PINE BLUFF -- Five plays were enough for the Arkansas-Bluff to go out a winner.
Three defensive stops, a fourth-and-12 pass from one senior to another and a little bit of luck led to UAPB's 20-19 victory over the Alabama A&M Bulldogs in the season finale Saturday at Golden Lion Stadium.
UAPB (4-6, 3-5 SWAC) had fallen behind 19-14 when it began it's next-to-last possession with 10:41 left in game, 73 yards away from a potential go-ahead score.
Senior quarterback Ben Anderson -- who finished the game with 225 yards passing and 133 rushing -- guided his team past A&M's defense with passes of 12 and 17 yards to senior tight end C.J. Branch, but the drive stalled on fourth and 12 at the A&M 32.
"That was a vintage Ben Anderson drive," UAPB Coach Monte Coleman said.
After a UAPB timeout, senior receiver Isiah Ferguson ran a down-and-out pattern past the A&M bench.Ferguson said that before he cut to the sideline, he saw the safety turn to protect deep and he knew that he would be open. Anderson saw it too, and his pass hit Ferguson chest high for 17 yards.
"There was no doubt in my mind that we were going to get the first down," Ferguson said. "I knew I was going to be open, and I knew Ben would find me."
Anderson kept for a 15-yard touchdown on the next play to give UAPB a one-point lead with 6:31 left, but a failed two-point conversion attempt meant A&M could win it with a field goal.
A&M senior quarterback Jaymason Lee drove the Bulldogs deep into UAPB territory. With 2:06 left, A&M (3-7, 2-6) faced third and 7 at UAPB's 17. Lee took the snap and saw junior receiver Tevin McKenzie break free near the goal line toward the corner behind junior safety Kevin Rucker. He lofted a pass intended for McKenzie, but Rucker caught up to it and leaped to knock it away.
Both Coleman and A&M Coach James Spady admitted that when they saw the pass in the air they were almost certain it would result in a touchdown.
"I thought we were going to have our work cut out for us," Coleman said.
"It was perfect pass," Spady said. "[Rucker] made an absolutely great play to break it up."
"When a guy runs an out on you in the end zone, he's almost always going to get behind you," Rucker said. "I just knew I had to catch him."
Junior defensive lineman Caleb Ealy watched Rucker from 20 yards away and wasn't sure Rucker would be able to make the play.
"I didn't think he was going to get there, but he's been working hard all year," Ealy said. "We had faith in him, and he came through in the end."
For all of Rucker's efforts, A&M still had an opportunity to go ahead with a 33-yard field goal by freshman Cesar Diaz-Ramon, who had kicked field goals of 17 and 26 yards earlier in the game. This time his kick spun no more than a yard outside of the left upright as UAPB held on for a victory.
Diaz-Ramon's successful field goals were victories in a way for UAPB's defense, particularly his 19-yard kick that gave A&M a 13-7 lead going into halftime.
A&M faced first and goal from the 2, leading 10-7 with three minutes left in the first half. Freshman back Byran Brower gained 1 yard on first down, but was stopped 6 inches from the goal line on second down by sophomore linebacker Willie Duncan and Ealy. Brower was sent up the middle again on third down but was stopped a foot short by junior lineman Jarrel Wright.
"Our guys knew they had to keep them out of the end zone," Coleman said. "As it turned out, if they hadn't, we probably would've lost this ball game."
Sports on 11/23/2014