Hines leads Duquesne to 31-10 win in FCS playoffs
TOWSON, Md. (AP) — A.J. Hines turned a screen pass into a 71-yard touchdown for the lead, rushed for 175 yards and another score and Duquesne defeated Towson 31-10 in a relentless downpour on Saturday to advance to the second round of the FCS playoffs.
The Dukes (9-3), who lost to William & Mary in 2015 in their only other FCS playoff appearance, will travel again next Saturday, taking on No. 5 seed South Dakota State (8-2).
In the first two quarters, Duquesne managed only a Mitch Maczura 32-yard field goal to end the second half, trailing 10-3.
But Daquan Worley scored up the middle on a 48-yard run early in the third quarter to tie the game before Hines took Daniel Parr’s pass to the end zone. Parr capped a 10-play drive with a 3-yard touchdown run in the fourth quarter before Hines went in from 3 yards out for the final points.
The Tigers, making their first playoff appearance since 2013 and third overall, scored on Tom Flacco’s 34-yard pass to Jabari Allen in the first quarter and Aidan O’Neill’s field goal in the second quarter.
The passing games suffered in the harsh conditions with Flacco completing only 10 of 33 passes for 127 yards with Parr 6 of 19 for 144. Duquesne outrushed the Tigers 282-230.

Miami wins regular-season finale, tops No. 24 Pitt 24-3
By TIM REYNOLDS, AP Sports Writer
MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. (AP) — The biggest contribution that a Miami player made on the Hurricanes’ regular-season finale against Pittsburgh apparently came a night before kickoff, when Jaquan Johnson addressed his teammates.
He likened adversity to quicksand, and talked about how to escape.
“It really hit us hard, in the heart,” running back Travis Homer said.
Homer was apparently listening, as were plenty of other Hurricanes. Homer needed only eight carries to rush for 168 yards, DeeJay Dallas ran back a punt for one of his two scores and Miami knocked off No. 24 Pittsburgh 24-3 on Saturday.
“I think our guys rose to the occasion,” Miami coach Mark Richt said. “It was very obvious that it was a dominating defensive performance, and I thought it was a dominating special-teams performance as well.”
The Hurricanes (7-5, 4-4 Atlantic Coast Conference) yielded only 200 yards, held Pitt to a 1-for-15 effort on third-down conversion tries and forced 12 punts in a game where they yielded only 11 first downs. Miami also had six sacks and 14 tackles for loss.
“We’re 7-5,” cornerback Michael Jackson Sr. said, “but we’re not a 7-5 defense.”
Dallas also had a rushing touchdown for the Hurricanes, saying afterward he’s gotten valuable help in recent days from a sports psychologist. And Homer is up to 969 yards this season, and would have a chance to become the 10th runner in Miami history with a 1,000-yard season if he gets 31 in the bowl game. His career rushing total is now 1,979 yards, which moved him four yards past Frank Gore for 12th on the Hurricanes’ list.
“Travis was the spark tonight,” Dallas said.
Kenny Pickett completed 14 of 22 passes for 130 yards for Pitt (7-5, 6-2), which had already locked up the ACC’s Coastal Division and a berth in next weekend’s conference title game against Clemson. It was a reversal of last season, when Miami had the Coastal clinched and lost to Pitt in the regular-season finale for both clubs.
“That’s the most talented defense we’ve faced by far,” Pickett said.
Homer’s 64-yard touchdown in the third quarter put Miami up 17-3, and matched the longest scoring run of his Miami career. It also continued his knack for breaking big plays for scores; he has 12 rushing TDs for the Hurricanes, the average length of them being 27 yards.
Dallas scored on a 65-yard punt return in the second quarter, giving Miami one of those for the second straight week. The one last week came from Jeff Thomas, who left the Hurricanes on Wednesday — team officials said he was dismissed, while Thomas claimed that his departure was by mutual decision.
Either way, it didn’t derail Miami on its Senior Day, even with the passing game struggling again. N’Kosi Perry completed only six of 24 passes for 52 yards, though was hurt by no fewer than seven dropped passes. It was the lowest passing total Miami posted in an ACC game, four yards shy of the 56 the Hurricanes managed against Georgia Tech in 2007.
Alex Kessman’s 40-yard field goal for Pitt late in the third quarter allowed the Panthers to avoid the shutout. This was the first ACC season since 2009 that there were no shutouts in conference games.
“Ran into a buzzsaw today,” Pitt coach Pat Narduzzi said.
THE TAKEAWAY
Pittsburgh: The Panthers had won four straight before Saturday, averaging 40.8 points in those games. It was Pitt’s lowest point total since 2010 — a 31-3 loss to Miami.
Miami: The Hurricanes’ bowl game gives Richt a chance at winning at least eight games for the 17th time in his 18 seasons as a head coach. Miami still has not had a one-game streak of anything under Richt, whose Hurricane tenure has gone thusly — four wins, then four losses, then 15 wins, then four losses, then five wins, then four losses and, now, two wins.
POLL IMPLICATIONS
The Panthers will almost certainly fall out of the AP Top 25 after one week. The last time Pitt lasted more than two consecutive weeks in the poll was 2009. This current appearance was only the fifth for Pitt in the last 142 editions of the AP Top 25.
WILD COASTAL
The Coastal this year featured Pitt losing to North Carolina, North Carolina going 0-7 in all other ACC games, Miami rolling past Virginia Tech, Virginia Tech beating Virginia and Virginia beating Miami. In other words, the Coastal made minimal sense.
UP NEXT
Pittsburgh: Faces Clemson in ACC title game at Charlotte, North Carolina on Dec. 1.
Miami: Awaits bowl-destination announcement on Dec. 2.
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McSorley helps No. 15 Penn State rout Maryland 38-3
By TRAVIS JOHNSON, The Associated Press
STATE COLLEGE, Pa. (AP) — Just before he ran out of the Beaver Stadium tunnel for the last time, Trace McSorley gathered his teammates and made a promise he probably didn’t have to make.
“I just said, ‘I promise you guys that I’m going to leave everything out there today,'” McSorley said following No. 15 Penn State’s 38-3 victory over Maryland on Saturday.
But they’ve already come to expect that from No. 9 — the program’s winningest quarterback.
McSorley completed 12 of 22 passes for 230 yards and had a hand in three touchdowns to power No. 15 Penn State (9-3, 6-3 Big Ten, No. 12 CFP) to its third straight win and help its chances at playing in a New Year’s Six bowl game.
The senior dual-threat added 64 rushing yards on 11 carries for the Nittany Lions and made good on his promise by doing literally everything he could to ensure a win.
He threw a 34-yard bullet through freezing rain to KJ Hamler on the game’s first play, sprinted downfield to throw a block that opened Miles Sanders up for a 35-yard run on the next, then skipped into the end zone from 3 yards out to cap the quick opening drive.
McSorley added another touchdown run two possessions later when he scrambled through a pair of defenders up the middle for 20 yards and a 14-3 lead. Later, his teammates jumped up and down on the sideline when the shifty running opted to bowl over Maryland safety Jordan Mosley, rather than juke around him in the open field, to pick up 17 on 3rd-and-15.
“With Trace, it’s not the sexy quote that you guys are looking for, but It’s consistency,” Penn State coach James Franklin said. “You love Trace as what you want in all your players because he’s the same guy every day. The guy hasn’t had a bad day in five years.”
Ricky Slade added 8- and 1-yard touchdown runs and tight end Pat Freiermuth caught a 5-yard touchdown pass from McSorley in the fourth quarter.
Sanders finished with 128 yards on 14 carries, Hamler caught three passes for 90 yards and Jake Pinegar added a 25-yard field goal for the Nittany Lions who won their third straight.
Tyrrell Pigrome completed 14 of 23 passes for 185 yards but was sacked five times for the Terrapins (5-7, 3-6). They will miss out on a bowl trip for the third time since joining the Big Ten.
Maryland kicker Joseph Petrino made a 26-yard field goal to break the shutout.
“We obviously left some plays out on the field today,” Maryland interim coach Matt Canada said. “I’m disappointed in that for our players. It’s hard to see that happen when you know how bad they wanted it.”
SHUTDOWN D
Since it was shredded by No. 4 Michigan on Nov. 3, Penn State’s defense has played near-flawless football.
The Nittany Lions notched five sacks and 15 tackles for loss on the afternoon. They finished the season with 33 stops behind the line of scrimmage over the final three weeks. Controlling the edges was a focus against the Terps who racked up 353 and 339 rushing yards in each of their last two games.
But Maryland speedster Anthony McFarland was held in check all afternoon. He finished with just 12 yards on six carries while Javon Leake led the Terps with 34 rushing yards on 11 touches.
“Guys wanted to have no regrets,” Penn State safety Nick Scott said. “Finishing it off the right way was something that was huge for us.”
THE TAKEAWAY
Maryland: A year that began with the death of offensive lineman Jordan McNair following a team workout in the spring ends on a 4-game losing streak for the Terrapins who’ll miss out on a bowl game for a second straight season. The program will have to make a call on Canada, but Maryland has a nice class of freshman to give whoever takes over a young core to build around.
Penn State: The Nittany Lions spent much of this season trying to iron wrinkles out on offense with a new coordinator and a few fresh skill players. Their defense, meanwhile, spent the last three weeks of the season blossoming. After giving up 42 points to No. 4 Michigan in Ann Arbor on Nov. 3, Penn State allowed just 10, seven and three over its last three games. Much of that success can be traced to a front seven that helped produce 43 sacks on the season.
UP NEXT:
Maryland: Season over.
Penn State: Await bowl destination.
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