South Florida goes the distance to beat SJSU in the Hawaii Bowl

The football team that came the farthest — nearly 4,700 miles from Tampa — prevailed in the longest bowl game in history.

Linebacker Mac Harris deflected away a 2-point pass in the fifth overtime to secure South Florida’s 41-39 victory over San Jose State in Tuesday’s Hawaii Bowl at the Ching Complex.

A crowd of about 5,000 saw the Bulls go ahead 41-39 on Bryce Archie’s 3-yard scoring pass to 6-foot-3 wideout Keshaun Singleton. After the third overtime, each team has one shot from the 3.

“I went through my progressions, and I found an open guy,” said Archie, who was elevated to starter after Byrum Brown suffered a lower-leg injury on Sept. 28. “That’s my go-to guy. Whenever in doubt, go to Keshaun Singleton.”

For their fifth OT possession, the Spartans requested placing the ball on the left hashmark. They assigned two receivers and a tight end on the right side. Wideout Justin Lockhart ran a corner route to the left side.

“Don’t let them score,” Harris recalled thinking. “Whatever you do, don’t let them score. I saw (quarterback Walker Eget) drop back to pass the ball. I didn’t really have a pass responsibility. I tried to find some open space and read his eyes. I saw a receiver (Lockhart) behind me. All I had to do was jump up and touch it.”

The breakup sparked a jubilant celebration. Gathering for the awards ceremony at a make-shift stage, the Bulls began to chant: “Where’s the mayor?” It was a playful dig at former Honolulu Mayor Mufi Hannemann, whom the Bulls felt had given more props to the Spartans at a joint event.

“He didn’t show us enough love,” Tavin Ward said, smiling. “But that’s OK, we’ve got each other.”

The outcome spoiled the homecoming for SJSU head coach Kenny Niumatalolo, a Radford High alumnus who coached and played for the University of Hawaii; and offensive coordinator Craig Stutzmann and receivers coach Billy Ray Stutzmann. The Stutzmann brothers were UH receivers.

The Spartans entered without Nick Nash, one of the nation’s best receivers. Nash opted out of the bowl to focus on training for a potential NFL career. Matthew Coleman, who replaced Nash in the slot and wideout, caught 12 passes on 15 targets for 119 yards and a touchdown. Coleman also had a scoring catch in the first overtime.

“It’s a good thing we kept him under cover,” Eget said of Coleman. “Matt Coleman is going to be the guy in the future.”

The Spartans outgained the Bulls 441 yards to 291, but suffered three key breakdowns. TreyShun Hurry caught a short pass from Eget and was heading to the end zone. Cornerback Jarvis Lee applied a hit, loosening the football from Hurry’s grip. The fumbled ball hit the left pylon, nullifying a touchdown and giving the Bulls possession on the touchback.

“We’ve just got to take care of the ball,” Niumatalolo said. “Our first touchdown we were celebrating 7-0 … (and) that (fumble) took a lot of wind out of our sails.”

The Bulls parlayed the turnover into a 13-play, 80-yard touchdown drive for a 7-0 lead.

A deflected pass led to an interception that the Bulls redeemed for Kelley Joiner’s 4-yard scoring run and a 14-0 lead.

After the Spartans closed to 14-7 on Floyd Chalk’s 3-yard TD run, USF’s Ta’Ron Keith took the ensuing kickoff and weaved his way for a 93-yard return for a touchdown.

“We called a fake reverse,” Keith said. “I made one miss and the rest is history. I wasn’t going to be denied. I had to get into the end zone.”

Kaiser High graduate Kyler Halvorsen, who played two seasons for UH before transferring to SJSU, kicked field goals of 42 and 22 yards, and Lamar Radcliffe scored on a 2-yard run to give the Spartans a 27-24 lead with 11:14 to play.

With 53 seconds to play, the Spartans faced a fourth-and-1 from their 14. Niumatalolo used a timeout to contemplate whether to go for it or punt. He summoned the punt unit.

“I was this close to going for it,” Niumatalolo recalled. “I was going back and forth. If you don’t, it’s an automatic field goal and they might score to win. If we were a little further … I probably would not be able to sleep for the next year thinking about that. I was this close. .. Basically if we don’t get it, it’s an automatic field goal for them with less than a minute. But if we get the first down, it’s over. Those are the things we were talking about. I had to make a split-second decision, and unfortunately I made the wrong one.”

Trent Carrizosa punted the football 52 yards. Sean Atkins’ 16-yard return placed the ball at the 50. The Bulls drove to the SJSU 23, and kicker John Cannon’s 41-yard field-goal attempt hit the upright and bounded through with two seconds left to force overtime.

“I try to pick a target,” Cannon said of his kicking process, “but at some point you’ve got to put the ball through the uprights.”

Cannon, who is not on scholarship, and Halvorsen each made two field goals in extra play.

After matching scores — and failures — in the first four overtime periods, it came down to the Spartans’ spread-and-shred attack against the Bulls’ secondary.

“The game is won throughout the week,” Ward said of the Bulls’ last stand.

Ben Knox said the Bulls’ secondary lived up to its “Box Boyz” nickname. “We put everything in a box,” Knox said. “Nobody is going (anywhere).”