Biggest Wins in Next Four 2007 Bowl Games Belong to East Carolina and Texas – Part 2
Here are the next 4 winners from this year’s 2007 college football game results:
Las Vegas Bowl – Brigham Young tops UCLA 17-16 with blocked field goal
Brigham Young, who led UCLA 17-13 at the half and didn’t score in the second half, barely held on to win 17-16 against UCLA in a game the Cougars should have lost.
After allowing the Bruins a field goal in the 4th quarter to make it 17-16, BYU’s defense went into the dumper behind K-Mart allowing UCLA to drive 87 yards in the final 2 minutes to give the Bruins scored a chip-shot field goal on the last play of the game.
Unfortunately for UCLA and fortunately for Brigham Young, a 280-pound Cougar lineman – Eathyn Manumaleuna (I think his last name is Hawaiian and 6 syllables) – who couldn’t jump out of the paper bag, raised his right glove and turned into a instant hero. . He will go down in BYU folklore history if he isn’t already there.
The win was the tenth straight for the Cougars who finished the season with an 11-2 record, not too bad by any means. BYU dodged a bullet earlier this season against Utah, converting on a 4-and-18 play on their game-winning drive to seal a 17-10 victory.
The Bruins only lost 2 games in their first 7, one to Utah 44-6 on the road (gag, gag, and gag) and the other to Notre Dame 20-6 at home in the Rose Bowl (good tort). UCLA then lost 4 of its last 5 games plus the Las Vegas Bowl to finish at 6-7, a losing season. No wonder UCLA coach Karl Dorrell was pushed out of the gate before the Las Vegas Bowl even started.
Hawaii Bowl – East Carolina defeats Boise State by field goal, 41-38
Speed killed the magic for Boise State this year when East Carolina, which took a 38-14 lead early in the third quarter, nearly sent the game into overtime when their star and game MVP Chris Johnson, fumbled as the Pirates were set to freeze the contest.
Johnson’s fumble was picked up and returned for a 47-yard touchdown run to tie the game at 38 with 1:25 left. East Carolina managed to drive to the Broncos 17-yard line and a late-play field goal by Ben Hartman sealed the deal.
All Chris Johnson had done until his inadvertent fumble was set an NCAA bowl record with 408 all-purpose yards for the Pirates. He rushed for 223 yards, caught 3 passes for 32 yards, and returned 6 kickoffs for 153 yards. Boise State, a 10.5-point favorite, managed just 3 yards in the first quarter, while East Carolina had 181 yards behind Johnson’s 106 rushing yards.
If you watched this matchup, Chris Johnson ran for the Boise State Broncos like they were standing still. The Broncos appeared to have lost a saddle and were watching his horse break away. It was Don James, the Dawgfather, who said “speed kills” while building the University of Washington into a powerhouse in the 1980s and early 1990s as the Huskies’ most successful coach.
Boise State had gone 13-0 last year and stunned Oklahoma with a miraculous 43-42 overtime victory in the Fiesta Bowl. This year marked the sixth straight bowl appearance for the Broncos, who fell to 10-3 while East Carolina climbed to 8-5. If Hawaii wins its bowl game against the SEC’s Georgia Bulldogs, Bronco mania could be in trouble. I hear it’s cold in the winter in Idaho.
Did I mention that Boise State was ranked 24th in the final AP Top 25 poll, 24th in the final BCS rankings, and 28th by Sagarin? Sagarin rated East Carolina 75th in his final poll; thus Boise State was a 10.5-point favorite.
Motor City Bowl – Purdue defeats Central Michigan by field goal, 51-48
Purdue was lucky to walk away from Dodge with a winner as the Boilermakers traveled to Detroit to take on the Mid-American Conference champion Central Michigan Chippewas in the Motor City Bowl. Fortunately, the Boilermakers’ Chris Summers stepped on the pedal to kick a final 40-yard field goal as Purdue left town on top, 51-48.
This was an exciting game for the fans, unless you care about defense. The combined 99 points tied the second-highest total for a bowl game in regulation play, surpassed only by California’s 52-49 win over Virginia Tech in the 2003 Insight Bowl.
The game showcased the quarterbacks. Purdue’s Curtis Painter set a school record with 546 passing yards on a 35-for-54 (65%) effort with 3 touchdowns and 2 interceptions, both of which came from receiver Dorien Bryant. Central Michigan’s Dan LeFevour was 17 of 34 (50%) for 292 yards and 4 touchdowns, and had another 114 yards on 33 carries.
LeFevour’s 19-yard scoring pass to Bryan Anderson with 1:09 remaining tied the game at 48. Sophomore LeFevour finished the year with 27 passing touchdowns and 19 rushing touchdowns, nearly matching the Heisman Trophy winner. Florida’s Tim Tebow as the only major player. college player to have 20 each in a season.
Purdue, which has made it an art form to retire in big games, blew no less than three 21-point leads before Summers decided to win one for a change. The Boilermakers were the favorites to win by 9 points. Purdue ends the year at 8-5 and Central Michigan fell to 8-6.
Holiday Bowl – Texas defeats Arizona State 53-34 for fourth straight bowl win
Texas quarterback Colt McCoy fumbled 4 times, but it still wasn’t enough to slow down his fellow Longhorns as they outscored Arizona State 53-34 to win the Holiday Bowl. McCoy was helped by the Sun Devils committing 5 turnovers.
Arizona State quarterback Rudy Carpenter had a horrible night, going 18 of 32 for 187 yards and getting sacked 4 times. McCoy threw for a score, ran for another and fumbled in the end zone and teammate Jermichal Finley recovered for another score. McCoy was 21 of 31 (67%) for 174 yards and rushed for 84 yards on 16 carries.
A stupid mistake by Texas coach Mark Brown’s stepson Chris Jessie spoiled the game but did not affect the outcome. Jessie touched an errant Arizona State fumble that was a live ball and the Sun Devils capitalized on the error to score a touchdown. “That’s the most unusual play I’ve ever seen in college football,” ASU coach Dennis Erickson said.
Texas led 28-10 at the half and would not be denied victory. Texas’ victory was their fourth straight in bowl competition and raised their final record to 10-3 while Arizona State fell to 10-3.
(Editor’s note: This is the second article in a series on the results of the 2007 bowling game.)
Copyright © 2008 Ed Bagley