Tulsa misses chances to bust BCS
In college football, teams begin the season with complete authority over their postseason destiny. Every loss, however, further relinquishes control, and during the second half of the season, each game becomes increasingly crucial. Last week, no team in Conference USA felt more pressure to succeed than the University of Southern Mississippi.
The Tulsa defense Bronco receiver Tyler Shoemaker (89) and the rest of the Boise State offense.
After winning their first three games of the season, the Golden Eagles (4-3, 2-1) subsequently dropped the next three contests, losing their starting quarterback for the season in the process. Having already tallied one conference loss, Southern Miss could hardly afford another last Saturday if the team expected to compete for a C-USA title. Still, head coach Larry Fedora wanted to make sure that his team didn’t carry the game’s implications into its match against Memphis.
“I just didn’t make it out to be us against the world or we’re on the bottom,” Fedora said following the game. “It wasn’t like we were playing bad. I thought we played pretty well; we just didn’t make a few plays to win those games. I didn’t want them pressured up that they had to do it or the season was over with.”
The Golden Eagles offense played well enough against a mediocre Tigers defense to secure a 36-16 victory. The running game was powered by running backs Damian Fletcher and Tory Harrison, who in tandem contributed 122 yards on 20 carries and two touchdowns by Fletcher. Replacing the injured Austin Davis, junior quarterback Martevious Young completed 10-of-21 passes for 155 yards, one touchdown and one interception. The Tigers (2-5, 1-3) were limited on offense partially because of 11 penalties for 105 yards and two interceptions.
Tulsa blows BCS upset bid
Tulsa, who currently sits atop the C-USA West standings, narrowly missed an upset opportunity against Boise State on Oct. 14. The Golden Hurricane took an early 14-8 lead in the first quarter against the No. 5 ranked Broncos, but were quickly overwhelmed by an efficient offensive attack, falling 28-21.
On fourth down of the Golden Hurricane’s last possession, Tulsa was given an opportunity to tie the game with less than two minutes remaining in the fourth quarter. Quarterback G.J. Kinne found a wide-open Charles Cray downfield, but was unable to complete the pass while avoiding the Boise State pass rush. Kinne turned in a sub-par performance, throwing for 154 yards and two touchdowns, an effort head coach Todd Graham attributed to his poor pass protection.
“G.J. was running for his life again tonight and he has been in every game,” Tulsa coach Todd Graham said. “You haven’t seen how good he is yet.”
Backed by a sold-out Chapman Stadium crowd of 30,000, Tulsa (4-2, 2-0) scored the first points of the game immediately after a muffed punt by cornerback Kyle Wilson. Kinne pitched the ball to wildcat quarterback A.J. Whitmore, who targeted burner Damarius Williams behind the Broncos coverage for a 53-yard score.
Midshipmen Sink SMU
Despite jumping out in front to a 21-7 halftime lead, Southern Methodist University succumbed to a strong Navy rushing attack and suffered its second overtime loss of the season to the Midshipmen, losing 38-35. The Mustangs (3-3, 2-0) showcased excellent first-half defense in front of former president George W. Bush, who handled the honorary coin toss duties. SMU held Navy to only 11 yards of offense in the second quarter.
Powered by a triple option offense, however, the Midshipmen logged four straight scoring drives and 247 rushing yards after halftime. SMU quarterback Bo Levi Mitchell tossed a 10-yard touchdown pass with 1:35 left in the fourth quarter to tie the game up at 35-35. Halfback Shawnbrey McNeal enjoyed his best effort of the season, adding 131 rushing yards on 15 carries for the Mustangs.
“We played good enough to win defensively,” SMU coach June Jones said. “If you had told me we could have made them punt five times, I would have thought we’d won.”
Navy tallied 399 yards of total offense, including 331 yards and five touchdowns on 60 rushing attempts.