Associated Press
The college football roundup …
BOONE ó Warren Smith threw for three touchdowns and Maine held Appalachian State to 3 rushing yards in a 34-12 win in the second round of the FBS playoffs.
Meeting for the first time since Maine won 14-13 in the 2002 playoffs, the Black Bears led 13-6 at halftime. Smith threw touchdown passes of 44 and 35 yards to Damarr Aultman, then a 21-yard TD to John Ebeling in the third quarter.
Jamal Jackson was 26 of 45 for 272 yards and a touchdown, with two interceptions, for the Mountaineers (8-4), whose string of six straight 10-win seasons ended.
No. 3 Oklahoma St. 44, No. 13 Oklahoma 10
STILLWATER, Okla. ó Joseph Randle ran for 151 yards and two touchdowns, Richetti Jones returned a fumble for a score and No. 3 Oklahoma State throttled No. 13 Oklahoma 44-10 Saturday night to win the Big 12 championship and make its case to play for a national title.
The Cowboys (11-1, 8-1 Big 12) snapped an eight-game losing streak in the Bedlam rivalry and won their first outright conference title since 1948 in the three-team Missouri Valley.
Fans started chanting “L-S-U!” midway through the fourth quarter with the victory well in hand, then stormed the field when it was over.
So. Miss 49, No. 7 Houston 28
HOUSTON ó Case Keenum and No. 7 Houston were pounded 49-28 by Southern Mississippi in the Conference USA championship game, a loss that will cost the Cougars a spot in the BCS and the millions of dollars that goes with it.
The high-scoring Cougars needed to complete their perfect regular season and win the league to become this year’s BCS buster, and the first team from C-USA to reach the BCS, which would have netted the league about $7 million dollars.
No. 15 Wisconsin 42, No. 11 Michigan St. 39
INDIANAPOLIS ó Montee Ball ran for three touchdowns including the decisive 7-yard score with 3:45 to go, leading No. 15 Wisconsin past No. 11 Michigan State 42-39 in the inaugural Big Ten championship game.
Wisconsin (11-2) is now headed to its second straight Rose Bowl.
Ball ran 27 times for 137 yards and caught a TD pass, giving him 38 touchdowns this season. That’s one short of Barry Sanders’ single-season record.
Russell Wilson was 17 of 24 for 187 yards with three TDs and no interceptions. He set a new NCAA record with a TD pass in his 37th straight game. Texas Tech’s Graham Harrell had the previous mark of 36.
No. 18 TCU 56, UNLV 9
FORT WORTH, Texas ó TCU had a perfect ending in the Mountain West Conference. The 18th-ranked Horned Frogs could be busting into the BCS again after their third consecutive outright ó and unblemished ó Mountain West title, which they clinched with a 56-9 victory Saturday over UNLV.
No. 19 Baylor 48, Texas 24
WACO, Texasó Robert Griffin III lifted Baylor to its best football in a generation. Griffin ran for two touchdowns, passed for two more and led the No. 19 Bears to a 48-24 win over Texas in a statement game on national television. He passed for 320 yards with touchdown strikes of 59 and 39 yards.
No. 9 Boise 45, N. Mexico 0
BOISE, Idaho ó Kellen Moore threw three touchdowns in the final home game of his brilliant career and Doug Martin ran for two more for Boise State.
No. 16 Kansas State 30, Iowa State 23
MANHATTAN, Kan. ó John Hubert ran for 120 yards and the go-ahead touchdown, and Kansas State (10-2, 7-2) kept alive its chances for a share of the Big 12 championship.
Cincinnati 35, Connecticut 27
CINCINNATI ó Munchie Legaux threw a career-high three touchdown passes and Cincinnati’s defense got two scores of its own, setting up a 35-27 victory over Connecticut that left the Bearcats (9-3, 5-2) one of three sharing the Big East title.