TULSA, Okla. –– Three turnovers and 122 yards in penalties was enough to seal defeat for the Tulsa Golden Hurricane on Thursday night against the FCS' 23rd-ranked UC Davis Aggies by a score of 19-17 at H.A. Chapman Stadium.
The Aggies scored its lone touchdown on the game's opening possession and were held to four field goals the remainder of the game. Tulsa scored on a 41-yard Zack Long field goal, a one-yard run by Steven Anderson and a 59-yard rush by Deneric Prince.
Prince ended the contest with a game-high 151 yards, while Shamari Brooks added 80 yards as the Hurricane out-gained UC Davis on the ground 247 yards to 88. UC Davis did its damage through the air, collecting 311 yards.
Tulsa held a 448 to 399-yard edge in total offense. The Aggies converted 10-of-19 third downs, while Tulsa managed just 2-of-10 on third downs.
The Hurricane threatened to take control of the game several times but turnovers came at the UC Davis 18, 47 and one-yard line.
Defensively, Kendarin Ray had a game-high 13 tackles, while Jon-Michael Terry and Jaise Oliver added nine stops. As a team, Tulsa had nine TFL for -20 ayrds
With the score tied 10-10 at halftime, Tulsa's opening second-half drive went just 13 yards in six plays. The Aggies took its possession 87 yards in nine plays and took a 13-10 lead on an Isaiah Gomez's 22-yard field goal. Tulsa wasted little time in taking the lead, scoring 1:20 later, when Deneric Prince raced 59 yards for a touchdown, capping a 4-play, 78-yard drive.
UC Davis cut Tulsa's led to one point, 17-16, on Gomez's third field goal of the night with 11:09 remaining. The Aggies drive covered
The Aggies second interception put the ball at the Tulsa 5-yard line, and again the Hurricane defense bowed up and held UC Davis to three points, but it was enough for the visitors to take a two-point lead at 19-17 with 7:35 remaining in the contest.
Tulsa took the subsequent possession 74 yards in eight plays to the UCD 12-yard line when Keylon Stokes hauled in a reception at the one-yard line but a forced fumble bounced out of the end zone, thus ending any chance for Tulsa to score
UC Davis took over possession at their own 20-yard line and converted four first downs while running out the clock and capturing the victory.
To start the game, the UC Davis offense was in high gear taking the opening kickoff 75 yards in 11 plays to score on a 12-yard toss from Hunter Rodrigues to tight end McCallon Castles for a 7-0 lead.
Tulsa got on the board at the 2:08 mark of the first quarter with a 41-yard Zack Long field goal, making the score 7-3. The Hurricane took a 10-7 lead with 4:51 remaining in the first half when Steven Anderson's one-yard run capped an 80-yar, 11-play drive, taking 4:20 off the clock.
Gomez tied the score at 10 going into halftime with a 44-yard field goal, capping a seven-play, 54-yard drive. The drive was set up by a Cal Davis interception at the nine-yard line with 1:33 on the game clock as Tulsa was threatening to expand its three-point lead.
At intermission, UC Davis had a one-yard edge in total yards, 219 to 218, while the Aggies had the edge in passing 181 to 141 yards and Tulsa had a 77 to 38-yard edge in rushing.
Tulsa will travel the Cimmaron Turnpike next Saturday to face the Oklahoma State Cowboys in the Bank of Oklahoma Turnpike Classic. Kickoff is set for 11:00 a.m.