No. 15 Utah beats Oregon State

Louie Sakoda kicked a 37-yard field goal as time expired to cap an 11-point rally over the final 89 seconds and give No. 15 Utah a 31-28 victory over Oregon State on Thursday night at Salt Lake City

The Utes (6-0) tied the score, 28-28, on a 25-yard touchdown pass and two-point conversion by Brian Johnson with 1:29 remaining. Utah’s defense held the Beavers (2-3) to a three-and-out, and the Utes got the ball back 23 seconds later to set up the final drive and Sakoda’s game-winner.

Utah got the ball back at its 45 with 1:06 left, and Johnson moved the Utes to Oregon State’s 24, where the Utes called a timeout with two seconds left. Sakoda kicked his third field goal of the game and the Utes’ hopes for a Bowl Championship Series berth were still alive -- barely.

Freshman Jacquizz Rodgers ran for 101 yards and a touchdown for the Beavers, who were coming off their upset of then-No. 1 USC on Sept. 25.

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South Florida just doesn’t have a whole lot of success when it’s ranked in the top 10.

Last year, the Bulls rose to No. 2 in the country only to lose three straight games and drop out of the Big East title picture.

On Thursday night, LeSean McCoy ran for two touchdowns and Bill Stull threw for another as Pittsburgh beat the 10th-ranked Bulls, 26-21, at Tampa, Fla.

The Panthers, 4-1 overall and 2-0 in the Big East, have beaten the last three ranked teams they have faced, including No. 23 Cincinnati and No. 2 West Virginia in 2007. They have won two of the last three games against South Florida (5-1, 0-1) in Tampa.

The win was the fourth straight for Pittsburgh, which was ranked 25th in the preseason poll only to lose its opener to Bowling Green.

“I’m not going to go to the grave right now,” South Florida Coach Jim Leavitt said when asked what he would say to his team. “We’re 5-1. We didn’t play real well tonight. It’s reality. That’s the way it is.”

South Florida quarterback Matt Grothe threw a 22-yard touchdown pass to Jessie Hester in the fourth quarter to give the Bulls a 21-20 lead. But Pittsburgh came right back to take the lead, covering 60 yards on three plays in a quick drive that ended with a three-yard run by McCoy. The two-point attempt failed.