AROUND THE NATION

Josh Morgan had a school-record 97-yard fumble return for one of Mississippi State’s three defensive touchdowns as the Bulldogs defeated Brigham Young, 44-28, at Provo, Utah.

Wayne Madkin rushed for 104 yards in seven carries and threw for 150 yards for Mississippi State (2-0), which surged to a 31-7 halftime lead.

The Cougars (1-3) were without quarterback Bret Engemann, who was injured in a loss last week at Air Force. Charlie Peterson started in his place and threw a 39-yard touchdown pass to Jonathon Pittman in the second quarter to cut Mississippi State’s lead to 10-7.

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An NCAA committee meeting in Indianapolis has recommended keeping the number of certified bowl games at 26 through the 2002-03 season, with a final ruling expected next month. Last season, 46 of the 56 eligible teams participated in bowl games. A team must win six games to be bowl-eligible. . . . Yale can become the first school to win 800 games on Saturday with a season-opening victory over Dayton at New Haven, Conn. Michigan is second on the list with 798 victories. . . . Maryland’s Scott Smith, a defensive lineman, and former teammate Jamar Perrin must perform 50 hours of community service and stay out of trouble the next three years as part of a court agreement for their involvement in a dorm room fight with another student they believed had stolen a bicycle.