Cavaliers blow lead, hold on for victory
CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. — Kurt Benkert threw five touchdown passes, the last two after Virginia had squandered all of a 28-0 lead, and the Cavaliers gave coach Bronco Mendenhall his 100th career victory, 49-35 over Central Michigan.
Benkert hit Olamide Zaccheaus with a goahead 82-yard pass after the Cavaliers defense forced its first punt since the opening quarter. Virginia (1-3) forced another punt, and Benkert hit Albert Reid for a 5-yard touchdown, capping a 73yard drive. Taquan Mizzell also scored twice for Virginia on runs of 4 and 53 yards
The Chippewas (3-1), seeking their first 4-0 start since 1985, scored on four of five possessions after going behind 28-0 less than 20 minutes into the game. Cooper Rush threw two touchdown passes to Corey Willis, including an 85yarder, and Amari Coleman read a screen pass perfectly and scored on a 47-yard interception return.
Mendenhall, in his first year at Virginia, was 9943 in 11 seasons at BYU before coming east.
No. 13 FSU 55, South Florida 35
TAMPA, Fla. — Dalvin Cook rushed for a careerhigh 267 yards and two touchdowns Saturday as No. 13 Florida State rebounded from the most lopsided loss in school history with a 55-35 rout of previously unbeaten South Florida.
Cook scored on a 75yard run on the Seminoles’ first play from scrimmage, an immediate response to USF starting the game with Quinton Flowers and Rodney Adams teaming on an 84yard catch-and-run for a quick 7-0 lead. The 213pound junior’s rushing total on 28 carries topped his previous best of 266 yards against South Florida last year.
Florida State (3-1) bounced back from being trounced 63-20 by Louisville, a road shellacking that dropped the Seminoles 11 spots in the AP Top 25 from No. 2.
South Florida (3-1) is off to its fastest start since 2011, however the Bulls were no match for a talented bunch that began the season with expectations of contending for its second national title in four years.
Marlon Mack’s 1-yard TD run gave USF a brief lead before Cook, Freddie Stevenson and Bobo Wilson scored on Florida State’s next three possessions to put the Seminoles up 28-14.
Deondre Francois threw for 169 yards, one touchdown and no interceptions. The red-shirt freshman added a 35-yard TD run midway through the fourth quarter.
North Carolina 37, Pittsburgh 36
CHAPEL HILL, N.C. — Mitch Trubisky capped a huge day by throwing a 2-yard touchdown pass to Bug Howard with 2 seconds left to help North Carolina rally past Pittsburgh 37-36 on Saturday.
Trubisky threw for career highs of 453 yards and five touchdowns for the Tar Heels (3-1, 1-0 Atlantic Coast Conference), who never led until the final play and trailed by 13 midway through the fourth quarter.
But Trubisky coolly directed a 17-play, 63-yard drive that included three fourth-down conversions in a stunning finish.
Ryan Switzer was the main target, tying a program record with 16 catches for 208 yards and a score in a matchup of the teams that finished 1-2 atop the ACC’s Coastal Division last season.
Quadree Henderson ran for 107 yards to for the Panthers (2-2, 0-1), who ran for 281 yards but went three-and-out on their last two drives to give UNC its opening.
Boston College 42, Wagner 10
BOSTON — Quarterback Patrick Towles passed for two touchdowns and added two more on the ground as Boston College defeated Wagner 42-10 on Saturday.
Jon Hilliman ran for two more touchdowns for the Eagles (2-2), who won their 25th straight game against a Football Championship Subdivision opponent.
Wagner (2-1) wasn’t rattled early, scoring on its second drive of the game to take an early 7-0 lead. But after the Seahawks pulled within 14-10 early in the second quarter, BC took control, and scored the final 28 points of the game.
Boston College coach Steve Addazio expressed discontent this week with his team’s inability to run the ball consistently over its first three games, after establishing that identity during his first three seasons in Boston.
BC had just 44 yards rushing in last week’s 490 loss at Virginia Tech, its fewest since 28 at N.C. State in 2015. The Eagles entered Saturday ranked second from last in the Atlantic Coast Conference in rushing at just 124.4 yards per game.
Syracuse 31, UConn 24
EAST HARTFORD, Conn. — Amba Etta-Tawo caught 12 passes for a school-record 270 yards and two touchdowns and Syracuse beat UConn 31-24 on Saturday.
The graduate transfer from Maryland scored twice in the game’s first five minutes on touchdown receptions of 57 and 30 yards. His 59-yard catch on third down from the shadow of his team’s goal line highlighted a 12-play 99-yard fourth quarter drive that put the game away for the Orange (2-2).
Syracuse quarterback Eric Dungey completed 26 of 40 passes for 407 yards and those two scores. He also scored on a 6-yard run to complete the length-of the field drive.
Noel Thomas had 14 receptions for 111 yards for UConn (2-2).
It took Syracuse just 51 seconds to score its first touchdown and 92 on its second for Dungey and Etta-Tawo to make it 14-0. Etta-Tawo had five catches for 115 yards in the first quarter.
Wake Forest 33, Indiana 28
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. — John Wolford ran for two touchdowns and threw for another, and Jessie Bates returned an interception for a third score Saturday to lead Wake Forest past Indiana 3328.
The Demon Deacons are 4-0 (1-0 ACC) for the first time in 10 years and have already surpassed the three-win totals they had each of the previous two seasons. It was coach Dave Clawson’s 100th career victory.
And it was impressive, too, as Wake Forest ended Indiana’s eight-game winning streak against non-conference opponents.
After Indiana (2-1) took a 7-0 lead with a 75-yard TD pass from Richard Lagow to Nick Westbrook on the game’s first play, Wake converted three interceptions and a blocked field goal into 24 points.