Mims leads Fresno State to victory in New Mexico Bowl
Jordan Mims ran for 165 yards and two touchdown and caught five passes for 71 yards and another score to help Fresno State beat UTEP 31-24 on Saturday in the New Mexico Bowl.
Fresno State (10-3) won the bowl game for the first time in three tries.
Quarterback Jake Haener (Monte Vista High) was 26 of 41 for 286 yards and a touchdown. His status had been somewhat in doubt when he briefly entered the transfer portal after coach Kalen DeBoer took the job at Washington.
Mims’ 22-yard catch and run late in third quarter gave the Bulldogs a 26-17 lead. But it was setting the tone with the ground game that was important, he said.
“The offensive line, we preached running the ball hard all this week,” Mims said. “Even though they have a good defense, it’s all about us and what we do and I think we showed that (Saturday) by running the ball.”
Taking advantage of Mims was a key part of the game plan, said Bulldogs interim head coach Lee Marks.
“We knew we were going to be able to rely on Jordan,” he said. “To be honest, he’s such a good player. One cut, get vertical, just downhill. He told me coach, ’I’m not going to get tired. And he did not. That’s tremendous for him.”
The Miners (7-6) pulled to 26-24 early in the fourth quarter on Calvin Brownholtz’s 51-yard touchdown pass to Trent Thompson.
But Fresno State got a field goal, followed by a UTEP safety, before the Bulldogs ran out the clock.
UTEP’s Gavin Hardison threw for 252 yards and a touchdown. But one play after completing a 27-yard pass on fourth and five, Hardison fumbled at the end of a 10-yard scramble and the Miners never saw the ball again.
INDEPENDENCE BOWL: UAB 31, BYU 28>> Dylan Hopkins broke the Independence Bowl record for completion percentage, connecting on 19 of 23 passes for 189 yards and three touchdowns in UAB’s victory over No. 12 BYU.
With UAB (9-4) facing fourth-and-7 with six minutes remaining, coach Bill Clark passed on a field-goal attempt, and Hopkins threw a 14-yard, go-ahead touchdown pass to Trea Shropshire, the only player from Louisiana on either roster.
BYU (10-3) appeared to be in good position to at least tie it game, but Samson Nacua fumbled after making a catch inside UAB’s 25 with 3:36 remaining.
DeWayne McBride ran for 183 yards and a score on 28 carries for UAB.
BYU and running back Tyler Allgeier fought back from a 14-point deficit, tying it twice and eventually taking the lead in the fourth quarter. Allgeier ran for 192 yards and had three touchdowns.
BOCA RATON BOWL: W. KENTUCKY 59, APPALACHIAN STATE 38 >> Bailey Zappe capped his record-setting season by passing for 422 yards and six touchdowns and Western Kentucky handed Appalachian State its first bowl loss, beating the Mountaineers in the Boca Raton Bowl.
Zappe finished the season with 5,977 yards and 62 touchdowns for the Hilltoppers (9-5). He topped the previous marks of 5,833 yards set by Texas Tech’s B.J. Symons in 2003 and 60 touchdowns set by LSU’s Joe Burrow in the Tigers’ run to the national championship in the 2019 season.
Chase Brice passed for 317 yards and four touchdowns for Appalachian State (10-4) before leaving in the fourth quarter with a right leg injury. It was the first loss in seven bowl games for the Mountaineers.
CELEBRATION BOWL: SOUTH CAROLINA STATE 31, JACKSON STATE 10 >> Cory Fields threw for four touchdowns, three to Shaquan Davis, to lead South Carolina State past Jackson State in the Celebration Bowl in a game considered to be the national championship of historically Black colleges and universities.
Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference champion South Carolina State (7-5) topped the HBCUs for the first time since 2009. Southwestern Athletic Conference winner Jackson State (11-2) hasn’t won the title since 1996. LENDINGTREE BOWL: LIBERTY56,EASTERNMICHIGAN 20 >> Malik Willis passed for 231 yards and accounted for five touchdowns as Liberty rolled past Eastern Michigan. Willis, a potential NFL first-round pick, completed 13 of 24 passes, with touchdowns of 54 yards to DJ Stubbs, 20 yards to Johnny Huntley and 3 yards to Demario Douglas. Willis also ran for 58 yards, with touchdowns of 2 and 35 yards.
The Flames (8-5) improved to 3-0 in bowls, tying Appalachian State for the best postseason start by an FBS team.
IOWA STATE RB HALL ENTERING NFL DRAFT >> Iowa State two-time All-American running back Breece Hall announced that he is entering the NFL draft and skipping the school’s Cheez-It Bowl contest against Clemson. Hall rushed for 3,941 yards and a school-record 50 touchdowns in three seasons with the Cyclones. He also set a school mark with 56 total touchdowns and set an NCAA record by scoring at least one rushing TD in 24 straight games.
Hall rushed for 1,472 yards and 20 touchdowns this season. He added 36 receptions for 302 yards and three scores and was named Big 12 Offensive Player of the Year for the second straight season. AUBURN HIRES SEAHAWKS’ DAVIS AS OFFENSIVE COORDINATOR >> Auburn has hired Seattle Seahawks quarterbacks coach Austin Davis as offensive coordinator. Coach Bryan Harsin announced the hiring of Davis to run the offense and coach quarterbacks. Harsin fired Mike Bobo from those positions following a 6-6 record in their first regular season at Auburn. The team faces Houston in the Birmingham Bowl on Dec. 28.
Davis played in the NFL for St. Louis, Cleveland, Denver, Seattle and Tennessee. He started in coaching as an offensive assistant with the Seahawks in February 2019 and was elevated to quarterbacks coach in 2020, working with eight-time Pro Bowler Russell Wilson.