Kendrick Raphael ran in from 2 yards with 43 seconds left as California ended SMU’s hopes of making its second consecutive Atlantic Coast Conference championship game, beating the 21st-ranked Mustangs 38-35 Saturday night in Berkeley.
The Mustangs (8-4, 6-2 ACC) had clawed their way back into the game and took the lead when T.J. Harden scored from 1 yard with 2:22 remaining.
Cal (7-5, 4-4) responded immediately as quarterback Jaron-Keawe Sagapolutele marched the Bears 75 yards in seven plays, capped by Raphael’s 12th rushing touchdown of the season. SMU missed a late 52-yard field goal.
MORE ACC
Duke 49, Wake Forest 32: Darian Mensah reached a record-setting passing touchdown total for Duke, and the host Blue Devils (7-5, 6-2) then reached next week’s ACC title game when SMU lost at California.
Anderson Castle and Nate Sheppard each had two touchdown runs for the Blue Devils, who defeated Wake Forest for the fourth year in a row. Robby Ashford threw for two touchdowns and 342 yards and ran for a TD and a two-point conversion for the Demon Deacons (8-4, 4-4).
No. 13 Miami 38, No. 24 Pittsburgh 7: Carson Beck passed for 267 yards and three touchdowns in a road victory. Eventually, fans will see whether they did enough to impress the voters for the College Football Playoff.
Miami finished the regular season 10-2, 6-2 in the ACC, and won its last four games by an average of 26 points. Pitt (8-4, 6-2) was overwhelmed by the deeper and more talented Hurricanes.
Freshman Mason Heintschel, whose promotion to starting quarterback in early October coincided with the start of Pitt’s six-game ACC winning streak, was sacked on the game’s first play, and the Hurricanes never let up. He shook off a leg injury late in the first half to return for the second but completed just 22 of 32 for 199 yards with a touchdown and an interception.
Miami wide receiver Malachi Toney scores in front of Pitt linebacker Kyle Louis during the first half Saturday during the Hurricanes’ victory in Pittsburgh. MATT FREED/AP
Clemson 28, South Carolina 14: Cade Klubnik threw for 268 yards and ran for a touchdown, cornerback Ricardo Jones had two interceptions including one he ran back for a score, and Clemson (7-5) closed a disappointing regular season with its fourth straight win.
The visiting Tigers also got a touchdown run from Adam Randall, two field goals from Nolan Hauser and saw their defense hold strong as the Gamecocks tried to rally.
South Carolina finished 4-8, its most defeats since finishing the 2020 COVID-19-impacted season 2-8. Quarterback LaNorris Sellers, expected to be a high-round NFL draft pick, finished with a season-high 381 yards and two touchdowns. But his two interceptions cost his team when it mattered most.
NC State 42, North Carolina 19: Short-yardage quarterback Will Wilson ran for four touchdowns to help the Wolfpack (7-5, 4-4 ACC) beat the rival Tar Heels in Raleigh.
Starting QB C.J. Bailey threw two scoring passes as the Wolfpack beat UNC (4-8, 2-6) for the fifth straight year. This one ended the first college season for 73-year-old NFL icon Bill Belichick.
Florida 40, Florida State 21: Jadan Baugh ran for a career-high 266 yards — the second-most in school history — and two touchdowns as the Gators (4-8) denied the Seminoles (5-7) bowl eligibility.
The Gators ended a four-game losing streak and won for the first time since firing coach Billy Napier in mid-October. Thomas Castellanos accounted for three touchdowns for FSU.
Louisville 41, Kentucky 0: Freshmen Braxton Jennings and Shaun Boykins Jr. both ran for more than 100 yards, helping Louisville overcome significant injuries and still rout Kentucky.
Miller Moss threw for 182 yards and accounted for four touchdowns, three in the air, as the host Cardinals (8-4) snapped a three-game losing streak. Cutter Boley completed just 14 of his 27 passes for 107 yards and two interceptions as Kentucky (5-7) ended its season with two straight losses.
Boston College 34, Syracuse 12: Turbo Richard ran for two second-half touchdowns, Jordan McDonald added two more, and BC scored 31 unanswered points to snap a 10-game losing streak.
Boston College (2-10, 1-7 ACC) hasn’t won since its opening 66-10 victory over FCS Fordham. Syracuse (3-9, 1-7) ended its season with eight consecutive losses.
STATE
Kennesaw State 48, Liberty 42, 2 OTs: Amari Odom threw a 25-yard touchdown pass to Christian Moss on the first play of the second overtime, then Kennesaw State’s defense stopped the Flames on downs for a victory in Lynchburg.
Ethan Vasko, the former Oscar Smith star who was Liberty’s regular starting quarterback, was not in uniform. Coach Jamey Chadwell said after the game that Vasko will need surgery on his injured right shoulder and will be out about six months.
The Owls (9-3, 7-1) found out at halftime they’d be playing in the Conference USA title game after Western Kentucky lost 37-34 to regular-season champion Jacksonville State.
Odom completed 14 of 23 passes for 240 yards and four touchdowns. Dickens, a sophomore, carried 43 times for 267 yards and four touchdowns for Liberty (4-8, 3-5).
The Flames’ Jay Billingsley missed a 32-yard field goal with 5 seconds left to force OT. Michael Merdinger finished with 212 yards and a touchdown on 12-for-21 passing.
MILITARY
Army 27, Texas San Antonio 24: Cale Hellums threw the first touchdown pass to an Army tight end since 2008 for the go-ahead score in San Antonio. The victory made the Black Knights (6-5, 4-4 Conference USA) bowl-eligible.
Hellums completed two fourth-down passes during a 13-play, 75-yard drive that took more than six minutes and ended with his 4-yard toss to Parker Poloskey with 2:49 to go. UTSA’s final drive ended on downs, though Owen McCown threw a pair of fourth-quarter touchdown passes to rally the Roadrunners (6-6, 4-4).
NATION
Penn State 40, Rutgers 36: Former Norview High star Kaytron Allen, already the Nittany Lions’ career-leading rusher, ran for a career-high 226 yards and a touchdown as Penn State beat Rutgers for the 18th straight time and became bowl-eligible after a tumultuous season.
The Nittany Lions (6-6, 3-6 Big Ten) retook the lead for good when linebacker Amare Campbell raced 61 yards with a fumble with 7:27 to play. Quarterback Athan Kaliakmanis of the Scarlet Knights (5-7, 2-7) lost the ball without being touched. There were four lead changes in the second half.
Troy 28, Southern Mississippi 18: The Trojans earned a berth in Friday’s Sun Belt Conference championship game at James Madison by winning in Hattiesburg, Mississippi.
Troy (8-4, 6-2) and Southern Miss (7-5, 5-3) were tied for the West Division lead, and Troy’s triumph was the Golden Eagles’ third consecutive loss.
Goose Crowder threw three touchdown passes. His 7-yard touchdown pass to RaRa Thomas capped an 11-play, 85-yard drive. The pair also connected on a 75-yard touchdown later in the fourth quarter. Crowder completed 24 of 34 passes for 285 yards. Thomas finished with five catches for 118 yards.
Braylon Braxton threw for 209 yards with a touchdown pass and interception for Southern Miss.
FCS PLAYOFFS
North Dakota 31, Tennessee Tech 6: Colton Brunell, Gaven Ziebarth and Charles Langama each had a touchdown run in the final quarter for North Dakota against No. 13 seed Tennessee Tech, former Old Dominion coach Bobby Wilder’s team, in the first round of the FCS playoffs.
North Dakota will play at No. 4 seed Tarleton State in Texas in the round of 16 Saturday. Tennessee Tech finished 11-2; its other loss was to Kentucky.
DIVISION III PLAYOFFS
John Carroll 35, Randolph-Macon 6: The Old Dominion Athletic Conference champions’ season ended at 9-2 with a loss on a frozen field in Ohio. The Yellow Jackets fell victim to a tough John Carroll defense and a virtuoso performance by the Blue Streaks’ quarterback.
Nick Semptimphelter completed 31 of 33 passes for 257 yards and three touchdowns. He ran for a 3-yard touchdown to open the scoring for John Carroll (10-1), which will stay in Ohio in the round of 16 to visit traditional power Mount Union.
R-MC’s only touchdown came on quarterback Dante Casciola’s 6-yard run with 5:59 left in the first quarter, cutting the visitors’ deficit to 7-6.
The Yellow Jackets were outgained 408-41.
“They took us behind the woodshed,” Randolph-Macon coach Pedro Arruza said on news-herald.com.
