The University of Alabama at Birmingham Athletics
UAB
TROY
Hunt Leads UAB To 21-3 Win Over Troy
9/30/2006 12:00:00 AM | Football
Sept. 30, 2006
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BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (AP) - Sam Hunt threw for one touchdown and ran for another to lead UAB to a 21-3 victory over Troy Saturday night.
Hunt completed 11-of-16 passes for 145 yards to lead UAB (2-3). Hunt was also the game's leading rusher, gaining 69 yards on 21 carries. Sylvester Mencer had five catches for 96 yards for the Blazers.
"I'm just very proud of our guys," said UAB head coach Watson Brown. "They did a wonderful job of playing the game that we had to play to win. You have nine starters out and five on offense. You've got to be smart and make some plays at the right time, and our kids did that. They played a solid game on both sides of the ball."Other than the two turnovers I thought it was exactly how we had to play to win the game. We had to play as a team. There was no way to win this game if everybody didn't play as a team. It was a great win for us."
Hunt had shared playing time with Chris Williams in UAB's two quarterback rotation, but with Williams recovering from a concussion, Hunt played most of the game. Hunt sprained an ankle late and Williams entered the game in the final two minutes.
A heavy UAB pass rush kept Troy's spread offense in check most of the night. Quarterback Omar Haugabook completed 18-of-30 passes for 144 yards for Troy (1-4). UAB sacked Haugabook six times and held Troy to only 58 yards rushing.
"I felt like the defense had it under control," Brown said. "You didn't feel like they were about to bust loose. If they did score I could tell it was going to take awhile. We played to that a bit in the second half. Most of our injuries were on offense and our defense had to step up. And I thought they did that."Gary Banks had six catches and Justin Bray caught four to lead Troy.
Hunt ran 22 yards for a touchdown to give UAB an early 7-0 lead. On the Blazers' next possession, Hunt hit Mencer with a 38-yard pass that went to the Troy 3-yard-line. Trey Chaney ran it in from there to give UAB a 14-0 lead.
Hunt lost a fumble and threw an interception in the second quarter, but Troy could manage only a 35-yard field goal from Greg Whibbs.
UAB drove 47 yards in three plays to score the only points of the second half. After Mencer ran 24 yards on a reverse, Hunt hit Mencer with a 29-yard touchdown pass to make it 21-3.
UAB returns to Conference USA play next Saturday when the Blazers play host to the Memphis Tigers. Gametime at Legion Field will be 6:00 p.m.
