SAN ANTONIO — A’Marion Peterson scored his third rushing touchdown of the game with 15 seconds left as UTSA rallied for a 31-24 victory over South Florida in American Conference action Thursday night at the Alamodome.
Peterson’s 1-yard TD run capped a 10-play, 75-yard, game-winning drive engineered by Owen McCown, who had a 19-yard scramble on third down and five that kept the possession alive for the Roadrunners. He later had an 8-yard keeper before Will Henderson III broke loose down the right sideline for a 26-yard dash to the USF-1-yard line with 18 seconds left to play to set up Peterson’s winning score.
UTSA had erased a 17-10 halftime deficit with a 10-point third quarter that gave the home team a three-point cushion. Michael Petro then made his third field goal of the night with 8:21 remaining to make it 23-17.
The Bulls then put together a 12-play, 75-yard drive that ended with an 11-yard pass from Michael Van Buren Jr. to D. J. Crowther. Nico Gramatica’s extra point gave the visitors a 24-23 advantage with 1:56 left on the clock.
UTSA used a potent rushing attack on the go-ahead drive, churning out 70 of the 75 yards on the ground with Henderson piling up 42 of the yards and McCown accounting for 27.
With the dramatic win, the Roadrunners ran their record to 5-1 overall and 2-0 in the conference, marking the best six-game start since 2021 (6-0) and their second 2-0 league start in four years in the American.
McCown finished with 209 yards through the air on 22-of-31 passing and 52 more on the ground to guide an offense that racked up 486 yards, including 277 rushing. Peterson paced the running back room with 92 yards and a school record-tying three touchdowns on 12 attempts, while Henderson went for 86 on 13 carries. David Amador II led all receivers with nine catches for 70 yards.
Defensively, Owen Pewee and Joel Rogers shared the team lead with eight tackles apiece.
UTSA outgained USF, 271-87, in the second half, piling up 174 rushing yards and 16 first downs over the final 30 minutes compared to only 31 and six, respectively, for the Bulls.
The Bulls (4-2, 1-2) struck first, taking the opening possession 65 yards in 10 plays, the last a 15-yard rush by Crowther to the end zone.
The Roadrunners responded with 53-yard touchdown dash by Peterson on third down and one that capped a quick, five-play, 78-yard drive.
USF reclaimed the lead on a 42-yard touchdown catch by Bryson Rodgers near the end of the first quarter, as the Bulls covered 75 yards in six plays.
UTSA answered with a 13-play, 67-yard march that ended with a 26-yard field goal by Petro at the 9:53 mark of the second quarter.
USF got those three points back in the final two minutes of the half as Gramatica split the uprights from 24 yards to make it 17-10.
The Roadrunners took the opening possession of the second half 75 yards to knot the score at 17-all. Mekhi Anderson had a 30-yard rush to move the ball across midfield before a pair of McCown completions to Amador II and TJ West helped set up Peterson for a 1-yard touchdown plunge that put an exclamation point on an eight-play, 75-yard drive.
Petro gave UTSA its first lead of the night with 2:04 remaining in the third quarter when he connected on a 41-yard field goal to make it 20-17. The Roadrunners covered 64 yards in 13 plays, taking 5:58 off the clock on the possession.
Petro pushed the advantage to 23-17 with his 31-yard field goal at the 8:21 mark of the fourth, capping another time-consuming drive that chewed 7:45 off the clock.
Van Buren completed 16 of 29 passes for 177 yards and two touchdowns, Crowther rushed for 83 yards and a TD on 20 totes and Rodgers caught five passes for 72 yards to lead the USF offense.
The Roadrunners will host Navy next Saturday, Oct. 17. Kickoff is set for 7 p.m. at the Alamodome and the game will be televised nationally on ESPNU. Tickets are on sale by visiting goUTSA.com/tickets or by calling the UTSA Ticket Office at 210-458-UTSA (8872). Current UTSA students receive free admission to all home games by downloading tickets via their Account Manager.
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