Hartford Courant from Hartford, Connecticut • Page E07

THE HARTFORD COURANT SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 16, 2008 E7 FOOTBALL HOW THE TOP 25 FARED NOTRE DAME 27, NAVY 21 ft flu YALE 14, PRINCETON 0 A Twin Killing Abare Brothers Set Up Yale TDs By JAY SPIEGEL jspiegelcourant.com NEW HAVEN Twin turnovers led Yale to a victory over Princeton two big plays by Bulldogs twins Larry and Bobby Abare. Larry's fumble recovery and Bobby's interception set up first-half touchdown passes by Brook Hart, and Yale won 14-0 Saturday before 5,711 at Yale Bowl. Larry Abare and Tim Handlon also had interceptions, and Yale did not turn over the ball in the slick conditions, posting its first shutout of Princeton since 1937. "Yale did what Yale has done all year; they created turnovers and got their offense great field position," Princeton coach Roger Next for Yale: Saturday at Harvard, noon, Versus Ivy League Standings Ivy Overall W-L W-L PF PA Brown 5-1 6-3 228 180 Harvard 5-1 8-1 264 178 Perm 4-2 5-4 167 145 Yale 4-2 6-3 197 95 Columbia 2-4 2-7 161 204 Cornell 2-4 4-5 179 223 Princeton 2-4 3-6 155 204 Dartmouth 0-6 0-9 119 315 Hughes said. "Bobby Abare is always around the ball.

They came, and quarterback Brian Anderson was scrambling a little bit and he was Johnny on the spot." It was Hughes' last look at Bobby Abare, Yale's captain and middle linebacker, but Yale coach Jack Siedlecki said that Larry Abare, who plays safety will take a redshirt year and return next fall. Larry sustained a season-ending knee Associated Press ROBERT HUGHES, center, helps Notre Dame to a 27-7 lead that the Irish almost blow in the final minute and a half before finally stopping Navy. Notre Dame Holds On Saturday Yale 14, Princeton 0 Harvard 24, Penn 21 Brown 45, Dartmouth 16 Columbian, Cornell 7 Next Saturday Yale at Harvard, noon (Versus) Columbiaat Brown, 12:30 p.m. Penn at Cornell, lp.m. Dartmouth at Princeton, 1 p.m.

Associated Press BALTIMORE A rain storm seemed to be the only thing putting a damper on Charlie Weis' day Notre Dame was a couple of minutes from giving its coach a drama-free and much-needed victory Then things got strange. A year after the Fighting Irish had their record 43-game winning streak against Navy snapped, Notre Dame had to withstand a frenetic rally by the Midshipmen in the final minute and a half to win 27-21 Saturday "We made the game a little too exciting at the end," Notre Dame quarterback Jimmy Clausen said. "But we're happy to come out with the victory" Navy (6-4) trailed 27-7 when Shun White broke loose for a 24-yard TD run that seemed little more than window dressing with 1:39 left. Then Navy linebacker Corey Johnson recovered an onside kick at the Notre Dame 41 and the Irish sent their first-team defense back in. It didn't help.

Ricky Dobbs completed a 40-yard pass to Tyree Barnes, then ran in from a yard out, and it was 27-21 with 1:21 left and another onside kick coming. The second worked even better, as Johnson came up with it. "Once we got the second one I felt in my heart we were going to win," Johnson said. Navy took over at the 41. But this time, Dobbs couldn't move the team and when his final pass sailed high, Notre Dame (6-4) could rest.

"Before we get going, anyone want to be on my hands team next week?" Weis asked after the game. "Any volunteers?" 1 ALABAMA (10-0) Saturday: Vs. Mississippi State, late Next: Nov. 29 vs. Auburn 2 TEXAS TECH (10-0) Saturday: Did not play Next: Saturday at No.

5 Oklahoma 3 FLORIDA (9-1) Saturday: Def. No. 24 South Carolina, 56-6 Highlights: Percy Harvin ran for a career-high 167 yards and two touchdowns, Tim Tebow accounted for three scores and Florida defeated South Carolina, handing former coach Steve Spurrier his worst loss in 90 games at The Swamp. The Gators won their sixth in a row, finished unbeaten in the Southeastern Conference Eastern Division and kept their national title hopes alive by beating the Gamecocks for the 16th time in the past 17 years. The 50-point drubbing was South Carolina's worst loss since falling 63-7 to Spurrier's Gators in 1995.

Next: Saturday vs. The Citadel 4 TEXAS (10-1) Saturday: Def. Kansas, 35-7 Highlights: Colt McCoy burned the Big 12's worst pass defense for 255 yards and two record-breaking touchdowns and Texas stayed in the thick of the national championship hunt in Lawrence, Kan. The win gave Texas (6-1 Big 12) double-digit wins for the eighth year in a row. McCoy was 24-for-34 for 255 yards and ran for a team-high 78 yards, including a 4-yard touchdown.

He hit Quan Cosby with a 9-yard touchdown pass and connected with Brandon Collins over the middle for a 36-yard TD completion that made it 35-7 in the third. That raised his total for the year to 31 touchdown passes, breaking his school record. Next: Nov. 27 vs. Texas 5 OKLAHOMA (9-1) Saturday: Did not play Next: Saturday vs.

No. 2 Texas Tech 6 SOUTHERN CAL (8-1) Saturday: At Stanford, late Next: Nov. 29 vs. Notre Dame PENN STATE (10-1) Saturday: Def. Indiana, 43-7 Highlights: Derrick Williams ran for one score and caught a touchdown pass, Daryll Clark threw for 240 yards and two scores and a stifling defense held Indiana to six first downs in State College, Pa.

Heavy underdogs coming into Beaver Stadium, Indiana (3-8, 1-6 Big Ten) trailed 10-7 at halftime in large part because of Penn State mistakes. One drive ended after Clark fumbled at the Indiana 1, while Kevin Kelly missed a 40-yard field goal to end another drive. Next: Saturday vs. No. 18 Michigan State 8 UTAH (10-0) Thursday: At San Diego State, late Next: Saturday vs.

No. 16 BYU 9 BOISE STATE (10-0) Saturday: Def. Idaho, 45-10 Highlights: Jeremy Avery rushed for a career-high 156 yards and two touchdowns in Moscow, Idaho, to help Boise State keep alive its hopes of returning to a BCS bowl. Boise State (6-0 WAC) won its 10th straight over the Vandals, and also clinched at least a share of its sixth WAC title in the past seven seasons. Next: Saturday at Nevada 10 OHIO STATE (9-2) Saturday: Def.

Illinois, 30-20 Highlights: Beanie Wells ran for 143 yards and a touchdown and Terrelle Pryor added another 110 yards in Champaign, III. The victory kept the Buckeyes in the chase for the Big Ten title. It was also revenge for last year's 28-21 loss to the lllini, which ended Ohio State's pursuit of a perfect season. A flurry of first-half mistakes doomed Illinois (5-6, 3-4), including a blocked punt for a safety and two turnovers. Illinois quarterback Juice Williams fumbled the ball deep in his own territory, setting up a Pryor touchdown.

Next: Saturday vs. Michigan 11 OKLA. ST. (8-2) Saturday: At Colorado, late Next: Nov. 29 vs.

No. 5 Oklahoma 12 MISSOURI (9-2) Saturday: Def. Iowa State, 52-20 Highlights: Chase Daniel threw for 328 yards and two touchdowns and Missouri clinched the Big 12 North and a spot in the conference title game by crushing Iowa State in Ames, Iowa. Daniel went 32 of 40 and completed his first 16 passes as the Tigers built a 31-7 halftime lead. Next: Nov.

29 vs. Kansas 13 GEORGIA (9-2) Saturday: Def. Auburn, 17-13 Highlights: Knowshon Moreno rushed for 134 yards and caught a pass for a touchdown as visiting Georgia held off upset-minded Auburn. The Bulldogs went ahead for good with 8:24 to play on a 17-yard pass from Matthew Stafford to A.J. Green and then stopped two late Auburn drives to seal the win.

Stafford completed 15 of 24 passes for 215 yards and two touchdowns. Next: Nov. 29 vs. Georgia Tech 14 BALL STATE (10-0) Tuesday: Def. Miami (Ohio), 31-16 Next: Saturday vs.

Central Michigan 15 TCU(9-2) Saturday: Did not play Next: Saturday vs. Air Force 16 BYU (10-1) Saturday: Def. Air Force, 38-24 Highlights: Max Hall threw for 354 yards and two touchdowns for BYU at Air Force Academy, Colo. Harvey Unga added two touchdowns in a 74-second span in the third quarter. Hall completed 28 of 37 passes, picking apart an Air Force defense that came in leading the league against the pass.

He threw a 6-yard touchdown pass to Austin Collie in the third quarter and a 45-yarder to Collie with 4:46 remaining, giving Hall at least one TD pass in 22 of 24 career games. Next: Saturday at No. 8 Utah 1Z N. CAROLINA (Z-3) Saturday: Lost to Maryland, 17-15 Highlights: See story, this page Next: Saturday vs. N.C.

State 18 MICHIGAN ST. (9-2) Saturday: Did not play Next: Saturday at No. 7 Penn State 19 LSU(6-3) Saturday: Vs. Troy, late Next: Saturday vs. Mississippi 20 FLORIDA ST.

(Z-2) Saturday: Vs. Boston College, late Next: Saturday at Maryland 21 PITTSBURGH (Z-2) Saturday: Did not play Next: Saturday at No. 22 Cincinnati 22 CINCINNATI (8-2) Friday: Def. Louisville, 28-20 Next: Saturday vs. No.

21 Pittsburgh 23 OREGON ST. (Z-3) Saturday: Def. California, 34-21 Highlights: At Corvallis, freshman Jacquizz Rodgers and his older brother James each ran for touchdowns for the Beavers, who won their fifth straight to move closer to their first Rose Bowl appearance since 1965. Because Oregon State defeated then-No. 1 USC 27-21 on Sept.

21, the Beavers hold the tiebreaker for a Rose Bowl berth should both teams win out. Oregon State visits Arizona next weekend before hosting Oregon in the Civil War rivalry game. Next: Saturday at Arizona 24 S. CAROLINA (Z-4) Saturday: Lost to No. 3 Florida, 56-6 Next: Nov.

29 at Clemson 25 TULSA (8-1) Saturday: At Houston, late Next: Saturday vs. Tulane MARYLAND 17, NORTH CAROLINA 15 Late FG Lifts Terrapins since 1997. Playing on a wet field, facing a strong North Carolina defense and starting 82 yards from the end zone with 10:25 left, Turner put together an impressive 73-yard drive to produce the only points of the second half. Using 19 plays and nearly nine minutes, the Terrapins methodically moved downfield. An 18-yard completion to Ronnie Tyler on a third-and-11 from the Maryland 44 helped, but the key play was a 9-yard run by Turner on a fourth-and-5 at the Carolina 32.

After Egekeze's field goal, Cameron Sexton's bid to bring the Tar Heels back ended with an interception by Jamari McCollough. Associated Press COLLEGE PARK, Md. Chris Turner engineered a dramatic fourth-quarter drive that produced a 26-yard field goal by Obi Egekeze with 1:42 left, and Maryland beat No. 17 North Carolina 17-15 Saturday for its school-record sixth consecutive win over a ranked opponent. Da'Rel Scott ran for 129 yards and a touchdown and Davin Meggett had 86 rushing yards for Maryland (7-3, 4-2).

The Terrapins can reach the Atlantic Coast Conference title game for the first time by winning their last two games. The Tar Heels (7-3, 3-3) dropped out of first place in the Coastal Division and remained winless at Maryland injury in the second game last year. The three interceptions gave Yale 19 this season to its opponents' three. Bobby Abare has 10 interceptions in his career, the most by a Yale linebacker. He seemed most pleased that it was his pressure on the quarterback that helped Larry get his second pickoff of the day.

"I think we just love the game, that's the thing," Bobby Abare said. "I love playing football and everything it teaches you." The turnovers and Mike McLeod's rushing helped Yale (6-3, 4-2 Ivy) keep possession for 36:45. McLeod (31 carries, 138 yards), in his last game at Yale Bowl, had the 22nd 100-yard game of his career, but only his third this season. "I absolutely hate rain games," McLeod said. "But if it means they're going to put the pressure on me and give me the ball however many times, that's great, too.

You just have to adjust." Hughes said that based on what he has seen, it was McLeod's best game of the season. "I don't know why his numbers are down, but I saw the old McLeod quickness, and the cutback, Hughes said. "Clearly, he played better than I've seen him play on film to this point." Larry Abare recovered Anderson's fumble at the Princeton 24-yard line on the Tigers' first drive, setting up Hart's 5-yard touchdown pass to Jordan Forney Bobby Abare intercepted Anderson at the Princeton 28 and returned it 11 yards, setting up Hart's 12-yard TD pass to Forney. Yale heads to Harvard (5-1 Ivy) next Saturday with an outside shot to share the league title. It will be the last game together for the Abare brothers.

"They play the game with such passion," Siedlecki said. "They play so hard and bring the other guys to their level." STATE Big Finish For Central MaHory-Led Run Game Rolls Past Sacred Heart Staff And Wire Reports James Mallory gained 150 of Central Connecticut's 337 yards on the ground and scored two touchdowns as the Blue Devils finished the season with a 49-14 victory over Sacred Heart Saturday in Fairfield. Mallory carried 25 times and scored from 7 yards in the first quarter and 18 yards in the third, helping Central (7-4, 4-3 NEC) to a 42-0 lead. The junior from Buffalo, NY, finished the season with 1,520 rushing yards and nine 100-yard games. Eric Richardson added 89 yards and two touchdowns on 12 carries for Central, and Hunter Wanket was 5-for-7 passing for 90 yards, with a 31-yard touchdown pass to Jermaine Roberts.

The Central defense held Sacred Heart (8-3, 4-3) to 35 net yards rushing. Pioneers' rusher vin Jones had 46 yards on 14 carries. Sacred Heart quarterback Dale Fink was injured in the first quarter and was replaced by Ray Sheehan, who was 19-for-34 for 214 yards and two touchdowns, with three interceptions. West Chester 52, Southern Connecticut 32: Jackson Fagan scored on a 61-yard run on the third play of the game and West Chester (9-3) never lost the lead against Southern (8-3) in an NCAA Division II first-round game in West Chester, Pa. Southern outgained West Chester 479 yards to 465, but Owls quarterback Chris Roberts was intercepted three times and Southern had five fumbles, losing one.

Roberts was 23-for-35 for 350 yards and three touchdowns, and also scored on a 3-yard run. William Paterson 34, Western Connecticut 20: Marcus McKinney had three second-half touchdowns and William Paterson (4-6, 3-6 JAC) scored the final 27 points of the game to defeat Western (2-8, 2-7) in Wayne, N. in both teams' season finale. AROUND THE NATION Ganz, Nebraska Pound Kansas State Joe Ganz accounted for 365 yards and four touchdowns and Nebraska manhandled Kansas State for the second straight year, rolling over the Wildcats 56-28 Saturday in Manhattan, Kan. Nebraska (7-4, 4-3 Big 12) routed Kansas State 73-31 last season, setting school records with 519 yards and seven touchdowns passing.

The Cornhuskers did it with a balanced attack this time, punishing the Wildcats (4-7, 1-6) at the line of scrimmage for 340 yards and four touchdowns rushing. Ganz had 270 yards and two touchdowns on 16 of 25 passing after his first attempt of the game was intercepted and returned for a touchdown. He also had 95 yards and two TDs rushing on 11 carries. Baylor 4 1 Texas 2 1 With two long passes and some nifty pitches, Robert Griffin helped lead Baylor to a rare victory over Texas in Waco, Texas, that ensured the turnover-plagued Aggies a losing season. Griffin threw touchdown passes of 31 and 55 yards and Jacoby Jones ran for two scores after taking late pitches from Griffin.

It was only the second time the Bears won in their last 23 meetings against Texas N.C. State 21, Wake Forest 17: Russell Wilson passed for two touchdowns and ran for another to lead North Carolina State past Wake Forest in Raleigh, N.C. The redshirt freshman was 16 of 33 for 152 yards. Clemson 31 Duke 7: C.J. Spiller had an 83-yard touchdown catch and a 24-yard scoring run to help Clemson win its 14th straight over Duke at home.

Iowa 22, Purdue 17: Shonn Greene ran for 211 yards and two scores for Iowa, and Purdue's desperation pass with 5 seconds remaining sailed long to preserve the Hawkeyes' victory in Iowa City. Wisconsin 35, Minnesota 32: Wisconsin capped a second-half rally with two safeties and a touchdown off a Minnesota turnover in the fourth quarter in Madison, Wis. Badgers receiver Kyle Jefferson was hospitalized with potential head and neck injuries after he took a hard hit in the second quarter and was taken off the field in an ambulance. Mississippi 59, Louisiana-Monroe 0: Jevan Snead threw three touchdowns and added two rushing scores as Mississippi became bowl eligible for the first time since 2003 in Oxford, Miss. Arizona St.

31, Washington St 0: Rudy Carpenter threw for 213 yards and three touchdowns to lead Arizona State in Tempe, Ariz. Carpenter, a senior, has 80 career touchdown passes, third in Pac-10 history. Southern Miss. 21, East Carolina 3: Austin Davis threw for two touchdowns, including a school record 97-yarderto DeAndre Brown, and Southern Mississippi defeated East Carolina in Hattiesburg, Miss. Surgery for JoPa: Penn State coach Joe Paterno may have hip replacement surgery following Saturday's regular season finale against Michigan State.

"I'm probably going to have to get something done with this thing as soon as the Michigan State game is over, the next day probably," Paterno said. Around the Northeast: Ryan Barnes picked off three passes including one in the end zone in the final minute to help Harvard hold off Penn 24-21 in Philadelphia. Newington's Austin Knowlin scored on a 76-yard punt return for the second straight game, leading Columbia to a 17-7 victory over Cornell in New York Quarterback Michael Dougherty completed 16 of 22 passes for 236 yards and two touchdowns to lead Brown over Dartmouth 45-16 in Hanover, N.H Matt Parent had six tackles, two fumble recoveries and a 100-yard interception return for a touchdown to lead New Hampshire over visiting UMass, 52-21. HEISMAN WATCH 78 yards rushing with 1 TD in 35-7 win over Kansas. Tim Tebow, Florida, QB, Jr: Last year's winner.

Season: 139 for 214, 1,904 yards passing, 19 TDs, 596 yards rushing with 11 TDs. Saturday: 173 yards passing, 2 TDs; 39 yards rushing, 1 TD in 56-6 win over South Carolina. Keep an eye on: Javon Ringer, Michigan State RB; Knowshon Moreno, Georgia RB. Sam Bradford, Oklahoma QB, So. Season: 224 for 325 for 3,406 yards, 38 TDs.

Saturday: Did not play. Next: Saturday vs. Texas Tech. Graham Harrell, Texas Tech QB, Sr. Season: 332 for 463 for 4,077 yards, 36 TDs.

Saturday: Did not play. Next: Saturday at Oklahoma. Colt McCoy, Texas QB, Jr. Season: 242 for 310 for 3,134 yards, 30 TDs, 559 yards rushing, 1 TD. Saturday: 255 yards passing, 2 TDs;.