WISCONSIN LOSES BY
ANOTHER HAIL MARY
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Devin Smith's (15) game-winning catch gave Ohio State a
33-29 win over Wisconsin. (Photo by Kirk Irwin/Getty Images) |
For the second week in a row, the Wisconsin Badgers were
doomed by a last-minute Hail Mary pass on the road.
This time, it was the Ohio State duo of Braxton Miller and
Devin Smith that did the Badgers in en route to a 33-29 win for the Buckeyes.
“(This is) real tough,” Wisconsin senior Nick Toon said.
“We’ve handed them the game two weeks in a row at the end of the game. You
can’t do that.”
Thanks to both losses, the Badgers—who were No. 6 in the
initial BCS standings two weeks ago—are now 2 ½ games behind Penn State in the
Big Ten Leaders division.
Despite the loss, Russell Wilson once again turned in a good
game to keep his Heisman hopes alive. The senior quarterback threw for 253
yards with three touchdowns and no interceptions. Two of those passing
touchdowns came in the fourth quarter to bring Wisconsin back from a 26-14
deficit.
However, it would be his last pass that would fall
harmlessly onto the Ohio Stadium turf that would give the Buckeyes a tough,
gritty win much like their season this year.
“This is what Ohio State’s all about,” Ohio State head coach
Luke Fickell said.
“We don’t ever look at ourselves as underdogs. This is a huge win, a signature
win. This is for this team, this is for this program. This is what we expect.”
CASE’S NINE-PACK OF
TD’S SETS ANOTHER CAREER RECORD
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Case Keenum now has 3219 passing yards and
32 touchdowns this season. (Photo by AP) |
This Case Keenum kid is really trying to rewrite all of the
records isn’t he?
One week after setting the career record for total offense,
the Houston quarterback threw nine touchdowns in its 73-34 drubbing of in-city
rival Rice.
“It was a blast,” Keenum said. “That was
probably the most fun I’ve ever had playing football.”
The sixth-year senior surely had a field day against the
Owls, throwing for 534 yards on 24-of-37 passing. Keenum is now 267 passing
yards away from another record—Timmy Chang’s Football Bowl Subdivision
(formerly Division I-A) record of 17,072 passing yards.
“Those are video-game numbers, something we couldn’t get
stopped,” Rice senior linebacker Justin Allen said.
Keenum’s favorite target in the game was senior Patrick
Edwards, who had a huge night catching the ball. He caught seven passes for 318
yards and five touchdowns.
The Cougars go to 8-0 and move up to No. 13 in the BCS.
JOEPA BREAKS COACH
ROB’S RECORD
As had been the case for most of the season, Penn State’s 10-7
win over Illinois was a gritty one. However, this one was much special.
With the win, longtime Nittany Lions coach Joe Paterno
recorded his Division I-leading 409th victory as head coach—passing a mark held by
Grambling State coaching legend Eddie Robinson.
“It really is something I’ve [been] very proud of, to be
associated with Eddie Robinson,” Paterno said.
“Something like this means a lot to me, an awful lot. But there’s a lot of
other people I’ve got to thank.”
Snowy conditions made things difficult and both teams were
held scoreless at halftime.
Finally with 3:32 left in the third quarter Nathan
Scheelhaase hit Spencer Harris from 10 yards out to break the deadlock.
In regular Nittany Lion fashion though, Penn State grinded
its way back into the game.
After Anthony Fera’s 30-yard field goal with seven minutes
left in the game, Silas Redd would score the game-winning touchdown to put the
Nittany Lions ahead.
The Fighting Illini had one more shot to tie the game, but
Derek Dimke had his 42-yard field goal try hit the upright giving Penn State
the win.
“I guess it’s just something this team has inside of them,
needing to make a play, needing to get the job done, to do what it takes to get
another win,” Penn State junior quarterback Matt McGloin said.
Paterno was honored with a plaque after the game for his
latest achievement.
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Joe Paterno (right) was given a plaque commemorating his Division I
record setting victory. (Photo by Justin K. Allen/Getty Images) |
“Eddie Robinson and Jake Gaither of Florida A&M were the
two guys who opened the doors for African American men when there was no place
for them to play,” Paterno said.
“For me, coming from Brooklyn, being the grandson of an immigrant, it means a
lot.”
The Nittany Lions now sit at 8-1 this season and hold an
inside track to the inaugural Big Ten Championship game on Dec. 3 in Indianapolis.
CARDINAL NEED THREE
OT’s TO WIN THIRD STRAIGHT IN COLISEUM
Much like their previous two trips to Los Angeles, the
Stanford Cardinal recorded a memorable win against the USC Trojans. This one
just needed three overtimes to seal the deal.
“I might need a couple of minutes to digest it, but it’s
definitely up there,” Stanford junior quarterback Andrew Luck said. “More
than anything, I’m just happy to get a win.”
Despite seeing its streak of 25-point blowouts end at 10,
Stanford won three straight against the Trojans at the Los Angeles Memorial
Coliseum for the first time since the mid-1930s according to College
Football Reference.
USC gave the Cardinal a tough match all throughout the game,
even taking a 20-10 lead 4:30 seconds into the third quarter. Stanford would
then regain the lead nine minutes later, heading into the fourth quarter with a
24-20 lead.
As both teams were tied at 27 with 3:08 left, Luck threw a
near-costly interception that sophomore cornerback Nickell Robley took back for
a score. However, the Heisman hopeful shook off that setback and put together a
10-play, 76-yard drive to force a 34-34 tie capped off by a Stepfan Taylor
two-yard plunge.
“He [Luck] was so mad at himself,” Stanford head coach David
Shaw said. “He wasn’t going to let that play lose the
game for us.”
The Trojans had one last chance to win it in regulation, but
Robert Woods could not get to the sidelines in time (despite USC having two
timeouts left) setting up overtime.
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Stanford players celebrate as Matt Barkley (7) disappointingly
looks on. (Photo by Hans Gutknecht/Daily News) |
With both teams matching touchdowns in both overtimes, Taylor’s
five-yard run put the Cardinal ahead 56-48 with USC having chance to respond in
the third overtime. It would never come, as a Curtis McNeal fumble was picked
up by Stanford to end the game.
“No excuse, I just fumbled,” McNeal said.
Stanford has Oregon State, before a showdown with Oregon on
Nov. 12 that could determine the Pac-12 North.
MY WEEK 3 BCS
RANKINGS
LSU, Alabama, Oklahoma St., Stanford, Boise St., Oklahoma, Oregon,
Arkansas, Nebraska, South Carolina
WEEK 9 PREDICTIONS
Michigan St. 31, Nebraska 27
Oklahoma 35, Kansas
St. 25
Stanford 45, USC 21
WEEK: 2-1 (.667)
SEASON: 22-8 (.733)
PREDICTIONS FOR
WEEK 10
No. 7 Arkansas 27, No. 9 South Carolina 20
No. 3 Oklahoma St. 34, No. 14 Kansas St. 30
No. 1 LSU 27, No. 2 Alabama 24
