Broken Wings » the Rams responded to tie the game. Robert Quinn sac

If you like underdogs and great stories, you’re going to like this year’s Orange Bowl. And if you don’t like those things, you’re probably an Alabama fan? Everybody, save for maybe Ole Miss alumni, was a fan of Mississippi State and their incredible run this season. The Bulldogs jumped to national relevance with an upset win over then No. 8 LSU to open their conference play. They followed that up with wins over then No. 6 Texas A&M and then No. 3 Auburn and all of a sudden Mississippi State was getting College Football Playoff mentions. Beating three Top 10 teams in a row can rush an unranked team up the charts in a hurry, especially when those wins are in-conference SEC victories. The Bulldogs’ run as No. 1 in the nation ended in mid-November with a five-point loss to Alabama. But there are a lot worse things to do in college football than fall to the Crimson Tide by less than a score and their College Football Playoff hopes didn’t end until rival Ole Miss downed them on the final week of the regular season. Quarterback Dak Prescott led Mississippi State’s run to relevance and more as a classic dual threat college QB. While Prescott’s Heisman candidacy couldn’t make it the whole year, he was on many a pundit’s “Watch” throughout the season. The junior had only middling passing numbers – 2,996 yards and 24 touchdowns to 10 interceptions – but had opposing defences running scared with his 939 rushing yards and 13 rushing touchdowns. That said, the more defences forced Prescott to pass, the farther down Heisman Watches he fell, something Georgia Tech likely has noted heading into the New Year’s Eve battle. Speaking of Georgia Tech, they had a pretty memorable out-of-nowhere season too, just with none of the hype or national fanfare. The Yellow Jackets’ solid season was interrupted by back-to-back losses to basketball powerhouses Duke and North Carolina, but the team managed to rebound and finish strong enough to earn a top-tier bowl bid. Wins over ranked opponents Clemson, in a rout, and Georgia, in a significant one, had fans and experts alike thinking the Yellow Jackets could steal the ACC from Florida State. That didn’t happen, with the Seminoles squeaking out a two-point win, but Georgia Tech was never going to make the College Football Playoff, so this Orange Bowl bid was as good as they could have hoped for. Tech’s an interesting team in that they have one of the nation’s top offences based almost solely on the run. Outside of Wisconsin, maybe no team puts as much an emphasis on the ground game as GT. Using a combination of quarterback Justin Thomas, who led the team with 965 rushing yards, and running backs Zach Laskey and Synjyn Days, who combined to add 1,541 more, the Yellow Jackets finished third in the NCAA in rushing, averaging 333 yards per game. This one should be heavy on offence, but in a game featuring the fifth (Thomas) and sixth (Prescott) best running quarterbacks, the edge on defence should go to the Bulldogs. Neither Mississippi State or Georgia Tech had defences to write home about this season, but the Bulldogs did rank decently against the run. If they can take away GT’s ground game in any significant way, they’ll put the game in the hands (literally) of a QB who averaged 13 pass attempts per game (of course the Bulldogs also boast the fourth worst pass defence in the nation, so it could be pick your poison.) They’ve each had great stories this season, but only one can finish on a high note. The Bulldogs enter the game as seven-point favourites and after knocking off a number of SEC powerhouses, should be able to do the same to an ACC (sorta)powerhouse. It could be the start of another good run for Mississippi State. With bleak pro prospects, Prescott should return for his senior season and head coach Dan Mullen should have a lot more luck on the recruiting trail this off-season. Eye on Sunday LB Benardrick McKinney, Mississippi State If Prescott declares, a lot of pre-draft talk will be about the quarterback and where he fits into the draft, if at all. Scouts will make the trip to the Mississippi State pro day where they would do well to focus more attention on McKinney. McKinney may be the best inside linebacker in the draft and has a real shot at getting selected in the first round. QB Dak Prescott, Mississippi State Prescott’s game is suited much better to college than the pros. He was exposed down the stretch when opponents took away the run and forced him to air it out. That won’t change the fact that if the junior declares there will be tons of discussion about which round he should be selected, if he’s selected at all. Prescott has gotten some early mid-round draft grades but will likely be a late-rounder at best and would be wise to return to school for another season. SS Isaiah Johnson, Georgia Tech A look at several draft boards around the Internet doesn’t produce many Georgia Tech products. The one name that came up is Johnson, who projects as a late-rounder early in the evaluation process. Arian Foster Texans Jersey . The motion to expand the stadiums capacity passed through by a count of 39-3, with Toronto mayor Rob Ford being among those in opposition. Max Scharping Youth Jersey . Its Wu-Tang and Outkast in the final. Now, we all know youve played the role of Andre 3000 in the past, does that mean Outkast is getting your vote?AJ: You know it, you know it. http://www.officialhoustontexanspro.com/Lonnie-johnson-texans-jersey/ . - Alex Dostie scored two goals and assisted on another to lead the Gatineau Olympiques to a 5-3 victory over the Drummondville Voltigeurs in Quebec Major Junior Hockey League action on Sunday. Cullen Gillaspia Texans Jersey . According to a report from CSN Bay Area, the 49ers are bracing for 6-8 game suspension for their outside linebacker. Tytus Howard Texans Jersey . Spains victory rendered Frances 3-0 win against Finland meaningless as Spain needed just one point to secure passage to Brazil. Franck Ribery and Karim Benzema scored either side of Joona Toivios own-goal as France advanced to the playoff among the eight best second-place finishers.Santa Clara, CA (SportsNetwork.com) - Twice in the games final seconds, the 49ers were within inches of victory. But Michael Crabtree rolled out-of-bounds inside the 1-yard line and Colin Kaepernick fumbled on the goal line, as the St. Louis Rams went into Levis Stadium and stunned San Francisco 13-10 on Sunday in an NFC West showdown. Greg Zuerlein put the Rams (3-5) in front with a field goal midway through the fourth. After both teams were forced to punt, San Franciscos offense, which hadnt done anything in the second half until then, marched into scoring position with time winding down. Kaepernick started the final drive with a 25-yard pitch-and-catch to Stevie Johnson, who made a defender miss before running to the Niners 37. A penalty on Lamarcus Joyner gave the 49ers another first down out of the two-minute warning. Later in the drive, Crabtree drew two straight penalties -- a pass interference and defensive holding -- on Trumaine Johnson to set up 1st-and- goal for the Niners with 42 seconds left. Kaepernick rolled right and hit Crabtree near the goal line on first down, but he had to go to the ground to make the catch and rolled out-of-bounds inches before crossing the plane. A booth review confirmed the call. Kaepernicks second down pass sailed out of the back of the end zone, and the ball popped free on his QB sneak on third down. James Laurinaitis recovered the fumble at the bottom of the pile, sealing the outcome. The ball came out. I have to hold on to it, said Kaepernick. We had opportunities in both halves. We didnt take advantage. The Rams defense played as well as it had all season, sacking Kaepernick eight times and holding the 49ers to 3-of-12 on third down. Austin Davis was less than stellar guiding St. Louis offense, throwing for just 105 yards with a touchdown and two interceptions. His 8-yard dump off to Benny Cunningham on 3rd-and-10 put Zuerlein in a better position to kick his eventual game-winning field goal. Kaepernnick completed 22-of-33 for 237 yards with a touchdown pass to Anquan Boldin, who made six catches for 93 yards.dddddddddddd The 49ers (4-4) have dropped consecutive games following a three-game winning streak. We gotta take this as a positive and move on, said Rams coach Jeff Fisher. A lot of good things happened. We didnt play our best game. Obviously I have a lot of concerns about the last drive but we were playing an explosive offense. The Niners went 64 yards in nine plays on the games first possession. Phil Dawson kicked a 34-yard field goal to open the scoring. Late in the first quarter, Zuerlein tied it with a 37-yarder. Antoine Betheas interception early in the second quarter set up the games first touchdown. On 3rd-and-2 from the 27, Kaepernick fired a pass to Boldin, who ran it in for the go-ahead score. Again, the Rams responded to tie the game. Robert Quinn sacked Kaepernick and forced the ball loose, with Eugene Sims recovering at the 49ers 36. Davis hit Cunningham for 17 yards and two plays later, hooked up with Kenny Britt for a 21-yard touchdown. The Niners punted with seconds left in the half, and Rams punt returner and former first-round pick Tavon Austin nearly committed a costly mistake. After fielding Andy Lees punt in the end zone, Austin danced around near the 1-yard line before getting tackled back into the end zone. A lengthy video review called Austin down at the 1 because of forward progress, and the Rams dodged a bullet heading into the locker room. Game Notes 49ers linebacker Patrick Willis and cornerback Tramaine Brock missed the game with toe injuries ... Niners Linebacker Chris Borland had a career-high 18 tackles. No one else in the game had more than six ... Tre Mason carried 19 times for 65 yards for the Rams ... The 49ers had won three straight in the series ... Earlier this week, St. Louis traded safety Mark Barron to the Buccaneers in exchange for two draft picks. ' ' '