It was the night before Christmas, when the whole house
No creature moved, not even a mouse;
The stockings were hung by the fireplace with care.
How South Florida won the Hawaii Bowl by a hair.
While many of the nation’s children slept with dreams of Santa, the Bulls won one of the wildest games of the bowl season, a five-overtime thriller, 41-39 over San Jose State in the Hawaii Bowl. Was The first NCAA bowl or postseason game to go more than three overtimes..
However, the game nearly ended in a back-and-forth as South Florida got the ball back with less than a minute left and trailed by three points. A good punt return and a couple of first downs got them into field goal territory, at which point kicker John Cannon got a charity rebound to tie the game.
Then overtime turned into a classic college football shootout, with the teams trading touchdowns, then field goals, then two-point conversions, then failed two-point conversions. With each series of plays, the game inched toward midnight ET, until Christmas finally arrived for much of the country.
The game ended half an hour later when USF converted its two-point attempt and got the stop it needed.
USF was victorious despite being outscored 441-291 and gaining just 1.6 yards per rush. His biggest plays came on special teams and defense, including a 93-yard kick return touchdown by Ta’Ron Keith. USF quarterback Bryce Archie finished 24-for-34 with 235 passing yards and one interception.
It was the kind of game designed for people who want to spend the final hours of Christmas Eve cheering a tug-of-war between two Group of 5 programs. The victory gives South Florida back-to-back winning seasons and bowl victories, having had a record 7-6 last year with a victory in the Boca Raton Bowl.