Box Score
 |
| Team |
1 |
2 |
3 |
4 |
Final |
| USF |
14 |
7 |
14 |
14 |
49 |
| Memphis |
3 |
14 |
14 |
11 |
42 |
|
| |
MEMPHIS, Tenn., NOV. 12, 2016 – Quinton Flowers put the exclamation mark on his historic night with a 22-yard touchdown run with 1:46 left that made the difference in USF's dramatic 49-42 win at Memphis on Saturday.
Flowers (Miami) broke the school record with 473 total yards and his own American Athletic Conference record rushing mark for a QB with 210 yards while becoming the first Bull to pass for 2,000 yards and rush for 1,000 in a single season. The first QB from a Florida college to accomplish the 1,000-yard rushing feat matched his career best with three touchdown runs while throwing for 263 yards and two touchdowns in an electric performance.
Cornerback Deatrick Nichols (Miami) made the biggest defensive play of the game by breaking up a pass in the end zone on fourth-and-goal at the USF 3. Nichols also had an interception and finished with five tackles.
USF (8-2, 5-1) broke the program's single-game rushing record with 416 yards and totaled 679 yards, the second-most in school history. The Bulls extended their nation-leading streak of 30-plus points to 14 games and set a new school season record with 60 total touchdowns.
Rodney Adams helped USF set the new touchdown record with a 92-yard scoring run in the first quarter that was the longest in Bulls history. The senior receiver from St. Petersburg caught eight passes for 115 yards, including a 49-yard touchdown to start the scoring, and had a career-best 270 all-purpose yards.
Saturday's game featured 1,287 combined yards and the conference clash was wild from start to finish.
USF wasted little time grabbing a lead while tying the program's previous season touchdown record (54) set last season. Adams turned the sixth play from scrimmage into a 49-yard touchdown reception just over two minutes into the action. Adams' first huge play of the game marked USF's 12th scoring play of 20-plus yards in just the last four games.
Explosive USF set the program's new season touchdown record midway through the first quarter with a historic play. Adams showcased his elite speed, taking a jet sweep and sprinting 92 yards to the end zone on the longest running play in the Bulls' record books.
Memphis cut the USF lead to 14-10 early in the second quarter before another Bull made program history. Facing a fourth-and-3, Flowers split the defense and passed the 1,000-yard rushing mark with a 48-yard touchdown with 9:41 to go before halftime.
Flowers passed the 100-yard rushing mark for the fifth time this year to help USF head into halftime with a 21-17 advantage. After the break, Memphis took a 24-21 lead and got an on-side kick to start the second half, but USF bounced right back with more big plays.
Nichols hauled in his second interception of the season and Flowers made it count with a 12-yard touchdown run with 10 minutes remaining in the third quarter. Flowers' 13 rushing touchdowns this season have matched the USF record set by Andre Hall in 2005.
Saturday's see-saw battle tipped back in Memphis' favor, but for less than four minutes in the third quarter. Tyre McCants (Niceville, Fla.) made a move to the outside and dove over a defender into the end zone for a 40-yard touchdown reception that helped give USF a 35-31 lead with 2:40 left in the quarter.
Clinging to a 35-34 lead, the Gulf Coast Offense gave USF more breathing room in the fourth quarter. Flowers broke off a 35-yard run down to the Memphis 33 and Marlon Mack (Sarasota) helped extend the advantage with a 4-yard touchdown run with 7:05 to play.
Memphis answered with a touchdown and two-point conversion to tie the game at 42-42 with 6:46 to play. Flowers' TD run and Nichols' clutch defense helped the Bulls win for the fifth time in the past seven conference road games.
Quotable:
Head coach Willie Taggart on Quinton Flowers' performance:
“Quinton is just playing at a high level right now. He's doing a great job of studying, I thought he had a great week of practice and it showed today. He was on fire.”
Head coach Willie Taggart on the defense's game-winning stop:
“It was great because I told those guys that if we're going to win this ballgame, they were going to have to get a stop for us. It was great that it came up there until the end and they stepped up.”
Quarterback Quinton Flowers on his record-breaking performance:
“I was just going out there and taking what Memphis was giving us on offense. Coach (Shaun) King always tells me, 'Don't try to go for the big shots because the little shots are going to be there, and they're going to open up for everything else.' I was just taking what Memphis' defense was giving me.”
Key Stats:
416 – The school-record rushing total produced by the Bulls. Quinton Flowers set an American Athletic Conference record with 210 rushing yards.
30 – The number of first downs made by the Bulls, including three on the game-winning drive.
0 – The number of turnovers by the Bulls against Memphis, which was tied for the national lead with 23 takeaways.
Notables:
- USF rushed for a school record of 416 yards and its 679 total yards were the second-most in program history.
- USF set the school's new season record with 60 total touchdowns, passing the previous mark of 54 set last year.
- USF extending its nation-leading streak to 14 games with 30 or more points.
- Quinton Flowers became the first player in USF history to pass for 2,000 yards and rush for 1,000 yards in a single season. Flowers is the first quarterback from a Florida school to pass the 1,000-yard rushing mark in a season. Flowers joined Matt Grothe as USF's first two Bulls to post two 3,000-yard seasons.
- Flowers set a new American Athletic Conference record with 210 rushing yards. Flowers passed the 100-yard mark for the fifth time this season and the seventh time in his career.
- Rodney Adams' fifth rushing touchdown of the season was a 92-yarder, which marked the longest run in Bulls history.
- Adams started the scoring with a 49-yard touchdown reception in the first quarter. Adams now has 16 career TD receptions, one away from the school record set by Andre Davis.
Up Next:
USF hits the road for the final time in the regular season to take on SMU on Saturday, Nov. 19 in Dallas. That game is set for a 7 p.m. kick on CBS Sports Network.
USF's next home game is Saturday, Nov. 26 against UCF in the War On I-4 rivalry. Single game and group tickets are available by visiting USFBullsTix.com or calling 1-800-Go-Bulls.
The USF Football program is in its 20th season overall and 17th at the FBS level. The Bulls have made seven bowl appearances, including every season between 2005-10, and have four bowl game victories. USF has produced 14 All-America selections, 25 NFL Draft picks and reached the No. 2 ranking in the Associated Press Poll in 2007.
Follow @USFFootball on Twitter for all the latest information concerning the USF Football program.
