San Diego State’s Donnel Pumphrey (19) turns the corner over Houston’s Garrett Davis (1) for the all-time college rushing record during the Las Vegas Bowl at Sam Boyd Stadium on Saturday, Dec. 17, 2016.
Published Saturday, Dec. 17, 2016 | 11:45 a.m.
Updated Saturday, Dec. 17, 2016 | 3:57 p.m.
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The edge was devoid of any red jerseys as Donnel Pumphrey received the pitch, and that’s when everyone in Sam Boyd Stadium knew they were about to witness history.
Give the San Diego State running back and Las Vegas native that much room, and he’s too fast and determined not to take advantage. Pumphrey needed 11 yards to surpass Ron Dayne as the Football Bowl Subdivision’s all-time leading rusher; he got 15 on the first-down play early in the fourth quarter.
Pumphrey’s record-book coup highlighted a dominant second half in the 25th annual Las Vegas Bowl for San Diego State, which defeated Houston 34-10. Pumphrey finished with 115 yards on 19 carries, securing the game’s MVP honors and finishing his career with 6,404 rushing yards.
At one point, it appeared he might fall short of the 108 yards needed to jump from second to first in rushing totals. Houston’s wall of a defensive front stuffed the 5-foot-9, 180-pound Pumphrey for -1 yards on seven carries in the first quarter.
The Cougars built a 10-0 lead, but the Aztecs awoke just as Pumphrey did.
They took a 13-10 lead on Pumphrey’s 32-yard run up the middle, his longest of the day, late in the third quarter. Minutes later, freshman cornerback Ron Smith took an interception back 54 yards to increase Houston’s deficit.
Senior linebacker Calvin Munson and junior cornerback Kameron Kelly also had interceptions in the third quarter, as turnovers shifted the game as much as Pumphrey. Comeback hopes were officially dashed one play after San Diego State came up with a fourth-down stop deep in Houston territory.
Sophomore quarterback Christian Chapman hit senior receiver Curtis Anderson for a 31-yard touchdown to put the game away. Chapman went 10-for-14 for 128 yards on the day.
Ward managed 229 yards on 25-for-34 passing, but four total interceptions — Kelly added a second in the final seconds of the game — buried the Cougars. In the matchup of senior stars, Pumphrey far exceeded Ward.
He’s exceeded everyone when it comes to career rushing yards.
Check back to the Sun later for more coverage of the Las Vegas Bowl.
The 25th anniversary edition of the Las Vegas shaped up to be anything but a celebration.
It shaped up more like a disaster. Two weeks ago, the whole bowl season was thrown into disarray, and it looked like our local bowl games was going to take more than its share of the punishment.
The Pac-12 didn’t have enough winning teams to fulfill its conference tie-in with the Las Vegas Bowl, and it looked like the game would feature a team with a losing record. And not only that, but it would also potentially have to wait until a week before the game to invite a second team pending how Navy concluded its season.
The powers at be, including Las Vegas Bowl Executive Director John Saccenti, worked their magic though and improbably secured a game that stands out as one of the must-watch matchups of the early bowl season.
Mountain West Conference champions San Diego State will take on giant slayer Houston in a game that kicks off in 30 minutes at Sam Boyd Stadium with ESPN televising the action.
The Cougars and Aztecs spent portions of the season wrapped in the national conversation, having both threatened to win the group of five conference’s bid into a New Year’s Six bowl game. Although they fell short, there’s little concern that the teams won’t be properly motivated heading into today’s game.
San Diego State has a chance to propel senior running back Donnel Pumphrey into history as the leading all-time rusher in Football Bowl Subdivision. The Canyon Springs graduate needs 108 yards to surpass Wisconsin’s Ron Dayne.
As for Houston, it’s looking to start the Major Applewhite era on good terms. Coach Tom Herman left for Texas at the end of the regular season, leading to Applewhite’s promotion from offensive coordinator.
He certainly looked worthy of the job when his offense, led by senior quarterback Greg Ward Jr. and junior receiver Lionel Bonner, racked up points on powers Oklahoma and Louisville in big-time non-conference upsets. But the Cougars are the favorite today, as the Aztecs come in as 5.5-point underdogs.
It’s the first time the back-to-back Mountain West champions have taken points since October 2015.
The Las Vegas Bowl is a high-profile spot where one team will emerge as the talk of the first week of bowl season.
Follow along with the Sun all afternoon for live coverage of the 25th Las Vegas Bowl.
Case Keefer can be reached at 702-948-2790 or [email protected]. Follow Case on Twitter at twitter.com/casekeefer.
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