The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Three Big Ten teams finish with victories
Michigan State capped its turnaround from a two-win season with a fourth-quarter comeback in the Peach Bowl.
Payton Thorne’s 22-yard touchdown pass to Jayden Reed gave No. 11 Michigan State the lead with less than three minutes remaining, and the Spartans overcame an 11-point deficit to beat No. 13 Pittsburgh 31-21 on Thursday night in the Peach Bowl.
Led by Thorne, the Spartans outscored the Panthers 21-0 in the final quarter.
“The whole game, my teammates just kept telling me to stay up and keep chopping like we talk about,” Thorne said.
Linebacker Cal Haladay’s 78-yard interception return for a touchdown with 22 seconds remaining ended Pitt fill-in quarterback Davis Beville’s bid for a last-minute comeback in the game the Panthers played without star QB Kenny Pickett.
Thorne threw two fourth-quarter touchdown passes as Michigan State (112) rallied after trailing 21-10.
“We got stronger and stronger as the game went,” second-year coach Mel Tucker said. “We ... were able to find a way to get it done.”
Michigan State finished 2-5 in its pandemic-shortened 2020 season.
Cam Bright returned a fumble recovery 26 yards for a touchdown only 20 seconds into the second half for Pittsburgh (11-3). The Panthers lost fill-in starting quarterback Nick Patti to a broken collarbone in the first quarter.
Defensive end John Morgan forced the fumble by Thorne that was returned by Bright for a 21-10 lead.
It was the second big play by Pitt’s defense. Brandon Hill’s interception late in the first half set up an 87-yard touchdown drive for a 14-10 lead.
Thorne’s 15-yard scoring pass to tight end Connor Heyward cut the Panthers’ lead to 21-16 with 8:06 remaining. The Spartans were stopped on their 2-point play, with Heyward kept out of the end zone on another reception.
Thorne completed 29 of 50 passes for 354 yards with three touchdowns and one interception. Thorne’s scoring pass to Reed with 2:51 remaining gave the Spartans a 22-21 lead. A 2-point pass to Jalen Nailor pushed the lead to three points.
Wisconsin wins Las Vegas Bowl: Braelon Allen ran for 159 yards, and Wisconsin drained the final 9:57 off the clock with an 18-play drive that sealed a 20-13 victory over Arizona State in the Las Vegas Bowl.
Allen, the 17-year-old true freshman from Fond Du Lac, Wisconsin, had 101 yards by halftime for his eighth 100yard game of the season.
Graham Mertz finished 11 of 15 for 137 yards and a touchdown to senior tight end Jake Ferguson, who caught three passes for 33 yards in his final game for Wisconsin (9-4).
The Badgers started 1-3 with Big Ten losses to ranked opponents Penn State and Michigan but answered with a seven-game winning streak to earn a 20th consecutive bowl bid.
Clinging to a seven-point lead, they took over at their 3 with just under 10 minutes remaining and drove 90 yards to run out the clock in the first bowl game at Allegiant Stadium, home of the NFL’S Las Vegas Raiders.
Arizona State quarterback Jayden Daniels accounted for 199 yards and threw an interception for the Sun Devils (8-5), who are 3-6 in bowls since 2011.
The Sun Devils were held to 219 yards, including 102 in the first half. Wisconsin entered with the nation’s top defense, allowing 240.8 yards per game.
Arizona State has made the postseason in each full season under coach Herm Edwards; the Sun Devils played only four games in 2020 due to the pandemic.
Purdue takes Music City Bowl: 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 in a record-setting Music City Bowl.
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 fourgame bowl victory streak.
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 overtime, 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.
The end of regulation featured Purdue quarterback Aidan O’connell throwing two of his five TD passes, starting with a pass Payne Durham took 62 yards after breaking a tackle in front of the Purdue bench.
Hendon Hooker threw two of his five TDS tying it up at 38 with a 13-yarder to Cedric Tillman on fourth-and-goal from the Purdue 13, then again at 45. The Vols had a final chance to win in regulation, but Chase Mcgrath’s 56 yard field goal fell well short.
Tennessee finished with 639 yards total offense, and Purdue had 623 in regulation — both bowl records before overtime. O’connell easily set the mark with 534 yards passing, well above the 383 Mike Glennon had with N.C. State.
Purdue came in without All-america wide receiver David Bell, who’s prepping for the NFL draft, and a receiving corps further thinned by injuries. Broc Thompson filled in with seven catches for a gamehigh 217 yards and two TDS.