Dec 16, 2017 4 min read

Cedrick Wilson caught 10 passes for 221 yards and a touchdown, Kekaula Kaniho returned an interception 53 yards for a score and No. 25 Boise State beat Oregon 38-28 in the Las Vegas Bowl Saturday.

Brett Rypien threw for 362 yards and two touchdown passes – with two interceptions – to help the Broncos (11-3) break a three-game losing streak against Power 5 opposition. Ryan Wolpin rushed for two touchdowns.

Troy Dye and Tyree Robinson each scored a defensive touchdown, and Justin Herbert was 26 of 36 passing for 233 yards with two touchdowns and two interceptions for the Ducks (7-6) in new head coach Mario Cristobal’s debut.

Boise State forced four turnovers in the first half, taking a 14-0 lead in the first quarter on Wolpin’s 1-yard touchdown run and Rypien’s 26-yard scoring pass to Wilson, who was named the game’s most valuable player. Haden Hoggarth added a 39-yard field goal before an off-balance Herbert heaved a pass toward the sideline that was easily picked off and run back by Kaniho, who also had a strip-sack.

“I thought the defense was dominating today,” Boise State coach Bryan Harsin said. “We spotted them a few points, otherwise the score is completely different. I thought our offense moved the ball up and down the field, and Oregon had a very tough time stopping it.”

Oregon clawed back into it with two defensive touchdowns in the final minute of the first half. Dye recovered a fumble on a botched Statue of Liberty handoff and returned it 86 yards for a touchdown with 37 seconds remaining to get the Ducks on the scoreboard.

Marshall 31, Colorado State 28: Keion Davis rushed for 141 yards, including a 68-yard touchdown run, and Marshall had two other big scoring plays in a 31-28 victory over Colorado State in the New Mexico Bowl.

Chase Litton threw for 262 yards and two touchdowns, helping the Thundering Herd (8-5) hold off the Rams (7-6).

Tyre Brady had 165 yards receiving and gave the Thundering Herd the lead in the second quarter with a 76-yard touchdown reception. Tyler King added a 90-yard rushing touchdown.

The Thundering Herd are 11-2 in bowl games – 5-0 under current head coach Doc Holliday.

For Colorado State, it was another disappointing postseason. The Rams have lost four straight bowl games, and lost four of their last five this season after a 6-2 start.

Nick Stevens threw for 320 yards and ran for two touchdowns for the Rams, but was sacked five times.

Troy 50, North Texas 30: Brandon Silvers passed for four touchdowns and ran for another, Troy produced five turnovers and the Trojans beat North Texas 50-30 in the New Orleans Bowl.

Josh Anderson, filling in for injured starter Jordan Chunn, rushed for 113 yards and two touchdowns, and Silvers also scored on a short run to help Troy (11-2) win for the 21st time in two seasons.

Silvers passed for 306 yards. Two of his TD passes went to Damion Willis, who had 136 yards and two TDs receiving on a New Orleans Bowl-record-tying 11 catches.

Mason Fine passed for 303 yards and three touchdowns for North Texas (9-5), but was intercepted twice and fumbled twice. He finished with Mean Green single-season records of 4,052 yards and 31 TDs passing.

North Carolina A&T 21, Grambling 14: Lamar Raynard scored on a 1-yard sneak with 38 seconds left and unbeaten North Carolina A&T won its second Celebration Bowl in three years, defeating Grambling State 21-14 in Atlanta.

N.C. A&T (12-0) won its fourth Historically Black College and University national championship. The Aggies claimed titles in 1990 and 1999 in addition to 2015, when they defeated Alcorn State 41-34 in the first Celebration Bowl.

Raynard, one of four finalists for the Black College Hall of Fame player of the year, completed 23 of 43 passes for 225 yards and a touchdown and had 17 yards on eight carries.

The junior quarterback drove the Aggies 56 yards in seven plays for the winning touchdown, shaking off nearly throwing his third interception. Grambling (11-2) challenged, but the pass was ruled incomplete.