USC's Barkley, UCLA's Franklin take national leads

[September 10, 2012]  CHICAGO (AP) -- The Pac-12 had one of its best weekends in years, led by a Los Angeles-based duo that put themselves in the national lead in rushing yards and passing touchdowns.

UCLA senior Johnathan Franklin ran for 217 yards on 26 carries as the upstart Bruins stunned Nebraska 36-30 at the Rose Bowl. Franklin now has 431 yards rushing while averaging a gaudy 10.5 yards per carry through two games.

Southern California's Matt Barkley continued his push for the Heisman Trophy some 3,000 miles away. Barkley threw six TDs passes in stormy New Jersey as the Trojans held off Syracuse 42-29.

Barkley has 10 touchdown passes, three more than Akron's Dalton Williams and four more than anyone else.

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SEMINOLE SMACKDOWN: No. 5 Florida State demolished hapless FCS school Savannah State 55-0 in a game called with 8:59 left in the third quarter because of bad weather. The Seminoles now lead the nation in scoring defense among teams that have played more than one game with just 1.5 points allowed per contest.

Savannah State probably wouldn't have scored even if the weather had cleared up. The Tigers mustered just 28 yards of offense and three first downs.

TCU is the only team in the country with a clean sheet, having blanked Grambling State 56-0 in Saturday's opener.

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BUSY BROWNING: Louisiana-Monroe quarterback Kolton Browning held the ball in his hands for a staggering 83 plays. He ran 16 times for 69 yards but, more importantly, threw for 412 yards and three TDs as the Warhawks stunned Arkansas 34-31 in overtime to knock the Razorbacks out of the AP Top 25.

Browning completed 42 of 67 passes and threw just one interception.

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CATCH-22: Wake Forest's Michael Campanaro caught 13 passes for 164 yards to help the Demon Deacons beat North Carolina 28-27 in a thriller in Winston-Salem. Campanaro now has a national-best 22 receptions, but just one TD catch. He had 73 grabs a year ago, but only two of them were for touchdowns.

USC's receiving duo of Robert Woods and Marqise Lee have eight TD catches in 37 combined receptions.

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PERFECT KICKS: Louisiana-Lafayette kicker Brett Baer has hit all seven of his field goal tries in 2012, helping the Ragin' Cajuns get out to the only 2-0 start among Sun Belt teams. Iowa's Mike Meyer is second in the country with six field goals in seven tries, but the Hawkeyes have just one TD in two games after losing to Iowa State at home 9-6.

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NUMBERS GAME: Michigan's Denard Robinson had 426 total yards in a 31-25 win over Air Force. But his teammates combined for minus-4 yards of offense. ... Arizona linebacker Jake Fischer leads the nation with 19 solo tackles after helping the Wildcats beat Oklahoma State 59-38. ... Temple's Nate D. Smith forced a pair of fumbles in a 36-27 loss to Maryland. ... Through two weeks of the 2012 season there have been nine kickoffs brought back for scores. A rule change before this season pushed kickoffs up to the 35-yard line from the 30. ... West Virginia leads the nation in scoring offense after scoring 69 points in their opener on Sept. 1, while FBS newcomer Massachusetts has just six points in two games. ... Connecticut is allowing just 28.5 yards rushing a game, while Florida State's average of 63 yards passing allowed tops the nation among teams that have played twice.

[Associated Press; By LUKE MEREDITH]

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