The Connecticut Huskies had a chance to make a big statement for theBigEast when they entered the fourth quarter of yesterday’s gameagainstNo. 19 North Carolina with a 10-0 lead. Unfortunately for bothUConn andthe conference, they were unable to deliver on theopportunity.
NorthCarolina managed to score 12 straight points, including goingahead on asafety with less than two minutes remaining, to escape fromStorrs witha 12-10 victory. The Huskies got another solid performancefrom JordanTodman, who rushed for 61 yards and a touchdown on 18carries.
Pittsburgh 54, Buffalo 27
ThePanthers hadtheir way with Buffalo’s defense, scoring 34 points in thefirst half on their way to a lopsided victory. Quarterback Bill Stulland wideoutDorin Dickerson hooked up on three touchdown passes, whilefreshmanrunning back Dion Lewis has quickly helped Pittsburgh forgetaboutfirst round draft pick LeSean McCoy, going for 24 carries for 190yardsand two touchdowns – including an 85-yarder.
West Virginia 35, East Carolina 20
Speakingof players doing a good job of making their teams forget about NFLdraft picks, quarterback Jarrett Brown did a pretty good Pat Whiteimpression yesterday for the Mountaineers. Brown was 24-for-31 for 334yards and four touchdowns, as well as rushing for another 73 yards.
No. 23 Cincinnati 70, SE Missouri State 3
TheBig East’s only ranked team may have been playing a minnow in theRedhawks, but scoring 70 points in a game is impressive no matter whothe opponent is. Quarterback Tony Pike continued his hot start to theseason with 224 yards and three touchdowns, and Marshwan Gilyard hadsix receptions for 111 yards and two touchdowns, and added a rushingtouchdown as well.
No. 7 Penn State 28, Syracuse 7
InGreg Paulus’ first road game as a quarterback in several years, theOrange managed to avoid embarrassment, if not defeat. Paulus was14-for-20 for 105 yards with a touchdown and two interceptions, whilePenn State’s Daryl Clark proved once again why he’s one of the moreunderrated signal callers in the country, throwing for 240 yards andthree touchdowns.
Rutgers 45, Howard 3
Afterlast Monday’s disastrous performance at home against the aforementionedBearcats, Howard was just the kind of opponent the Scarlet Knightsneeded. Freshman Tom Savage made his debut at quarterback and lookedpretty good, going 8-for-13 for 223 yards and two touchdowns. Juniorrunning back Jourdan Brooks also had a banner day, rushing for 124yards and three touchdowns.
South Florida 35, Western Kentucky 13
MattGrothe broke White’s all-time total offense mark, throwing for 208yards and rushing for another 53 to surpass White’s total of 10,529total yards of offense. He also added two touchdowns in the Bulls’walkover of the Hilltoppers. Moise Plancher supplied support forGrothe, rushing for 115 yards and two scores.
tbontemps@nypost.com
