Pac-12: Huskies blow Cougars out of title game giving Stanford rematch with USC

Myles Gaskin ran for 192 yards and four touchdowns, Washington forced four turnovers, and the No. 17 Huskies ended No. 13 Washington State’s hopes for a Pac-12 North title with a 41-14 thumping Saturday night at Seattle.

The Apple Cup remained decorated in purple for the fifth straight year thanks to a thorough domination by Washington that was punctuated by Gaskin’s runs and a suffocating defense that made the night miserable for Luke Falk in his final regular-season game.

It was a major flop for Washington State, needing only a victory to win its first Pac-12 North title and earn a spot in the conference title game Friday against USC. Washington State had memorable Apple Cup wins over the Huskies in 1997 and 2007 in Seattle.

This is one the Cougars would like to immediately forget.

Falk, the Pac-12 record-holder in a number of passing categories, threw three interceptions and had a costly fumble. He was under pressure all night as Vita Vea and the rest of defensive front was able to get pressure while rushing only three defenders and closed off gaps in the secondary. Falk completed 37 of 55 passes for 369 yards and a late touchdown to Tay Martin, helping continue coach Mike Leach’s streak of never being shut out.

at Stanford 38, Notre Dame 20: K.J. Costello threw two of his career-high four touchdown passes in the fourth quarter and No. 21 Stanford rallied for a 38-20 victory over No. 8 Notre Dame on Saturday night.

The game couldn’t have gone much better for the Cardinal (9-3), who got the help they needed from Washington to send Stanford to the conference championship against USC at Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara.

The Cardinal finished tied for first in the North with the Huskies but won the head-to-head matchup to take the tiebreaker.

Stanford quarterback K.J. Costello (3) passes the ball against Notre Dame on Nov. 25.

(Ezra Shaw / Getty Images )

Bryce Love ran for 125 yards but Costello was the star of the offense against the Fighting Irish (9-3) by throwing for 176 yards and delivering the four scores. Stanford has won seven of nine games in the series, including the last five at home.

Notre Dame committed two turnovers in the opening minutes of the fourth quarter and Stanford turned a 20-17 deficit into a 38-20 lead in a span of 3 minutes 36 seconds.

The Irish offense didn’t do much outside of two long touchdown passes by Wimbush: one of 83 yards to Kevin Stepherson and one covering 75 yards to Equanimeous St. Brown on the opening play of the second half.

Notre Dame had only one sustained scoring drive. The Irish got a field goal after Chris Finke’s 41-yard punt return despite losing two yards on the drive and also had a 15-play, 68-yard drive in the first half to set up a field goal by Justin Yoon.

at Oregon 69, Oregon State 10: Royce Freeman set a Pac-12 record for career rushing touchdowns while running for 122 yards and two scores as the Ducks turned the 121st Civil War game into a rout.

Freeman has 60 touchdowns, surpassing Oregon State’s Ken Simonton, who ran for 59 touchdowns between 1998-01.

Justin Herbert, in his second game back from a broken collarbone that sidelined him for five games, threw for 251 yards and three touchdowns for the Ducks (7-5, 4-5). Herbert also rushed for a touchdown before sitting late in the third quarter.

Dylan Mitchell caught six passes for 119 yards and two scores for the Ducks, who set a record for points in a Civil War game.

at Arizona State 42, Arizona 30: Demario Richard ran for 165 yards and two touchdowns, Manny Wilkins threw for three more scores, and the Sun Devils may have saved coach Todd Graham’s job with a win in the rivalry game.

Arizona State trailed by 10 at the half, but once Arizona quarterback Khalil Tate went out with a left shoulder injury, it all changed. The Sun Devils turned a blocked punt and an interception into two quick scores to snatch the lead, and Richard made it 35-24 with a six-yard touchdown run.

Tate threw for 132 yards and scored on a one-yard run in the first half, but was injured on a Hail Mary the last play.

at Utah 34, Colorado 13: Zack Moss ran for a career-high 196 yards and two touchdowns on Saturday night as Utah defeated Colorado 34-13 in the regular-season finale to earn win No. 6 and officially become bowl eligible.

The Buffaloes (5-7, 2-7 Pac-12) will miss the postseason and finish last in the Pac-12 South division one year after playing in the conference title game.

The Utes (6-6, 3-6) had one goal after they followed a 4-0 start with four straight losses — send the seniors to a bowl. Utah accomplished that and will now play in a fourth straight bowl game.

Quarterback Tyler Huntley missed the regular-season finale due to an undisclosed injury, but it didn’t matter as Moss repeatedly waltzed through a Colorado unit that began the day ranked No. 102 in the nation in run defense. The sophomore had 78 rushing yards in the first quarter while Colorado had 79 total. The Buffaloes were outgained 340-119 in the first half and the Utes led 28-0 at halftime.

Moss piled up the highlight runs, but a two-yard touchdown to go up 14-0 in the first quarter drew audible gasps throughout the stadium. He took the handoff and ran over a defender in the hole, then stepped over him in the end zone like the famous Allen Iverson-Tyronn Lue video. Moss ran over a defender and through the arms of another for his first score. The offensive line played well and opened holes, but Moss repeatedly ran violently over and through defenders. He surpassed 1,000 yards and now gives Utah a 1,000-yard rusher for a fourth consecutive season.