Owen McCown passed for 295 yards and three touchdowns, Will Henderson III scored three times, and UTSA rallied from an early 14-point deficit Friday night to pound Florida International 57-20 in the First Responder Bowl at Dallas.
McCown, who finished the season with 2,995 passing yards, finished 18 of 28 for the Roadrunners (7-6), who tallied 38 unanswered points during one stretch and outscored the Panthers 57-6 over the final 54 minutes.
Henderson totaled 59 yards on 14 carries with two rushing scores, and he caught a touchdown pass. Devin McCuin (six catches, 73 yards) and Patrick Overmyer added TD receptions as the Roadrunners won a bowl game for the third year in a row.
“I think our guys just wanted to play,” said UTSA senior linebacker Shad Banks Jr., who had a team-high eight tackles and a sack. “There are just big plays waiting to happen (on our offense). We’ve got a whole bunch of home run hitters. On any given time or moment, they can go 80 yards. It’s a blessing to have an offense that you can depend on like that.”
Joe Pesansky went 11-for-31 for 102 yards with two scores and an interception for the Panthers (7-6), who were playing in their first bowl game since the 2019 Camellia Bowl.
Florida International’s Keyone Jenkins completed 7 of 14 passes for 49 yards and an interception.
The Panthers tallied on a 73-yard opening drive that ended with Pesansky firing a 19-yard strike to Kyle McNeal.
Maguire Anderson doubled the margin to 14-0 and shocked UTSA by fielding a punt at the Florida International 3, eluding the first few defenders and sprinting away for a 97-yard punt return with 9:26 left in the first quarter.
It was the longest punt return touchdown in FBS bowl history and it matched the longest punt return in Panthers history, a mark set by T.Y. Hilton against Florida Atlantic in 2011.
However, Henderson soon scored twice, from 2 yards on a run and 40 yards on a pass, to knot the game at 14-all.
On the first play of the second quarter, Michael Petro booted a 37-yard field goal to end a drive set up by Jimmy Wyrick’s interception.
The Roadrunners scored on their fourth straight possession when McCuin hauled in a perfect 23-yard lob from McCown for a 24-14 advantage.
A’Marion Peterson powered his way in from 10 yards out with 1:17 left in the second quarter as UTSA notched 31 straight points for a 31-14 halftime lead.
Henderson notched his third touchdown in the third quarter on a 5-yard run.
Pesansky broke UTSA’s scoring spree with a 22-yard pass to Dallas Payne. The Roadrunners responded with two points when Ahamad Chapman intercepted Pesansky’s two-point attempt and returned it the distance to make it 40-20.
McCown struck paydirt again with a 34-yard toss to Overmyer in the fourth quarter. Petro’s 36-yard kick and Bryson Donnell’s 12-yard run rounded out the scoring.
–Field Level Media
