Top 25 Roundup: Ohio State stings Michigan, takes Big Ten title

By Associated Press     Nov 18, 2007

Ohio State running back Chris Wells celebrates after the Buckeyes' victory. Wells ran for 222 yards and two touchdowns, and Ohio State won, 14-3, on Saturday in Ann Arbor, Mich.

? Jim Tressel and Lloyd Carr tried their best to take themselves out of the story.

In the Ohio State-Michigan rivalry, which has been as much about Woody and Bo as blocking and tackling, the coaches always are center stage.

Tressel became the first Ohio State coach to beat Michigan six times in seven years, and the seventh-ranked Buckeyes’ 14-3 victory Saturday over their archrival gave them consecutive outright Big Ten titles for the first time in a half-century.

Chris Wells ran for a career-high 222 yards and two touchdowns, and the Vernon Gholston-led defense dominated Michigan’s banged-up offense, helping Ohio State win its fourth straight in the series to match the school’s longest winning streak.

The Buckeyes (11-1, 7-1 Big Ten) are likely headed to the Rose Bowl for the first time since 1997. They have hopes of climbing back into the BCS title game, but several teams ahead of them would need to go down.

“Our defense was not going to let Michigan control the game on the ground,” Tressel said. “I wish our offense could have scored more, and that we could have been a little more consistent, but today, 14 points was enough to win the Big Ten.”

On the one-year anniversary of famed Michigan coach Bo Schembechler’s death, a coin with his likeness was on one side and an image of Ohio State’s late great coach Woody Hayes was on the other.

The Buckeyes, of course, went with Hayes for the coin toss, won it and went on to physically beat up the Wolverines in a way he would’ve been proud.

A win would’ve put the 23rd-ranked Michigan (8-4, 6-2) in Pasadena for the fourth time in five years, but the loss might send it to a bowl game prior to New Year’s Day.

The game could be Carr’s last regular-season game at Michigan, where the national championship he won in 1997 is a distant memory while his loss to Appalachian State this year and 1-6 record against Tressel are often mentioned.

“You don’t examine a coach on how he does against one team,” Tressel said. “Lloyd has been there for 13 years, and he has an excellent record.”

Carr led many to believe he would retire after this season when he altered his contract last winter and made sure all of his assistants were given unprecedented, two-year deals in the spring. Speculation has run rampant about 62-year-old coach’s future.

No. 1 LSU 41, Mississippi 24

Oxford, Miss. – Trindon Holliday returned a kickoff 98 yards for a touchdown, and LSU forced two turnovers during goal-line stands.

The Tigers (10-1, 6-1) didn’t play especially well on offense, but Craig Steltz and the nations’ top-ranked defense helped them earn their first outright Southeastern Conference Western Division title and set a school record with three consecutive seasons of 10 wins or more.

It was LSU’s fourth straight win and the sixth straight against Ole Miss (3-8, 0-7), which is in danger of a winless conference season for the first time since 1982. The Rebels are now 0-6 against top-ranked teams.

Steltz had rally-ending interceptions late in each half, and Jacob Hester and Charles Scott each rushed for touchdowns after failed Ole Miss onside kicks in the fourth quarter to ensure the win. Colt David added second-half field goals of 48 and 43 yards as well.

No. 5 West Virginia 28, No. 21 Cincinnati 23

Cincinnati – Pat White ran No. 21 Cincinnati right out of the Big East race. West Virginia’s dual-threat quarterback ran for a pair of second-quarter touchdowns. The Mountaineers (9-1, 4-1) can win their second Big East championship in three years by closing with victories over No. 25 Connecticut and Pittsburgh. Their game against UConn (9-2, 5-1) in Morgantown, W.Va., next weekend will likely decide it.

For most of the season, Cincinnati (8-3, 3-3) was one of the conference’s biggest surprises, staying in contention with a hard-hitting defense that leads the country in forcing turnovers.

No. 8 Georgia 24, No. 22 Kentucky 13

Athens, Ga. – Knowshon Moreno ran for 124 yards, Matthew Stafford surprised Kentucky with a 10-yard touchdown run and No. 8 Georgia overcame four turnovers and an early deficit to beat 22nd-ranked Kentucky.

The Bulldogs (9-2, 6-2 SEC) clinched at least a tie for first in the Eastern Division.

The Wildcats (7-4, 3-4) didn’t have any hope of reaching the SEC championship game, but they were trying to win out and claim at least a share of the division crown. But their high-scoring offense, which was averaging more than 37 points a game, couldn’t take advantage of two interceptions and two fumbles by the Bulldogs.

Georgia’s defense saved the day, holding Kentucky to its lowest output of the season, despite spotting the Wildcats a 10-lead, and helping avenge a 24-20 loss in Lexington last season.

No. 10 Virginia Tech 44, Miami 14

Blacksburg, Va. – Branden Ore ran for two touchdowns in his best performance of the season, and Virginia Tech beat Miami in the Hokies’ final tuneup for a huge game with rival Virginia next weekend.

Virginia Tech (9-2, 6-1 Atlantic Coast Conference) moved into a share of first place in the Coastal Division with the Cavaliers. The teams will play on Saturday in Charlottesville with the winner moving on the conference championship game Dec. 1.

Ore, who has not approached the form that produced nearly 1,400 yards rushing and 17 touchdowns last season, had a 22-yard run on the Hokies’ second play.

No. 14 Florida 59, Florida Atlantic 20

Gainesville, Fla. – Tim Tebow became the first player in NCAA history with at least 20 touchdowns passing and rushing in the same season, Andre Caldwell broke the school record for career receptions and Florida hammered Florida Atlantic.

Tebow finished 25-of-34 passing for a career-high 338 yards and three touchdowns and ran for another score. He has 20 rushing touchdowns and 26 TD passes.

No. 18 Boston College 20, No. 15 Clemson 17

Clemson, S.C. – Matt Ryan threw a 43-yard touchdown pass to a wide-open Rich Gunnell with 1:46 to go, lifting the Eagles over Clemson on Saturday night. The Tigers (8-3, 5-3) had taken a 17-13 lead on Cullen Harper’s 4-yard touchdown run with 5:28 remaining. But as Virginia Tech found out last month when Ryan tossed two touchdowns in the final 2:11 to beat the Hokies 14-10, the Eagles (9-2, 5-2) can’t be counted out as long as their senior quarterback has a chance.

On BC’s winning drive, Ryan completed a 12-yard pass to Clarence Megwa on third-and-8. Then, facing third-and-7, Ryan lofted a perfect pass to Gunnell.

No. 17 Boise State 58, Idaho 14

Boise, Idaho – Taylor Tharp threw for 282 yards and four touchdowns, and Boise State scored the last 41 points. The Broncos’ victory set up a showdown for the Western Athletic Conference championship next week at undefeated Hawaii. The Broncos (10-1, 7-0) have a chance to win their sixth consecutive WAC title.

No. 19 Tennessee 25, Vanderbilt 24

Knoxville, Tenn. – Daniel Lincoln kicked a 33-yard field goal with 2:46 left to cap a 16-point fourth-quarter comeback. The comeback was the Vols’ second largest in history and kept them in control of the SEC East race.

The Vols were down 24-9 after Vanderbilt’s Mackenzi Adams threw a 2-yard touchdown pass to George Smith with 9:00 left in the third quarter.

Tennessee’s defense forced the Commodores to go three-and-out on two drives to set up touchdown passes by Erik Ainge. Ainge threw a 7-yard TD pass to Josh Briscoe, followed by a 5-yard TD pass to Austin Rogers to bring the Vols within two points with 7:14 left in the game.

No. 20 Illinois 41, Northwestern 22

Champaign, Ill. – A week after leading his team to an upset of Ohio State, Illinois quarterback Juice Williams led the Illini a step closer to a New Year’s Day bowl. Williams ran for 136 yards and two touchdowns and passed for 220 yards and two more scores.

The 20th-ranked Illini (9-3, 6-2 Big Ten) are considered a strong candidate for the Capitol One Bowl, where coach Ron Zook could face his former team Florida.

Northwestern (6-6, 3-5) started the day with a good possibility of landing in a bowl. But with 10 Big Ten teams eligible, the Wildcats needed a seventh win to improve their case.

No. 24 Wisconsin 41, Minnesota 34

Minneapolis – David Gilreath made an electrifying return to his home state, racking up 226 return yards to help Wisconsin defeat Minnesota. Zach Brown rushed for 250 yards and two touchdowns in place of the injured P.J. Hill for the Badgers (9-3, 5-3 Big Ten), who overcame injuries all season long to win at least nine games for the fourth year in a row, the first time that’s happened in the program’s history.

Adam Weber threw for 352 yards and three touchdowns for Minnesota (1-11, 0-8), which went winless in the Big Ten for the first time since 1983 and lost Paul Bunyan’s Axe to its border rivals for the fourth straight year.

No. 25 Connecticut 30, Syracuse 7

East Hartford, Conn. – Tyler Lorenzen threw for 213 yards and a touchdown, and Connecticut beat Syracuse to stay in sole possession of first place in the Big East.

The Huskies (9-2, 5-1 Big East) can win their first conference title with a victory at West Virginia next week. UConn finished 7-0 at home, only the second Big East team to do that. West Virginia was the other in 1993. UConn’s tailback tandem of Donald Brown and Andre Dixon combined for 151 yards rushing and two scores.

The Huskies jumped to an early 21-0 lead and were never really challenged.

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