South Alabama 21
Air Force 45
Friday, December 30, 2016 05:30 PM
(ET)
Air Force rallies past South Alabama
The Sports Xchange
Dec 30, 2016
TUCSON, Ariz. -- Arion Worthman led Air Force to a 45-21 victory over South Alabama after trailing by 18 points in the second quarter on Friday in the NOVA Home Loans Arizona Bowl in Tucson, Ariz.
Air Force (10-3) finished its season with a six-game winning streak behind Worthman's 7-of-10 passing for 207 yards with one touchdown and no interceptions. Worthman, the Arizona Bowl Offensive Most Valuable Player, also rushed for 71 yards on 21 carries.
South Alabama (6-7) was led by receiver Josh Magee's career-high 154 yards on five receptions in a game played in front of an announced crowd of 33,868 at Arizona Stadium.
The momentum swung significantly in Air Force's favor in the last 3:32 of the first half. Trailing 21-6 at that time, the Falcons scored on consecutive possessions, aided by South Alabama quarterback Dallas Davis fumbling the ball that was recovered at the Jaguars' 1-yard line by nose tackle Santo Coppola.
Air Force running back Jacobi Owens scored on a 1-yard run two plays later and a trick two-point conversion pass from receiver Jalen Robinette to Worthman tied the score at 21 with 25 seconds left in the half.
Before Davis' fumble, Air Force cut the lead to 21-13 with 1:49 left on a 14-yard scoring run by receiver Ronald Cleveland.
The Falcons continued their momentum into the third quarter, scoring on the first offensive play from scrimmage -- a 75-yard pass from Worthman to Robinette with 14:42 left in the quarter.
It was the first of four scores on consecutive possessions by Air Force to start the second half.
Ironically, the game's first play from scrimmage was also a 75-yard touchdown pass, from Davis to Magee that put South Alabama ahead.
After the Robinette touchdown reception, Air Force scored on a 6-yard run by slot receiver Tyler Williams, a 37-yard field goal by Luke Strebel (his third of the game) and a 22-yard run by Owens.
Owens tied an Air Force bowl record with his two rushing touchdowns.
After the Davis-to-Magee scoring pass to start the game, the Jaguars took advantage of more big plays to take the 21-3 lead with 10:41 left in the second quarter.
It was the third one-play scoring drive for the Jaguars this season, the first on the opening drive.
Davis' 51-yard completion to receiver Chris Lewis set a 2-yard touchdown run by Dami Ayoola with 6:08 left in the first quarter. A 37-yard pass from Davis to Magee was followed by three runs by Ayoola for 27 yards, capped by a 4-yard scoring play to put South Alabama ahead 21-3.
South Alabama also came close to scoring with 14:02 left in the second quarter, but running back Xavier Johnson's 27-yard run ended on a fumble that was recovered on the Air Force 11-yard line by linebacker Grant Ross.
Air Force strong safety Weston Steelhammer stripped the ball loose on that play. He later achieved his 18th career interception, a Falcons record. Steelhammer, who finished with a team-high five tackles, was selected the Arizona Bowl Defensive MVP.
NOTES: Air Force played in its 26th bowl game. The Falcons have landed a bowl bid nine times in head coach Troy Calhoun's 10 seasons. Air Force has a 12-13-1 bowl record, including a 4-5 record under Calhoun. ... South Alabama coach Joey Jones has a bowl record of 0-2 in his nine seasons a coach, eight with the Jaguars. South Alabama lost its first postseason game in program history two years ago at the Camellia Bowl. ... Air Force has the third-longest active scoring streak in Division I at 298 games behind Florida (359) and TCU (306). The Falcons rank fifth all time in the mark. Michigan holds the record of 364 games from 1984 to 2014. ... The Jaguars have outgained the opposition in six consecutive games, the first time that has happened since a string of 13 straight games from 2009 to 2011.
Dec 30, 2016
TUCSON, Ariz. -- Arion Worthman led Air Force to a 45-21 victory over South Alabama after trailing by 18 points in the second quarter on Friday in the NOVA Home Loans Arizona Bowl in Tucson, Ariz.
Air Force (10-3) finished its season with a six-game winning streak behind Worthman's 7-of-10 passing for 207 yards with one touchdown and no interceptions. Worthman, the Arizona Bowl Offensive Most Valuable Player, also rushed for 71 yards on 21 carries.
South Alabama (6-7) was led by receiver Josh Magee's career-high 154 yards on five receptions in a game played in front of an announced crowd of 33,868 at Arizona Stadium.
The momentum swung significantly in Air Force's favor in the last 3:32 of the first half. Trailing 21-6 at that time, the Falcons scored on consecutive possessions, aided by South Alabama quarterback Dallas Davis fumbling the ball that was recovered at the Jaguars' 1-yard line by nose tackle Santo Coppola.
Air Force running back Jacobi Owens scored on a 1-yard run two plays later and a trick two-point conversion pass from receiver Jalen Robinette to Worthman tied the score at 21 with 25 seconds left in the half.
Before Davis' fumble, Air Force cut the lead to 21-13 with 1:49 left on a 14-yard scoring run by receiver Ronald Cleveland.
The Falcons continued their momentum into the third quarter, scoring on the first offensive play from scrimmage -- a 75-yard pass from Worthman to Robinette with 14:42 left in the quarter.
It was the first of four scores on consecutive possessions by Air Force to start the second half.
Ironically, the game's first play from scrimmage was also a 75-yard touchdown pass, from Davis to Magee that put South Alabama ahead.
After the Robinette touchdown reception, Air Force scored on a 6-yard run by slot receiver Tyler Williams, a 37-yard field goal by Luke Strebel (his third of the game) and a 22-yard run by Owens.
Owens tied an Air Force bowl record with his two rushing touchdowns.
After the Davis-to-Magee scoring pass to start the game, the Jaguars took advantage of more big plays to take the 21-3 lead with 10:41 left in the second quarter.
It was the third one-play scoring drive for the Jaguars this season, the first on the opening drive.
Davis' 51-yard completion to receiver Chris Lewis set a 2-yard touchdown run by Dami Ayoola with 6:08 left in the first quarter. A 37-yard pass from Davis to Magee was followed by three runs by Ayoola for 27 yards, capped by a 4-yard scoring play to put South Alabama ahead 21-3.
South Alabama also came close to scoring with 14:02 left in the second quarter, but running back Xavier Johnson's 27-yard run ended on a fumble that was recovered on the Air Force 11-yard line by linebacker Grant Ross.
Air Force strong safety Weston Steelhammer stripped the ball loose on that play. He later achieved his 18th career interception, a Falcons record. Steelhammer, who finished with a team-high five tackles, was selected the Arizona Bowl Defensive MVP.
NOTES: Air Force played in its 26th bowl game. The Falcons have landed a bowl bid nine times in head coach Troy Calhoun's 10 seasons. Air Force has a 12-13-1 bowl record, including a 4-5 record under Calhoun. ... South Alabama coach Joey Jones has a bowl record of 0-2 in his nine seasons a coach, eight with the Jaguars. South Alabama lost its first postseason game in program history two years ago at the Camellia Bowl. ... Air Force has the third-longest active scoring streak in Division I at 298 games behind Florida (359) and TCU (306). The Falcons rank fifth all time in the mark. Michigan holds the record of 364 games from 1984 to 2014. ... The Jaguars have outgained the opposition in six consecutive games, the first time that has happened since a string of 13 straight games from 2009 to 2011.
