John Mateer (5 TDs) leads No. 21 Washington St. past Utah St.

John Mateer threw for four touchdowns and ran for a fifth Saturday night as No. 21 Washington State kept its longshot hopes of a College Football Playoff berth alive with a 49-28 thumping of Utah State in Pullman, Wash.Mateer completed 18 of 24 passes for 179 yards while running for 38 yards on 12 carries. But he had plenty of help as freshman Wayshawn Parker added a game-high 149 rushing yards on just 11 attempts.The Cougars (8-1) became the latest team to tear through the Aggies’ porous running defense, picking up 286 yards on the ground and finishing the game with 465 total yards. It marked the fourth time this year they scored at least 42 points in a game.Spencer Petrus hit on 28 of 45 throws for 208 yards with two touchdowns and an interception for Utah State (2-7). The Aggies hurt themselves with mistakes, turning the ball over twice and committing nine penalties for 79 yards.Mateer got Washington State off to a good start, firing a 17-yard scoring strike to Kyle Williams just over 4 1/2 minutes into the game. Utah State answered when Petrus capped a drive of nearly 5 1/2 minutes by flipping a 3-yard touchdown pass to Jack Hestera.

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