Toledo beats Pitt 48-46 in bowl-record 6 overtimes

DETROIT (AP) — Tucker Gleason ran for one overtime score and threw for four more as Toledo beat Pittsburgh 48-46 in a bowl-record six overtimes at the GameAbove Sports Bowl at Ford Field on Thursday.

The game surpassed the previous mark set 48 hours earlier when South Florida beat San Jose State 41-39 in the Hawaii Bowl on Tuesday.

Pitt freshman Julian Dugger, making his college debut, ran for two overtime scores and threw for two more, but his incomplete pass in the sixth overtime ended the game.

After Gleason and Dugger traded rushing touchdowns in the first overtime, each team got a field goal in the second. Each threw two-point passes in the third overtime, and Gleason got another in the fourth to make it 44-42.

Dugger was sacked, apparently ending the game, but the Rockets were called for holding. Dugger was ruled short on a sneak attempt, sending Toledo rushing onto the field for a second time, but replay ruled he crossed the plane.

In the fifth overtime, Dugger made it 46-44 with a scoring pass to Gavin Bartholomew, but Gleason tied it with his fifth scoring pass of the game. The sixth put Toledo back in front, and Dugger was pressured into a bad throw to end the game.

The Panthers played without starting quarterback Eli Holstein (leg) and backup Nate Yarnell (transfer portal). David Lynch, a redshirt freshman walk-on, started his first game but was pulled in the third quarter after throwing two interceptions.

RATE BOWL

KANSAS STATE 44, RUTGERS 41

PHOENIX (AP) — Dylan Edwards ran for 196 yards and scored his third touchdown on a 36-yard run in the fourth quarter, helping Kansas State rally past Rutgers in the Rate Bowl on Thursday night.

The Scarlet Knights (7-6) led by 10 at halftime and went up 34-17 on Ja’shon Benjamin’s 7-yard touchdown catch on the opening drive of the second half. But Edwards and the Wildcats (9-4) stormed back.

Edwards scored on 65-yard touchdown run and, after an interception thrown by Rutgers’ Athan Kaliakmanis, Garrett Oakley caught a 13-yard touchdown pass to pull Kansas State within five. The Wildcats failed 2-point conversions after both touchdowns.

Rutgers briefly regained momentum, going up 41-29 early in the fourth quarter on Antwan Raymond’s 1-yard TD run on a fake tush push.

Kansas State answered with Avery Johnson’s 9-yard touchdown pass to Jadon Jackson. Edwards followed with his 36-yard score, capping an impressive night in place of DJ Giddens, who opted out of the bowl game to prepare for the NFL draft.

Kansas State closed it out by stopping Rutgers on fourth down near midfield with just under two minutes left

68 VENTURES BOWL

ARKANSAS ST. 38, BOWLING GREEN 31

MOBILE, Ala. (AP) — Jaylen Raynor passed for 221 yards and two touchdowns to go with a rushing score, and Zak Wallace had 99 yards rushing and a TD to help Arkansas State beat Bowling Green in the 68 Ventures Bowl.

Wallace scored on a 14-yard run with 3:10 left in the fourth quarter for a 38-24 lead. He carried the ball on the last six plays of the drive, gaining 59 yards on the eight-play, 68-yard march. It was his 11th rushing touchdown of the season, nine coming in the last six games.

Rahkeem Smith returned the ensuing kickoff 58 yards to give Bowling Green a short field. Five plays later, Smith made a 23-yard catch in the end zone to get within 38-31.

Hunter Summers easily recovered the onside kick and Wallace powered through the middle of the defense for a 19-yard gain to seal it.

Corey Rucker added 107 yards receiving and two touchdowns for Arkansas State (8-5), which won a bowl game for the first time since 2019 — the same year it last won eight games in a season.

Rucker caught a long pass from Raynor and raced for a 79-yard touchdown for a 24-14 lead with 4:13 left in the first half. Following a fumble recovery by Noah Collins, Raynor found Rucker for a 6-yard TD to make it 31-21 early in the third.

Connor Bazelak threw for 390 yards and three touchdowns for Bowling Green (7-6). Harold Fannin Jr. had 17 catches for a career-high 213 yards and a touchdown.

The Associated Press