Purdue outlasts Tennessee in OT
Mitchell Fineran kicked a 39-yard field goal in overtime and Purdue finished off its best season since 2003 by overcoming a 14-point deficit and beating Tennessee 48-45 on Thursday in a record-setting Music City Bowl in Nashville, Tennessee.
Purdue (9-4) tied for the second-most wins in program history as only the 12th team in the Boilermakers’ 134-year history to win nine games. They also won their fifth game away from home, something they hadn’t done since 1943.
Tennessee (7-6) missed a chance to make Josh Heupel the first Vols coach to cap his debut season with a bowl win since Bill Battle won the 1971 Sugar Bowl. The Vols also snapped a four-game bowl victory streak with a loss that dropped the SEC to 1-5 this bowl season.
The teams combined for 1,293 yards of total offense — second-most in overall bowl history, trailing only the 1,397 yards Baylor and Washington had in the 2011 Alamo Bowl. Tennessee became the 10th team in bowl game history to run 100 or more plays, and the combined 185 plays rank seventh.
This high-scoring game featured a flurry of big plays and points in the final five minutes only to see Purdue’s defense make the deciding play.
On the first possession of OT, Jamar Brown and Kieren Douglas stopped Vols running back Jaylen Wright short on fourth-and-goal at the 1. The stop was upheld on review for Wright’s forward progress being stopped despite Wright reaching the ball over the goal line before the whistle without a knee touching the ground while laying on top of Douglas.
After Purdue ran three plays, Fineran sealed the victory with his fourth field goal of the game, sending the Boilermakers running down the field in celebration.
Purdue QB Aidan O’Connell and Tennessee QB Hendon Hooker each had five passing TDs..
Purdue came in without All-America WR David Bell, who’s prepping for the NFL draft. Broc Thompson filled in with seven catches for a game-high 217 yards and two TDs.
Hooker finished with 378 yards passing. Tillman had three TDs on seven receptions for 150 yards, and Jabari Small ran for 180 yards.
Gamecocks beat UNC: South Carolina coach Shane Beamer had a bucket of mayonnaise dumped over his head Thursday, putting a memorable and messy finish on the Gamecocks’ 38-21 victory over North Carolina in the Duke’s Mayo Bowl in Charlotte, North Carolina.
Tight end Jaheim Bell had five catches for 159 yards and two TDs for South Carolina (7-6), which rebounded nicely after it lost 30-0 to Clemson in its regular-season finale on Nov. 27. Kevin Harris added 169 yards rushing and a score, helping secure the mayo bath for Beamer.
Bell, a sophomore, got free for a 69-yard TD reception from receiver-turned-QB Dakereon Joyner and hauled in a 66-yard TD catch from former graduate assistant coach Zeb Noland on South Carolina’s first two possessions.
Sam Howell threw for 205 yards and a TD for UNC (6-7). Wolverines may be missing key DB: Michigan coach Jim Harbaugh said Thursday that All-Big Ten defensive back Dax Hill wasn’t yet in Miami and was questionable to play in the Orange Bowl against No. 3 Georgia.
Harbaugh didn’t provide details of what kept Hill from traveling with the team nor what could keep him out of the College Football Playoff semifinal Friday night.
“He’s working through something right now,” Harbaugh said. “We’ll know more today.”
Hill is second on the team in tackles with 65 and has two interceptions for the second-ranked Wolverines (12-1).