NC Central beats JSU in Sanders’ farewell
ATLANTA >> Quarterback Davius Richard scored on a 1-yard plunge in overtime and North Carolina Central beat Jackson State 4134 on Saturday in the Celebration Bowl to spoil coach Deion Sanders’ bid for an undefeated season in his final game with the Tigers.
The Eagles made a goalline stand on Jackson State’s first overtime possession to preserve the victory. Tight end Hayden Hagler’s drop on third down from the 1 set up an incompletion by Jackson State quarterback Shedeur Sanders to end the game regarded as the championship of teams from historically Black college and universities.
Richard ran for 97 yards and two touchdowns.
Jackson State (12-1) was denied its bid for the first undefeated season in school history. Coach Deion Sanders is taking over as coach at Colorado.
Las Vegas Bowl NO. 17 OREGON STATE 30, FLORIDA 3 >>
Deshaun Fenwick came off the bench to rush for 107 yards and Oregon State nearly dealt Florida a rare shutout, winning the Las Vegas Bowl.
The Beavers (10-3) reached 10 victories for the third time program history and the first time in 16 years. They first accomplished the feat in 2000, when coach Jonathan Smith was the quarterback. Oregon State won seven of its final eight games.
After the Beavers took control early in the third quarter by going up 170, the only real question was whether Florida (6-7) would keep its NCAA-record scoring streak intact. The Gators last were shut out in 1988, a span of 436 games and 57 games longer than any other team.
Fenway Bowl LOUISVILLE 24, CINCINNATI 7 >>
Jawhar Jordan ran for 115 yards, breaking free for two long touchdowns, and
Louisville beat Cincinnati 24-7 oin the twice-delayed first edition of the Fenway Bowl at the chilly home of the Boston Red Sox.
With a gridiron laid out over the diamond and “Fenway Park” in the end zones using the baseball team’s traditional font, Jordan scored from 49 yards out at the end of the first quarter and 40 at the end of the second to help clinch the Keg of Nails for Louisville (8-5).
LendingTree Bowl
SOUTHERN MISS 38, RICE 24 >> Frank Gore Jr. ran for an NCAA bowl-record 329 yards and accounted for three touchdowns to help Southern Miss hold off Rice in the LendingTree Bowl.
Gore, the son of the former NFL star, had a 64yard scoring run in the second quarter, threw an 18-yard touchdown pass in the third and ran for 55 yards for another score in the fourth. He also ran 59 yards to set up the goahead touchdown for the Golden Eagles (7-6).
LA Bowl FRESNO STATE 29, WASHINGTON STATE 6 >>
Jordan Mims rushed for a career-high 205 yards and two scores, Jake Haener threw two TD passes and Fresno State beat Washington State in the LA Bowl to complete the biggest in-season turnaround in Football Bowl Subdivision history.
Fresno State — which won the Mountain West Conference title — is the first team to get to 10 wins after dropping four of the first five. The Bulldogs (104) were 1-4 in early October before winning their final nine games.
New Mexico Bowl
BYU 24, SMU 23 >> Cornerback Jakon Robinson stopped SMU quarterback Tanner Mordecai on a 2-point conversion try with eight seconds left in the game, and BYU beat the Mustangs in the New Mexico Bowl.