UCF keeps bowl hopes alive with 17-point rally over Oklahoma State

ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) — Noe Ruelas hit a 34-yard field goal with 57 seconds left to help UCF complete a 14-point comeback over Oklahoma State and escape with a 17-14 victory on Saturday night.

Braeden Marshall intercepted Zane Flores on the first play after the go-ahead field goal to seal the game for the Knights and send the Cowboys to their 10th straight loss.

UCF quarterback Tayven Jackson threw for 271 yards on 16-for-25 passing, completing two touchdown passes to Dylan Wade.

After two heartbreaking losses in the fourth quarter in their last two home games to Kansas and Houston, the Knights finished their final home game with a clutch win.

“We finished at the end,” Wade said. “We came out with a dub. We sent the seniors out the right way. That’s what matters.”

The Knights opened the second half with an 83-yard touchdown pass to Wade. UCF then tied the game with 9:12 left in the fourth quarter when Jackson found Wade in the end zone on a fourth-and-goal at the 2.

Wade finished with four catches for 145 yards, adding a 50-yard catch and run to help set up the go-ahead field goal.

It was part of a dominant second half for the Knights.

Oklahoma State tallied 201 yards of total offense in the first half, but managed only 27 in the second half.

“It looked like our guys after that long touchdown and went three and out, it kind of hit them,” Oklahoma State interim coach Doug Meacham said. “It didn’t feel like we had the juice like we had in the first half.”

Flores threw for 105 of his 124 yards in the first half, finding Gavin Freeman for a 5-yard pass to open the scoring midway through the first quarter and adding a rushing touchdown just before halftime.

But Flores was just 2 for 9 in the second half.

The Cowboys went three-and-out on four of six drives and held the ball for less than nine minutes in the second half. It was a matter of time until they got their breakthrough.

“It was really just the thought of the last home game: How do you want to be remembered?” UCF linebacker Cole Kozlowski said. “It was good we changed the mentality for the whole defense, which was huge.”

Semifinalist

Ruelas hit his first game-winning kick of the season. But he has been making waves throughout the season, being named a semifinalist for the Lou Groza Award.

Ruelas has made 15 of his 17 field goals this season, including a 54-yard field goal in the loss to Houston two weeks ago.

Shirts Off

UCF was the latest school to get caught up in the wave of fans congregating in an empty section and waving their shirts above their heads. A group took over a section in one of the end zones toward the end of the second quarter and kept at it for the rest of the game.

Both teams took notice.

“Shout out to them. I think that’s when we started rallying,” Ruelas said. “It was a big section up there. It was fun to see tonight.”

The fad began with an Oklahoma State fan during the Oct. 11 game against Houston in Stillwater, Oklahoma; and it’s spread throughout college football this season.

“It was kind of cool,” Meacham said. “It feels like they adopted our shirt-off thing. I guess that’s kind of a national deal. I looked up there and felt like I was home.”

The takeaway

Oklahoma State: Oklahoma State lost another heartbreaker, falling for the 10th straight game.

UCF: UCF kept its bowl hopes alive with the victory. The Knights need a win next week to secure a bowl game.

Up next

Oklahoma State closes its season at home against Iowa State on Saturday.

UCF closes its regular season on Saturday at No. 11 BYU.

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