Off Topic » first career post-season start.

LAS VEGAS -- Just a few weeks after Fresno State appeared poised for a BCS trip and a breakthrough season, the Bulldogs ended up busted in Vegas. Derek Carr didnt attempt to hide his disappointment when his college career ended with a 45-20 loss to Southern California in the Las Vegas Bowl on Saturday. The record-setting quarterback also wouldnt allow one loss to erase every good memory from a landmark season in Fresno State history. "I thought our guys were ready to go," Carr said. "There wasnt any lack of focus on any side of the ball. USC just beat us." Carr passed for just 217 yards and two TDs under constant pressure in his final game at Fresno State (11-2), which fell behind 35-6 at halftime. With their fifth straight bowl defeat, the Bulldogs failed to secure the first 12-win season in school history. Right down to the script "Bulldogs" on the helmet, Fresno State wore the same uniform combination sported by the team that beat USC in the 1992 Freedom Bowl, one of the biggest wins in school history. But the Mountain West champions still havent won a bowl game since 2007, losing six of their last seven. "I think if you look at the body of work, this team won 11 ballgames and won a second straight conference championship," Fresno State coach Tim DeRuyter said. "Theres critics out there. Everyone has got an opinion. I know in my heart we had a really, really fine football team. We didnt play our best game today, and that goes on me. Ive got to do a better job of getting our guys ready." Cody Kessler passed for a career-high 344 yards and a bowl-record four touchdowns for the Trojans and interim coach Clay Helton, the third of USCs four head coaches in less than three months. Kessler outdid Carr, his fellow Bakersfield native and friend, setting the Las Vegas Bowl record for TD passes before halftime and finishing 22 for 30. USC scored three touchdowns in a nine-minute burst in the second quarter, and Javorius Allen clinched it with his second TD run with 4:44 to play. Carr went 30 for 54 under constant pressure from the blitzing Trojans, who eliminated Fresno States running game and twice stopped the Bulldogs on fourth downs in the first half. Fresno States two TD catches by Isaiah Burse and Davante Adams both came on short drives resulting from USC mistakes on special teams, and Derron Smith returned an interception 41 yards for a touchdown. Carr, the nations leader in yards passing and total offence, became the fourth player in NCAA history to surpass 5,000 yards passing and 50 TD passes during the game. But Carr leaves Fresno State without a bowl victory, never getting the Bulldogs moving against one of the nations best pass defences. "Blame me. Blame me always," Carr said. "Ive got to do a better job of leading, and Ive got to do a better job of getting our guys in better spots. Thats my fault." Marqise Lee and Nelson Agholor had two touchdown catches apiece, Allen rushed two more scores, and the Trojans (10-4) answered every question about their own motivation by repeatedly dancing on the sideline during the storied programs first post-season victory since 2009. From Kesslers smooth offence to a dynamic defensive effort against Fresno States FBS-best passing game, USC was uniformly outstanding in its only game under Helton. The offensive co-ordinator filled the one-game gap between coaches Ed Orgeron and Steve Sarkisian on the Trojans coaching carousel, but USC picked up right where Orgeron left off after its desultory start to the season under Lane Kiffin. The Trojans ended up celebrating under confetti in the north end zone, joining friends and family on a chilly desert night in front of a sellout crowd at Sam Boyd Stadium. After the teams traded touchdowns on their opening drives, the Trojans blocked Fresno States extra point attempt -- and it started a deluge. Agholor caught TD passes of 40 and 17 yards for the Trojans next two scores. Allen made a 24-yard TD run through bad tackling midway through the second quarter, and Lee turned a short pass into a 40-yard TD with 37 seconds left in the half. Fake Air Max 720 . -- Two out of three aint bad. Fake Air Max 270 Uk . Brandon Morrow allowed five runs on six hits over three innings. He struck out two, walked one and hit a batter. Edwin Encarnacion had a two-out, bases loaded two-RBI double in the third inning. http://www.fakeairmaxukoutlet.com/best-m...s-cheap-uk.html. Lupul injured the hand in a fall at practice on Thursday. He will wear a cast for a minimum of 10 days before he can put a glove back on it and get some mobility back, said Carlyle, who added the winger wont go on the teams upcoming road trip. Authentic Air Max 270 . Numbers Game looks at the As getting Jon Lester from Boston, sending Yoenis Cespedes to the Red Sox along with a deal involving the As and the Minnesota Twins. The Athletics Get: LHP Jon Lester, LF Jonny Gomes, OF Sam Fuld and cash. Air Max 95 Wholesale Uk . Here is a look at all the moves through the first week of NHL Free Agency. The most significant deals will get the full Numbers Game column treatment, like these:Briere-for-Parenteau trade. OAKLAND, Calif. -- With the season on the line once more in Oakland, Justin Verlander pitched another Game 5 gem. Verlander carried a no-hit bid into the seventh inning and Miguel Cabrera homered to lead the Detroit Tigers past the Athletics 3-0 Thursday night and back into the AL championship series. Joaquin Benoit retired Seth Smith on a fly ball with two on in the ninth to close out the deciding game of their division series. The Tigers became the first team to reach the ALCS in three straight years since the New York Yankees from 1998-2001. Anibal Sanchez will start Game 1 in Boston on Saturday. The Tigers went 4-3 against the Red Sox this year. They have never faced each other in the post-season. Detroit staved off elimination at home in Game 4, overcoming a three-run deficit on Tuesday. Behind Verlander, the Tigers never trailed in the clincher. The big right-hander gave up a clean, two-out single to Yoenis Cespedes in the seventh to end his chance at the third no-hitter in post-season history. The hit hardly fazed him, however. On a night he allowed only three baserunners, Verlander made it a post-season-record 30 straight scoreless innings against one team since Coco Crisp hit a leadoff home run for the As in Game 1 last October. Just 364 days earlier, Verlander tossed a four-hit, 6-0 masterpiece in Game 5 in this very ballpark, a 122-pitch performance for his first career post-season shutout and complete game. He nearly matched that with a spectacular 111-pitch outing in a rematch of his thrilling pitchers duel with rookie Sonny Gray five days earlier in Game 2. "It felt good out there," Verlander said. "Its the first time in a while my changeups been really good. Obviously this lineup with a bunch of left-handed hitters that was a big pitch for me." Aching slugger Cabrera hit a two-run homer in the fourth off with a drive into the left-field seats for his first homer since Sept. 17 and just his third extra-base hit in 99 at-bats. That ended a 20-inning scoreless streak by the Tigers at the Coliseum. Gray danced with danger from the start with stuff not nearly as crisp as just five nights before when he matched zeros with the 2011 AL MVP and Cy Young Award winner. This time, Verlander didnt allow a baserunner until Josh Reddick drew a one-out walk in the sixth -- but the no-hit bid remained until Cespedes single the next inning. The hardest hit ball was a fly to the centre-field warning track by Stephen Vogt in the sixth. Verlander struck out 10 in eight innings, giving him 21 Ks in these two starts. He has 43 strikeouts in his four playoff outings against Oakland the past two years. The As saw their season end at the hands of Detroit for the third time in as many postseasons, including in a four-game sweep in the 2006 ALCS. Oakland has lost its last six winner-take-all Game 5s and fell to 1-12 in potential clinchers since 2000. The As struck out 57 times for the most in a best-of-five playoff series. Verlander earned the nod for the decider after Game 1 winner Max Scherzer pitched in relief of an 8-6, season-saving win Game 4 in Detroit. Manager Jim Leyland had no qualms turning again to Verlander, who went 13-12 this season. When asked before the game about his bullpen availability, Leyland nodded his head and quipped, "Verlander, hes available." Gray, meanwhile, looked overmatched this time.dddddddddddd He wiped his brow and never looked comfortable. As manager Bob Melvin went with Gray over 18-game winner and 40-year-old Bartolo Colon, who yielded three first-inning runs to lose Game 1. These Game 5s becoming awfully familiar for both sides in their recent October rivalry. Detroit held another clinching party in the visiting clubhouse of the Oakland Coliseum, where a raucous crowd of 46,959 swirled yellow towels until Benoit threw his hands in the air at the final out. Catcher Alex Avila met Benoit in front of the mound for a long embrace as their teammates quickly joined them -- with cheers of "Lets go Oakland!" still ringing out. The Tigers came together near the mound for a unique chant in which they squatted in unison and raised their hands in the air. The 93-win Tigers are determined to take the next step and win a championship after being swept in four games of the 2012 World Series by the San Francisco Giants. "Thats the motivation that weve been looking for, that weve had all year," Verlander said. "Guys like Torii (Hunter) who wasnt a part of our team last year, he comes in and hes got that urge. He wants to win that championship before he retires. Everybody else that was here that had a taste of that last year how much it hurts, its that extra driving factor." The 23-year-old Gray, pitching to chants of "Sonny! Sonny!" in his 12th career start, returned for the sixth inning at 92 pitches but was done once he allowed consecutive singles to Victor Martinez and Jhonny Peralta. Omar Infante then drove in the third run with a fielders choice grounder off Dan Otero. Along the 880 freeway just outside the Coliseum, a billboard blared: "ITS ALWAYS SONNY IN THE TOWN." The only thing sunny was the outfield for the early evening start, which had players shielding their eyes to deal with tricky shadows and sun angles. Center field and right field initially played in bright sun. Rookie starters have lost their last six winner-take-all post-season games since Daisuke Matsuzaka beat Cleveland in the 2007 ALCS for Boston. Grays curveball had less break and he never found the same groove that carried him in his playoff debut. It was a breezy Bay Area night and 19 degrees cooler at first pitch than the 82 degrees in a game starting an hour later Saturday night. This marks another disappointing exit for the low-budget As, who have baseballs 27th smallest payroll at $71.1 million after having the lowest at $59.5 million last year. Both managers tweaked their lineups, most notably in the middle infield with Peralta back at shortstop for Detroit and the As Alberto Callaspo playing second base in his first career post-season start. Peralta, who served a 50-game suspension until late September for his ties to the Biogenesis clinic accused of distributing performance-enhancing drugs, hit a three-run homer in Game 4 to help extend Detroits season. NOTES: Verlander tried for just the third no-hitter in post-season history and first since Philadelphias Roy Halladay no-hit Cincinnati on Oct. 6, 2010. Don Larsen pitched a perfect game for the New York Yankees against Brooklyn in the World Series on Oct. 8, 1956. ... Brandon Moss struck out 13 times in 18 at-bats. Detroits Austin Jackson fanned 13 times in 20 at-bats. ' ' '