Stanford gets first Rose Bowl win since ’72…Northwestern ends 64-year bowl drought
UNDATED (AP) — It took just five carries for Florida State fullback Lonnie Pryor to do some major damage against Northern Illinois at the Orange Bowl.
Pryor was named the game’s outstanding player after turning those five runs into a career-high 134 yards and two touchdowns in the Seminoles’ 31-10 win over the Huskies. He scored the first touchdown on a career-long 60-yard run, then ran 37 yards for a clinching touchdown with 10 minutes left. They were the two longest rushes allowed by Northern Illinois all season.
Senior EJ Manuel had 291 passing yards for the 13th-ranked ‘Noles, who finish 12-2 with their fifth consecutive bowl victory.
Florida State was playing in its first BCS bowl in 12 years, when they beat Virginia Tech for the national championship.
Northern Illinois ends the year 12-2 following their first BCS game appearance. The Huskies also ended a 12-game winning streak and slipped to 5-28 against top 25 teams.
Stanford’s Rose Bowl drought is over, while Wisconsin’s losing streak in the Granddaddy of Them All continues.
The eighth-ranked Cardinal won the game for the first time since 1972, capping a 12-2 season by allowing just 82 total yards in the second half of a 20-14 win over the Badgers. Stepfan Taylor and Kevin Hogan led the Stanford ground game by combining for 212 yards. Taylor ran for 89 yards and an early touchdown, and Hogan finished with a game-high 123 rushing yards for the Pac-12 champs.
Kelsey Young rushed for a touchdown on Stanford’s opening possession, and Taylor scored on the second.
Montee Ball rushed for 100 yards and his FBS-record 83rd touchdown for the Badgers, who lost the Rose Bowl for the third consecutive season.
Northwestern has won a bowl game for the first time since the Truman administration.
Winning their first bowl since the 1949 Rose Bowl, the 21st-ranked Wildcats snapped their nine-game bowl losing streak by beating Mississippi State 34-20 in the Gator Bowl. That had been college football’s longest postseason losing streak. It’s the first time the 10-3 Wildcats finished with double-digit victories since the 1995 season.
Quentin Williams returned an interception 29 yards for a touchdown on the third play of the game. Nick Vanhoose set up a late touchdown with a 39-yard interception return. Those plays were the difference in a back-and-forth game that featured seven interceptions and six touchdowns.
Mississippi State finished 8-4.
In other New Year’s Day bowls:
— Eleventh-ranked South Carolina captured the Outback Bowl by rallying past 19th-ranked Michigan 33-28. Dylan Thompson came off the bench to throw a 32-yard touchdown pass with 11 seconds left to rally the Gamecocks, who finished 11-2.
— Clint Chelf threw three of Oklahoma State’s five touchdown passes and the Cowboys shook off a disappointing Big 12 finish by dominating Purdue 58-14 in the Heart of Dallas Bowl. It was the biggest bowl win for Oklahoma State since coach Mike Gundy was the quarterback in a 62-14 rout of Wyoming in the 1988 Holiday Bowl. The Cowboys finished 8-5. Purdue wound up 6-7.
Blazers beat Knicks
UNDATED (AP) — Amare Stoudemire made his season debut on Tuesday, but his presence was of little help to the New York Knicks.
The Knicks wasted Carmelo Anthony’s season high-tying 45 points and lost to the visiting Portland Trail Blazers 105-100. Stoudemire finished with six points on 3-of-8 shooting and one rebound in 17 minutes off the bench in his return from knee surgery. Anthony shot 14 of 24 and nearly led the Knicks back from 19 points down after missing two games with a knee injury.
Nicolas Batum scored 26 points in the Trail Blazers’ third victory in four games. Damian Lillard had 21 points, six assists and five rebounds, and LaMarcus Aldridge had 19 points and 14 rebounds for Portland.
The outcome leaves the Knicks a game behind East-leading Miami, and just a half-game ahead of Atlanta.
— The NBA schedule included the Hawks 95-86 victory over New Orleans. Josh Smith scored 10 of his 23 points in the third quarter, Al Horford finished with 20 points and Kyle Korver chipped in 14.
— Jrue (jroo) Holiday poured in 26 points and had 10 assists as Philadelphia knocked off the Los Angeles Lakers 103-99. Evan Turner also had a double-double with 22 points and 13 boards to help the 76ers overcome Kobe Bryant’s 36 points.
— The Dallas Mavericks have put an end to their six-game losing streak by rallying from a 14-point-first-half deficit to beat the Wizards 103-94 in Washington. Vince Carter scored 23 points for the Mavs, who trailed 39-25 before ending their losing losing streak in nearly 14 years.
— Detroit has its first three-game winning streak of the season after Greg Monroe contributed 18 points and 11 rebounds to a 103-97 triumph against Sacramento. DeMarcus Cousins had 21 points and 14 rebounds for the Kings.
AP source: Niners sign kicker Cundiff
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — The San Francisco 49ers have signed kicker Billy Cundiff to compete with struggling veteran David Akers.
Cundiff was released by the Washington Redskins on Oct. 9 after missing 5 of his 12 field goal attempts. He worked out previously with the Niners on Nov. 27.
Akers made 44 of 52 attempts in his sensational 2011 season and first year with San Francisco, but he’s just 29 for 42 this year.
Woodson cleared for playoffs
GREEN BAY, Wis. (AP) — Green Bay defensive back Charles Woodson has been cleared to play in Saturday night’s playoff game against the Minnesota Vikings.
Woodson deferred to team physician Dr. Pat McKenzie and gave his broken collarbone as much time to heal as possible, sitting out Sunday’s regular-season finale at Minnesota. He was injured on Oct. 21 and has missed nine consecutive games.
Governor says he plans to sue NCAA
HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) — Gov. Tom Corbett says he plans to sue the NCAA in federal court over sanctions imposed against Penn State in the wake of the Jerry Sandusky child sexual abuse scandal.
The Republican governor scheduled a news conference for Wednesday on Penn State’s campus in State College to announce the filing in U.S. District Court in Harrisburg.
The sanctions, agreed to by the university in July, included a $60 million fine that would be used nationally to finance child abuse prevention grants. State and federal lawmakers have raised objections to the money being spent outside Pennsylvania.