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The Honolulu Advertiser
Posted on: Sunday, September 13, 2009

Central Michigan surprises Michigan State, 29-27


Associated Press

EAST LANSING, Mich. — Andrew Aguila made a 42-yard field goal with 3 seconds left to win a wild game against a two-touchdown favorite in front of 70,000-plus screaming fans on the road.

And, according to him, that wasn't even his toughest kick of the day.

Moments after giving Central Michigan a stunning, come-from-behind 29-27 win at Michigan State yesterday, Aguila wanted to talk about the onside kick that gave the Chippewas the ball with a chance to win.

"The onside was the biggest kick. The field goal is going to be remembered, but the onside was executed perfectly," Aguila said.

No one would disagree. And Central Michigan has a marquee victory, though it was a nail-biter until the end.

Chippewa quarterback Dan LeFevour, who became the Mid-American Conference's all-time leader in total offense during the game, threw an 11-yard touchdown pass to Paris Cotton with 32 seconds left to pull his team within 27-26. Central Michigan went for the win, but the 2-point conversion pass attempt was caught out of bounds.

That's OK. Bring on Aguila, whose kickoff bounded over the Michigan State line and into the arms of streaking wide receiver Bryan Anderson.

The Chippewas (1-1) drove into position for a 47-yard field goal. Aguila missed, but Michigan State (1-1) was whistled for an offsides penalty, giving Aguila another shot from 42 — and he nailed it.

MORE BIG TEN

Indiana 23, Western Michigan 19: Demetrius McCray had a career-high 134 yards rushing, scoring on a 59-yard run, and the Hoosiers' (2-0) defense forced a late turnover to preserve their win over the Broncos (0-2) at Bloomington, Ind.

Northwestern 27, Eastern Michigan 24: Stefan Demos kicked a 49-yard field goal with 11 seconds left to play, helping the Wildcats (2-0) escape with a victory over the Eagles (0-2) after blowing a 21-point lead at Evanston, Ill.

Minnesota 20, Air Force 13: Nate Triplett christened the $300 million TCF Bank Stadium with a career-high 17 tackles and a 52-yard fumble return for a score as the Golden Gophers (2-2) rallied past the Falcons (1-1), which led 10-3 after three quarters at Minneapolis.

Illinois 45, Illinois State 17: Backup quarterback Eddie McGee replaced an injured Juice Williams and passed for one touchdown and ran for two more as the host Illini (1-1) routed the Redbirds (0-2) at Champaign, Ill.

ACC

Wake Forest 24, Stanford 17: Quarterback Riley Skinner scored on a 1-yard keeper with 2 seconds remaining, as the Demon Deacons (1-1) rallied from a 17-3 halftime deficit to defeat the Cardinal (1-1) at Winston-Salem, N.C.

Boston College 34, Kent State 7: Rotating quarterbacks Justin Toggle and Dave Shinskie each threw a first-quarter touchdown pass, and Toggle added another in the third quarter as the Eagles (2-0) rolled past the Golden Flashes (1-1) in Boston.

North Carolina State 65, Murray State 7: Russell Wilson threw for 228 yards and four touchdown passes, and the Wolfpack (1-1) raced to a 45-0 halftime lead in coasting past the Racers (1-1), who had just 36 yards on offense at Raleigh, N.C.

Florida State 19, Jacksonville State 9: Ty Jones' 1-yard touchdown run on fourth down with 35 seconds left gave the Seminoles (1-1) a 9-7 lead and Kevin McNeil returned a fumble for a score 21 seconds later to seal the victory over the Gamecocks (0-2) at Tallahassee, Fla.

Maryland 38, James Madison 35: After Dixon Wright was wide right on a 41-yard field goal try on the Dukes' (0-1) first possession in overtime, Nick Ferrara kicked a 26-yard field goal to lift the Terrapins (1-1) at College Park, Md.

BIG 12

Iowa 35, Iowa State 3: Ricky Stanzi threw four touchdown passes and the visiting Hawkeyes (2-0) forced six turnovers in beating the Cyclones (1-1) at Ames for the first time in six years.

Texas Tech 55, Rice 10: Taylor Potts completed 36 of 57 passes for 456 yards and seven touchdowns passes, including three to Lyle Leong, to lead the Red Raiders (2-0) over the Owls (0-2) at Lubbock, Texas.

MOUNTAIN WEST

Colorado State 24, Weber State 23: Guy Miller recovered a fumble with 42 seconds left as the Rams avoided an upset at Fort Collins, Colo., by defeating the Wildcats. Weber State led 20-17 at halftime behind TD passes of 10 and 14 yards from Cameron Higgins to Cody Nakamura, a pair of Baldwin High alums from Maui.

San Diego State 35, Southern Utah 19: Ryan Lindley threw for 287 yards and two touchdowns and rushed for another score to lead the Aztecs (1-1) and new coach Bradt Hoke over the Thunderbirds (1-1) in San Diego.

Tulsa 44, New Mexico 10: G.J. Kinne threw for 310 yards and four touchdowns, including two touchdown passes to Slick Shelley to power the Golden Hurricane (2-0) past the Lobos (0-2) at Albuquerque, N.M.

PACIFIC-10

Arizona 34, Northern Arizona 17: Nic Grigsby ran for a career-high 207 yards and ripped off the second-longest run in school history — 94 yards early in the third quarter — as the Wildcats (2-0) beat the Lumberjacks (0-1) at Tucson, Ariz.

Oregon 38, Purdue 36: Trailing 38-30, the Boilermakers' (1-1) Keith Smith found Aaron Valentin with a 15-yard touchdown pass with 1:01 left. But Kyle Adams caught Joey Elliott's pass for the two-point conversion to tie it out of bounds as the Ducks (1-1) held on at Eugene, Ore.

SEC

UCLA 19, Tennessee 15: Kai Forbath kicked four field goals and the Bruins stopped running back Montario Hardesty on a fourth-and-goal at the 1-yard line with six minutes left to beat the mistake-prone Volunteers (1-1) at Knoxville, Tenn.

Auburn 49, Mississippi State 24: Former quarterback Kodi Burns had three 1-yard touchdown runs and threw for another from the wildcat position as the Tigers (2-0, 1-0 SEC) cruised past the Bulldogs (1-1, 0-1) at Auburn, Ala.

ELSEWHERE

Duke 35, Army 19: Backup quarterback Sean Renfree threw two second-half touchdowns and Leon Wright returned two interceptions for touchdowns of 51 and 33 yards in final 1:48 as the Blue Devils (1-1) beat the Black Knights (1-1) at West Point, N.Y.

Pittsburgh 54, Buffalo 27: Bill Stull threw three first-half touchdowns to Dorin Dickerson, and Dion Lewis rushed for 190 yards with TD runs of 7 and 85 yards, powering the Panthers (2-0) past the Bulls (1-1) at Amherst, N.Y.

West Virginia 35, East Carolina 20: Jarrett Brown completed 24 of 31 passes for 334 yards and four touchdown passes — both career highs — and the Mountaineers (2-0) overcame special teams mistakes and 11 penalties to beat the Pirates (1-1) at Morgantown, W. Va.

SMU 35, UAB 33: B.L. Mitchell completed 28 of 47 passes for 352 yards and touchdown throws of 44, 32 and 6 yards as the Mustangs (2-0, 1-0 Conference USA) held off the Blazers (1-1, 1-1) at Birmingham, Ala.