Vernon Adams Jr. puts up big numbers for Eastern Washington

The Eastern Washington football team, and especially quarterback Vernon Adams Jr., should come with warning labels.

The Eagles, a top Football Championship Subdivision team, on Saturday nearly took down their second Pac-12 Conference opponent in two years, falling to Washington, 59-52, as junior quarterback Adams passed for a school-record seven touchdowns and a career-high 475 yards.

Last season, Eastern Washington upset Oregon State, which was ranked No. 25 at the time, and Adams went on to pass for 5,559 yards and 55 touchdowns, earning the Big Sky Conference’s offensive player of the year award.

Already this season the former Alemany High star had passed for 302 yards and four touchdowns in an opening win against Sam Houston State, and passed for five touchdowns last week in another win over Montana Western.

Against Washington, Adams completed 31 of 46 passes and connected with nine receivers. He also attempted an onside kick late in the game, but the Huskies covered the ball.

Adams had plenty of supporters at the game because Alemany, which played near Seattle on Friday night, had a contingent of 78 people at the game.

“It’s unbelievable how good he is and how well he sees the field and how accurate he is on the run,” Alemany Coach Dean Herrington said. “He wasn’t happy after throwing seven touchdowns. That’s him. He’s all about winning.”

No place like home

It was a happy homecoming for Kansas State quarterback Jake Waters, who was raised in Council Bluffs, Iowa, cheering for Iowa State.

Waters scored on an eight-yard run with 1 minute 30 seconds left in regulation as Kansas State rallied from a two-touchdown deficit to defeat the Cyclones, 32-28, at Ames, Iowa.

He wasn’t the star of the game, though, even among the quarterbacks.

Iowa State’s Jarvis West became just the fourth player since 1996 to have touchdowns passing, receiving and on a punt return in the same game.

Short ‘horns

It has been said that first-year Longhorns Coach Charlie Strong is cleaning house at Texas.

Doing an acid burn is more like it.

Redshirt freshman linebacker Deoundrei Davis became the eighth player dismissed from the team by Strong since March. Davis never played a game for the Longhorns while recovering from a torn knee ligament he sustained during his senior season in high school.

Along with the eight who have been removed from the program, Strong suspended four players for Texas’ home game Saturday against Brigham Young, which the Longhorns lost, 41-7.

The Longhorns — what’s left of them — play UCLA at AT&T Stadium in Arlington on Saturday.

He’s a winner

Missouri Coach Gary Pinkel extended his lead on one list and held his advantage on another as the Tigers defeated Toledo, 49-24.

Pinkel is the career leader in football coaching victories at both schools. He has 104 at Missouri, where he’s been since 2001. He had 73 at Toledo from 1991-2000.

Outside the dome

Tulane played its first home game on campus in 40 years, losing to Georgia Tech, 38-21, at a sold-out Yulman Stadium.

Tulane had been playing its home games in the cavernous New Orleans Superdome, so playing before a packed stadium was far out of the ordinary.

Like the Superdome, Yulman has NFL touches. The field itself is named Benson Field, after Saints owner Tom Benson. And there is a premium seating section called the Glazer Family Club, named after the family who owns the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

One-liners

A crowd estimated at 107,000, which included LeBron James, showed up at recently renovated Ohio Stadium to watch the Buckeyes be upset by Virginia Tech, 35-21.... Miami quarterback Brad Kaaya, the freshman from West Hills Chaminade who had a rough go in his college debut against Louisville, had an easier time against Florida A&M, passing for 177 yards and two touchdowns, though he had two passes intercepted.... South Carolina Coach Steve Spurrier picked up his 200th win as a Southeastern Conference coach — 78 at South Carolina and 122 in 12 years at Florida — as the Gamecocks downed East Carolina, 33-23.... Arkansas snapped a school-record 10-game losing streak with its 73-7 win over Nicholls State, a FCS team that has now lost eight straight.... San Diego State, with Quinn Kaehler at quarterback, had a streak of 10 consecutive quarters with a touchdown snapped by North Carolina and lost to the No. 21 Tar Heels, 31-27.

Staff writer Eric Sondheimer contributed to this report.