Tulsa Defeats No. 24 UTEP, 37-35

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Posted 8:55PM on Saturday, November 27, 2004

TULSA, Okla. (AP) -- Ashlan Davis extended his own NCAA record with his fifth kickoff return for a touchdown this season and Tulsa beat No. 24 UTEP 37-35 Saturday for its first win against a ranked opponent in more than eight years. Brandon Diles scored on two short runs and Uril Parrish added 141 yards and a touchdown on 21 carries as the Golden Hurricane (3-8, 2-5 WAC) squandered a 17-point halftime lead before rallying for the win against the Miners (8-3, 6-2). In the second quarter, Davis fielded a high kick from Reagan Schneider at the 26 and ran right before avoiding Schneider near midfield and speeding down the left sideline, high-stepping the final few yards for the score. Davis returned kicks for scores in four consecutive games earlier this season, also an NCAA record. Diles gave Tulsa the lead for good when he rammed his way in from the 1 with 22 seconds left in the third quarter. He added a 5-yard TD run to make it 37-28 early in the fourth quarter after Michael LeDet's second interception. Howard Jackson cut it to 37-35 with a 31-yard touchdown run - his third of the day - but UTEP never could take the lead. Schneider missed a 56-yard field goal try with 3:01 to play and LeDet made his third interception with 28 seconds left. Schneider went 0-for-4 on field goals, also missing from 51 and 37 yards. Oliver Fletcher blocked a 33-yard try early in the fourth quarter. The Miners, down 24-7 at the half, let Jordan Palmer air it out in the second half. After Jackson's 6-yard touchdown run cut the deficit to 10 points, Palmer hooked up with Jayson Boyd for a 52-yard touchdown pass down the right sideline to pull the Miners within 24-21. Palmer was 21-for-44 for 312 yards, with two touchdowns and three interceptions. Jackson, who had 133 yards on 27 carries, put UTEP ahead 28-24 with a 10-yard TD run, but the Miners' only lead lasted less than 2 minutes. The win was Tulsa's first over a ranked opponent since it beat 19th-ranked Iowa 27-20 on Sept. 21, 1996. UTEP, which already has accepted a berth in the Houston Bowl, were trying to win eight games in a row for the first time in school history and keep alive the chance for the school's first 10-win season.