Oklahoma State: 2023 Texas Bowl Champions

 Oklahoma State won the Texas Bowl behind some big performances from its receivers.

OSU beat Texas A&M 31-23, thanks to Rashod Owens and Brennan Presley. Owens finished with 164 yards and two touchdowns, while Presley added 152 yards on 16 receptions to set OSU’s bowl game record.

With 5:07 left, Texas A&M kicker Randy Bond nailed a 51-yard field goal off the crossbar to cut OSU’s lead to eight. However, OSU did not give the ball back until there were only 17 seconds left, and Kendal Daniels picked off Texas A&M’s last-second Hail Mary.

With Texas A&M looking to get within one score to begin the fourth quarter, Nick Martin recovered a fumble forced by Xavier Benson to set OSU up at its 1-yard line. Leon Johnson III came up with a huge third-down catch to get out of their end zone. However, that drive would end abruptly with Bowman throwing his second interception.

Rashod Owens’ big night was highlighted in OSU’s only scoring drive of the third quarter. Including an 18-yard grab in the end zone, Owens had 48 yards on that drive.

Despite Owens’ big gains, Texas A&M kept fighting. Marcel Reed’s 20-yard scamper along the right sideline into the end zone made it 31-20 midway through the third quarter.

On the first drive of the second half, Alan Bowman threw an interception to give the Aggies some much-needed momentum. Amari Daniels finished off the Aggies’ first touchdown drive a few plays later with a 2-yard score to get back within 11.

Although he is in the transfer portal, OSU quarterback Gunnar Gundy came in and ran for a 10-yard touchdown in the second quarter. Before that, Brennan Presley’s 34-yard pass to Owens put OSU’s offense in position to score.

After three catches by Presley on their last drive of the half, the Cowboys went for fourth down for the first time and found Presley again to keep the drive going. Bowman then found Braden Cassity for a 17-yard gain before Ollie Gordon punched it in a play later to take a 24-6 halftime lead.

In what may have been his final college game, Bowman went for 402 yards passing and two touchdowns. Meanwhile, OSU’s star running back went for 118 yards in his first game since announcing his return for the 2024 season.

USC: 2023 Holiday Bowl Champions

 

SAN DIEGO - The Louisville football program will not be heading into the offseason with momentum on their side

Capping off their first season under head coach Jeff Brohm with a showdown against USC, the Cardinals could not take advantage of a short-handed Trojans squad, falling 42-28 Wednesday at Petco Park.

No. 15 Louisville (10-4, 7-1 ACC) concludes their 2023 campaign on a three-game losing streak, also dropping their regular season finale vs. Kentucky and the ACC Championship Game against Florida State. Conversely, USC (8-5, 5-4 Pac-12) snaps a four-game losing streak to end year two under head coach Lincoln Riley.

As is the case with most bowls in this day and age of college football, it was a matchup in which both teams were shorthanded in various capacities due to opt-outs. At kickoff, there were a combined 32 transfer portal entries and NFL Draft declarations between Louisville and USC, including 21 from the Trojans.

Even with the majority of the opt-outs and transfer portal entries coming from USC, Louisville did anything but take advantage of it. Facing a Trojans defense that had averaged 34.9 points and 438.8 yards allowed per game during the regular season, the Cardinals could only muster 361 total yards of offense.

This came in spite of a fantastic effort from running back Isaac Guerendo, who was the starter after Jawhar Jordan declared for the NFL Draft. He ran for a career-high 161 yards, and matched his career high in rushing touchdowns with three. Louisville as a while ran for 220 yards.

While quarterback Jack Plummer finished the game throwing 21-for-25, receivers struggled to gain separation, resulting in Plummer only throwing for 141 yards and no touchdowns. Guerendo actually finished the game as the leading receiver, catching five passes for 42 yards.

Early in the game, momentum favored the Cardinals. Louisville's defense forced a three-and-out right out of the gates, then their offense produced a methodical drive on their first time out that ended with a two-yard score from Guerendo. USC then missed a 38-yard field goal on their next drive.

A critical early momentum shift came on the first play after the missed field goal. Plummer was strip-sacked to set up the Trojans inside the red zone, then three plays later, Moss found Washington for a game-tying 17-yard score.

This was the first of four straight scoring drives from USC to end the half, including a stretch of 21 uninterrupted points after Louisville struck first. Moss then connected with Washington again from 29 yards out, then with Kyron Hudson for a nine-yard score.

After two punts from the Cardinals following the Plummer fumble, they were finally able to get back in the end zone, with backup quarterback Evan Conley running out of the wildcat for a nine-yard score.

But despite USC having just 1:56 until halftime, that was enough time for Moss to throw his fourth touchdown of the first half, this time from 31 yards out to Lane to put Louisville down 28-14 at the half.

While Louisville's offense found more of a rhythm in the second half, their defense - and specifically their secondary - continued to get abused. After each team came up empty on their first drives of the half, the Cardinals and Trojans took turns finding the end zone, with touchdowns being scored on four consecutive drives.

Guerendo collected a one-yard score on a drive that was set up by a 61-yard interception return from Riley, but that was answered with a 12-yard touchdown reception from Lane. Guerendo found pay dirt again from two yards out on the next time out, then that was responded with a 44-yard score from tight end Duce Robinson.

While the fourth quarter had been a period where Louisville had thrived in during the regular season, that was not the case against USC. Their two drives in the final period consisted of a turnover on downs in the red zone, and a one-play drive that was a fumble from wide receiver Jadon Thompson that clinched the loss.

West Virginia: 2023 Duke's Mayo Bowl Champions

 

West Virginia coach Neal Brown got a bath of mayonnaise after his team beat North Carolina 30-10 in the Duke’s Mayo Bowl.

Brown became the latest victim — for lack of a better term — of the now-traditional mayo bath for the winning coach of the game. 

Mountaineers QB Garrett Greene was 12-of-24 passing for 228 yards and a TD and also rushed nine times for 64 yards thanks to a 48-yard carry. Greene’s TD came on the first play of the game as he found Traylon Ray for a 75-yard TD pass on play-action.

West Virginia shut out North Carolina in the second half as the Tar Heels played the game without Drake Maye. The junior QB opted out of the game to prepare for the NFL draft. Maye is a potential No. 1 pick in April.

Conner Harrell started in his place and was 18-of-27 passing for 199 yards and a TD and two interceptions.

The win means West Virginia finishes the season 9-4 and wins nine games in a season for the first time since 2016. It’s a massive accomplishment for Brown and the team after he entered the season in danger of losing his job if West Virginia didn’t have a good season.

Brown was entering his fifth season in 2023 and the team hadn’t won more than six games in any of his first four seasons at the school. West Virginia went 5-7 in 2022 after a 6-7 campaign in 2021.

Virginia Tech: 2023 Military Bowl Champions

 

ANNAPOLIS, Md. -- — As long as he could hold onto the ball and keep his footing on a slippery day, Kyron Drones found plenty of room to run.

Drones rushed for 176 yards and a touchdown and also threw for two TDs as Virginia Tech withstood a second-half downpour to beat No. 23 Tulane 41-20 in the Military Bowl on Wednesday.

Drones fumbled three times in the wet weather, but the Hokies (7-6) only lost one of them. The sophomore quarterback passed for just 91 yards, but he and Bhayshul Tuten were tough to stop on the ground.

“It was tough conditions. You can't really simulate it like that,” Virginia Tech coach Brent Pry said. “They had the same weather we did. Both teams had to deal with it.”

Tuten finished with 136 yards and two touchdowns on 18 carries to help Virginia Tech snap a four-game losing streak in bowls.

“Any time we've had success this year, really, we've been able to run the ball,” Pry said. “That's who we need to be. That's who we want to be.”

Tulane (11-3) was without star quarterback Michael Pratt. Both Kai Horton and Justin Ibieta played in his place, but Ibieta was carted off in the second quarter with an apparent leg injury. Makhi Hughes rushed for 88 yards.

An unforced fumble by Drones gave the Green Wave an early lead when Tyler Grubbs scooped up the ball and returned it 21 yards for a touchdown.

“It was the first drive of the game and we still had a long way to go,” Drones said. “It was a next-play mentality.”

After a muffed punt gave Virginia Tech the ball at the Tulane 11, Drones ran for a TD on the first play to put the Hokies up 10-7.

Drones also lost the ball on that run, but he was ruled to have reached the end zone first.

Tulane had first-and-goal from the 1 when Horton was hit by Pheldarius Payne as he tried to hand off. The Hokies recovered that fumble to stave off a great scoring opportunity.

Virginia Tech took a 17-10 lead on Drones' 1-yard scoring pass to Harrison Saint Germain with 8 seconds left in the half.

Then the rain really seemed to pick up.

Jaylin Lane lost a fumble in the first minute of the second half, and Tulane took advantage of that short field, tying the game on a 6-yard scramble by Horton. But Drones broke loose for a 51-yard gain on the next drive, and Tuten's 9-yard scoring run put the Hokies up 24-17.

“We've been strong against the run all year. I think when you add the quarterback into it, that gives it a little bit different element,” said Slade Nagle, who was Tulane's interim coach after Willie Fritz left to take the job at Houston earlier this month. “He's a dynamic player that had a huge impact on the game.”

Drones threw a 10-yard touchdown pass to Benji Gosnell early in the fourth, and after Tulane lost its third fumble of the day, Tuten scored on a 12-yard run to make it 41-20.

THE TAKEAWAY

Virginia Tech: The Hokies lost three straight in September against Purdue, Rutgers and Marshall, but they did a nice job rallying for a winning season. Virginia Tech appears headed in a positive direction under Pry.

Tulane: The Green Wave have won 23 games over the past two seasons, but Nagle had a tough task in this bowl.

RANKED WIN

This was the first victory over a Top-25 opponent in four tries for Virginia Tech under Pry.

“This was the type of win we couldn't find during the regular season,” he said.

UP NEXT

Virginia Tech: The Hokies are scheduled to open next season at Vanderbilt on Aug. 31.

Tulane: New coach Jon Sumrall now takes over the program as the Green Wave try to build on their success these past couple seasons.

Kansas: 2023 Guaranteed Rate Bowl Champions

 

PHOENIX – The Kansas Jayhawks defeated the UNLV Rebels, 49-36, in the Guaranteed Rate Bowl inside Chase Field in Phoenix Arizona on Tuesday night, highlighted by six touchdown passes from Jason Bean and three touchdown receptions apiece by Lawrence Arnold and Luke Grimm.

Bean tied the Kansas football record with six touchdown passes and this was the first time two players have had three touchdown receptions in the same game in school history. Bean was named the Guaranteed Rate Bowl offensive MVP, while Kenny Logan Jr. was named defensive MVP.

The Kansas win gives the Jayhawks its first bowl victory since 2008, while the Jayhawks finish the season at 9-4, Kansas’ first 9-win season since 2007. The victory makes Kansas 7-7 in all-time bowl appearances.

UNLV scored first on their first possession, marching down the field on an eight-play, 65-yard drive, which was capped off by a 3-yard rushing touchdown by running back Vincent Davis. 

The Jayhawks evened the score while still in the first quarter on a six-yard passing touchdown from Bean to Grimm. The touchdown came on the heels of a 98-yard drive, which was Kansas’ longest scoring drive since 2019. 

KU got possession at its own 30-yard line with 5:03 to play in the half and drove 70 yards in nine plays, including a 44-yard reception from Bean to Quintin Skinner which moved the ball down to the UNLV one-yard line. On the next play, Devin Neal plunged into the end zone, making it 28-7, before UNLV knocked in a 40-yard field goal attempt to cut down KU’s lead to 28-10 heading into the half.

Following the halftime break, UNLV stopped Kansas on its first drive and moved to an 11-point deficit at 28-17 with 12:15 remaining in the third quarter on a 5-yard pass from Maiava to Shelton Zeon III. UNLV would add another passing touchdown on a 37-yard strike to make the score 28-24 with 10:30 left in the third quarter.

On the first play of the fourth quarter, Kansas struck back on a 40-yard throw from Bean to Arnold, which put Kansas back up 11 with 14:52 to play. The 40-yard touchdown reception capped off a 99-yard drive, Kansas’ second drive of 98 or more yards in the game to put the Jayhawks up 35-24.

After the long drive by the Jayhawks, UNLV responded with a seven-play, 88-yard yard drive to bring the score to 35-30. The Rebels failed to convert on the 2-point conversion.

With two receiving touchdowns already between the duo, Bean found Arnold a third time on a 56 yard screen play to put Kansas up further, 42-30 with 11:10 remaining in the game. The three touchdown receptions tied the Kansas bowl record for receiving touchdowns in a game, tying Dezmon Briscoe’s three receiving touchdowns set in the 2008 Insight Bowl vs. Minnesota. 

On the ensuing UNLV possession, Kansas cornerback Cobee Bryant recorded his fourth interception of the season on a pass by UNLV’s Jayden Maiava. Kansas would take advantage of the Bryant interception, as Grimm scored his second touchdown of the day on a 60-yard touchdown pass from Bean to put Kansas up, 14-7 with 11:37 remaining in the first half.

UNLV missed a 52-yard field goal on their next possession, setting the Jayhawks up with good field position for a five-play touchdown drive that covered 66 yards and was capped with a 15-yard touchdown strike from Bean to Arnold. At that point, Kansas led 21-7 with 7:57 to play in the half. 

On the first play of UNLV’s next drive, Maiava was picked off again, this time with KU linebacker Craig Young hauling in his second career interception. The Jayhawks gave the ball right back, however, two plays later as Bean was picked off in the end zone. Kansas then held the Rebels to a three and out on the next drive, setting the stage for another scoring drive. 

Grimm added another touchdown reception to his tally on a 43-yard strike from Bean in the fourth quarter to extend KU’s lead to 49-30. This was the first time in Kansas football history that two players recorded three touchdown receptions each. 

UNLV answered with a long touchdown of its own, completing a 50-yard touchdown reception before failing a two-point conversion. Kansas maintained a 13-point, 49-36 advantage with 6:25 left in the game. 

Kansas entered victory formation as it claimed its first bowl victory since 2008 with its 49-36 win over UNLV.

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