BOISE STATE TOPS OREGON, CRISTOBAL
Wilson’s 10 catches lead victory over Oregon in Vegas.
Cedrick Wilson caught 10 passes for 221 yards and a touchdown, Kekaula Kaniho returned an interception 53 yards for a score and No. 25 Boise State beat Oregon 38-28 Saturday in the Las Vegas Bowl.
Brett Rypien threw for 362 yards and two touchdown passes — with two interceptions — to help the Broncos (11-3) break a three-game losing streak against Power 5 opposition. Ryan Wolpin rushed for two touchdowns.
Troy Dye and Tyree Robinson each scored a defensive touchdown, and Justin Herbert was 26 of 36 passing for 233 yards with two touchdowns and two interceptions for the Ducks (7-6) in new head coach Mario Cristobal’s debut.
Boise State forced four turnovers in the first half, taking a 14-0 lead in the first quarter on Wolpin’s 1-yard touchdown run and Rypien’s 26-yard scoring pass to Wilson, who was named the game’s most valuable player. Haden Hoggarth added a 39-yard field goal before an off-balance Herbert heaved a pass toward the sideline that was easily picked off and run back by Kaniho, who also had a strip-sack.
“I thought the defense was dominating today,” Boise State coach Bryan Harsin said. “We spotted them a few points, otherwise the score is completely different. I thought our offense moved the ball up and down the field, and Oregon had a very tough time stopping it.”
Oregon clawed back into it with two defensive touchdowns in the final minute of the first half. Dye recovered a fumble on a botched Statue of Liberty handoff and returned it 86 yards for a touchdown with 37 seconds remaining to get the Ducks on the scoreboard.
A 65-yard reception by Wilson to set the Boise State season record for yards receiving got the Broncos right back in the red zone, but Robinson picked off Rypien’s pass in the end zone and took it back 100 yards on the longest interception return in school history with 7 seconds remaining to make it 24-14.
Boise State outgained Oregon 294-77 in the first half and reached Ducks’ territory on eight of 10 possessions.
After Alec Dhaenens caught a 13-yard touchdown pass from Rypien in the third quarter, the Ducks pulled back within 31-21 on a 24-yard scoring thrown from Herbert to Brendan Schooler with 10:07 remaining.
Oregon had a chance to cut it to a one-possession game but Herbert was sacked near midfield, and Boise State drove 86 yards in 11 plays capped by Wolpin’s second 1-yard touchdown run.
“They never stopped fighting,” Cristobal said. “Get down 24-0 with penalties and turnovers and that kind of stuff … it’s a lot of stuff to overcome. We didn’t.”
New Mexico Bowl: Keion Davis rushed for 141 yards, including a 68-yard score, and Marshall (8-5) had two other big scoring plays while holding on for a 31-28 victory over Colorado State (7-6) in Albuquerque, N.M.
Chase Litton threw for 262 yards and two touchdowns for the Thundering Herd, and Tyre Brady had 165 yards receiving and gave the them the lead in the second quarter with a 76-yard touchdown reception. Tyler King added a 90-yard rushing touchdown.
The Thundering Herd are 11-2 in bowl games — 5-0 under current head coach Doc Holliday.
New Orleans Bowl: Brandon Silvers passed for four touchdowns and ran for another while Troy produced five turnovers as the Trojans (11-2) rolled to a 50-30 victory over North Texas (9-5).
Josh Anderson, filling in for injured starter Jordan Chunn, rushed for 113 yards and two touchdowns to help Troy win for the 21st time in two seasons.
Celebration Bowl: Lamar Raynard scored on a 1-yard sneak with 38 seconds left as North Carolina A&T (12-0) won its second Celebration Bowl in three years with a 21-14 victory over Grambling State (11-2) in Atlanta. N.C. A&T won its fourth Historically Black College and University national title.
Cure Bowl: Conner Manning threw for 276 yards and a touchdown to lead Georgia State (7-5) to a 27-17 victory over Western Kentucky (6-7) in Orlando, Fla., as the Panthers earned their first bowl win in the program’s eight-year football history.