The UAB Blazers hosted Alabama A&M in the first college football game for the program since 2014, and marked the occasion with a Fat Man Touchdown.
It’s been three long years since the UAB Blazers played a college football game. Instead of preparing for a bowl game after a surprising 6-6 season in 2014, the decision makers at the school prematurely shuttered the program.
Fortunately for the fans in Birmingham, the Blazers made a quick move to reinstate the program and even managed to retain promising head coach Bill Clark. Improvements were made to facilities, and after two quiet seasons away from the gridiron, UAB returned to Conference USA and will play a full conference schedule this fall. But first, the Blazers aimed to shake the rust off and hosted Alabama A&M Saturday in an in-state battle.
It didn’t take long. UAB quarterback A.J. Ederly plunged into the end zone for a one-yard touchdown on the first drive of the season for the Blazers to give the team a 7-0 lead. The run capped a methodical 14-play, 76-yard drive.
The Blazers took a 10-7 lead into the locker room at halftime, and pushed the lead to 17-7 after Erdely completed a 26-yard touchdown pass to Sederian Copeland early in the third quarter. Then, the real fireworks began.
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On the ensuing drive, Alabama A&M quarterback Aqeel Glass dropped back to pass on second down. UAB defensive tackle Anthony Rush found himself in the perfect position to make a play on the pass rush, and stepped into the way of Glass’ throw. Rush batted the ball into the air before grabbing hold of it and rumbling into the end zone.
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The 6-foot-5, 340-pound junior showed great athleticism as he scored untouched for the first Fat Man Touchdown of the new era. The defensive touchdown likely put the lead out of reach for the Blazers, who would pick up their first win since a 45-24 victory at Southern Miss in the 2014 season finale.