Top Plays: OSU-Utah put on thriller, Ole Miss loses QB and game
New year, same great action on the gridiron.
We have officially entered 2022, but college football continued to provide enticing offerings for our viewing pleasure on Saturday.
No. 21 Arkansas kicked things off with an impressive 24-10 win over Penn State in the Outback Bowl. After that, No. 22 Kentucky topped No. 15 Iowa 20-17 in the Vrbo Citrus Bowl. Meanwhile, No. 9 Oklahoma State came back from a 28-14 halftime deficit to surprise No. 5 Notre Dame, 37-35, in the Fiesta Bowl.
After that, No. 11 Utah and No. 6 Ohio State added another classic chapter in the Rose Bowl's history, with the Buckeyes holding on for a 48-45 win.
In the nightcap — a Sugar Bowl matchup between No. 7 Baylor and No. 8 Ole Miss — the big news was an injury to Ole Miss quarterback Matt Corral, which knocked him out of the game.
Here are the top plays from Saturday's action.
Sugar Bowl — No. 7 Baylor 21, No. 8 Ole Miss 7
First pick
On the second offensive snap of the game for Ole Miss, Baylor recorded an interception to immediately steal the momentum.
Corral goes down
Corral, Ole Miss' star QB and a top NFL prospect, was injured a bit later when a lineman rolled up on his knee.
To the house
Corral's replacement, Luke Altmyer, was picked off a short while later. Baylor returned it 96 yards for a 7-0 lead and that would be the score at the half.
Finally, some offense!
Altmyer earned some revenge in the third quarter, however, hitting Braylon Sanders on a beautiful 37-yard scoring toss to tie it at 7-7. It was Altmyer's first career college touchdown pass.
Bears roar late
Baylor regained the lead early in the fourth quarter, 14-7, when Monaray Baldwin broke free for a 48-yard scamper.
Baylor took the ball back on JT Woods' second interception of the night and soon added another score to go up 21-7. Ultimately, the game was ruled by defense, and Baylor's was just a bit better.
Rose Bowl — No. 6 Ohio State 48, No. 11 Utah 45
Unified Utes
An estimated 60,000 Utah supporters poured into Rose Bowl Stadium to cheer on their squad in one of the program's biggest games ever. The Utes used that unofficial advantage to guide them to an early score on their second drive of the game.
The Utes' fan base got a special message of encouragement after the TD.
Game of inches
That's what they say about the game of football, a sentiment that rang with a resounding truth on this big-time fingertip grab from Micah Bernard.
WR U
C.J. Stroud has been OSU's leading playmaker for the majority of the season, but their WR lineup is among the best in the country. Emeka Egbuka pulled off this stunning sideline reception …
… before Marvin Harrison Jr. beat the D on a speedy fly route to make it 14-7.
Take the top off
Did we mention that Ohio State has talented receivers? Jaxon Smith-Njigba went deep for a 50-yard TD reception just moments after a short Utah score.
It's raining!
Make that three TDs in 50 seconds. Britain Covey found the end zone for the second time in the first half on this riveting 97-yard kick return.
TDs by the seconds
Four scores in just more than one minute. This is what the Rose Bowl is all about. Covey isn't the only WR with multiple scores in this one.
Smith-Njigba sped his way to pay dirt on the very next play from scrimmage, bringing OSU back within one possession, 28-21.
Rising upwards
Ah, finally a defensive stop — or so Ohio State thought.
On fourth-and-1, Cameron Rising called his own number on a read-option, disposed of his first would-be tackler, and took off 62 yards to the end zone for another score, the fifth in two minutes.
Opportunistic turnover
The Utah defense had no answers for Smith-Njigba in the first half for the most part, but when the Utes needed a stop, they got it with a forced fumble to prevent Smith-Njigba from scoring for a third time.
Hat trick for Harrison Jr.
After giving up 35 points in the first half, the Ohio State defense stepped up in the second half to give its offense a chance.
The Buckeyes' offense took advantage of the defensive help, crawling back to tie the game 38-38 behind Harrison Jr.'s third touchdown.
JSN FOR THE LEAD
Jaxson Smith-Njigba left Utah and the Rose Bowl record book in the dust with his third touchdown of the game, to give Ohio State a 45-38 lead.
The reception gave him 13 catches for 326 yards on the day, a Rose Bowl record for receiving yards in a game.
Wild finish
After starting quarterback Cameron Rising was removed from the game due to a head injury, Utah turned to freshman Bryson Barnes with the game on the line.
Barnes delivered, leading the Utes on a game-tying drive with less than two minutes to play.
But the Buckeyes, as they did all game, responded.
The Ohio State offense drove down the field to kick a game-winning field goal to escape with a 48-45 win.
PlayStation Fiesta Bowl –– No. 9 Oklahoma State 37, No. 5 Notre Dame 35
Styling and profiling
It didn't take long for the Fighting Irish to put their mark on the game. Jack Coan led his group downfield with ease, finding Lorenzo Styles over the middle for the game's first TD.
Taking it to the house
After forcing a defensive stop, Notre Dame was right back on the attack on the offensive end. Coan sniffed out an all-out blitz on third down and found Chris Tyree, who took care of the rest en route to a 53-yard score, putting the Irish up 14-0.
Mayor Mayer
After Oklahoma State got on the board, the Irish answered right back, as Coan unleashed his third and fourth TD throws of the day to one of his favorite targets: Michael Mayer.
Hurry up offense
After Mayer's second score, it took just 39 seconds for Oklahoma State to find the end zone on the ensuing possession. QB Spencer Sanders led a 75-yard march in just four plays, rifling a dart to Tay Martin in the back of the end zone to climb within two possessions.
Tay Time!
Tay Martin had his hands all over the second half for the Cowboys. A pair of slant route TDs brought the Cowboys back into the affair, knotting things up at 28.
Our game now!
The Cowboys caused the first turnover of the game, courtesy of this strip by All-American Kolby Harvell-Peel.
American Cowboys
Oklahoma State has a couple of All-Americans on defense. After the Cowboys converted a FG to go up 34-28, Malcolm Rodriguez stifled ND with another takeaway, this time on an INT to return the possession arrow in their direction.
Notre Dame would score again after the OK State's Tanner Brown knocked in another FG, but its final attempt was stopped on fourth down, sealing a 37-35 win.
Outback Bowl — No. 21 Arkansas 24, Penn State 10
Lowering the boom
Arkansas QB KJ Jefferson gave his squad a boost on a critical fourth-down conversion before Raheim Sanders found an open path to the end zone to put the Razorbacks up 7-0.
That was easy
The Nittany Lions charged back with a deep shot early in the second. Sean Clifford dialed up a house call to KeAndre Lambert-Smith, who was wide open in the back of the end zone.
Now you see me …
Jefferson showed off some finesse early in the second half, fooling a Penn State defender with a play-fake before waltzing into the end zone.
Rocket man
Make that two scores for Sanders. His emphatic charge up the gut put Arkansas up 24-10 near the end of the third quarter.
Tap shoes
The defense decided to get involved in the highlight tape during the fourth. After Clifford led a spirited drive into his opponent's red zone, Joe Foucha stole his hopes with a deflating INT grab in the back of the end zone.
The Razorbacks' defense continued to impress, shutting out Penn State in the second half en route to a 24-10 final.
Vrbo Citrus Bowl — No. 22 Kentucky 20, No. 15 Iowa 17
Setting the tone
Kentucky put together a masterful 13-play, 80-yard drive on its first possession of the game, which ended with a touchdown pass from Will Levis to Chris Rodriguez.
It took nearly three quarters for the Hawkeyes to find the pylon, but their first TD, courtesy of Arland Bruce IV, got the ball rolling.
Their second came on an end-around to Sam LaPorta, but the real story of the play was Tyler Linderbaum's wheels as he ran step-for-step with No. 84 on his way to the end zone.
The TD created a feel-good atmosphere for the Hawkeyes, whose fan base still managed to break out its traditional crowd wave.
Excuse me!
Want a textbook highlight that defines "making defenders miss?" Look no further than this montage put together by Wan'Dale Robinson.
After Robinson's big catch-and-run, Chris Rodriguez Jr. put a bow on the eight-play, 80-yard drive to give the Wildcats a 20-17 lead.
Walk it off!
Kentucky's defense made the play of the day. DeAndre Square came away with the decisive takeaway, securing an interception to seal the victory.
Kentucky finished off the late-game comeback, winning 20-17.