USU rolls to Potato Bowl win; Williams is MVP
BOISE, Idaho – For 53 minutes, penalties, offensive struggles and even a little illness stagnated Utah State in the 2012 Famous Idaho Potato Bowl.
Aggie quarterback Chuckie Keeton ran 62 yards for the only touchdown in the first three quarters and a combined four field goals made it a 13-9 game with seven minutes left.
Enter Kerwynn Williams.
The USU senior running back scored three touchdowns over the final seven minutes to earn MVP honors and lead Utah State in the 41-15 blasting of the Toledo Rockets on Saturday.
“Kerwynn found some creases for one thing, that’s what happened,” said USU head coach Gary Andersen.
After the game, a slight cough was the only thing to hinder Williams’ smile.
“I actually wasn’t sick at all until I was out there playing. It’s a little cold out there,” he joked with reporters after the game.
Williams coughed up a fumble on a big run to give the ball back to the Rockets a play after the USU stopped them on fourth-and-1. Toledo kicker Jeremiah Detmer hit his third field goal to pull the Rockets within four with 7:28 to go.
Williams took Keeton’s handoff 63 yards for a touchdown to make it 20-9 two plays later.
The USU defense forced Toledo to punt on the ensuing possession and put the Aggie offense in possession to run the clock out and hold on for the win.
Williams changed those plans. This time, he took the ball 56 yards for the score to make it 27-9 with 4:55 left.
Sophomore safety Brian Suite intercepted a pass on the next drive, setting up Williams’ final score, this one a 25-yard run to make it 34-9 with 3:29 left to play.
“I don’t think we were doing anything different,” Williams said. “We started running plays that we hadn’t been running a lot in the beginning of the game.”
Toledo senior linebacker Robert Bell said the Aggie had a few different formation looks to get those huge chunks of yards.
“They were able to change things up on us,” he said. “Schematically, they did a good job confusing us.”
Toledo’s Bernard Reedy ran the kickoff back after Williams’ last touchdown, but Aggie backup running back Joe Hill added a late score to make it 41-15 and seal Utah State’s first bowl victory since 1993.
Williams’ 235 rushing yards was the second-most ever in the Famous Idaho Potato Bowl. With his 34 receiving yards added in, he broke the Western Athletic Conference record for career all-purpose yardage with 6,922.
Williams said he was happy with the result, the season and his career as an Aggie.
As for the cough, the Las Vegas native isn’t worried.
“This win will be medicine enough,” he said.
– tavin.stucki@aggiemail.usu.edu
Twitter: @StuckiAggies
Matt Austin and Will Davis celebrate a successful play at Potato Bowl./Delayne Locke photo
Coach Gary Andersen holds up the trophy from the Famous Idaho Potato Bowl victory./Delayne Locke photo