SAN DIEGO (AP) — With Caleb Williams watching from the sideline, Miller Moss threw a Holiday Bowl-record six touchdown passes in his first college start and Southern California ended a frustrating season by beating No. 16 Louisville 42-28 on Wednesday night.
Moss took full advantage of the opportunity he was given when Williams opted out. Williams, the 2022 Heisman Trophy winner and presumptive first overall pick in the NFL draft, watched from the sideline wearing a white T-shirt with his No. 13 jersey hanging around his neck.
Moss was 23 of 33 for 372 yards, with one interception. He broke the Holiday Bowl record of four touchdown passes held by four players, including Jim McMahon in BYU’s miracle 46-45 comeback victory over SMU in 1980. The record came late in the third quarter when Moss lobbed a 12-yard pass to a leaping Ja’Kobi Lane in the back of the end zone. Lane’s second TD catch of the night gave USC (8-5) a 35-21 lead.
Isaac Guerendo ran 23 times for 161 yards and three touchdowns for Louisville (10-4).
TEXAS BOWL
NO. 22 OKLAHOMA STATE 31, TEXAS A&M 23
HOUSTON (AP) — Rashod Owens had a career-high 164 yards receiving with two touchdowns and Brennan Presley tied a school record with 16 receptions and had 152 yards receiving in Oklahoma State’s victory over Texas A&M in the Texas Bowl.
Ollie Gordon II, the Doak Walker Award winner, added 118 yards rushing to finish the season with 2,062 yards of offense and help Oklahoma State (10-4) reach double-digit wins for the second time in three seasons after finishing 12-2 in 2021. Alan Bowman had 402 yards passing with two touchdowns and two interceptions.
Oklahoma State led by 18 at halftime but a 51-yard field goal by Randy Bond got the Aggies to 31-23 with about five minutes to go. The Cowboys missed a 47-yard field goal with 17 seconds to go and the Aggies (7-6) had another chance to score. But Marcel Reed’s pass was intercepted near the end zone by Kendal Daniels on the last play of the game.
MILITARY BOWL
VIRGINIA TECH 41, NO. 23 TULANE 20
ANNAPOLIS, Md. (AP) — Kyron Drones ran for 176 yards and a touchdown and threw for two scores and Virginia Tech withstood a second-half downpour to beat Tulane in the Military Bowl.
Drones fumbled three times in the slippery conditions, but the Hokies (7-6) only lost one of them. The sophomore quarterback passed for only 91 yards, but he and Bhayshul Tuten were tough to stop on the ground.
Tuten finished with 136 yards and two touchdowns on 18 carries to help Virginia Tech snap a four-game losing streak in bowls.
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.
DUKE’S MAYO BOWL
WEST VIRGINIA 30, NORTH CAROLINA 10
CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — Garrett Greene threw for 204 yards and a touchdown, Beanie Bishop Jr. returned a punt 78 yards for a score and West Virginia closed a season in which it exceeded expectations with a victory over North Carolina in the Duke’s Mayo Bowl.
Traylon Ray had a 75-yard touchdown reception on the first play from scrimmage for the Mountaineers, who won their final three games to finish 9-4 after being picked to finish last in the Big 12. Selected the game MVP, Greene completed 11 of 22 passes.
North Carolina (8-5) played without star quarterback Drake Maye and top wide receiver Tez Walker, who opted out of the game to begin preparing for the NFL draft. Conner Harrell made his first college start, completing 18 of 27 passes for 199 yards and a touchdown.
___
Get poll alerts and updates on AP Top 25 basketball throughout the season. Sign up here. AP college basketball: https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-college-basketball-poll and https://apnews.com/hub/college-basketball
Copyright © 2024 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, written or redistributed.
