Dallas
The Servpro First Responder Bowl between the Broncos and Boston College was canceled because of the threat of severe weather after a delay of nearly 1½ hours on Wednesday.
The game was stopped with BC leading 7-0 with 5:08 remaining in the first quarter. The delay came not long after AJ Dillon ran 19 yards for a touchdown.
“In my career, this is a first,” said BC coach Steve Addazio, finishing his sixth year in charge of the Eagles and 33rd year in the profession. “I don’t second-guess anything about it. The decision was made for the right reasons, and that’s the welfare of both teams’ players.”
NCAA spokesman J.D. Hamilton said via email that it was believed to be the first bowl canceled by weather. Hawaii’s planned second postseason game of 1941, against San Jose State, was canceled because of the attack on Pearl Harbor. Both schools said they would offer refunds for tickets purchased through their athletic departments.
Before the announcement, fans had begun returning to their seats after severe storms rolled through the area near downtown Dallas. Lightning strikes near the stadium continued intermittently for three hours after the initial delay, and more storms were expected.
Associate bowl director Brett Ringler said officials met on Tuesday to discuss the weather report and how they would handle the decision-making process.
“We followed all those protocols today, and we finally had to come to a decision to cancel the game based on weather that was forthcoming as well,” Ringler said.
The Broncos (10-3) were playing at the 86-year-old stadium for the first time, in their second meeting with BC. The other was the Eagles’ 27-21 victory with Atlanta Falcons quarterback Matt Ryan on Boise’s blue turf in the 2005 MPC Computers Bowl.
Boise, which won, 34-14, at Wyoming in September in hazy conditions because of a wildfire, was trying for its second straight 11-win season after losing to Fresno State 19-16 in overtime in the Mountain West Conference championship game.
“Help me out guys; this is a new one,” Boise State coach Bryan Harsin said. “We prepared for this in fall camp where we ran into the locker room.”
The Eagles (7-5) were going for their first eight-win season under Addazio in their first appearance at the Fair Park venue since Doug Flutie led a 45-28 victory over Houston in the 1985 Cotton Bowl.
Quick Lane BowlMinnesota 34, Ga. Tech 10
Detroit
The Golden Gophers (7-6) won three of their last four games, and Ibrahim had a lot to do with that. The redshirt freshman running back had 121 yards rushing in a win at Wisconsin that made Minnesota bowl eligible and ran for 155 yards last month in a victory over Purdue.
The Yellow Jackets (7-6) did not have the speed or strength to slow down Ibrahim and their triple-option offense was stunted in coach Paul Johnson’s finale. The Gophers limited Georgia Tech to 206 yards on the ground after it led the nation with 335 yards rushing per game.
Minnesota led 13-0 early in the second quarter after Tanner Morgan threw an 18-yard touchdown pass to Tyler Johnson in the first quarter and Emmit Carpenter made two field goals. Ibrahim’s 3-yard touchdown run midway through the third quarter made it 20-3.
The Yellow Jackets responded with Nathan Cottrell’s 20-yard touchdown run, but their defense allowed Ibrahim to score again on the ensuing drive. Morgan connected with Johnson on a 30-yard touchdown strike with 6:19 left, giving the Gophers a 24-point cushion.