Thursday’s schedule of college football bowl games made for excellent viewing.
All three games were decided by one score or less, which was a relief after the first round of the College Football Playoff had each game end with a difference of 10 or more points.
To start Thursday, Toledo defeated Pittsburgh 48-46 in the GameAbove Sports Bowl after a six-overtime contest. Then Kansas State stormed back from a 17-point second-half deficit to defeat Rutgers 44-41 in the Rate Bowl.
A college football upset happened on Thursday night
Arkansas State battled Bowling Green in the 68 Ventures Bowl in front of 19,582 fans at Hancock Whitney Stadim in Mobile, Alabama, to cap the night. Arkansas bolted out to a 17-7 lead in the first quarter. The Red Wolves would eye a 24-21 advantage over the Falcons at halftime.
A touchdown pass from quarterback Jaylen Raynor to Corey Rucker in the third quarter would put Arkansas St. up 31-21. The Red Wolves would extend their lead 38-24 in the fourth quarter via a 14-yard touchdown run by Zak Wallace.
Bowling Green football tried to make a late comeback
Bowling Green would make things interesting when quarterback Connor Bazelak hit Rahkeem Smith for a 23-yard touchdown to make the score 38-31 with just under two minutes to play in the fourth quarter. However, a 19-yard run by Wallace would give the Red Wolves a first down and allow them to run out the clock to earn a win over the Falcons.
Wallace finished with 99 yards and a touchdown on 15 carries.
Bowling Green outgained Arkansas State 433-232 in total yards. Bazelak had a strong night for the Falcons, going 32-of-49 for 390 yards and three touchdowns in the loss.
Arkansas State wasn’t given much of a chance to win on Thursday night. Per ESPN BET, the Red Wolves were a 10.5-point underdog in the 68 Ventures Bowl. They improved to 8-5 on the season and 4-7 all-time in bowl games.
Bowling Green dropped to 7-6 and 5-9 in bowl appearances.
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