BIRMINGHAM, Ala. – DeWayne McBride ran 28 times for a career-high 223 yards and four touchdowns to lead UAB to a 35-21 non-conference football win over Georgia Southern Eagles Saturday afternoon in Protective Stadium.
Eagles of the Game:
Jalen White rushed for 116 yards and two touchdowns and caught two balls for 40 yards. Gerald Green ran for 46 yards, and Derwin Burgess Jr. caught four passes for 48 yards and a touchdown. OJ Arnold ran for 28 yards and caught four passes for 29 yards, and Wylan Free led the defense with eight tackles.
Key Moments:
Georgia Southern (2-1) fell behind 21-0 early but battled back and cut the margin to 28-21 on a 1-yard run by White with 9:54 remaining. The Eagle defense forced the Blazers to go 3-and-out on their next possession, but Tyler Taylor picked off a Kyle Vantrease pass at midfield and brought it back 16 yards to the GS 33-yard line with 6:50 to go.
McBride took over from there with runs of 9 and 3 yards, and then Dylan Hopkins pulled the handoff and scampered for 17 yards to the Eagle 4-yard line. McBride took it in for his fourth rushing TD with 4:46 to play, and that proved to be the final margin.
Leading 21-7 at halftime, UAB (2-1) had two field goal tries inside 25 yards to add to the margin in the third quarter and missed them both. Following the second miss, this one from 24 yards, Georgia Southern faced 4th-and-1 from its own 29-yard line. The conversion proved to be no problem for White, who took the handoff and burst through the line for a 71-yard touchdown run, trimming the margin to 21-14.
The Blazers answered with a 71-yard drive, aided by a pair of pass interference calls, and McBride capped it with a 27-yard touchdown run to increase the lead to 28-14.
Georgia Southern came right back with a 12-play, 75-yard drive setting the table for White's second touchdown run of the game and cutting the deficit to 28-21. The Eagles converted two third downs on the drive, Green ate up a chunk of yardage with a 22-yard run and White caught a 22-yard pass from Vantrease.
Key Stats and Notes:
- White's 71-yard run is the longest of his career.
- With 38 yards, Khaleb Hood became the ninth Eagle to record over 1,000 career receiving yards.
- McBride's rushing total (223) was the fourtrh most rushing yards for an opponent in school history.
- The Eagles outgained UAB 418-413, but the Blazers won the turnover battle 3-0.
- It was the first meeting between UAB and Georgia Southern in football.
Next Up:
The Eagles welcome Ball State to Paulson Stadium for Homecoming next Saturday, Sept. 24, and kickoff is set for 6 p.m. on ESPN+. It's also the Teacher Appreciation Game.
Thanks to Marc Gignac with GS Athletics for this story.
