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Oklahoma fends off Vermont comeback, Williams shines in Fiesta Bowl win
Glendale, AZ -- A second half Vermont charge fell short as Heisman runner-up Chad Williams got the
last laugh in a Fiesta Bowl victory.
Vermont was down 20 to six after the first half, but was able to cut Oklahoma's lead to just three late
in the fourth and had a chain to tie or take the lead but fell short.
Matt Thompson, named Heisman winner 18 days ago, rushed for 171 yards and a touchdown before
straining his back late in the third quarter which would keep him out for the rest of the game.
Both teams started their scoring in the first quarter with a field goal, Vermont from 42 and Oklahoma
from 51.
Oklahoma would extend their lead to 14 with two Williams touchdown passes to Sean Edwards from
one, and Michael Jackson from 25, with a Terrance Oliver interception in between.
Vermont would respond with another field goal, this time form 44, to make it 17 to six, but Oklahoma
would add another of their own from 47 before half that made it a 14-point game again.
Vermont needed a spark coming out of the half, and Thompson delivered with two consecutive 36-
yard rushes, the second being a touchdown that made it a one-score game with nearly a whole half
still to play.
Later in the third, still at 20-13, Vermont kicked their third field goal, from 48 to make it a four point
game. Vermont would lose Thompson on this possession on a 10-yard first down run.
Oklahoma (read: Williams) was not phased by Vermont's momentum, responding with 73-yard, two-
minute drive finished with himself hitting Jonathon Johnson from 14 to make it 27-16 in the fourth.
A curious decision came with three minutes left in the fourth from Oklahoma when they passed on a
field goal to go for a 4th & 1 at UVM's 23. The Sooners would fail to convert, giving Vermont the ball.
Two plays later and Vermont had made it a one-score game yet again with Oliver hitting Luke
Wilkerson on a streak who ran all the way for a 77-yard touchdown with 2:40 left in the game and
Brian Coleman converting the two-point try.
The Vermont defense then forced the three-and-out that they needed and had the ball with two
minutes left in the game.
They recorded two first downs and make it into Oklahoma territory, but where soon faced with a 4th
& 2 at their 45. Terrance Oliver was rushed on the play and his pass intended for Xavier White was
knocked down, the ball going back to Oklahoma.
Vermont with no timeouts left, could only watch as the Sooners ran off the rest of the clock to win it
27 to 24.
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Player Progression and Cuts
*Cuts in Bold*
Recruits Daniel Evans and Mark Haynes were cut as wellComment
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Thompson picks up where he left off in rout of Utes
Burlington, VT - Last year's Hesiman winner Matt Thompson didn't miss a beat in Vermont's season
opener at home, as the Catamounts tore apart a hapless Utah team.
Thompson rushed for 326 yards (breaking his own school record) and three touchdowns on 27 carries,
along with a receiving touchdown and 171 return yards. He had 5 runs of 20 yards or more, including
93 and 60-yard touchdown runs.
Terrance Oliver was quietly very good passing for 174 yards and two touchdowns, completing 14 of his
21 passes.
The Vermont defense allowed just 192 yards of offense and six first downs.
"All around I would say it was a pretty good way to start the season." said coach Motherway with a
grin.
The game felt over after just one quarter, with Vermont scoring three times in the first with
Thompson's 93-yard run (his first touch of the game), a second one-yard run, and a Nic Johnson one-
yard run, while Utah had only mustered one first down.
Vermont extended their lead in the second with Oliver hitting red-shirt freshman Matt Albin from 13,
and a 17-yard field goal after failing to score from the three as the first half expired.
The story didn't change in the second, Oliver found Thompson open in the flat and he juked a defender
for a 23-yard catch-and-run touchdown, and another short field goal from 22 to make it 41-0 with 2:30
left in the third.
Utah did manage to get on the board late in the third on the first play of their possession with Jenkins
throwing it up to Pedro Pitts who broke a tackle after the catch and outran the Vermont defenders to
break the shutout.
But Thompson himself responded with a 60-yard TD run on their ensuing drive to end the quarter,
making it 48 to seven.
Utah only had the ball once more in the fourth as the Catamounts consumed nearly all the clock (even
with their second string), to win it convincingly 48-7.
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