College football Week 12 highlights: Washington outlasts Oregon State; Texas, KSU win
Week 12 of the 2023 college football season was full of exciting and close finishes.
A handful of ranked teams found themselves in tense battles in the penultimate week of the regular season. No. 5 Washington kept its perfect season intact, beating No. 11 Oregon State in lousy conditions on the road, 22-20. With the win, Washington clinched a spot in the Pac-12 title game. Also, No. 7 Texas found itself in a low-scoring battle against Iowa State before pulling away, 26-16. In another game with major Big 12 implications, No. 21 Kansas State defeated No. 25 Kansas in Lawrence, 31-27.
Earlier, top-ranked Georgia handled No. 18 Tennessee by double digits to keep its undefeated season alive and well. No. 6 Oregon also took care of business, scoring on all six of its first-half possessions to beat Arizona State, 49-13.
Kicking things off, undefeated No. 3 Michigan escaped Maryland on FOX’s “Big Noon Kickoff.” Recap all the action here. Elsewhere, No. 12 Penn State took care of business against Rutgers, while No. 10 Louisville secured an ACC title game berth — its first in program history — with a win over Miami (FL).
Here are the top moments!
No. 5 Washington 22, No. 11 Oregon State 20
There’s Rome!
Washington wasted no time getting on the board. Michael Penix Jr. led the Huskies on a 10-play, 63-yard drive on the game’s opening possession that ended with him connecting on a touchdown pass to Rome Odunze.
Beavers bring it, too
Oregon State responded to Washington’s opening punch with one of its own. It also went on a 10-play touchdown drive on its opening possession, moving the ball down the field before Damien Martinez rushed for a 3-yard score to even the game up.
Bad snap calls for safety!
Oregon State committed the game’s first major mistake, having a bad snap on a punt. Oregon State’s punter booted the ball out of the back of the end zone to avoid Washington getting an easy scoop-and-score or great field position.
Back-to-back fumbles benefit Washington
The rainy weather in Corvallis got to both teams early in the second quarter. First, Dillon Johnson broke off a long run that was going to put the Huskies just a few yards out from the end zone before the ball was punched out of his arm, giving the Beavers the ball.
But on Oregon State’s second play with the ball, Anthony Gould fumbled after making a first-down grab, giving Washington the ball back at the Beavers’ 19-yard line.
Washington capitalized on Oregon State’s mistake with Penix running in for a 5-yard score a few plays later to extend its lead, 16-7.
Martinez making moves
The Oregon State running back helped the Beavers get rolling after they went down 16-7, trucking an opposing defender for a 20-plus yard gain. The play from Martinez was the impetus of a drive that resulted in a field goal for Oregon State, cutting the lead to 16-10.
That’s what he does
Penix and Odunze connected for their second touchdown of the game in the final minute of the half, with the receiver making an impressive grab in single coverage for a 32-yard score. As Washington went up 22-10, Odunze made sure to tell the camera “that’s what I do” to help celebrate his 11th touchdown of the season.
Leave it to the Beavers
Oregon State nearly found itself in trouble early in the second half, throwing an interception on the opening drive to give Washington great field position. But the Huskies missed a field goal on the next drive, leaving the Beavers unscathed.
They took advantage of the opportunity, too. Oregon State went on a 16-play, 78-yard drive that nearly took 10 minutes, ending with a 5-yard score from Martinez to cut into Washington’s lead, 22-17.
Washington making the clutch plays
First, the Huskies’ defense showed up when they needed to, forcing the Beavers’ drive to stall around midfield. They brought the pressure on fourth down, causing QB DJ Uiagalelei to throw an incomplete pass.
Three plays later, Washington dialed up a play for its two playmakers to convert on third-and-3. They delivered, with Penix connecting with Odunze one more time to pick up the first down to seal the win.
An unworthy play by Texas
Struggling to score for much of the first half, Texas looked like it was going to finally string together a touchdown drive in the middle of the second quarter. Xavier Worthy took a reverse inside Iowa State’s 10-yard line, but fumbled the ball, allowing the Cyclones to prevent the Longhorns from reaching the end zone to keep it a 3-3 ballgame.
Finally, a touchdown
Texas scored the game’s first touchdown in the third quarter when Quinn Ewers floated a ball up to Jordan Whittington for a 23-yard score, giving the Longhorns a 13-3 cushion.
Quinn Ewers connects with Jordan Whittington for a 23-yard touchdown, extending Texas’ lead over Iowa State
Smooth pass to Sanders
Texas’ first touchdown opened up the scoring a bit. On the ensuing drive, Iowa State went on a seven-play, 83-yard drive that ended with Rocco Becht completing a 14-yard touchdown pass to running back Eli Sanders. While the touchdown made it a one-score game again, Iowa State wasn’t able to make it a three-point game because the extra-point attempt was blocked and returned the other way by Texas, giving the Longhorns a 15-9 lead.
Helming his way into the end zone
Texas capitalized off an Iowa State interception around midfield, scoring a touchdown a few plays later when Ewers connected with Gunnar Helm for a 31-yard touchdown on the first play of the fourth quarter. With the two-point conversion, the Longhorns went up, 23-9.
Fourth-and-Dean!
Iowa State opted to go for it on fourth-and-1 from its 34-yard line. Not only did the Cyclones convert, but they got points out of it as the play-action fooled Texas’ defense, allowing Easton Dean to slip open and run all the way for six. The score made it a 23-16 game with 12:44 remaining.
Easton Dean goes 66 yards UNTOUCHED in epic fourth-down conversation to bring Iowa State closer against Texas
No. 21 Kansas State 31, No. 25 Kansas 27
Wildcats running wild on the opening drive
Kansas State only needed a little more than a minute to find the end zone on its opening drive, moving the ball right down the field before Will Howard threw an 11-yard touchdown pass to Ben Sinnott for a 7-0 lead.
Stutter stepping for six
Devin Neal used some strong footwork to break out of tackles before darting off and scoring a 36-yard touchdown to help Kansas tie the game up.
No stopping Neal
The Kansas running back sprinted away for another touchdown, running for a 9-yard score in the second quarter. The touchdown gave Kansas a brief 13-7 lead as Kansas State blocked the ensuing point-after attempt and returned it for two to make it 13-9.
Kansas State finds the end zone again
The Wildcats’ offense found their groove again in the middle of the second quarter when Keagan Johnson hauled in an 11-yard grab from Howard to give them a 16-13 lead.
Lawrence scoring in Lawrence
After Kansas State took a 16-13 lead, Kansas went on a 13-play, 75-yard drive that took nearly all 7:26 remaining in the half. The 13-play drive concluded when Cole Ballard found Lawrence Arnold for a 5-yard touchdown pass to give the Jayhawks a 20-16 lead going into the break.
Cole Ballard connects with Lawrence Arnold on a 5-yard passing TD as Kansas grabs a 20-16 lead over Kansas State
There’s still no stopping Neal
Unlike its final drive of the first half, Kansas scored quickly in the first drive of the second half. Mason Fairchild recorded a 60-yard reception to bring the ball to Kansas State’s 6-yard line. Two plays later, Neal scored his third touchdown of the game that put Kansas up, 27-16.
Mason Fairchild’s 60-yard reception fuels Devin Neal’s 3rd TD of the game as Kansas extends lead over Kansas State
Giddy for a score
Kansas State climbed back within a score when DJ Giddens ran up the gut for a 2-yard touchdown run. With the ensuing two-point conversion, Kansas State made it a 27-24 game in the middle of the third quarter.
Will weaves his way in for six
Howard gave Kansas State the lead again in the opening minutes of the fourth quarter, taking the QB keeper and running into the end zone from 14 yards out on third-and-1 to make 31-27.
No. 6 Oregon 49, Arizona State 13
Boom!
Oregon was first on the board after QB Bo Nix found TE Patrick Herbert for a 23-yard touchdown on its opening drive.
Bo Nix connects with Patrick Herbert on a 23-yard passing TD as Oregon strikes first against Arizona State
Herbert again!
The Oregon tight end found the end zone for the second time in the first quarter on a screen pass that went for 49 yards.
Patrick Herbert goes UNTOUCHED on a 49-yard TD reception to give Oregon a 14-0 lead against Arizona State
Wheelin’ and dealin’
Nix added to his Heisman case in a big way Saturday, throwing three touchdowns in the first quarter. His third TD pass came on a 16-yard strike over the middle to his top receiver, Troy Franklin, to put the Ducks up by 21.
Seeing double
Nix didn’t stop throwing touchdown passes after the first quarter, though. On Oregon’s first drive of the second quarter, the Ducks were methodical in their approach to moving the ball downfield before Nix uncorked a deep ball to Franklin for a 45-yard score. Just like that, the shutout continued, 28-0.
Bryant blows by Arizona State
Oregon continued to make easy work of Arizona State’s defense, as Gary Bryant took a pass from behind the line of scrimmage 71 yards to the end zone. The score put Oregon up 35-0 and gave Nix five touchdown passes on the day.
Six for Nix!
Nix led the Ducks on a 98-yard touchdown drive — despite getting the ball back with just 1:06 remaining in the half — by pushing the ball downfield before connecting with Tez Johnson for a 16-yard touchdown pass. The score gave Oregon a 42-0 lead going into the break and Nix his sixth touchdown pass on the Ducks’ sixth drive of the game.
No. 1 Georgia 38, No. 18 Tennessee 10
Making a statement
Vols RB Jaylen Wright looked like he was shot out of a cannon on Tennessee’s opening drive, cashing in for a monster 75-yard touchdown on the very first play from scrimmage.
Not so fast
Tennessee’s lead was short-lived, as Georgia pulled out its bag of tricks to take a 10-7 lead late in the first quarter. Wide receiver Dillon Bell threw a beautiful pass to a wide-open Marcus Rosemy-Jacksaint for an 18-yard touchdown.
Georgia continued to fire on all cylinders as the second quarter continued. QB Carson Beck marched the Bulldogs down the field on a nine-play, 80-yard drive that ended with him throwing a 9-yard touchdown pass to Bell, giving him his second score of the day. Georgia added three more TDs — two through the air and one on the ground — to secure the win.
No. 12 Penn State 27, Rutgers 6
Hot start
The Scarlet Knights were first on the board with a 35-yard field goal in the first quarter, but their lead was short-lived. The Nittany Lions answered in the second quarter with a 2-yard rushing score courtesy of Kaytron Allen, good for a 7-3 lead.
Fumble!
Penn State got the ball back after a fumble by Rutgers QB Gavin Wimsatt, which was recovered by defensive end Dani Dennis-Sutton. The Nittany Lions capitalized on the turnover, nailing a 21-yard field goal to extend their lead to 10-3.
Double trouble
Allen got his second touchdown of the day in the fourth quarter, rushing three yards to put the Nittany Lions up by 14.
He’ll take that!
Penn State safety Kevin Winston Jr. stepped in and stole a pass away from Rutgers to give his team the ball back late in the fourth quarter. The Nittany Lions then scored once more to help seal the double-digit win, 27-6, at home.
With the loss, Rutgers’ losing streak against AP-ranked teams extended to 40. Rutgers hasn’t beaten an AP-ranked team since 2009, which is the longest winless drought vs. ranked opponents among all Power 5 schools.
No. 10 Louisville 38, Miami (Fla.) 31
Unstoppable!
Nate Kurisky had three catches on Louisville’s opening drive and nabbed his second score of the year to give the Cardinals an early 7-0 lead, but Miami didn’t waste any time knotting things up.
First, the Canes responded with a 21-yard TD by RB Mark Fletcher Jr., going all the way down the field in just five plays. That score was set up by a monster 43-yard gain orchestrated by QB Tyler Van Dyke and wideout Jacolby George.
Picked!
A massive interception by Miami safety Kamren Kinchens gave the Canes the ball back at midfield late in the first quarter. They capitalized on the turnover with a 15-yard TD by WR Xavier Restrepo to give the home team the lead.
Knotted up
Louisville tied things up 14-all with a 12-yard rushing score from Isaac Guerendo to close out the first quarter.
Going, going, gone!
Miami took control in the second quarter when wide receiver Brashard Smith took off for 34 yards and a touchdown to give the Canes a 21-14 lead.
The Cardinals almost evened things up before the half, but the extra point was no good, keeping the Canes ahead by one.
All the way!
After both teams added another touchdown and field goal, things were tied 31-all late in the fourth quarter, but it didn’t stay that way for long. Louisville QB Jack Plummer found WR Kevin Coleman, who blew past everyone for a 58-yard score to secure the win, 38-31.
With the win, Louisville will play in the ACC title game for the first time in program history.
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