Cincinnati and Rutgers picked up their fifth wins of the season, while South Florida lost their second-straight Big East game on the road. Connecticut picked itself out of the cellar of the conference, as Louisville took their place. Pittsburgh lost in non-conference play, their fourth loss in the last five games.
RUTGERS 21, NAVY 20
The Scarlet Knights rallied from a 17-7 third quarter deficit to win their fourth straight game, 21-20 over Navy. Brandon Jones blocked what would have been the go-ahead field goal for the Midshipmen with just under five minutes to play. QB Gary Nova finished 23 of 31 for 271 yards and two touchdowns, including a 20-yard pass to Tim Wright that gave the Scarlet Knights the lead for good. Nova also had two interceptions; one returned 16 yards by Navy’s Chris Ferguson to tie the game with 8:35 to play in the first half. Scarlet Knights RB Jawan Jamison ran 101 yards and one touchdown.
NEXT GAME: 10/21 @LOUISVILLE
UCONN 16, SOUTH FLORIDA 10
Twyon Martin stripped QB B.J. Daniels and Byron Jones picked it up and took it 10 yards for the go-ahead score as Connecticut handed South Florida its second-straight Big East road loss. Lyle McCombs finished with 130 yards on the ground for the Huskies. Both teams lacked for offense, as the lone offensive touchdown came on a 22-yard run by Daniels in the third quarter. The Huskies scored their first nine points on field goals and led 6-3 at the half.
NEXT GAME (SOUTH FLORIDA): 10/22 VS. CINCINNATI
NEXT GAME: (UCONN): 10/26 @PITTSBURGH
PITTSBURGH 14, UTAH 26
Utah continued its undefeated record against current members of the Big East, as Coleman Petersen kicked four field goals and John White ran for 171 yards in a 26-14 win over Pittsburgh. The Panthers led 14-13 at the half, but wouldn’t score the rest of the way. Derrick Shelby picked off QB Trey Anderson and returned it 21 yards for the score with just over a minute remaining to seal it. The Panthers offense didn’t get anything going, managing just 120 yards and getting its 14 points from special teams (a 98-yard kickoff return and 10-yard blocked punt return). Pittsburgh has now lost four of their last five games.
NEXT GAME: 10/26 VS. UCONN
CINCINNATI 25, LOUISVILLE 16
The Bearcats overcame a sloppy offensive performance, including a late first half interception return for a touchdown, to best Lousiville, 25-16. This is the third straight loss for the Cardinals. Cincinnati got it going in the second half, scoring 18 unanswered points. QB Zach Collaros ran it in from one yard out on 4th and Goal and Isaiah Pead broke away for a 50-yard score to make it 22-16 with the two-point conversion. Tony Miliano added a 21-yarder with just over a minute left to put the game out of reach. Pead finished with 20 carries for 151 yards. The Cardinals offense struggled mightily managing just nine points on three field goals. Teddy Bridgewater completed 17 of 28 passes for 195 yards and one interception.
NEXT GAME (CINCINNATI): 10/22 @SOUTH FLORIDA
NEXT GAME (LOUISVILLE): 10/21 VS. RUTGERS
SYRACUSE: BYE
NEXT GAME: 10/21 VS. NO. 13 WEST VIRGINIA
WEST VIRGINIA: BYE
NEXT GAME: 10/21 @SYRACUSE