Why firing ed orgeron is a bad idea

Christian who? Love stars in No. 14 Stanford's win over Rice

Bryce Love proved he could fill in quite nicely as Christian McCaffrey's replacement at Stanford, scoring a touchdown and finishing with 180 yard rushing to lead the No.14 Cardinal to a 62-7 victory over Rice on Sunday in the Sydney College Football Cup.

Love, installed as the No. 1 player in the backfield after McCaffrey was drafted in the first round by the Carolina Panthers, had 13 carries, including a 62-yard burst through the Rice line on Stanford's opening play from scrimmage. He didn't play much after the middle of the third quarter.

"Bryce is going to be our lead dog," Stanford coach David Shaw said. "But it's nice to know we've got some guys who can back him up. I'm excited about where Bryce is heading into this season. We don't want to wear Bryce out in any one game, so those guys have got to come out and make plays like they did today."

Cameron Scarlett was one of those guys.

Scarlett, a redshirt freshman who also moved up in the Stanford pecking order, had three touchdowns, all rushing, and finished with 68 yards on nine carries. He also had one 56-yard pass reception.

The Cardinal were 31-point favorites. They led 38-0 at halftime and scored touchdowns on their first four possessions.

Rice, trailing 55-0, finally broke its scoreless drought with 6 minutes remaining on running back Austin Walker's 23-yard touchdown run.

THE TAKEAWAY

STANFORD: Quarterback Keller Chryst, who tore the ACL in his right knee in December in the Sun Bowl, showed no sign of the injury. Chryst finished with 14 completions in 24 attempts for 253 yards and two TDs before Ryan Burns and later K.J. Costello took over with Stanford leading 45-0. Costello scored the final Stanford TD on a 25-yard run

"It was great to see Keller Chryst come and be completely healthy, and be able to run the show from the quarterback position," Shaw said.

RICE: Redshirt freshman quarterback Sam Glaesmann won the starting job and had a very difficult beginning to his college career. Starting his first play from scrimmage on the Rice 10-yard line, Rice was hit for a delay of game and false start and the Owls later punted from deep in their end zone. Glaesmann was 7 for 18 for 69 yards.

"We're a better team than we showed today," Rice coach David Bailiff said. "When you play against a team like Stanford, or any elite team, you have to be at your very best. And we made some poor decisions early."

HURRICANE WATCH: Rice players and staff had been keeping a close and anxious eye on developments in Houston from former hurricane and now tropical storm Harvey. The players have been keeping in touch with friends and family on social media, and team staff were in contact with spouses and partners back in Houston to make sure they were aware of neighbors and friends who might have emergency equipment such as generators. The team is scheduled to leave Australia on Monday morning for Los Angeles, with a decision expected in LA whether they will attempt to fly on to Houston

KEY NUMBERS

STANFORD: The Cardinal offense was in strong early-season form, with 656 total yards - 369 passing and 287 rushing. Also, eight touchdowns, 27 first downs and an average of 9.0 yards per play.

RICE: The Owls were 5 for 15 in third-down conversions. Five Owls receivers combined for only 95 yards, the longest 28 yards by Samuel Stewart.

BIG ROAD TRIP: It was Stanford's second game outside the U.S., and first since 1986 when the Cardinal beat Arizona 29-24 in Tokyo. It was the second year in a row that a regular-season college game was played in Sydney. Last year, Cal beat Hawaii 51-31 at the Olympic stadium with 62,000 spectators. This year the game was moved to Allianz Stadium, closer to the downtown area. Officials said there 33,181 spectators Sunday at the 45,000-seat venue.

UP NEXT

STANFORD: after a week off, plays at Pac-12 favorite USC on Sept. 9

RICE: The Owls also have a week off before playing at Texas-El Paso on Sept. 9.

No. 19 S. Florida beats San Jose St. 42-22 after slow start

The start of the Charlie Strong era at South Florida didn't quite go as scripted. Now that it's over the coach of the 19th-ranked Bulls is actually pretty pleased that his team had to show the ability to overcome some adversity.

Quinton Flowers threw two touchdown passes and D'Ernest Johnson had two TD runs in a dominant second quarter that helped South Florida rally from an early 16-point deficit to beat San Jose State 42-22 on Saturday.

"It's good that you have a good game like this so now guys know there's improvement to be made," Strong said. "We can't get complacent. You want a game like this. It's not as much pressure as they think it is but you have to play well to win games."

The Bulls were held to 22 yards in the opening quarter, the defense allowed two early TD passes by Josh Love and two ineffective punts set up two scores for the Spartans.

But the game turned when Josh Black stuffed Malike Roberson for a 1-yard loss on fourth-and-1 from the South Florida 33 in the closing minute of the first quarter with San Jose State leading 16-0.

"I told the guys we can't flinch," Flowers said. "We've been down like that before. It was time where I had to step up and tell the team, `Let's go.'"

It took less than nine minutes for the Bulls to turn that big early deficit into a lead with help from a pair of interceptions off deflected passes by Josh Love. Flowers started the comeback with a 24-yard touchdown pass to Darnell Salomon, Johnson followed with a TD run on fourth-and-goal from the 2 and Flowers followed with a 49-yard scoring strike to Temi Alaka.

Johnson capped the four-touchdown, 271-yard quarter with a tight-rope act down the sideline for a 50-yard touchdown run that made it 28-16 and the rout was on in the second half.

"I thought we did some good stuff early and we were executing," Love said. "The scoring fell off it felt like we needed to answer their scores and we just didn't."

Flowers added a touchdown run in the fourth quarter and finished 11 for 23 for 212 yards passing and 70 yards on 18 carries.

Strong took over at South Florida after being fired following three losing seasons at Texas. He went 16-21 with the Longhorns after a successful stint at head coach at Louisville and now will look to have similar success with the Bulls.

THE TAKEAWAY

SOUTH FLORIDA: The Bulls entered the season with lofty expectations after tying the 2008 squad for the highest preseason ranking in school history. The early struggles could be a sign of concern or just the normal process of finding a rhythm under a new coaching staff. One bright spot all game was a stout run defense that held San Jose State to 2.9 yards per carry.

SAN JOSE STATE: The Spartans looked far more competitive in their opener under coach Brent Brennan but still lost for the 24th time in their past 25 meetings against ranked teams. Love threw two touchdown passes to Bailey Gaither in the first quarter to open up the big lead. Gaither also blocked a punt that set up his second touchdown and the San Jose State defense held one of the nation's most dynamic quarterbacks in check for one quarter. But the offense failed to get much going after the first quarter with Love throwing three interceptions. Backup QB Montel Aaron threw a TD pass in the fourth quarter.

BIG HIT

The defensive highlight for the Bulls came on San Jose State's first drive of the third quarter when Juwuan Brown slammed Zamore Zigler with a 5-yard loss on a crushing hit .

SPEED IT UP

The Bulls are playing at a much faster tempo on offense this season and ran a school-record 101 plays in the opener. That helped wear down the Spartans and contributed to a 315-yard rushing night.

"This offense is really fast," Flowers said. "You get to the point where you get a defense very tired. That's what you have to see in a defense. You pick them apart and just keep moving."

POLL IMPLICATIONS

With no new poll until Sept. 5, this game doesn't figure to have much impact on the Bulls ranking.

UP NEXT

SOUTH FLORIDA: The Bulls their home opener next Saturday against Stony Brook of the FCS.

SAN JOSE STATE: The Spartans get a bit of a breather in a grueling nonconference schedule when they host FCS-level Cal Poly next weekend before making trips to No. 23 Texas and Utah the following two weeks

Brown's last minute TD pass lifts Hawaii over UMass 38-35

Dru Brown threw a 7-yard touchdown pass to Metuisela `Unga with 48 seconds left to lift Hawaii to a 38-35 win over Massachusetts in the season opener for both teams Saturday night.

Brown drove the Rainbows 73 yards in eight plays, completing 3 of 5 passes, including a 52-yarder to John Ursua on third-and-10 that put the ball on the Minuteman 7 with 1:15 to play. The winning pass came on third down.

Brown completed 25 of 38 passes for a career-high 391 yards and three touchdowns and ran for another score. Ursua had 12 receptions for 272 yards, including an 85-yard touchdown late in the first half for the fifth-longest pass play in school history. The 272 yards are the fourth-most in the program.

Hawaii, traveling more than 5,000 miles, had 503 yards of total offense.

Andrew Ford threw for 275 yards and two touchdowns for UMass. Marquis ran for 83 yards and two scores.

Hawaii right guard Chris Posa was ejected in the first half for throwing a punch.

Mangum, Canada lead BYU to 20-6 win over Portland State

 Tanner Mangum completed 16 of 27 passes for 194 yards and a touchdown, and Squally Canadahad 13 carries for a career-high 90 yards and a score to help BYU beat Portland State 20-6 Saturday in the season opener for both teams.

Portland State's offense crossed midfield just twice and went three-and-out on four of its first five possessions.

Mangum hit Matt Bushman for a 36-yard completion to the 28. On third-and-10, Neil Pau'u's 28-yard catch gave the Cougars a 7-0 lead late in the first quarter. Midway through the second, Mangum's 33-yard pass to Talon Shumway set up a 1-yard scoring run by Canada.

Jalani Eason's 4-yard pass to Darnell Adams capped Portland State's 17-play, 87-yard drive and, after a missed PAT attempt, it was 14-6 at halftime.

Rhett Almond made fourth-quarter field goals of 27 and 35 yards to cap the scoring as the Vikings had three turnovers - two on downs - in their final three possessions.

Charlie Taumoepeau had six receptions for 73 yards for Portland State.

Colorado St opens new stadium by beating Oregon St 58-27

The opening of a new stadium left quarterback Nick Stevens momentarily breathless.

A big hit to the stomach early in the game from a linebacker will do that. He quickly got his second wind to help Colorado State make quite a first impression.

Stevens threw three touchdown passes, linebacker Tre Thomas scored on a 44-yard interception return to lead a Colorado State defense that forced five turnovers and the Rams launched their new on-campus stadium with a 58-27 win over Oregon State on a steamy Saturday.

Colorado State moved into its new digs after nearly five decades of playing down the road at Hughes Stadium. A raucous 37,583 fans showed up to catch a glimpse of the $220-million facility.

"I just told the guys in there - there's only one shot at opening a new stadium," said Rams coach Mike Bobo , who was hoisted onto his players' shoulders in the locker room after the game. "There's going to be one memory. It was a good one for Colorado State people."

Stevens did his part to make sure it was a successful unveiling by throwing for 334 yards - his third career 300-yard game. A hit in the first quarter, though, left him shaken up and gasping for air.

"It felt like I wasn't going to be able to breathe for another couple hours," Stevens cracked. "Usually, a hit like that takes some of the breath out of you. But it took every ounce of breath I ever breathed. I had to focus on breathing after that. I got over it."

The Beavers fumbled twice and threw three interceptions on the way to losing their 14th straight road game.

Oregon State's Jake Luton finished 27 of 47 for 304 yards and two scores. He also threw three interceptions, including the game-changer in the third quarter. Thomas grabbed a tipped pass out of the air and raced 44 yards to make it 34-20.

"We got beat badly - badly," Oregon State coach Gary Andersen said. "There are a lot of concerns when you get beat like that. It's unchartered waters for me."

For a while, all the "firsts" in the new stadium appeared to be going the way of Oregon State:

- Winning the inaugural coin flip.

- Hauling in the first TD pass (Timmy Hernandez ).

- Picking off the first pass (Kyle White ).

But Colorado State ended up earning the biggest first of all in its new facility - a win.

"Everyone is going to pat us on the back now," Bobo said. "Everybody is going to tell us how great we are. Everybody is going to tell us how great that moment was. ... We've got to be mature enough as a football team to understand how we got to this point to win this ball game - by doing the little things every day."

THE TAKEAWAY

OREGON STATE: Andersen stressed the importance of the little things in winning on the road. Costly turnovers, missed receivers and allowing 48 points in the red zone added up to another road loss.

COLORADO STATE: Granted, it is very early in the season. But the Rams took a big step toward a run at a fifth straight bowl game. Their non-conference schedule also includes Colorado and top-ranked Alabama.

THIS & THAT

Colorado State director of athletics Joe Parker said he was so eager for the stadium opener that he arrived at 6:45 a.m. ... Rams RB Dalyn Dawkins caught an 18-yard TD pass and scored on a 3-yard run. ... Oregon State RB Ryan Nall rushed for 115 yards, including a 75-yard TD run in the second quarter. ... This was Colorado State's first football game on campus since Nov. 25, 1967, when the Rams beat Wichita State.

DON'T DO THAT AGAIN

Bobo wasn't too pleased with Stevens attempting a jump pass near the goal line that was nearly picked off. The Rams ended up with a field goal.

"That was stupid. We've got points right there," Bobo said. "Luckily, they didn't catch it. That's not a smart decision. He's not Brett Favre."

QUOTABLE

"We didn't expect a 10-7 game. Nor that it would be a walk in the park. We expected a dog fight." Oregon State coach Gary Andersen.

UP NEXT

OREGON STATE: Hosts Portland State next Saturday. The Beavers are 4-0 all-time against the Vikings.

COLORADO STATE: Faces in-state rival Colorado in Denver on Friday. The Rams lost 44-7 to the Buffaloes last season.

Backup QB Worthman leads Air Force past Fresno State 31-21

 Backup quarterback Arion Worthmanran for 102 yards and two touchdowns as an injury replacement to rally Air Force past Fresno State 31-21 on Friday night.

Air Force (5-3, 2-3 Mountain West Conference) snapped a three-game losing streak, while Fresno State (1-8, 0-5) joined the 1929 Bulldogs as the only teams in school history to lose seven consecutive games.

The Falcons were able to win despite senior starting quarterback Nate Romine leaving the game with an apparent ankle injury with 6:19 remaining in the third quarter, when the Falcons were trailing 21-17.

Enter Worthman, a sophomore with one career rush and one career pass - both in this season's opener - to his credit. He fueled the winning rally as the primary ball carrier on two scoring drives in the fourth quarter, attempting just two passes as Air Force ran the ball on its final 30 plays - including all 24 in the fourth quarter.

Worthman's 2-yard leap into the end zone on an option keeper gave Air Force a 24-21 lead with 13:02 to play in the game. His 4-yard keeper sealed the victory with 2:34 to play in the game.

Fresno State was playing its first game since head coach Tim DeRuyter was fired. Freshman quarterbackChason Virgil threw three touchdown passes to KeeSean Johnson, but also threw four interceptions that set up two Falcons touchdowns.

THE TAKEAWAY

AIR FORCE: The Falcons have scored in 293 consecutive games, the fifth-longest streak in FBS history, and the third-longest active streak behind Florida (353) and Texas Christian (300).

FRESNO STATE: The Bulldogs are out of bowl-game contention, so their attention is focused on finding the next head coach to replace DeRuyter. Local media reports name former Cal coach Jeff Tedford, a former Fresno State player and offensive coordinator, as the clear front runner. Tedford has long-running ties with Fresno State athletic director Jim Bartko from their mutual time at Oregon. Other potential candidates include Alabama offensive coordinator Lane Kiffin, a former Fresno State quarterback, and former USC coach Steve Sarkisian.

UP NEXT

AIR FORCE: The Falcons can win the Commander-in-Chief's Trophy for a record 19th outright time with a win next Saturday at Army. Air Force beat Navy 28-14 on Oct. 1 in the first leg of the round robin.

FRESNO STATE: The Bulldogs hope to avoid the second 1-8 start in school history, dating to 1921, in next Saturday's trip to Colorado State.

Pumphrey 5th in NCAA after San Diego State rolls 40-13

 Donnel Pumphrey ran for 223 yards, moving into the top five on the NCAA career list, and Juwan Washington added 137 yards and two touchdowns in San Diego State's 40-13 victory over Utah State on Friday night.

John Baron II was perfect on a career high four field goals in the driving rain for the Aztecs (7-1, 4-0), who have won 15 straight over Mountain West Conference rivals.

Pumphrey leads the country with 1,469 yards this season. He passed Cedric Benson, Travis Prentice and Charles White as he reached 5,741.

Washington had scoring runs of 39 and 1 yards en route to his first 100-yard game and the Aztecs piled up 400 yards on the ground.

Malik Smith scored his first touchdown with a 28-yard return on his ninth career interception for the final Aztec score.

Kurt Myers passed for a score and ran for another for Utah State (3-7, 1-4). His first-quarter run marked the first time SDSU has trailed in a regular-season conference game since last Oct. 31, a span of 400 minutes, 14 seconds.

Flowers shines, South Florida beats No. 22 Navy 52-45

 Quinton Flowers ran for 176 yards and two touchdowns to help South Florida get back on track in the American Athletic Conference with a 52-45 victory over No. 22 Navy on Friday night.

Rebounding from a 16-point loss to Temple that cost the Bulls (7-2, 4-1) sole possession of first place in the AAC's East Division, Flowers keyed a balanced attack that amassed 629 yards total offense against an overmatched Navy defense that yielded TDs on USF's first six possessions of the game to fall behind 42-14 at halftime.

"Great win for us," USF coach Willie Taggart said. "I'm really excited the way our guys responded to how we performed last week."

Will Worth ran for four touchdowns for Navy (5-2, 4-1), which leads the AAC West and entered game as the only team without a loss in league play after beating then-No. 6 Houston and Memphis to nudge into the Top 25.

Flowers joined Marlon Mack in topping 100 yards rushing for the third time in four games. The dual-threat quarterback scored on runs of 1 and 63 yards, while also throwing for 219 and two more TDs.

Mack scored on an 85-yard run in the opening quarter and finished with 125 on 11 carries for the 18th 100-yard performance of his career, fifth this season.

"Our guys accepted the challenge. We needed to run the ball well and score early," Taggart said. "You want (Navy) to have to play from behind."

Worth rushed for 129 yards and scored on runs of 4, 1, 1 and 2 yards for Navy, which was forced to throw the ball more than the Midshipmen are accustomed, with Worth going 15 of 27 for 299 yards, one touchdown and one interception.

The senior quarterback from Valrico, Florida - a short drive from the USF campus - set up one of his TDs with a 42-yard completion to Toneo Gulley. The Midshipmen attempted more than eight passes in a game for only the third time this season, finishing with 616 yards total offense, including 317 rushing.

Worth's 9-yard TD pass to Darryl Bonner came on the game's final play.

"We gave them a 28-point lead," Worth said, "and it's tough to come back against a talented team like that."

TAKEAWAY

Navy: The Midshipmen thrive by essentially playing keep-away, using a potent rushing attack to control the ball and keep opposing offenses off the field for long stretches. The strategy worked to perfection a year ago - when Navy ran for 442 yards to beat USF 29-17 in Annapolis - but never got a chance to work this time.

South Florida: Flowers leads the American in TD passes, however the Bulls are at their best when they're able to run the ball consistently. Mack led the AAC is rushing the past two years. And along with Flowers, who is averaging more than 7 yards per carry, USF has the best one-two running punch in the conference.

RUNNING WILD

South Florida rushed for a school record 190 yards in the first quarter and finished with 412. D'Ernest Johnson gained a career-high 108 on 19 attempts, giving the Bulls three 100-yard rushers in a game for the first time in program history.

AIR NAVY

Worth's passing total was a season high. The only other time he threw more than 12 passes in game, he was 17 of 30 for 260 yards and no touchdowns in a 14-point loss at Air Force on Oct. 1.

POLL IMPLICATIONS

Navy remains atop the American West standings, however the lopsided result likely will knock the Midshipmen out of the Top 25. USF was inching toward a spot in the rankings before last week's loss at Temple. The dominating performance on national television states the case that at the very least no team in the AAC is playing better than the Bulls right now.

RARE LEAGUE LOSS

Navy has won 11 of 13 conference games since joining the American last year. The only another loss in league play was a 52-31 defeat at Houston last season.

UP NEXT

Navy steps out of conference, returning to Florida next Saturday to face Notre Dame in Jacksonville.

South Florida has a bye before playing at Memphis on Nov. 12.

Darnold, Jones lead USC over Cal 45-24

Ronald Jones just needed an opportunity to show he was still the running back that became Southern California's most prolific freshman rusher a season ago.

With starter Justin Davis sidelined because of injury and the Pac-12's worst run defense trying to stop him, coach Clay Helton knew that the sophomore was "ready to explode."

Jones rushed for a career-high 223 yards, Sam Darnold threw five touchdowns passes and USC downed California 45-24 on Thursday night.

Darnold threw for 231 yards, with Darreus Rogers making six catches for a career-high 97 yards, as the Trojans rolled up a season-high 629 yards of total offense. Aca'Cedric Warecontributed a career-high 130 yards rushing to USC's total of 398, the fourth time this season the Golden Bears have allowed more than 300 yards on the ground.

"We looked like a tired, beat-up football team and we were," Cal coach Sonny Dykes said.

USC (5-3, 4-2 Pac-12) scored on three of its first four possessions, with Darnold finding Rogers, Jones andDeontay Burnett for touchdowns. Rogers added a second touchdown catch with 28 seconds left, but two fumbles by Darnold allowed Cal (4-4, 2-3) to maintain a modicum of hope despite allowing 451 yards on 46 plays in the first half.

Defensive tackle James Looney returned a fumble to the USC 22, where Tre Watson took a screen pass into the end zone. Webb, the Texas Tech transfer, found his rhythm on Cal's next drive, with throws of 23 and 32 yards to set up Matt Anderson's field goal.

Webb threw for 331 yards and two touchdowns, throwing a ball up for grabs that was intercepted by safety Marvell Tell in the first quarter. Webb also rushed for a touchdown in the third quarter that cut USC's lead to 28-17 before Jones had a 37-yard touchdown run and Daniel Imatorbhebhe caught a 17-yard touchdown pass from Darnold.

Melquise Stovall, a freshman who originally committed to attend USC as a recruit, had nine receptions for 87 yards and a touchdown.

Cal's best chance to take the lead came on its fourth play from scrimmage, but freshman Demetris Robertsondropped a potential 64-yard touchdown that hit him in the hands. After Webb quick kicked on fourth-and-1 from the Cal 45, Jones ripped off a 61-yard run on the next play and the Cal defense was on its heels for the rest of the half.

"I think we were prepared when we got here," Webb said. "It's on us. That's how it should be. It's a player's game."

Jones had 149 yards on eight first-half carries.

RECORD RETURNS

USC cornerback Adoree Jackson set a new school record for career kick return yardage, breaking the previous mark of 1,723 yards held by Curtis Conway.

Jackson had 56 yards on two kick returns, giving him 1,779 yards in his three seasons at USC. The electric Jackson also had two spectacular punt returns, though one was called back because of a holding penalty.

THE TAKEAWAY

Cal: The Bears have now lost 13 in a row to the Trojans since handing Pete Carroll's 2003 national championship team its only loss in triple overtime that season. Cal was always going to have trouble defending Darnold and USC's plethora of skill players, and that task was even tougher with a short week to prepare and mounting injuries. But with three home games left, Cal has a good chance at becoming bowl eligible if it can maintain its strong play in Strawberry Canyon.

USC: The Trojans are white-hot, with Darnold leading the way. The freshman quarterback has now thrown 16 touchdown passes in leading USC to four consecutive wins, playing with a fearlessness and fire that the team was missing at the start of the season, though his ball security must improve. They need help to win the Pac-12 South, but the Trojans are more than capable of turning the conference race upside down when they travels to No. 4 Washington on Nov. 12.

UP NEXT

Cal: The Bears host the Huskies on Nov. 5, a potential trap game for Washington while completing its only back-to-back road games this season.

USC: The Trojans host faltering Oregon on Nov. 5, seeking their first five-game winning streak since interim coach Ed Orgeron won five straight in 2013.

Brown leads Ohio to 31-26 win; 1st win at Toledo since 1967

Dorian Brown had career highs with 212 yards rushing and 29 carries and Ohio beat Toledo 31-26 on Thursday night for the Bobcats' first road victory over the Rockets since 1967.

Ohio (6-3, 4-1 Mid-American) led 31-20 on Brown's 51-yard TD run with 8:08 left in the game and the Bobcats held the Rockets at midfield in the final minute for the first win in the series since 1988.

Quinton Maxwell passed for 159 yards and two touchdowns and the Bobcats never trailed.

Toledo (6-2, 3-1) capped the scoring on Logan Woodside's 10-yard pass to Jon'Vea Johnson with 3:28 left, but failed on the 2-point conversion attempt.

Woodside was 32 of 24 for 438 yards, three touchdowns and an interception. Johnshon had six catches for 156 yards and two TDs and Corey Jones had seven catches for 115 yards and a score.

The Rockets cut the deficit it to 14-13 and 21-20.

Lamb, Appalachian State beat Georgia Southern 34-10

Taylor Lamb passed for 199 yards and ran for 94 yards and two touchdowns to help Appalachian State beat Georgia Southern 34-10 on Thursday night.

Jalin Moore added 126 yards rushing and Marcus Cox ran for 115 yards for the Mountaineers (6-2, 4-0 Sun Belt). Each had a touchdown run in the final quarter and Appalachian State scored the final 34 points after falling behind early.

Lamb put the Mountaineers on the board with a 14-yard run in the middle of the second quarter. Michael Rubino added field goals on each side of halftime and Lamb made it 20-10 with a 30-yard keeper late in the third.

Younghoe Koo's 32-yard field goal opened the scoring for the Eagles (4-4, 3-2) and Ukeme Eligwe returned a fumble 90 yards to make 10-0 late in the first quarter.

Georgia Southern never got moving on offense, though, and was outgained by the Mountaineers 498-159.

Johnson runs for Buffalo-record 282 yards, Bulls beat Akron

 Jordan Johnson ran for a Buffalo-record 282 yards in the Bulls' 41-20 victory over Akron on Thursday night.

Tatum Slack sacked Akron's Thomas Woodson on a fourth-and-7 play to preserve the Bulls' 34-20 lead with 5:44 left.

Johnson put it out of reach 54 seconds later with a 39-yard scoring run. On that play, Johnson passed Alan Bell's previous single-game rushing mark of 266 yards set against Duquesne in 1991.

Johnson covered all 63 yards on Buffalo's final scoring drive and 50 of the Bulls' 64 yards on the drive that made it 34-20 with 9:34 left.

Tyree Jackson threw a touchdown pass and ran for two more scores for Buffalo (2-6, 1-3 Mid-American).

Johnson had a 61-yard TD run to make it 17-3 in the second quarter. He has 24 carries.

JoJo Natson scored on a 79-yard punt return and a 33-yard reception for the Zips (5-4, 3-2).

No. 25 Virginia Tech holds off Pitt in 39-36 win

One of the nation's worst secondaries kept daring Virginia Tech quarterback Jerod Evans to throw. So he did. Over. And over. And over.

The junior shook off a right ankle injury to throw for a career-high 406 yards and two touchdowns to lead the 25th-ranked Hokies to a 39-36 victory over Pittsburgh on Thursday night.

Joey Slye tied the school and Atlantic Coach Conference records by making six field goals to help the Hokies (6-2, 4-1) beat the Panthers (5-3, 2-2) on the road for the first time in 17 years.

Pitt came in with the nation's 120th-ranked pass defense yet played bump-and-run for most of the game, hoping its defensive backs could win more than they lost.

Didn't happen. Instead, three Tech wide receivers topped 100 yards in the same game for the first time in school history.Isaiah Ford's 10 receptions included his school-record 23rd receiving touchdown. Bucky Hodges caught six passes for 145 yards and a score and Cam Phillips added 109 yards on a night the Hokies piled up 556 total yards.

"It's a great feeling when you can do what you love doing and that's throw the ball up and down the field against a pretty good defense," Evans said. "One-on-one coverage. You can't ask for anything better than one-on-one coverage."

Pitt coach Narduzzi built his reputation as defensive coordinator at Michigan State by requiring his secondary to play physical. He's intent on doing the same at Pitt, even as the weeks pass and improvement only comes in sporadic bursts. Facing the Hokies, it was no different.

"We had guys in position to make plays," Narduzzi said. "We didn't make them. . There's not a whole lot of different ways to do it."

Evans left briefly in the third quarter after getting his right leg rolled up on but returned to lead a fourth-quarter surge that included Slye's sixth field goal. Slye joked it got a little bit boring knocking in chip shot after chip shot, though he's hardly complaining after the Hokies won at Heinz Field for the first time in five tries and assured themselves of a bowl berth for a 24th straight year, the longest active streak in the nation.

It's a notable streak, but bigger goals lie ahead. The Hokies will end the weekend no worse than tied in the loss column with North Carolina atop the Coastal. Virginia Tech owns the tiebreaker, having beaten the Tar Heels decisively this month.

TRICKERATION

James Conner ran for 141 yards and three touchdowns for the Panthers but offensive coordinator Matt Canada continued to masterfully tinker with the Pitt playbook.

Nate Peterman completed 13 of 22 passes for 267 yards with a touchdown and an interception while also catching the first pass of his. Pitt offensive tackle Brian O'Neill scored his second touchdown of the season, this time on a pitch from Peterman that resulted in the 6-foot-6, 300-pound O'Neill barreling over the goal line from 5 yards out. O'Neill, a tight end in high school, scored on a throwback screen against Georgia Tech earlier this month.

PINBALL WIZARD

One of the connections between Evans and Ford includes a wild 36-yard gain in which Ford and Pitt cornerback Phillipie Motley batted it back and forth to each other as they went to the ground. Officials ruled it a catch on the field after Ford ripped it away from Motley before it hit the ground. The call stood upon review.

WILD MAN

Narduzzi became increasingly animated on the sideline as the game wore on, convinced Virginia Tech's wide receivers were illegally giving themselves and advantage on all those alley-oop passes from Evans.

"They did a great job pushing off all night," Narduzzi said. "Give them credit for that."

THE TAKEAWAY

Virginia Tech: The Hokies have the weapons to run the table. If Evans can avoid turning it over, the Hokies will be in the ACC title game.

"When you have three elite wide receivers, you can't ask for more," Evans said.

Pitt: Midway through Narduzzi's second season, the defense remains a chaotic work in progress. Even the debut of ballyhooed freshman safety Damar Hamlin's long anticipated debut did little to help. If Pitt's pass defense was even average, the Panthers would be a threat to reach the ACC title game. It's not, and the Panthers almost certainly won't be in Orlando in December.

UP NEXT

Virginia Tech: Travel to Duke on Nov. 5. The Hokies fell to the Blue Devils 45-43 in four overtimes last season.

Pitt: Begin a tough two-game stretch at Miami on Nov. 5. Hurricanes have won two of three meetings since Pitt joined the ACC in 2013.

Utah State pulls away to beat Fresno State 38-20

 Kent Myers passed for 188 yards and three touchdowns and ran for 66 yards to help Utah State beat Fresno State 38-20 on Saturday night.

Utah State (3-4, 1-3 Mountain West) never trailed but allowed the Bulldogs (1-7, 0-4) within 17-14 after a touchdown late in the first half on Chason Virgil's 1-yard pass to Jared Rice.

The Aggies then pulled away steadily in the second half, twice trading touchdowns for field goals and adding a third TD on Damion Hobbs' 4-yard run to cap the scoring with 7:14 left.

Both teams' kickers notched career-long field goals - Brock Warren with a 43-yarder for Utah State in the second quarter and Kody Kroening with a 49-yarder in the fourth. Kroening made two field goals on the night, extending the nation's current longest streak of made field goals to 13.

Tonny Lindsey had 90 yards rushing for Utah State. Dontel James ran for 80 yards and a score for Fresno State.

Hill runs for 289 yards, 3 TDs; Wyoming beats Nevada 42-34

Brian Hill had career highs with 289 yards rushing and three touchdowns, quarterback Josh Allen ran for two more scores and Logan Wilson intercepted a pass in the final minute to help Wyoming hold off Nevada for a 42-34 win on Saturday night.

The Cowboys (5-2, 3-0 Mountain West) had a season-high 403 yards rushing and improved to 3-0 in conference play for the first time since 1998, their final season in the Western Athletic Conference.

Hill had runs of 20 and 39 yards during a nine-play, 80-yard drive that was capped by Allen's 7-yard TD run that made it 42-27 with 2:52 left.

On their ensuing drive, the Wolfpack (3-5, 1-3) went 75 yards in 2 minutes, 12 seconds and James Butler recovered his own fumble in the end zone to pull within 42-34.

Nevada recovered an onside kick, but on its next play from scrimmage Wilson's interception sealed it.

Falk leads Washington State to 37-32 win over Arizona State

Washington State coach Mike Leach earned himself a big fine and some harsh words from Arizona State coach Todd Graham after accusing the Sun Devils of stealing signs this week.

Even if the Sun Devils knew what was coming, they had a hard time stopping Luke Falk and the Cougars.

Falk threw for 398 yards and three touchdowns, helping Washington State hold off Arizona State 37-32 Saturday night in a game punctuated by heated words during the coaches' postgame handshake.

"I respectfully decline on grounds that I might be publicly reprimanded and fined, so any questions about them I really don't plan to answer," said Leach, who repeated the refrain four times.

Leach irritated the Sun Devils and Graham this week by repeating a comment from last season about Arizona State stealing signs. Washington and Oregon both used sheets to block their signs from Arizona State last season, so the sign-stealing accusations were nothing new.

But the Pac-12 came down hard on Leach for his comments this time, hitting the coach with a $10,000 fine. Graham retorted during the week and again during the postgame handshake, using a pair of expletives picked up by TV cameras that sent Leach walking away, but would not elaborate when asked about the encounter after the game.

"That's between me and him," Graham said.

Washington State (5-2, 4-0 Pac-12) had more trouble with Arizona State's defensive scheme in the first quarter, unable to get anything going as the Sun Devils dropped deep into coverage and forced Falk to throw underneath.

Once Falk adjusted, he picked the Sun Devils (5-3, 2-3) apart, leading the Cougars to 28 straight points, a run triggered by Robert Taylor's 100-yard kickoff return for a touchdown.

Falk hit Tavares Martin on a 9-yard TD late in the second quarter and Jamal Morrow on a 3-yard score in the third. The junior also laid the ball in perfectly for Gabe Marks, who became Washington State's all-time receptions leader, on a 52-yard touchdown in the fourth quarter that put the Cougars up 37-21.

Falk completed passes to 11 different receivers and connected on 42 of 53 overall to keep Washington State tied atop the Pac-12 North Division with No. 5 Washington after its fifth straight win.

"We started off slow. That's on me," Falk said. "You've got to put the ball in play and give it to our playmakers, but ultimately we did a nice job of having a gutsy win and finishing the game."

Arizona State was down to its fourth-string quarterback after Manny Wilkins was injured on the opening drive and had four other starters out. The Sun Devils still managed to lead by 11 early and clawed most of their way back from a 16-point deficit in the fourth quarter.

Tim White had a 70-yard touchdown on a punt return and Zane Gonzalez hit a 29-yard field goal to pull Arizona State within 37-32. But Falk and the Cougars ground down the game's final 4:36.

Wilkins ran for a 3-yard touchdown by hurdling a defender - his third hurdle of the season - before going out and freshman Sterling Dillon-Cole completed 7 of 16 passes for 86 yards in his place.

"Dillon did what he could do, he played with heart and all we had to do as an offense is keep him motivated and confident because you never know what can happen on the last series of the game," White said.

INJURED SUN DEVILS

Arizona State was banged up heading into Saturday and it only got worse as the game wore on.

The Sun Devils were missing two starters from their offense, Sam Jones and AJ McCollum, and safetyArmand Perry was out with a turf toe injury.

Wilkins did not play after the first series and linebacker Salamo Fiso, one of the keys to Arizona State's defense, had to be helped off the field in the fourth quarter.

THE TAKEAWAY

Washington State: The Cougars have come a long way since their 0-2 start to the season, keeping themselves on course for a season-ending showdown against the rival Huskies that could decide the Pac-12 North.

Arizona State: The Sun Devils' struggles against the pass continue and their offense could be in more trouble if Wilkins continues to miss time. Arizona State has lost three of four.

UP NEXT

Washington State plays at Oregon State next Saturday.

Arizona State plays at Oregon next Saturday.