By LARRY FLEISHER Dylan Raiola passed for 228 yards and a touchdown as Nebraska built an 18-point lead through three quarters and hung on to beat Boston College 20-15 Saturday for its first bowl victory since 2015. After Nebraska built a 13-2 lead in the first half on scoring runs by Rahmir Johnson and Kwinten Ives, Raiola hit Emmett Johnson with a 13-yard TD pass on fourth down with 3:02 remaining in the third quarter for a 20-2 edge and the Cornhuskers (7-6) held on for the win. Raiola completed 23 of 31 passes in front of a sizable Nebraska crowd that celebrated the team’s first bowl win since topping UCLA in the 2015 Foster Farms Bowl and first winning season since 2016. Raiola completed passes to 10 receivers, including Jahmal Banks, who finished with four receptions for 79 yards. Rahmir Johnson and Ives scored on short TD runs in the second period, and Nebraska’s defense set up the critical score in the third. Emmett Johnson scored on fourth-and-3 play for a 20-2 lead. That score came after John Bullock sacked Boston College quarterback Grayson James, forcing a fumble that was recovered by Elijah Jeudy at midfield. James finished 25 of 40 for 296 yards as Boston College (7-6) fell to 0-3 in Pinstripe Bowl games. The Eagles got past midfield on five of their first seven drives, but committed two turnovers and failed to convert four fourth downs, including two inside the 10-yard line. Boston College finally cashed with 6:11 left in the fourth when Turbo Richard scored on a 1-yard run, but the two-point conversion failed. BC made it a one-score game on Jordan McDonald’s 2-yard run, a play after getting possession on a blocked punt. After a scoreless opening quarter, Rahmir Johnson easily scored on a 4-yard run on the first play of the second period. After BC turned it over on downs twice in Nebraska territory, the Cornhusker’s took a 13-0 lead on Ives’ 2-yard run that was set up by Rahmir Johnson’s 22-yard run. The Eagles picked up their only points of the first half when Ashton McShane blocked John Hohl’s extra point and returned it for two points. Nebraska: Showed its depth at receivers, with Raiola hitting 10 players with passes, including Thomas Fidone and Emmett Johnson with five each. Boston College: The Eagles displayed their depth at receiver, with nine players catching passes. Lewis Bond and Jeremiah Franklin caught six eacg Nebraska opens its 2025 season against Cincinnati on Aug. 30. Boston College takes on Fordham on Aug. 30 to open its season.Do It Yourself? Iran Begins Producing Its Own Airbus & Boeing Aircraft Parts
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Look at the numbers, and it’s easy to assume Iowa State did whatever it wanted in its matchup against Colorado a month ago. Certainly in one sense, the Cyclones did just that while routing the Buffaloes 99-71 in both teams’ final game of the Maui Invitational on Nov. 27. CU head coach Tad Boyle, he of the defense-first ethos, typically is the last person who will defend a shoddy defensive effort by his club. Yet in that instance, it was the Buffaloes’ inability to protect the ball that led to their defensive demise. CU will get another shot at the opportunistic Cyclones on Monday, as the Buffs host No. 3 Iowa State in the Big 12 Conference opener. “You look at giving up 99 points and what they shot against us. But to be honest, it wasn’t our half-court defense,” Boyle said. “It was the 37 points off our turnovers, and the 14 points off second chance on offensive rebounds. You put those together, and it’s 51 of their 99 are a result of us not boxing out and getting our (butts) kicked on the boards, or not taking care of the ball on offense. And Iowa State, that’s what they feed on. They feed off of turning turnovers into layups and easy baskets. “When our half-court defense got set, we weren’t that bad. I’m not saying we were great defensively. But we weren’t as bad as the score would indicate.” Not only did CU surrender a season-high point total, but a defense that hasn’t allowed any other opponent to shoot 50% surrendered opponent season-highs in field goal percentage (.603), 3-point percentage (.440), made free throws (18) and assists (18) against the Cyclones. While CU has averaged just 12.6 turnovers in the past eight games after committing a whopping 55 through the season’s first three games, one glaring exception to the recent run occurred against the Cyclones. The Buffs committed 18 turnovers against ISU, and the Cyclones took advantage of just about every one of them, finishing with 37 points off turnovers. That, by far, is the highest total of points off turnovers by a CU foe this season. The next highest mark was 20 points by Northern Colorado in the second game of the season, and that was a double-overtime game. The Buffs surrendered a relatively modest seven offensive rebounds against the Cyclones but, again, ISU took advantage of all of them, finishing with 14 second-chance points. That’s also the most by a CU foe this season. Boyle reiterated a common theme of his after practice on Sunday that he would prefer a five-second call as opposed to wild, bail-out passes, given the Cyclones’ ability to turn live-ball turnovers into optimal looks in transition. ISU leads the Big 12 in forced turnovers (16.0) and turnover margin (plus-6.5). “Obviously we’ve got to stay in front of the ball a lot better this game,” CU forward Bangot Dak said. “Their guards were able to create a lot for others last time I feel like. And just overall, all five guys were able to beat us off the bounce. We’ve got to be a way better help team. And the big key is just really taking care of the ball. They had 37 points that we basically gave to them. We just have to take care of the ball, no second-chance points, and it will be a better game.” No. 3 Iowa State Cyclones at CU Buffs men’s basketball TIPOFF : Monday, 7 p.m., CU Events Center TV/RADIO : CBS Sports Network/KOA 850 AM and 94.1 FM RECORDS : Iowa State 10-1; Colorado 9-2. COACHES : Iowa State — TJ Otzelberger, 4th season (80-36, 179-99 overall). Colorado — Tad Boyle, 15th season (307-185, 363-251 overall). KEY PLAYERS : Iowa State — G Keshon Gilbert, 6-4, Sr. (16.5 ppg, 5.2 apg, 3.2 rpg, .545 FG%); G Curtis Jones, 6-4, Sr. (16.0 ppg, 4.2 rpg, 3.1 apg, 2.7 rpg, .392 3%); F Milan Momcilovic, 6-8, So. (11.6 ppg, 3.5 rpg, .455 3%); F Joshua Jefferson, 6-9, Jr. (11.5 ppg, 8.4 rpg, .542 FG%); C Dishon Jackson, 6-11, R-Sr., (11.0 ppg, 5.2 rpg, .656 FG%); G Tamin Lipsey, 6-1, Jr. (10.1 ppg, .494 FG%). Colorado — G Julian Hammond III, 6-2, Sr. (13.1 ppg, 3.5 apg, .429 3%); C Elijah Malone, 6-10, Gr. (12.0 ppg, 4.0 rpg, .662 FG%); F Andrej Jakimovski, 6-8, Gr. (11.2 ppg, 4.7 rpg); F Trevor Baskin, 6-9, Gr. (8.7 ppg, 6.5 rpg, .509 FG%); G RJ Smith, 6-3, R-So. (7.5 ppg, 2.8 rpg, 2.5 apg, .606 3%); F Bangot Dak, 6-11, So. (6.4 ppg, 3.0 rpg); F Assane Diop, 6-8, So. (3.6 ppg, 4.8 rpg). NOTES : This will be Iowa State’s first visit to Boulder since Feb. 11, 2011 during the Buffs’ final season of their previous stint in the Big 12. Prior to CU leaving the Big 12 for the Pac-12, the Cyclones lost their last six games at the Events Center and nine of their last 10. ... This will be the 150th meeting between the teams, with ISU leading the series 79-70. ... CU guard Javon Ruffin is expected to be available after missing the nonconference finale against Bellarmine due to a back issue. ... Hammond recorded 12 assists the past two games with only two turnovers. Hammond enjoyed a strong game offensively against ISU last month, going 6-for-11 from the field and 6-for-6 at the free throw line. ... Smith has matched a career-high with 11 points in each of the past two games. ... Iowa State has been idle since routing Morgan State 99-72 on Dec. 22. ... The Cyclones suffered their only loss of the season in their opener at the Maui Invitational last month against No. 2 Auburn. ISU then defeated Dayton and the Buffs the next two days. ... CU faces its first Big 12 road game on Saturday against former Pac-12 rival Arizona State (4 p.m. MT, ESPN+).
By JILL COLVIN and STEPHEN GROVES WASHINGTON (AP) — After several weeks working mostly behind closed doors, Vice President-elect JD Vance returned to Capitol Hill this week in a new, more visible role: Helping Donald Trump try to get his most contentious Cabinet picks to confirmation in the Senate, where Vance has served for the last two years. Vance arrived at the Capitol on Wednesday with former Rep. Matt Gaetz and spent the morning sitting in on meetings between Trump’s choice for attorney general and key Republicans, including members of the Senate Judiciary Committee. The effort was for naught: Gaetz announced a day later that he was withdrawing his name amid scrutiny over sex trafficking allegations and the reality that he was unlikely to be confirmed. Thursday morning Vance was back, this time accompanying Pete Hegseth, the “Fox & Friends Weekend” host whom Trump has tapped to be the next secretary of defense. Hegseth also has faced allegations of sexual assault that he denies. Vance is expected to accompany other nominees for meetings in coming weeks as he tries to leverage the two years he has spent in the Senate to help push through Trump’s picks. Vice President-elect JD Vance, still a Republican senator from Ohio, walks from a private meeting with President-elect Donald Trump’s nominee to be attorney general, former Rep. Matt Gaetz, R-Fla., at the Capitol in Washington, Wednesday, Nov. 20, 2024. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite) President-elect Donald Trump’s nominee to be attorney general, former Rep. Matt Gaetz, R-Fla., center, and Vice President-elect JD Vance, left, walk out of a meeting with Republican Senate Judiciary Committee members, at the Capitol in Washington, Wednesday, Nov. 20, 2024. (AP Photo/Ben Curtis) FILE – Sen. JD Vance, R-Ohio, departs the chamber at the Capitol in Washington, March 15, 2023. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite, File) FILE – Sen. JD Vance, R-Ohio, center speaks during a Senate Banking Committee hearing on Capitol Hill in Washington, March 7, 2023. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik, File) FILE – Sen. JD Vance, R-Ohio, right, speaks with Sen. Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio, before testifying at a hearing, March 9, 2023, in Washington. (AP Photo/Kevin Wolf, File) FILE – Sen. JD Vance, R-Ohio, arrives for a classified briefing on China, at the Capitol in Washington, Feb. 15, 2023. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite, File) FILE – Sen. JD Vance, R-Ohio, arrives for a vote on Capitol Hill, Sept. 12, 2023 in Washington. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein, File) FILE – Sen. JD Vance R-Ohio speaks during a news conference on Capitol Hill in Washington, Feb. 6, 2024. (AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana, File) Vice President-elect JD Vance, still a Republican senator from Ohio, walks from a private meeting with President-elect Donald Trump’s nominee to be attorney general, former Rep. Matt Gaetz, R-Fla., at the Capitol in Washington, Wednesday, Nov. 20, 2024. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite) The role of introducing nominees around Capitol Hill is an unusual one for a vice president-elect. Usually the job goes to a former senator who has close relationships on the Hill, or a more junior aide. But this time the role fits Vance, said Marc Short, who served as Trump’s first director of legislative affairs as well as chief of staff to Trump’s first vice president, Mike Pence, who spent more than a decade in Congress and led the former president’s transition ahead of his first term. ”JD probably has a lot of current allies in the Senate and so it makes sense to have him utilized in that capacity,” Short said. Unlike the first Trump transition, which played out before cameras at Trump Tower in New York and at the president-elect’s golf club in Bedminster, New Jersey, this one has largely happened behind closed doors in Palm Beach, Florida. There, a small group of officials and aides meet daily at Trump’s Mar-a-Lago resort to run through possible contenders and interview job candidates. The group includes Elon Musk, the billionaire who has spent so much time at the club that Trump has joked he can’t get rid of him. Vance has been a constant presence, even as he’s kept a lower profile. The Ohio senator has spent much of the last two weeks in Palm Beach, according to people familiar with his plans, playing an active role in the transition, on which he serves as honorary chair. Vance has been staying at a cottage on the property of the gilded club, where rooms are adorned with cherubs, oriental rugs and intricate golden inlays. It’s a world away from the famously hardscrabble upbringing that Vance documented in the memoir that made him famous, “Hillbilly Elegy.” His young children have also joined him at Mar-a-Lago, at times. Vance was photographed in shorts and a polo shirt playing with his kids on the seawall of the property with a large palm frond, a U.S. Secret Service robotic security dog in the distance. Related Articles On the rare days when he is not in Palm Beach, Vance has been joining the sessions remotely via Zoom. Though he has taken a break from TV interviews after months of constant appearances, Vance has been active in the meetings, which began immediately after the election and include interviews and as well as presentations on candidates’ pluses and minuses. Among those interviewed: Contenders to replace FBI Director Christopher Wray , as Vance wrote in a since-deleted social media post. Defending himself from criticism that he’d missed a Senate vote in which one of President Joe Biden’s judicial nominees was confirmed, Vance wrote that he was meeting at the time “with President Trump to interview multiple positions for our government, including for FBI Director.” “I tend to think it’s more important to get an FBI director who will dismantle the deep state than it is for Republicans to lose a vote 49-46 rather than 49-45,” Vance added on X. “But that’s just me.” While Vance did not come in to the transition with a list of people he wanted to see in specific roles, he and his friend, Trump’s eldest son, Donald Trump Jr., who is also a member of the transition team, were eager to see former Democratic Rep. Tulsi Gabbard and Robert F. Kennedy Jr. find roles in the administration. Trump ended up selecting Gabbard as the next director of national intelligence , a powerful position that sits atop the nation’s spy agencies and acts as the president’s top intelligence adviser. And he chose Kennedy to lead the Department of Health and Human Services , a massive agency that oversees everything from drug and food safety to Medicare and Medicaid. Vance was also a big booster of Tom Homan, the former acting director of Immigration and Customs Enforcement, who will serve as Trump’s “border czar.” In another sign of Vance’s influence, James Braid, a top aide to the senator, is expected to serve as Trump’s legislative affairs director. Allies say it’s too early to discuss what portfolio Vance might take on in the White House. While he gravitates to issues like trade, immigration and tech policy, Vance sees his role as doing whatever Trump needs. Vance was spotted days after the election giving his son’s Boy Scout troop a tour of the Capitol and was there the day of leadership elections. He returned in earnest this week, first with Gaetz — arguably Trump’s most divisive pick — and then Hegseth, who has was been accused of sexually assaulting a woman in 2017, according to an investigative report made public this week. Hegseth told police at the time that the encounter had been consensual and denied any wrongdoing. Vance hosted Hegseth in his Senate office as GOP senators, including those who sit on the Senate Armed Services Committee, filtered in to meet with the nominee for defense secretary. While a president’s nominees usually visit individual senators’ offices, meeting them on their own turf, the freshman senator — who is accompanied everywhere by a large Secret Service detail that makes moving around more unwieldy — instead brought Gaetz to a room in the Capitol on Wednesday and Hegseth to his office on Thursday. Senators came to them. Vance made it to votes Wednesday and Thursday, but missed others on Thursday afternoon. Vance is expected to continue to leverage his relationships in the Senate after Trump takes office. But many Republicans there have longer relationships with Trump himself. Sen. Kevin Cramer, a North Dakota Republican, said that Trump was often the first person to call him back when he was trying to reach high-level White House officials during Trump’s first term. “He has the most active Rolodex of just about anybody I’ve ever known,” Cramer said, adding that Vance would make a good addition. “They’ll divide names up by who has the most persuasion here,” Cramer said, but added, “Whoever his liaison is will not work as hard at it as he will.” Cramer was complimentary of the Ohio senator, saying he was “pleasant” and ” interesting” to be around. ′′He doesn’t have the long relationships,” he said. “But we all like people that have done what we’ve done. I mean, that’s sort of a natural kinship, just probably not as personally tied.” Under the Constitution, Vance will also have a role presiding over the Senate and breaking tie votes. But he’s not likely to be needed for that as often as was Kamala Harris, who broke a record number of ties for Democrats as vice president, since Republicans will have a bigger cushion in the chamber next year. Colvin reported from New York. Associated Press writer Mary Clare Jalonick contributed to this report.