Chad Nelson overcame a sprained left ankle with touchdown runs of 10 and six yards as the Rice Owls beat the Tulsa Golden Hurricane 42-14 Saturday, winning their seventh game for the first time in 35 years.
Rice (7-4, 6-2 in Western Athletic Conference) last had seven victories when they finished 7-4 and then lost to Kansas in the Bluebonnet Bowl in 1961. Tulsa finished 4-7 and 2-6.Nelson played in only one play of last week's game but he was ready for the Gold Hurricane. He rushed 128 yards on 16 carries and had a 52-yard touchdown called back by a holding penalty.
The Owls went straight to their running game to build a 21-0 lead in the second quarter on touchdowns of four yards by Benji Woods and 49 yards by Jamey Whitlock in the first quarter and 10 yards by Nelson with 8:43 to go in the first half.
James Anderson kicked field goals of 26 and 37 yards for Tulsa in the second quarter.
and Troy DeGar hit Wes Caswell with a 14-yard touchdown pass with 4:40 left in the game.
The Owls rushed over 400 yards for the fifth time this season.
San Jose St. 31, UNLV 28
At San Jose, Calif., Carl Dean passed for 443 yards and three touchdowns as San Jose State defeated UNLV, giving retiring coach John Ralston a victory in his last game.
San Jose State (3-9, 3-5 Western Athletic Conference) scored 21 points in the first quarter, then held off a fourth quarter rally by UNLV (1-11, 1-7), which was limited to minus-17 rushing yards.
New Mexico 44, Texas-El Paso 17
At Albuquerque, N.M., Lennox Gordon rushed for 127 yards before halftime to become only the sixth New Mexico running back with a 1,000-yard season as the Lobos beat Texas-El Paso.
The season-ending victory gave New Mexico (6-5, 3-5 WAC) its second winning record in five years under coach Dennis Franchione. The Lobos were 6-5 in 1993.
San Diego St. 31, Fresno St. 21
At San Diego, Billy Blanton passed for 395 yards and two touchdowns to lead San Diego State to a victory over Fresno State, spoiling the final game of retiring Bulldogs coach Jim Sweeney. Blanton was 25 of 34 for 395 yards with two touchdown passes.
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ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
WAC standings
Conf. Overall
Mountain Division W L W L
BYU 8 0 12 1
Rice 6 2 7 4
Utah 6 2 8 3
SMU 4 4 5 6
New Mexico 3 5 6 5
TCU 3 5 4 7
Tulsa 2 6 4 7
UTEP 0 8 2 9
Conf. Overall
Pacific Division W L W L
Wyoming 7 1 10 1
Colorado St. 6 2 7 5
Air Force 5 2 6 4
San Diego St. 5 2 6 4
Fresno St. 3 5 4 7
San Jose St. 3 5 3 9
Hawaii 1 7 2 9
UNLV 1 7 1 11
Thursday's game
SMU 27, TCU 24
Saturday's games
BYU 37, Utah 17
New Mexico 44, Texas-El Paso 17
Rice 42, Tulsa 14
San Diego St. 31, Fresno St. 21
San Jose St. 31, UNLV 28