The University of Alabama at Birmingham Athletics
Blazers Travel To Troy For Saturday Contest
9/18/2009 12:00:00 AM | Football
Sept. 18, 2009
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. ----- After opening the 2009 season with back-to-back conference home games, the UAB football team ventures on the road for the first time Saturday when the Blazers travel to Troy.
Kickoff with the Trojans at Movie Gallery Stadium is set for 2:36 p.m. The game will be televised regionally by CSS and broadcast on the Blazers ISP Sports Network (WUHT 107.7 FM in Birmingham). The radio broadcast will begin at 1:00 p.m.
UAB (1-1, 1-1 Conference USA) has played good football for three of four halves through the first two weeks of the season. Unfortunately, the slow start to last Saturday's game with SMU cost the Blazers a chance to come out of the gate 2-0 this season.
"I think it was a game that showed that we couldn't handle success very well," said UAB head coach Neil Callaway. "On the bright side, they came out and played well in the second half. I am proud for the way the guys responded at halftime, came back out and got after it."
Down 28-7 at halftime to the Mustangs, the Blazers roared back with a 20-point third quarter and came within a two-point conversion with :13 remaining of tying the game. The 35-33 loss came a week after UAB won its opener handily, a 44-24 decision over Rice, a 10-game winner in 2008.
The Blazers must reduce their turnovers -- they had five last week -- to get back in the win column on Saturday.
UAB and Troy are meeting for the seventh time in history and first time since 2006. The Blazers have won the past two meetings, including a 27-7 victory at Troy in 2005. The series is now tied at 3-3, but UAB owns a 3-1 advantage since the programs have both been playing at the Division I-A level.
Callaway and his staff have worked hard this week to get their players focused on Troy and put last week's loss behind them.
"Talent-wise, they'll be the most talented team we've played to this point," said Callaway. "Their defensive line is big and physical and can run. Their receivers have a lot of speed. Their quarterback (Levi Brown) does a nice job of running what they're doing offensively.
Troy comes into the game in search of its first win of the season after consecutive road losses at Bowling Green and No. 1-ranked Florida.
Callaway is anxious to see how his team performs in its first road game this season.
"It'll be interesting to watch us play in someone else's house," he said. "I'm just anxious to see this team play again Saturday after what we did last Saturday."
UAB has averaged 38.5 points and 482 yards in its first two games. Troy has scored at a 10.0 points per game clip and yielded 43.5.
Still, Callaway says don't be deceived by those numbers. He knows his team is in for a big challenge Saturday afternoon.
"We better have a chip on our shoulder because Troy is the most talented team we've played," Callaway said. "They've won three conference championships in a row, and we're going to their house, so we better be ready to play."
