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Pac-12: Utah glad to have Joe Williams back

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Joe Williams came out of retirement and ran for 179 yards and a five-yard first-quarter touchdown and No. 21 Utah went on to defeat Oregon State, 19-14, in wet and windy conditions on Saturday at Corvallis, Ore

Williams, who had left the team because of injuries after the second game of the season, carried the ball 34 times for the Utes (6-1, 3-1 Pac-12).

Trailing 12-7, Oregon State got as close as the Utah nine-yard line with 8:25 left in the game, but the Beavers (2-4, 1-2) couldn’t reach the end zone and Garrett Owens’ 27-yard field goal attempt went wide left.

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After quarterback Troy Williams ran for an eight-yard touchdown to extend Utah’s lead, the Beavers scored on Marcus McMaryion’s 14-yard pass to Hunter Jarmon. But ultimately Oregon State couldn’t overcome its first-half struggles.

Joe Williams’ return to practice this week was spurred by a spate of injuries to Utah’s running backs corps — a concern because the wild weather expected for the game was expected to affect the passing game.

“It was great to have him back, it was a huge blessing for us,” Utah Coach Kyle Whittingham said. “It was nice to have an experienced guy like Joe back in the lineup.”

Oregon State started running back Ryan Nall, who was seen in a boot earlier this week. But after a carry for 32 yards in the opening quarter, he did not return. Nall rushed for 221 yards and three touchdowns last week in Oregon State’s 47-44 overtime victory over California.

at Colorado 40, Arizona State 16: Phillip Lindsay rushed for 219 yards and three touchdowns, leading the Buffaloes to their first win over the Sun Devils.

Sefo Liufau threw for 265 yards against the nation’s worst pass defense in his return to the starting lineup for the first time since spraining his left ankle at Michigan on Sept. 17.

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Zane Gonzalez’s field goals of 50, 51 and 59 yards tied an FBS record for most 50-plus field goals in a game and his 59-yarder established a Sun Devils record.

Stanford 17, at Notre Dame 10: Center Jesse Burkett recovered a fumble in the end zone after Bryce Love fumbled on the goal line, Stanford’s only offensive touchdown, and cornerback Quenton Meeks returned an interception 50 yards for a touchdown as the Cardinal rallied from 10 points down to beat Notre Dame 17-10 Saturday night.

The Irish defense, which had forced three previous turnovers in their own territory, had a chance to recover the fumble but linebacker Nyles Morgan tried to scoop up the ball. When he failed to pick it up, Burkett lunged on it. Stanford, playing without injured Christian McCaffrey, added a 2-point conversion on a pitch to Love, who ran in untouched.

Stanford (4-2), which started the season ranked No. 8, averted losing three straight for the first time since 2007. The Irish (2-5) ranked No. 10 in the preseason, lost a third straight home game for the first time since 2007.

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