Zbikowski sparks Fighting Irish to win over Spartans

Tom Zbikowski returned a fumble 75 yards for a touchdown and had an interception that set up another score for Notre Dame, which forced six turnovers and beat Michigan State 31-24 on Saturday night in East Lansing, Mich.

The Fighting Irish (2-1) got three interceptions and recovered three fumbles in their second straight victory. Michigan State fell to 1-2.

East

Nebraska 24, Pittsburgh 17: At Pittsburgh, the Cornhuskers (2-1) capitalized on four turnovers by the Panthers (1-1) and batted down a pass in the end zone on the game’s final play to preserve a win.

Syracuse 19, Cincinnati 7: At Syracuse, N.Y., tailback Damien Rhodes caught a 68-yard touchdown pass from Perry Patterson early in the fourth quarter to lead the Orangemen (2-1) to a victory over the Bearcats (1-2).

Penn St. 37, UCF 13: At State College, Pa., Tony Hunt rushed for three touchdowns, leading the Nittany Lions (2-1) to a victory over the Golden Knights (0-3).

Temple 38, Florida A&M 7: At Philadelphia, Walter Washington rushed for 119 yards and two TDs and threw for another score to help the Owls (1-2) snap a nine-game skid, beating the Division I-AA Rattlers (0-3).

Rutgers 29, Kent State 21: At Piscataway, N.J., Ryan Hart threw two touchdown passes and the Scarlet Knights (2-1) converted two bad punt snaps by the Golden Flashes (1-2) into 16 quick points in a victory.

South

Mississippi 26, Vanderbilt 23 (OT): At Oxford, Miss., Jonathan Nichols’ field goal in overtime lifted the Rebels (1-2, 1-1 SEC) over the Commodores (0-2, 0-2).

Virginia Tech 41, Duke 17: At Blacksburg, Va., Bryan Randall ran for one touchdown and passed for another score and the Hokies (2-1, 1-0) won their first game as an ACC member, beating the Blue Devils (0-3, 0-1).

North Carolina 34, Georgia Tech 13: At Chapel Hill, N.C., Jacque Lewis rushed for a career-high 161 yards and two touchdowns to lead the Tar Heels (2-1, 1-1 ACC) to a victory over the Yellow Jackets (2-1, 1-1).

Wake Forest 42, North Carolina A&T 3: At Winston-Salem, N.C., Micah Andrews rushed for 125 yards and three touchdowns in his first college game, and the Demon Deacons (2-1) beat the Division I-AA Aggies (1-2).

South Carolina 34, South Florida 3: At Columbia, S.C., Troy Williamson set a school record with 210 yards receiving and hooked up with fill-in starter Syvelle Newton for three long touchdowns to lead the Gamecocks (2-1) to a win over the Bulls (1-1).

Kentucky 51, Indiana 32: At Lexington, Ky., quarterback Shane Boyd had 335 yards of total offense and accounted for four touchdowns, leading the Wildcats (1-1) to a win over the Hoosiers (2-1).

Alabama 52, Western Carolina 0: At Tuscaloosa, Ala., the Crimson Tide (3-0) lost starting quarterback Brodie Croyle to a season-ending knee injury early in the third quarter in a romp over the Division I-AA Catamounts (2-1). Croyle was injured with Alabama up 31-0.

Maine 9, Mississippi St. 7: At Starkville, Miss., Ron Whitcomb threw a 17-yard touchdown pass to Kevin McMahan with 2:55 left, and the Division I-AA Black Bears (2-1) stopped the Bulldogs (1-2) of a victory.

Midwest

Northwestern 20, Kansas 17: At Evanston, Ill., Brett Basanez threw for a touchdown and ran for another, and the Wildcats (1-2) held off the Jayhawks (2-1).

Iowa State 48, Northern Illinois 41: At Ames, Iowa, freshman Todd Blythe caught three TD passes to lift the Cyclones (2-1) to a victory over the Huskies (1-2).

Illinois 30, W. Michigan 27: At Champaign, Ill., E.B. Halsey’s 40-yard punt return and a pass interference penalty in the end zone set up the winning TD with 1:02 left as the Illini (2-1) rallied past the Broncos (1-2).

Miami (Ohio) 40, Ohio 20: At Oxford, Ohio, Ryne Robinson had a 74-yard punt return for a TD to lead the RedHawks (2-2, 1-0 MAC) over the Bobcats (1-2, 0-1).

Missouri 48, Ball St. 0: At Columbia, Mo., the Tigers (2-1) scored four touchdowns in the second quarter and romped to a victory over the Cardinals (0-3).

C. Michigan 44, SE Missouri St. 27: At Mount Pleasant, Mich., Kent Smith threw for 303 yards and two touchdowns and ran for two more scores to lead the Chippewas (1-2) beat the Indians (0-3).

Toledo 42, E. Michigan 32: At Ypsilanti, Mich., Bruce Gradkowski threw for three TDs and ran for two more as the Rockets (1-2, 1-0 MAC) beat the Eagles (1-2, 1-1).

Southwest

Texas Tech 70, TCU 35: At Lubbock, Texas, Sonny Cumbie threw for 441 yards and four TDs to lead the Red Raiders (2-1) over the Horned Frogs (2-1).

Oklahoma State 59, SMU 7: At Stillwater, Okla., Donovan Woods threw two touchdown passes and ran for another and Vernand Morency rushed for 116 yards to lead the Cowboys (3-0) past the Mustangs (0-3).

Navy 29, Tulsa 0: At Tulsa, Okla., Kyle Eckel scored three TDs, and the Midshipmen (3-0) won their first three games for the first time since 1979, beating the Golden Hurricane (0-3).

Texas A&M 27, Clemson 6: At College Station, Texas, Courtney Lewis rushed for 165 yards and two touchdowns to lead the Aggies (2-1) over the Tigers (1-2).

Houston 35, Army 21: At Houston, Anthony Evans ran for 282 yards and two touchdowns as the Cougars (1-2) got two late scores to beat the Black Knights (0-2) and extend the nation’s longest losing streak to 17 games.

Rice 41, Hawaii 29: At Houston, Greg Henderson ran for 135 yards and two TDs as the Owls (2-0, 1-0 WAC) came back to beat the Warriors (0-2, 0-1).

Far West

San Jose St. 47, Morgan St 28: At San Jose, Calif., the Spartans (1-1) scored 10 points in 55 seconds in the second quarter to beat the Division I-AA Bears (1-2).

Nevada 31, Buffalo 13: At Reno, Nev., receiver Nichiren Flowers caught nine balls for 161 yards and two TDs to lead the Wolf Pack (2-1) over the Bulls (0-3).

Air Force 27, UNLV 10: At Las Vegas, Shaun Carney threw a pair of TDs to lead the Falcons (2-1, 1-0 MWC) past the Rebels (0-3, 0-1).