Sun Belt Sports Fans

SCORES

Florida International 23, Troy 20 (OT)

Western Kentucky 31, Louisiana-Monroe 28 (OT)

Arkansas State 37, North Texas 14

Louisiana-Lafayette 45, Middle Tennessee 20

The main story from week nine in the Sun Belt Conference was
the absolutely preposterous, ridiculous, clinically insane ending to an
off-the-hook game between Western Kentucky and Louisiana-Monroe. The fact that
Western Kentucky, so long a doormat in the Sun Belt, won the game is almost an
incidental matter in the larger scope of things.

With five minutes left in regulation in Monroe, Louisiana,
the home team was mounting a rally, but nobody in Malone Stadium could have
known just how remarkable that rally would turn out to be. ULM trailed Western
Kentucky by a 20-7 score, but the Warhawks were driving, and with 4:49 left,
they dented the end zone on a 22-yard touchdown pass from quarterback Kolton
Browning to receiver Colby Harper, who snared eight passes for 110 yards on the
evening. The Warhawks pulled within six points of the Hilltoppers, slicing
their deficit to 20-14. The possibility of a 21-20 win certainly entered a lot
of minds at that point, especially since Western Kentucky – a team that had won
a total of just two games in the 2009 and 2010 seasons combined – has had a
chronic problem closing out close games over the years.

With exactly one minute left, those thoughts of a Hilltopper
loss gained a great deal of credence. ULM took the lead over a stunned WKU crew
when Browning dashed into the end zone from six yards out. Stagnant for the
first 55 minutes of the game, the Warhawks’ offense had come to life just in
the nick of time. Western Kentucky had been enjoying a fabulous season, rising
to 3-1 in the Sun Belt and surpassing the expectations of pundits by a country
mile (if not 10 country miles), but when ULM scored that late touchdown, the
outlook was grim for the Hilltoppers.

Yet, in a season when belief has entered Western Kentucky’s
vocabulary, in-game adversity has not caused this team to shrivel. Whereas past
editions of the Hilltoppers would have caved in the face of negative
developments, this club fights back with uncommon consistency.

Just 22 seconds after ULM took the lead, WKU – to the
disbelief of Warhawk fans – marched into the end zone to retake the lead. The
key to the turnaround was a 79-yard kickoff return by WKU’s Luther Ambrose. The
stunning open-field run brought the ball to the ULM 9-yard line, and just
moments later, Hilltopper running back Bobby Rainey strolled in from four yards
away to give his team the lead. Importantly, WKU added a two-point conversion
on a pass from quarterback Kawaun Jakes to Boe Brand. The play prevented ULM
from winning with a touchdown. Then again, who expected ULM to get yet another
touchdown in just 38 seconds? The Warhawks had already scored twice in the
previous four minutes after being inert for virtually the whole game. Surely
the home team didn’t have one more slingshot left in its pocket?

Not so fast – the Warhawks were somehow able to answer yet
again. Somehow, WKU suffered a bust in its coverage, and as a result, Browning
was able to hit receiver Tavarese Maye for 56 yards to the Western Kentucky 7.
On the very next play, Browning hit receiver Anthony McCall for a touchdown
strike with six seconds remaining to send the ballyard into a state of
pandemonium. With the extra point, ULM tied the game at 28 apiece; it was only
because of WKU’s converted 2-point try that the Warhawks weren’t celebrating a
regulation-time victory at that point. At any rate, the reality of the
situation was hard to wrap the mind around: In a 54-second span in the final
minute of regulation, three touchdowns were scored. The development was eerily
reminiscent of the Notre Dame-Michigan game from September, in which three
touchdowns were scored in the final 75 seconds of regulation.

In overtime, the offensive fireworks finally subsided. ULM
drove to the Western Kentucky 3 and had first and goal to go, but Browning
committed a fatal error. He threw a low-percentage pass into tight coverage and
was picked off by WKU’s Derrius Brooks. The spectacular mistake enabled the
Hilltoppers to play for a field goal, and when kicker Jesse Roy banged in a
24-yard chip shot, the boys from Bowling Green, Kentucky, had moved their Sun
Belt record to an astounding 4-1. Nobody expected Western Kentucky to be 4-1 in
the Belt at this point.

Neither did anyone expect three touchdowns to be scored in
the final minute of a Sun Belt game.

Matt Zemek
DFN Sports Senior Staff Writer