Duke comes up with late pick to outlast Troy in Birmingham Bowl

Sat, Dec 23, 2023
NCAAF News (AP)

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (AP) - Freshman Grayson Loftis threw for 183 yards and Duke's defense came up with a final stop to beat Troy 17-10 in the Birmingham Bowl on Saturday.

Jeremiah Lewis intercepted Troy's Gunnar Watson at the 50-yard line with 1:22 remaining to secure the victory for the Blue Devils (8-5).

Troy (11-3), the Sun Belt Conference champion, fell short of finishing the season on an 11-game winning streak for the second straight year. The Trojans couldn't find an offensive rhythm against a Blue Devils lineup altered by transfer portal departures.

Jaylen Coleman ran for Duke's only touchdown. Todd Pelino kicked three field goals for the Blue Devils.

Other news

Florida State has sued the ACC, setting the stage for a fight to leave over revenue concerns

Georgia getting ready for a bowl, but it sure feels different than the last 2 years

Michigan receives notice of allegations from NCAA related to recruiting and impermissible coaching

Both teams were playing with interim coaches after Duke's Mike Elko departed for Texas A&M and Troy's Jon Sumrall took the job at Tulane.

CAMELLIA BOWL

NORTHERN ILLINOIS 21, ARKANSAS STATE 19

MONTGOMERY, Ala. (AP) - Rocky Lombardi passed and ran for touchdowns and Northern Illinois held on to beat Arkansas State when the Red Wolves couldn't convert a late 2-point pass.

Antario Brown rushed for 132 yards for the Huskies (7-6), who won six of their final eight games.

Neither team scored in the second half until Jaylen Raynor's 13-yard touchdown pass with 1:14 left to Corey Rucker. Raynor's potential tying 2-point pass sailed out of the end zone, and Arkansas State (6-7) couldn't convert the onside kick.

The 25-year-old Lombardi completed his seventh and final college season by going 18 of 29 for 200 yards. Grayson Barnes had 105 yards and a score on five catches.

___

AP college football: https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-college-football-poll and https://apnews.com/hub/college-football