Sports Zone Dec. 23, 2023: SIU football now has bragging rights over bowl champion, FAU-Arizona double overtime thriller

CAPE GIRARDEAU, Mo. (KBSI) – On September 9, the Southern Illinois football team went up to Dekalb and defeated FBS opponent Northern Illinois, 14-11. The Huskies won their final two games of the season to become bowl eligible, and they faced off with Arkansas State in the Camelia Bowl on Saturday afternoon.

In the second quarter with NIU up 13-7, the Huskies executed a fake field goal to perfection. Kanon Woodill took a flip from the holder 32 yards to the end zone, and NIU would lead by 14 after the extra point.

With a minute to go in the fourth and NIU ahead, 21-13, Arkansas State quarterback Jaylen Raynor found Corey Rucker for his second touchdown of the day, but the Red Wolves had to go for two to try to tie the game. Raynor’s pass sailed out of the back of the end zone, and NIU won the Camelia Bowl, 21019.

SIU now has bragging rights over a team that won a bowl game.

In one of the craziest college basketball games you’ll see this season, No. 14 Florida Atlantic took on No. 4 Arizona in Las Vegas.

After Arizona’s Caleb Love gave Arizona a two-point lead on a 3-pointer just over a minute left, Florida Atlantic’s Jalen Gaffney grabbed an offensive rebound off one of the rare misses from Johnell David and found Vlad Goldin underneath the basket, and he slammed it in with 7.2 seconds left to tie the game and send it to overtime.

With less than a minute left in that overtime period, with FAU up by three, Love knocked down another 3-pointer from NBA range to tie the game once more and force double overtime.

With just under three minutes to play in the second overtime, Gaffney sank a triple to extend FAU’s lead to five.

Arizona would have a chance to win it on the final possession down by one, but Love’s 3-pointer rimmed out, and Florida Atlantic won an absolute classic, 96-95.