Top-ranked University of Southern California routed Washington State 42-12 in front of 35,117 at Martin Sadium.
The elements gave their best shot Saturday afternoon but were dispatche quicker than Washington State.
PHOTO: AP
A hailstorm hit during warm-ups, and Cougars fans screamed their approval, hopeful the weather might even up the odds.
PHOTO: AP
"I've never seen snow before," USC offensive tackle Sam Baker said.
Instead of shrinking, the Trojans embraced the freakish storm.
PHOTO: AFP
"I thought I was in New England," wide receiver Cris McFoy added.
USC coach Pete Carroll was thrilled his players reacted giddily to the hail and worried it might incite the fans.
"The crowd was trying to stick it to us there and we took the opposite approach," he said. "I think the Washington State fans thought that was going to do something to our guys. Instead, it was all these Orange County boys letting them know they could get out there and let them know it was going to be a fun night."
Unfortunately, the pregame storm departed before kickoff, perhaps bored at the prospect of what was about to ensue.
Wahington State (3-5, 1-4 Pacific-10 Conference) opened the game with a disastrous onside kick that traveled 2 yards. That gave the Trojans the ball on the Cougars' 37-yard lie and four plays later, Bush sprinted 19 yards around the right side for a touchdown.
USC kicker Ryan Killeen then pooched the kickoff, which an unprepared Washingtn State return unit failed to field, and Desmond Reed recovered at the 21-yard line. Two penaltes later, the Trojans were at Washington State's 4, and LenDale White eventually scored on a 1-ard run.
"We hadn't started playing, and it was 14-0," Carroll said. About this time, it apeared some fans were already heading home.
From there, the Trojans (8-0, 5-0) kept rolling as Matt Leinart (23 of 28, 235 yards, two touchdowns) calmly dissected the defense with short passes in the first half, compleing five passes to tailback Reggie Bush and four to tight end Dominique Byrd.
Bush returned a punt for a touchdown, undoubtedly reviving his Heisman Trophy hopes, and Leinart connected with Dwayne Jarrett on a 42-yard touchdown pass that gave the Trojans a 28-0 lead early in the second quarter.
The only remaining question concerned USC's chances of posting a third consecutive shutout. But that disappeared abruptly when Carrol emptied the bench, and reserve quarterback Matt Cassel had a nightmarish third quarter. He fumbled the snap on his first play, and Washington State recoveed at USC's 24-yard line.
The Cougars scored on a 24-yard pass from Alex Brink to Micael Bumpus as Carroll chewed out Cassel on the sideline. Cassel's next play was a rollot, and his pass was tipped by fullback David Kirtman and intercepted by linebacker Pat Bnnett, who returned it 28 yards for a touchdown.
Cassel fumbled a snap on the next series, and Carroll had seen enough, bringing back Leinart to protect a 42-12 fourth-quarter lead.
No. 2 Oklahoma 38,
No. 20 Oklahoma St. 35
Adrian Peterson rushed for 249 yards and Oklahoma State kicker Jason Ricks missed a tying 49-yard field goal with 11 seconds left, allowing Oklahoma to barely avoid another season-spoiling upset by the Cowboys.
Mark Bradley caught a career-high three TD passes as the second-ranked Sooners won 38-35 over their pesky rivals on Saturday.
Oklahoma (8-0, 5-0 Big 12) has won two straight over the No. 20 Cowboys (6-2, 3-2) since losing two costly games in the Bedlam series in 2001 and 2002.
Peterson had an 80-yard touchdown run in the third quarter that put Oklahoma up 35-21 and a 56-yarder on his next carry that broke the school freshman rushing record of 1,184 yards set by De'Mond Parker in 1996. Peterson now has eight consecutive 100-yard games and 1,278 yards this year.
He won the running back battle over the Cowboys' Vernand Morency, who had 93 yards on 17 carries and two touchdowns, including a 4-yard rush that pulled Oklahoma State within 38-35 with 10:34 left.
Maryland 20, No. 5 Florida St. 17
In College Park, Maryland, Joel Statham threw for 333 yards and ran for a score for the Terrapins.
Florida State (6-2, 4-2 Atlantic Coast Conference) came in with a six-game winning streak and a 14-0 record against Maryland (4-4, 2-3), which had totaled just 17 points in losing three straight conference games.
The Seminoles fell behind 20-10 before turning to former starting quarterback Chris Rix at the start of the fourth quarter. Rix threw his first touchdown pass of the season, a 16-yarder to Chauncey Stovall with 7:43 remaining that made it 20-17.
Florida State had two more chances, but one drive led to a missed field goal and another ended with a fourth-down incompletion.
No. 12 Michigan 45,
Michigan St. 37, 3 OT
In Ann Arbor, Michigan, Braylon Edwards caught two touchdown passes to help Michigan erase a 17-point deficit in just 5:44 of the fourth quarter and then grabbed a third TD in triple overtime to lift the Wolverines.
No. 12 Michigan (8-1, 6-0 Big Ten) moved a half-game ahead of idle Wisconsin in the conference and kept its hopes alive for a Bowl Championship Series bid. The Spartans (4-4, 3-2) had a chance to win at Michigan Stadium for the first time since 1990, but could not hold a 27-10 lead with 8:43 left.
Edwards caught 11 passes for 189 yards. Freshman Chad Henne was 24-of-35 for 273 yards with four TDs. Michigan's Michael Hart had 33 carries for 224 yards -- his third straight 200-yard game -- and a TD, but limped off the field during the first overtime.
The Spartans were without standout quarterback Drew Stanton after he hurt his shoulder late in the first half. DeAndra Cobb scored on a 72-yard run early in the first quarter and on a 64-yard run to put the Spartans ahead by 17 points midway through the fourth quarter. Cobb finished with 205 yards on 22 carries.
No. 8 Texas 31, Colorado 7
In Boulder, Colorado, Vince Young got a couple of bad throws out of his system early and No. 8 Texas rolled from there, getting 141 yards rushing from Cedric Benson.
Benson and Young ran for a pair of touchdowns apiece, linebacker Aaron Harris and safety Michael Griffin combined on a pair of turnovers and the Longhorns (7-1, 4-1 Big 12) stayed in the running for a BCS bowl by winning their third straight since losing to Oklahoma.
Colorado (4-4, 1-4) struggled on offense. The Buffaloes managed only one first down in the first half and didn't make it past the 50 until the fourth quarter.
No. 10 Georgia 31, Florida 24
In Jacksonville, Florida, David Greene threw three touchdown passes, including a big one in the fourth quarter, as the Bulldogs snapped a six-game losing streak against rival Florida.
Greene tied Eric Zeier's school record with 67 touchdown passes and matched Peyton Manning for the most victories (39) by a starting QB in NCAA Division I-A history.
No. 11 Tennessee 43, S Carolina 29
In Columbia, South Carolina, Erik Ainge threw three touchdown passes as Tennessee overcame early offensive problems to win its 12th straight over South Carolina.
Cedric Houston added a career-high 190 yards rushing and a TD as the Vols (7-1, 5-1 SEC) rolled past the Gamecocks (5-3, 3-3).
No. 15 W Virginia 35, Rutgers 30
In Piscataway, New Jersey, Chris Henry caught a 39-yard scoring pass and set up another touchdown with a long catch before being kicked out of the game.
Rasheed Marshall threw for two touchdowns and ran for another as the Moutaineers (7-1, 3-0 Big East) beat Rutgers (4-4, 1-3) for the 10th straight time. Ryan Hart threw three touchdown passes for Rutgers, which made the game interesting by scoring twice after Henry was ejected.
Northwestern 13, Purdue 10
In Evanston, Illinois, Noah Herron ran 3 yards for a touchdown with 38 seconds left to lift Northwestern (4-4, 3-2 Big Ten) to its second victory over a top 25 team this year.
Purdue (5-3, 2-3) had a final chance, but Taylor Stubblefield couldn't hold on to a 40-yard-long pass into the end zone as time expired. The pass came from backup quarterback Brandon Kirsch, who replaced one-time Heisman Trophy favorite Kyle Orton at the end of the third quarter.
It was the third straight loss for Purdue, which started the season 5-0. Orton put up gaudy numbers in those five wins. But he was uninspiring in back-to-back losses to Wisconsin and Michigan, and downright blah against the Wildcats -- in part because of a left hip injury. He was pulled for Kirsch after throwing his fifth interception of the year. Orton also had a fumble in the first quarter that set up Northwestern's first score.
No. 23 Iowa 23, Illinois 13
In Champaign, Illinois, Drew Tate threw a pair of 19-yard touchdown passes to Ed Hinkel and added a 5-yard run for a score, sending the Illini to their 14th straight Big Ten loss.
Tate's run capped a 16-point third quarter that helped break open a 7-7 game for the Hawkeyes (6-2, 4-1). He finished 24-of-34 for 243 yards and had one interception. Hinkel caught five passes for 108 yards. Illinois (2-7, 0-6) was held to a mere 58 yards rushing and dropped its sixth consecutive game.
Indiana 30, No. 24 Minnesota 21
In Bloomington, Indiana, Will Lumpkin returned an interception 42 yards for a touchdown and Matt LoVecchio threw for two scores as the Hoosiers scored 23 unanswered points for the upset.
The victory ended Indiana's five-game losing streak. It marked the first time since 1987 that Indiana (3-5, 1-4 Big Ten) has beaten two ranked teams in the same season and was the Hoosiers' seventh straight win over Minnesota in Bloomington. Indiana's last win before Saturday was at then No. 24 Oregon.
Minnesota (6-3, 3-3) lost for the third time in four weeks. The nation's No. 3 rushing team was held to 169 yards, more than 100 yards below its season average.
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