Last
Sunday November 30, the Roadrunner football team put on their all orange
uniforms and played their last game of the 2013 season against the Louisiana
Tech Bulldogs. The game was of critical
importance as a win would result in an above .500 regular season record, a
secure spot as second place in Conference USA – West, and a chance at landing
an appearance in an FBS Bowl Game. More than
26,000 fans packed the Alamodome after Thanksgiving for what was the first of
many future divisional matchups between the two, and UTSA came out fast and blasting
after winning the toss and electing to receive.
After a
20 yard kickoff return to start the drive at the 30 from RB Jarveon Williams, freshman,
QB Eric Soza, senior, threw a 36 yard bomb to RB Evans Okotcha, senior, on the
first play from scrimmage. Two plays
later QB Soza throws another 31 yard pass to RB Williams for a Roadrunner
touchdown! Following a series of punts
from both teams LA Tech made a 24 yard field goal, putting the score at 7-3
Roadrunners. The Roadrunners took over
on offense on the ensuing drive and on an important 3rd down, Eric
Soza threw a 28 yard pass to TE Cole Hubble, junior. Two plays later, QB Soza takes off on foot and
scrambles all the way to the endzone for another Roadrunner touchdown! 14-3 UTSA at the end of the 1st
quarter.
The 2nd
quarter began with UTSA marching down field to the redzone, however the offense
came up short on a 3rd and goal at the 4 yard line, resulting in a
Roadrunner field goal to start the period.
17- 3 UTSA. The remainder of the
2nd quarter remained uneventful until the play prior to the 2 minute
warning. With UTSA on offense, QB Eric
Soza dropped back to pass and threw a LA Tech interception that ran back 26
yards to the endzone for a pick-6.
Halftime had UTSA up 17-10.
During the 3rd quarter QB Eric Soza bounced back and the
offense continued to dominate as RB Evans Okotcha took a 1 yard run into the
endzone to put UTSA up 24-10 at the end of the 3rd quarter. K Sean Ianno tacked on 2 field goals from 21
and 37 yards out during the 4th quarter, and UTSA went on to win their
fifth straight ball game 30-10.
Making a huge statement in the
third year of their tenure and first season of Conference USA play, the
Roadrunners finished the season 7-5 to end 2nd place in the Western
Division of C-USA just behind Rice, whom the Runners have lost to the past two
seasons. According to Athletics Director
Lynn hickey, NCAA certification rules state that a team as young as UTSA is
still not eligible for bowl play, which is extremely unfortunate for the
seniors on the squad. There are teams
with worse records that will be selected for a bowl appearance. Although the season comes to an end, the
Roadrunners proved excellent in being competitive in an FBS Conference and
performed against major establishments. A
7-5 record after being projected to go 1-11 is a huge statement to the nation
that the UTSA Roadrunners are a team to be reckoned with. Birds up and GO RUNNERS!