DALLAS (FWAA) The ULM Warhawks (1-0) rallied from a 28-7 deficit in the third quarter to stun No. 8 Arkansas in overtime, 34-31, and earn Tostitos Fiesta Bowl National Team of the Week honors for games of the weekend of Sept. 8. The announcement came exclusively on SiriusXM Radio's "College Sports Today," hosted by Mark Packer and Eddie George.
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It was the Warhawks' first win over a ranked FBS team in school history and their first against Arkansas in their 10-game series. The upset dropped the Razorbacks from the Associated Press poll.
ULM scored first, but had to spend the rest of the evening in comeback mode. On fourth-and-10 with 55 seconds remaining, Kolton Browning found Brent Leonard for a 23-yard touchdown pass to tie the game at 28. The Warhawks held Arkansas to a field goal on its first overtime possession before Browning sprinted 16 yads and dove into the end zone to win it. Browning finished 42-of-67 for 412 yards and three touchdowns on the night.
"There were certainly people that doubted us," ULM coach Todd Berry said. "I had a lot of faith. That doesn't guarantee anything. But this team has great character."
Other Tostitos Fiesta Bowl National Team of the Week nominees for the weekend of Sept. 8 included:
The Football Writers Association of America has named a national team of the week since the 2002 season. This is the eighth season that the award has been sponsored by the Tostitos Fiesta Bowl.
Members of the FWAA All-America Committee decide the weekly honor. Each remaining Monday during the 2012 college football regular season, the FWAA will name the Tostitos Fiesta Bowl National Team of the Week. The winner will be announced through Nov. 26 at 9:30 a.m. ET on the SiriusXM College Sports Nation channel.
Founded in 1971, the Tostitos Fiesta Bowl has hosted seven games that have decided the college football national championship, including four Bowl Championship Series title games. This season, the Tostitos Fiesta Bowl will be played on Jan. 3, 2013, at University of Phoenix Stadium in Glendale, Ariz., and the Buffalo Wild Wings Bowl will be played on Dec. 29, 2012, at Sun Devil Stadium in Tempe, Ariz.
The Football Writers Association of America, a non-profit organization
founded in 1941, consists of more than 1,200 men and women who cover college football
for a living. The membership includes journalists, broadcasters and publicists,
as well as key executives in all the areas that involve the game. The FWAA works
to govern areas that include gameday operations, major awards and its annual All-America
team. For more information about the FWAA and its award programs, contact Steve
Richardson at tiger@fwaa.com or 972-713-6198.
For more information on the Tostitos Fiesta Bowl National Team of the Week, go to
footballwriters.com or fiestabowl.org.