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College football scores, rankings, highlights: Nebraska, North Carolina start rivalry weekend with thrillers

Plenty was on the line throughout college football's warm-up slate of games to Saturday's Week 13 action

Serving as a warm-up to Saturday's gluttonous slate, college football's Black Friday games didn't disappoint, nor were they short on drama. Regional rivalries, bowl eligibility and divisional title pictures -- and oftentimes a mix of those elements -- were on the line at various points throughout the action. And as big as college football can feel at times, days like today are why it's fun to sit back and enjoy what's fun about this sport. 

In some ways, it's fitting this begins with an unranked team. Nebraska ended its five-game losing streak in a wild, near-disaster win over Iowa. Holding a 24-point lead, the Cornhuskers failed to completely neutralize a Hawkeyes team that is not built to come back from a 24-point deficit. Nevertheless, it created some drama in the Big Ten West race as Purdue now controls its destiny if it beats Indiana on Saturday. 

No. 17 North Carolina may have punched its ticket to the ACC Championship Game vs. No. 8 Clemson, but it rides in on a sobering two-game losing streak after a double-overtime loss to NC State. The Wolfpack reached deep into their quarterback depth chart and pulled out Ben Finley, who threw for 271 yards and two touchdowns in his first career start. An 8-4 regular-season finish may feel like a disappointment relative to preseason hopes, but given the terrible injury luck, it has to be a win for NC State.

And putting a nice bow on its 2022 season was Arizona, which beat Arizona State 38-35 in the Territorial Cup. The Wildcats finish 5-7 in a fun Year 2 under Jedd Fisch. If nothing else, they played confidently and sometimes it worked beautifully. From these results and more, CBS Sports was here with you along the way with the latest highlights, updates and analysis. 

College football scores, schedule: Week 13

Boise State 42, Utah State 23 -- Recap
No. 19 Tulane 27, No. 24 Cincinnati 24 -- Recap
No. 23 Texas 38, Baylor 27 -- -- Recap
Arizona 38, Arizona State 35 -- Recap
Missouri 29, Arkansas 27 -- Takeaways, recap
NC State 30, No. 17 North Carolina 27 (2OT) -- Recap
Nebraska 24, Iowa 17 -- Recap
No. 18 UCLA 35, Cal 28 --  Recap
No. 16 Florida State 45, Florida  38 -- Takeaways, recap
Check out the entire Week 13 scoreboard 

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Boise State dominating at the break

Half: Boise State 21, Utah State 7

Boise State will clinch a spot in the Mountain West Championship Game if it can top the Aggies on Friday afternoon, and so far, so good. Freshman quarterback Taylen Green has three touchdown passes, including two to fellow freshman Eric McAlister, to build a big lead. The Aggies got a rushing touchdown from Terrell Vaughn at the buzzer to make it a two-score game, but that was after the first sustained drive of the game.
 

Surgical finish

Half: Baylor 19, Texas 17

Baylor gave Texas the ball back with two minutes remaining, but the Bears strung together an unbelievable final two minutes to take the lead into the half. The Bears sacked Texas quarterback Quinn Ewers twice to force a punt after barely 40 seconds of game action. Then, Baylor quarterback Blake Shapen completed four straight passes leading to a 14-yard touchdown pass to Ben Sims to give the Bears a two-point lead. Texas ran one play, but Bears linebacker Bryson Jackson sacked Ewers for the third time in four plays and the half ended. Texas has just 136 total yards at the half and the Longhorns boast just 25 rushing yards. 

 

Tulane and Cincinnati pounding the rock

Half: No. 19 Tulane 13, No. 24 Cincinnati 10

The Green Wave and Bearcats are squaring off at Nippert Stadium in Cincinnati, and the running game is ruling the day. Tyjae Spears has the Green Wave's only touchdown -- an 11-yard scamper midway through the second quarter. Charles McClelland answered back with a 35-yarder after breaking a few tackles. The winner of this game will host the AAC Championship Game next week, and the loser is going to need some dominoes to fall in order to force a rematch. 
 

Tulane up early

End Q1: No. 19 Tulane 3, No. 24 Cincinnati 0 

A spot in the AAC Championship Game is on the line at Nippert Stadium, and it's been a defensive slugfest early. The Green Wave got a 34-yard field goal from Valentino Ambrosio midway through the first frame to jump out to an early lead. The Bearcats have put together a long drive to end the first frame, and are knocking on the door.

 

Longhorns lead early

2Q: Texas 14, Baylor 9

The Thanksgiving hangover is in full effect for both of these teams as bizarre lapses have led to points on each board. Texas quarterback Quinn Ewers threw an awful intentional grounding in the end zone for a safety. Later, Baylor set up a Longhorns touchdown with a shanked punt to give Texas its first lead of the game. Bears quarterback Blake Shapen threw a 47-yard touchdown to Jaylen Ellis, while Ewers and Bijan Robinson each have a rushing score. 

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