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By TOM ZEBOLD
USF Senior Writer
DALLAS, NOV. 15, 2014 – Mike White's 4-yard touchdown pass to Andre Davis with 4 seconds remaining helped USF pull off a second incredible road comeback on the season and post a 14-13 win at SMU on Saturday night.
USF (4-6, 3-3) kept its bowl hopes alive and doubled its win total from last season by scoring 14 unanswered points in the final 9:45 with White leading the rally in a reserve role. The sophomore from Fort Lauderdale threw a 12-yard touchdown pass to D'Ernest Johnson with 8:02 remaining and continued his clutch play on the final drive of the game.
USF converted twice on third down with passes from White to senior tight end Mike McFarland (Tampa) and went 2-for-2 on fourth down as Davis capped things off with his school record 16th touchdown reception. White came to the rescue by going 9-for-16 for 102 yards after replacing true freshman Quinton Flowers with 9:45 remaining. Davis caught six passes for 59 yards and a touchdown, going over 2,000 yards for his career on the night.
“We needed to throw the football, so we put our best passer in the game. Mike had a good week of practice and he went out and executed,” head coach Willie Taggart said.
Flowers courageously made his first-career start three days after his older brother, Bradley Holt, was shot and killed in Miami. The true freshman out of Miami Jackson High School completed six of 13 passes for 105 yards and rushed for 33 yards before being replaced by White with USF's postseason hopes on the line.
“(Quinton) played his heart out,” Davis said. “A kid like that has been through a lot of adversity in life and he's mature beyond his age. He's definitely a competitor.”
After encouraging Flowers all game, White provided an instant spark after entering the game, completing three or four passes for 45 yards, including a 12-yard touchdown strike to true freshman Johnson that helped cut the Bulls' deficit to 13-7 with 8:02 remaining. The touchdown marked the first of Johnson's career.
USF continued to gain momentum on the ensuing drive, forcing a three-and-out, and the White-Johnson connection continued to pay off for the Bulls. USF faced a third-and-12 at its own 33 when White found Johnson for a 20-yard gain before the Bulls converted in another crucial situation. White handed the ball to Johnson on a fourth-and-1 at the SMU 38 and the Miami native pushed the pile to pick up 4 yards.
The Bulls converted for the third time on third down on the final drive with an 8-yard catch from McFarland that got USF to the SMU 23. McFarland came up huge again with a 14-yard reception on fourth-and-10 that brought the Bulls to the Mustangs' 9-yard line.
USF faced a fourth-and-goal at the 4 as the clocked dipped under 10 seconds and White showed no hesitation on the biggest play of the game, finding Davis for a touchdown that helped the Bulls double their win total from last season.
“(Mike) asked me all week what it was going to take to get his job back and I told him he's got to go out and compete. I told him to be ready for when that time comes that you go out and execute the way you're capable of, so you don't make those same mistakes again. He took that heart,” Taggart said. “He didn't know he was going in at all until we told him there at the end and he took care of business for his football team.”
Davis finished with a team-high 59 yards on six catches and Johnson emerged as a go-to guy for the Bulls with three catches for 39 yards.
“We have a lot of good kids that are highly competitive and want to help this football team,” Taggart said. “It's good to see those young guys fight like that in adversity when things are tough.”
USF also moved the ball well on the ground, outrushing SMU, 167-68, as freshman Marlon Mack led the way with 17 carries for 79 yards. Mack now needs 93 more yards to post USF's fourth 1,000-yard rushing season with two games remaining.
USF's defense also played a big part in the victory by shutting out SMU in the second half and holding the Mustangs to 80 yards after the break. Senior linebacker Reshard Cliett (Thomasville, Ga.) posted a team-high seven tackles.
“We really wanted to play our heart out, especially for our seniors,” Cliett said. “This is our last go-round and we've only got a couple more games left.”
USF looks to continue its postseason push at Memphis on Saturday, Nov. 22. That game will kickoff at 4 p.m. and will be televised on ESPNews. The Bulls conclude the regular season Friday, Nov. 28 with a rivalry game against UCF at Raymond James Stadium. Reserve your seats for USF-UCF by purchasing tickets HERE.
USF football season ticket renewals are available. Members may renew their tickets today online, by calling 1-800-GoBulls, or in person at the Ticket Sales and Service Center in the Sun Dome administrative offices (Gate B).
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