10 Best Games of the Week - Week 6, 2008
Ohio State RB Chris Wells
Ohio State RB Chris Wells
CollegeFootballNews.com
Posted Oct 6, 2008


The best games, the biggest moments, and the most memorable battles of the week.



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Ten Best Games of the Week

10.
Pitt 26 ... South Florida 21
South Florida got out to a hot start with a blocked punt for a score from Charlton Sinclair, but Pitt quickly bounced back with 17 straight first half points highlighted by a Jonathan Baldwin 52-yards touchdown grab and a six-yard LeSean McCoy run, but USF came back. A 22-yard Jessie Hester scoring grab with under five minutes to go gave the Bulls a one point lead, but the Panthers went 60 yards on three plays finishing with a McCoy three-yard score. USF had its chances throughout the game but got a field goal blocked and missed on a fake field goal. The Panthers held on to the ball for 36:54.
Player of the game: Pitt RB LeSean McCoy ran 28 times for 142 yards and two touchdowns, and caught three passes for 23 yards.  
Stat Leaders: Pitt - Passing: Bill Stull, 16-27, 228 yds, 1 TD
Rushing:
LeSean McCoy, 28-142, 2 TD. Receiving:
Conredge Collins, 4-25
South Florida
- Passing: Matt Grothe, 11-21, 129 yds, 1 TD, 1 INT
Rushing:
Mike Ford, 14-73. Receiving: Jessie Hester, 3-34, 1 TD

9. Vanderbilt 14 … Auburn 13
Auburn got out to a 13-0 first quarter lead on a seven-yard touchdown catch from Rodgeriqus Smith and a 28-yard scoring grab form Mario Fannin, and then it was all Vanderbilt the rest of the way with Mackenzi Adams stepping in for an injured Chris Nickson and throwing a 15-yard touchdown pass to Justin Wheeler and a one-yard scoring pass to Brandon Barden. And then the defense held on. Auburn only finished with 208 yards of total offense and committed 11 penalties.
Player of the game: Vanderbilt LB Patrick Benoist made 13 tackles, a sack, two tackles for loss and a broken up pass
Stat Leaders: Auburn - Passing: Chris Todd, 8-16, 70 yds, 2 TD, 1 INT
Rushing:
Ben Tate, 27-108. Receiving: Rodgeriqus Smith, 4-18, 1 TD
Vanderbilt
- Passing: Mackenzi Adams, 13-23, 153 yds, 2 TD
Rushing:
Mackenzi Adams, 13-54. Receiving: Justin Wheeler, 5-52, 1 TD

8. Akron 30 … Kent State 27 2OT
In a wild game, Akron kept the Wagon Wheel in the rivalry thanks to a 24-yard leaping touchdown catch from Deryn Bowser on fourth down with 1:28 to play to force overtime. It was originally ruled incomplete, but Akron called a time out and it was overturned. The two teams exchanged field goals in the first overtime. Igor Iveljic hit a 25-yard field goal in the second overtime to give Akron a 30-27 lead, and Nate Reed missed his 23-yard attempt. Chris Jacquemain threw two touchdown passes, but he also threw three interceptions that helped Kent State take a 21-10 lead into halftime, but Akron held the Golden Flash offense off the board in the second half and got a one-yard Dennis Kennedy touchdown run before the Bowser catch forced overtime.
Player of the game: Akron WR Deryn Bowser caught five passes for 77 yards and a touchdown.
Stat Leaders: Akron - Passing: Chris Jacquemain, 21-39, 243 yds, 2 TD, 3 INT
Rushing:
Dennis Kennedy, 15-23, 1 TD. Receiving: Andre Jones, 5-85, 1 TD
Kent State
- Passing: Julian Edelman, 17-31, 157 yds, 2 TD
Rushing:
Julian Edelman, 18-113. Receiving: Kendrick Pressley, 8-57


7.
Boston College 38 … NC State 31
BC’s Chris Crane ran for a 13-yard touchdown with 23 seconds to play to finally put away a game NC State team that played one of its best games of the year. Russell Wilson ran for a two-yard score and connected with Owen Spencer for a 61-yard score to tie the score at 31 in the fourth quarter, but Crane led the way for a 70-yard drive in seven plays to pull out the win. Crane ran for three touchdowns and threw two first quarter touchdown passes, but NC State kept fighting back, highlighted by a 100-yard T.J. Graham kickoff return for a touchdown to answer Crane’s first scoring run. BC outgained NC State 578 yards to 253.
Player of the game: Boston College QB Chris Crane completed 34-of-51 passes for 428 yards and two touchdowns with an interception, and ran 11 times for 42 yards and three touchdowns, and DT B.J. Raji made three sacks.
Stat Leaders: NC State - Passing: Russell Wilson, 19-33, 218 yds, 1 TD
Rushing:
Jamelle Eugene, 4-26. Receiving: Julian Williams, 4-35
Boston College
- Passing: Chris Crane, 34-51, 428 yds, 2 TD, 1 INT
Rushing:
Chris Crane, 11-42, 3 TD. Receiving: Rich Gunnell, 11-123, 1 TD


6.
Kansas 35 … Iowa State 33
In a tale of two halves, Iowa State got out to a 20-0 lead on a 16-yard Alexander Robinson run, an eight-yard catch from Marquis Hamilton, and two Grant Mahoney field goals. And then Kansas came out of the locker room roaring as Jake Sharp scored on a 67-yard pass play and a two-yard run, and Kerry Meier scored on catches from 23 and 21 yards out as part of a 35-7 run to go up 35-26. Iowa State got a two-yard Hamilton touchdown catch with 1:15 to play, and recovered the onside kick, but Austen Arnaud missed on all four of his passes.  
Player of the game: Kansas RB Jake Sharp ran 19 times for 79 yards and a touchdown, and caught three passes for 107 yards and a score.
Stat Leaders: Iowa State - Passing: Austen Arnaud, 27-45, 268 yds, 3 TD, 1 INT
Rushing:
Alexander Robinson, 10-51, 1 TD. Receiving: R.J. Sumrall, 10-106, 1 TD
Kansas
- Passing: Todd Reesing, 18-26, 319 yds, 3 TD, 1 INT
Rushing:
Jake Sharp, 19-79, 1 TD. Receiving: Kerry Meier, 7-125, 2 TD

5. UTEP 40 … Southern Miss 27 2OT
UTEP overcame a 260-yard rushing day from Damion Fletcher with a six-yard touchdown catch from Kris Adams in the second overtime for the win. Southern Miss forced the extra time with a  22-yard Britt Barefoot field goal as time ran out. Terrell Jackson caught a touchdown pass for UTEP in the first overtime, but USM answered with four-yard scoring grab from DeAndre Brown. Barefoot hit a 28-yard field goal in the second overtime, but UTEP came up with the touchdown. Trevor Vittatoe threw four touchdown passes, while Fletcher ran for a four-yard score to go along with all his yards.
Player of the game: UTEP QB Trevor Vittatoe completed 25-of-43 passes for 266 yards and four touchdowns, and in a losing cause, Southern Miss RB Damion Fletcher ran 34 times for 260 yards and a touchdown
Stat Leaders: UTEP - Passing: Trevor Vittatoe, 25-43, 266 yds, 4 TD
Rushing:
Donald Buckram, 12-59, 1 TD. Receiving: Jeff Moturi, 5-36
Southern Miss
- Passing: Austin Davis, 21-37, 264 yds, 2 TD, 1 INT
Rushing:
Damion Fletcher, 34-260, 1 TD. Receiving: DeAndre Brown, 8-110, 1 TD


4. Michigan State 16 ... Iowa 13
Deep in Michigan State territory, Iowa could've kicked a field goal for the tie but chose to go for it on fourth and one. On the MSU 21, Shonn Greene was stuffed and the Spartans were able to stop the comeback. MSU scored the first 13 points on two of Brett Swenson's three field goals, and Charlie Gantt caught a four-yard touchdown pass, but Javon Ringer was held in check and Iowa's offense started to move in the second half. Tony Mossbrucker hit two field goals and Andy Brodell caught a 31-yard touchdown pass, but the Hawkeyes couldn't get te one yard it absolutely needed.
Player of the game: Michigan State LB Adam Decker made eight tackles and a tackle for loss, and made the fourth down stop to seal the win
Stat Leaders: Michigan State
- Passing: Brian Hoyer, 13-24, 184 yds, 1 TD, 1 INT
Rushing: Javon Ringer, 25-91. Receiving: B.J. Cunningham, 4-76
Iowa
- Passing: Ricky Stanzi, 15-22, 158 yds, 1 TD, 1 INT
Rushing: Shonn Greene, 30-157. Receiving: Andy Brodell, 5-79, 1 TD


3. Colorado State 41 … UNLV 28
UNLV held a 28-27 lead late in the game, but Gartrell Johnson ran for a 10-yard score with just nine seconds to play for a 35-28 lead. John Mosure returned a fumble on the ensuing kickoff for a touchdown, and Colorado State came up with the thrilling win. Johnson ran for three touchdowns, including two, three-yard scores in the second quarter, and Rashaun Greer caught a 46-yard touchdown for a 27-13 CSU lead going into the fourth, but UNLV came back with Omar Clayton’s second touchdown pass of the day, a 21-yarder to Jerriman Robinson, and a one-yard Frank Summer runs for the lead that defense couldn’t hold. Colorado State outgained UNLV 510 yards to 347.
Player of the game: Colorado State RB Gartrell Johnson ran 33 times for 191 yards and three touchdowns
Stat Leaders: Colorado State - Passing: Billy Farris, 15-21, 294 yds, 1 TD
Rushing:
Gartrell Johnson, 33-101, 3 TD. Receiving: Rashaun Greer, 8-211, 1 TD
UNLV
- Passing: Omar Clayton, 14-26, 173 yds, 2 TD 1 INT
Rushing:
Frank Summers, 20-109, 1 TD. Receiving: Casey Flair, 5-47, 1 TD


2. Ohio State 20 … Wisconsin 17
Terrelle Pryor ran the option for an 11-yard touchdown with 1:08 to play, and Malcolm Jenkins picked off a pass to snuff out the final Badger drive, as Ohio State came up with a tough, hard-fought win. The Buckeyes got off to a hot start as Beanie Wells blew through the Badger D for a 33-yard touchdown in the first quarter, but Wisconsin rebounded with a nine-yard Mickey Turner touchdown catch and a 20-yard Philip Welch field goal as time expired in the first half. A two-yard P.J. Hill touchdown blast with 6:31 to play gave UW the late lead, but Pryor was nearly perfect on a 12-play, 80-yard drive to pull off the win. In the nearly dead-even game, OSU outgained the Badgers 327 yards to 326.
Player of the game: Ohio State RB Chris Wells ran 22 times for 168 yards and a touchdown
Stat Leaders: Ohio State - Passing: Terrelle Pryor, 13-19, 144 yds, 1 INT
Rushing:
Chris Wells, 22-168, 1 TD. Receiving: Brian Hartline, 3-57
Wisconsin
- Passing: Allan Evridge, 13-25, 1 TD, 1 INT
Rushing:
John Clay, 10-69. Receiving: Travis Beckum, 6-60


1. Florida State 41 … Miami 39
In a wild game, Florida State appeared to be on its way to an easy win with a 24-0 first half helped by two of Antone Smith’s four rushing touchdowns and a 15-yard Greg Carr scoring grab. Midway through the third quarter it was 31-10 on Smith’s third scoring run, and then things got weird. Miami scored 12 points in just over two minutes on a field goal, a blown punt snap for a safety, and a 51-yard Travis Benjamin touchdown catch on a halfback option pass from Graig Cooper. Off a bad pass from Christian Ponder, Sean Spence took an interception seven yards for a Miami score to get within five, and Matt Bosher made it 34-32 with a 24-yard field goal. FSU finally pulled away with a 20-yard Smith touchdown run with less than four minutes to play. Miami scored with 14 seconds to play, but couldn’t get the onside kick. In the driving rain, there were seven turnovers and 22 penalties between the two teams. Florida State didn’t punt.
Player of the game: Florida State RB Antone Smith ran 27 times for 92 yards and four touchdowns
Stat Leaders: Florida State - Passing: Christian Ponder, 14-31, 159 yds, 1 TD, 2 INT
Rushing:
Christian Ponder, 19-144. Receiving: Bert Reed, 3-43
Miami
- Passing: Robert Marve, 17-40, 122 yds, 2 INT
Rushing:
Graig Cooper, 6-31. Receiving: Graig Cooper, 7-16


Worst Game of the Weekend

TCU 41 … San Diego State 7
Marcus Jackson filled in for an injured Andy Dalton and threw a three-yard touchdown pass to Shae Reagan and ran for two short scores. The Horned Frogs dominated on both sides of the ball holding San Diego State to -13 yards rushing and just four first downs. The one Aztec touchdown came on a two-yard Mekell Wesley run following a Jackson fumble.
Player of the game: TCU QB Marcus Jackson completed 10-of-19 passes for 115 yards and a touchdown, and he ran 27 times for 131 yards and two touchdowns
Stat Leaders: TCU - Passing: Marcus Jackson, 10-19, 115 yds, 1 TD
Rushing:
Marcus Jackson, 27-131, 2 TD. Receiving: Shae Reagan, 4-53, 1 TD
San Diego State
- Passing: Drew Westling, 6-17, 61 yds
Rushing:
Atiyyah Henderson, 4-5. Receiving: Vincent Brown, 6-5