Win over Texas Tech keeps Baylor’s Big 12 hopes alive

Blake Shapen threw for 254 yards and two touch- downs in his first start for eighth-ranked Baylor, and the Bears held on for a 27-24 win over Texas Tech on Saturday that kept alive their hopes of making the Big 12 championship game for the sec- ond time in three seasons.

Abram Smith ran for 117 yards and a touchdown for the Bears (10-2, 7-2 Big 12), who had to wait for the outcome of Saturday night’s game between No. 7 Okla- homa State and No. 10 Okla- homa. The Cowboys were already locked into their first Big 12 title game, and a win over the Sooners in Bedlam would put Baylor in next Saturday’s game with them.

Shapen hit Trestan Ebner in stride down near the 25 for a 61-yard catch-and-run score on the game’s opening drive that put Baylor ahead to stay. Shapen had a decisive 9-yard TD pass to tight end Ben Sims with 7 minutes left to immediately respond to a Tech score.

The Red Raiders (6-6, 3-6) still had one more chance but a 53-yard field goal attempt by Jonathan Garibay went wide left on the final play.

(At) No. 11 Oregon 38, Oregon State 29: Anthony Brown Jr. threw for 275 yards and two touchdowns while running for another score, and No. 11 Oregon beat Oregon State 38-29 Saturday to win the Pac-12 North Divi- sion and claim a spot in the league’s championship game.

The Ducks (10-2, 7-2) will face No. 19 Utah for the con- ference championship in Las Vegas on Friday.

Oregon was coming off a 38-7 loss last Saturday against the Utes, which dropped them from No. 3 in the College Football Playoff rankings to No. 11 and out of con- tention for a national title.

(At) No. 12 Michigan

State 30, Penn State 27: Payton Thorne threw two touchdown passes and ran for another to lead No. 12 Michigan State to a 30-27 victory over Penn State on Saturday.

Kennett Walker III rushed for 138 yards and a touch- down on 30 carries as the Spartans (10-2, 7-2 Big Ten) bounced back from last week’s 56-7 loss to Ohio State. Michigan State fin- ished undefeated at home for the first time since 2015.

Sean Clifford threw three touchdown passes, two to Jahan Dotson, for the Nittany Lions (7-5, 4-5). Penn State closed out the regular season with five losses in its past seven games.

(At) Minnesota 23, No. 14 Wisconsin 13: Tanner Morgan overcame an intercep- tion that was returned for a touchdown, leading Minne- sota on three scoring drives after halftime to surge past Wisconsin 23-13, take back Paul Bunyan’s Axe and give Iowa the Big Ten West Division title.

The Gophers (8-4, 6-3) delivered the kind of inspired and stifling performance by their defense that the Badgers (8-4, 6-3) were used to demoralizing their opponents with.

No. 19 Houston 45, (at) UConn 17: Clayton Tune threw for 301 yards and four touchdowns as No. 19 Hous- ton tuned up for next week’s American Athletic Conference championship game with a win over UConn (1-11).

Nathaniel Dell caught two touchdowns and Jake Herslow and Jeremy Singleton each topped 100 receiving yards to go with a TD apiece for Houston (11-1, 8-0 AAC), which plays at No. 4 Cincinnati for the AAC title next Saturday.

(At) North Texas 45, No. 22 UTSA 23: UTSA’s unde- feated season ended in a blowout as North Texas running backs DeAndre Torrey and Ikaika Ragsdale combined for five touchdowns in a rout of the Roadrunners.

Quarterback Frank Harris had two of UTSA’s three lost fumbles among six overall before sitting the second half at UNT’s rain-soaked Apogee Stadium, a 10-year-old facility where a Top 25 team had never played.

UTSA (11-1, 7-1 Conference USA), which never started with more than five consecutive wins in the program’s first nine seasons, is still hosting the conference championship game Friday night against either Western Kentucky or Marshall.

The Roadrunners, ranked 10th nationally in rushing defense, had given up six touchdowns on the ground all season. The Mean Green (6-6, 5-3) matched that late in the third quarter of their fifth consecutive victory that followed a six-game losing streak as UNT earned bowl eligibility.

Late Friday No. 4 Cincinnati 35, (at) East Carolina 13:

Cincinnati looked comfortable playing its first game in playoff position.

The Bearcats handled business in their final road game of the season, beating East Carolina in a quest to maintain a spot among the top four in the College Football Playoff rankings.

Desmond Ridder threw two touchdown passes, and Cincinnati (12-0, 8-0 American Athletic Conference) completed a perfect regular season. The Bearcats are trying to become the first team outside of a Power Five conference to compete in the four-team CFP.

(At) No. 19 Utah 28, Colorado 13: Cameron Rising threw three touchdown passes, Tavion Thomas ran for 142 yards and a score, and Utah beat the Buffaloes.