UT wins as Air Force botches conversion

Toledo players including Diauntae Morrow (5) celebrate with the trophy after winning the Military Bowl against Air Force. ASSOCIATED PRESS Enlarge

WASHINGTON -- After losing on a last-second play last year in the Little Caesars Pizza Bowl, the University of Toledo football team had fate on its side this time around.

Air Force scored on Tim Jefferson's 33-yard pass to Zack Kauth with 52 seconds to play, but the Falcons' go-ahead two-point conversion failed when holder David Baska fumbled the ball after getting hit by UT's Jayrone Elliott on an option run with kicker Parker Herrington, who had a chance to fall on the ball in the end zone but inadvertently kicked it out of bounds.

Toledo recovered Air Force's onside kick and ran out the clock for a 42-41 victory in the Military Bowl with 25,042 on hand at RFK Stadium.

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"Ironically, we were in the same situation last year in our bowl game," said UT coach Matt Campbell, referring to the Rockets' 34-32 loss to Florida International on a game-winning field goal as the clock ran out in the 2010 Pizza Bowl.

"I give credit to our staff. We got ourselves into a defensive call. We were not in a [field goal] block look, and I thought our kids executed with great precision in that situation."

Air Force coach Troy Calhoun didn't second-guess his decision to go for the win instead of playing it safe by kicking an extra point and sending the game into overtime tied at 42.

"All week long it's something we thought about," Calhoun said. "I thought we were better off going ahead and going for two and [trying to win the game] right there."

Rockets wide receiver Bernard Reedy, who was named the most valuable player of the Military Bowl, runs toward the end zone in the third quarter to score his third touchdown. ASSOCIATED PRESS Enlarge

The Rockets (9-4) went ahead 42-35 with 5:01 remaining on Terrance Owens' 33-yard touchdown toss to Bernard Reedy, who hauled in the pass near the left sideline, spun away from Air Force cornerback Josh Hall, cut back across the field and waltzed into the end zone.

Reedy finished with four catches for 126 yards and three touchdowns to earn Military Bowl MVP honors.

"We had great playcalling," Reedy said. "When Terrance snapped the ball, I just knew when he was going to throw it to me. For your quarterback to have that passion to get you the ball, you have to do something with it. And that's what I was trying to do -- make the best of my opportunity."

The Rockets grabbed an early 14-0 lead in the first quarter on Owens' 17-yard TD pass to Reedy at the 6:38 mark and Adonis Thomas' 42-yard TD run at the 6:22 mark following Air Force's fumbled kickoff return.

Air Force got on the board with Jefferson's 22-yard run on a QB draw on 3rd-and-13 with 2:29 left in the first quarter, but Eric Page took the ensuing kickoff back the other way for an 87-yard touchdown.

Air Force fullback Mike DeWitt capped the first-quarter scoring, which saw the two teams combine for 35 points, with a 3-yard run with 1:36 left in the period.

The Falcons tied the game at 21 on Asher Clark's 1-yard touchdown run on 4th-and-goal with 9:43 left in the second quarter, but the Rockets answered on their next series wth Owens' 49-yard TD toss to Reedy deep down the middle of the field at the 7:49 mark.

Toledo defensive lineman Malcolm Riley sacks Air Force quarter quarterback Tim Jefferson. ASSOCIATED PRESS Enlarge

Air Force took advantage of Reedy's fumble near midfield later in the quarter, cashing in with Jefferson's 37-yard TD pass to Jonathan Warzeka on 4th-and-3 with 2:07 left in the half.

Toledo struck first in the second half on safety Jermaine Robinson's 37-yard interception return for a touchdown at the 8:56 mark after Jefferson's pass to receiver Mikel Hunter deflected off Hunter's hands and into the arms of Robinson.

"It gave the defense a lot of life," Robinson said. "During the pregame meal, all the [defensive backs] sit together and we talk about what we're going to do in the game. I actually told them if I get the ball, I'm going to be like Eric Page and Adonis mixed together."

Air Force recovered on its next possession with a DeWitt's 2-yard plunge with 5:59 left in the third quarter, but Toledo's defense held firm after that until the final moments of the contest.

"It meant a lot for us to do this for coach Campbell," Reedy said of his head coach following the first game at the helm of a program in his young career.

"We have a thousand playmakers on our team, and you never know who is going to have the opportunity and who will step up."

Contact Zach Silka at: zsilka@theblade.com, 419-724-6084 or on Twitter @ZachSilka.