Murray's 5 TDs help lift Georgia
BY Associated Press
Wednesday, January 02, 2013
1/02/13 at 4:25 AM
Aaron Murray threw five touchdown passes to set a Georgia bowl record, including two in the fourth quarter, and the sixth-ranked Bulldogs beat No. 23 Nebraska 45-31 in the Capital One Bowl on Tuesday in Orlando, Fla.
Murray shook off a pair of first-half interceptions, including one returned for a touchdown, and passed for 427 yards - also a Bulldogs bowl record - against the nation's top-ranked passing defense. He was named the game's most valuable player.
Georgia (12-2) reached 12 wins for the third time in school history.
Nebraska (10-4) lost its third consecutive bowl game and finished the season with two straight woeful defensive performances. The Cornhuskers lost the Big Ten championship game 70-31.
The Cornhuskers led 24-23 at the half but committed two of their three turnovers in the final 30 minutes. Taylor Martinez had two interceptions and two touchdown passes for Nebraska and Rex Burkhead rushed for 140 yards in his final college game.
Nebraska's offense finished with 443 total yards, but the Georgia defense was stingy when it needed to be. The Bulldogs sacked Martinez five times, with All-American linebacker Jarvis Jones notching two. Damian Swann had both Georgia interceptions.
Outback Bowl: In Tampa, Fla., Dylan Thompson came off the bench to throw a 32-yard touchdown pass with 11 seconds remaining, giving No. 11 South Carolina a 33-28 victory over No. 19 Michigan.
Thompson replaced Connor Shaw during the winning drive, covering the final 43 yards after the Gamecocks' starter began the march from his own 30. Devin Gardner's third TD pass of the game had given Michigan a 28-27 lead.
Shaw threw for 227 yards and two touchdowns after missing South Carolina's regular-season finale against Clemson with a left foot sprain. Thompson led the Gamecocks (11-2) to a victory over their archrival and threw for 117 yards and two TDs as a backup Tuesday.
Gardner threw for 214 yards in his fifth start for Michigan (8-5) since Denard Robinson injured his right elbow in late October. Robinson took some snaps at quarterback, but he lined up mostly at running back and rushed for 100 yards on 23 carries.
Gator Bowl: In Jacksonville, Fla., behind huge interceptions early and late, No. 21 Northwestern beat Mississippi State 34-20 and snapped college football's longest postseason losing streak.
The Wildcats (10-3) earned their first bowl game win since 1949, ending a nine-game losing skid that was tied for the longest in NCAA history. They also celebrated double-digit victories for the first time since the 1995 Rose Bowl season.
Quentin Williams returned an interception 29 yards for a touchdown on the third play of the game, and Nick Vanhoose set up a late touchdown with a 39-yard interception return. Those plays were the difference in a back-and-forth game that featured more interceptions (seven) than touchdowns (six).
In between, Northwestern's two-quarterback system kept the Bulldogs (8-5) off balance most of the day.
Scrambler Kain Colter ran for 71 yards and had two interceptions. Backup Trevor Siemian threw for 120 yards and an interception, and also ran for a score.
Even with the turnovers, they were more efficient than Mississippi State's Tyler Russell.
Russell completed 12-of-28 passes for 106 yards, with two TDs and four interceptions. He had only thrown six picks in the first 11 games this season.
LaDarius Perkins ran 19 times for 84 yards for the Bulldogs, and freshman Josh Robinson added 91 yards on seven carries.
Associated Images:
Georgia quarterback Aaron Murray throws a pass as he is pressured by Nebraska defensive end Jason Ankrah during the Capital One Bowl on Tuesday. JOHN RAOUX / Associated Press
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