Dec 21, 2018 4 min read

Zach Wilson set a BYU record and tied the NCAA bowl mark with 18-for-18 passing, throwing for 317 yards and four touchdowns in the Cougars’ 49-18 victory over Western Michigan on Friday in the Famous Idaho Potato Bowl.

Selected the game MVP, Wilson tied the NCAA bowl record for completion percentage set by Riley Skinner at 11 for 11 for Wake Forest in the 2008 EagleBank Bowl.

Down 10-7 at halftime, BYU (7-6) scored 28 points in the third quarter. Wilson connected with Aleva Hifo for a 70-yard scoring strike, and Riley Burt had a 37-yard touchdown run in the quarter.

FIU 35, Toledo 32: FIU fumbled away the opening kickoff, gave up a touchdown 23 seconds into the game and found itself trailing by double digits by the end of the first quarter.

They needed a comeback.

And Anthony Jones might know more about comebacks than anyone on the FIU roster.

Jones – one of two FIU players who were victims of a drive-by shooting in September – rushed for three touchdowns, including the clincher with 41 seconds remaining as the Panthers topped Toledo 35-32 on Friday in the Bahamas Bowl. Jones tied a school record with the three scores, and FIU (9-4) set a school record with its ninth win of the season.

Jones and offensive lineman Mershawn Miller were shot in the city of Opa-locka, Florida – just north of downtown Miami – on the afternoon of Sept. 6. The alleged gunman is in custody and is facing two counts of attempted first-degree murder. Miller was hit in the arm; Jones was shot in the back and the bullet exited just under his eye. He lost about 20 pounds in the days afterward, during which he was fed by tube.

“This is a gift from God,” FIU coach Butch Davis said.

Eli Peters had three touchdown passes and threw for 264 yards for Toledo (7-6).

Memphis has issues: The Memphis Tigers’ formidable ground game took a big hit when All-America running back Darrell Henderson opted to skip the bowl game. Their offensive coordinator has already left for another job, and the defensive boss isn’t far behind.

The Tigers (8-5) are hoping to overcome those potential issues against Wake Forest (6-6) Saturday in the Birmingham Bowl at Legion Field. The Demon Deacons also will be without their biggest offensive star, wide receiver Greg Dortch, with a hand injury.

For Memphis, Patrick Taylor Jr. and Tony Pollard are expected to shoulder much of the running load.

“We’re all excited for Darrell and his future opportunities,” Tigers coach Mike Norvell said. “I know he’s going to be tuned in and watching and cheering. These two guys have prepared.”

Still, Henderson’s departure dealt a blow to the nation’s No. 2 rushing offense’s apparent advantage over the Atlantic Coast Conference’s 10th-best run defense.

He ranked second nationally with 1,909 yards rushing, while leading the nation with 25 total touchdowns and an 8.9-yard per carry average. Taylor has topped 1,000 rushing yards and Pollard is averaging 7.3 yards on 61 carries.

Army near first 11-win season:

During a 10-loss season three years ago, Army coach Jeff Monken saw something that made him believe the Black Knights were on the way to being a good team.

The freshmen from that team are now seniors going into their last game – Saturday against Houston (8-4) in the Armed Forces Bowl, when the No. 22 Black Knights will try to complete the program’s first 11-win season.

“Didn’t have a great start to their careers,” Monken said. “But for them to experience 10 losses, seven of them being by a touchdown or less, and they would just continue to come back each week and battle and fight to the end. I saw a fight in that team that encouraged me.”

Two weeks after beating Navy for the third year in a row , Army (10-2) is playing in a bowl for the third consecutive season. The cadets have their second 10-win season in a row, and an eight-game winning streak since an overtime loss at Oklahoma on Sept. 22.