Michigan State 17, Notre Dame 10: One of Michigan State’s freshest faces led the Spartans to a familiar result against Notre Dame.
For the second year in a row, Michigan State ran a quick slant against a Notre Dame blitz, and again it resulted in the game-winning touchdown.
“We wanted to keep that tradition alive,” said sophomore Charles Rogers, who caught the 47-yard game-winner midway through the fourth quarter to earn the 17-10 victory. “The seniors had been talking about it all week.”
It was the Spartans’ (2-0) fifth straight victory over Notre Dame (0-2), three of which have come in South Bend, Ind.
UCLA 13, Ohio State 6: Ohio State quarterback Steve Bellisari completed just 5-of-23 passes for 45 yards and threw two interceptions in the Buckeyes’ sloppy 13-6 loss to UCLA (2-0).
Ohio State (1-1) was unable to capitalize on four DeShaun Foster fumbles, scoring only on a punt block. Ohio State got little aid from its kicker, Mike Nugent, who missed a conversion attempt and a 28-yard field goal.
“The fumbles seemed like they were never-ending, we had more opportunities than we deserved,” Ohio State coach Jim Tressel said. “We need to grow up quickly or we will be in big trouble. We are just so young.”
Wisconsin 18, Penn State 6: Legendary Penn State head coach Joe Paterno was about ready to pull his hair out following his team’s 18-6 loss to Wisconsin (2-2).
Paterno, sitting on 322 wins, needs just one victory to tie Paul “Bear” Bryant’s Division I-A career wins record. And with the Nittany Lions sitting at 0-2, Paterno’s road doesn’t appear to be getting any easier.
“The only thing I feel like doing right now is punching a wall – I’m angry,” Paterno said.
Michigan 38, Western Michigan 21: When Michigan’s starting tailback Chris Perry left the game early in the first quarter with an injured left knee, backup ballcarrier B.J. Askew got his chance to shine.
He did just that – scoring three touchdowns on a career-high 112 yards rushing and 66 yards receiving – en route to a 38-21 Wolverines (2-1) victory over Western Michigan (1-2).
Purdue 33, Akron 14: Despite showing signs of inconsistency, Purdue quarterback Brandon Hance led the Boilermakers (2-0) to a 33-14 win over Akron (1-2).
Hance threw two interceptions, but hit wideout John Standeford for two touchdown passes and finished the game 21-for-37 for 252 yards. Joey Harris also broke a 58-yard scoring run – Purdue’s longest since 1999 – to lead the Boilermakers to victory.
Illinois 34, Louisville 10: Illinois cornerback Christian Morton finally got the touchdown he’s been predicting he’d get every week.
He returned an interception 33 yards for a score and the Fighting Illini (3-0) defense forced five turnovers in a 34-10 win over Louisville (3-1).
Led by a 102-yard rushing performance from tailback Antoineo Harris, the Illini racked up 504 yards of offense, compared to Louisville’s 338.
Utah 28, Indiana 26: Utah quarterback Lance Rice threw two fourth-quarter touchdown passes in 65 seconds to lead the Utes (2-1) to a 28-26 come-from-behind victory over Indiana (0-2).
Antwaan Randle El, Indiana’s multi-position player who started the year at wide receiver, took the quarterbacking job back for this game and threw an interception in the final minutes to allow the Utah comeback.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
