Auburn coach Pat Dye switched to the I-formation this year after four seasons of the wishbone, hoping to get the most out of senior tailback Bo Jackson. The move paid immediate dividends Saturday, when Jackson rushed for 290 yards and scored 4 touchdowns in the Tigers` 49-7 victory over
Southwestern Louisiana in Auburn, Ala.
”I had a feeling we would be pretty good offensively,” Dye said. ”One thing we did differently today is that we played the front line a little longer to see how long Bo could run.”
Jackson displayed his Heisman Trophy credentials from the outset, rushing for 181 yards and 3 TDs on 6 first-quarter carries. ”I thought I played a pretty good game,” Jackson said. ”I`m not running for the Heisman. I`m running for Auburn. The Heisman will take care of itself.”
Despite the thrashing, Southwestern Louisiana coach Sam Robertson didn`t think the day was a total loss. ”The thing that really pleased me was that I voted for Auburn as the No. 1 team in the nation on the UPI poll,” he said.
”And I can go back now and reiterate my feelings.”
The Penn State jinx is alive and well. The Nittany Lions jumped out to a 17-0 lead in College Park, Md., only to have Maryland rally for an 18-17 lead. But Penn State went back ahead 20-18 on Massimo Manca`s 46-yard field goal in the third period, then stopped three fourth-quarter scoring bids by Maryland to hold on for the victory.
It was Maryland`s 21st consecutive loss to Penn State, which has beaten the Terps 28 of the 29 times the teams have met. Maryland`s only victory was in 1961.
”I didn`t feel any jinx out there,” said Maryland coach Bobby Ross, whose team had been ranked No. 1 in Sport magazine`s preseason ratings. That sentiment wasn`t shared by all his players, however. ”I wasn`t sure about anything when we had the ball at the end,” said co-captain Scott
Schankweiler. ”The way things have gone in the past, you can`t take anything for granted against Penn State . . . and you saw how it turned out.”
TOP GAMES
Auburn 49, Southwestern Louisiana 7–Jackson scored on runs of 7, 47 and 76 yards in the first quarter and added a 12-yarder in the third quarter that put the Tigers up 42-0. Auburn finished with 695 yards in offense. Jackson`s backup, Brent Fullwood (173 yards on 11 carries), scored on a 70-yard run for Auburn`s final TD. Southwestern Louisiana (0-2) has been outscored 86-13 this season.
Penn State 20, Maryland 18–In the fourth quarter, Maryland`s Ramon Paredes missed field-goal tries of 34 and 51 yards and Alvin Blount fumbled a pass on the Penn State 30 with 38 seconds left. The Nittany Lions turned two first-quarter interceptions into 10 points, and made it 17-0 after an 80-yard march in the second quarter. Maryland went ahead 18-17 on a 22-yard field goal by Paredes, two short TD runs by Rick Badanjek and a 2-point, extra-point pass.
Florida 35, Miami 23–Kerwin Bell threw four TD passes, including fourth- quarter scoring strikes of 16 yards to Ricky Nattiel and 8 yards to Frankie Neal, in Miami. It was Florida`s 10th straight victory and extended its unbeaten streak to 11 games, now the longest in Division I. The triumph also avenged the Gators` only loss of a year ago. Vinny Testaverde, the replacement for Bernie Kosar, was 24 of 39 for 278 yards for Miami.
South Carolina 20, Appalachian State 13–South Carolina (2-0) spotted the Mountaineers a 7-0 first-quarter lead on a 13-yard run by John Fettle (193 yards on 25 carries), but rallied in Columbia, S.C. The Gamecocks tied the score on Kent Hagood`s 5-yard run in the second period, but Bill Welch`s 30-yard field goal put the Mountaineers back ahead 10-7. South Carolina took a 14-10 lead when Allen Mitchell connected with Danny Smith for a 57-yard TD just before halftime. Scott Hagler had second-half field goals of 49 and 19 yards to clinch the victory.
East Carolina 33, North Carolina State 14–Ron Jones passed for two TDs and Jeff Heath kicked field goals of 46 and 50 yards in Raleigh, N.C. The crowd of 58,300 was the largest ever to watch a football game in North Carolina.
Richmond 24, Virginia Tech 14–Bob Bleier (20 of 26 for 237 yards), the cousin of former Pittsburgh Steeler running back Rocky Bleier, passed for two TDs as Richmond opened its season in Blacksburg, Va.,–the Spiders` first road win over the Hokies (0-2) in 25 years.
Wake Forest 30, William & Mary 23–Foy White (26 of 31 for 270 yards)
threw three TD passes, including a 6-yarder to Topper Clemons with 58 seconds left, in Winston-Salem, N.C. William & Mary`s Stan Yagiello was 21 of 28 for 295 yards and 2 TDs.
Vanderbilt 7, Tennessee-Chattanooga 0–Mark Wracher hit Everett Crawford on an 11-yard scoring pass with 3:47 to play in Nashville.
Southern Mississippi 28, Louisiana Tech 0–Quarterback Robert Ducksworth ran for 109 yards and 2 TDs in Hattiesburg, Miss. Vincent Alexander had 125 yards and a TD on 26 carries for Southern.
Mississippi State 22, Arkansas State 14–Tailback Rodney Peters ran for two TDs and threw a 14-yard pass for a third in the fourth quarter in Starkville, Miss. Arkansas State is 1-1.
Mississippi Valley State 32, Alabama A&M 19–Willie Totten (37 of 55 for 406 yards and 4 TDs) threw two fourth-quarter TD passes to clinch the victory in Birmingham, Ala. State (2-0) led 18-0 at halftime, but two A&M scores cut that to 18-13. Totten then brought State back with TDs of 10 and 17 yards.
Mississippi 17, Memphis State 17–Don Glosson kicked a 20-yard field goal with 31 seconds left to give Memphis the tie at home.
