Dec 26, 2016; St. Petersburg, FL, USA; Mississippi State Bulldogs defensive lineman Nelson Adams (94) blocks the field goal of Miami Redhawks place kicker Nick Dowd (97) during the second half at Tropicana Field. The Mississippi State Bulldogs defeat the Miami Redhawks 17-16. Photo Credit: Jasen Vinlove-USA TODAY Sports
ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — Mississippi State blocked a 37-yard field goal attempt by Nick Dowd with five seconds remaining to earn a 17-16 win against Miami (Ohio) in the 2016 St. Petersburg Bowl at Tropiciana Field on Monday.
Mississippi State (6-7) got 142 rushing yards and two touchdowns from quarterback Nick Fitzgerald in the win.
Miami (6-7) quarterback Gus Ragland was 21 of 29 for 257 yards and two touchdowns and an interception.
The final drive, which started at the Miami 22, was paced by rushes of 10 and 16 yards by Kenny Young that set up a 23-yard pass from Ragland to wide receiver James Gardner to the Mississippi State 17 with 20 seconds remaining.
The Bulldogs rallied from a 16-7 second-half deficit behind the legs of Fitzgerald, who rushed for a 44-yard touchdown to make the score 16-14 with 4:15 remaining in the third quarter.
Mississippi State took a 17-16 lead on their first drive of the fourth quarter as Fitzgerald led the Bulldogs to the Miami 19-yard line, where Westin Graves kicked a 36-yard field goal.
Ragland went 4-for-4 for 35 yards on the drive that led the Redhawks to their first touchdown of the game and a 9-0 lead midway through the second quarter. Ragland also had a 20-yard rush on the drive, which ended with a 6-yard touchdown pass to Gardner, who leaped over the coverage of Bulldogs defensive back Jamal Peters to grab the ball.
The Bulldogs answered before the end of the first half as Fitzgerald started to establish himself as a dual threat. His 17-yard rush gave the Bulldogs a first down at the Miami 47 and his 24-yard strike to Aeris Williams got Mississippi State in the red zone. Fitzgerald finished the drive with a 2-yard keeper on second-and-goal to make the score 9-7 at halftime.
The Redhawks took the opening drive of the game 64 yards down to the Bulldogs 1-yard-line but had to a settle for an 18-yard field goal from Dowd.
GAME NOTES: Mississippi State had its first losing season since 2009, head coach Dan Mullen’s first season with the Bulldogs. … Gardner’s first-half touchdown catch was his first since Sept. 24 against Cincinnati. … Fitzgerald rushed for 100 yards for the eighth time this season and finished the season with 1,385 yards — the third-highest single-season total for an SEC quarterback behind Cam Newton and Johnny Manziel. … Ragland threw his first interception of the season to Bulldogs defensive back Jamoral Graham with 14:49 remaining in the game. … Fitzgerald’s two rushing touchdowns gave him 16 for the season, with multiple rushing touchdowns in seven of the final eight games. … Redhawks DB Deondre Daniels was ejected with 14:07 remaining in the game after officials determined he hit Fitzgerald with the crown of his helmet.
