Colorado State’s Johnson rushes past Fresno State, 40-35

Colorado State’s Gartrell Johnson was reluctant to talk about his career-high 285 yards rushing, so teammate Tommie Hill took over for him.

Sort of.

“I’m not going to give him credit because he got run down twice,” Hill joked after Colorado State rallied for a 40-35 victory over Fresno State on Saturday in the New Mexico Bowl at Albuquerque, N.M.

Johnson added 90 yards receiving for 375 total yards and scored two fourth-quarter touchdowns. All day long, he left defenders reaching for the dreadlocks tumbling out of his helmet.

His yards rushing were the second-most ever in a bowl, trailing only a 307-yard effort by P.J. Daniels of Georgia Tech in the 2004 Humanitarian Bowl. It was also the second-best rushing performance in school history.

Johnson sealed the victory on a 77-yard touchdown burst with 1:46 remaining, igniting a celebration by fans who made the seven-hour drive from Fort Collins, Colo. He was named the most valuable offensive player as Colorado State (7-6) won a bowl for the first time since 2001.

Johnson had a 57-yard run in the first quarter and a 57-yard reception on a shovel pass from Billy Farris in the second period.

The Rams took their first lead at 33-28 when 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.

It also spoiled big rushing efforts by Fresno State’s Anthony Harding and Lonyae Miller, who each scored twice. Harding finished with 120 yards rushing, and Miller added 113.

Wake Forest wins

Riley Skinner was 11 for 11 and threw the go-ahead touchdown pass to Ben Wooster with 7:52 left, leading Wake Forest to a 29-19 comeback victory over Navy in the inaugural EagleBank Bowl.

It was a rematch of a Sept. 27 game at Wake Forest, when Navy took advantage of five turnovers by Skinner -- four interceptions and a fumble -- to pull off a 24-17 upset.

The Midshipmen (8-5) scored the first 17 points in the first meeting, and this time a 50-yard fumble return by Rashawn King helped Navy bolt to a 13-0 lead.

But Skinner didn’t flinch. He directed Wake Forest (8-5) to a touchdown in the final minute of the first half and opened the third quarter with a 73-yard touchdown drive.

South Florida rolls

South Florida’s Matt 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 on the way to a 41-14 victory over Memphis in the first St. Petersburg Bowl at Tropicana Field.

Grothe and White, a senior who will finish his season in the Meineke Bowl on Dec. 27, are the only players in league history to amass more than 10,000 yards total offense.

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.