SAN ANTONIO — Shad Banks Jr. posted 10 tackles, returned an interception for a touchdown and recovered a fumble and Will Henderson III registered his second straight 100-yard rushing game, as UTSA secured bowl eligibility with a 58-24 victory over East Carolina in American Conference action on Saturday at the Alamodome.
The Roadrunners built a 44-3 lead and never looked back in running their record to 6-5 overall and 4-3 in league play while becoming bowl eligible for the sixth straight season under head coach Jeff Traylor. UTSA also remained perfect against conference opponents in home games under Traylor, improving to 23-0 in regular season conference games at the Alamodome and 25-0 when including the 2021 and 2022 Conference USA Championship Games.
Banks, a senior out of North Shore High School. logged his second double-digit tackles output of the season and became the first Roadrunner to ever have a pick six and fumble recovery in the same game. He paced a defense that held the Pirates (7-4, 5-2) to only 10 points and 233 yards of offense through the first three quarters.
Meanwhile, Henderson rushed for 146 yards on 19 carries in his first career start to help guide a balanced offensive attack that piled up 458 yards of offense, 210 rushing and 248 passing.
Owen McCown completed 24 of 33 passes for 248 yards and a career-high five touchdowns, the second-most in a game by a Roadrunner. He spread the ball to nine difference players, paced by five receptions for 73 yards and a score from David Amador II and five catches for 35 yards and a TD by Houston Thomas. Patrick Overmyer had three grabs for 58 yards and DJ Allen hauled in three passes for 46 yards and a touchdown.
The Roadrunners struck first, scoring on their first possession for the sixth time in the last seven games. A 37-yard pass from McCown to Overmyer highlighted the seven-play, 70-yard drive that was capped with an 11-yard touchdown reception by AJ Wilson.
UTSA took a 14-0 lead later in the opening frame after a 10-play, 78-yard march that ended with a 5-yard TD pass from McCown to Thomas. Allen had a 33-yard reception to convert a third down near midfield to headline the drive.
The lead grew to 21-0 early in the second quarter after Amador turned a short screen pass over the middle into a 45-yard score.
The Roadrunners came up with a takeaway to halt the next ECU drive, as Jimmy Wyrick stripped the ball loose from Jayvontay Connor after a reception over the middle and Banks fell on it, his school-record-tying third fumble recovery of the season.
UTSA turned that takeaway into seven more points, as A’Marion Peterson’s 8-yard rush up the middle to paydirt capped a six-play, 49-yard march. Henderson helped set up the score with a 30-yard burst down the right sideline to the ECU 19. Michael Petro’s extra point made it 28-0 with 9:31 remaining in the first half.
Petro split the uprights from 25 yards at the 3:47 mark of the second stanza to push the UTSA lead to 31-0.
The Pirates got on the board late in the opening half on a 32-yard field goal by Nick Mazzie.
Petro drilled his second field goal, this time from 37 yards with 12 seconds on the clock to give the home team a 34-3 cushion at the break.
UTSA chewed up more than half of the time in the third quarter on its opening possession of the second half. Facing a third down inside the 5-yard line, McCown scrambled to his right and hit Allen on the sideline in the end zone for 4-yard score that was initially ruled incomplete but overturned after an official review. A roughing the punter penalty on ECU kept the drive alive, eventually resulting in a 13-play, 75-yard march that lasted 7:53.
Petro made his third field goal of the afternoon late in the third quarter, connecting from 37 yards to make it 44-3.
ECU reached the end zone for the first time with 1:15 remaining in the third on a 50-yard TD catch by Anthony Smith.
Jaren Randle recovered an onside kick attempt on the ensuing kickoff and then was rewarded with a 12-yard touchdown reception to put an exclamation point on a three-play, 46-yard drive. Petro’s PAT pushed the lead to 51-10 with 14:53 left to play.
ECU scored a pair of fourth-quarter touchdowns sandwiched around Banks’ 21-yard interception return for a TD.
Smith led the Pirates with 143 yards and a TD on eight receptions, while Katin Houser threw for 241 yards and a pair of scores on 18-of-32 passing.
The Roadrunners will stay home to host Army (5-5, 3-4) next Saturday, Nov. 29. Kickoff is set for 2:30 p.m. at the Alamodome. Fans can purchase tickets online or by calling the UTSA Ticket Office at 210-458-UTSA (8872) from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday (excluding holidays).
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