Liberty takes Cure Bowl with win vs. Ga Southern
Frankie Hickson picked up 120 yards rushing on 22 carries, Stephen Calvert went 16 of 35 passing for 270 yards and two touchdowns, and Liberty (8-5) beat Georgia Southern (7-6) in the Cure Bowl in Orlando, Fla.
Hickson became the first Liberty running back since Rashad Jennings (2006-08) to have back to back seasons of 1,000-yards rushing.
New Mexico Bowl: Ryan Agnew passed for 287 yards and three touchdowns, Jesse Matthews caught three passes for 111 yards and two touchdowns and San Diego State (10-3) won a bowl game for the first time since 2016, beating Central Michigan (8-6) in Albuquerque, N.M.
Jordan Byrd ran for a career-high 139 yards and a touchdown to help the Aztecs cap their 10th straight bowl appearance with a victory. San Diego State opened 7-1 record, then dropped two of its last three conference games to fall out of contention for a Mountain West title game berth
Celebration Bowl: Kylil Carter passed for six touchdowns and North Carolina A&T racked up enormous offensive totals to beat Alcorn State in Atlanta for the Aggies’ third consecutive HBCU national championship title.
Boca Raton Bowl: Chris Robison passed for 305 yards and two touchdowns and Florida Atlantic (11-3) scored two touchdowns in a 24-second span late in the first half to take control on the way to a 52-28 victory over SMU (10-3).
It was FAU’s first game since Lane Kiffin left the Owls to take over at Ole Miss.
Camellia Bowl: Layne Hatcher passed for 393 yards and four touchdowns, including a late 13-yarder to Jonathan Adams, and Arkansas State held to beat Florida International 34-26.
The Red Wolves (8-5) came back to life offensively for a final big drive, highlighted by All-American and game MVP Omar Bayless’s 52-yard catch down to the 12.
Las Vegas Bowl: Jacob Eason threw for 210 yards and a touchdown and Washington sent out coach Chris Petersen with a 38-7 victory over No. 18 Boise State.
Richard Newton rushed for 69 yards with a short touchdown run and threw a touchdown pass for the Huskies (8-5). They capped an erratic season with a dominant finale for Petersen – who left Boise State to coach Washington – after he announced Dec. 2 he was stepping down after six seasons.
FCS
James Madison 30, Weber State 14: Ben DiNucci threw for two touchdowns and ran for another and James Madison routed Weber State to reach the Football Championship Subdivision national championship game.
North Dakota 42, Montana State 14: Christian Watson scored long touchdowns on back-to-back touches early in the second quarter and two-time defending FCS champion North Dakota State blitzed Montana State in a semifinal.
Division II
West Florida 48 Minnesota St 40: Austin Reed broke the NCAA Division II championship game record for yards passing before halftime, throwing for 399 of his 523 yards in West Florida’s victory over Minnesota State.