Saturday, October 17

Troy 42, FIU 33
MIAMI (AP) - Levi Brown threw three touchdown passes and Troy defeated Florida International 42-33 on Saturday night.

The Trojans, who won their fourth straight, had 563 yards of offense, including 391 by Brown.

Brown was 28-for-37 and threw consecutive touchdown passes in a 21-point second quarter for Troy (4-2, 3-0 Sun Belt Conference).

Brown connected with Jerrel Jernigan for 40 yards and the first of three-straight TDs for the Trojans in the third quarter.

Jernigan finished with 97 yards on five catches.

DuJuan Harris had 86 yards on 18 carries for Troy, who trailed 10-7 before the 21-point outburst.

Florida International (1-5, 1-2) was led by Paul McCall with 257 yards, two touchdowns and an interception on 27-of-48 passing.

McCall threw a 2-yard TD pass to Jason Frierson as time expired to cut Troy's lead to nine.

Florida Atlantic 44, North Texas 40
DENTON, Texas (AP) - Rusty Smith passed for three touchdowns and ran for another as Florida Atlantic rallied past North Texas for a 44-40 victory.

The Owls (1-4, 1-1) scored 30 second-quarter points, erasing an early 13-0 deficit. Smith ended up with 308 yards on 21-of-40 passing, while Chris Bonner led all receivers with six catches for 134 yards, including a 31-yard TD grab and a 50-yard catch to set up the game-winning score.

After stopping North Texas on fourth down with 8:06 to play, Florida Atlantic drove 71 yards for the game-winner on Alfred Morris' 1-yard run.

Lance Dunbar carried 25 times for 238 yards and three touchdowns for North Texas (1-5, 0-3), which lost starting quarterback Riley Dodge in the second quarter with an ankle injury. His backup, Nathan Tune, was 11 of 13 for 122 yards.

Louisiana-Lafayette 30, WKU 22
BOWLING GREEN, Ky. (AP) - Chris Masson threw for 204 yards and two touchdowns to lead Louisiana-Lafayette to a 30-22 victory over Western Kentucky on Saturday night.

Masson went 16-for-25 and Yobes Walker added 24 carries for 97 yards for the Ragin' Cajuns (4-2, 2-0 Sun Belt Conference).

The Hilltoppers (0-6, 0-2), who have lost 14 straight games, took a 7-0 lead on a 29-yard touchdown pass from Kawaun Jakes to Rod Johnson. The lead was Western Kentucky's largest on any team this season.

Louisiana-Lafayette then scored 20 unanswered points and led 20-14 at halftime.

The Hilltoppers drew within one score with 5 minutes left on a 19-yard touchdown reception by Jake Gaebler, but the Ragin' Cajuns got three consecutive first downs to run the clock out.

Jakes finished 9-for-17 for 141 yards and two touchdowns, and Bobby Rainey added 117 yards and a touchdown on 19 carries.

Mississippi State 27, Middle Tennessee 6
MURFREESBORO, Tenn. - Missed opportunities in the red zone and second half turnovers were the story Saturday as host Middle Tennessee was held out of the end zone in a 27-6 loss to Mississippi State in front of 23,882 fans at Floyd Stadium on cold and blustery Hall of Fame Day in Murfreesboro, Tenn. Mississippi State was the first Southeastern Conference opponent to make an appearance at Floyd Stadium.

Neither team was able to mount much of an offense in the first quarter, which saw the first five total possessions resulted in punts. The Bulldogs were able to break free just past the halfway mark, at 6:24, when quarterback Tyson Lee went the distance on a 39-yard keeper for the game's first touchdown to cap a two-play drive and 7-0 MSU edge.

Mississippi State added more points early in the second half, at 11:42, when Derek Depasquale chipped in a 14-yard field goal for a 10-0 lead. The Blue Raiders held the Bulldogs out of the end zone despite a 16-play drive covering 78 yards. The possession, which was continued after a roughing the punter penalty on the next-to-last play of the first quarter, was halted at the seven-yard line.

Middle Tennessee (3-3) responded on its next possession with quarterback Dwight Dasher stepping onto the field for the first time. The junior quarterback marched the Blue Raiders deep into Bulldog territory only to be stopped at the one-yard line. Alan Gendreau then came on and knocked home an 18-yard field goal at 7:10 to close the margin to seven, 10-3, on a 12-play, 62-yard drive covering the next 4:32.

Another long sprint up the middle put MSU ahead, 17-3, as Anthony Dixon took the handoff and went 57 yards at 5:37 of the second quarter on the visitors' next drive as part of a three-play, 69-yard possession.

The Middle Tennessee defense racked up back-to-back sacks on the next Bulldog drive, turning the ball over after a Mississippi State (3-4) punt. The Blue Raiders, taking the ball at their own 49, had another promising drive stopped once it reached the red zone. The Bulldog defense was again able to keep MT out of pay dirt, forcing another Gendreau field goal. The sophomore tied the school record for consecutive field goals at eight on a 24-yarder with 39 seconds remaining in the half.

Middle Tennessee was facing a 3rd-and-15, but Dasher rolled out to his right and found Shane Blissard at the 9-yard line to continue the drive on a 22-yard strike near the sideline. It was the signal-caller's second long completion of the possession. He also found Harold Turner on the drive's first play for 25 yards.

On Mississippi State's first drive of the second half, the Blue Raider defense forced a fourth-and-short at its own 28. The defense, facing the one-chain length to the first down, stopped the Bulldogs and gave its offense the ball back on downs. However, MT could not gain any yardage on its possession and was forced to punt for the sixth time.

Again, Middle Tennessee's defense stood tall against the Mississippi State spread offense. Derek Depasquale increased the Bulldog lead to 14, 20-6, on a 36-yard field goal with 3:37 remaining in the third quarter. MSU originally lined up for the attempt at the 14-yard line, but a delay of game penalty backed the kick up five yards.

Early in the fourth quarter, Dasher connected with Chris McClover on a 36-yard touchdown; however, the play was overturned after an offensive pass interference call kept the Bulldogs up by two scores. On the next play, Corey Broomfield stepped in front of a Dasher attempt for an interception. The pick returned the ball to MSU at its own 27.

The Bulldogs were forced to punt and Heath Hutchins sent the kick to the Blue Raider nine-yard line. However, the play was ruled to be first touched at the 26 and was upheld following a challenge by the Mississippi State coaching staff. Dasher had a 12-yard run up the middle on the possession's first play, but two plays later, he again was picked off by Broomfield.

Middle Tennessee got possession back after a three-and-out, but Dasher's throwing woes continued with his third interception on the first play, this time by Johnthan Banks. Banks registered his second Blue Raider pass, stepping in front of a Sancho McDonald attempt late in the final quarter for the fourth MT turnover.

The Bulldogs marched down the field to decide the final margin after the interception. Dixon crossed the goal line at 3:25 from a yard out, capping a three-play, 25-yard possession and extending the visitor lead to 27-6.

Mississippi State controlled the line of scrimmage with a 333-248 advantage on total yards, including a 178-42 edge on the ground. Dixon finished with a game-high 135 yards on 27 carries with two scores, while Lee added 38 yards. Lee was 14-of-20 through the air for 155 yards.

Dasher was the team's leading ball carrier with 47 yards, while he completed 50.0 percent of his passes (11-of-22) for 129 yards.