News / Allstate Sugar Bowl

College Football Recap - Oct. 17

Monday, October 17, 2011

COLLEGE FOOTBALL RECAP - 10/17/11 Here's a brief look at the highlights of week seven of the college football season, a week which saw three battles between ranked teams and three undefeated teams suffering their first losses. The rankings used in this recap are the AP Rankings from prior to the games.UPDATED BCS STANDINGS RANKING RUMBLES #6 Oklahoma State 38, #22 Texas 26: Jeremy Smith runs for 140 yards on seven carries, Justin Gilbert tallies his fourth career kickoff return touchdown and the Cowboys beat Texas for the second year in a row, sending the Longhorns to their sixth loss in their last 10 home games. #9 Oregon 41, #18 Arizona State 27: The Ducks play without star running back LaMichael James, then lose standout quarterback Darron Thomas to injury, yet they keep on rolling as backup Kenjon Barner runs for a career-high 171 yards and a score and freshman De'Anthony Thomas scores twice. #21 Texas A&M 55, #20 Baylor 28: Ryan Tannehill throws for 415 yards and a career-high six touchdowns - including four to Ryan Swope - as the Aggies' overcome a school-record 430 passing yards from Baylor's Robert Griffin III. SURPRISE! STILL UNDEFEATED #8 Clemson 56, Maryland 45: Unranked to start the season, Clemson continues to surprise, this time overcoming an 18-point second-half deficit behind the efforts of quarterback Tajh Boyd (four touchdown passes) and star freshman Sammy Watkins, who sets a school record with 345 all-purpose yards, including an 89-yard kickoff return touchdown in the fourth quarter to put the Tigers on top for good. #17 Kansas State 41, Texas Tech 34: Collin Klein runs for three touchdowns and passes for another as the lightly-regarded Wildcats hold the high-powered Texas Tech offense to just two field goals in the second half as they improve to 6-0. UNDEFEATED NO MORE #23 Michigan State 28, #11 Michigan 14: The Spartans defeat Michigan for the fourth year in a row, holding Denard Robinson to just 164 total yards, while Edwin Baker runs for 167 yards and a score. Virginia 24, #12 Georgia Tech 21: The Cavaliers contain the vaunted option offense of the Yellow Jackets, holding them to a total of 296 yards (and just 24 passing yards) while forcing three turnovers, while Perry Jones leads Virginia with 149 rushing yards. Ohio State 17, #16 Illinois 7: The Buckeyes complete just one pass in the entire game, but it's for a touchdown, while forcing three turnovers to send the Illini to their first loss of the season. SEC DEFENSIVE DOMINANCE #1 LSU 38, Tennessee 7: The Tiger offense starts slow, but the defense menaces Volunteer quarterback Matt Simms into a 6-for-20 day with just 128 yards and a pair of interceptions as LSU posts its seventh straight win by double digits. #2 Alabama 52, Ole Miss 7: The Crimson Tide, touted by some as the best defense of all time, holds the Rebels to 144 total yards; but the offense is no slouch either as Trent Richardson registers career-highs with 198 yards and four touchdowns. #15 South Carolina 14, Mississippi State 12: Neither team can get much going on offense, but the Gamecocks steal the victory as Conor Show lofts a four-yard pass to 6-4 star receiver Alshon Jeffery, who outjumps the defenders to secure the game-winning TD with 4:38 to go. #24 Auburn 17, Florida 6: The improving Tiger defense holds the Gators to just 196 yards, but it's the three turnovers which prove to be the difference as Auburn gets a spark from backup quarterback Clint Moseley in the victory. IN THE SAME LEAGUE? #4 Wisconsin 59, Indiana 7: While quarterback Russell Wilson gets all the attention, running back Montee Ball continues to put up huge numbers, running for 142 yards, including scores of five, 35 and 54 yards, while also throwing a touchdown pass to Wilson in a rout of the Hoosiers. #5 Boise State 63, Colorado State 13: After routinely thumping WAC foes in recent years, the Broncos make their debut in the Mountain West, and crush the Rams behind big games from Kellen More (26-of-30, 338 yards, 4 TDs) and Doug Martin (20 rushes for 200 yards and three scores). GETTING THE JOB DONE #3 Oklahoma 47, Kansas 17: The Sooners start slow and Kansas stays close for one half, but Landry Jones directs the offense to 23 unanswered points as Oklahoma remains perfect. #7 Stanford 44, Washington State 14: Andrew Luck throws four touchdown passes, all in the second half, as the Cardinal extends its school-record winning streak to a national-best 14 games. #19 Virginia Tech 38, Wake Forest 17: After falling behind 10-0 in the first quarter, the Hokies find their rhythm behind Logan Thomas, who throws for two touchdowns and runs for two more, and David Wilson, who runs for 136 yards and a touchdown.	VOTE FOR MANNING STARS College football fans, be sure to "like" the official Allstate Sugar Bowl Facebook page (linked above) and vote each week for the Manning Award Player of the Week. The top quarterback performances from each week will be posted giving you the chance to vote for what you think was the best effort each week of the college football season. MANNING AWARD STARS OF THE WEEK While 31 quarterbacks are on the Manning Award Watch List, additional players may be added later in the season and every quarterback in the country remains eligible for the honor. Here's a look at the best performances of the seventh week of the football season: Tajh Boyd, Clemson (26-of-38, 269 yards, 4 TDs, 1 INT) Boyd rallies the Tigers from an 18-point second-half deficit to a 56-45 victory over Virginia, keeping Clemson among the ranks of the undefeated. James Franklin, Missouri (20-of-28, 289 yards, 3 TDs, 2 INT) Franklin, who also rushes for 84 yards and two touchdowns, leads the Tigers to a 52-17 victory over Iowa State. Chandler Harnish, Northern Illinois (14-of-27, 203 yards, 0 TD, 1 INT) Harnish also rushes for a career-high 229 yards on 14 carries (four runs for 29 yards or more) in just three quarters of play to become the 11th player to record a 200/200 game as the Huskies roll to a 51-22 win over Western Michigan. Collin Klein, Kansas State (12-of-18, 146 yards, 1 TD, 0 INT) Klein also rushes for 110 yards and three touchdowns as he leads his team to a comeback victory over Texas Tech, keeping the Wildcats undefeated. J.J. McDermott, SMU (20-of-31, 358 yards, 2 TDs, 1 INT) McDermott remains undefeated as the Mustangs' starter, leading SMU to its fifth straight victory by throwing for 356 yards and two scores against the last remaining FBS defense that had not given up a passing TD this year. Kellen Moore, Boise State (26-of-31, 349 yards, 4 TDs, 0 INT) Moore has yet another outstanding game, piling up big numbers in two and a half quarters of action as he leads the Broncos to a thorough 63-13 beating of Colorado State in their Mountain West Conference debut. Aaron Murray, Georgia (22-of-38, 326 yards, 3 TDs, 1 INT) Murray throws for a career-high 326 yards and three TDs, including a career-best 75-yarder in the fourth quarter which proves to be the game-winner, as the Bulldogs hold off Vanderbilt, 33-28, for their fifth straight victory. Ryan Tannehill, Texas A&M (25-of-37, 415 yards, 6 TDs, 1 INT) Tannehill, who also rushes for 55 yards, holds off a third-quarter Baylor rally, registers his career-high with six touchdown passes, including a pair of 64-yard connections, as the Aggies roll over No. 20 Baylor. TOP UPCOMING GAMES (current BCS standings) #20 Auburn at #1 LSU: The Tiger showdown pits the defending national champion against a team hoping to go all the way to the national championship. #6 Wisconsin at #16 Michigan State: The Spartans' reward for upending previously undefeated Michigan? An even tougher challenge as undefeated top-five Wisconsin comes to town. North Carolina at #7 Clemson: Every game is huge for Clemson which hopes to remain undefeated as the Tar Heels have had a solid start to their season after a chaotic offseason. #25 Washington at #8 Stanford: The Cardinal has been carving through its opponents this season, but Washington is fast-improving behind under-the-radar quarterback Keith Price. Texas Tech at #3 Oklahoma: The Sooners didn't dominate Kansas like many expected and Texas Tech with quarterback Seth Doege will present much more of a challenge. USC at Notre Dame: While neither school is ranked, this rivalry game always seem to bring out the best in both teams; the Irish are trying to build their resumé for an improved bowl bid, while USC is treating every big game as a bowl game as they are ineligible for postseason play. Bowl Predictions Allstate Sugar Bowl, January 3, 2012 ESPN.com (Schlabach): LSU vs. Boise State ESPN.com (Edwards): LSU vs. Boise State (changed Alabama to LSU) CBSSports.com (Palm): LSU vs. Boise State CBSSports.com (McMurphy): Alabama vs. Notre Dame (updates Tuesday) College Football News: LSU vs. Boise State SI.com (Mandel): LSU vs. Boise State Rivals.com: LSU vs. Oklahoma State Sporting News: Alabama vs. Boise State Allstate BCS National Championship, January 9, 2012 ESPN.com (Schlabach): Alabama vs. Oklahoma ESPN.com (Edwards): Alabama vs. Oklahoma (changed LSU to Alabama) CBSSports.com (Palm): Alabama vs. Oklahoma CBSSports.com (McMurphy): LSU vs. Oklahoma (updates Tuesday) College Football News: Alabama vs. Oklahoma SI.com (Mandel): Alabama vs. Oklahoma Rivals.com: Alabama vs. Wisconsin Sporting News: LSU vs. Oklahoma YOUTUBE PICK OF THE WEEK Each week, the Allstate Sugar Bowl will make its YouTube Pick of the Week, top highlights, impressive off-field performances and great games, such as this amazing effort from Saturday by Clemson's sensational true freshman Sammy Watkins, who was key in their 18-point comeback victory against Maryland.