Navy sinks Irish

Navy did it to Notre Dame again – and this loss to the Midshipmen is even more costly.

Craig Schaefer sacked Jimmy Clausen in the end zone with 60 seconds left Saturday and Navy held on for a 23-21 victory, its second straight at Notre Dame Stadium.

Notre Dame (6-3) scored with 24 seconds left to cut the lead to two, but the ensuing onside kick went out of bounds.

Navy’s victory celebration was a bit more subdued than two years ago, when the Midshipmen ended an NCAA-record 43-game losing streak to the Irish by winning 46-44 in three overtimes.

The loss effectively ends any hope Notre Dame (6-3) had for its first Bowl Championship Series berth since 2006.

Ricky Dobbs threw a 52-yard touchdown pass and ran for another and fullback Vince Murray added a 25-yard TD run for Navy to lead the Midshipmen to consecutive wins in South Bend for the first time since 1961 and 1963. Navy outrushed the Irish 348 yards to 60. Clausen completed 37 of 57 passes for 452 yards, all career highs.

(1) Florida 27, Vanderbilt 3: At Gainesville, Fla., Tim Tebow accounted for two touchdowns, Caleb Sturgis kicked two field goals and the Gators (9-0, 7-0 SEC) beat the Commodores (2-8, 0-6) in a lackluster effort.

(2) Texas 35, Central Florida 3: At Austin, Texas, Jordan Shipley set a school record with 273 yards receiving, including an 88-yard touchdown, and the Longhorns (9-0) shook off a slow start for an easy win over the Knights (5-4).

(3) Alabama 24, (9) LSU 15: At Tuscaloosa, Ala., Julio Jones caught a 73-yard touchdown pass in the fourth quarter to help the Crimson Tide (9-0, 6-0 SEC) win a second straight trip to the SEC championship game with a victory over the Tigers (7-2, 4-2).

(4) Cincinnati 47, Connecticut 45: At Cincinnati, Zach Collaros kept the Bearcats (9-0, 5-0 Big East) unbeaten by throwing for 480 yards and a touchdown in a win over the Huskies (4-5, 1-4).

(6) TCU 55, San Diego State 12: At San Diego, Andy Dalton threw two touchdown passes and ran for two more as the Horned Frogs (9-0, 5-0 MWC) rolled over the Aztecs (4-5, 2-3).

(10) Georgia Tech 30, Wake Forest 27 (OT): At Atlanta, Josh Nesbitt scored on a 3-yard run in overtime after the Yellow Jackets (8-1, 6-1 ACC) pulled off a gutsy play on fourth down in a victory over the Demon Deacons (4-6, 2-4).

(15) Ohio State 24, (11) Penn State 7: At State College, Pa., Terrelle Pryor threw for two touchdowns and ran for another, Ray Small burned the Nittany Lions (8-2, 4-2 Big Ten) with two long punt returns and the Buckeyes (8-2, 5-1) won a duel of the league’s top two defenses.

(13) Houston 46, Tulsa 45: At Tulsa, Okla., Matt Hogan kicked a 51-yard field goal as time expired to lift the Cougars (8-1, 4-1 Conference USA) to a victory over the Golden Hurricane (4-5, 2-3), finishing off a thrilling comeback led by quarterback Case Keenum.

(14) Pittsburgh 37, Syracuse 10: At Pittsburgh, Greg Williams’ 51-yard interception return for a touchdown late in the first half got the Panthers (8-1, 5-0 Big East) going and extended their best start to a season since 1982 with a win over the Orange (3-6, 0-4).

(16) Miami 52, Virginia 17: At Miami, Graig Cooper rushed for a career-best 152 yards and a touchdown, Damien Berry ran for a pair of second-half scores and the Hurricanes (7-2, 4-2 ACC) rolled past the Cavaliers (3-6, 2-3).

(17) Utah 45, New Mexico 14: At Salt Lake City, Jordan Wynn passed for 297 yards and two touchdowns in his first college start and Eddie Wide set a school record with his sixth straight 100-yard rushing game to lead the Utes (8-1, 5-0 MWC) past the Lobos (0-9, 0-5).

(18) Oklahoma State 34, Iowa State 8: At Ames, Iowa, Keith Toston ran for a career-high 206 yards and three touchdowns, Zac Robinson threw a touchdown pass and the Cowboys (7-2, 4-1 Big 12) easily defeated the Cyclones (5-5, 2-4).

Nebraska 10, (20) Oklahoma 3: At Lincoln, Neb., Matt O’Hanlon had three of the five interceptions thrown by Landry Jones and the Cornhuskers (6-3, 3-2 Big 12) squeezed enough production out of their struggling offense to upset the Sooners (5-4, 3-2).

(24) Wisconsin 31, Indiana 28: At Bloomington, Ind., John Clay ran for 134 yards and a touchdown, Montee Ball scored two TDs and the Badgers (7-2, 4-2 Big Ten) held off the Hoosiers’ (4-6, 1-5) fourth-quarter rally.

(25) BYU 52, Wyoming 0: At Laramie, Wyo., Max Hall threw for 312 yards and four touchdowns in just more than two quarters before being pulled and the Cougars (7-2, 4-1 MWC) won their sixth straight over the Cowboys (4-5, 2-3).