A Belk Bowl stunner: Kentucky’s record-setting rusher throws for the win
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Game day: Kentucky defeats Virginia Tech in Belk Bowl
Click below to read all of the coverage from the Lexington Herald-Leader and Kentucky.com after the University of Kentucky’s 37-30 victory over Virginia Tech in the Belk Bowl at Charlotte, N.C., on Tuesday.
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Lynn Bowden for his swan song as a Kentucky Wildcat did what he’s done most of the season: run all over the place. His final play? A touchdown pass that capped an 18-play drive that lasted more than eight minutes.
Bowden finished with 233 rushing yards and two rushing touchdowns, but his biggest play was a 13-yard completion to Josh Ali with 15 seconds remaining to put Kentucky in front for good in a victory over Virginia Tech in the 2019 Belk Bowl.
Jordan Wright recovered a fumble on the game’s final possession to make the final score 37-30.
Mark Stoops improved to 2-2 in bowl appearances as Kentucky’s head coach. UK moved to 10-9 all-time in the postseason, joining nine other Southeastern Conference teams with winning records.
The game
Two hands-to-the-face penalties — one by Jamar “Boogie” Watson against Tech quarterback Hendon Hooker and a second by Calvin Taylor — extended the Hokies’ first drive all the way to UK’s 33-yard line. It ended at the Cats’ 36 after Watson and Kash Daniel pushed Tech backwards; junior Brian Johnson kicked a career-long 54-yard field goal to put the Hokies on the board first.
An unsportsmanlike penalty against Virginia Tech extended Kentucky’s first drive, which ended with a 25-yard TD run by Bowden after he briefly exited with a finger injury. It was the fourth time in UK’s last five games that it scored on its first offensive possession.
Virginia Tech needed only a little more than two minutes to re-take the lead — a 38-yard rush and a 19-yard completion put Hooker in position to throw an 18-yard TD to Damon Hazelton with 2:04 left in the first period.
UK nearly turned the ball over on its second drive, which ended in a punt fielded at the Tech 36. The Hokies soon added a second TD on a toss from Hooker to Dalton Keene to go up 17-7.
The Cats’ offense was forced to punt again but sophomore Chris Oats made tackles on three straight plays to help UK force its first three-and-out. A 31-yard rush by A.J. Rose put it in Tech territory and a 16-yard completion from Bowden to Justin Rigg pushed Kentucky into the red zone. Chris Rodriguez eventually capped the drive with a 2-yard TD rush off a direct snap.
Kentucky evened things up with a 40-yard field goal by Matt Ruffolo out of the break, but the Hokies responded fast: a scoring drive capped by a 43-yard run from Deshawn McClease lasted only a minute and 26 seconds to put them back ahead, 24-17.
A pass-interference penalty negated an interception by Bowden in UK territory and extended what would end as another game-tying drive after Bowden carried for a 61-yard score. Tech answered with a 40-yard field goal by Johnson.
Kentucky began another march down the field but an A.J. Rose fumble was recovered by Tech. Rose appeared to be down by contact, but a fumble was ruled on the field and replay review could not dispute the call. The Hokies’ subsequent drive ended in another made field goal, extending their advantage to 30-24 early in the fourth quarter.
Bowden on UK’s next possession threw another interception, and this one stuck; it was returned to Tech’s 39 but UK’s defense held.
Notes
▪ Senior offensive lineman Logan Stenberg was assessed two penalties on UK’s opening drive. He did not play in the remainder of the first quarter but returned later.
▪ Offensive tackle Nassir Watkins did not play due to a leg injury.
This story was originally published December 31, 2019 at 3:27 PM.
