Northwest Arkansas Democrat-Gazette
UCA falls on road as UAB holds on
ALABAMA-BIRMINGHAM 45, CENTRAL ARKANSAS 35
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. — There would be no second-half comeback for the University of Central Arkansas this time around.
Junior quarterback Tyler Johnson threw two touchdown passes and senior running back Spencer Brown carried 24 times for 127 yards as the Alabama-Birmingham withstood a rash of first-half turnovers to outlast UCA 4535 on Thursday night at Legion Field.
Senior tight end Gerrit Prince hauled in both of Johnston’s touchdowns for the Blazers, who piled up 461 yards to help run their home winning streak to 19 games.
The Bears, however, threw a serious scare into the twotime Conference USA West Division champions.
UCA (1-1) scored 21 points off three UAB first-half turnovers to trim a 28-7 deficit to 28-21 by halftime. But UAB (1-0) re-established control in the second half behind touchdown runs from junior running back Lucious Stanley and sophomore tailback
Jermaine Brown to open up a cushion the Bears couldn’t battle back from.
Quarterback Breylin Smith, who threw for 283 yards and tossed the game-winning touchdown pass Saturday against Austin Peay, was held to 193 yards passing for UCA. The junior did fire a pair of touchdown passes to junior wide receiver Lujuan Winningham and one to senior tight end Sam Camargo.
The Bears finished with 293 yards against a stout Blazers’ defense, but they wasted a prime scoring opportunity on the game’s opening drive. UCA moved deep into UAB territory, with senior running back Kierre Crossley providing the big blow with a 34-yard run to the Blazers’ 24. But the drive stalled and ultimately ended when junior kicker Hayden Ray misfired on a 46yard field goal attempt.
UAB, however, took advantage of Ray’s miss to jump out to a lead on the following drive. The Blazers drove 73 yards on 12 plays and scored when Johnston found Prince for a 6-yard touchdown on fourth down with 7:03 to go in the first quarter.
Brown pushed UAB’s lead to 14-0 at the 2:46 mark of the quarter with his 5-yard score to cap a 9-play, 55-yard march, but UCA managed to creep back in it by capitalizing off Blazers’ turnovers.
Junior linebacker Malik Wilson stepped in front of a Johnston pass at the UAB 38 and returned it 34 yards. Two plays later, sophomore running back Cameron Myers rumbled 4 yards for a touchdown to pull UCA to within 14-7.
The Blazers upped their lead to 28-7 with scores on two of their next three possessions. Freshman quarterback Bryson Lucero hit senior wide receiver Myron Mitchell for an 18-yard touchdown with 10:50 remaining in the second quarter before Johnston followed a little over five minutes later with a 10-yarder to Prince.
But UCA stormed back quickly thanks to back-toback fumble recoveries. After freshman defensive back Nick Nakwaasah pounced on a bobbled punt return by Mitchell, Smith’s scoring heave to Winningham at the 2:33 mark cut UAB’s lead to 28-14. A little more than a minute later, senior defensive back Robert Rochelle stripped the ball away from junior wide receiver Trea Shropshire and ran 35 yards for a touchdown as the Bears clawed to within seven.
UCA, though, struggled to generate anything for the majority of the second half. The Bears totaled only five yards in the third quarter and had a tough time early in the fourth until Smith ended a 65-yard scoring drive with an 8-yard touchdown to Winningham with 5:43 left in the game. Smith hit Camargo with a 6-yard score with 32 seconds left to set the final margin.