Tampa, FL (Sports Network) – The Connecticut Huskies will play in their first- ever BCS Bowl after knocking off South Florida by a 19-16 final on Saturday night in Big East Conference action on the strength of a Dave Teggart field goal with 17 seconds left. .
Jordan Todman had 93 rushing yards for UConn (8-4, 5-2 Big East), which shares the Big East Conference title with both West Virginia and Pittsburgh. Thanks to tie-breakers, the Huskies will represent the conference in a BCS Bowl, with the destination and opponent to be decided on Sunday.
Bobby Eveld threw for 195 yards with one touchdown and three interceptions in defeat for USF (7-5, 3-4).
After South Florida opened the scoring with a 42-yard field goal by Maikon Bonani, UConn answered with a 40-yard Teggart field goal. The score stood at 3-3 after one quarter of play.
The only points of the second quarter came on a 55-yard interception return for a touchdown by UConn’s Lawrence Wilson, who gave his team a 10-3 lead.
The Huskies stretched their advantage to 13-3 midway through the third quarter on a 22-yard field goal by Teggart.
Bonani answered with a 38-yard field goal, cutting the Huskies’ lead to 13-6 after three quarters of play.
Teggart buried a 50-yard field goal early in the final frame, pushing his team’s advantage to 16-6.
Midway through the fourth quarter, Eveld threw a 28-yard touchdown pass to Dontavia Bogan. Then, with just 1:16 remaining, Bonani tied the score at 16-16 with a 22-yard field goal.
Fortunately for UConn, it was able to quickly gain 25 yards, setting Teggart up with a 52-yard field goal attempt to win the game. His successful field goal marks the biggest play in program history.
12/05 01:09:22 ET