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| Photo by Darla S Tamulitis La Vita Loca Photography Copyright 2021 All Rights Reserved |
Copyright 2021 All Rights Reserved
SHREVEPORT, LOUISIANA (December 18, 2021) In a back-and-forth game where both teams were basically even in most stats categories, the University of Alabama-Birmingham Blazers upset the No. 13 ranked Brigham Young University Cougars by the score of 31-28 at the Radiance Technologies Independence Bowl in Shreveport, Louisiana.
The Blazers jumped out to a 14-0 lead in the first quarter on a 10-yard pass from Dylan Hopkins to Gerrit Price and a 64-yard run by DeWayne McBride. BYU evened the score in the second quarter with two rushing touchdowns, the first a one yard run by Tyler Allgeier and the second, a two-yard run by Sampson Nacua.
Beginning in the second half, the teams traded scores until the 6:17 mark of the second half when Hopkins connected with Trea Shropshire on a 14-yard pass for the final score for the game. Hopkins completed 19-of-23 passes for 189 yards and three touchdowns. McBride carried the ball 28 times for 183 yards and one touchdown. Hopkins stated:
“I feel awesome. The past few days I have been really throwing well and it’s just another day we have to come out and execute, we’re playing a really good team. BYU is 10-2 for a reason. We just came out and played for these seniors. We knew that those were the guys that brought the program back, so that’s what we have been talking about this week, let’s finish it out for them, they’re the main reason we’re even here. I am super proud of both sides of the ball, it was a big team effort."
For the Cougars, Allgeier rushed for 192 yards on 27 carries and three TDs while Parker Romney completed 15 passes on 23 attempts for 195 yards. Defensively, Max Tooley tallied 10 tackles, six of them solos, while Blazers' lineman Antonio Moultre had nine tackles with four of them a loss.
UAB head coach Bill Clark stated after the game on n how big of a moment this win is for the program in terms of football games/on if it’s the biggest win
for the program:
“It's one of [the biggest wins in program history]. You know, it’s definitely one of. I think championships are huge. I put it right there with him. You know, and I think when I will go back to the game against El Paso, you know, we had the heartbreaking loss. We break it down on champs every day. And I will say you set yourself up for some things that can happen when it doesn't go your way. We had sickness that week, we fought our way through it to get to get that win to get ready for this one. And then you know, we gave a little time off and they respond in the right way you know. I know I'm always talking to coaches what you know, is there something we could do different? Is there something we can do better? And I kept saying it over and over and there's nothing I would change and you know, I'm big on the preparation and our mindset and I just you know, like I said we were treated great all week long. Getting to hang out with Coach Sitake and BYU I had a lot of respect for them. But I thought our guys were going to play well and I knew they were going to play hard.”
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