BIRMINGHAM, Ala. — Cale Hellums rushed for three second-half touchdowns and Army pulled away after halftime to beat UAB 31–13 on Saturday at Protective Stadium. The Black Knights leaned on a methodical ground game—61 rushing attempts for 247 yards—and two timely takeaways to win their American Conference road test. 

After Dewayne Coleman directed Army’s early series, Hellums took command in the third quarter and delivered the go-ahead score. Moments after UAB missed a 30-yard field goal, Hellums found Samari Howard for a 41-yard catch-and-run and later finished the drive with a 5-yard keeper for a 17–7 lead with 5:11 left in the third.   

Army’s special teams immediately flipped momentum again when Elijah Walton jarred the ball loose on the ensuing kickoff and Anderson Britton pounced on it at the UAB 28. Although the Black Knights turned that short field over on downs, the defense cashed in two minutes later—Gavin Shields jumped a Jalen Kitna throw and returned it to the UAB 12. Four snaps after the interception, Hellums burrowed in from the 1 to make it 24–7 at 14:18 of the fourth.         

Hellums put the game out of reach with his third rushing score, a 5-yard run with 4:10 remaining, capping a second-half in which Army held UAB to one late touchdown. He finished with 81 yards on 21 carries and the three touchdowns; Hayden Reed added 54 yards and a 3-yard score that opened the day’s scoring in the second quarter.     

UAB’s first-half answer came when Kitna found Xavier Daisy for a 1-yard touchdown to tie it 7–7 with 1:16 left before halftime, but Dawson Jones’ 45-yard field goal with two seconds remaining sent Army to the locker room up 10–7. 

The Blazers’ final score came in the closing minute on Ryder Burton’s 1-yard plunge; the two-point try failed. Kitna went 24 of 42 for 259 yards with one touchdown and one interception. Tailback Jevon Jackson paced UAB on the ground with 89 yards on 12 carries.     

Army attempted just five passes all day, completing two for 48 yards, and repeatedly leaned on short-yardage keepers to grind the clock and finish drives. In all, the Black Knights produced four rushing touchdowns, converted Shields’ interception into a short-field score, and never trailed after intermission.