Rudolph leads Oklahoma State past Virginia Tech, 30-21
ORLANDO, FLA. » Mason Rudolph threw for 351 yards and a pair of touchdowns, James Washington became Oklahoma State’s career receiving yards leader and the 17thranked Cowboys beat No. 22 Virginia Tech 30-21 in the Camping World Bowl on Thursday night.
Washington caught five passes for 126 yards, giving him 4,472 for his career and passing Rashaun Woods for the school mark. Justice Hill ran for 120 yards and another score for the Cowboys (10-3), who have won 10 games in each of the last three seasons — another Oklahoma State first.
Josh Jackson ran for two scores and threw for another for the Hokies (9-4), including a rush that got Virginia Tech within 27-21 with 5:40 remaining. Deshawn McClease ran for 124 yards, a Virginia Tech season-best, but the Hokies were hurt by two turnovers in Oklahoma State territory.
Hill came through with perhaps the play of the night. Facing a thirdand-11 with 3:30 left, Hill took a handoff, went left, waited for a lane to open — and broke loose for a 31yard gain down to the Hokies’ 18. Matt Ammendola’s 38-yard field goal with 2:34 left put the Cowboys up by nine, essentially sealing the outcome.
Virginia Tech actually outgained the high-octane Cowboys, 518 yards to 492.
Oklahoma State led 13-7 at the half, benefiting from a pair of big missed opportunities by the Hokies.
Up 7-3, Virginia Tech started its second drive at its own 9. The Hokies kept the ball for 10 minutes, ran 18 plays, got all the way to the Cowboys’ 1 — and came up empty, fumbling the ball away on a handoff.
MILITARY BOWL
NAVY 49, VIRGINIA 7 » Two quarterbacks put on one heck of a show for Navy in the Military Bowl.
Backup Zach Abey scored five touchdowns, starter Malcolm Perry ran for 114 yards and two scores and the Midshipmen rolled to a surprisingly easy 49-7 victory over Virginia on Thursday.
After Virginia’s Joe Reed took the opening kickoff 98 yards for a touchdown, the Midshipmen (7-6) got two TDs apiece from Perry and Abey in taking a 28-7 halftime lead.
Perry left in the third quarter with a foot injury, leaving Abey to score on runs of 5 and 20 yards to make it 42-7 in a game Navy entered as a 1½-point favorite.
“Malcolm did a masterful job. The kid’s phenomenal, man,” Navy coach Ken Niumatalolo said. “He brings another dimension to our offense. To Zach’s credit, he came in there and played really, really well.”
The Midshipmen rolled up a Military Bowl-record 452 yards rushing, including 101 by Chris High and 88 by Abey, who began the season as the starter before losing the job.
“That’s the best we’ve played all year,” Niumatalolo said. “We put it together on both sides of the ball.”
Going back and forth with Perry and Abey might be the way to go in 2018.
“They’re both really good football players. I’ve got to find a way to use them both,” Niumatalolo said. “Just what you saw today is probably what you’re going to see next year.”
After scoring on a 1-yard run with 11:11 remaining, Abey sat down after becoming the fifth player in FBS history to rush for five TDs in a bowl game.
“We did what we were supposed to do,” Perry said. “It all starts up front. The guys were really physical. We played Navy football today.”
Playing in their first bowl since 2011, the Cavaliers (6-7) could not contain Navy’s triple option and had no success moving the ball.
“I think coach Niumatalolo had his team very well prepared,” Virginia coach Bronco Mendenhall said. “Clearly, I didn’t have our team prepared to perform to their true potential, offensively, defensively or special teams.”