Dixon sets record at Louisiana Tech
RUSTON, La. — Lots of points. Lots of penalties. Louisiana Tech and Texas-San Antonio played for the first time and it already had the feel of a longtime rivalry.
Colby Cameron passed for 348 yards and Kenneth Dixon (Strong) scored three touchdowns as No. 25 Louisiana Tech pulled away from Texas-San Antonio in the fourth quarter in a 51-27 victory Saturday.
The Bulldogs (8-1, 3-0 Western Athletic Conference) converted a fake field goal into a touchdown midway through the fourth quarter to put away the visitors. Louisiana Tech won a record ninth consecutive WAC game on homecoming, and the Bulldogs appear headed for a second consecutive week ranked in the BCS Top 25.
Texas-San Antonio (5-4, 1-3 WAC) dropped its fourth consecutive game after opening the season 5-0. Playing with just six seniors, it was the Roadrunners’ first game against a BCS ranked foe.
The game featured 13 personal foul penalties, including two on Louisiana Tech Coach Sonny Dykes in the third quarter after he argued the ejection of offensive lineman Oscar Johnson.
“I’m not sure what was going on with all the penalties or why,” Dykes said. “That’s not our team. I wasn’t real fired up about some of the stuff happening out there. [When he got flagged] I was trying to find out what Oscar Johnson was ejected for and went out on the field. I had to let (the officials) come to me.”
Officials called 28 penalties for 288 yards between the two clubs.
Cameron completed 30 of 39 and had touchdown passes to Quinton Patton, Myles White and R.P. Stuart.
Cameron’s seventh 300yard game of his career tied him with former NFL great Terry Bradshaw for fourth all-time in Ruston.
“I had no clue about the records,” Cameron said. “It’s pretty unbelievable to be mentioned in the same category as Terry Bradshaw. It’s pretty cool.”
Dixon now holds the Louisiana Tech single-season record for most touchdowns with 20. Dixon is just one score shy of tying Marshall Faulk’s NCAA record for freshmen.
Playing in front of 23,645 under steamy conditions in Joe Aillet Stadium, the Bulldogs (8-1, 3-0 WAC) converted a fake field goal into a touchdown midway through the fourth quarter to put away the visitors.
Eric Sosa completed 23 of 41 throws for 314 yards and touchdown passes to Cole Hubble (twice), Earon Holmes and Cole Hicks for Texas-San Antonio.
In other WAC games, David Fales threw four touchdowns to help San Jose State (7-2, 3-1) win 42-13 against host Idaho (1-8, 1-3). Fales was 27 of 39 for 328 yards. ... Chuckie Keeton threw four touchdown passes and ran for another as host Utah State (8-2, 4-0) only needed the first half to put away Texas State (3-5, 1-2) in a 38-7 victory.
BIG TEN Huskers win late again
EAST LANSING, Mich. — Taylor Martinez lofted a pass up the right sideline toward Kenny Bell. Darqueze Dennard was back in coverage, the ball fell incomplete — and a flag was thrown for pass interference.
“The only thing I can tell you is he was holding my left arm down,” Bell said. “Was I expecting a flag? No, just because we don’t get too many flags that often. I mean, Big Ten is tough on the perimeter as far as how physical it gets, and they’re pretty lenient, so no, I wasn’t expecting it.”
Nebraska (7-2, 4-1) took advantage of that Michigan State penalty, beating the Spartans 28-24 when Martinez threw a 5-yard touchdown pass to Jamal Turner with six seconds left Saturday night. The call on Dennard gave the 20th-ranked Cornhuskers first down at the 5 with 17 seconds left — they would have had to settle for a tying field goal attempt if the incompletion had stood.
It was the third time this season in conference play that Nebraska rallied from 10-plus points down in the second half.
In other Big Ten games, Devin Gardner replaced Denard Robinson in a surprise quarterback switch by Michigan (6-3, 4-1) right before kickoff, throwing two touchdown passes and running for another score to lead the Wolverines to a 35-13 victory at Minnesota (5-4, 1-4). ... Carlos Hyde rushed for 137 yards and three touchdowns and Braxton Miller passed for two scores and ran for another to lead host Ohio State (10-0, 6-0) to a 52-22 victory over Illinois (2-7, 0-5). ... Matt McGloin passed for 321 yards and two touchdowns to help Penn State (6-3, 4-1) win 34-9 over host Purdue (3-6, 0-5). ... Cameron Coffman threw for 315 yards on 21 of 33 passing and 3 touchdowns to lead host Indiana (4-5, 2-3) to a 24-21 victory over Iowa (4-5, 2-3).
MID-AMERICAN
Kent State wins again
KENT, Ohio — Trayion Durham ran for 107 yards and three touchdowns as Kent State extended its longest winning streak in 72 years to seven games by beating rival Akron 35-24 Saturday.
Kent State, 5-0 in the East Division of the Mid-American Conference, last won seven in a row in 1940.
Dri Archer gained 126 yards, including a 30-yard touchdown run, as the Golden Flashes rushed for 261 yards and five touchdowns overall to move to 8-1. That includes a 35-23 upset at then-No. 15 Rutgers a week ago.
Dalton Williams completed 30 of 41 passes for 312 yards for Akron, (1-9, 0-6) in Coach Terry Bowden’s first season. Williams went 12 for 13, including touchdown passes of 13 and 21 yards to Jerrod Dillard in the first quarter as the Zips led 14-0.
In other Mid-American games, Jordan Lynch threw for two touchdowns and ran for another, Matt McIntosh threw for one and ran for two and host Northern Illinois (9-1, 6-0) coasted to a 63-0 victory over Massachusetts (0-9, 0-5). Lynch was 15 of 19 for 191 yards. He also had 15 carries for 157 yards, averaging 10.5 yards per carry. ... Tyler Van Tubbergen threw for 362 yards and four touchdowns, and Western Michigan (4-6, 2-4) scored 28 points in the fourth quarter to rally to a 42-31 victory over host Central Michigan (3-6, 1-4). ... Patrick Clarke kicked a 47yard field goal as time expired to propel host Buffalo (2-7, 1-4) to a 27-24 victory over Miami (Ohio) (4-5, 3-2).