Western Illinois coach Don Patterson expressed interest Sunday in the vacant job at Army but said he hadn’t heard directly from the academy, which reportedly is interested in him.
“Army is a special place to anyone who ever went there,” said Patterson, a 1973 West Point graduate who turns 53 this week. “If I went there it would be the last job I’d ever have, but I’d also be happy to stay at Western Illinois for the rest of my career.”
In five seasons, Patterson has gone 41-18 and taken the Leathernecks to three NCAA playoffs.
Bill Jauss.
Bridgewater advances
Bridgewater (Va.) posted a 13-9 victory over Lycoming in the NCAA Division III quarterfinal at Williams-port, Pa. Bridgewater (12-1) next weekend will play Mt. Union, which beat Wheaton 56-10.
Lycoming (9-2) lost a day after senior wide receiver Ricky Lannetti died after a brief illness. Lannetti broke Lycoming’s single-season receptions record this year, catching 70 passes for 955 yards. Sunday’s game was originally scheduled for Saturday but was postponed due to snow.
Boise State rolls
Donny Heck rushed for four touchdowns to complement Ryan Dinwiddie’s 329 yards passing as No. 18 Boise State beat Hawaii 45-28 late Saturday in a Western Athletic Conference finale. Heck finished with 87 yards on 25 carries as the visiting Broncos scored all six of their touchdowns on the ground. Boise State (12-1, 8-0 WAC) ran its conference winning streak to 10 games, dating to last season.
The game had BCS implications because Southern Cal defeated Hawaii (8-5, 5-3) this season.
Croom hires
New Mississippi State coach Sylvester Croom hired two assistants and will retain receivers coach Guy Holliday. Croom added Amos Jones, the tight ends and special-teams coach at James Madison, and Freddie Kitchens, the running backs coach at North Texas.