|
Football Recaps: September 5
Sept. 5, 2009
Northwestern 47, Towson 14: Mike Kafka led three touchdown drives in the first quarter and passed for a career-high 192 yards to lead Northwestern to a 47-14 victory over Towson on Saturday. Andrew Brewer added a career-high 145 yards receiving, including a 72-yard touchdown, and the Wildcats (1-0) got off to a strong start after going 9-4 last season. Expectations are higher now. They hope to compete for the Big Ten title after reaching the Alamo Bowl last year. Ohio State 31, Navy 27: Ohio State's Brian Rolle intercepted a potential tying 2-point conversion in the closing minutes and returned it for two points the other way, helping the Buckeyes hold off pesky Navy 31-27 on Saturday. Penn State 31, Akron 7: The most compelling part of Penn State's 31-7 win Saturday over Akron turned out to be the pregame introductions. Joe Paterno jogged out of the Beaver Stadium tunnel with his players, his first game back on the sideline since the Hall of Fame coach had hip replacement surgery last November. Iowa 17, Northern Iowa 16: Iowa blocked two field goal attempts in the final 10 seconds of the game to take a 17-16 victory over Northern Iowa. Michigan State 44, Montana State 3: Kirk Cousins threw three touchdown passes and Keith Nichol tossed two as Michigan State cruised past Montana State, 44-3, Saturday. The Spartans (1-0) overmatched their first-ever opponent from the Football Championship Subdivision, formerly known as Division I-AA.
Purdue 52, Toledo 31: Ralph Bolden ran for 234 yards and two touchdowns as Purdue beat Toledo 52-31 Saturday in Danny Hope's head coaching debut for the Boilermakers. Bolden, a sophomore, put up the third-best rushing total in school history in his first start. He broke loose for a 78-yard touchdown run on his first carry. Minnesota 23, Syracuse 20: Eric Ellestad kicked a 35-yard field goal in overtime to give Minnesota a 23-20 victory over Syracuse on Saturday, spoiling the debut of Orange quarterback Greg Paulus in the opener for both teams. Paulus was 19-for-31 for 167 yards and one touchdown, but the former Duke point guard threw his only interception in the extra period to give the Gophers the big break they needed. Michigan 31, Western Michigan 7: Tate Forcier threw three touchdown passes and Denard Robinson ran for a score before halftime, leading Michigan to a 31-7 win over Western Michigan on Saturday. The freshmen quarterbacks helped the Wolverines (1-0) look better on offense than they ever did last year, when they lost a school-record nine games in Rich Rodriguez's debut season with college football's winningest program. Missouri 37, Illinois 9: Blaine Gabbert threw for 313 yards and three touchdowns and ran for a fourth in a stellar starting debut to lead rebuilding Missouri to a 37-9 victory over Illinois on Saturday, its fifth win in a row in the neutral-site series. Wisconsin 28, Northern Illinois 20: Wide receiver Isaac Anderson caught a pass for a touchdown and ran for another, and Wisconsin held off a late Northern Illinois rally to escape with a 28-20 victory Saturday night at Camp Randall Stadium. |
|
