Tulsa: 2021 Myrtle Beach Bowl Champions

CONWAY, S.C. -- — Tulsa cornerback Tyon Davis thinks his team needs a little adversity to get themselves going.

That was certainly true at the Myrtle Beach Bowl where the Golden Hurricane endured Old Dominion's stunning start — a 100-yard return touchdown by LeMareon James on the opening kickoff — on the way to a 30-17 victory Monday to close the season with four straight victories.

"We love adversity," Davis said. "At this point, I think it fuels us."

That showed as the Golden Hurricane (7-6) of the American Athletic Conference scored on their first two possessions to wipe out Old Dominion's lead and take control of the second-ever bowl game played on the campus of Coastal Carolina.

Davis Brin threw for 285 yards and two touchdowns, while receiver Josh Johnson had eight catches for 129 yards and tailback Shamari Brooks ran for 107 yards and a score. It was Tulsa's second straight bowl win and first since defeating Central Michigan in the 2016 Miami Beach Bowl.

Brin was named the game's MVP and his yardage total set the bowl mark, despite it's limited two-game history.

As effective as Tulsa's offense was, its defense was just as good. It held the Monarchs (6-7) of Conference USA to 135 yards through the first three quarters.

Tulsa coach Philip Montgomery knew after the opening kickoff his players wouldn't let it affect their focus. About 10 minutes later, the Golden Hurricane took the lead for good on Brooks' 1-yard run and Brin's 23-yard pass to Johnson.

"It was a big moment," Montgomery said of the first two drives. "But it didn't surprise me."

The Monarchs struggled to find an attack as Tulsa of the American Athletic Conference took control.

They were outgained, 529 yards to 247, and had just 10 first downs to Tulsa's 35.

It took until the fourth quarter for Old Dominion to post an offensive touchdown on Blake Watson's 2-yard run. By then, Tulsa was up 30-17 and not about to surrender the lead.

Tulsa took advantage of safety LJ Wallace's interception — he twisted in front of the receiver to make the play — for a 35-yard field goal by Zack Long right before halftime to lead 17-10.

Johnson had his sixth 100-yard receiving game this season by the half with five receptions for 101 yards.

There was a brief flurry of lunacy in the final quarter. An unsportsmanlike conduct penalty left Tulsa at fourth-and-17 and lining up to punt. But punter Lachlan Wilson inexplicably took off running straight into a wall of Old Dominion defenders for a 1-yard loss.

The Monarchs, down 23-10, jumped on the break with a 22 yard run by Watson and a pass from Hayden Wolff to an open Ali Jennings inside the 10. As Jennings headed toward the end zone, cornerback Tyon Davis forced the ball loose for a touchback to end the threat.

Old Dominion could not rally, losing a bowl game for the first time in two appearances since joining the FBS in 2013.

THE TAKEAWAY

Old Dominion: The Monarchs did not have the offensive firepower to keep up with Tulsa. Old Dominion's starting skill players — quarterback Hayden Wolff, tailback Blake Watson, tight end Zack Kunytz and three receivers — were all freshmen or sophomores.

Tulsa: The Golden Hurricane can use their late-season surge as a springboard into next season, although running back Brooks and receiver Johnson are both seniors.

GETTING HIS KICKS

Tulsa's Zach Long had field goals of 35, 25 and 32 yards, boosting his mark to 22 of 23 kicks this season. Long entered the postseason second in field goal percentage to Appalachian State's Chandler Staton.

OLD DOMINION RALLY

The Monarchs bounced back from a 1-6 start to win their final five games and make the Myrtle Beach Bowl. Coach Ricky Rahne said his team will draw on that in the offseason. First, though, he wants his team to soak in the defeat. "I would rather marinate in this pain a little bit," he said.

UP NEXT

Old Dominion opens next season against Virginia Tech on Sept. 3.

Tulsa starts the 2022 season at Wyoming on Sept. 3.

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Tulsa: 2016 Miami Beach Bowl Champions

MIAMI -- Dane Evans passed for 304 yards and five touchdowns, three of those scoring throws going to Keevan Lucas, and Tulsa rolled past Central Michigan 55-10 in the Miami Beach Bowl on Monday afternoon.

Evans completed 28 of 38 passes for the Golden Hurricane (10-3), who scored on their first nine possessions and finished with six wins in the season's final seven games.

D'Angelo Brewer rushed for 105 yards, and James Flanders ran for another 100 and a score for Tulsa. Josh Atkinson and Chris Minter also caught scoring passes for the Golden Hurricane, and Jesse Brubaker ran an interception 66 yards back for another touchdown.

Cooper Rush was 24 for 49 passing for 241 yards for Central Michigan (6-7), throwing three interceptions in his final game with the Chippewas. Jahray Hayes ran for Central Michigan's lone touchdown.

Evans took over the top spot on Tulsa's career lists for touchdown passes (84), 300-yard games (16) and total offense (11,752). He already was the school leader in completions, attempts and yards.

THE TAKEAWAY

Central Michigan: Rush finished with 12,894 yards -- 11 shy of matching Dan LeFevour's Mid-American Conference record of 12,905. His last attempt as time expired would have given him the record, but fell incomplete. ... The Chippewas finished with five losses in their final six games, and went 3-7 after a 3-0 start. ... This was the third straight bowl trip for Central Michigan, but the Chippewas went 0-3 in them. ... The 6-7 record this season is Central Michigan's worst since going 3-9 in 2011.

Tulsa: With the outcome long decided, Tulsa took a knee on fourth-and-goal from the 5 with 1:44 left. ... This wasn't even Tulsa's biggest bowl win. It topped Bowling Green 63-7 at the GMAC Bowl to close the 2007 season.

HURRICANE HISTORY, TULSA VARIETY

Atkinson's 40-yard catch in the second quarter pushed him over 1,000 for the season. That made Tulsa the first FBS school to ever feature a 3,000-yard passer (Evans), two 1,000-yard rushers (D'Angelo Brewer and James Flanders) and two 1,000-yard receivers (Lucas and Atkinson).

HURRICANE HISTORY, MIAMI VARIETY

Marlins Park is built basically on the same site as the famed Orange Bowl -- the home field for the Miami Hurricanes for many years -- stood before it was demolished. One of the replay officials Monday was Terry Porter, who threw the infamous late-arriving flag in the Fiesta Bowl that decided the 2002 national title. Porter made a still-debated call that extended the game in overtime, and Miami lost to Ohio State in double OT.

UP NEXT

Central Michigan: It's time to find Rush's replacement. The 2017 season starts Aug. 31 at home against Rhode Island.

Tulsa: Like the Chippewas, the Golden Hurricane also need a new quarterback. Next season starts Sept. 2 at Oklahoma State.

Tulsa: 2013-14 Conference USA Men's Basketball Champions

EL PASO, Texas -- Danny Manning is taking Tulsa back to the NCAA tournament.

James Woodard scored 27 points to lead the Golden Hurricane to its first NCAA berth since 2003 with a 69-60 victory Saturday against Louisiana Tech in the Conference USA tournament final.

"It's an indescribable feeling," said Woodard, who is from Tulsa. "Growing up as a kid, you can't wait for March Madness. To be a part of that, this time around, and for us being so young as a team, it's definitely a dream come true."

Woodard, who scored 18 points in the second half, made 7 of 8 free throws down the stretch to help Tulsa hold off the Bulldogs.

Tulsa (21-12), which was the No. 2 seed, will carry an 11-game win streak into the tournament. Top-seeded Louisiana Tech came up short, extending an NCAA tournament drought dating to 1991.

The Bulldogs (27-8) were led by Kenneth Smith with 16 points and Kenyon McNeail with 15.Alex Hamilton finished with 12.

The Bulldogs led 35-34 at the half in a game with 16 lead changes. Neither team led by more than five points until Tulsa took control in the final 5 minutes, pushing the advantage to 10 points on a free throw by Woodard with 1:12 left.

"This was a lot of fun," said Tulsa second-year head coach Manning, who won an NCAA title playing for Kansas in 1988. "It was a hard-fought game. Louisiana Tech is a talented team. We have three other teams in our league deserving of a bid."

Louisiana Tech, which made 7 of 10 3-pointers in the first half and shot 45 percent from the field, cooled off in the second half. The Bulldogs, limited by a stingy Tulsa defense, shot 32 percent for the game. They went just 4 of 15 from 3-point range in the second half and 15 of 23 from the free-throw line.

"Right now, I feel bad for the four seniors," Tech's Alex Hamilton said. "I just wish there was more could do. We came out on the short end. I feel bad for the guys."

Meanwhile, Tulsa shot 72 percent from the line (18 of 25), 55 percent from 3-point range (5 of 9) and 43 percent from the field.

Tulsa: 2012 Liberty Bowl Champions

MEMPHIS, Tenn. - Iowa State scored on Edwin Arceo's 33-yard field goal, Jeremy Reeves' 31-yard interception return and Ernst Brun's 69-yard reception of a Sam B. Richardson pass. 

All of that occurred during the first quarter of Monday's AutoZone Liberty Bowl, and Iowa State surged to a double-digit lead. 

After that, the University of Tulsa defense dominated the afternoon. 

On 11 offensive possessions after surging to a 10-point advantage, the Cyclones punted seven times, had two passes intercepted (one each by safety Marco Nelson and cornerback Dexter McCoil), lost a fumble (recovered by TU defensive end Brentom Todd) and missed a field goal. 

During the final three quarters, Iowa State was scoreless while mustering only 133 yards. TU countered with a 317-yard ground game and rolled to a 31-17 victory over the Cyclones. 

Voted the game's most valuable player, Hurricane junior tailback Trey Watts rushed for 149 yards. Tailback Alex Singleton, one of 18 seniors playing for the final time in TU blue, ran for three touchdowns - extending his program-record, single-season total to 24. 

Alluding to the combination of Tulsa's defense and a run game that averaged 5.3 yards per attempt, quarterback Cody Green said, "This was the perfect game for us." 

Green scored on an 8-yard keeper as the Golden Hurricane ended a streak of 16 consecutive losses to Big 12 opponents (a streak that included this season's opening-day defeat at Iowa State). 

At 11-3, the 2012 Hurricane is only the second team in program history to have reached the 11-win mark. However, the 2008 TU squad was not the Conference USA champion. The 2012 Hurricane captured two significant trophies - one for winning the C-USA title and one for conquering Iowa State. 

"This is a group that bought in. They pulled together and believed in each other," TU coach Bill Blankenship said. "They wanted to be coached. It was really cool. 

"I think a game like this shows that we can play with people across the country. We're going to graduate 18 great seniors, but we've been able to redshirt two classes behind them. I think we're going to be good in the future." 

During the second half of the Liberty Bowl, the Cyclone offense never crossed midfield. TU's defense recorded five sacks - pushing its school-record 2012 total to an astounding 53 - and Iowa State was 2-of-14 on third-down conversions. 

The Cyclones, scheduled to visit TU's Chapman Stadium next September, finished with a 6-7 record. 

"We came ready to play, obviously, by the way we started the game," Iowa State coach Paul Rhoads said. "And then we were outplayed for the next 45 minutes." 

In games in which opponents score more than 24 points, the Rhoads-coached Cyclones are 1-23. 

The Hurricane was reeling after the Reeves interception return gave Iowa State a 10-0 cushion. Tulsa countered with a 75-yard drive that included Ja'Terian Douglas' runs of 17 and 12 yards, a Green 12-yarder and Singleton's 2-yard TD dive behind left guard Jake Alexander. 

"We drove the length of the field," Blankenship said. "(The Hurricane offense) needed to answer when things weren't looking good." 

Iowa State responded almost immediately, capitalizing on a Hurricane coverage failure and converting on the Richardson-to-Brun pass for 69 yards and a 17-7 difference. The 25,000 Iowa State fans in attendance cheered and danced. 

"We never wavered. Not for a second," Watts said. "We knew we made a mistake and gave (the Cyclones) a touchdown, but we knew we just had to rally. Just keep playing. Stick to our game plan." 

From that point, 7,000 TU fans did most of the cheering and all of the dancing. 

Within a span of 3 1/2 minutes, Tulsa got touchdowns from Green and Singleton. 

When halftime arrived, the Hurricane held a 21-17 lead. 

When halftime ended, the real misery began for the Iowa State offense. 

During the second half, the Cyclones had more turnovers (three) than first downs (two). Tulsa has Conference USA's best defense and best offensive line, and Iowa State was overwhelmed by both Monday. 

"That's how we became champions," Hurricane defensive coordinator Brent Guy said. "That's how we won the game today." 

Original Print Headline: A bellwether win

Tulsa: 2012 Conference USA Champions

Tulsa’s goal all season has been to win the Conference USA Championship. It did it with a 33-27 overtime win over Central Florida in the league title game Saturday at Skelly Field at H.A. Chapman Stadium.

The Golden Hurricane (10-3) had to rally to win, which was done with Alex Singleton leaping over a pile into the end zone for the winning TD.

“I guess we had to find something to finish the game that we hadn’t done before,” Tulsa coach Bill Blankenship said. “Done about everything else. This team came from behind. They played in the lead. They’ve done all those things. And I just couldn’t be prouder. This is a great moment for these players and hopefully for the city.”

As the 2012 C-USA Champion, the Golden Hurricane will play in the Liberty Bowl on New Year’s Eve in Memphis, Tenn.

The Knights (9-4) had possession first and were forced to kick a field goal. Cory Dorris blocked Shawn Moffitt’s 38-yard attempt and the Hurricane only needed a score to win. on a one-yard TD.

The Hurricane led 21-14 at halftime but found itself down 27-21 after UCF quarterback Blake Bortles ran in 28 yards on a third down keeper.

Trey Watts scored a 54-yard punt return with 5:06 left in the game. But Tulsa could only tie the game at 27-27 since the extra point was blocked.

Watts rushed for 134 yards on 15 carries and was named Most Valuable Player. Singleton ran for 100 yards on 25 handoffs and two touchdowns.

After UCF jumped ahead to a 14-7, Tulsa answered back fast.

Trey Watts and Alex Singleton made big gains on the ensuing drive, with Singleton getting his 40th career TD on a seven yard run to tie it at 14-14 with 2:35 left in the first half.

The Golden Hurricane did not want to go into halftime up by three points. They wanted the seven and got it.

Cody Green hit Thomas Roberson with a deep pass to the two-yard line with two ticks left in the half. On the next play, Ja’Terian Douglas scored and Tulsa led 21-14 going into the locker room.