Boise State overwhelms Northern Illinois, 55-7, in Poinsettia Bowl

Jeremy McNichols scored three touchdowns, the first one just 58 seconds into the game, and finished with 189 total yards as Boise State embarrassed Northern Illinois, 55-7, in the Poinsettia Bowl in San Diego on Wednesday.

This one was essentially over when Northern Illinois won the coin toss and deferred, allowing Boise State to get the ball first and unleash its talented offense.

The Broncos (9-4) needed just three plays to score the first TD, the fastest in school bowl history. After completions of seven and 39 yards by Brett Rypien, McNichols scampered in from 29 yards.

McNichols and the Broncos kept piling on as the back from Long Beach scored on each of the next two possessions, on a four-yard pass from Rypien and on a one-yard run.

McNichols ran 19 times for 93 yards and caught five passes for 96 yards. He came in tied with Heisman Trophy winner Derrick Henry of Alabama for the national lead with 23 TDs.

Rypien was 29 of 40 for 377 yards and three touchdowns, with one interception.

The Broncos outgained the Huskies (8-6) 654 yards to 33.

The Huskies added to their misery by losing three fumbles in the first half. Tyler Gray recovered two of them.

Georgia Southern romps in second half

Favian Upshaw ran for 199 yards and four touchdowns to help Georgia Southern beat Bowling Green, 58-27, in the GoDaddy Bowl on Wednesday night at Mobile, Ala.

Georgia Southern (9-4) won the first bowl game in school history in the first year it was eligible to go to the postseason. The program transitioned to the Football Bowl Subdivision in 2014.

The Eagles had 452 yards rushing to top their nation-best season average of 355.6 yards.

Bowling Green (10-4) led 27-23 at halftime, but Georgia Southern scored the final 35 points on a rain-soaked evening.

Bowling Green was undone by a brutal stretch in the third quarter that included two fumbles by quarterback Matt Johnson deep in Falcons territory.

It helped Georgia Southern score three touchdowns — including two by Upshaw — in three minutes and turned the game into a blowout.

In the first half, the Eagles blocked a Bowling Green extra point and Matt Dobson returned it 98 yards for the rare two-point score.

The rain became more consistent after halftime and Georgia Southern took advantage, capitalizing on Johnson’s fumbles and slowly grinding away for their first bowl victory.

Etc.

Missouri has reinstated Maty Mauk, the quarterback who was twice suspended last season. Mauk has one year of eligibility remaining. The first suspension was for a violation of program policies in late September and then-coach Gary Pinkel declined to state the reason for the second suspension. ... Wisconsin tailback Corey Clement has apologized for his involvement in an off-campus scrum Nov. 8 that led to a police citation for alleged disorderly conduct. The 23rd-ranked Badgers will play in the Holiday Bowl against USC. Clement was limited to just 29 carries for 155 yards and four touchdowns this season. He was sidelined for eight games because of sports hernia surgery.