Miami won the toss and received and started at the Bears 47 after a 46 return by Nate Carroll.After getting a first down, Henry Melton killed the drive by sacking Tyler Thigpen and Devin Hester fair caught Brandon Fields punt at his 11. The Bears quickly and quietly went three and out and Brad Maynard punted off the right side of his foot but it rolled out of bounds at the Miami 41.An offensive holding on first down killed the Dolphins series before it started.Hester returned the punt 46 yards to his own 40.On the drive, Forte got 21 to the Miami 40.Cutler hit Greg Olsen for 7 and Johnny Knox for 11 to the 26.He was Thigpen sacked by Cameron Wake,lost the ball,but Chris Williams fell on it.Gould kicked a 46 yard field goal to give the Bears first blood.This time Gould’s kickoff was downed in the end zone.After Thigpen ran for an apparent first down,an illegal block in the back called that back.Then Peanut Tillman picked off Thigpen’s next pass which Julius Peppers had deflected and the Bears took over at the Miami 46 after a five yard return.On a third and nine,Cutler found Earl Bennett in the near flat for 13 and a first down at the Miami 32.Next, Knox caught a nine yarder and Chester Taylor on the last play of the quarter,lost two yards. Hester kept the drive going with a diving grab at the Dolphins 19.A holding call on second down forced Cutler to run on third and he scrambled for 16 and got a first and goal at the nine.Taylor got to the five with a couple of neat moved up the middle,but then was hit for a one yard loss by Tony McDaniel.Cut then threw one away from Bennett and Gould kicked a 24 yard field goal.This time Carroll returned Gould’s kickoff to his 26.Brandon Marshall caught a pass from Thigpen but threw the ball at a Bears player on the sideline and got called for taunting.But Thigpen then threw a 24 yard pass to Brian Hartline.Rickey Williams lost three on first down.Then Thigpen overthrew Marshall.Thigpen then picked up six before Melton dropped him,forcing a Fields punt which Hester fair caught at his own six.On a third and five,Cutler connected for 14 yards with Hester to the 25.On another third down,Cutler hit Knox for a dozen yards to the Bears 43.This time he hit Olsen on first down for 11 to the Miami 46.On a draw play,Forte went off right tackle for 11 and got to the Dolphins 35.Taylor slipped and lost a yard on first down as the clock ticked to the two minuet warning.After a holing penalty on J’Marcus Webb,Cutler threw one up for grab which Bennie Sapp picked off at his own 33 with 1:46 left.Thigpen went right for Marshall and got 18 yards at Miami’s 49.Marshall was also shaken up with a hamstring pull on the play but walked off on his own.On third down,Lance Briggs tried for a diving interception but replay showed it hit the ground,so Fields punted to Hester who fair caught it at his 14.Forte carried for nine,Cutler threw one into the ground and Cutler took a knee as the clock ran out with the Bears taking a 6-0 lead into the locker room.

The Bears started the second half at their own 30,and Cutler went right to Knox for 16 yds at the 46.Forte then ran around right end for nine,and then went up the middle for seven and another first down at the Miami 38.But then he was stuffed for a two yard loss.Cutler then threw into triple coverage,but luckily the ball fell to the ground.Cutler then ran around the right side for eight,but on fourth down, Gould came in a nailed a 50 yard field goal to make it 9-0 Bears just 3:13 into the second half.Gould’s kickoff again reached the end zone for a touch back.The Dolphins drive was halted when Thigpen was caked for a twelve yard loss by Israel Idonije and Fields punted to Hester to downed it at the Bears 39.Forte again started running the ball effectively and with the help of Taylor they moved to the Miami 38 for a first down.Then after a near interception the Bears got bailed out by an illegal contact and got a first down at the 33.Olsen made a nice diving grab for 12 more at the 20.Olsen then got a first and goal by catching a 10 yd grab to the 8. Forte ran for two,and then got four to the two yard line.On third and goal, and then Forte got the game’s first touchdown, scoring untouched from the two with 1:57 left in the third quarter to make it 16-0 and sending many locals out onto Florda’s Turnpike and I-95. As the fourth quarter began, Miami picked up one first down but punted and the Bears started at their 22.

NOTES—White Sox Manager Ozzie Guillen was in attendance…..The crowd was 68,752…..This was the Bears third win against only one regular season loss in this stadium which opened in 1987(for a Bears 10-3 Pre-Season win).The Bears never won a Regular Season game in the Orange Bowl….The Bears last shutouts were both in 2006 at Green Bay 26-0 and at the NY Jets 10-0…..Miami was shutout for the first time in nine years.

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NEW YORK—Jordan Hamilton scored 25 points and Texas scored the first eight points of overtime in a 90-84 victory over No. 13 Illinois on Thursday night in the semifinals of the 2K Sports Classic.Freshman Tristan Thompson had 20 points for the Longhorns (3-0) and Gary Johnson finished with 16, including four in the opening run of overtime.Texas will play No. 5 Pittsburgh in Friday night’s championship game of the tournament that benefits Coaches vs. Cancer. The Panthers advanced with a 79-70 victory over Maryland at Madison Square Garden.Demetri McCamey had 22 points to lead Illinois (3-1), which shot 38.4 percent from the field (28 for 73), including going 10 for 29 from 3-point range. Texas was just 3 for 12 from beyond the arc but the Longhorns were 25 of 44 from the free throw line while the Illini were 18 of 28.Cory Joseph hit a jumper with 24.6 seconds to play to give Texas a 75-73 lead. It was the Longhorns’ first field goal since the 7:55 mark. They were able to stay close and even take a brief lead late by going 8 for 10 from the free throw line over the last eight minutes of regulation.Jereme Richmond scored on a drive with 11.2 seconds left to tie it at 75 and Joseph missed a jumper at the buzzer and the game went to overtime.The extra five minutes went all Texas’ way at the start as the Longhorns took advantage of a turnover and two missed shots by the Illini which got to 87-84 with 1:06 left on a 3-pointer by Bill Cole but the Longhorns made two of four free throws over the final 39 seconds to stay in front.Texas started the second half the same way it did the overtime. The Longhorns broke from a 45-all tie with a 9-0 run with Johnson scoring six of the points. Illinois missed its first eight shots of the second half. The Illini were able to get back in the game with a 7-0 run that was capped by a 3-pointer by D.J. Richardson with 12:22 to play.

EDMONTON—Jonathan Toews had a hat trick and the Blackhawks blanked the Edmonton Oilers 5-0 on Wednesday.Patrick Sharp and Bryan Bickell also scored for the Blackhawks (10-9-2), who won for the first time in three tries against Edmonton this season.Marty Turco earned the shutout, having to only stop 18 shots.The Oilers (4-10-3) have lost five games in a row and have only two wins in their last 15 outings, both against the Blackhawks. Edmonton has been outscored 30-8 in its last five games.The Hawks started the scoring with 5:30 to go in the first period. Brent Seabrook’s shot was stopped by former Hawk goalie Nikolai Khabibulin, but Toews was there to follow it up for a goal.He got his second on the power play with 46 seconds left in the opening period, as he banked a shot off the skate of Oiler defender Tom Gilbert to make it 2-0.The Hawks badly outshot Edmonton 20-4 in the first period.The Blackhawks kept coming to start the second as Patrick Kane picked up an errant pass from Jim Vandermeer and dished it to Toews, who wristed it home for the natural hat trick just over a minute in.While short-handed and with just over a minute left in the second Jake Dowell’s breakaway shot rang off the post only to see Kurtis Foster cough it up seconds later to Sharp who deked Khabulin for his 11th of the season.The Hawks finished the rout two minutes into the third as Bickell unleashed a cannon past Edmonton goalie Devan Dubnyk, who replace Khabibulin to start the third.The Hawks outshot Edmonton 47-18 in the contest.

Viktor Stalberg put an end to the Blackhawks’ bumpy ride at home, providing quite the opening act for the circus’ annual run at the United Center.Stalberg scored at 4:32 of overtime and the Blackhawks stopped the Anaheim Ducks’six-game winning streak with a 3-2 victory Sunday night.The 24-year-old forward redirected Duncan Keith’s shot past Jonas Hiller for his sixth goal and second in two nights. Patrick Kane and Marian Hossa each had a power-play goal and an assist to help the Blackhawks snap a three-game slide.Corey Perry had two goals for the Ducks, who were trying to match the franchise record for consecutive wins. Hiller finished with 40 saves, including 15 in the second period and nine more in the third.The Blackhawks got a much-needed boost in their final home date before the first of two six-game trips this season, this time clearing out for the circus to come to town. Backup goalie Corey Crawford made 24 stops for the reigning Stanley Cup champions, who also snapped a four-game home losing streak.Perry tied it at 2 about 3 1/2 minutes into the third, making a nice move to get past defenseman Niklas Hjalmarsson before letting loose with a perfectly placed shot into the upper left corner for his eighth of the season.It was Perry’s 16th career multigoal game and first since he scored twice at Edmonton on March 26.The Blackhawks had chances to win it in regulation. Hossa banged one off the left post midway through the third and Hiller made a couple of nice stops on short-handed chances by Hossa and Jonathan Toews in the final minute.Anaheim killed 22 of 24 penalties during its six-game surge, including 17 straight before the Blackhawks solved their special teams twice.The Blackhawks grabbed the lead during a dominant second period. After a penalty for too many men on the ice, Hossa’s one-timer was stopped by Hiller but the rebound went right back to the Blackhawks’ forward. He converted a backhander with 9:36 left in the period to make it 2-1. Hossa stopped a six-game pointless streak and ran his career numbers against the Ducks to 13 goals and five assists in 20 games.Bobby Ryan nearly tied it again during a line change late in the second, but his shot clanged off the post.The Hawks got off to a fast start, taking advantage when Ducks defenseman Toni Lydman was sent off for hooking in the first. Patrick Sharp’s shot caromed off the backboard to Kane, who shot it into the open left side of the net for his seventh goal.The Ducks quickly bounced back, tying it 57 seconds after Kane’s goal. Under pressure from Jason Blake, Keith lost the puck. Perry skated away with it before converting Anaheim’s first shot of the game 4:34 into the first.

NOTES—Anaheim C Todd Marchant was scratched because of an upper-body injury. The 37-year-old Marchant is day to day. … Ducks D Paul Mara played in his 700th NHL game. … Defensemen Jordan Henry and John Scott were healthy scratches for the Blackhawks. … D Sheldon Brookbank and RW Troy Bodie also were scratched for Anaheim. … The Ducks won seven straight games from Feb. 20 to March 7 in 1999. … Hossa had three goals in three games against Anaheim last season, but the Blackhawks went 1-3-0 in the season series…..The Hawks open their six game “Circus” trip in Edmonton Wednesday night.

The Bears started at their own 20 and picked up three first downs,helped by a 25 yard Cutler run, before being forced to punt and Brad Maynard put it just inside the end zone for a touch back.The Vikings quickly moved the ball into Bears territory,keyed by a 20 yard Adrian Peterson run and sharp Favre passing.The drive stalled at the 18 which meant Ryan Longwell kicked a 36 yard field goal which capped a 62 yard 11 play drive. Devin Hester returned the ensuing kickoff 32 yards top his 37 yard line.On the Bears next possession,they faced a third down,Cutler’s pass deflected off Johnny Knox right to Husain Abdulah who had an easy interception and Minnesota took over at their 43.Twice on the Vikings drive,they were bailed out by defensive holding penalties against the Bears that came on third down. The drive continued as the first quarter ended.And intentional grounding Favre moved the Vikes back and Longwell tried a 39 yard field goal into the wind that hit the left upright,keeping the score 3-0 and giving the ball to the Bears at their own 29.Cutler hit Knox on a third down for 29 to the Minnesota 33.Later,Cutler found Knox again for 11 to the Vikes 13.The Bears had a third down TD from Cutler to Greg Olsen called back due to a holding call on Olen Kruetz,but the same pair then hooked up for a 17 yard TD pass that this time held up with 6:57 left in the half to get the Bears on the board for a 7-3 lead.After an exchange of punts the Vikings got the ball at their own 47 and Percy Harvin burned Chris Harris and Tim Jennings on a 53 yard TD pass on the first play from scrimmage to put Minnesota back in front 10-7.Harvin was at least 15 yards behind everyone.Obviously no migraines for Harvin on this play! Raheed Davis had a nice 32 yard kickoff return to the Minnesota 49.Cutler drove the Bears to the 19,and despite a border line chop block penalty,he hit Hester up the middle and he dove across the plain of the goal line and it was ruled a touchdown,and upheld by booth review with :44 left in the half.On the Vikes next possession, Favre fumbled while scrambling and the Bears recovered at the Minnesota 41.Taylor ran for 5,and Cutler hit Hester at the 25,but Gould was wide left with a 43 yard field goal try and the Bears settled for a 14-10 half time lead. 

The Vikings started in their 18 and Favre had a pass intercepted by D.J.Moore at the 10,but the Bears went backwards. Forte lost three on first and goal. Then a pass intended for Earl Bennett in the end zone was slightly overthrown.On third down,Cutler threw a pass while over the line of scrimmage which was incomplete anyway.Gould then kicked a 34 yard field goal to make it 17-10 Bears.After an exchange of punts,the Vikes started at their own 43.On first down,Favre had Harvin not quite as open,but Danieal Manning was face guarding at the Bears 15 for a 42 yard pass interference penalty.It was 3rd and ten from the 15,and Favre threw incomplete again in the end zone so Longwell kicked a 33 yard field goal with 8:14 to go in the third period.Hester took the kickoff from one yard in his end zone and returned it 668 yards to the Minnesota 34.On a third down, Cutler hit Devin Aromashdu for 9 for a first down to the 21.It became third and 8 at the twenty,and Cutler had Bennett,but the receiver was turned the wrong way. Gould then was successful with a 37 yard field goal try and it was 20-13 with 5:26 on the third quarter clock.Minnesota went three and out and Chris Kluwe again punted to Hester who zig zagged 42 yards to the Minnesota 37.Two Forte carries got the ball to the 23 for a first down.On an eight yard pass to Hester,he was helped off and an illegal block in the back was again called on Kruetz.Cutler however scrambled and hit leaping Knox for 21 yards at the 9 for a first and goal.Forte picked up one.After a bullet missed Olsen in the end zone.He then scrambled and threw into coverage and Abdullah got his second pick of the game and the Vikings took over as the third quarter ended with the Bears ahead 20-13.They also went three and had to kick,which Kluwe rolled dead at the Bears 45.Cutler again carved up the Vikes defense with a key 18 yard pass play to Davis and a 19 yard third down play action pass to a very wide open Kellen Davis up the middle for a touchdown that gave the Bears the game’s first two possession lead 27-13 with 8:37 to go.Favre had a pass picked off for the second time in the game,this time by Lance Briggs,this time the Vikes challenged the ruling,lost and ran out challenges for the rest of the contest.The Bears got to fourth down and Maynard punted the ball dead at the Minnesota 1 yard line.Favre tossed his third interception of the game,this to Harris with 2:27 left at the Bears 20.That as they say,was that. 

NOTES—This is a short week since the Bears are at Miami on Thursday night while Green Bay plays at Minnesota next Sunday…..Attendance was 62,206. 

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Northwestern got a first down on their their first possession of the third quarter,but punted and helped the Hawkeye out with a face mask penalty. Robinson’s running got the ball to the NU 26.Stanzi hit McNutt at the 5 and then in the end zone to give Iowa it’s first TD and lead 10-7 with 9:59 left in the third.NU again failed to move the ball,punted and Stanzi burned them, with the home run this time, finding Derrell Johnson-Koulianos in stride and he ran down the near sideline 70 yards,diving into the pylon to make it 17-7.The pair of TD’s coming just 3:38 apart.The Fourth quarter started with NU in possession but James Morris picked off a Persa pass that was deflected.Stanzi then threw into double coverage and Brian Peters easily intercepted and despite a personal foul on the Cats, they tool over on their own 15.They got their first scoring drive since early in the game by moving those 85 yards in 13 plays,using 4:35 off the clock. Persa hit Jeremy Ebert on a lob pass from six yards out with 6:21 to play,cutting the Iowa lead to 17-14.The Cats then forced a punt,but had no return man and the ball rolled dead at the nine with 4:08 left.Persa engineered a 91 yard 11 play drive which ended with the 8 yard pass to Fields with 1:22 left,regaining the Cats lead.That was when Persa hurt his Achilles and ended his season. The Hawkeyes tried to drive for a final winning score but Stanzi’s last fourth down desperate pass into the end zone fell incomplete. On to Wrigley Field next week.

NOTES—Attendance was a sellout 47,130….A limited amount of restricted view and standing room only tickets are available for next Saturday’s game with Illinois at Illinois.Kickoff is 2:30pm….The last time NU played a football game in the City Limits of Chicago was in 1997, the Pig Skin Classic when they blanked Oklahoma 24-0 at Soldier Field.

CHAMPAIGN—This is a new season low! At the expense of the Illini, DeLeon Eskridge rescued Minnesota from its tenth loss Saturday, leading the Gophers to a 38-34 comeback upset of Illinois with a last-minute touchdown run.Eskridge scored three touchdowns for the Golden Gophers (2-9, 1-6 Big Ten) and rushed for 49 yards on 14 carries.The last, a 2-yarder, came with 16 seconds to play and capped an 80-yard drive engineered by quarterback Adam Weber.Trailing 34-31 and facing a third and 10 at his own 20 with 2:30 to play, Weber dropped back to pass and didn’t see an open receiver. Instead he saw a huge hole in the middle of the Illinois defense, and ran straight into it for 29 yards and a first down at the Minnesota 49. Six plays later Eskridge gave the Gophers the lead.Weber, who some fans have said should give way to sophomore MarQueis Gray, was 20 of 26 for 225 yards and two TDs. He was seldom pressured by the Fighting Illini.The loss keeps Illinois (5-5, 3-4) a game short of bowl eligibility. Illinois hasn’t been to a bowl in three years.With just over eight minutes to play, the Illini looked close to locking up that key sixth win when Mikel Leshoure burst around the right end for a 55-yard touchdown that, with the extra point, gave Illinois a 34-24 lead.Leshoure finished with 141 yards on 18 carries and scored two touchdowns.Badly needing an answer to Leshoure’s potentially back-breaking run, the Gophers got a 92-yard kickoff return by Troy Stoudermire. Justin Green’s tackle at the Illinois 4 only delayed the inevitable.It was Eskridge this time, too, running 4 yards on second down for a score that pulled the Gophers back to within three at 34-31 with 7:55 to play.The Gopher defense, which sacked quarterback Nathan Scheelhaase three times, quickly stopped the Illini on their next two possessions, not allowing Illinois even one clock-draining first down.Minnesota led 17-7 at the half on Eskridge’s first touchdown run, a scoring pass from Weber to Tiree Eure and a line-drive 45-yard field goal by Eric Ellestad.Illinois turned that halftime deficit into a lead in the first eight minutes of the second half.Leshoure’s first touchdown ended an 80-yard drive that made the score 17-14.Minutes later, Illinois linebacker Nate Bussey recovered a fumble by Gopher Eric Lair at the Minnesota 37.From there, Scheelhaase guided Illinois to the 17, where he flawlessly led Spencer Harris on a crossing route into the end zone. Illinois blew the extra point, but was back in the lead, 20-17, with 7:59 to play in the third quarter.Scheelhaase was 10 of 21 for 172 yards and two TDs. He found A.J. Jenkins six times for 137 yards and a touchdown.Illinois has two shots left at the sixth win that would make it bowl eligible. Both are on the road, vs Northwestern next week at Wrigley Field and at Fresno State. Illinois hasn’t been to the postseason since the 2008 Rose Bowl.

SOUTH BEND—Freshman Tommy Rees threw three touchdown passes in his first collegiate start and Notre Dame used two Utah special teams mistakes Saturday to rout the slumping, 15th-ranked Utes 28-3.Returning from a week off, Notre Dame (5-5) played like a fresh team and moved within one win of becoming eligible for a bowl. Utah (8-2), meanwhile, looked like a team still reeling from its 47-7 loss to TCU a week earlier.The victory was Notre Dame’s first over a team ranked in the AP top 25 since 2006, when the Irish defeated Penn State.Robert Blanton blocked a Utah punt, picked up the ball and ran in for a TD late in the opening period. And a fumble on the second-half kickoff by star Utah returner Shaky Smithson was quickly turned into the first of two Rees-to-Duval Kamara TD passes.Rees, who replaced injured starter Dayne Crist during a loss to Tulsa two weeks ago, got better as the game progressed and finished 13 of 20 for 129 yards.Notre Dame’s maligned defense bottled up Utah – which came in averaging 41 points per game – and stopped the Utes from scoring in the second half after they reached the 6 and 12 on separate drives.Utah quarterback Jordan Wynn completed 24 of 39 for 195 yards and was shaken up with just more than five minutes left after taking a hard hit after delivering a pass. He returned to the game two plays later.

DEKALB—John Shurna matched a career-high with 31 points as Northwestern shook off a sluggish early shooting to roll past Northern Illinois 97-78 in a season opener for both teams Friday.The Huskies led 11-5 after five minutes while the Wildcats missed 13 of their first 14 shots. But guard Drew Crawford ignited Northwestern with 12 points in a 19-5 run as the Wildcats claimed a 24-16 lead and never looked back.Shurna, who scored 31 points twice last season, had seven three-pointers and scored 25 second-half points. Crawford closed with 20 while Michael Thompson had 15. Xavier Silas led the Huskies with 25 points, Tim Toler had 12 and Nate Rucker added 11.