3-3

It's hard to decide based on the high number of offensive numbers, but not that hard. We're going to go with the young QB who helped his team gain sole possession of first place. Therefore, the Southwest Conference Player of the Week Award goes to Chase McCoy of Texas.

With three weeks to play, and the Longhorns' big win against Baylor and the power saw that is Robert Griffin, Texas and Oklahoma are on track to meet each other for the Southwest Conference championship. Of course, the Sooners must get past in-state rival Oklahoma State, but at least one traditional classic could determine who goes in as a one seed in the NCAA 128 Tournament.

Round 4 Wrap Up
 

Call this an evolving dynasty as I am still working on getting my foothold on design and what to put as output. Screen grabbing each and every game is just too cumbersome, and really, the "regular season" does nothing but grant each team a seed in the tournament. EVERY team will make it to the postseason tournament, so it only really matters in the end. Of course, there could be some matchup problems for some teams, but we'll see when we get there!

Here is the Round 4 Wrap Up:

We are four weeks in, and some divisions are starting to take shape while others are just as jumbled as they were in the first week. A few teams definitely made statements this week, winning big games to give them an edge in their divisions.

Texas is one of those teams. Though they do not play in a strong division, the Robert Griffin-led Baylor Bears were expected to be strong contenders to take Division 1 of the Southwest Conference. Instead, Texas stands a game ahead of Baylor with a 4-0 record, thanks to Case McCoy's play in a 45-38 Longhorns' win.

Another team that put itself into good position to take the division crown is the East Conference's Virginia Tech. The Hokies edged Florida State 17-16 thanks to a missed extra point attempt in the last minute of the game that would have sent the game to overtime. Instead, Virginia Tech now holds a one game lead over the Seminoles.

The most interesting conference four weeks in is the Northeast Conference. In each division, three teams are tied for first place heading into the stretch. In Division 1, Boston College, Connecticut, and Rutgers all sit at 3-1. They also have three more teams right behind them at 2-2. Penn State, Temple, and West Virginia are all 4-0 in Division 2, and those three teams will play each other in a round robin elimination in the coming weeks.

This week's National Player of the Week Award will be determined from the eight conference winners. They are:
West: RB Johnathan Franklin, UCLA, 17-113-3
Northwest: RB Montee Ball, Wisconsin, 23-215-3
North: RB Edwin Baker, MSU, 16-112-5
Northeast: QB Chas Dodd, Rutgers, 24-36, 403-2-0
East: QB Sean Renfree, Duke, 31-53, 410-2-1
Southeast: QB John Brantley, Florida, 33-47, 470-3-1
South: QB Case Keenum, Houston, 26-31, 347-2-0
Southwest: QB QB Case McCoy, Texas, 16-24, 353-4-0

And the National Player of the Week Award goes to...

Montee Ball, RB, Wisconsin

Here are our conference-by-conference rankings, followed by the season standings:

West Conference: 1. Oregon, 2. USC, 3. Stanford
Northwest Conference: 1. Wisconsin, 2. Boise State, 3. Missouri
North Conference: 1. Michigan State, 2. Michigan, 3. Notre Dame
Northeast Conference: 1. West Virginia, 2. Penn State, 3. Rutgers
East Conference: 1. South Carolina, 2. Virginia Tech, 3. Florida State
Southeast Conference: 1. Alabama, 2. Florida, 3. Georgia
South Central Conference: 1. Arkansas, 2. LSU, 3. Houston
Southwest Conference: 1. Oklahoma, 2. Oklahoma State, 3. Texas


NCAA 128 Standings:

Round 5 Preview
 

Here are some of the interesting match ups for Round 5:

West Conference:
USC (3-1) at UCLA (3-1) - Winner is in sole possession of first place in Division 1 and on track to win the division.
Stanford (3-1) at Oregon (4-0) - Andrew Luck and the Cardinal try to wrestle control of Division 2 from the Ducks.

Northwest Conference:
Missouri (4-0) at Iowa (3-1) - The Tigers try to maintain their perfect record when they travel to Iowa.

North Conference:
Cincinnati (4-0) at Louisville (2-2) - The Bearcats have the division lead, but they could have a tough time against the Cardinals and upstart QB Teddy Bridgewater.

Northeast Conference:
Penn State (4-0) at Temple (4-0) - The battle for Pennsylvania dominance in perhaps the first of elimination games in Division 2.

East Conference:
North Carolina (4-0) at Clemson (3-1) - Division favorite Clemson must knock off the Tar Heels and their surprising start.

Southeast Conference:
Vanderbilt (4-0) at Alabama (4-0) - The Commodores could prove they are big time by knocking off the Crimson Tide in a battle for first place in Division 2.

South Central Conference:
Houston (4-0) at LSU (4-0) - Case Keenum and the high-powered Cougars attack visit Baton Rouge and the overpowering LSU defense. The winner takes control of Division 1.
Arkansas State (3-1) at Mississippi State (3-1) - Both teams trail Arkansas (4-0), but the winner appears to be on the inside track towards a 3rd or 4th seed in the NCAA 128 Tournament.

Southwest Conference:
Texas Tech (3-1) at Baylor (3-1) - A probable high-scoring game where the winner gets a boost towards a high seed in the NCAA 128 Tournament.
SMU (3-1) at Oklahoma (4-0) - The Mustangs have a chance to get back in the division chase after their home loss at the hands of TCU.

Round 5 - West Conference
 

UNLV 18 at Arizona 44
Leading Passer: Nick Foles, Arizona, 31-50-329-5-2
Leading Rusher: Dionza Bradford, UNLV, 18-101
Leading Receiver: Juron Criner, Arizona, 8-85-1

USC 51 at UCLA 14
Leading Passer: Matt Barkley, USC, 29-36-317-1-0
Leading Rusher: Curtis McNeal, USC, 21-132-4
Leading Receiver: Robert Woods, USC, 10-124

Arizona State 24 at San Jose State 27
Leading Passer: Matt Faulkner, SJSU, 32-50-354-3-1
Leading Rusher: Cameron Marshall, ASU, 22-90-1
Leading Receiver: Noel Grigsby, SJSU, 9-94-1

Fresno State 19 at San Diego State 42
Leading Passer: Derek Carr, FSU, 30-44-312-1-0
Leading Rusher: Ronnie Hillman, SDSU, 28-129-1 and Adam Muema, 8-109-3
Leading Receiver: Jalen Saunders, FSU, 5-82

California 25 at Washington 48
Leading Passer: Zach Maynard, Cal, 27-45-344-1-3
Leading Rusher: Isi Sofele, Cal, 23-156-1
Leading Receiver: Keenan Allen, Cal, 9-125

Stanford 34 at Oregon 41
Leading Passer: Andrew Luck, Stanford, 18-28-339-2-1
Leading Rusher: LaMichael James, OU, 24-180-3
Leading Receiver: Ty Montgomery, Stanford, 3-96-1

Washington State 29 at Oregon State 36
Sean Mannion connected with James Rodgers from 15 yards out with just 21 seconds left to give the Beavers the home win. The Cougars fought back from a 28-12 deficit to start the fourth and took a 29-28 lead on an 8-yard Rickey Galvin run with 1:36 left. Oregon State then got possession and marched down the field for the game-winning score.
Leading Passer: Sean Mannion, OSU, 25-42-330-4-0
Leading Rusher: Rickey Galvin, WSU, 15-54-2
Leading Receiver: James Rodgers, OSU, 6-119-2

Hawaii 10 at Nevada 13
Leading Passer: Bryant Moniz, Hawaii, 19-33-190-0-1
Leading Rusher: Lampford Mark, Nevada, 22-100-1
Leading Receiver: Royce Pollard, Hawaii, 6-77


West Conference Game of the Week: Oregon 41, Stanford 34

In a fight to the finish, the Ducks outlasted the Cardinal when Kenjon Barner ran on for his second touchdown of the game with just three seconds left. Stanford had battled back late in the fourth quarter, kicking a field goal with 4:37 left and then scoring on a 78-yard interception return with 1:35 left to tie the game at 34.

LaMichael James and Barner each rushed for over 100 yards for Oregon. Stepfan Taylor led Stanford with 72 yards rushing and a TD.

Stanford took a 14-7 lead in the first quarter on a three-yard touchdown pass from Andrew luck to Griff Whalen. However, Oregon scored 24 straight points to end the half with a 31-14 lead. James scored all three second quarter touchdowns from 23, 76, and 2 yards out to give the Ducks the big lead.

The Cardinal answered by scoring ten in the third quarter to cut the Oregon lead to 31-24.



West Conference Report:
With USC's win at UCLA, they sit in the driver's seat for the Division 1 crown. The Trojans (4-1) host San Jose State (3-2) and Fresno State (2-3) to finish out the season, and should easily move on to play the winner of Division 2.

Right now, the Ducks of Oregon (5-0) look to be the best of the division with their thrilling win over Stanford. Oregon State (4-1) is still in the hunt, though, and the civil war between the Ducks and Beavers could determined the Division 2 crown if both teams win next week.

Speaking of the Oregon state civil war, the West Conference Player of the Week came down to two outstanding players from those conferences. LaMichael James was outstanding for Oregon in its win over Stanford, rushing for 180 yards and 3 TDs. However, Oregon State's Sean Mannion had the most outstanding day. He was 25 of 42 for 330 yards with four TDs, including the game-winner with 21 seconds left.

Round 5 - Northwest Conference
 

Utah 30 at Boise State 28 (Upset special)
Leading Passer: Kellen Moore, BSU 33-49-321-3-1
Leading Rusher: John White, Utah, 31-139-2
Leading Receiver: Kyle Efaw, BSU, 5-58

Utah State 17 at BYU 24
BYU needed a late touchdown on a 45-yard Michael Alisa run to dispose of the Aggies.
Leading Passer: Adam Kennedy, USU, 16-29-259-1-0
Leading Rusher: Michael Alisa, BYU, 4-116-1
Leading Receiver: Stanley Morrison, USU, 4-113

Idaho 31 at Colorado State 36
Leading Passer: Pete Thomas, CSU, 20-36-231-3-3
Leading Rusher: Princeton McCarty, Idaho, 17-55
Leading Receiver: Lou Greenwood, CSU, 5-55

Air Force 48 at Colorado 13
The Falcons rushed 74 times for 356 yards to win at Colorado. Wes Cobb led Air Force with 92 yards rushing and a TD. Darius Jones and Cody Getz each added two rushing touchdowns apiece for Air Force.
Leading Passer: Tyler Hansen, Colorado, 18-34-278-0-1
Leading Rusher: Rodney Stewart, Colorado, 16-106-1
Leading Receiver: Paul Richardson, Colorado, 3-95

Missouri 21 at Iowa 37
Leading Passer: James Vandenberg, Iowa, 20-33-309-4-1
Leading Rusher: Marcus Coker, Iowa, 36-252
Leading Receiver: Keenan Davis, Iowa, 4-125-2

Northwestern 28 at Wisconsin 42
Leading Passer: Dan Persa, Northwestern, 25-36-348-4-2
Leading Rusher: Montee Ball, Wisconsin, 31-187-2
Leading Receiver: Jeremy Ebert, Northwestern, 7-108-2

Iowa State 19 at Nebraska 20
The Cornhuskers trailed 19-7 late in the fourth quarter, but rallied for the win over the Cyclones. Taylor Martinez scored his first of two TDs on a 46-yard run with 4:25 left to cut the Iowa State lead to 19-14. Martinez then scored the game-winning touchdown with just 33 seconds left when he scampered in from 12 yards out. The two-point conversion attempt failed for the final 20-19 score.
Leading Passer: Jared Barnett, ISU, 13-33-142-1-0
Leading Rusher: Rex Burkhead, Nebraska, 27-143-1 and James White, ISU, 17-152-1
Leading Receiver: Darius Reynolds, ISU, 3-44

Minnesota 16 at Wyoming 26
Leading Passer: Brett Smith, Wyoming, 17-31-237-1-0
Leading Rusher: Duane Bennett, Minnesota, 18-95
Leading Receiver: Dominic Rufran, Wyoming, 4-76



Northwest Conference Report:

There maybe no bigger upset in the country this season than the one Utah pulled at Boise State. The Broncos (4-1) were expected to run away with the Division 1 crown, but they were defeated at home by the Utes (3-2). Despite the loss, Boise State still is in position to win the division championship, thanks to dismantling BYU (4-1) a couple of weeks ago.

In Division 2, Wisconsin (5-0) got a little breathing room after Iowa (4-1) easily handled Missouri (4-1) at home. Iowa is still in contention for the Division 2 championship, but they will need Missouri to handle the Badgers next week to have a shot. The Hawkeyes fell to Wisconsin 31-21 two weeks ago.

The Player of the Week award came down to two teammates this week. In racking up over 600 offensive yards this week, Iowa by far had the most impressive victory. Marcus Coker contributed to that offensive output by rushing for 252 yards. Had he put the ball in the endzone a couple of times, he would be in contention for player of the week. Instead, his quarterback, James Vandenberg, won this week's award. Vandenberg was 20 of 33 for 309 yards with 4 touchdowns and an interception.

Round 5 - North Conference
 

Toledo 33 at Ball State 27
Leading Passer: Terrance Owens, Toledo, 24-37-344-0-0
Leading Rusher: Adonis Thomas, Toledo, 28-142-3
Leading Receiver: Eric Page, Toledo, 12-176

Cincinnati 20 at Louisville 13
Leading Passer: Teddy Bridgewater, UL, 31-48-382-2-2
Leading Rusher: Isaiah Pead, UC, 17-83
Leading Receiver: Josh Chichester, UL, 4-69

Indiana 17 at Miami (OH) 31
Leading Passer: Zac Dysert, Miami (OH), 23-36-382-4-0
Leading Rusher: Stephen Houston, Indiana, 19-112
Leading Receiver: Nick Harwell, Miami (OH), 10-201-3

Ohio State 28 at Purdue 43
Leading Passer: Caleb TerBush, Purdue, 20-33-249-2-0
Leading Rusher: Ralph Bolden, Purdue, 20-125-1
Leading Receiver: Justin Siller, Purdue, 4-66

Notre Dame 7 at Western Michigan 34 (upset special)
Leading Passer: Alex Carder, WMU, 22-32-287-3-1
Leading Rusher: Tevin Drake, WMU, 17-129-1
Leading Receiver: Jordan White, WMU, 11-152-1

Illinois 9 at Michigan 30
Leading Passer: Denard Robinson, Michigan, 6-12-98-1-0
Leading Rusher: Fitzgerald Toussaint, Michigan, 20-104-2
Leading Receiver: AJ Jenkins, Illinois, 3-34

Eastern Michigan 13 at Michigan State 41
Leading Passer: Kirk Cousins, MSU, 16-32-269-2-0
Leading Rusher: Le’Veon Bell, MSU, 16-89-1
Leading Receiver: BJ Cunningham, MSU, 5-123-1

Central Michigan 37 at Northern Illinois 34, OT
NIU took a 34-24 lead with 14:26 left in the game when Chandler Harnish connected with Luke Eakes on a two-yard pass. However, the Huskies could not score again in falling at home to Central Michigan.

The Chippewas got a 23-yard field goal from David Harman with 3:30 remaining. With just 7 seconds left in the game, Ryan Radcliff hit Jason Wilson on a 16-yard pass to tie the game at 34 and send it to overtime.

In overtime, Harman kicked a 31-yarder to give Central Michigan a 37-34 lead. The Huskies were not as lucky, though, as Mathew Sims’ 41-yard attempt sailed wide right, giving the Chippewas their first victory.

Leading Passer: Ryan Radcliff, CMU, 31-52-392-4-2
Leading Rusher: Jasmin Hopkins, NIU, 21-140-1
Leading Receiver: Cody Wilson, CMU, 6-78



North Conference Report:
Cincinnati (5-0) has clinched at least a tie for the Division 1 championship, and the Bearcats get a chance to clinch the division with a win over Miami of Ohio (3-2) or Ohio State (3-2) in the last two weeks.

In Division 2, Michigan State (5-0) continues to steam along for the division lead. Michigan (4-1) is the only team still in division contention, assuming no complicated tie breaker scenarios come into play. The Spartans and Wolverines meet in Round 7 in what should determine the championship.

Notre Dame (3-2) fell in the North Conference upset of the week. Western Michigan (2-3) had been struggling so far this season, but the Broncos dominated the Fighting Irish throughout the game in a 34-7 win.

The game of the week had to be the Chippewas of Central Michigan (1-4) getting their first victory, a 37-34 triumph over Northern Illinois (3-2) whose only previous loss had been in Round 1 to Michigan State.

The Player of the Week award goes to Nick Harwell of Miami (OH). The talented receiver caught 10 passes for 201 yards and three touchdowns in the RedHawks' 31-17 win over Indiana (0-5).

Round 5 - Northeast Conference
 

Boston College 32 at Army 40
Leading Passer: Chase Rettig, BC, 19-36-217-4-1
Leading Rusher: Raymond Maples, Army, 20-219-1
Leading Receiver: Alex Amidon, BC, 4-60-1

Bowling Green 27 at Connecticut 20
Eugene Cooper scored on a four-yard pass from Matt Schilz with 7:23 left to make the difference in the Falcons’ road victory at Connecticut.
Leading Passer: Johnny McEntee, Conn, 16-35-254-1-0
Leading Rusher: Jamel Martin, BGSU, 12-109
Leading Receiver: Kamar Jorden, BGSU, 6-90

Buffalo 47 at Massachusetts 50, 3 OT
The Minutemen earned their first victory with an exciting game-winning touchdown in the third overtime. After Patrick Clarke kicked a 44-yard field goal to give the Bulls a 47-44 lead, Massachusetts answered to gain the win. Kellen Pagel connected with Tom Gilson on a seven-yard pass and the Minutemen were able to celebrate escaping at home.
Leading Passer: Chazz Anderson, Buffalo, 27-44-332-3-1
Leading Rusher: Branden Oliver, Buffalo, 33-140-2
Leading Receiver: Julian Talley, Mass, 6-88

Syracuse 20 at Rutgers 41
Leading Passer: Chas Dodd, Rutgers, 24-40-350-4-0
Leading Rusher: Antwon Bailey, Syracuse, 24-112
Leading Receiver: Mohamed Sanu, Rutgers, 10-107-1

Pittsburgh 34 at Akron 14
Leading Passer: Tino Sunseri, Pitt, 25-33-258-2-1
Leading Rusher: Isaac Bennett, Pitt, 19-62-2
Leading Receiver: Marquelo Suel, Akron, 2-64-1

Penn State 19 at Temple 29
Anthony Fera connected on a 41-yard field goal to give the Nittany Lions a 19-17 lead in the fourth. Temple tied the game, though with 5:55 left on a safety. They scored twice more in the game, including the game-winning touchdown with 4:10 left when Matt Brown ran in from five yards out.
Leading Passer: Matt McGloin, PSU, 16-38-277-0-1
Leading Rusher: Matt Brown, Temple, 15-121-3 and Bernard Pierce, Temple, 32-121
Leading Receiver: Devon Smith, PSU, 4-101

Kent State 9 at West Virginia 35
Leading Passer: Geno Smith, WVU, 26-40-330-2-1
Leading Rusher: Dustin Garrison, WVU, 16-118
Leading Receiver: Tavon Austin, WVU, 7-120-1

Ohio 26 at Maryland 13
Leading Passer: Tyler Tettleton, Ohio, 23-31-236-1-0
Leading Rusher: Davin Meggett, Maryland, 17-115
Leading Receiver: Quintin McCree, Maryland, 2-73



Northeast Conference Report:
With its 29-19 victory over Penn State (4-1), the Temple Owls (5-0) made significant progress in gaining momentum towards winning the Division 2 crown. The Round 7 match up against West Virginia (5-0) could very well be for a top seed going into the tournament.

In Division 1, Rutgers now sits alone in first place thanks to their win over Syracuse (2-3) and Boston College (3-2) losing 40-32 at Army (2-3). Division 1 is a jumbled mess, though, and a Rutgers loss in the last two weeks could take this division very deep into tie breaker scenarios where there could be a four-way logjam.

The Player of the Week is Rutger's quarterback Chas Dodd. He was flawless in the the Scarlet Knights' victory, going 24 of 40 for 350 and four touchdowns.

Round 5 - Southwest Conference
 

Texas Tech 28 at Baylor 47
Leading Passer: Seth Doege, TTU, 28-47-355-3-2
Leading Rusher: Terrance Ganaway, Baylor, 27-141-1
Leading Receiver: Eric Ward, TTU, 8-136-1

Texas State 31 at New Mexico 34
Leading Passer: BR Holbrook, NMU, 20-30-236-3-0
Leading Rusher: Tim Hawkins, TSU, 29-183-1
Leading Receiver: Ty Kirk, NMU, 6-77-1

UTEP 37 at New Mexico State 41, OT
Matt Christian connected on a 24-yard touchdown with Taveon Rodgers with 1:18 left to make the score 34-32 in favor of the Miners. Robert Clay then ran in the two-point try to tie the game and send it to overtime. In overtime, Dakota Warren kicked a 37-yard field goal to give UTEP the 37-34 lead. However, Kenny Turner ran the ball in from five yards out to give the Aggies the victory.
Leading Passer: Nick Lamaison, UTEP, 26-46-352-2-3
Leading Rusher: Matt Christian, NMSU, 13-56
Leading Receiver: Taveon Rodgers, NMSU, 5-120-1

UTSA 0 at Texas 55
Leading Passer: Case McCoy, Texas, 19-29-252-4-0
Leading Rusher: Malcolm Brown, Texas, 27-92-2
Leading Receiver: Marquise Goodwin, Texas, 4-60

TCU 42 at Kansas 28
Leading Passer: Jordan Webb, Kansas, 17-28-277-3-0
Leading Rusher: James Sims, Kansas, 22-110-1
Leading Receiver: Kale Pick, Kansas, 5-101-1

SMU 20 at Oklahoma 40
Leading Passer: JJ McDermott, SMU, 20-44-292-1-0
Leading Rusher: Roy Finch, Oklahoma, 25-174-2
Leading Receiver: Kenny Stills, Oklahoma, 5-110-1

Kansas State 27 at Oklahoma State 55
Leading Passer: Brandon Weeden, OSU, 41-52-525-7-1
Leading Rusher: John Hubert, KSU, 18-159-2
Leading Receiver: Justin Blackmon, OSU, 11-132-4

Tulsa 24 at North Texas 10
Leading Passer: GJ Kinne, Tulsa, 18-32-191-2-1
Leading Rusher: Trey Watts, Tulsa, 20-105
Leading Receiver: Ivan Delgado, NTU, 3-66


Southwest Conference Report:
Division 1 is shaping up to be anti-climactic to end the season. Texas (5-0) leads the division, trailed closely by Baylor (4-1). However, since the Longhorns were triumphant in the teams' Round 4 match up, Texas can clinch the division with a win next week at UTEP (3-2).

Division 2 is not as clear and could come down to some important games to finish the season. Oklahoma and Oklahoma State are both 5-0, trailed by TCU at 4-1. The Sooners have to meet both Oklahoma State and the Horned Frogs to close out the season, and that could help to shape the rest of the division.

The week's Player of the Week is an easy one to pick. Brandon Weeden of Oklahoma State was 41 of 52 for 525 yards with 7 touchdowns and an interception in the Cowboys' 55-27 thrashing of Kansas State. Weeded connected with his top receiver, Justin Blackmon, for four touchdowns. Blackmon finished with 11 receptions for 132 yards.

Round 5 - South Central Conference
 

Houston 13 at LSU 37
The Cougars took a 13-10 lead midway through the second quarter, but after that it was all Tigers in the battle for first place. LSU scored the next 27 points in the game to cruise to an easy victory.
Leading Passer: Case Keenum, Houston, 27-47-307-2-1
Leading Rusher: Michael Ford, LSU, 13-121-2
Leading Receiver: Patrick Edwards, Houston, 7-114-1

UL-Lafayette 27 at Rice 24
Brett Baer connected on a 24-yard field goal with no time left to give UL-Lafayette the road victory over Rice. The Ragin’ Cajuns tied the game with 3:40 left on an 11-yard Alonzo Harris run with 3:40 left. The game was a back and forth affair throughout with five lead changes.
Leading Passer: Blaine Gautier, ULL, 17-28-284-1-0
Leading Rusher: Tyler Smith, Rice, 16-155-1
Leading Receiver: Harry Peoples, ULL, 5-125

Louisiana Tech 31 at Texas A&M 35
In another thrilling South Central Conference game, Cyrus Gray broke off for a 45-yard game-winning touchdown run with just 58 seconds left to lift the Aggies over Louisiana Tech. The Bulldogs had just taken the lead 30 seconds earlier when Lennon Creer scored from five yards out. Louisiana Tech trailed nearly the entire game before taking the late lead.
Leading Passer: Ryan Tannehill, TAMU, 22-35-346-3-3
Leading Rusher: Cyrus Gray, TAMU, 24-144-2
Leading Receiver: Ryan Swope, TAMU, 4-103

Tulane 17 at UL-Monroe 21
Leading Passer: Ryan Griffin, Tulane, 20-40-375-2-2
Leading Rusher: Centarius Donald, ULM, 11-65-1
Leading Receiver: Matt Marfisi, Tulane, 3-141-1

Memphis 10 at Arkansas 47
Leading Passer: Tyler Wilson, Arkansas, 28-31-341-4-1
Leading Rusher: Dennis Johnson, Arkansas, 14-113
Leading Receiver: Jarius Wright, Arkansas, 5-66-1

South Alabama 14 at Ole Miss 33
Leading Passer: Randall Mackey, Miss, 20-26-295-1-0
Leading Rusher: Kndall Houston, USA, 20-92
Leading Receiver: Donte Moncrief, Miss, 3-74

Arkansas State 29 at Mississippi State 19
Brian Davis kicked five field goals to help the Red Wolves defeat Mississippi State in Starkville. Arkansas State did not need a lot of offense, totaling 238 yards in the game. It was the defense that made the difference, picking off Bulldogs’ QB Chris Relf four times and recovering two fumbles to make the difference.
Leading Passer: Chris Relf, MSU, 21-35-299-0-4
Leading Rusher: Vick Ballard, MSU, 21-56-1
Leading Receiver: Arceto Clark, MSU, 5-99

UAB 0 at Southern Miss 40
Leading Passer: Austin Davis, USM, 20-29-292-4-0
Leading Rusher: Jamal Woodyard, USM, 18-82
Leading Receiver: Tracy Lampley, USM, 4-75-2



South Central Conference Report:
LSU (5-0) made a huge statement in both the conference and national title pictures with its blowout win over the previously undefeated Houston Cougars (4-1). In what was billed a tough match up between defensive and offensive powerhouses, the Tigers stomped on the throats of the Cougars and made Case Keenum look mortal for the first time all season. LSU can clinch Division 1 next week with a win over traditional rival Tulane (0-5).

In Division 2, Arkansas State (4-1) made its power play by winning at Mississippi State (3-2). The Red Wolves now trail only Arkansas (5-0), and those two teams meet in two weeks for what could be the Division 2 crown.

With Keenum's struggles in Baton Rouge, it opened the door for a different South Central Conference Player of the Week for the first time this season. That honor goes to Texas A&M's Cyrus Gray. The running back rushed 24 times for 144 and two touchdowns, with both of his touchdowns coming in the fourth quarter. The final touchdown was a 45-yard game-winning run with 58 seconds left in the Aggies' 35-31 win over Louisiana Tech.

Round 5 - Southeast Conference
 

UCF 20 at Georgia 38
Leading Passer: Jeff Godfrey, UCF, 21-39-230-1-1
Leading Rusher: Isaiah Crowell, UGA, 26-148-1
Leading Receiver: Malcolm Mitchell, UGA, 4-77-1

FAU 17 at Florida 67
Leading Passer: John Brantley, UF, 26-36-347-3-2
Leading Rusher: Chris Rainey, UF, 23-129-2
Leading Receiver: Chris Rainey, UF, 6-87

Georgia State 10 at USF 27
Leading Passer: BJ Daniels, USF, 17-27-206-0-0
Leading Rusher: Darrell Scott, USF, 18-120-3
Leading Receiver: Darrell Scott, USF, 3-59

Georgia Tech 52 at Georgia Southern 13
Leading Passer: Jaybo Shaw, GSU, 15-36-215-1-4
Leading Rusher: Orwin Smith, GT, 13-242-4
Leading Receiver: Zach Walker, GSU, 4-67-1

Troy 23 at Kentucky 41
Leading Passer: Corey Robinson, Troy, 33-51-404-3-0
Leading Rusher: CoShik Williams, UK, 19-106-1
Leading Receiver: Eric Thomas, Troy, 5-90

Vanderbilt 21 at Alabama 62
Leading Passer: AJ McCarron, Alabama, 22-29-309-4-1
Leading Rusher: Trent Richardson, Alabama, 33-218-2
Leading Receiver: Trent Richardson, Alabama, 3-93-1

Western Kentucky 7 at Auburn 14
Leading Passer: Barrett Trotter, Auburn, 27-59-368-2-1
Leading Rusher: Bobby Rainey, WKU, 36-213
Leading Receiver: Philip Lutzenkirchen, Auburn, 5-95-1

Tennessee 48 at MTSU 14
Leading Passer: Tyler Bray, Tennessee, 26-38-302-5-1
Leading Rusher: Marlin Lane, Tennessee, 12-76-1
Leading Receiver: Da’Rick Rogers, Tennessee, 6-81-2




Southeast Conference Report:
This round represented the week of the blowouts, with the only game within a score being Auburn's 14-7 win over Western Kentucky thanks to the Hilltoppers scoring with under a minute left in the game. Otherwise, every other game was at least a three-score difference.

Alabama (5-0) took solo possession of first place in Division 2 with its 62-21 shellacking of previously undefeated Vanderbilt (4-1). Auburn and Tennessee both improved to 4-1 in the most lopsided division in all of college football. Four teams have at worst a 4-1 record, while the other four teams have at best a 1-4 record. Still, the bottom of the division could play spoilers in determining seeds for the conference.

In Division 1, Florida (5-0) continued its stellar season with a 67-17 dismantling of Florida Atlantic (1-4). The Gators can clinch the division next week with a win at Central Florida (2-3). Both Georgia and Georgia Tech sit at 4-1, but the Gators took care of both of those teams earlier in the season.

There were lots of outstanding performances in the conference this week, but Player of the Week honors must go to a player that simply takes over games. Alabama's Trent Richardson rushed 33 times for 218 yards and two touchdowns, and he caught three passes for 93 yards and a touchdown. Richardson should have a good shot at getting National Player of the Week for his performance.

Round 5 - East Conference
 

North Carolina State 40 at UNC-Charlotte 7
Leading Passer: Mike Glennon, NCSU, 22-38-373-3-0
Leading Rusher: James Washington, NCSU, 20-120
Leading Receiver: TJ Graham, NCSU, 4-118-1

Duke 7 at South Carolina 30
Leading Passer: Connor Shaw, S Car, 16-22-195-0-0
Leading Rusher: Brandon Wilds, S Car, 21-103-1
Leading Receiver: Conner Vernon, Duke, 4-73

East Carolina 16 at Wake Forest 45
Leading Passer: Tanner Price, WF, 19-24-322-2-0
Leading Rusher: Brandon Pendergrass, WF, 18-97-4
Leading Receiver: Chris Givens, WF, 5-114-1

FIU 45 at Virginia 38
In a game of back and forth streaks, Florida International broke the streak to gain the huge road victory.

Virginia blasted its way to an early 17-7 lead in the game, but the Golden Panthers answered by scoring the next 31 points to take a 38-17 lead into the fourth quarter. The game was hardly over at that point, with the Cavaliers scoring 21 straight, capped off by Michael Rocco connecting with Tim Smith for a 17-yard touchdown with 8:52 left in the game.

The Golden Panthers were not ready to fold, though, and Kedrick Rhodes scored the game-winning touchdown with 4:18 left when he ran around right end for 55 yards. After, Virginia was unable to continue its offensive success.

Leading Passer: Michael Rocco, UVA, 26-37-335-3-4
Leading Rusher: Kedrick Rhodes, FIU, 21-214-3
Leading Receiver: Darius Jennings, UVA, 3-91-1

Navy 27 at Florida State 50
Leading Passer: EJ Manuel, FSU, 21-30-355-2-0
Leading Rusher: Alexander Teich, Navy, 19-130
Leading Receiver: Brandon Turner, Navy, 3-81-1

Virginia Tech 26 at Miami (FL) 17
Leading Passer: Jacory Harris, Miami, 21-32-274-1-2
Leading Rusher: David Wilson, VT, 26-236-1
Leading Receiver: Clive Walford, Miami, 4-84-1

Marshall 31 at Old Dominion 17
Leading Passer: Rakeem Cato, Marshall, 21-34-246-2-2
Leading Rusher: Tron Martinez, Marshall, 23-86
Leading Receiver: Aaron Dobson, Marshall, 4-70

Game of the Week: North Carolina 28 at Clemson 31
The Tigers fought off a North Carolina storm and Chandler Catanzaro kicked the game-winning field goal with 4:35 left to give Clemson the win.

Clemson took a 21-7 early in the second half when Sammy Watkins ran in from 27 yards out. However, the Tar Heels answered with a 12-yard Ryan Houston run to make it 21-14. On the next offensive play for Clemson, Tajh Boyd’s pass was off the mark, giving UNC the ball at the Clemson 30. The Tar Heels wasted no time, scoring on a 30-yard Giovani Bernard run on the first play to tie the game.

North Carolina then took its first lead since it was 7-0 in the first when Bryn Renner connected with Jheranie Boyd on a three-yard pass for a 28-21 lead. Clemson then scored the last ten points of the game for the win.

Leading Passer: Bryn Renner, UNC, 24-45-273-2-3
Leading Rusher: Giovani Bernard, UNC, 26-108-1 and Andre Ellington, Clemson, 22-108
Leading Receiver: Dwight Jones, UNC, 8-121-1



East Conference Report:
Both South Carolina and Virginia Tech improved to 5-0 to give them the inside track towards division championships.

Clemson (4-1) also put itself in position to win Division 1 by defeating the previously undefeated North Carolina Tar Heels (4-1). If Clemson can win its next two games, including its Round 7 match up against South Carolina, the Tigers will be able to claim a division crown.

In Division 2, the Hokies can wrap up the division title when they take on Old Dominion (0-5) thanks to beating Florida State (4-1) two weeks ago.

This week's East Conference Player of the Week is Kedrick Rhodes of FIU. The back rushed 21 times for 214 yards and three touchdowns, including a 55-yard game-winning score at Virginia.

Two more weeks to go in the opening round, right?

SI

Yes, that's right. Then the last conference game is Division 1 winner vs Division 2 winner, Division 1 runner-up vs Division 2 runner-up, etc., to determine 1st-16th seed per conference.

Round 5 Wrap Up
 

With two rounds left to play, some divisions are all but wrapped up, while a few others remain a mess.

Only one division, the Southwest Conference Division 2, still has two undefeated teams in Oklahoma and Oklahoma State. A few divisions have no undefeated teams.

Conference play has shown us a few surprises, though most of the top teams are winning as expected. The only real surprise in first place currently is Temple, which disposed of in-state rival Penn State, 29-19. One surprising team that could potentially win its division is Oregon State (4-1). If the Beavers take care of Stanford (3-2) and Oregon (5-0) in the next two weeks, they will represent Division 2 in the West Conference.

There are some teams we thought might have more fight in them not playing as well as we thought they might. Among them, California (1-4), Nebraska (2-3), Miami of Florida (2-3), and Kansas State (1-4). Still, anything could happen in the tournament, and those teams could pull a couple of upsets, especially if they grab lower than an 8th seed.

This week's National Player of the Week Award will be determined from the eight conference winners. They are:
West: Sean Mannion, QB, OSU, 25-42-330-4-0
Northwest: James Vandenberg, QB, Iowa, 20-33-309-4-1
North: Nick Harwell, WR, Miami (OH), 10-201-3
Northeast: Chas Dodd, QB, Rutgers, 24-40-350-4-0
Southwest: Brandon Weeden, QB, OSU, 41-52-525-7-1
South Central: Cyrus Gray, RB, TAMU, 24-144-2
Southeast: Trent Richardson, Alabama, 33-218-2; 3-93-1
East: Kedrick Rhodes, FIU, 21-214-3

And the National Player of the Week Award goes to...


Trent Richardson took over the game in Alabama's trouncing of Vanderbilt, 62-21. He totaled 311 yards (218 on the ground and 93 through the air) and scored three touchdowns. Despite Brandon Weeden's outstanding performance, Richardson's is a cut above the rest.

Rankings and Standings
 

Here are our conference-by-conference rankings, followed by the season standings:

West Conference: 1. Oregon, 2. USC, 3. Oregon State
Northwest Conference: 1. Wisconsin, 2. Boise State, 3. Iowa
North Conference: 1. Michigan State, 2. Michigan, 3. Cincinnati
Northeast Conference: 1. West Virginia, 2. Temple, 3. Rutgers
East Conference: 1. Virginia Tech, 2. South Carolina, 3. Clemson
Southeast Conference: 1. Alabama, 2. Florida, 3. Georgia
South Central Conference: 1. Arkansas, 2. LSU, 3. Houston
Southwest Conference: 1. Oklahoma, 2. Oklahoma State, 3. Texas

Round 6 Preview
 

Here are some of the interesting match ups for Round 6:

West Conference

San Jose State (3-2) at USC (4-1) - A USC win gives them the division title due to tie breakers.

Oregon State (4-1) at Stanford (3-2) - The Beavers are trying to claim a division title, but they'll have to get past the Cardinal first to stay in contention.

Northwest Conference

Air Force (3-2) at Boise State (4-1) - Air Force could launch the division in chaos with a win. The Broncos could entrench themselves in the top spot with a win.

BYU (4-1) at Utah (3-2) - This in-state rivalry could make a huge impact on the division and seeding. Should the Utes triumph, coupled with an Air Force win, there would be a four-way tie for first place.

Wisconsin (5-0) at Missouri (4-1) - The Tigers fell last week at Iowa, but they could still steal the division crown. First they have to get past the red-hot Badgers, who clinch the division with the win.

North Conference

Miami of Ohio (3-2) at Cincinnati (5-0) - The Bearcats can wrap up the division with a victory here.

Michigan (4-1) at Notre Dame (3-2) - The Wolverines are trying to keep pace with Michigan State (5-0) to set up a division championship in Round 7.

Northeast Conference

Connecticut (3-2) at Boston College (3-2) - Should Rutgers (4-1) falter in the last two weeks, the winner of this game has a shot at winning the division.

West Virginia (5-0) at Penn State (4-1) - Despite Penn State falling at Temple (5-0) last week, a win by the Nittany Lions could push this division into tie breakers.

East Conference

South Carolina (5-0) at North Carolina (4-1) - With Clemson (4-1) breathing down their necks, the Gamecocks have a chance to clinch the division with a win here and a NC State win over Clemson. North Carolina is looking to stay in division contention by beating a solid South Carolina team.

Clemson (4-1) at North Carolina State (3-2) - The Tigers need to win this game to set up a potential division championship against South Carolina (5-0).

Southeast Conference

Georgia Tech (4-1) at Georgia (4-1) - Neither team is likely to win the division since both fell at the hands of Florida (5-0), but second place is on the line in this match up.

Auburn (4-1) at Vanderbilt (4-1) - The Commodores seemed to have lost their chance for the division crown but could get back into contention with some help. The Tigers need the win to have a chance to defeat Alabama (5-0) in Round 7 and win the Division 2 crown.

South Central Conference

Southern Miss (3-2) at Arkansas State (4-1) - The Red Wolves have a chance to win the division, should they take this one over Southern Miss and defeat Arkansas (5-0) next week.

Southwest Conference

Texas (5-0) at UTEP (3-2) - The Longhorns can clinch the division with a win at UTEP.

Oklahoma State (5-0) at SMU (3-2) - The Cowboys are in position to try to win the division. This game does not mean as much for them as next week's grudge match with Oklahoma (5-0), but Oklahoma State would like to guarantee itself as least second place in the division.

Oklahoma (5-0) at TCU (4-1) - The Horned Frogs are still not out of division contention. A win over Oklahoma could potentially set up a three-way tie in the end.

Round 6 - West Conference
 

Fresno State 34 at Arizona 40
Leading Passer: Nick Foles, Arizona, 29-41-400-4-0
Leading Rusher: Robbie Rouse, FSU, 29-92-1 (6-104 receiving)
Leading Receiver: Juron Criner, Arizona, 7-116

San Diego State 21 at Arizona State 31

SDSU took a 21-14 lead early in the third quarter on Ronnie Hillman’s three-yard run, but it was all Wildcats after that. Brock Osweiler connected on two TD passes, a 47-yarder to Gerell Robinson and a 7-yarder to Aaron Pflugrad, to help Arizona defeat the Aztecs.

Leading Passer: Brock Osweiler, ASU, 20-34-319-3-0
Leading Rusher: Ronnie Hillman, SDSU, 27-157-2
Leading Receiver: Gerell Robinson, ASU, 5-114-2

San Jose State 31 at USC 73

USC clinched the West Conference Division 1 championship in its offensive onslaught.

Leading Passer: Matt Barkley, USC, 31-44-372-6-1
Leading Rusher: Curtis McNeal, USC, 18-129-2
Leading Receiver: Robert Woods, USC, 11-125-3

UCLA 37 at UNLV 7
Leading Passer: Kevin Prince, UCLA, 14-24-260-1-2
Leading Rusher: Dionza Bradford, UNLV, 19-108
Leading Receiver: Shaquelle Evans, UCLA, 3-70

Hawaii 13 at Washington 31
Leading Passer: Bryant Moniz, Hawaii, 24-46-323-1-1
Leading Rusher: Chris Polk, Washington, 30-131-2
Leading Receiver: Royce Pollard, Hawaii, 6-135-1

Nevada 28 at Washington State 51
Leading Passer: Marshall Lobbestael, WSU, 26-41-441-6-0
Leading Rusher: Lampford Mark, Nevada, 24-147-2
Leading Receiver: Marquess Wilson, WSU, 5-125-1

Oregon 45 at California 26
Leading Passer: Zach Maynard, Cal, 19-29-303-2-0
Leading Rusher: LaMichael James, Oregon, 27-190-4
Leading Receiver: Keenan Allen, Cal, 7-75-1

Oregon State 35 at Stanford 42, OT

Stanford jumped to a huge 21-0 lead in the first quarter and then had to hold on for the ride in defeating the Beavers in overtime.

After the Cardinal (4-2) took its lead in the first, Oregon State (4-2) dominated the second and third quarters, scoring two touchdowns in each quarter to take a 28-21 lead.

Stanford then answered with 14 straight of its own on two Stepfan Taylor touchdowns. The first was a five-yard pass from Andrew Luck and the second on a 45-yard run. Taylor finished with 182 yards from scrimmage and three touchdowns. Luck finished the game 20 of 30 for 251 yards and two touchdowns.

The Beavers were able to put the game in overtime when Sean Mannion connected with Brandon Cooks on a three-yard score with just 1:36 to play.

In overtime, Oregon State had first possession, but had to attempt a field goal after going three and out. Trevor Romaine’s 44-yard attempt was wide left, giving the Cardinal a chance to win it. And Stanford did just that, scoring in five plays, capped off by Tyler Gaffney’s eight-yard run.

Because Oregon State lost, Oregon (6-0) clinched the West Conference Division 2 championship by beating California, 45-26.

Leading Passer: Sean Mannion, OSU, 32-47-385-4-2
Leading Rusher: Stepfan Taylor, Stanford, 25-154-2
Leading Receiver: Markus Wheaton, OSU, 7-117-1




West Conference Report:
Round 6 marked the West Conference where its conference championship match is set. Both USC and Oregon clinched their divisions, meaning a match up for the two powers in two weeks for West supremacy.

USC (5-1) scored 73 points against San Jose State (3-3) showing that the Trojans have the firepower to hang with Oregon’s high-powered offense. The Ducks (6-0) were not as impressive in their 45-26 win over California (1-5), but the rushing dual threat of LaMichael James and Kenjon Barner causes major trouble for every defense they face.

On the opposite end of the scale, Hawaii and UNLV clinched eighth place finishes by falling to 0-6. Technically, the Warriors can finish in a tie with California for seventh place, but the Golden Bears beat Hawaii 22-14 in Round 2.

The player of the week award was based on a showdown of several outstanding performances. USC’s Matt Barkley mowed down the Spartans, going 31 of 44 for 372 yards with 6 touchdowns and an interception. His main target was Robert Woods who caught 11 passes for 125 yards and 3 touchdowns. Arizona’s Nick Foles had yet another impressive week, finishing 29 of 41 for 400 yards and 4 touchdowns. Despite those solid performances, Marshall Lobbestael of Washington State won this week’s West Conference Player of the Week Award by finishing 26 of 41 for 441 yards with 6 touchdowns.

Round 6 - Northwest Conference
 

Air Force 13 at Boise State 54
Leading Passer: Kellen Moore, BS, 25-39-439-3-1
Leading Rusher: Doug Martin, BS, 26-162-1
Leading Receiver: Kyle Efaw, BS, 5-110-1

Colorado 16 at Idaho 44
Leading Passer: Brian Reader, Idaho, 22-35-340-3-1
Leading Rusher: Princeton McCarty, Idaho, 19-90-1
Leading Receiver: Michael LaGrone, Idaho, 3-77-2

Colorado State 20 at Utah State 35
Leading Passer: Adam Kennedy, USU, 23-30-301-2-0
Leading Rusher: Robert Turbin, USU, 28-139
Leading Receiver: Raymond Carter, CSU, 3-91-1

BYU 45 at Utah 48

This in-state battle turned into a real barn burner with Utah’s Coleman Petersen kicking a 33-yard game-winning field goal as time expired.

BYU took a 38-24 lead early in the fourth quarter when Justin Sorensen kicked a 42-yard field goal. However, the Utes quickly answered. First Tauni Vakapuna ran it in from 49 yards, and that was followed by a 51-yard interception return by Reggie Topps to tie the game at 38 with 10:10 left.

The Cougars then drove down field, topped off by a 13-yard JJ Di Luigi run to give BYU the lead with 7:07 left. Utah answered again, tying the game again with 2:51 left when Jon Hays connected with Dres Anderson from 20 yards out.

Most of the game was a back and forth affair. After BYU scored the game’s opening touchdown on a 11-yard pass from Jake Heaps to McKay Jacobson. The Utes answered by scoring the next 21 points. The Cougars, however, tied the game going into the half on two Di Luigi touchdowns, the first on a five-yard run and the second on a two-yard pass.

Leading Passer: Jake Heaps, BYU, 26-53-299-2-1
Leading Rusher: John White, Utah, 22-102-1
Leading Receiver: Dres Anderson, Utah, 4-96-1

Minnesota 7 at Iowa 30
Leading Passer: James Vandenberg, Iowa, 18-23-193-3-1
Leading Rusher: Marcus Coker, Iowa, 33-197
Leading Receiver: Marvin McNutt, Iowa, 6-98-1

Wyoming 17 at Iowa State 24
Leading Passer: Jared Barnett, ISU, 16-24-227-2-0
Leading Rusher: James White, ISU, 19-107-1
Leading Receiver: Dominic Rufran, Wyoming, 3-64

Nebraska 17 at Northwestern 13

Nebraska trailed 13-3 entering the fourth quarter, but made a comeback in the most unlikely way.

With 5:18 left, Taylor Martinez connected with Kyler Reed from 26 yards out to cut the Wildcats lead to 13-10. On the ensuing possession, Nebraska held Northwestern to a three and out. Then, on the punt, the Nebraska defense collapsed in and blocked the punt. Austin Cassidy then scooped up the ball and ran it in from 14 yards out to give the Cornhuskers the 17-13 win.

Leading Passer: Dan Persa, Northwestern, 25-36-322-0-2
Leading Rusher: Jacob Schmidt, Northwestern, 16-93-1
Leading Receiver: Rashad Lawrence, Northwestern, 4-90

Wisconsin 49 at Missouri 38

The Badgers (6-0) jumped out to a big first-half lead and cruised to the victory to clinch the Northwest Conference Division 2 championship.

Montee Ball exploded for Wisconsin, rushing 28 times for 236 yards and 3 touchdowns. Russell Wilson only missed on three passes on the day in going 20 of 23 for 281 yards and 4 touchdowns.

The Tigers (4-2) were led offensively by Kendial Lawrence. He rushed 12 times for 93 yards and a score. James Franklin was 11 of 20 for 174 yards, 2 touchdowns, and 2 interceptions.

Leading Passer: Russell Wilson, Wisconsin, 20-23-281-4-0
Leading Rusher: Montee Ball, Wisconsin, 28-236-3
Leading Receiver: Nick Toon, Wisconsin, 5-77



Northwest Conference Report:

Wisconsin made its case for being one of the top teams in the nation with its win at Missouri. The Badgers (6-0) clinched Division 2 and have to wait a week to find out who its Northwest Conference Championship Game opponent will be.

Meanwhile, Boise State made its case for its 5-1 record being about right by trampling a decent Air Force team. The Broncos have been one of the best "small schools" over the years, and there's no reason to doubt their ability to be a #1 seed when the NCAA 128 Tournament begins.

Despite Wisconsin and Boise State's success, this conference is considered to be top heavy and could be rather weak once it gets into the third seed and below. BYU, Iowa, Missouri, and Nebraska may be able to make a run, but all four teams have noticeable weaknesses that could crop up through a couple of rounds of the tournament. For now, those four teams, along with Utah are battling for third place in the conference.

This week's Player of the Week award is a no-brainer. Montee Ball of Wisconsin ran all over Missouri with 236 yards on 28 carries and three touchdowns. Ball is almost a shoo-in for the conference player of the year.

Round 6 - North Conference
 

Ohio State 10 at Ball State 17

The Buckeyes have really fallen on hard times when they lose to a team like Ball State. Huge surprise in the North Conference!

Leading Passer: Keith Wenning, BSU, 20-38-187-1-0
Leading Rusher: Dan Herron, OSU, 26-96-1
Leading Receiver: Briggs Orsbon, BSU, 5-59

Purdue 45 at Indiana 35
Leading Passer: Edward Wright-Baker, Indiana, 25-35-346-3-1
Leading Rusher: D’Angelo Roberts, Indiana, 9-118-1
Leading Receiver: Damarlo Belcher, Indiana, 5-82-2

Miami (OH) 18 at Cincinnati 12

The Bearcats could never get its offense going, scoring only on Tony Miliano field goals. The RedHawks got its touchdowns on two Zac Dysert to Nick Harwell connections.

With the Cincinnati loss, the North Conference Division 1 championship is still in doubt.

Leading Passer: Zac Dysert, Miami, 22-28-295-2-1
Leading Rusher: Erik Finklea, Miami, 19-68
Leading Receiver: Nick Harwell, Miami, 7-117-2

Louisville 21 at Toledo 38
Leading Passer: Teddy Bridgewater, Louisville, 24-43-327-2-2
Leading Rusher: Adonis Thomas, Toledo, 20-148-1
Leading Receiver: Eric Page, Toledo, 9-101-1

Central Michigan 25 at Western Michigan 33
Leading Passer: Ryan Radcliff, CMU, 29-54-381-2-3
Leading Rusher: Alex Carder, WMU, 18-57
Leading Receiver: Jordan White, WMU, 12-118-1

Northern Illinois 24 at Eastern Michigan 25

The Eagles trailed 24-13 entering the fourth quarter, but found a way to propel themselves past the Huskies. Kody Fulkerson kicked field goals of 30 and 37 yards to cut the Northern Illinois lead to 24-19 with 8:32 left. Then Alex Gillett connected with Alex Olds on an eight-yard strike with just 1:06 to play for the winning score. The completion was just the third of the game for Gillett, who finished 3 of 11 for 18 yards with a TD and interception.

Leading Passer: Chandler Harnish, NIU, 13-25-197-1-0
Leading Rusher: Dominique Sherrer, EMU, 23-147
Leading Receiver: Luke Eakes, NIU, 2-81

Michigan State 44 at Illinois 10
Leading Passer: Kirk Cousins, MSU, 28-41-349-3-2
Leading Rusher: Edwin Baker, MSU, 21-86-2
Leading Receiver: BJ Cunningham, MSU, 6-117

Michigan 37 at Notre Dame 21
Leading Passer: Tommy Rees, ND, 17-35-244-1-0
Leading Rusher: Fitzgerald Toussaint, Michigan, 26-229-3*
Leading Receiver: Michael Floyd, ND, 7-119-1



North Conference Report:

Fitzgerald Toussaint of Michigan leads our story for Round 6 in the North Conference. The Wolverines back rushed for 229 yards on 26 carries and three touchdowns as Michigan was able to easily cruise past Notre Dame.

The win clinched at least second place for Michigan (5-1), who will play Michigan State (6-0) next week for the Division 2 crown. It also gave Toussaint the Player of the Week Awards.

Meanwhile, Notre Dame (3-3) is in a four-way tie for third place and will need a win over a decent Northern Illinois (3-3) team to avoid being a lower seed in the NCAA 128 Tournament.

The biggest surprise of the week came in the state of Ohio. For one, Ohio State's (3-3) loss to Ball State (2-4) could mean a fifth place finish for the Buckeyes and a road trip in the NCAA 128 tournament. Also, Miami of Ohio (4-2) pulled off a big win in Division 1 to keep their division title pursuit alive. Cincinnati (5-1) thought they could cruise to the conference championship game, but now the Bearcats will need a win over Ohio State next week to claim the division championship.

Round 6 - Northeast Conference
 

Syracuse 47 at Army 20
Leading Passer: Ryan Nassib, Syracuse, 17-32-199-1-1
Leading Rusher: Antwon Bailey, Syracuse, 30-159-1
Leading Receiver: Alec Lemon, Syracuse, 5-93-1

Rutgers 27 at Buffalo 25
Leading Passer: Chas Dodd, Rutgers, 20-32-244-1-2
Leading Rusher: Branden Oliver, Buffalo, 34-146-1
Leading Receiver: Brandon Coleman, Rutgers, 4-78

Massachusetts 16 at Bowling Green 30
Leading Passer: Matt Schilz, BGSU, 16-26-205-1-1
Leading Rusher: Anthon Samuel, BGSU, 23-96-1
Leading Receiver: Kamar Jorden, BGSU, 5-100-1

Connecticut 15 at Boston College 45
Leading Passer: Chase Rettig, BC, 21-38-450-5-3
Leading Rusher: Lyle McCombs, UConn, 24-82
Leading Receiver: Chris Pantale, BC, 5-150-2

Ohio 37 at Akron 13
Leading Passer: Tyler Tettleton, Ohio, 18-29-274-2-1
Leading Rusher: Jawon Chisholm, Akron, 25-116-1
Leading Receiver: Ryan Boykin, Ohio, 2-65-1

Maryland 23 at Kent State 3
Leading Passer: Danny O’Brien, Maryland, 25-43-281-0-2
Leading Rusher: Davin Meggett, Maryland, 20-106-2
Leading Receiver: Chris Gilbert, KSU, 4-92

West Virginia 26 at Penn State 28

The Nittany Lions got a late touchdown from Matt McGloin to Devon Smith, and then held on to top the Mountaineers.

With the win, Penn State (5-1) is still in contention for a division crown if Temple drops its last two games. West Virginia (5-1) will need to beat Temple next week by at least 10 points to have a chance to win the division.

Leading Passer: Geno Smith, WVU, 28-45-354-2-1
Leading Rusher: Silas Redd, PSU, 22-73
Leading Receiver: Stedman Bailey, WVU, 7-122-1

Temple 14 at Pittsburgh 24

Pittsburgh won the turnover battle with a 4-1 margin, and outscored the Owls 17-7 in the second half to get the huge home win.

With the loss, Temple (5-1) is now in a three-way tie for first place in Division 2 with Penn State and West Virginia. The Owls have the simplest path to a title, though. If they beat West Virginia next week, Temple wins the division due to beating both the Nittany Lions and Mountaineers.

Leading Passer: Tino Sunseri, Pitt, 20-27-243-2-1
Leading Rusher: Bernard Pierce, Temple, 31-151-1
Leading Receiver: Mike Shanahan, Pitt, 3-88



Northeast Conference Report:

Penn State (5-1) burst back into division contention with its win over West Virginia (5-1). The Nittany Lions will need help next week from West Virginia when it visits Temple (5-1), as well as beat Ohio (4-2). It looks like a long shot, but Penn State could be vying for a #1 seed in Joe Paterno's last season as coach.

Meanwhile, Rutgers (5-1) led the entire game against Buffalo (2-4) but gave up a couple of late score to make their game appear closer. Next week the Scarlet Knights play Boston College (4-2) and could wrap up the division. However, if Boston College were to triumph, the division crown could come down to tie breakers. Bowling Green (4-2) is also in contention.

For player of the week, we chose one player from a few unimpressive offensive performances throughout the conference. Boston College's Chris Pantale got the Player of the Week award by catching five passes for 150 yards and two touchdowns in the Eagles' 45-15 win over Connecticut.

Round 6 - East Conference
 

ECU 47 at UNC-Charlotte 13
Leading Passer: Dominique Davis, ECU, 27-41-352-5-1
Leading Rusher: That Guy, UNCC, 15-59
Leading Receiver: Lance Lewis, ECU, 9-129-4

Wake Forest 20 at Duke 24
Leading Passer: Sean Renfree, Duke, 29-43-309-3-0
Leading Rusher: Juwan Thompson, Duke, 15-50
Leading Receiver: Chris Givens, WF, 6-134

South Carolina 21 at North Carolina 24

Thomas Moore’s 19-yard field goal with 40 seconds left made the difference in the Tar Heels’ huge home win over South Carolina.

Giovani Bernard was a force all day for North Carolina (5-1), who moved into a tie for first place with the victory. Bernard finished with 184 yards rushing and a touchdown, helping put North Carolina in scoring position against a solid Gamecocks (5-1) defense.

With the loss, South Carolina is put into a must-win situation next week at Clemson, as well as needing a North Carolina loss to be able to win Division 1.

Leading Passer: Connor Shaw, 18-26-256-1-1
Leading Rusher: Giovani Bernard, UNC, 23-184-1
Leading Receiver: Alshon Jeffery, 4-69-1

Clemson 36 at North Carolina State 21
Leading Passer: Tajh Boyd, Clemson, 21-28-335-1-0
Leading Rusher: Andre Ellington, Clemson, 24-106-2
Leading Receiver: Sammy Watkins, Clemson, 6-85-1

Marshall 16 at Virginia 23

The Thundering Herd took a 13-6 lead midway through the third quarter, but the Cavaliers came thundering back for the victory. Virginia scored two straight touchdowns, the second on a 14-yard Kevin Parks run to take the lead for good with 10:02 left in the game.

Leading Passer: Michael Rocco, UVA, 18-32-360-1-1
Leading Rusher: Perry Jones, UVA, 18-87
Leading Receiver: Kris Burd, UVA, 5-113

Old Dominion 6 at Virginia Tech 44
Leading Passer: Taylor Heinicke, ODU, 29-56-331-0-3
Leading Rusher: David Wilson, VT, 26-320-4
Leading Receiver: Nick Mayers, ODU, 8-131

Miami 26 at Navy 20
Leading Passer: Jacory Harris, Miami, 23-40-289-1-1
Leading Rusher: Lamar Miller, Miami, 35-90
Leading Receiver: Brandon Turner, Navy, 3-78-1

Florida State 29 at Florida International 9
Leading Passer: Wesley Carroll, FIU, 22-37-279-0-0
Leading Rusher: Devonta Freeman, FSU, 27-225
Leading Receiver: TY Hilton, FIU, 5-73



East Conference Report:

If you put out preseason reports and said that North Carolina would be in the mix for a #1 seed in the NCAA 128 Tournament, we would have called you crazy. After the Butch Davis debacle in Chapel Hill, we expected the Tarheels program to be in shambles. Yet, after a big win over South Carolina, North Carolina is in a three-way tie for first place at 5-1. Next week the Gamecocks face Clemson for what could be the division championship, unless, of course, both North Carolina and South Carolina win. In that case, the Tarheels win based on their 24-21 win over the Gamecocks.

In Division 2, Virginia Tech wrapped up the division title by storming over Old Dominion, 44-6. David Wilson ran wild in the game, earning Player of the Week honors with his 320 rushing yards and 4 touchdowns. He should be a top contender for National Player of the Week based on his performance.

Round 6 - Southeast Conference
 

Georgia Tech 24 at Georgia 45
Leading Passer: Aaron Murray, UGA, 22-30-301-2-0
Leading Rusher: Isaiah Crowell, UGA, 27-137-4
Leading Receiver: Malcolm Mitchell, UGA, 4-63-1

Georgia Southern 17 at Georgia State 20
Leading Passer: Jaybo Shaw, QB, Georgia Southern, 21-39-301-2-2
Leading Rusher: Dominique Swope, RB, Georgia Southern, 16-123
Leading Receiver: Albert Wilson, WR, Georgia State, 5-76

South Florida 44 at Florida Atlantic 26
Leading Passer: Graham Wilbert, 21-37-382-2-1
Leading Rusher: Alfred Morris, FAU, 29-196-1
Leading Receiver: Marcus Cunningham, FAU, 3-96-1

Florida 37 at UCF 44, 2OT

The Knights scored the last 14 points of regulation and then outlasted the Gators in overtime to upset first place Florida.

John Brantley of the Gators (5-1) connected with Chris Rainey from nine yards out to give Florida a 34-20 lead with 6:48 to play. UCF could not answer until 1:07 remained and Brynn Harvey scored from seven yards out. The Knights then recovered the onside kick and drove down field, capped off by Jeff Godfrey’s fade pass from 10 yards out with no time left on the clock. Nick Cattoi’s PAT tied the game and sent it into overtime.

In the first overtime, both teams kicked a field goal to tie the game 37-37. In the second overtime, UCF got the ball first and scored easily, thanks to Latavius Murray’s 14-yard run. The Gators then could not advance the ball in four plays, with Brantley’s 4th and 16 pass to the end zone getting broken up.

Leading Passer: Jeff Godrey, UCF, 27-43-389-3-1
Leading Rusher: Chris Rainey, Florida, 23-125-1
Leading Receiver: Adam Nissley, UCF, 5-101-1

Tennessee 38 at Kentucky 10
Leading Passer: Tyler Bray, UT, 19-29-286-3-2
Leading Rusher: Tauren Poole, UT, 22-96
Leading Receiver: Da’Rick Rogers, UT, 5-117-1

MTSU 20 at Western Kentucky 28
Leading Passer: Logan Kilgore, MTSU, 18-36-196-1-1
Leading Rusher: Bobby Rainey, WKU, 43-116-1
Leading Receiver: Sancho McDonald, MTSU, 4-45

Auburn 23 at Vanderbilt 48

Vanderbilt (5-1) beat Auburn in convincing fashion and had put itself in position to clinch second place in Division 2 with a win next week over Tennessee (5-1).

With the loss by Auburn (4-2), Alabama (6-0) has clinched the Division 1 championship.

Leading Passer: Jordan Rodgers, Vanderbilt, 17-25-278-4-3
Leading Rusher: Zac Stacy, Vanderbilt, 24-160-1
Leading Receiver: Emory Blake, Auburn, 4-99

Alabama 76 at Troy 3
Leading Passer: AJ McCarron, Alabama, 29-43-330-3-1
Leading Rusher: Trent Richardson, Alabama, 31-244-5**
Leading Receiver: Darius Hanks, Alabama, 5-79-1



Southeast Conference Report:

Florida was going to clinch the Division 1 title going into Round 6. It was a given. The Gators were lights out all season and had already beat second place Georgia (5-1) earlier in the season. Florida was going to clinch until Central Florida (3-3) refused to say "Die," scoring 14 late points and then beating the Gators (5-1) in overtime. Now Florida needs a win next week to ensure a division crown.

In Division 2, Alabama took care of business in easy fashion, winning 76-3 at Troy (1-5). The Crimson Tide's Trent Richardson, last week's National Player of the Week, had another outstanding performance, rushing 31 times for 244 yards and 5 touchdowns to earn Player of the Week yet again.

Round 6 - South Central Conference
 

Texas A&M 48 at UL-Lafayette 17
Leading Passer: Ryan Tannehill, TAMU, 31-37-400-4-0
Leading Rusher: Cyrus Gray, TAMU, 23-92-1
Leading Receiver: Ryan Swope, TAMU, 8-100-1

Rice 43 at Houston 65
Leading Passer: Case Keenum, Houston, 29-39-412-5-1
Leading Rusher: Tyler Smith, Rice, 16-150-3
Leading Receiver: Patrick Edwards, Houston, 6-124-1

Tulane 17 at LSU 79

Jordan Jefferson passed for 5 touchdowns and ran in two more in LSU’s thrashing of in-state rival Tulane. The Tigers (6-0) jumped out to a 34-0 lead in the first quarter and then just kept scoring in clinching the Division 1 title.

Leading Passer: Jordan Jefferson, LSU, 17-23-295-5-0 (26 yards rushing, 2 TD)
Leading Rusher: Michael Ford, LSU, 10-146-1
Leading Receiver: Xavier Rush, Tulane, 2-68

UL-Monroe 14 at Louisiana Tech 29
Leading Passer: Colby Cameron, LT, 21-34-256-3-0
Leading Rusher: Centarius Donald, ULM, 10-94
Leading Receiver: Quinton Patton, LT, 7-84-1

UAB 16 at Arkansas 51
Leading Passer: Tyler Wilson, Arkansas, 20-30-290-2-0
Leading Rusher: Dennis Johnson, Arkansas, 15-105-1
Leading Receiver: Joe Adams, Arkansas, 4-84-1

Southern Miss 13 at Arkansas State 16

Neither team exploded in a tough defensive battle. The Red Wolves (5-1) got the win on a late field goal by Brian Davis.

Southern Miss (3-3) had a 6-0 lead in the first half before a six-yard run by Arkansas State’s Derek Lawson made it 7-6 at half time. After two Davis field goals in the third quarter, the Golden Eagles’ Tracy Lampley caught a three-yard touchdown pass from Austin Davis to tie the game at 13.

Leading Passer: Austin Davis, USM, 22-41-281-1-3
Leading Rusher: Ryan Aplin, Arkansas State, 19-47
Leading Receiver: Kevin Bolden, USM, 6-80

Mississippi State 29 at South Alabama 3
Leading Passer: Chris Relf, MSU, 23-37-283-1-0
Leading Rusher: Vick Ballard, MSU, 23-93
Leading Receiver: Arceto Clark, MSU, 4-96-1

Ole Miss 27 at Memphis 20
Leading Passer: Randall Mackey, OM, 20-34-243-2-2
Leading Rusher: Billy Foster, Memphis, 10-74
Leading Receiver: Tannar Rehrer, Memphis, 7-59-1



South Central Report:

LSU (6-0) had virtually wrapped up the Division 1 crown last week when it beat Houston, but the Tigers definitively claimed the title by beating up on in-state rival Tulane.

The Tigers will have to wait a week to find out who they play in the conference championship game because one of the biggest surprises in the nation is in contention for the Division 2 championship. The Red Wolves (5-1) are proving to be a team to contend with after they outlasted Southern Miss (3-3). Should Arkansas State beat Arkansas (6-0) next week, the Red Wolves will face LSU.

For this week's Player of the Week award, several players were in contention. Ryan Tannehill of Texas A&M finished 31 of 37 for 400 yards with 4 touchdowns. Houston's Case Keenum had yet another great offensive performance, finishing 29 of 39 for 412 yards with 5 touchdowns and an interception. However, this week the award goes to division-clinching quarterback Jordan Jefferson of LSU. He finished 17 of 23 for 295 yards and a career-high 5 touchdowns. He also had 26 yards rushing for 2 touchdowns, giving him seven scores in the game.

Round 6 - Southwest Conference
 

UTSA 10 at Baylor 44
Leading Passer: Robert Griffin, Baylor, 21-21-346-2-0 (perfect game!)
Leading Rusher: Terrance Ganaway, Baylor, 28-78-2
Leading Receiver: Terrance Williams, Baylor, 5-125-1

Texas 41 at UTEP 34, OT

The Longhorns had to take UTEP to overtime, but they were able to preserve their perfect record and clinch Division 1 outright.

Texas led 24-20 at halftime and neither team scored in the third quarter before Texas was able to score 10 straight points. Malcolm Brown scored on an 18-yard run, and then Justin Tucker kicked a 41 yards field goal with 8:14 left to make it 34-20.

The Miners (3-3) were not done, though. Nick Lamaison connected with Kevin Perry on a 12-yard pass with 3:24 left. With only 12 seconds left, the Miners tied the game when Lamaison hit Donavon Kemp on a three-yard pass.

In overtime, the Longhorns had first possession and scored in four plays, capped off by Case McCoy’s four-yard pass to Jaxon Shipley in a little brothers’ connection. UTEP then had the ball, but thanks to a penalty and sack, had to attempt a 4th and 21 from the 24-yard line. Lamaison’s deep pass sailed out of the back of the end zone, and Texas escaped with the win.

Leading Passer: Nick Lamaison, UTEP, 26-43-346-2-4
Leading Rusher: Malcolm Brown, Texas, 25-263-2
Leading Receiver: Eric Tomlinson, UTEP, 3-68

New Mexico State 19 at Texas State 16, OT
Leading Passer: Matt Christian, NMSU, 14-28-219-3-1
Leading Rusher: Kenny Turner, NMSU, 19-92
Leading Receiver: Isaiah Battle, TSU, 4-79

New Mexico 11 at Texas Tech 44
Leading Passer: Seth Doege, TTU, 23-35-256-1-0
Leading Rusher: Aaron Crawford, TTU, 11-86-3
Leading Receiver: Alex Torres, TTU, 5-83-1

Tulsa 31 at Kansas 10
Leading Passer: Jordan Webb, Kansas, 13-27-219-0-1
Leading Rusher: Trey Watts, Tulsa, 19-186-1 and Ja’Terian Douglas, Tulsa, 13-185-2
Leading Receiver: JaCorey Shepherd, Kansas, 4-67

North Texas 20 at Kansas State 24
Leading Passer: Derek Thompson, NT, 21-42-285-2-2
Leading Rusher: Collin Klein, KSU, 33-110-3 (3-4-31 passing)
Leading Receiver: Michael Outlaw, NT, 3-58-1

Oklahoma State 44 at SMU 33
Leading Passer: JJ McDermott, SMU, 26-51-398-3-2
Leading Rusher: Jared Williams, SMU, 22-89
Leading Receiver: Darius Johnson, SMU, 8-126
Game MVP: Brandon Weeden, OSU, 28-41-367-4-0

Oklahoma 28 at TCU 43

The Horned Frogs jumped out to a big lead and then kept pace with Oklahoma’s passing attack in the home win.

TCU (5-1) now has an outside chance of winning Division 2. If the Sooners (5-1) can beat Oklahoma State (6-0) by under 16 points, TCU gets the division championship (assuming they beat winless North Texas next week). If the Cowboys beat Oklahoma, the Cowboys claim the championship. Oklahoma can only win the division by winning next week and having TCU upset by North Texas.

Leading Passer: Casey Pachall, TCU, 16-26-250-3-0
Leading Rusher: Roy Finch, OU, 25-172-1
Leading Receiver: Skye Dawson, TCU, 3-70




Southwest Conference Report:

It's hard to pick a Player of the Week from week-to-week in this conference because there are usually lots of points on the board in the games. This week is no exception, as we narrowed the list down to three. Texas' Malcolm Brown rushed 25 times for 263 yards and two touchdowns in the Longhorns' narrow escape at UTEP. Oklahoma State's Brandon Weeden had another outstanding performance in the Cowboys' win at SMU. Weeden finished 28 of 41 for 367 yards with four touchdowns. And the best of the three was the guy who was perfect. Robert Griffin completed all 21 of his passes for 346 yards and two touchdowns in Baylor's 44-10 over Texas-San Antonio.

Despite Griffin's efforts, Texas (6-0) clinched Division 1 with its overtime win. The Longhorns will have to wait to see what happens in Division 2. With TCU's win over Oklahoma, the Horned Frogs (5-1) could win the division should the Sooners (5-1) beat Oklahoma State (6-0) next week. Whatever the result, Division 2 has three strong teams at the top.

Round 6 Wrap Up
 

After six rounds, we have more divisions (9) still up for grabs than clinched (7). That bodes well for Round 7, which will still have teams vying for home field advantage throughout a regional bracket.

The seven teams that have wrapped up their divisions--USC, Oregon, Wisconsin, Virginia Tech, Alabama, LSU, and Texas--may choose to rest some of their starters in the next round to gear up for their conference championship games.

We also find it intriguing that three undefeated teams still need one more win to win their divisions. Michigan State (6-0) faces Michigan (5-1) in the North Conference, Arkansas (6-0) faces Arkansas State in the South Central Conference and Oklahoma State (6-0) faces Oklahoma (5-1) in the Southwest Conference. TCU (5-1) still has a chance to win Division 2 should Oklahoma triumph by under 14 points due to tie breakers.

A whopping eleven teams are still looking for their first win. Not many of those 11 are surprises other than probably Northwestern, which will get a chance to climb out of the cellar next week when it hosts Minnesota (1-5).

Here are the conference-by-conference players of the week vying for National Player of the Week:
West Conference: Marshall Lobbestael, QB, Washington State, 26-41-441-6-0
Northwest Conference: Montee Ball, RB, Wisconsin, 28-236-3
North Conference: Fitzgerald Toussaint, RB, Michigan, 26-229-3
Northeast Conference: Chris Pantale, WR, Boston College, 5-150-2
East Conference: David Wilson, RB, Virginia Tech, 26-320-4
Southeast Conference: Trent Richardson, RB, Alabama, 31-244-5
South Central Conference: Jordan Jefferson, QB, LSU, 17-23-295-5-0 passing; 5-26-2 rushing
Southwest Conference: Robert Griffin, QB, Baylor, 21-21-346-2-0

And the National Player of the Week Award goes to....


David Wilson ran wild with 320 yards and 4 touchdowns in Virginia Tech's 44-6 win over Old Dominion.

Conference Rankings and Standings
 

Here are our conference-by-conference rankings, followed by the season standings:

West Conference: 1. Oregon, 2. USC, 3. Stanford
Northwest Conference: 1. Wisconsin, 2. Boise State, 3. Iowa
North Conference: 1. Michigan State, 2. Michigan, 3. Cincinnati
Northeast Conference: 1. West Virginia, 2. Penn State, 3. Temple
East Conference: 1. Virginia Tech, 2. Clemson 3. North Carolina
Southeast Conference: 1. Alabama, 2. Georgia, 3. Florida
South Central Conference: 1. Arkansas, 2. LSU, 3. Houston
Southwest Conference: 1. Oklahoma State, 2. Texas, 3. TCU

Another week, another Kansas loss. Well, that's just how that's going to be unless you were using the 2007 Jayhawks

SI

GIIIOOOOO

Yeah, they're looking at a 13 or 14 seed in the tournament.

Round 7 - Notes
 

This is the last round of the "regular season" and the last chance for teams to make significant movement within their conferences for seeding purposes. In the end, though, only ONE team will come out on top.


Tie Breakers

Because there are only seven games played in this round robin format, there will be a number of ties. I am using a short list of tie breakers. Hopefully this will cover every scenario, leading up to the last possible tie breaker, the coin flip tournament.

Note, for ties among more than two teams (3+), each tie breaker resets after one team has been eliminated from the tie. I tested it out, and it worked, so I am assuming I made no mistakes and it is clear what I am doing when I explain each conference's results.

Tie Breakers:

Two clubs –
1. Head-to-head result (No other tie breakers needed because they will have to play each other).

Three or more clubs –
1. Head-to-head result. Best record wins.
2. Best margin of victory. Best wins.
3. Worst margin of victory. Worst loses.
4. Most total margin of victory in all games. Best wins.
5. Most total points scored in all games. Best wins.

Conference Pairings

After the completion of the seventh round and all tie breakers are determined, teams will play a cross-divisional game within their conference to determine seeds 1-16 per conference.

Division 1 winner vs Division 2 winner - will be played at a neutral site for the conference championship. All other games will be played at the home field of the team with the better record OR by result of a coin flip if both teams have the same record. (Lee's notes: If this skews results too heavily in the home teams' favor, I will change it to a neutral only scenario in future replays. I am thinking along the lines of realism, but... this isn't real. However, I thought it would be good to reward good teams in good divisions by giving them a better chance to get the higher seed, thus more home games in the end.)

Conference Championship Locations

West Conference - Candlestick Park at San Francisco
Northwest Conference - Mile High Stadium at Denver
North Conference - Soldier Field at Chicago
Northeast Conference - Gillette Stadium at Foxboro, Massachusetts
East Conference - Bank of America Stadium at Charlotte
Southeast Conference - Georgia Dome at Atlanta
South Central Conference - Superdome at New Orleans
Southwest Conference - Cowboys Stadium at Arlington, Texas

Round 7 - West Conference
 

Arizona 28 at Arizona State 31

The Sun Devils needed a flurry of points in the fourth quarter to beat in-state rival Arizona.

Trailing 21-10 entering the fourth quarter, Arizona State’s Brock Osweiler connected with Aaron Pflugrad on an 18-yard touchdown pass. The two-point conversion failed, giving the Wildcats (4-3) a 21-16 lead. Arizona then extended that lead to 28-16 when Willie Tuitama hit Nicholas Grigsby for an 8-yard score.

Arizona State (4-3) found the answers, though, the rest of the way. Cameron Marshall scored on a one-yard run with 6:29 left to cap a nine-play drive. Then, with 2:01 left, Osweiler found Rashad Ross on a deep slant for a 41-yard strike. The two-point conversion gave the Sun Devils a 31-28 win.

Leading Passer: Willie Tuitama, Arizona, 29-45-389-3-0
Leading Rusher: Cameron Marshall, ASU, 19-86-1
Leading Receiver: Mike Thomas, Arizona, 8-115-1

Fresno State 20 at USC 51
Leading Passer: Matt Barkley, USC, 17-22-272-1-0
Leading Rusher: Curtis McNeal, USC, 17-228-2
Leading Receiver: Robert Woods, USC, 6-104

San Diego State 34 at UNLV 17
Leading Passer: Ryan Lindley, SDSU, 27-52-285-2-1
Leading Rusher: Ronnie Hillman, SDSU, 27-171-2
Leading Receiver: Colin Lockett, SDSU, 5-72

San Jose State 32 at UCLA 40
Leading Passer: Matt Faulkner, SJSU, 27-44-364-2-0
Leading Rusher: Johnathan Franklin, UCLA, 21-76-1
Leading Receiver: Nelson Rosario, UCLA, 4-112-1

Washington 21 at Washington State 37
Leading Passer: Marshall Lobbestael, WSU, 26-41-356-3-2
Leading Rusher: Carl Winston, WSU, 15-132-1
Leading Receiver: Marquess Wilson, WSU, 7-100

Hawaii 20 at Stanford 24

In a game that may have seemed like an easy win for the Cardinal, it was anything but. Hawaii too a 20-13 lead into halftime, thanks to a 78-yard Scott Harding punt return with 14 seconds left in the half.

Stanford (5-2) never got it going offensively, but pulled the score to 20-18 after three quarters thanks to a Jordan Williamson field goal and a safety when Kyle Olugbode sacked Hawaii’s Bryant Moniz in the end zone.

The Cardinal took the lead and then finalized it at 24-20 with two more Williamson field goals in the fourth quarter.

Leading Passer: Andrew Luck, Stanford, 16-31-252-1-1
Leading Rusher: Joey Iosefa, Hawaii, 13-102-1
Leading Receiver: Coby Fleener, Stanford, 5-103

Nevada 24 at California 19
Leading Passer: Zach Maynard, Cal, 19-34-229-0-0
Leading Rusher: Lampford Mark, Nevada, 25-137-1
Leading Receiver: Keenan Allen, Cal, 8-98

Oregon State 10 at Oregon 55
Leading Passer: Darron Thomas, Oregon, 13-24-228-3-0
Leading Rusher: LaMichael James, Oregon, 28-270-3
Leading Receiver: Markus Wheaton, OSU, 7-89




West Conference Report:

USC and Oregon were only playing for pride since they wrapped up their divisions a week ago. Still, both teams showed their force in dominating wins.

The Trojans (6-1) ran and passed all over Fresno State (2-5) to win 51-20. The Ducks (7-0) did the same to Oregon State (4-3), led by West Conference Player of the Week LaMichael James. James rushed 28 times for 270 yards and three touchdowns in the Ducks' 55-10 win over their in-state rival.

A number of teams were tied at 4-3 in each division, so tie breakers were put into effect. In Division 1, Arizona, Arizona State and San Diego State finished 4-3. The Sun Devils beat both teams, so they finish in third place. The Wildcats then got fourth place by beating San Diego State, which is fifth, straight up.

Division 2's tie breaker was a little more complicated since Oregon State, Washington and Washington State beat each other, ending in 1-1 results in head-to-head games. Based on the second tie breaker, the Cougars earned third place because they had the largest margin of victory (16) in the series thanks to their Round 7 win over Washington, 37-21. The Huskies beat Oregon State, giving them the fourth place seed, while the Beavers were relegated to the fifth seed.


Conference Championship Round Schedule (Coin toss for teams with same record):

15th Place Game, 9:30 PM EST - UNLV (0-7) at Hawaii (0-7)
13th Place Game, 9:30 PM EST - California (1-6) at Fresno State (2-5)
11th Place Game, 8:00 PM EST - San Jose State (3-4) at Nevada (3-4)
9th Place Game, 9:30 PM EST - San Diego State (4-3) at Oregon State (4-3)
7th Place Game, 9:30 PM EST - Washington (4-3) at Arizona (4-3)
5th Place Game, 9:30 PM EST - Washington State (4-3) at Arizona State (4-3)
3rd Place Game, 9:30 PM EST - UCLA (5-2) at Stanford (5-2)
Championship at San Francisco, 9:30 PM EST - USC (6-1) vs Oregon (7-0)

Round 7 - Northwest Conference
 

Boise State 58 at Idaho 23
Leading Passer: Kellen Moore, BSU, 24-38-323-3-0
Leading Rusher: Doug Martin, BSU, 34-203-3
Leading Receiver: Mike Scott, Idaho, 5-103

Air Force 25 at Utah State 32

Utah State 21-0 lead after first quarter.

Leading Passer: Tim Jefferson, AF, 15-27-182-1-0
Leading Rusher: Michael Smith, USU, 10-164-2
Leading Receiver: Joshua Freeman, AF, 5-60

Colorado 22 at Utah 37
Leading Passer: Tyler Hansen, Colorado, 27-47-414-3-0
Leading Rusher: John White, Utah, 26-220-3
Leading Receiver: Toney Clemons, Colorado, 5-115

Colorado State 38 at BYU 36, 3OT

The Rams built a solid 16-3 halftime lead and then had to hold on to upset BYU on the road.

The Cougars (4-3) scored the first 17 points of the second half to take a 20-16 lead with 7:11 left in the game. Colorado State (3-4) finally answered, though, thanks to Chris Nwoke’s 68-yard run to set up first and goal at the BYU three. On the next play, Pete Thomas passed the ball to Lou Greenwood for a three-yard scoring play. The extra point made it 23-20 in favor of the Rams.

BYU then answered with a 12-play drive that stalled inside the Colorado State ten, forcing Justin Sorensen to kick the tying 26-yard field goal.

In the first overtime, each team traded a touchdown, and neither team could score in the second overtime. First, the Rams’ Ben DeLine’s 35-yard field goal sailed wide right, and then Jake Heaps was picked off.

The third overtime made the difference with the two-point conversion rule in play. First, BYU scored on a 14-yard pass from Heaps to JJ Di Luigi. However, Heaps’ two-point try fell incomplete, giving the Cougars a 36-30 lead in the third overtime. Colorado State then answered when Nwoke rushed for a 10-yard touchdown. Thomas then found a wide open Lee Clubb in the end zone for the two-point conversion and the 38-36 victory.

Leading Passer: Jake Heaps, BYU, 30-57-314-2-1
Leading Rusher: Chris Nwoke, CSU, 20-128-3
Leading Receiver: JJ Di Luigi, BYU, 5-69-1

Iowa 27 at Iowa State 20, OT

The Cyclones’ Zach Guyer hit a game-tying field goal with less than a minute left in regulation, but it was not enough as Iowa triumphed on the road.

Marvin McNutt caught an 11-yard touchdown pass from James Vandenberg for the Hawkeyes (6-1) in over time. Iowa State (2-5) had a chance to tie the game, but could not.

Leading Passer: James Vandenberg, Iowa, 19-29-243-1-3
Leading Rusher: Marcus Coker, Iowa, 35-196-2
Leading Receiver: Marvin McNutt, Iowa, 7-89-1

Minnesota 20 at Northwestern 40
Leading Passer: Dan Persa, Northwestern, 18-25-262-3-1
Leading Rusher: Duane Bennett, Minnesota, 19-90
Leading Receiver: Jeremy Ebert, Northwestern, 6-117-1

Wyoming 14 at Missouri 13
Missouri fell at home in its regular season finale, which may push Missouri’s seeding in the NCAA 128 Tournament a bit lower. The Tigers had a chance to clinch third place in Division 2, but Grant Ressel’s 38-yard field goal attempt with three seconds left was wide right. Now Missouri has to wait for conference tie breakers to see where they finish.

Wyoming’s Brandon Miller scored from 24 yards out with 2:09 remaining in the game in the Cowboys’ (4-3) upset win at Missouri (4-3).

The Tigers were unable to score again after James Franklin connected with Wes Kemp on a five-yard score with 4:47 left in the third quarter.

Leading Passer: Brett Smith, Wyoming, 18-29-245-1-1
Leading Rusher: Kendial Lawrence, Missouri, 14-115
Leading Receiver: TJ Moe, Missouri, 4-63

Nebraska 7 at Wisconsin 16
Leading Passer: Russell Wilson, Wisconsin, 17-24-202-1-0
Leading Rusher: Montee Ball, Wisconsin, 28-93
Leading Receiver: Montee Ball, Wisconsin, 2-42-1



Northwest Conference Report:

Boise State needed to win to earn the Division 1 title, and they cruised to an easy 58-23 win at Idaho. Doug Martin rushed 34 times for 203 yards and three touchdowns to lead the Broncos (6-1), who will now face Wisconsin in the conference championship.

Martin's performance was not even the best of the week. That went to John White of Utah. The Northwest Conference Player of the Week finished with 26 rushes for 220 yards and three touchdowns in the Utes' 37-22 win over Colorado.

For seeding in the conference championship round, a few ties had to be broken. In Division 1, BYU and Utah State both finished at 4-3, but the Cougars were awarded third place by virtue of their head-to-head win over the Aggies. Also, Air Force beat Colorado State for fifth place.

In Division 2, Wyoming earned third place due to their win over Missouri. Also, Northwestern's win over Minnesota allowed the Wildcats to move into seventh place over the Golden Gophers.



Conference Championship Round Schedule (Coin toss for teams with same record):

15th Place Game, 8:00 PM EST - Minnesota (1-6) at Colorado (1-6)
13th Place Game, 9:30 PM EST - Northwestern (1-6) at Idaho (2-5)
11th Place Game, 8:00 PM EST - Iowa State (2-5) at Colorado State (3-4)
9th Place Game, 3:30 PM EST - Air Force (3-4) at Nebraska (3-4)
7th Place Game, 3:30 PM EST - Utah State (4-3) at Missouri (4-3)
5th Place Game, 6:30 PM EST - BYU (4-3) at Wyoming (4-3)
3rd Place Game, 3:30 PM EST - Utah (5-2) at Iowa (6-1)
Championship at Denver, 8:00 PM EST - Boise State (6-1) vs Wisconsin (7-0)

Round 7 - North Conference
 

Ball State 17 at Indiana 34
Leading Passer: Edward Wright-Baker, Indiana, 19-33-231-3-0
Leading Rusher: Barrington Scott, BS, 14-109-1
Leading Receiver: Torieal Gibson, BS, 3-60

Ohio State 16 at Cincinnati 23

Cincinnati trailed 16-13 at halftime, but scored all ten points in the second half, including the game-winning touchdown with 44 seconds left. On the play, the Bearcats’ Munchie Legaux found Adrien Robinson on a 17-yard fade to clinch first place for Cincinnati (6-1) in Division 1.
Leading Passer: Munchie Legaux, Cincinnati, 19-34-208-2-0
Leading Rusher: Dan Herron, OSU, 26-195-1
Leading Receiver: Kenbrell Thompkins, Cincinnati, 4-48

Purdue 31 at Toledo 52
Leading Passer: Terrance Owens, Toledo, 27-40-412-5-0
Leading Rusher: Adonis Thomas, Toledo, 23-129-1
Leading Receiver: Eric Page, Toledo, 10-174-1

Miami (OH) 21 at Louisville 24

Miami (Ohio) scored a late touchdown, but it was not enough in a game where the RedHawks trailed throughout.

The loss dropped Miami (4-3) to third place while Louisville (3-4) was able to move up to fifth place in Division 1 with the win.

Leading Passer: Zac Dysert, Miami, 21-37-262-2-1
Leading Rusher: Zac Dysert, Miami, 17-52
Leading Receiver: Nick Harwell, Miami, 10-159-2

Western Michigan 24 at Eastern Michigan 31
Leading Passer: Alex Carder, WMU, 21-28-289-3-1
Leading Rusher: Dominque White, EMU, 17-163-2
Leading Receiver: Jordan White, WMU, 10-128

Central Michigan 17 at Illinois 6
Leading Passer: Nathan Scheelhaase, Illinois, 15-23-218-0-2
Leading Rusher: Anthony Garland, CMU, 14-100-1
Leading Receiver: Darius Millines, Illinois, 5-81

Northern Illinois 31 at Notre Dame 35

Cierre Wood ran in from five yards out with just 40 seconds remaining to allow Notre Dame (4-3) to escape Northern Illinois (3-4) and clinch third place in Division 2.

The Huskies, the fifth place team in the division, had scored 31 straight points after falling behind 28-0 in the second quarter. Mathew Sims’ 57-yard field goal with 2:21 remaining gave NIU its first lead, but it was not enough to pull off the road victory.

Leading Passer: Tommy Rees, ND, 31-46-412-3-1
Leading Rusher: Jasmin Hopkins, NIU, 19-114-2
Leading Receiver: Michael Floyd, ND, 9-94

GAME OF THE WEEK: Michigan State 38 at Michigan 31

Michigan ran out to a 17-0 lead and an early 24-7 lead in the second half but could not survive a Michigan State onslaught in the Division 2 championship.

The Spartans (7-0) took their first lead of the game with 10:28 left when Kirk Cousins hit Keshawn Martin for a 20-yard scoring strike. Michigan State scored again with 4:40 left to take a 14-point lead before Michigan’s (5-2) Michael Shaw scored a late touchdown for the final score.

With the win, Michigan State clinched the Division 2 title and will face Cincinnati for the North Conference championship. The Wolverines are second place in the division.

Despite the loss, Shaw earned game MVP honors. He rushed 8 times for 75 yards and 2 touchdowns, and he scored on a 78-yard screen play in the first quarter that gave Michigan its 17-0 lead at that time.

Cousins took a while to warm up for the Spartans, but once he got hot, Michigan State started to dominate on the offensive side of the ball. Cousins threw three second-half touchdowns, including the go-ahead and game-clinching touchdowns for Michigan State.

Leading Passer: Kirk Cousins, MSU, 27-39-306-3-0
Leading Rusher: Le’Veon Ball, MSU, 14-94
Leading Receiver: Junior Hemingway, Michigan, 3-81
Game MVP: Michael Shaw, Michigan, 8-75-2 rushing, 1-78-1 receiving




North Conference Report:

Neither division was settled until the final round. Michigan State stayed undefeated at 7-0 by pulling off a huge win at Michigan (5-2). Cincinnati also guaranteed its division championship by holding on against Ohio State (3-4).

This week featured a few solid offensive performances. The Spartans' Kirk Cousins had a dominating day, finishing 27 of 39 for 306 yards and three touchdowns. Tommy Rees of Notre Dame was money in the Irish's 35-31 win over Northern Illinois. Rees was 31 of 46 for 412 yards with three touchdowns and an interception. However, the player of the week award goes to Terrance Owens of Toledo who dominated Purdue by going 27 of 40 for 412 yards and five touchdowns.

The North Conference only had pairs of ties, making the tie breaker scenarios quite easy, Miami of Ohio and Purdue each finished at 4-3, but the RedHawks beat Purdue to earn third place. Louisville was the better of the 3-4 teams than Ohio State to gain fifth place in Division 1. In Division 2, Notre Dame got third place over Eastern Michigan and Nothern Illinois was fifth place over Western Michigan.

Tie breakers:
Miami of Ohio is 3rd thanks to head-to-head win over Purdue
Louisville is 5th thanks to head-to-head win over Ohio State
Notre Dame is 3rd thanks to head-to-head win over EMU
Northern Illinois is 5th thanks to head-to-head win over WMU


Conference Championship Round Schedule (Coin toss for teams with same record):

15th Place Game, 2:00 PM EST - Illinois (0-7) at Indiana (1-6)
13th Place Game, 3:30 PM EST - Central Michigan (2-5) at Ball State (2-5)
11th Place Game, 2:00 PM EST - Western Michigan (3-4) at Ohio State (3-4)
9th Place Game, 5:00 PM EST - Northern Illinois (3-4) at Louisville (3-4)
7th Place Game, 12:30 PM EST - Purdue (4-3) at Eastern Michigan (4-3)
5th Place Game, 5:00 PM EST - Miami of Ohio (4-3) at Notre Dame (4-3)
3rd Place Game, 12:30 PM EST - Toledo (5-2) at Michigan (5-2)
Championship at Chicago, 2:00 PM EST - Cincinnati (6-1) at Michigan State (7-0)

Round 7 - Northeast Conference
 

Army 33 at Buffalo 26
Leading Passer: Chazz Anderson, Buffalo, 17-31-239-0-0
Leading Rusher: Raymond Maples, Army, 21-129-2
Leading Receiver: Alex Neutz, Buffalo, 4-64

Syracuse 35 at Bowling Green 24
Leading Passer: Ryan Nassib, Syracuse, 20-33-291-3-0
Leading Rusher: Antwon Bailey, Syracuse, 27-165-1
Leading Receiver: Dorian Graham, Syracuse, 4-83-1

Rutgers 10 at Boston College 30

In the biggest surprise among all national divisions, Boston College clinched the Northeast Conference Division 1 championship by blowing out Rutgers.

The Eagles (5-2) needed help with a Bowling Green loss and by defeating Rutgers (5-2), and they got just that. It also means that Boston College will be considered the worst 1 or 2 seed in the NCAA 128 tournament.

The game was close for most of the second half. Boston College finally took control for good with just 36 seconds left in the first half when Andre Williams rushed for a 19-yard touchdown. Chase Rettig then threw a 12-yard scoring strike to Alex Amidon and the Scarlet Knights could never find an answer to come back. Rettig finished the game 16 of 31 for 188 yards with three touchdowns and an interception.

Leading Passer: Chas Dodd, Rutgers, 21-40-314-1-4
Leading Rusher: Andre Williams, BC, 17-153-1
Leading Receiver: Mohamed Sanu, Rutgers, 12-191-1

Massachusetts 24 at Connecticut 28
Leading Passer: Johnny McEntee, UConn, 21-40-323-4-0
Leading Rusher: RB1, UMass, 16-113-1
Leading Receiver: Lyle McCombs, UConn, 4-80-2

Akron 3 at Kent State 26
Leading Passer: Clayton Moore, Akron, 16-40-195-0-3
Leading Rusher: Trayion Durham, Kent, 23-165-2
Leading Receiver: Keith Sconiers, Akron, 4-53

Ohio 29 at Penn State 41

Penn State fell behind in their hopes for winning the Division 2 championship, but all they needed was a little Silas Redd action to help them cruise against a tough Ohio (4-3) team.

The Nittany Lions (6-1) fell behind 13-7 late in the first half, thanks in part to a 59-yard touchdown run by Ohio’s Donte Harden. However, Penn State was able to drive down the field and kick a short field goal to make it 13-10 in favor of the Bobcats at halftime.

To start the second half, Penn State turned to Redd. Matt McGloin threw a dump off pass to Redd on the first play of the second half, and Redd took it to the house for 80 yards.

After the Bobcats retook the lead at 20-17 on a 68-yard Tyler Tettleton to Jordan Thompson hook up, Redd scored again from five yards out to give Penn State the lead for good, 24-20.

Leading Passer: Matt McGloin, PSU, 20-38-389-3-2
Leading Rusher: Silas Redd, PSU, 24-138-1
Leading Receiver: Silas Redd, PSU, 2-93-1

Maryland 13 at Pittsburgh 16
Leading Passer: Tino Sunseri, Pitt, 17-29-215-0-0
Leading Rusher: Davin Meggett, Maryland, 19-91
Leading Receiver: Hubie Graham, Pitt, 4-67

GAME OF THE WEEK: West Virginia 24 at Temple 16

Temple’s chance at a Division 2 championship was foiled by the Geno Smith to Tavon Austin fourth-quarter connection. Trailing 13-10 in the fourth, Smith hit Austin on a 5-yard pass to give the Mountaineers (6-1) a 17-13 lead.

After the Owls (5-2) kicked a field goal, Smith and Austin connected again from 8 yards out to lead to the 24-16 final.

Temple rushed for 241 yards in the loss, but the Owls could not find the end zone after scoring on their opening drive. Bernard Pierce finished with 97 yards on 24 carries and Matt Brown added 96 yards on 13 carries.

Had Temple won the game, they would have claimed the Division 1 champioship due to a win over Penn State in Round 5. Since Penn State (6-1) won, West Virginia was eliminated from division championship contention due to their Round 6 loss to Penn State.

Leading Passer: Geno Smith, WVU, 26-39-291-3-0
Leading Rusher: Bernard Pierce, Temple, 24-97
Leading Receiver: Tavon Austin, WVU, 9-83-2




Northeast Conference Report:

The divisions came down to very simple needs by teams. Kind of. Some teams simply needed a win or just a little help.

Rutgers and Temple each had the easiest path to division crowns. All they had to do was win. Yet neither team could find it within themselves to do that. As a result, both teams dropped from one of them being a #1 seed in the country to neither of them winning their divisions.

With Boston College's win over Rutgers, along with Bowling Green losing to Syracuse, the Eagles are the biggest division winner surprise in the nation, winning the division thanks to their head-to-head win over Rutgers.

In Division 2, West Virginia eliminated Temple for division title contention, but Penn State claimed the division thanks to beating the Mountaineers earlier in the season.

Division 1 was jumbled throughout in the end. Two teams finished at 5-2 and another three teams finished 4-3. Bowling Green, Connecticut and Syracuse were the latter three teams. The Orange were able to win third place because they had the greatest margin of victory (11 points) in the series. Bowling Green then took fourth place over the Huskies thanks to winning the head-to-head match up.

In Division 2, the only other tie besides first place was for sixth place. There Maryland beat Kent State in their head-to-head match up, giving the Terrapins sixth place in the division.

The Northeast Conference Player of the Week Award goes to Silas Redd of Penn State. He was dominant in the Nittany Lions' division-clinching win over Ohio. Redd rushed 24 times for 138 and a touchdown and caught two passes for 93 yards and another touchdown.


Conference Championship Round Schedule (Coin toss for teams with same record):

15th Place Game, 11:00 AM EST - Akron (0-7) at Massachusetts (1-6)
13th Place Game, 11:00 AM EST - Kent State (2-5) at Buffalo (2-5)
11th Place Game, 12:30 PM EST - Maryland (2-5) at Army (3-4)
9th Place Game, 2:00 PM EST - Pittsburgh (3-4) at Connecticut (4-3)
7th Place Game, 2:00 PM EST - Bowling Green (4-3) at Ohio (4-3)
5th Place Game, 12:30 PM EST - Syracuse (4-3) at Temple (5-2)
3rd Place Game, 2:00 PM EST - Rutgers (5-2) at West Virginia (6-1)
Championship at Foxboro, MA, 11:00 AM EST - Boston College (5-2) vs Penn State (6-1)

I prefer these conference title locations. I've always thought the bowl system biased towards the SEC with so many bowls in their territory. It's kindof the "Super Bowl not in a dome" theory where it would be a bit different for Alabama to play up in the snow some year when, say, Ohio State was good rather than it always being down south.

SI

Round 7 - East Conference
 

UNC-Charlotte 23 at Duke 28
Leading Passer: Sean Renfree, Duke, 28-42-327-2-0
Leading Rusher: Desmond Scott, Duke, 13-91-1
Leading Receiver: Some Dude, UNCC, 3-77-1

East Carolina 13 at North Carolina 41
Leading Passer: Bryn Renner, UNC, 24-30-342-4-1
Leading Rusher: Giovani Bernard, UNC, 26-111-1
Leading Receiver: Lance Lewis, ECU, 9-165

Wake Forest 33 at North Carolina State 34, OT
Wake Forest kicked the game-tying field goal with just three seconds remaining in regulation, and scored first in overtime. However, their efforts were foiled when Jimmy Newman missed the extra point attempt.

The Wolfpack (4-3) answered by scoring on a 19-yard Glennon to TJ Graham pass. The extra point clinched fourth place in Division 2 for North Carolina State. Wake Forest (2-5) is sixth in the division.

Leading Passer: Tanner Price, WF, 24-38-366-4-2
Leading Rusher: James Washington, NCSU, 26-172
Leading Receiver: Michael Campanaro, WF, 7-126-1
Player of the Game: Mike Glennon, NCSU, 22-36-282-3-1

GAME OF THE WEEK: South Carolina 17 at Clemson 3

In a defensive battle, South Carolina held Clemson to 269 total yards and forced 2 turnovers to earn a share of the Division 1 title.

North Carolina (6-1) won the division due to a head-to-head win over the Gamecocks (6-1).

Most of South Carolina’s offense came from the running of Brandon Wilds. He finished with 118 of South Carolina’s 207 rushing yards and scored both of the Gamecocks’ touchdowns.

Leading Passer: Tajh Boyd, Clemson, 17-29-141-0-1
Leading Rusher: Brandon Wilds, S Carolina, 20-118-2
Leading Receiver: Adam Humphries, Clemson, 1-35

Virginia 10 at Virginia Tech 23
Leading Passer: Michael Rocco, UVA, 24-37-225-0-0
Leading Rusher: David Wilson, VT, 27-220-1
Leading Receiver: Matt Snyder, UVA, 3-49

Marshall 20 at Navy 39
Leading Passer: Rakeem Cato, Marshall, 19-31-249-2-0
Leading Rusher: Alexander Teich, Navy, 24-166-1
Leading Receiver: CJ Crawford, Marshall, 3-60

Old Dominion 21 at Florida International 28
Leading Passer: Wesley Carroll, FIU, 23-39-285-3-1
Leading Rusher: Kedrick Rhodes, FIU, 29-90-1
Leading Receiver: Nick Mayers, ODU, 7-168-1

Miami (FL) 9 at Florida State 48
Leading Passer: EJ Manuel, FSU, 23-34-304-5-1
Leading Rusher: Devonta Freeman, FSU, 19-50-1
Leading Receiver: Nick O’Leary, FSU, 4-82-1



East Conference Report:

With North Carolina's easy victory over East Carolina, coupled with South Carolina's big win over Clemson, the Tar Heels are able to claim the Division 1 title. Both North Carolina and South Carolina finished 6-1, but the Tar Heels beat the Gamecocks in their head-to-head match up.

In Division 2, Virginia Tech completed its undefeated regular season by topping Virginia. The Hokies will now face North Carolina in the East Conference Championship.

There were a few ties in the conference. In Division 1, Wake Forest and East Carolina both finished at 2-5, but the Demon Deacons claim sixth place due to a head-to-head win. In Division 2, Florida International got third place over Virginia thanks to a head-to-head win. Finally, Navy finished in sixth over Marshall by beat the Thundering Herd.

For player of the week, there were three in contention, including last week's National Player of the Week, David Wilson of Virginia Tech. Florida State's EJ Manuel was another who had a great week, but the Player of the Week award goes to division-winning North Carolina's Bryn Renner. The Tar Heels quarterback completed 24 of 30 passes for 342 yards, four touchdowns and an interception.




Conference Championship Round Schedule (Coin toss for teams with same record):

15th Place Game, 12:30 PM EST - UNC-Charlotte (0-7) at Old Dominion (0-7)
13th Place Game, 11:00 AM EST - East Carolina (2-5) at Marshall (2-5)
11th Place Game, 11:00 AM EST - Navy (2-5) at Wake Forest (2-5)
9th Place Game, 3:30 PM EST - Miami (3-4) at Duke (3-4)
7th Place Game, 2:00 PM EST - North Carolina State (4-3) at Virginia (4-3)
5th Place Game, 11:00 AM EST - Florida International (4-3) at Clemson (5-2)
3rd Place Game, 5:00 PM EST - Florida State (6-1) at South Carolina (6-1)
Championship at Charlotte, NC, 12:30 PM EST - North Carolina (6-1) vs Virginia Tech (7-0)

Round 7 - Southeast Conference
 

Georgia 40 at Georgia State 19
Leading Passer: Aaron Murray, UGA, 16-31-283-1-4
Leading Rusher: Donald Russell, GSU, 22-202-1
Leading Receiver: Malcolm Mitchell, UGA, 3-80

Georgia Tech 40 at Florida Atlantic 3
Leading Passer: Graham Wilbert, FAU, 15-37-161-0-2
Leading Rusher: Orwin Smith, GT, 15-101
Leading Receiver: Darian Williams, FAU, 4-47

Georgia Southern 32 at Central Florida 10
Leading Passer: Jaybo Shaw, GSU, 24-39-361-2-1
Leading Rusher: Dominique Swope, GSU, 24-115
Leading Receiver: Kentrellis Showers, GSU, 5-114-2

South Florida 9 at Florida 41
Leading Passer: BJ Daniels, USF, 19-33-218-0-2
Leading Rusher: Jeff Demps, Florida, 12-144-1
Leading Receiver: Chris Rainey, Florida, 3-55
Game MVP: Chris Rainey, Florida, 19-130-2 rushing; 3-55 receiving

Kentucky 10 at Western Kentucky 7
Leading Passer: Morgan Newton, UK, 13-29-167-1-0
Leading Rusher: Bobby Rainey, WKU, 42-135-1
Leading Receiver: Matt Roark, UK, 3-89-1

Tennessee 40 at Vanderbilt 10
Leading Passer: Tyler Bray, UT, 24-37-343-3-0
Leading Rusher: Tauren Poole, UT, 22-75-1
Leading Receiver: Da’Rick Rogers, UT, 6-105-2

MTSU 14 at Troy 32
Leading Passer: Corey Robinson, Troy, 21-36-349-2-0
Leading Rusher: Shawn Southward, Troy, 15-68-2
Leading Receiver: Eric Thomas, Troy, 5-110-1

Auburn 3 at Alabama 57
Leading Passer: Phillip Sims, Alabama, 23-35-287-2-0
Leading Rusher: Trent Richardson, Alabama, 36-128-4
Leading Receiver: Brad Smelley, Alabama, 4-73



Southeast Conference Report:

The Southeast Conference had the most anti-climactic finish of any of the eight conferences. Alabama had already claimed the Division 2 title, but they still found a way to throttle in-state rival Auburn, 57-3.

Florida was not guaranteed the Division 1 title, needing to beat South Florida in the final game to ensure they would win it. The Gators did just that, easily putting away the Bulls, 41-9. The Gators win Division 1 due to defeating Georgia, which also finished 6-1, earlier in the season. Florida's prize is now to try to stop the seemingly unstoppable Crimson Tide (7-0).

This week's Player of the Week Award goes to Tennessee's Tyler Bray. The Volunteers quarterback completed 24 of 37 passes for 343 yards and three touchdowns in a 40-10 win at Vanderbilt and second place in Division 2.

For tie breakers, Florida Atlantic won out over Georgia State for seventh place in Division 1 because of a head-to-head win. In Division 2, Kentucky bested Troy for fifth place because of a head-to-head win. Also, WKU was awarded seventh place over MTSU because of a head-to-head win.



Conference Championship Round Schedule (Coin toss for teams with same record):

15th Place Game, 6:30 PM EST - MTSU (1-6) at Georgia State (1-6)
13th Place Game, 12:30 PM EST - Florida Atlantic (1-6) at Western Kentucky (1-6)
11th Place Game, 11:00 AM EST - Georgia Southern (2-5) at Troy (2-5)
9th Place Game, 3:30 PM EST - Kentucky (2-5) at Central Florida (3-4)
7th Place Game, 11:00 AM EST - South Florida (4-3) at Auburn (4-3)
5th Place Game, 2:00 PM EST - Vanderbilt (5-2) at Georgia Tech (5-2)
3rd Place Game, 12:30 PM EST - Tennessee (6-1) at Georgia (6-1)
Championship at Atlanta, 3:30 PM EST - Florida (6-1) at Alabama (7-0)

Round 7 - South Central Conference
 

LSU 41 at Louisiana Tech 27
Leading Passer: Colby Cameron, LTU, 22-34-279-2-1
Leading Rusher: Michael Ford, LSU, 12-162-1
Leading Receiver: David Gru, LTU, 4-76-1

Tulane 10 at UL-Lafayette 31
Leading Passer: Blaine Gautier, ULL, 23-35-258-1-2
Leading Rusher: Alonzo Harris, ULL, 22-80-2
Leading Receiver: Harry Peoples, ULL, 6-64

UL-Monroe 14 at Houston 45
Leading Passer: Case Keenum, Houston, 24-36-436-3-0
Leading Rusher: Centarius Donald, ULM, 13-169-1
Leading Receiver: Patrick Edwards, Houston, 6-158-1

Texas A&M 37 at Rice 6
Leading Passer: Ryan Tannehill, TAMU, 20-29-296-2-1
Leading Rusher: Cyrus Gray, TAMU, 26-97-2
Leading Receiver: Ryan Swope, TAMU, 6-82

GAME OF THE WEEK: Arkansas 33 at Arkansas State 16

Arkansas ran out to an early lead, scoring on a 11-yard Dennis Johnson run on its first drive and building a big lead to cruise in winning the Division 2 championship.

The Razorbacks (7-0) took a 24-6 lead late in the first half when Tyler Wilson hit Austin Tate on an underneath pass for a two-yard score. The Red Wolves (5-2) answered quickly, though, on a 67-yard pass from Ryan Aplin to Derek Lawson to make it 24-13 in favor of Arkansas at the half.

That would be as close as Arkansas State could get as neither team could find the end zone in the second half. Arkansas outscored the Red Wolves 9-3 on three Zach Hocker field goals.

With the win, Arkansas will face LSU in the South Central Conference championship game.

Leading Passer: Ryan Aplin, 20-30-300-1-2
Leading Rusher: Dennis Johnson, Arkansas, 15-106-1
Leading Receiver: Dwayne Frampton, ASU, 8-87
Game MVP: Tyler Wilson, Arkansas, 23-33-268-2-1

UAB 21 at South Alabama 22

South Alabama took a 9-0 lead in the first half and then had to come back to beat UAB and avoid last place in Division 2.

The Jaguars (2-5) fell behind 21-9 after three quarters thanks to a hot quarter by the Blazers (1-6). Jonathan Perry connected with Jackie Williams on a 32-yard pass for UAB’s first points of the game. After an interception, UAB scored again on a 13-yard Darrin Reaves run. The Blazers added one more score on a three-yard Greg Franklin rush.

South Alabama then began its come back in the fourth quarter. Jordan Means started the scoring with a 41-yard field goal to cut the UAB lead to 21-12. With 9:36 left, CJ Bennett hit a wide open Brynt Lavender for a 27-yard score. With only 1:37 left, Means kicked his fifth field goal of the game, this one a game-winner from 26 yards out.

Leading Passer: Jonathan Perry, UAB, 17-39-229-1-0
Leading Rusher: Demetre Baker, USA, 18-114
Leading Receiver: Jackie Williams, UAB, 5-70-1
Game MVP: Jordan Means, USA, 5-5 FG, GW FG

Southern Miss 33 at Memphis 7
Leading Passer: Taylor Reed, Memphis, 11-32-196-1-1
Leading Rusher: Artaves Gibson, Memphis, 11-57
Leading Receiver: Tannar Rehrer, Memphis, 4-88

Mississippi State 52 at Ole Miss 30
Leading Passer: Chris Relf, MSU, 11-22-230-5-0
Leading Rusher: Vick Ballard, MSU, 18-226 (1-16-1 rec)
Leading Receiver: Donte Moncrief, Ole Miss, 4-101-1



South Central Conference Report:

Only one game really mattered in Round 7 for the South Central Conference. The match up of Arkansas at Arkansas State was to determine the Division 2 champion, and the Razorbacks proved their Natural State supremacy, winning 33-16 over the Red Wolves.

By winning, the Razorbacks will now face LSU (7-0), which cruised over Louisiana Tech, 41-27. Both Arkansas and LSU were expected to win their divisions before the season started.

With the loss, Arkansas State fell into a second-place tie with Mississippi State, but the Red Wolves get to claim sole possession of second due to their head-to-head win over the Bulldogs. The only other tie in the conference was a last place tie in Division 2 between UAB and Memphis. The Blazers were victorious in their head-to-head match up, so they will be seventh place.

The Player of the Week is Chris Relf of Mississippi State who completed 11 of 22 passes for 230 yards and five touchdowns. He beat out teammate Vick Ballard who rushed for 226 yards on 18 carries and had a 16-yard touchdown reception.



Conference Championship Round Schedule (Coin toss for teams with same record):

15th Place Game, 5:00 PM EST - Tulane (0-7) at Memphis (1-6)
13th Place Game, 3:30 PM EST - UAB (1-6) at Rice (1-6)
11th Place Game, 6:30 PM EST - UL-Monroe (2-5) at South Alabama (2-5)
9th Place Game, 5:00 PM EST - Ole Miss (3-4) at UL-Lafayette (3-4)
7th Place Game, 6:30 PM EST - Louisiana Tech (4-3) at Southern Miss (4-3)
5th Place Game, 6:30 PM EST - Texas A&M (5-2) at Mississippi State (5-2)
3rd Place Game, 8:00 PM EST - Arkansas State (5-2) at Houston (6-1)
Championship at New Orleans, 5:00 PM EST - Arkansas (7-0) at LSU (7-0)

Round 7 - Southwest Conference
 

UTEP 33 at Baylor 55
Leading Passer: Nick Lamaison, UTEP, 25-38-358-3-1
Leading Rusher: Terrance Ganaway, Baylor, 27-264-3
Leading Receiver: Mike Edwards, UTEP, 4-100

UTSA 24 at Texas State 20
Leading Passer: Shaun Rutherford, TSU, 16-20-186-1-0
Leading Rusher: Evans Okotcha, UTSA, 15-73-1
Leading Receiver: Chase Harper, TSU, 5-47

Texas 33 at Texas Tech 20
Leading Passer: Seth Doege, TT, 28-42-302-2-1
Leading Rusher: Malcolm Brown, Texas, 25-145-2
Leading Receiver: Jaxon Shipley, Texas, 4-105-1

New Mexico State 19 at New Mexico 28
Leading Passer: BR Holbrook, NMU, 17-25-284-3-1
Leading Rusher: Kenny Turner, NMSU, 20-83-1
Leading Receiver: Deon Long, NMU, 3-98-1

Kansas 14 at Kansas State 47
Leading Passer: Jordan Webb, 17-32-184-1-0
Leading Rusher: Collin Klein, KSU, 37-189-2
Leading Receiver: Kale Pick, KU, 3-39
Game MVP: Collin Klein, KSU, 37-189-2 rushing; 5-5-65-1-0 passing

Tulsa 45 at SMU 20
Leading Passer: JJ McDermott, SMU, 29-50-400-2-3
Leading Rusher: Trey Watts, Tulsa, 19-64-2
Leading Receiver: Cole Beasley, SMU, 8-156-1

North Texas 7 at TCU 30
Leading Passer: Casey Pachall, TCU, 20-33-214-1-0
Leading Rusher: Ed Wesley, TCU, 10-110-1
Leading Receiver: Josh Bryce, TCU, 5-65-1

GAME OF THE WEEK: Oklahoma State 33 at Oklahoma 41
Leading Passer: Brandon Weeden, OSU, 34-56-390-2-2
Leading Rusher: Joseph Randle, OSU, 13-144
Leading Receiver: Justin Blackmon, OSU, 12-113-1
Game MVP: Roy Finch, OU, 22-109-2; 1-5 rec




Southwest Conference Report:

Let's start out with the player of the week. Then we can get into some of the tie breakers in what turned out to be the most confusing conference in the country to sort out.

The Player of the Week was an easy choice. Terrance Ganaway of Baylor rushed 27 times for 264 yards and three touchdowns in the Bears' 55-33 win over UTEP.

The game of the week was an exciting one, with Oklahoma beating Oklahoma State 41-33, preventing the Cowboys from completing an undefeated regular season. With TCU's win over North Texas, it set up a three-way tie for first place. Due to tie breakers, the Horned Frogs were able to claim the Division 2 crown thanks to having the largest margin of victory (15) in the series. Because the Sooners prevailed over Oklahoma State, they were second place. That left the Cowboys in third place, a huge swing from the result of one game.

It will be exciting to see what Oklahoma State will do in the NCAA 128 Tournament as either a fifth or sixth seed. Whatever seed they end up as, they will be dangerous.

There were two more three-way ties in the conference. In Division 1, New Mexico State, UTEP and UTSA all finished at 3-4. Two of the teams, UTSA and New Mexico State also tied for largest margin of victory (four points) in the series. That meant the team with the smallest margin of victory, UTEP, finished last of the three and in sixth place. Because the Road Runners beat NMSU, they took fourth place. Not bad for a first-year NCAA Division I-A program!

In Division 2, the same scenario occurred, with three teams--Kansas State, SMU, and Tulsa--all finishing at 3-4. Tulsa had the largest margin of victory (25) in the series, so they were awarded fourth place. In their head-to-head match up, SMU beat the Wildcats and claimed fifth place.




Conference Championship Round Schedule (Coin toss for teams with same record):

15th Place Game, 6:30 PM EST - Texas State (0-7) at North Texas (0-7)
13th Place Game, 8:00 PM EST - Kansas (1-6) at New Mexico (2-5)
11th Place Game, 8:00 PM EST - Kansas State (3-4) at UTEP (3-4)
9th Place Game, 8:00 PM EST - SMU (3-4) at New Mexico State (3-4)
7th Place Game, 5:00 PM EST - Tulsa (3-4) at UTSA (3-4)
5th Place Game, 6:30 PM EST - Texas Tech (4-3) at Oklahoma State (6-1)
3rd Place Game, 5:00 PM EST - Oklahoma (6-1) at Baylor (6-1)
Championship at Arlington, TX, 6:30 PM EST - TCU (6-1) vs Texas (7-0)

Conference Rankings and Standings
 

Here are our conference-by-conference rankings, followed by the season standings:

West Conference: 1. Oregon, 2. USC, 3. Stanford
Northwest Conference: 1. Wisconsin, 2. Boise State, 3. Iowa
North Conference: 1. Michigan State, 2. Cincinnati, 3. Michigan
Northeast Conference: 1. West Virginia, 2. Penn State, 3. Temple
East Conference: 1. Virginia Tech, 2. South Carolina 3. North Carolina
Southeast Conference: 1. Alabama, 2. Florida, 3. Georgia
South Central Conference: 1. Arkansas, 2. LSU, 3. Houston
Southwest Conference: 1. Texas, 2. TCU, 3. Oklahoma

National Rankings and Player of the Week
 

Top 10:
1. Alabama (7-0)
2. Oregon (7-0)
3. Wisconsin (7-0)
4. Virginia Tech (7-0)
5. Arkansas (7-0)
6. LSU (7-0)
7. Michigan State (7-0)
8. USC (6-1)
9. Florida (6-1)
10. Texas (7-0)


National Player of the Week Finalists:
West Conference: LaMichael James, Oregon, 28-270-3 rush
Northwest Conference: John White, Utah, 26-220-3 rush
North Conference: Terrance Owens, Toledo, 27-40-412-5-0 pass
Northeast Conference: Silas Redd, PSU, 24-138-1 rush; 2-93-1 rec
East Conference: Bryn Renner, UNC, 24-30-342-4-1 pass
Southeast Conference: Tyler Bray, UT, 24-37-343-3-0 pass
South Central Conference: Chris Relf, MSU, 11-22-230-5-0
Southwest Conference: Terrance Ganaway, Baylor, 27-264-3 rush

And the National Player of the Week Award goes to....


Terrance Owens, Toledo. The QB was huge in defeating Purdue 52-31 and move the Rockets into second place in North Conference Division 1.

National Rankings and Player of the Week
 

Top 10:
1. Alabama (7-0)
2. Oregon (7-0)
3. Wisconsin (7-0)
4. Virginia Tech (7-0)
5. Arkansas (7-0)
6. LSU (7-0)
7. Michigan State (7-0)
8. USC (6-1)
9. Florida (6-1)
10. Texas (7-0)


National Player of the Week Finalists:
West Conference: LaMichael James, Oregon, 28-270-3 rush
Northwest Conference: John White, Utah, 26-220-3 rush
North Conference: Terrance Owens, Toledo, 27-40-412-5-0 pass
Northeast Conference: Silas Redd, PSU, 24-138-1 rush; 2-93-1 rec
East Conference: Bryn Renner, UNC, 24-30-342-4-1 pass
Southeast Conference: Tyler Bray, UT, 24-37-343-3-0 pass
South Central Conference: Chris Relf, MSU, 11-22-230-5-0
Southwest Conference: Terrance Ganaway, Baylor, 27-264-3 rush

And the National Player of the Week Award goes to....


Terrance Owens, Toledo. The QB was huge in defeating Purdue 52-31 and move the Rockets into second place in North Conference Division 1.

great stuff stlee, really enjoying how this plays out. I had something similar to this that I was doing with college basketball, but I had too many other projects going on that I had to scrap it. I like what you're doing with this though and look forward to more projects like this. Maybe you could at some point do a college basketball project? just an idea.

Thanks!

Right now, I plan to do a 2012 season replay with the same set up (and the added value of actually having some of these teams in game, like UTSA and Texas State). After that, I don't know what I'll do. Perhaps I can look into a NCAA Basketball Replay, but I don't know if it would be necessary to realign. Also, there are so many teams that I would probably have to select the Elite 128 or something like that.

Conference Finals - 11:00 EST kickoff
 

East Conference 13th-14th Place
East Carolina 34 at Marshall 14
Leading Passer: Dominique Davis, ECU, 28-51-342-1-1
Leading Rusher: Torrance Hunt, ECU, 17-67-2
Leading Receiver: Lance Lewis, ECU, 9-158-1
Game MVP: Lance Lewis, WR, ECU

Southeast Conference 7th-8th Place
South Florida 22 at Auburn 30
Leading Passer: Barrett Trotter, Auburn, 31-59-388-3-1
Leading Rusher: BJ Daniels, USF, 19-96
Leading Receiver: Sterling Griffin, USF, 5-90
Game MVP: Barrett Trotter, QB, Auburn

Northeast Conference 13th-14th Place
Kent State 3 at Buffalo 25
Leading Passer: Chazz Anderson, Buffalo, 16-24-162-1-0
Leading Rusher: Trayion Durham, Kent State, 21-105
Leading Receiver: Alex Neutz, Buffalo, 5-50-1
Game MVP: Branden Oliver, Buffalo, RB, 30-69-1 rush, 4-43 rec

East Conference 5th-6th Place
FIU 13 at Clemson 34
Leading Passer: Tajh Boyd, Clemson, 26-37-373-2-0
Leading Rusher: Kedrick Rhodes, FIU, 20-110
Leading Receiver: Sammy Watkins, 7-86-1
Game MVP: Tajh Boyd, QB, Clemson, 373 passing-2 TDs, 14 rushing-TD

Northeast Conference 15th-16th Place
Akron 13 at Massachusetts 29
Leading Passer: Clayton Moore, Akron, 15-36-177-0-2
Leading Rusher: Jonathan Hernandez, RB, UMass, 20-126
Leading Receiver: Julian Talley, WR, UMass, 5-63-1
Game MVP: Kellen Pagel, QB, UMass, 19-26-169-2-0 pass, 16 rush

East Conference 11th-12th Place
Navy 3 at Wake Forest 44
Leading Passer: Tanner Price, WF, 19-27-275-3-0
Leading Rusher: Brandon Pendergrass, WF, 24-126-2
Leading Receiver: Chris Givens, WF, 3-86-1
Game MVP: Tanner Price, QB, Wake Forest

Southeast Conference 11th-12th Place
Georgia Southern 31 at Troy 50
Leading Passer: Jaybo Shaw, Ga Southern, 31-54-425-4-4
Leading Rusher: Shawn Southward, Troy, 16-78-2
Leading Receiver: Kentrellis Showers, Ga Southern, 8-102
Game MVP: Corey Robinson, QB, Troy, 28-48-381-3-1

Northeast Conference Championship at Gillette Stadium, Foxboro, MA
Boston College 20 vs Penn State 37
Leading Passer: Matt McGloin, PSU, 26-44-348-2-0
Leading Rusher: Rolandan Finch, BC, 18-100
Leading Receiver: Derek Moye, PSU, 4-99
Game MVP: Matt McGloin, QB, Penn State

Game story:
The Nittany Lions had no trouble in disposing of Boston College to claim the first ever Northeast Conference championship.

Penn State jumped out to a 20-0 lead midway through the second quarter and held on to a 37-10 lead with 9:55 left in the game. The Eagles were able to score the last 10 points of the game for a seeming respectable 37-20 final.

The win means Penn State will be the host of the Northeast Regional when the NCAA 128 Tournament is announced. Boston College will have to wait to see where it ends up in the tournament.

The Nittany Lions took a 13-0 lead after one quarter. Anthony Fera kicked a pair of field goals from 47 and 45 yards. Silas Redd scored the first touchdown of the game, running in from one yard out. Redd finished with 74 yards rushing on 29 carries and two touchdowns.

In the second quarter, Game MVP Matt McGloin connected with Andrew Szczerba from seven yards out. Fera’s extra point made it 20-0 at that point. The Eagles finally answered by scoring on a five-yard pass from Chase Rettig to Chris Pantale. With 1:03 left in the half, Redd scored his second touchdown, this one also from a yard out. Boston College completed the scoring in the first half by kicking a late field goal to make it 27-10 in favor of Penn State.

Penn State then extended that lead in the third quarter. McGloin hit Justin Brown from 36 yards out, and Fera kicked his third field goal to give the Nittany Lions the 37-10 lead.

Boston College scored its final ten points from a Retting to Ifeanyi Momah pass from six yards out and a Nate Freese field goal. Rettig finished 14 of 29 for 226 yards and two touchdowns.


11 AM Games MVP:



Barrett Trotter, QB, Auburn. Trotter had a big day in the Tigers' 30-22 win over USF. He finished 31 of 59 for 388 yards, three touchdowns and an interception in leading Auburn to seventh place in the Southeast Conference.

Shouldn't you be having Christmas and not posting here ;)

SI

Christmas is over in Korea, or at least the family part of Christmas was over. I was spending my time watching the Cowboys-Saints game on DVR at that time.
(As of this posting it is 11:20 AM on Wed., Dec. 26, making it 8:20 PM CST on Christmas Day in the States.)

I have more time today sitting in my office doing not much of anything, so I'll try to finish the championship round today or tomorrow.

Conference Finals - 12:30 EST kickoff
 

East Conference 15th-16th Place
UNC-Charlotte 9 at Old Dominion 33
Leading Passer: Taylor Heinicke, ODU, 20-35-269-2-1
Leading Rusher: A. Guy, UNCC, 18-96
Leading Receiver: Nick Mayers, WR, ODU, 3-82
Game MVP: Taylor Heinicke, QB, Old Dominion

Southeast Conference 13th-14th Place
Florida Atlantic 13 at Western Kentucky 34
Leading Passer: Graham Wilbert, FAU, 21-45-289-0-2
Leading Rusher: Bobby Rainey, WKU, 39-226-2
Leading Receiver: Marcus Cunningham, FAU, 3-80
Game MVP: Bobby Rainey, RB, Western Kentucky

North Conference 7th-8th Place
Purdue 33 at Eastern Michigan 7
Leading Passer: Caleb TerBush, Purdue, 23-39-340-3-1
Leading Rusher: Dominique White, EMU, 17-83-1
Leading Receiver: Ralph Bolden, Purdue, 2-61-1 and Antavian Edison, Purdue, 4-61
Game MVP: Caleb TerBush, QB, Purdue

North Conference 3rd-4th Place
Toledo 27 at Michigan 32
Leading Passer: Terrance Owens, Toledo, 22-34-295-2-1
Leading Rusher: Adonis Thomas, Toledo, 24-135
Leading Receiver: Eric Page, Toledo, 11-139-1
Game MVP: Denard Robinson, QB, Michigan, 10-18-232 pass, 21-70-1 rush

Northeast Conference 11th-12th Place
Maryland 10 at Army 42
Leading Passer: Danny O’Brien, Maryland, 13-42-165-1-5
Leading Rusher: Raymond Maples, Army, 21-236-3
Leading Receiver: Matt Furstenburg, Maryland, 5-55
Game MVP: Raymond Maples, RB, Army

Northeast Conference 5th-6th Place
Syracuse 16 at Temple 18
Leading Passer: Ryan Nassib, Syracuse, 17-29-155-1-0
Leading Rusher: Antwon Bailey, Syracuse, 28-205-1
Leading Receiver: Nick Provo, Syracuse, 4-47
Game MVP: Antwon Bailey, RB, Syracuse

Southeast Conference 3rd-4th Place
Tennessee 14 at Georgia 41
Leading Passer: Aaron Murray, UGA, 18-23-255-1-0
Leading Rusher: Isaiah Crowell, UGA, 26-122-3
Leading Receiver: Justin Hunter, Tennessee, 6-85-1
Game MVP: Isaiah Crowell, RB, UGA

East Conference Championship at Bank of America Stadium, Charlotte
North Carolina 31 vs Virginia Tech 16
Leading Passer: Bryn Renner, UNC, 23-35-364-2-1
Leading Rusher: Giovani Bernard, UNC, 28-127-2
Leading Receiver: Dwight Jones, UNC, 7-80-1
Game MVP: Giovani Bernard, RB, North Carolina 28-127-2 rush, 3-39-1 rec

Game Story:

North Carolina pulled off the first championship game upset of the day, defeating the favored Hokies 31-16 in Bank of America Stadium in Charlotte, North Carolina.

Virginia Tech led most of the game before the Tar Heels took the lead for good with 1:24 left in the third quarter. Game MVP Giovani Bernard scored on a 29-yard pass from Bryn Renner to give North Carolina a 21-16 lead at that point.

The Tar Heels then scored all 10 points in the fourth quarter, including a four-yard Bernard run, his third touchdown of the game.

The Hokies took the first lead of the game with 12:55 left in the second quarter when David Wilson scored his first of two touchdowns from three yards out. Wilson finished the game with 92 yards on 24 touchdowns rushing and three catches for 17 yards.

North Carolina answered in the quarter when Bernard scored his first touchdown on the day, an 18-yard scamper to make it 7-7. Virginia Tech then answered with a 43-yard Cody Journell field goal for a 10-7 halftime lead.

In the second half, the Tar Heels were the first to score. This time it was a three-yard strike from Renner to Dwight Jones. Renner was the leading passer on the day, finishing 23 of 35 for 364 yards with two touchdowns and an interception.

After UNC’s score, Virginia Tech took its final lead of the game when Wilson scored on a three-yard run. Journell’s extra point attempt missed, giving the Hokies a 16-14 lead before the Tar Heels’ go-ahead score later in the quarter.

Logan Thomas had an off day for Virginia Tech, going 16 of 25 for 185 yards and an interception.

With the win. North Carolina will represent the East Conference as the number one home seed, while Virginia Tech will have to wait to see where it goes in the tournament.


12:30 Games MVP



Raymond Maples, RB, Army. Maples ran wild on Maryland, finishing with 236 yards on 21 carries and three touchdowns. The Black Knights defeated Maryland 42-10 to earn 11th place in the Northeast Conference.

Conference Finals - 2:00 EST kickoff
 

North Conference 15th-16th Place
Illinois 38 at Indiana 19
Leading Passer: Edward Wright-Baker, Indiana, 18-31-236-1-0
Leading Rusher: Jason Ford, Illinois, 20-78-1
Leading Receiver: Dre Muhammad, Indiana, 5-82
Game MVP: Nathan Scheelhaase, QB, Illinois, 11-13-165 pass, 17-43-2 rush

Northeast Conference 9th-10th Place
Pittsburgh 14 at Connecticut 7
Leading Passer: Johnny McEntee, UConn, 16-31-199-0-0
Leading Rusher: Lyle McCombs, UConn, 25-92-1
Leading Receiver: Devin Street, Pitt, 4-67
Game MVP: Tino Sunseri, QB, Pitt, 19-25-188-0-1 pass, 33 rush-TD

North Conference 11th-12th Game
Western Michigan 17 at Ohio State 23
Leading Passer: Alex Carder, WMU, 26-33-270-2-2
Leading Rusher: Dan Herron, OSU, 22-171-2
Leading Receiver: Jordan White, WMU, 13-145-1
Game MVP: Dan Herron, RB, OSU

Northeast Conference 3rd-4th Place
Rutgers 7 at West Virginia 47
Leading Passer: Geno Smith, WVU, 24-36-290-3-0
Leading Rusher: Dustin Garrison, WVU, 20-153-2
Leading Receiver: Mohamed Sanu, Rutgers, 10-114
Game MVP: Dustin Garrison, RB, WVU, 153 rush-2 TD, 27 rec-TD

East Conference 7th-8th Place
North Carolina State 23 at Virginia 33
Leading Passer: Mike Glennon, NCSU, 19-37-269-1-3
Leading Rusher: Perry Jones, UVA, 20-138
Leading Receiver: TJ Graham, NCSU, 4-83
Game MVP: Michael Rocco, QB, UVA, 14-24-179-3-1

Northeast Conference 7th-8th Place
Bowling Green 13 at Ohio 14
Leading Passer: Matt Schilz, BGSU, 19-29-197-0-0
Leading Rusher: Jamel Martin, BGSU, 12-90
Leading Receiver: Kamar Jorden, BGSU, 7-82
Game MVP: Ryan Boykin, RB, Ohio, 11-60-1 rush, 1-7 rec

Southeast Conference 5th-6th Place
Vanderbilt 14 at Georgia Tech 3
Leading Passer: Jordan Rodgers, Vanderbilt, 17-25-221-2-0
Leading Rusher: Zac Stacy, Vanderbilt, 22-84
Leading Receiver: John Cole, Vanderbilt, 3-60
Game MVP: Jordan Rodgers, QB, Vanderbilt

North Conference Championship at Soldier Field, Chicago
Cincinnati 13 vs Michigan State 27
Leading Passer: Kirk Cousins, MSU, 19-33-263-1-2
Leading Rusher: Edwin Baker, MSU, 19-103-1
Leading Receiver: Brian Linthicum, MSU, 3-95-1
Game MVP: Johnny Adams, CB, Michigan State, INT, 89-yard TD

Game story:

Michigan State struggled mightily in its North Conference Championship Game against Cincinnati at Soldier Field in Chicago. Yet, when it needed one final lift, its defense stepped up, scoring the game-winning touchdown with 5:26 remaining in the Spartans 27-13 win over the Bearcats.

Cincinnati led 13-10 entering the fourth quarter in a day where the Spartans’ Kirk Cousins was off most of the day. He finished the day by going 19 of 33 for 263 yards with a touchdown and two interceptions. That lone touchdown came late in the fourth quarter when Michigan State put the game away.

In the fourth, though, Michigan State first had to take the lead. They tied the game 10-10 on a 30-yard Dan Conroy field goal with 14:56 to play. Then, with 5:26 left in the game, Bearcats quarterback Munchie Legaux made his biggest mistake of the day.

After Cincinnati picked off Cousins for the second time, they had the ball in good field position at midfield. Legaux then drove the Bearcats to the Spartans’ 12-yard line. Legaux then tried to throw a quick out on a second and nine play, but Michigan State cornerback Johnny Adams made a break on the pass and cruised 89 yards for the 20-13 lead.

Michigan State started the scoring in the game when Conroy kicked a 20-yard field goal in the first. The Bearcats matched with a 39-yard Tony Miliano field goal to make it 3-3 after one quarter.

The Spartans took the lead again with just 53 seconds remaining in the half on an Edwin Baker 10-yard run. That gave MSU a 10-3 lead at halftime.

The third quarter was all Cincinnati. Alex Chisum led off the scoring on a 14-yard reception from Legaux. Legaux finished 19 of 41 for 260 yards with a touchdown and two interceptions on the day. Miliano then kicked his second field goal to make it 13-10 in favor of the Bearcats heading into the fourth quarter.

Michigan State’s final touchdown came when Cousins connected deep with Brian Linthicum for a 45-yard score. Linthicum was the leading receiver in the game, catching three passes for 95 yards.

Michigan State will now be a host for the North Region in the NCAA 128 Tournament, meaning they will play home games for every remaining game on the season, unless they make it to the final eight, in which case they play all games at a neutral site. Cincinnati will wait to see where it plays, though the Bearcats will be guaranteed at least one home game as a number two seed.


2:00 Games MVP:



Dustin Garrison, RB, WVU. Garrison scored three touchdowns--two rushing and one receiving--in the Mountaineers' 47-7 shellacking of Rutgers in a snow-covered Morgantown campus. He gained 153 yards rushing and 27 receiving, as the Mountaineers claim third place in the Northeast Conference.

Conference Finals - 3:30 EST kickoff
 

Northwest Conference 7th-8th Place
Utah State 26 at Missouri 15
Leading Passer: Adam Kennedy, USU, 14-20-189-1-0
Leading Rusher: De’Vion Moore, Missouri, 8-77-1
Leading Receiver: Matt Austin, USU, 4-67
Game MVP: Adam Kennedy, QB, Utah State

Northwest Conference 3rd-4th Place
Utah 17 at Iowa 44
Leading Passer: James Vandenberg, Iowa, 19-28-298-3-2
Leading Rusher: Marcus Coker, Iowa, 31-224-1
Leading Receiver: Marvin McNutt, Iowa, 5-101-2
Game MVP: Marcus Coker, RB, Iowa 224 rush-TD, 29 rec

South Central Conference 13th-14th Place
UAB 21 at Rice 52
Leading Passer: Nick Fanuzzi, Rice, 16-32-262-0-0
Leading Rusher: Tyler Smith, Rice, 18-156-2
Leading Receiver: Vance McDonald, Rice, 3-73
Game MVP: Tyler Smith, RB, Rice

Northwest Conference 9th-10th Place
Air Force 32 at Nebraska 35
Leading Passer: Tim Jefferson, AFA, 5-9-117-2-0
Leading Rusher: Rex Burkhead, Nebraska, 29-178-2
Leading Receiver: Jonathan Warzeka, AFA, 1-74-1
Game MVP: Rex Burkhead, RB, Nebraska

North Conference 13th-14th Place
Central Michigan 57 at Ball State 24
Leading Passer: Ryan Radcliff, CMU, 26-40-473-5-1
Leading Rusher: Jahwan Edwards, Ball State, 19-107
Leading Receiver: Zurlon Tipton, CMU, 4-116-1
Game MVP: Ryan Radcliff, QB, Central Michigan

East Conference 9th-10th Place
Miami (FL) 31 at Duke 17
Leading Passer: Sean Renfree, Duke, 36-53-373-2-1
Leading Rusher: Lamar Miller, Miami, 21-132
Leading Receiver: Conner Vernon, Duke, 7-98
Game MVP: Jacory Harris, QB, Miami, 18-28-250-2-3 pass, 10 rush-TD

Southeast Conference 9th-10th Place
Kentucky 10 at Central Florida 45
Leading Passer: Jeff Godfrey, UCF, 20-30-240-2-1
Leading Rusher: Latavius Murray, UCF, 13-91-1
Leading Receiver: Adam Nissley, UCF, 5-51
Game MVP: Jeff Godfrey, QB, Central Florida

Southeast Conference Championship at Georgia Dome, Atlanta
Florida 12 vs Alabama 20
Leading Passer: John Brantley, Florida, 19-46-322-0-1
Leading Rusher: Trent Richardson, Alabama, 25-105-1
Leading Receiver: Quinton Dunbar, Florida, 4-80
Game MVP: Trent Richardson, RB, Alabama, 25-105-1 rush, 2-24 rec

Game Story:

Alabama had its first close call of the season, but the Tide came out victorious in claiming the Southeast Conference championship.

The Crimson Tide trailed 12-10 entering the fourth quarter but got a touchdown and field goal to claim the 20-12 victory over Florida. Alabama is now the host of the Southeast Regional of the NCAA 128 Tournament and enters as the #1 overall seed.

The Gators held on to a lead for a large chunk of the game, but they could never push the ball into the end zone. Caleb Sturgis kicked four field goals on the day to score all of Florida’s points.

Alabama was once again led by the legs of Trent Richardson. Richardson had a game-high 105 yards rushing on 25 carries, and he scored the game-winning touchdown with 11:23 left in the fourth when he ran in from nine yards out.

The Crimson Tide’s other touchdown came with 1:42 in the second quarter and trailing 9-3. AJ McCarron hit Darius Hanks on a 30-yard pass to give Alabama its first lead of the game, 10-9, going into the half. McCarron finished 19 of 30 for 260 yards and a touchdown.

Florida seemed to have the best of Alabama most of the game. The Gators outgained Alabama 446-365 in the game, but the Crimson Tide’s defense stiffened in the red zone, only allowing Florida to score nine points on four trips there.

John Brantley finished the game with 322 yards passing, but he did throw one costly red zone interception to Courtney Upshaw. Brantley was also sacked four times in the game.


3:30 Games MVP:



Ryan Radcliff, QB, Central Michigan. The Chippewas' quarterback threw for a season-high 473 yards on 26 of 40 passing with five touchdowns and an interception in Central Michigan's 57-24 win at Ball State. Central Michigan earned 13th place in the North Conference with the win.

Conference Finals - 5:00 EST kickoff
 

South Central Conference 15th-16th Place
Tulane 44 at Memphis 17
Leading Passer: Ryan Griffin, Tulane, 18-30-282-2-1
Leading Rusher: Orleans Darkwa, Tulane, 24-167-3
Leading Receiver: Joe Kemp, Tulane, 3-67-1
Game MVP: Orleans Darkwa, RB, Tulane

North Conference 9th-10th Place
Northern Illinois 27 at Louisville 29
Leading Passer: Teddy Bridgewater, Louisville, 23-35-350-3-2
Leading Rusher: Jasmin Hopkins, NIU, 24-86
Leading Receiver: Josh Chichester, Louisville, 5-120-2
Game MVP: Josh Chichester, WR, Louisville

South Central Conference 9th-10th Place
Ole Miss 14 at UL-Lafayette 30
Leading Passer: Blaine Gautier, ULL, 17-26-253-3-0
Leading Rusher: Alonzo Harris, ULL, 20-73
Leading Receiver: Ladarius Green, ULL, 5-96-2
Game MVP: Blaine Gautier, QB, ULL

Southwest Conference 7th-8th Place
Tulsa 44 at UT-San Antonio 7
Leading Passer: GJ Kinne, Tulsa, 21-28-249-4-0
Leading Rusher: Trey Watts, Tulsa, 20-78-1
Leading Receiver: Bryan Burnham, Tulsa, 4-93
Game MVP: GJ Kinne, QB, Tulsa

North Conference 5th-6th Place
Miami (OH) 28 at Notre Dame 21
Leading Passer: Zac Dysert, Miami, 27-38-332-3-1
Leading Rusher: Cierre Wood, ND, 25-115-2
Leading Receiver: Nick Harwell, Miami, 9-150-1
Game MVP: Zac Dysert, QB, Miami (OH)

Southeast Conference 3rd-4th Place
Florida State 31 at South Carolina 6
Leading Passer: EJ Manuel, FSU, 16-26-218-1-0
Leading Rusher: Devonta Freeman, FSU, 20-133-2
Leading Receiver: Nick O’Leary, FSU, 3-51
Game MVP: Devonta Freeman, RB, Florida State

Southwest Conference 3rd-4th Place
Oklahoma 44 at Baylor 49
Leading Passer: Robert Griffin, Baylor, 17-19-346-4-0
Leading Rusher: Roy Finch, OU, 23-152-1
Leading Receiver: Kendall Wright, Baylor, 6-116-2
Game MVP: Robert Griffin, QB, Baylor, 346 pass-4TD, 30 rush

South Central Conference Championship at Superdome, New Orleans
Arkansas 17 vs LSU 20, OT
Leading Passer: Tyler Wilson, Arkansas, 23-40-275-1-0
Leading Rusher: Spencer Ware, LSU, 23-81-1
Leading Receiver: Reuben Randle, LSU, 5-91
Game MVP: Spencer Ware, RB, LSU

Game Story:

Both teams used their dominating defenses to keep the game low-scoring before a fourth quarter points surge and LSU’s eventual win in overtime in the South Central Conference Championship Game.

LSU’s Drew Alleman kicked a 28-yard field goal with 11 seconds left in regulation and then scored the only points of overtime with his 19-yarder to give LSU its 20-17 final.

The Tigers were led by running back Spencer Ware, who finished the game with 81 yards rushing on 23 carries and a touchdown. He also caught two passes for 16 yards.

The Razorbacks were tied or led most of the game. They took their first lead with 9:28 left in the second quarter when Dennis Johnson ran in from six yards. Johnson finished with 49 yards on 16 carries and a touchdown.

LSU answered later in the first quarter when Ware scored from two yards out. For the game, LSU outrushed Arkansas 148-76.

With 6:05 left in the third quarter, the Razorbacks took the lead again on Zach Hocker’s 35-yard field goal.

The Tigers took their first lead of the game with 14:26 left to play. Jordan Jefferson connected with Odell Beckham from five yards out, giving LSU a 14-10 lead at that point. Jefferson finished 17 of 28 for 244 yards with a touchdown and an interception.

Arkansas wasted no time, though, in reclaiming the lead. Tyler Wilson drove the Razorbacks downfield and finished the drive off when he hit Jarius Wright on a deep post from 26 yards out. With 11:08, Arkansas held on to a 17-14 lead, before Alleman’s game-tying field goal for LSU.

In overtime, the Tigers had first possession. After an Arkansas penalty gave LSU the ball with first and goal at the nine, the Razorbacks’ defense stiffened, stopping the LSU drive at the two-yard line.

Arkansas then got the ball but could only gain a yard. Hocker’s 41-yard field goal attempt sailed wide right, sparking celebration in the mostly pro-LSU Superdomw crowd.

With the win, LSU is host to the South Central Region of the NCAA 128 Tournament and will be a #1 seed. Arkansas will be a #2 seed in a yet-to-be-named regional.


5:00 Games MVP:



Robert Griffin III, QB, Baylor. The Baylor quarterback exploded against Oklahoma in leading the Bears to the 49-44 win and third place in the Southwest Conference. RGIII finished 17 of 19 for 346 yards (20. 4 yards per completion and 18.2 yards per attempt) with four touchdowns. He also rushed for another 30 yards.

Conference Finals - 6:30 EST kickoff
 

Southeast Conference 15th-16th Place
MTSU 20 at Georgia State 24
Leading Passer: Logan Kilgore, MTSU, 21-38-237-1-0
Leading Rusher: Donald Russell, Georgia St, 23-195-1
Leading Receiver: Malcolm Beyah, MTSU, 6-110-1
Game MVP: Donald Russell, RB, Georgia State

Southwest Conference 15th-16th Place
Texas State 35 at North Texas 42
Leading Passer: Derek Thompson, NTU, 22-35-359-5-0
Leading Rusher: Marcus Curry, TSU, 36-202-3
Leading Receiver: Michael Outlaw, NTU, 3-76-1
Game MVP: Derek Thompson, QB, North Texas

South Central Conference 11th-12th Place
UL-Monroe 28 at South Alabama 20
Leading Passer: Kolton Browning, ULM, 20-36-260-1-2
Leading Rusher: Centarius Donald, ULM, 13-93-3
Leading Receiver: Tavarese Maye, ULM, 4-75
Game MVP: Centarius Donald, RB, UL-Monroe

South Central Conference 7th-8th Place
Louisiana Tech 34 at Southern Miss 12
Leading Passer: Colby Cameron, LTU, 22-35-353-4-1
Leading Rusher: Lennon Creer, LTU, 19-98
Leading Receiver: Taulib Ikharo, LTU, 4-157-3
Game MVP: Taulib Ikharo, WR, Louisiana Tech

South Central Conference 5th-6th Place
Texas A&M 24 at Mississippi State 20
Leading Passer: Chris Relf, MSU, 21-33-239-1-2
Leading Rusher: Vick Ballard, MSU, 20-137-1
Leading Receiver: Arceto Clark, MSU, 5-62
Game MVP: Vick Ballard, RB, Mississippi State
Note: Texas A&M scored 14 points on a PR and blocked punt.

Northwest Conference 5th-6th Place
BYU 13 at Wyoming 29
Leading Passer: Jake Heaps, BYU, 21-50-236-1-5
Leading Rusher: Alvester Alexander, Wyoming, 19-67-1
Leading Receiver: Marcus Mathews, BYU, 4-59
Game MVP: Brett Smith, QB, Wyoming, 15-27-202-2-0 pass, 20 rush

Southwest Conference 5th-6th Place
Texas Tech 22 at Oklahoma State 38
Leading Passer: Brandon Weeden, OSU, 24-38-354-1-0
Leading Rusher: Eric Stephens, TTU, 19-132-1
Leading Receiver: Justin Blackmon, OSU, 8-144
Game MVP: Joseph Randle, RB, Oklahoma State, 22-82-2 rush, 4-31 rec

Southwest Conference Championship at Cowboys Stadium, Arlington, TX
TCU 27 vs Texas 41
Leading Passer: Case McCoy, Texas, 20-30-254-3-0
Leading Rusher: Waymon James, TCU, 13-211-1
Leading Receiver: Josh Boyce, TCU, 5-66
Game MVP: Case McCoy, QB, Texas

Game Story:

Texas built a big first half lead and then held on to defeat TCU in the Southwest Conference Championship Game at Cowboys Stadium in Arlington, Texas.

Case McCoy had a big day for the Longhorns, finishing 20 of 30 for 254 yards and three touchdowns to earn the game MVP. Texas is now the number one seed in the Southwest Region of the NCAA 128 Tournament.

Scoring was tough to come by early in the game. Justin Tucker kicked two field goals in the first quarter to give Texas a 6-0 lead after one quarter.

In the second quarter, the Horned Frogs’ Ross Evans cut the lead to 6-3 on a 31-yard field goal. It wasn’t until 1:29 remained in the half before the first touchdown was scored. McCoy made that touchdown happen by connecting with DJ Monroe on a three-yard score for a 13-3 lead.

After a quick three and out by TCU, Texas got the ball back on a short punt at the TCU 46. They then drove 46 yards in 7 plays, capped off by McCoy connecting with Jaxon Shipley from five yards out and a 20-3 halftime lead.

The Longhorns extended their lead to 27-3 early in the second half on Marquise Goodwin’s 46-yard touchdown run on an end around. TCU answered with its first touchdown later in the quarter when Ed Wesley scored from five yards out to make it 27-10.

Texas scored again with 5:07 left in the third quarter on a 12-yard Joe Bergeron run, making the score 34-10 after three.

TCU then started its run to make the game exciting. With 14:20 left in the game, Matthew Tucker scored from 28 yards out. Casey Pachall then connected with Antoine Hicks for the two-point conversion and a 34-18 Longhorns’ lead. After a stop, TCU got the ball back and drove to the ball to the Texas 1, thanks in part to a 67-yard run by Waymon James, who finished with a game-high 211 yards rushing on just 13 carries.

Despite the Horned Frogs’ drive, they were stopped at the 1, giving the Longhorns the ball back. But on the first play from scrimmage, McCoy was sacked by Tanner Brock for a safety and the lead cut to 14 points. On the ensuing possession, TCU drove down field and scored on James’ 23-yard run. The point after attempt made the score 34-27 in favor of Texas with 4:44 left.

With all of the momentum in the Horned Frogs’ favor, Texas answered with an 8-play, 70-yard drive for the game’s final points and a 41-27 win. McCoy hit Darius White from 15 yards out for the final points. The Horned Frogs could not answer the last Texas score, giving the Longhorns the conference crown.



6:30 Games MVP:



Derek Thompson, QB, North Texas. It was hard to pick a player who shined in a game to avoid last place in the conference, but there is no doubt the Mean Green's Thompson put up some stellar number for a college football game. The North Texas QB finished 22 of 35 for 359 yards and five touchdowns in the Mean Green's 42-35 win over Texas State in the battle for 15th place in the Southwest Conference.