The UAB Blazers gave interim coach Alex Mortensen an upset in his debut thanks to quarterback Ryder Burton’s impressive first collegiate start and a last-second defensive stand to beat No. 22 Memphis 31-24 Saturday in Birmingham, Ala.
Burton, tabbed as the starter after the Blazers announced quarterback Jalen Kitna would miss Saturday’s game due to an upper-body injury, completed 20 of 27 passes for 251 yards and three touchdowns. UAB (3-4, 1-3) also got career games from Iverson Hooks (11 catches, 172 yards, 3 TDs) and Solomon Beebe (five carries, 106 yards and a TD) to snap a three-game losing streak that led to the school dismissing coach Trent Dilfer last weekend.
Memphis (6-1, 2-1) trailed 31-17 with 4:06 to go but got a 37-yard Christian Ross touchdown reception from backup quarterback AJ Hill with 2:19 left. The Tigers then got to the Blazers 1-yard line with a minute left. However, they committed three penalties to push them back 10 yards and turned it over on downs with :15 left.
Hill entered in the third quarter when starter Brendon Lewis sustained an injury after taking a sack on the first drive after halftime.
The loss snapped Memphis’ 10-game winning streak and dealt a significant blow to Memphis’ chances for a College Football Playoff berth. Entering Saturday, the Tigers were considered one of the favorites to earn the automatic bid for the highest-ranked school from a Group of 5 conference.
UAB had five drives that took at least five minutes off the clock. That helped keep the Memphis offense, which ranked 13th nationally scoring 40.5 points a game, off the field. The Tigers rushing attack, which ranked 10th nationally gaining 238.7 yards per game, got just 119 off a Blazers team that was fifth-worst nationally (213.2 ypg).
Greg Desrosiers Jr. got 41 of those on a last-minute run that was initially ruled a touchdown. However, the scoring review showed a sprinting Tariq Watson tackled the Tigers back at the UAB 1.
Hill completed 13 of 25 passes for 175 yards, a touchdown and an interception. Desrosiers added 74 yards and a score on 11 carries.
