NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- The University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff endured a bit of drama at the end of last week, but the Golden Lions put that turmoil behind them long enough to pull off a stunning victory Saturday afternoon.
Quarterback Shannon Patrick found tight end Jeremy Brown for a 17-yard touchdown as time expired, and UAPB shocked Tennessee State 37-31 at William J. Hale Stadium in Nashville, Tenn.
The score capped a frenetic final minute for UAPB (3-1), which played three days after Melvin Hines was ousted as the school's athletic director. But the Golden Lions ran out to a fast start and got big plays from their offense in crucial moments during the second half to beat the Tigers for the first time in five tries.
"Just a testament to them doing everything right now," said UAPB Coach Cedric Thomas, whose team had been outscored 84-13 and outgained 924-448 in its two previous meetings with Tennessee State. "I just told them, we wouldn't have won this football game last year because we weren't doing things right. But right now, they're believing in what we're saying, and it's a direct reflection of what's happening on the football field."
The Golden Lions got it done by mixing the run and pass to keep the Tigers guessing for most of the game.
UAPB finished with 519 yards of total offense, with senior running back Taeyler Porter carrying 18 times for 107 yards and accounting for 3 touchdowns. Running back KeShawn Williams ran 13 times for 84 yards, including a 22-yard touchdown late in the third quarter. Patrick, who has split quarterback duties this season with Skyler Perry, finished 14-of-21 passing for 253 yards and 2 touchdowns, but no throw was bigger than his final one to Brown.
Tennessee State tied the game 31-31 on a 9-yard touchdown pass from quarterback Cameron Rosendahl to receiver Steven Newbold with 50 seconds remaining. UAPB took possession at its 25 and moved to Tennessee State's 17 with four seconds left before Thomas rolled the dice with a gutsy call.
UAPB was without starting kicker Zack Piwniczka, who was nursing a leg injury, and backup kicker Austin Krzeminski had three of his extra-point attempts blocked earlier in the game. So instead of attempting a deciding field goal, Thomas elected to go for the touchdown.
"It was a no-brainer," Thomas said of his decision to throw into the end zone instead of trying a 34-yard field goal. "But it wasn't because of this game. The Jackson State game last year, we had four field goals blocked, including the last one [that would've tied it].
"History wasn't going to repeat itself."
One play earlier, Patrick overthrew a streaking Kolby McNeal down the seam for a possible score, but he hit Brown in stride on the next snap for the game-winner to give UAPB its first three-game winning streak since 2012.
Rosendahl was 27 of 42 for 334 yards and 3 touchdowns for Tennessee State (1-3), which trailed by as much as 19-7 in the first half but stormed out of the gates after intermission to take a 24-19 lead. Receiver Chris Rowland caught 13 of Rosendahl's passes for 154 yards and a touchdown.
After forcing Tennessee State into a three-and-out on its first possession, Porter scored on a 3-yard run with 9:23 left in the opening quarter to give UAPB an early 7-0 lead. The Golden Lions then put together a 10-play, 55-yard drive on its next series before Tigers defensive back Larry Wilhoite picked off a pass from Perry at the 4 and returned it 53 yards into UAPB territory. Six plays later, running back DeMarco Corbin bulled his way in the end zone from 2 yards out to tie it at 7-7.
Porter's 20-yard scoring catch and his 12-yard touchdown run pushed UAPB's lead to 19-7 in the second quarter until a 30-yard field goal from sophomore kicker Antonio Zita on the final play of the half got the Tigers to within 19-10.
Back-to-back touchdown passes by Rosendahl, the latter a 33-yarder to Al-Malik Moore, gave the Tigers a 24-19 advantage with 3:49 to go in the third quarter. Williams answered with a 22-yard scoring run with 59 seconds remaining, and a 1-yard plunge from receiver Harry Ballard, who had 7 catches for 112 yards, with 3:51 left in the fourth quarter pushed the Golden Lions out to a 31-24 lead, setting the stage for the frantic final series of events.
"These guys believed the whole time," Thomas said. "They continued to work and never got down on themselves. To see them do that is a huge step."
Ark.-Pine Bluff 7 12 6 12 -- 37
Tennessee St. 7 3 14 7 -- 31
First Quarter
UAPB--Porter 3 run (Krzeminski kick), 9:23.
TNST--Corbin 2 run (Zita kick), 1:33.
Second Quarter
UAPB--Porter 20 pass from Patrick (kick blocked), 14:16.
UAPB--Porter 12 run (kick blocked), 1:32.
TNST--FG Zita 30, 0:00.
Third Quarter
TNST--Rowland 35 pass from Rosendahl (Zita kick), 11:13.
TNST--Moore 33 pass from Rosendahl (Zita kick), 3:49.
UAPB--Williams 22 run (pass failed), 0:59.
Fourth Quarter
UAPB--Ballard III 3 run (kick blocked), 3:51.
TNST--Newbold 9 pass from Rosendahl (Zita kick), 0:50.
UAPB--Brown 17 pass from Patrick, 0:00.
Attendance--8,683.
UAPB TNST
First downs 29 23
Rushes-yards 39-218 30-71
Passing 301 334
Comp-Att-Int 19-33-2 27-42-1
Return Yards 101 89
Punts-Avg. 5-42.6 6-39.7
Fumbles-Lost 1-0 1-0
Penalty-Yards 10-84 6-62
Time of Possession 31:21 28:39
INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS
RUSHING--Ark.-Pine Bluff, T. Porter 18-107, K. Williams 13-84, S. Patrick 2-8, S. Perry 2-6, D. Miller 1-6, T. Ralph 1-4, H. Ballard 1-3, K. McNeal 1-0. Tennessee St., T. Roberson 16-65, S. Rowland 6-25, D. Corbin 4-12, O. Battle 1-1, C. Rosendahl 3-(minus 32).
PASSING--Ark.-Pine Bluff, S. Patrick 14-21-1-253, S. Perry 5-12-1-48. Tennessee St., C. Rosendahl 27-42-1-334.
RECEIVING--Ark.-Pine Bluff, H. Ballard 7-112, J. Brown 2-57, D. Miller 3-36, T. Porter 2-33, K. Williams 2-22, K. McNeal 1-19, C. Robinson 1-12, T. Ralph 1-10. Tennessee St., C. Rowland 13-154, S. Newbold 7-91, A. Moore 3-67, J. Harris 1-11, M. Abdul-Haqq 2-7, S. Curtis Jr. 1-4.
Sports on 09/22/2019