College football: Troy and Alabama Birmingham win on opening day of bowl season
Gunnar Watson’s 12-yard scoring pass to RaJae’ Johnson in the third quarter put Troy ahead to stay, and the Trojans forced five turnovers in an 18-12 come-from-behind win over Texas San Antonio in the Cure Bowl on Friday in Orlando, Fla.
Troy (12-2), which was No. 24 in the final College Football Playoff rankings, closed out the season with 11 consecutive victories and set a school record for wins in a season. The Trojans were the Sun Belt Conference champions this season.
“Twelve-2, 11 straight wins, conference champs, first time we’ll ever be ranked to end a season,” Troy coach Jon Sumrall said. “This team has done some things that have never been done. We’re going to take a few days and appreciate it. Then we’re going to get ready for 2023.”
No. 25 UTSA (11-3), the Conference USA champion, outgained Troy 345-169 and led 12-0 in the first half, but turnovers proved to be the difference.
Troy linebacker K.J. Robertson picked off a pass by UTSA’s Frank Harris near the goal line in the third quarter. Robertson returned the interception 61 yards, with a 15-yard personal-foul penalty tacked on at the end, and the pick set up the go-ahead score.
“I was hauling,” Robertson said. “That’s the fastest I’ve ever ran. It was awesome. It was a great feeling.”
Robertson also had nine tackles and was named the game’s most valuable player. It was a special moment for the senior as he was able to play in front of his 2-year-old daughter, Layla Drew Robertson, for the first time.
“Win, lose or draw, I just wanted to have my daughter see me play one time,” Robertson said. “Even if she won’t remember it, I thought it was great.”
Watson’s touchdown pass to Johnson gave the Trojans a 13-12 lead, and a two-point conversion pass to tight end Clayton Ollendieck made it 15-12 with 2:43 remaining in the third quarter.
Watson was 13-for-23 passing for 113 yards. Kimani Vidal rushed for 73 yards in 22 carries with a touchdown.
“That was not an easy win,” Sumrall said. “That was a tough hard-fought win. I think both teams should be ranked in the [Associated Press] top 25.”
Vidal scored on a two-yard run with 50 seconds left in the first half to pull Troy to within 12-7.
The Roadrunners took a 2-0 lead in the first quarter on a safety when Troy center Jake Andrews snapped the ball before Watson was ready and the ball bounded through the end zone.
Harris connected with Zakhari Franklin for a two-yard scoring pass early in the second quarter to make it 9-0.
“We thought it would be a low-scoring, NFL-type football game,” UTSA coach Jeff Traylor said. “That’s what it was.”
Jared Sackett added a 42-yard field goal with 6:21 remaining in the second quarter to extend UTSA’s lead to 12-0.
Harris went 23 for 42 for 198 yards and a touchdown but threw two interceptions and lost a fumble. Kevorian Barnes rushed for 132 yards in 21 carries.
Bahamas Bowl: Alabama Birmingham 24, Miami (Ohio) 20
Jermaine Brown Jr. rushed for 116 yards and two fourth-quarter touchdowns, Trea Shropshire had 183 yards receiving and a score, and the Blazers (7-6) held off the RedHawks (6-7) in Nassau, Bahamas.
UAB won its second bowl game in a row — the Blazers beat Brigham Young 31-28 in the Independence Bowl last season — and third in program history. UAB won its 50th game since it returned in 2017 from a program shutdown.
Shropshire’s 50-yard catch set up Brown’s 12-yard rushing touchdown on fourth and one for a 24-20 lead with 1:31 left.
USC linebacker Shane Lee will return to the Trojans next season. Others, like Pac-12 defensive player of the year Tuli Tuipulotu, are undecided.
Miami converted two fourth downs on its final drive, and a 15-yard penalty set up the RedHawks on the Blazers’ 15-yard line with one second left. Aveon Smith completed a pass over the middle to Jalen Walker, but UAB linebacker Reynard Ellis made a tackle at the two-yard line as time expired.
Smith passed for 162 yards and two touchdowns for Miami and rushed 22 times for 50 yards.
The nation’s leading rusher, DeWayne McBride, was not active after he opted out of the bowl game. His 1,713 yards this season for UAB included 10 100-yard games and 19 touchdowns.
The Blazers played their finale under interim coach Bryant Vincent, who led the team all season. Former NFL quarterback Trent Dilfer has been hired as head coach and was in attendance.
Mickey Joseph no longer with Nebraska
Mickey Joseph, Nebraska’s interim football coach for nine games this season who was charged with felony assault, is no longer part of the Cornhuskers’ program, the athletic department announced.
The department said in a statement that it would have no additional comment.
Joseph is accused of putting his hands around a woman’s throat, pulling her hair and punching her during a domestic dispute Nov. 30, according to a police affidavit. He was charged Dec. 1 with assault by strangulation or suffocation.
Senior quarterback Dorian Thompson-Robinson took part in UCLA’s practice Friday, but he was noncommittal as to whether he will play in the Sun Bowl on Dec. 30.
Joseph was put on administrative leave after his arrest. He denied to police that he assaulted the woman. His next court appearance is Jan. 30.
Joseph’s arrest came two days after Matt Rhule was introduced as the new head coach.
It was unclear whether Joseph received severance pay. He was under contract through Dec. 31, 2023, and his annual salary was listed at $600,000.
Lawsuit details allegations against Les Miles
A former student who accused ex-Louisiana State football coach Les Miles of sexual harassment in 2013 sought a $2.15-million settlement with LSU and Miles, according to documents filed in a former athletic department official’s lawsuit.
The documents detailed the former student’s allegations that Miles “groomed, sexually and emotionally manipulated, and damaged” her after recruiting her from an LSU sorority to work for him.
Many USC fans hated former football coach Clay Helton, but the nicest coach in college football is getting a chance to shine with Georgia Southern.
They were part of a state lawsuit filed against LSU and Miles last year by former associate athletic director Sharon Lewis, who said she was denied pay raises and subjected to verbal abuse for reporting racist remarks and inappropriate sexual behavior by Miles.
“Making scandalous accusations does not make something true,” an attorney for Miles, Peter Ginsberg, told the Advocate, a newspaper based in Baton Rouge, on Friday after the documents were made public. Miles has denied allegations he made sexual advances toward students. An LSU spokesperson declined to comment to the newspaper.
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