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Archives for September 12, 2024

Bills Crush Dolphins; Tua Hurt

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MIAMI GARDENS – (Staff and Wire Service Report) – Buffalo’s RB James Cook tallied three touchdowns, Ja’Marcus Ingram grabbed the first two interceptions of his career and the Bills trounced the Miami Dolphins 31-10 on Thursday in Florida.

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Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa was intercepted three times, including a pick-6 by Ingram that blew the game open early in the third quarter. Tagovailoa later sustained a concussion when he collided with Buffalo safety Damar Hamlin and left the game under his own power.

Skylar Thompson finished out the game at quarterback for Miami. De’Von Achane led the Dolphins with 96 rushing yards on 22 carries, seven catches for 69 yards and a receiving score.

Cook — who had two rushing touchdowns all of last year — ran for two scores and caught another on Thursday while gaining 78 yards on the ground for the Bills (2-0). Josh Allen completed an efficient 13 of 19 passes for 139 yards and one TD.

Buffalo defeated Miami (1-1) for the 12th time in their past 13 meetings (regular season and playoffs).

On Miami’s first possession of the second half, Tagovailoa was under duress and tried to throw a pass out of bounds, but it didn’t reach the far sideline and Ingram fielded it for an easy 31-yard pick-six.

 

Pac-12 Reloads with Four Schools

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SAN RAMON – (Staff and Wire Service Report) – Mountain West representatives Boise State, Colorado State, Fresno State and San Diego State will join the Pac-12 in the 2026-27 academic year, the latter conference announced Thursday morning.

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The Pac-12 board of directors unanimously approved the additions of the four schools to join Oregon State and Washington State, the last two remaining schools after an offseason that saw 10 members jump to other power conferences. Oregon, Washington, UCLA and Southern California moved to the Big Ten; Utah, Colorado, Arizona and Arizona State shifted to the Big 12; and Cal and Stanford joined the Atlantic Coast Conference.

Boise State, Colorado State, Fresno State and San Diego State officially will join the Pac-12 on July 1, 2026.

“For over a century, the Pac-12 Conference has been recognized as a leading brand in intercollegiate athletics,” Pac-12 commissioner Teresa Gould said in a statement. “We will continue to pursue bold cutting-edge opportunities for growth and progress, to best serve our member institutions and student-athletes. I am thankful to our board for their efforts to welcome Boise State University, Colorado State University, California State University, Fresno, and San Diego State University to the conference. An exciting new era for the Pac-12 Conference begins today.”

The NCAA gave the Pac-12 until July 2026 to have a minimum of eight universities if the league is to remain part of the Football Bowl Subdivision. The Mountain West additions still leave the league two short, although officials are pursuing additional options.

The four schools joining the Pac-12 would have to pay an exit fee of $18 million. The Pac-12 also would owe the Mountain West $43 million for taking schools away, part of the deal it reached to arrange scheduling of football matchups for Oregon State and Washington State this year.

MWC commissioner Gloria Nevarez released a statement late Wednesday to address reports that the four schools were exiting the conference.

“The Mountain West Conference is aware of media reports regarding the potential departure of several of our members, and we will have more to say in the days ahead,” Nevarez said. “All members will be held to the Conference bylaws and policies should they elect to depart. The requirements of the scheduling agreement will apply to the Pac-12 should they admit Mountain West members. Our Board of Directors is meeting to determine our next steps. The Mountain West has a proud 25-year history and will continue to thrive in the years ahead.”

Colorado State and San Diego State have been in the Mountain West since the league’s founding in 1999. Boise State joined the conference in 2011, and Fresno State followed in 2012. One of those four schools won or shared the league’s football championship in 10 of the past 12 seasons.

“We are ecstatic to be joining the Pac-12 Conference,” San Diego State athletic director John David Wicker said. “While we are grateful to be a founding member of the Mountain West with 26 years of success in the conference, we are excited at what lies ahead with these new opportunities. We will continue to compete for conference championships on the field and to graduate leaders in the community.”

–Field Level Media