Johnson’s career day leads Colorado State

ASSOCIATED PRESS

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. — Gartrell Johnson rushed for a career-high 285 yards and scored two touchdowns as Colorado State rallied for a 40-35 victory over Fresno State on Saturday in the New Mexico Bowl.

Johnson sealed Colorado State’s first bowl victory since 2001 on a 77-yard touchdown with 1:46 remaining, igniting a celebration by fans who made the 7-hour drive from Fort Collins, Colo.

Johnson added 90 yards receiving for 375 total yards.

Johnson set a Football Bowl Subdivision record for the most combined yards rushing and receiving in a postseason game. His yards rushing were the second-most ever in a bowl, trailing only a 307-yard effort by P.J. Daniels of Georgia Tech at the 2004 Humanitarian Bowl. It was also the second-best rushing performance in school history.

The Rams (7-6) took their first lead at 33-28 when Billy Farris threw a 69-yard TD to Rashaun Greer with seven minutes left. Fresno State cornerback Sharrod Davis took a big chance but whiffed on his attempt to bat the ball. Greer made the catch at the 30 and went untouched into the end zone.

The loss capped a rough season for the injury-depleted Bulldogs (7-6), who talked in fall workouts about a possible Bowl Championship Series run. They led 28-20 early in the fourth quarter.

EagleBank Bowl

Wake Forest 29, Navy 19

WASHINGTON — Riley Skinner found a perfect way to obliterate the miserable memory of his painful performance against Navy earlier this season.

Skinner went 11-for-11 and threw the go-ahead touchdown pass to Ben Wooster with 7:52 left, leading Wake Forest to a comeback victory in the inaugural EagleBank Bowl to open the bowl season.

The previous school record for accuracy was a 12-for-14 effort by Mike McGlamry in 1975. Skinner added a completion on a conversion attempt.

He finished with 166 yards passing and was named the game’s Most Valuable Player.

It was a rematch of a September game played at Wake Forest (8-5), when Navy (8-5) took advantage of five turnovers by Skinner — four interceptions and a fumble — to pull off a 24-17 upset.

St. Petersburg Bowl

South Florida 41, Memphis 14

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — For anyone who thought it might be difficult for Matt Grothe and South Florida to get excited about playing what amounted to an extra home game, the Bulls and their dual-threat quarterback answered with a dominating performance in the first St. Petersburg Bowl.

Grothe moved ahead of West Virginia’s Pat White as the Big East’s career total offense leader, throwing for 236 yards and three touchdowns.

USF (8-5) scored on four of its first five possessions to build a 24-14 halftime lead, forcing Memphis (6-7) to play catch-up and essentially taking 1,000-yard rusher Curtis Steele out of the Tigers’ game plan.