Sporting Alert – College football bowl games final scores from the matches that were played on Saturday 19 December.
Check out all the NCAA College Bowl scores and fixtures
NO. 20 UTAH 35, BYU 28
Joe Williams ran for two touchdowns and Tevin Carter had two interceptions to help No. 20 Utah to a 35-28 victory over BYU in the Las Vegas Bowl on Saturday.
The Utes (10-2) took advantage of a shockingly bad start by the Cougars to score the first 35 points, which all came in the first-quarter from five turnovers.
Travis Wilson ran for a touchdown and Dominique Hatfield had a 46-yard interception return for touchdown for Utah, although they didn’t score again for the rest of the game.
“You are not going to lose a lot of games when you are plus-five in turnover margin,” said Utah coach Kyle Whittingham.
“Even though our offensive numbers were not good at all, we took care of the football. I am very proud of our guys, of our seniors.
“We send them off with a 10-win season and a guaranteed Top 20 ranking. A lot of good things for our seniors coming out of this game and I am really proud of them.”
Tanner Mangum passed for 315 yards and two touchdowns, but threw three interceptions, which contributed heavily to BYU (9-4) losing the Las Vegas Bowl.
Utah’s 35 first-quarter points set a Las Vegas Bowl record for a quarter, but Whittingham wasn’t impressed with the way his team played after the fast start.
They failed to score in the last three-quarters.
“We got complacent,” Whittingham said. “That’s on me. We’ve got to do a better job. Next time we’re up 35-0 we won’t let that happen again.”
ARIZONA 45, NEW MEXICO 37
Anu Solomon threw for two touchdowns and ran for another score, and Arizona held off a determined New Mexico to lift the New Mexico Bowl, 45-37 on Saturday.
“I’m proud of my guys, we had a lot of adversity this year,” Arizona coach Rich Rodriguez said.
“We finished it off with a win on the road, a bowl win. That our seniors can finish with a winning record is a pretty neat thing.”
The Wildcats (7-6) were also delighted to have star linebacker Scooby Wright III back from injuries, which hampered his season and the junior, who said he will enter the NFL draft, had two sacks and 15 tackles (11 solo) in his last game for Arizona.
“I’m healthy, that was the first thing, I was just playing the way I usually play,” Wright said.
“I’ve decided that I’m entering the 2016 NFL Draft. I feel like I’ve accomplished everything I wanted to in college and I feel like this is the right point.”
Cayleb Jones took four catches for 182 and a touchdown, and Jared Baker ran for 107 yards and three scores to help set up the victory for Wildcats.
For New Mexico, quarterback Lamar Jordan rushed for three touchdowns, in addition to throwing a 92-yard touchdown pass to Delane Hart-Johnson to get away from his brother in the family battle.
College Football Bowl Game Scores
Saturday 19 December Full
NO. 20 UTAH 35, BYU 28 – Las Vegas Bowl
ARIZONA 45, NEW MEXICO 37 – New Mexico Bowl
APPALACHIAN STATE 31, OHIO 29 – Camellia Bowl
LOUISIANA TECH 47, ARKANSAS STATE 28 – New Orleans Bowl
SAN JOSE STATE 27, GEORGIA STATE 16 – Cure Bowl
