— By David Walsh
No Frank Harris at quarterback for UTSA. No problem for the Roadrunners after they survived a shaky first period.
Owen McCown got pressed into service, suffered two early picks, but then the left-hander settled down and powered UTSA past Marshall, 35-17, Tuesday night in the Scooter’s Coffee Frisco Bowl in front of 11,215 fans at Toyota Stadium in Frisco, Texas. This is the first bowl win for UTSA after four previous losses in the postseason. So coach Jeff Traylor certainly enjoyed his Gatorade bath when the game ended.
Cole Pennington made his third start at quarterback for the Herd after Cam Fancher entered the transfer portal. He endured a tough evening and once left the game for a play after taking a big hit.
McCown had two interceptions in the first period and the Herd turned the mistakes into a 14-0 lead on TD runs of 1 yard by Ethan Payne and 64 yards for Rasheen Ali on the first play of the second period. It’s the longest TD run of his career and 43rd overall to tie Jackie Hunt for fifth place in career TDs. Ali did not see action in the second half and had 92 yards for the game.
McCown connected on 22-of-31 for 251 and two scores. Not bad after a 1-of-6 ledger in the first period for 16 yards. Joshua Cephus caught 7 for 102 yards and one score and set a school single-season yardage record with 1,151. He started the night with 82 receptions for 1,049 yards and nine scores.
The Roadrunners, who are in the American Athletic Conference, finish 9-4.
Marshall, in year two in the Sun Belt, closes 6-7. It’s the Herd’s first losing season since going to 3-9 in 2009.
Pennington, whose dad played at Marshall and then in the NFL with the New York Jets and Miami Dolphins, connected on 15-of-33 for 258 yards. Jayden Harrison snared six passes for a career-best 132 yards. Eli Neal and Micah Abraham each had a pick in the first period, but McCown shook off that misfortune in a big way.
“We started fast. We talked about that,” Herd coach Charles Huff said in his postgame radio interview. “Not enough at the end to finish it. One more score and maybe it changes some things (for the Herd). We knew we had to take some shots. The defense had a good first half. Things caught up to us in the second.”
UTSA started the comeback after Ali’s long TD run. Robert Henry got the first TD on a 3-yard run. On the drive, McCown found Tykee Ogle-Kellogg for a 41-yard gain. The Roadrunners also would overcome a holding call.
UTSA tied the game at 14-14 when McCown found Cephus in the flat on a pass and he sprinted 44 yards for the score wity 8:53 left in the second period. McCown also had a 26-yard run on the drive that covered 65 yards in 1:18.
Marshall regained the lead on the next possession. Pennington hit Harrison for 56 yards and the play stood after a review. The drive would stall and Rece Verhoff came on to boot a 44-yard field goal to match his career long for the 17-14 lead.
UTSA responded with a go-ahead score right before the half. McCown had a 13-yard run and Ogle-Kellogg caught a pass for 12 yards. Robert Henry would score on a 1-yard run with 47 second left and that TD held up after a review. The Roadrunners racked up 212 total yards in the second period. Marshall’s offense managed just four first downs.
On the first drive of the third period, Pennington hit Harrison for 27 yards and then the Roadrunners got a roughing-the-passer call. The Herd would get a 47-yard field goal by Verhoff only to have a false start wipe out that play. He tried again from 53 and the potential career-long attempt went wide right with 11:26 on the clock.
On the third play of its next drive, UTSA fumbled and Neal recovered at the 43. The Herd went for it on fourth-and-4 at the 37, but Pennington’s hurried pass fell incomplete.
McCown then got the UTSA offense back in gear. He had a 27-yardz pass to Cephus and a 14-yard TD pass to Ogle-Kellogg, but an ineligible receiver down field wiped out that TD. Not to worry. McCown found David Amador II for a 19-yard TD pass on the next play. That play got reviewed and held up for Amador’s first TD of the season.
Pennington drew another roughing-the-passer call and then found Harrison for a 52-yard strike to the UTSA 15. A false start would cost the Herd five yards and Pennington’s third-down pass went incomplete. Verhoff then missed a 34-yard field goal wide left with 14:10 left in the game.
Later in the quarter, Pennington completed a 28-yard pass to Chuck Montgomery for a first at midfield. He later would connect with Caleb McMillan for 17 yards to the 33. On a third down, Pennington got sacked for 10-yard loss, shaken up and left the game for a play. Colin Parachek, transfer from Morehead State, took his first snap and suffered an interception. Kameryn Alexander had the pick and returned it 52 yards to the Herd 17. On UTSA’s first play, Rocko Griffin sprinted 17 yards to complete the scoring.
“Cole’s a tough kid,” Huff said. “We’ve got to protect him. We got behind and it put us in a different mindset. He stood in there and took some hits. We’ve got to play better around him.”
Both teams had punters from Australia. Alec Clark, seeing his first action for the Herd, averaged 40.2 yards on six kicks. Lucas Dean had a 45-yard average on five kicks.
Marshall’s all-time bowl record is now 13-6.
Marshall had seven super seniors suiting up for the last time. They are Ethan Driskell, Owen Porter, Abraham, Neal, Sam Burton, Dalton Tucker and Talik Keaton. They have been through the COVID-19 pandemic, coaching change and conference change.
Huff said he wanted all players to expend effort and energy.
“When you walk off that field make sure you’ve given everything you have,” Huff said. “We’ve got a long way to go. Get some more pieces in there. We didn’t capitalize on the opportunities we had. You are what your record is.”
The two teams used to be in Conference USA. The overall series is tied 2-2 now.
The SBC had 12 teams in bowl games. After Tuesday, the combined record is 1-4. UTSA is 1-1 in the Frisco Bowl. The Roadrunners lost to San Diego State in 2021.