Bearkats move on, outlast Gamecocks

SAM HOUSTON STATE 37, JACKSONVILLE STATE 26

JACKSONVILLE, Ala. — Jared Johnson threw three touchdown passes and ran for another to lead Sam Houston State to a 37-26 victory over Jacksonville State in a second-round FCS playoff game Saturday.

Johnson connected on a 49-yard score with LaDarius Brown with 8:03 left in the third quarter for a 30-26 lead. Jalen Overstreet added an insurance score with a 33-yard run four minutes later for the Southland Conference co-champions.

Johnson completed 13 of 19 passes for 161 yards, also throwing another touchdown pass to Brown plus one to Keshawn Hill. Johnson also rushed for 85 yards and had a 10-yard scoring run for the Bearkats (10-4).

VILLANOVA 29, LIBERTY 22

PHILADELPHIA — John Robertson scored from a yard out with 1:12 left in the game to lift No. 6 seed Villanova over Liberty.

The Wildcats (11-2) trailed 19-14 at halftime and were down 22-14 after John Lunsford booted a 21-yard field goal for Liberty (9-5).

Robertson brought Villanova back, finding Kevin Gulyas for a 70-yard catch and run for a touchdown, then scrambled into the end zone for the two-point conversion that knotted the score at 22-22 early in the fourth quarter.

NEW HAMPSHIRE 44, FORDHAM 19

DURHAM, N.H. — Nico Steriti had his first 100-yard game of the season and scored a career-best four touchdowns as No. 1 seed New Hampshire rolled over Fordham.

The Wildcats ( 11- 1) face eighth-seeded Chattanooga next weekend.

Jimmy Owens scored a 51-yard touchdown on New Hampshire’s first snap of the game, and quarterback Sean Goldrich, who threw for 240 yards, added an 8-yard run to make it 14-0 after the first quarter.

CHATTANOOGA 34, INDIANA STATE 14

CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. — Jacob Huesman accounted for three touchdowns and Chattanooga forced three turnovers to beat Indiana State.

Chattanooga (10-3), playing in its first playoff since 1984, moves on to face top-seeded New Hampshire in the quarterfinals next weekend.

COASTAL CAROLINA 36, RICHMOND 15

CONWAY, S.C. — Coastal Carolina scored the first 21 points of the game while its defense clamped down on Richmond in a second round playoff game.

Alex Ross completed 22 of 41 passes for 171 yards and a 13-yard scoring toss to Craig Weick for the seventh-seeded Chanticleers (12-1). De’Angelo Henderson rushed for 134 yards and a 50-yard touchdown run.

ILLINOIS STATE 41, NORTHERN IOWA 21

NORMAL, Ill. — Tre Roberson threw for 382 yards and four touchdowns and Marshaun Coprich become Illinois State’s single-season rushing leader with his 12th consecutive 100-yard game to lead the Redbirds over Northern Iowa.

The Panthers (9-5) won the first meeting of these Missouri Valley Conference rivals 44-28 to start a five-game winning streak to make the FCS playoffs but fell behind 24-0 at halftime. The Redbirds (11-1) extended their school-record home winning streak to 13.

NORTH DAKOTA STATE 27, SOUTH DAKOTA STATE 24

FARGO, N.D. — Carson Wentz found RJ Urzendowski in the corner of the end zone inside the final minute for the winning score, and Tre Dempsey sealed North Dakota State’s victory over upset-minded South Dakota State with an interception in the last 43 seconds.

The second-ranked Bison (12-1) advance the quarterfinals for the fifth consecutive year, hosting No. 7 seed Coastal Carolina (12-1) next weekend.

EASTERN WASHINGTON 37, MONTANA 20

CHENEY, Wash. — Vernon Adams Jr. threw for two touchdowns, going over 10,000 yards for his career, and ran for another score, and fourth-seeded Eastern Washington turned back Big Sky Conference rival Montana.

Quincy Forte added 128 yards rushing and a touchdown for the Eagles (11-2).