North Carolina St. blanks USF

The Wolfpack's defense was too much for South Florida.
ASSOCIATED PRESS
CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- Chuck Amato darted right, then danced left, successfully missing the bucket of water his victorious North Carolina State players tried to dump on him.
Minutes later, as Amato tried to accept the Meineke Car Care Bowl trophy, the coach finally ran out of moves and received a chilly dousing down his back.
It was the relief he was looking for after a trying up-and-down season.
The Wolfpack used stout defense and just enough offense to cap a late-season rally with a 14-0 victory over South Florida on Saturday that gave them a three-game winning streak to close the year.
"This might be one of the biggest wins, when its all said and done, that this university could have had," Amato said. "It could be the steppingstone for a lot of things."
Amato may be overstating it just a bit, but the victory did pick up a program that was 2-4 midway through the year and in danger of one of the worst seasons in school history. Instead, the Wolfpack (7-5) turned it around with five wins in the final six games.
"For us to come here, win like we did and shut them out ... it settles it down a little bit," said defensive end Mario Williams, who indicated he'll likely go out on top by declaring for the NFL draft sometime next week.
Tulsa 31, Fresno State 24
MEMPHIS, Tenn. -- Paul Smith ran 4 yards for the winning touchdown with 2:55 remaining, and Tulsa's defense had two key fourth-quarter interceptions in the Liberty Bowl.
Smith, the game's MVP, finished 18-of-27 passing for 234 yards with a 54-yard touchdown pass to Ashlan Davis, but made his biggest play on the ground when he scrambled around three Fresno State defenders and into the end zone to secure Tulsa's first bowl victory since 1991.
Defensive back Anthony Germany set up that play by picking off Paul Pinegar's pass with just under 7 minutes remaining. Smith then led Tulsa on the decisive eight-play, 52-yard drive.
The Golden Hurricane (9-4) celebrated their first bowl victory since they beat San Diego State in the Freedom Bowl in 1991.
No. 14 TCU 27, Iowa State 24
HOUSTON -- Peter LoCoCo kicked a 44-yard field goal with less than 6 minutes remaining to lift TCU in the Houston Bowl.
The win extended TCU's winning streak to 10 games, the third-longest in the nation behind No. 1 USC (34) and No. 2 Texas (19).
LoCoCo's field goal was TCU's only score in the second half after the Horned Frogs built a 24-17 halftime lead.
The Mountain West champion Horned Frogs were out to prove themselves after being snubbed by the BCS. TCU has the best record among teams from non-BCS conferences.
The win gave TCU (11-1, 8-0) 11 victories for the fourth time in school history and the first time since 2003.
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