College Football Scores 2012: Week 7 Results and Analysis

We will know a lot more about the powers of college football following a Week 7 that is filled with some excellent showdowns.

No. 9 LSU hosting No. 3 South Carolina gives us the highest-ranked matchup with No. 17 Stanford traveling to take on No. 7 Notre Dame not far behind. 

And those are just two of the key matchups this week. There are plenty more, which we will update on this page as the games wrap up. 

Week 7 Scores

Northern Illinois 45, Buffalo 3

Oklahoma State 20, Kansas 14

Rice 34, UTSA 14

Bowling Green 37, Miami (OH) 12

No. 25 Michigan 45, Illinois 0

No. 24 Boise State 20, Fresno State 10

No. 1 Alabama 42, Missouri 10

No. 10 Oregon State 42, BYU 24

No. 7 Notre Dame 20, No. 17 Stanford 13

Texas Tech 49, No. 5 West Virginia 14 

No. 18 Louisville 45, Pittsburgh 35

No. 6 Kansas State 27, Iowa State 21

Iowa 19, Michigan State 16 - 2 OT

Northwestern 21, Minnesota 13

No. 20 Rutgers 23, Syracuse 15

No. 13 Oklahoma 63, No. 15 Texas 21

Houston 39, UAB 17

Kent St. 31, Army 17

Wisconsin 38, Purdue 14

Ole Miss 41, Auburn 20

Virginia Tech 41, Duke 20

Temple 17, Connecticut 14 - OT

Toledo 52, Eastern Michigan 47

Tulane 27, SMU 26

Ohio 34, Akron 28

North Carolina 18, Miami (FL) 14

UCLA 21, Utah 14

Western Kentucky 31, Troy 6

Tulsa 33, UTEP 11

Arizona State 51, Colorado 17

Navy 31, Central Michigan 13

No. 25 Michigan 45, Illinois 0

Denard Robinson and the Wolverines defense were spectacular as they destroyed the Illini (they won't get the "Fighting" in front of that name on this day). 

Robinson went for two touchdowns passing and two rushing, and he did so after having to briefly leave the game in the first quarter for an undisclosed injury. 

Robinson threw just 11 passes, but he hit seven of them and they went for 159 yards. Meanwhile, the Michigan defense held Illinois to just 134 yards of offense. 

No. 24 Boise State 20, Fresno State 10

This is not your very-recent-past self's Boise State Broncos who chucked the ball all over the field to put up big points. 

This Broncos team doubled up Fresno State on the strength of a run game that went for 215 yards. Senior D.J. Harper was the main workhorse as he went for 122 yards on 21 carries.

Of course, that fine rushing display would not have been possible without a strong defensive outing. The Broncos D secured two turnovers on the day and didn't allow a touchdown until this one was all but over. 

No. 1 Alabama 42, Missouri 10

Alabama hung 21 points in the first quarter while blanking Missouri, and this game was on cruise control after that. 

Everything you need to know about this game is summed up in the rushing stats. Alabama finished with 47 carries for 362 yards. Missouri finished with 28 carriers for three yards. 

I honestly can't type that without laughing. Now, that rushing number is a little skewed because quarterback Corbin Berkstresser was credit with negative-50 rushing yards, but still, those numbers are terrible. 

No. 10 Oregon State 42, BYU 24

No starting quarterback, no problem for these world-beating Beavers. Backup QB Cody Vaz, who is filling in for injured starter Sean Mannion, went on the road and beat a defense that entered the game third in the nation in scoring average, and he threw for 332 yards, three touchdowns and no interceptions. 

This game was actually tied entering the fourth quarter, but Oregon State switched it into overdrive as it outscored BYU 21-3 in the final period. 

It was an impressive performance for Vaz and the Beavers, who just keep on rolling and are now 5-0. 

No. 7 Notre Dame 20, No. 17 Stanford 13

Starting-turned-backup QB Tommy Rees threw a touchdown pass in overtime then watched as the Irish made a goal-line stand as Notre Dame held off Stanford 20-13 in overtime to maintain their perfect record.

Rees was again filling in for Everett Golson, who was forced to leave with a late injury, and Rees was fantastic.

He finished 4-of-4 with 43 yards and the overtime touchdown throw.

This was a fantastic game, and it was almost the first blemish on the Irish's record as they needed a 22-yard field goal from Kyle Brindza with under a minute left to get this one into overtime. 

Texas Tech 49, No. 5 West Virginia 14 

It's not every day you see the No. 5 team in the nation fall to an unranked team by 35 points. 

Texas Tech dominated this one by shockingly enjoying far better quarterback play.

Mountaineers quarterback Geno Smith didn't have an awful day, he was 29-of-55 with 275 yards, a touchdown and no interceptions, but this is not up to the Heisman-worthy standards he has established this year. 

And any way you look at it, Seth Doege had a far superior day as he passed for six touchdowns and a season-high 499 yards. 

This was no fluke. Texas Tech was clearly the better team. 

No. 6 Kansas State 27, Iowa State 21

Kansas State suffered an upset scare but emerged victorious thanks in large part to quarterback Collin Klein. 

The senior did the most damage with his legs in this one as his 105 rushing yards involved him finding the end zone three times. He also added 187 yards passing. And through it all, he kept the chains moving. 

The Wildcats were 8-of-17 on third downs and wound up with just over 40 minutes of possession. Still, despite all of that, Iowa scored with 12:34 left in the fourth to close the gap to 24-21. They would not get any closer and wound up with just 231 offensive yards. 

No. 13 Oklahoma 63, No. 15 Texas 21

As absurd as it sounds, the Red River Rivalry was not as close as that lopsided score indicates. 

The Sooners took a 36-2 into the locker room at halftime and Texas' two points came on a blocked extra point that they returned.

The stats at the half were remarkable. Oklahoma outgained Texas 407-65 in offensive yards and 206-2 in rushing yards. Normally, a point per rushing yard gained is a good thing. Not this time for Texas. 

The Longhorns got a pick-six off a Landry Jones pass on the first possession of the second, yet the Longhorns had been so completely manhandled, that it seemed silly to even think that would spark a comeback, and it didn't. 

No. 18 Louisville 45, Pittsburgh 35

Louisville entered the locker room at halftime down 21-17, and that was bad news for Pitt. 

The Cardinals came out of the break like they were personally offended by their performance and determined to improve.

They did indeed improve, and they did so on the first play of the second half when quarterback Teddy Bridgewater found DeVante Parker for a 75-yard score.

Louisville won the third quarter, 21-0. Cardinals running back Senorise Perry added an impressive four touchdowns and 101 rushing yards.