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The Spokesman-Review Newspaper
Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

Top 25 in brief: Auburn rolls into title game

Cam Newton left nothing to chance. He ran and passed the Auburn Tigers to a shot at the national championship they were denied six years ago, and he might as well start working on that Heisman pose, too.

Newton passed for a career-high 335 yards and four touchdowns, plus ran for a pair of TDs in an MVP performance that led No. 2 Auburn (13-0) to the Southeastern Conference championship with a 56-17 rout of Steve Spurrier and No. 18 South Carolina (9-4) on Saturday in Atlanta.

The Tigers, who came into the day sitting atop the Bowl Championship Series standings, must wait 24 hours before getting the official word, but it’s nothing more than a formality: They’ll be playing Oregon for the national title on Jan. 10 in Glendale, Ariz.

(9) Boise State 50, Utah State 14: Kellen Moore threw three TD passes, ran for another score and the Broncos (11-1, 7-1) bounced back from a loss that ended its BCS hopes, beating the Aggies (4-8, 2-6) in Boise in their Western Athletic Conference farewell.

Broncos linebacker Derrell Acrey returned an interception 31 yards for a TD on Utah State’s first play of the game.

(10) Oklahoma 23, (13) Nebraska 20: Travis Lewis had an interception in the end zone and recovered two fumbles as the Sooners (11-2) rallied from a 17-point deficit to beat Nebraska (10-3) in the Big 12 championship in Arlington, Texas, the Cornhuskers’ last game in the conference.

Landry Jones threw for 342 yards and a touchdown and also sneaked in for another score from 1 yard out as the Sooners made the biggest comeback in Big 12 championship history to earn a spot in the Fiesta Bowl.

(12) Virginia Tech 44, (20) Florida State 33: Tyrod Taylor threw three TD passes and ran for another and the Hokies (11-2) captured the Atlantic Coast Conference title with a win over the Seminoles (9-4) in Charlotte, N.C.

Virginia Tech is headed to the Orange Bowl.

(14) Nevada 35, Louisiana Tech 17: Colin Kaepernick tied an NCAA record for TDs rushing by a QB and the Wolf Pack (12-1, 7-1) won a share of the Western Athletic Conference title with a win over the Bulldogs (4-7, 4-4) in Ruston, La.

Kaepernick scored three TDs on the ground, giving him 59 for his career, tying the mark held by Nebraska’s Eric Crouch. Via Tuau rushed for 162 yards and two scores.

(23) West Virginia 35, Rutgers 14: Geno Smith threw for a career-high 352 yards, Ryan Clarke had three short TD runs and the Mountaineers (9-3, 5-2 Big East) beat the Scarlet Knights (4-8, 1-6) in Morgantown, W.Va., to clinch a share of the Big East title.

(25) Hawaii 59, UNLV 21: Bryant Moniz threw for 380 yards and four TDs and ran for two more scores to help the Warriors (10-3) rout the Rebels (2-11) in Honolulu.

Tulsa accepted an invitation to play Hawaii in the Hawaii Bowl on Dec. 24.