REGIONAL ROUNDUP : Brawl Dampens Miami’s Win

This was a college game at Veterans Stadium in Philadelphia, but the crowd acted as if it were a Raider game.

Miami quarterback Frank Costa, who led the Hurricanes to a 38-14 victory over Temple on Saturday, now knows how Raider and Ram players felt last Sunday in Anaheim.

A brawl that broke out during the third quarter Saturday was in the section where Costa’s friends and family were seated.

“I just didn’t want anybody to get hurt,” said Costa, who grew up three blocks from Veterans Stadium. “I really didn’t know what was going on and I had a lot of family up there.”

Several fans among a tiny crowd of 11,873 were treated for scrapes, bumps and bruises, as were four security guards, according to the official in charge of the stadium’s security detail. The official said some fans were trying to get on the field, and as one fan was being escorted out, others got involved.

Miami, 9-1 overall and 6-0 in the Big East, plays host to Boston College next Saturday. Temple (2-9, 0-7) finished its season with its eighth consecutive loss and 25th consecutive Big East loss.

EAST

Matt Taffoni’s fourth-down tackle stopped a potential scoring drive and West Virginia, 6-5 overall and 3-3 in the Big East, held No. 17 Boston College (6-3-1, 3-2-1) to 28 yards rushing en route to a 21-20 victory at Morgantown, Va. The Eagles had fourth and one on the Mountaineer 35 with 1:21 left when Taffoni submarined through the line to stop Omari Walker for no gain. . . . Kirby Dar Dar rushed for a career-high 159 yards in 22 carries as Syracuse (7-3) scored on long drives on its first three possessions to end a two-game losing streak with a 21-16 nonconference victory over Maryland (4-7) at Syracuse, N.Y. Maryland, which doubled its victory total from a year ago, scored 13 points in the second half and had a shot to win on its final possession but a holding call and an interception ended the comeback. . . . Billy Davis tied a school record by catching four touchdown passes to lead Pittsburgh (3-8, 2-5) to a 35-21 Big East upset of Rutgers (5-5-1, 2-4-1) at Pittsburgh. . . . Bob Nelson and Keith Price, alternating at tailback, ran for two touchdowns apiece in their college farewells and Yale (5-5, 3-4) recorded a 32-13 Ivy League victory over Harvard (4-6, 2-5) at Boston in the 111th game in a football rivalry that began in 1875. . . . Paul Fichiera ran for four second-half touchdowns as Brown (7-3, 4-3) rallied from a 27-3 deficit for a 59-27 Ivy League victory over Columbia (5-4-1, 3-4) at New York. . . . Harry Nakielny threw a 49-yard touchdown pass as Princeton (7-3, 4-3) ended years of late-season frustration against Dartmouth (4-6, 2-5) with a 20-13 Ivy League victory at Princeton, N.J.

SOUTH

Marcus Crandell completed 35 of 51 for 322 yards and three touchdowns as East Carolina (7-4) recorded a 30-6 victory at Memphis (6-5) to earn the host team berth in the Liberty Bowl.

MIDWEST

Paul Blackwood ran for 161 yards and two touchdowns as Cincinnati (2-8-1) ended its season with a 28-13 victory over Tulsa (3-7) at Cincinnati.

BIG WEST

Patrick Walsh rushed for 129 yards and Charlie Adams ran for two touchdowns to lead San Jose State (3-8, 3-3) to a 28-15 Big West victory over Pacific (6-5, 4-2) at Stockton. . . . Sophomore quarterback Matt Wells passed for 247 yards and three touchdowns to lead Utah State (3-8, 2-4) to a 47-20 Big West victory over New Mexico State (3-8, 2-4) at Logan, Utah. . . . Shannon Jenkins ran 65 yards with a fumble for the game-winning score as Louisiana Tech (3-8, 1-5) recorded a 20-14 Big West victory over Arkansas State (1-10, 0-6) at Jonesboro, Ark.