Iowa has easy time against Nebraska
C.J. Beathard threw three touchdown passes and Iowa pummeled No. 16 Nebraska, 40-10, on Friday at Iowa City, knocking the Cornhuskers out of Big Ten title contention and sending Wisconsin to the championship game.
LeShun Daniels Jr. ran for 158 yards and two scores and George Kittle caught two touchdown passes for the Hawkeyes (8-4, 6-3 Big Ten). They closed the regular season with three straight wins — two of them over ranked opponents.
Nebraska (9-3, 6-3) was outscored 102-13 in its last two road games.
Iowa broke open what was expected to be a tight game with a 75-yard touchdown run by Akrum Wadley and a 77-yard touchdown throw from Beathard to Riley McCarron in the first quarter.
Tommy Armstrong started for Nebraska despite a balky hamstring and completed only 13 of 35 passes for 125 yards.
at No. 21 Western Michigan 55, Toledo 35: Corey Davis and the Broncos wrapped up an undefeated regular season in style to secure a berth next week in the Mid-American Conference championship game and a possible major bowl bid.
Davis became the career FBS leader in yards receiving, and the Broncos (12-0, 8-0) never trailed, scoring a defensive touchdown on the first play from scrimmage and eventually breaking it open in the third quarter.
Davis caught eight passes for 81 yards and a touchdown, as he broke the career mark of 5,005 yards receiving set by Trevor Insley of Nevada from 1996-99.
at Memphis 48, No. 18 Houston 44: In what might be Coach Tom Herman’s final game with the Cougars, Riley Ferguson threw a 10yard touchdown pass with 19 seconds left in a wild fourth quarter as the Tigers ended a six-game losing streak.
Greg Ward was spectacular in defeat, completing 47 of 67 passes for 487 yards and giving gave Houston a 44-41 lead with 1:29 remaining with his fourth touchdown pass, a three-yard toss to Chance Allen.
Herman, who came into the game amid speculation he could be close to taking another job, guided the Cougars (9-3) back from a 17point halftime deficit.
“We had a decision to make at halftime on whether we were going to give up and give in or if we were going to come out in the second half and fight. Our guys fought,” Herman said.
Asked by ESPN before the game to address reports that he might be close to a deal with another school, Herman said, “Honestly, don’t believe anything that you read.”
at Air Force 27, No. 19 Boise State 20: The Falcons had a late goal-line stand, Tyler Weaver returned a blocked punt 11 yards for a touchdown and Air Force ended the Broncos’ bid for the Mountain West title.
Haji Dunn Jr. recovered quarterback Brett Rypien’s fumble on fourth down with around two minutes remaining to help the Falcons (9-3, 5-3 Mountain West) knock off Boise State for a third straight season. The Broncos (10-2, 6-2) needed a win at Air Force and for New Mexico to upset Mountain Division-leading Wyoming on Saturday to earn a spot in the conference’s title game.
Texas Christian 31, at Texas 9: Quarterback Kenny Hill ran for two touchdowns and the Horned Frogs sent Longhorns Coach Charlie Strong to a crushing loss in what may be his final game after three seasons.
The loss dropped Strong to 16-21 at Texas and he’s the first coach in program history with three consecutive losing seasons. He said he expects to meet with Texas President Greg Fenves and Athletic Director Mike Perrin on Saturday.
“I said the third year we’ll make progress, the fourth year will be our year,” Strong said. “I was told when I came in three years ago to build a program. The wins and losses don’t add up, but it’s more than that. [It’s] taking the program in the right direction.”
at Arizona 56, Arizona State 35: The Wildcats dominated the Territorial Cup matchup with a stunning ground attack, rushing for 511 yards and averaging more than 10 yards per carry.
Brandon Dawkins (183 yards), Samajie Grant (176) and Zach Green (126) all rushed for more than 100 yards for the Wildcats (3-9), who had been 0-8 in the Pac-12, overshadowing a big night for Sun Devils quarterback Manny Wilkins, who threw for 372 yards and three touchdowns. The Sun Devils fell to 5-7.
North Carolina State 28, at North Carolina 21: Jaylen Samuels ran for one touchdown and threw for another on a trick play, and the Tar Heels earned bowl eligibility while also locking up a division title for Virginia Tech.
at Missouri 28, Arkansas 24: Drew Lock completed 16 of 26 passes for 268 yards and a touchdown, and the Tigers scored 21 unanswered second-half points.
at Texas Tech 54, Baylor 35: Patrick Mahomes threw for 586 yards for the Red Raiders (5-7) and matched his career high with six touchdown passes, including three on one-play drives before halftime. Baylor (6-5) has lost five in a row since starting 6-0 and reaching No. 8 in the AP poll.