2001 GMAC Bowl - Fourth Quarter

Fourth Quarter

This quarter was a back-and-forth affair. A Miller field goal, increasing the Pirates' lead to 44-36, was followed by a Marshall drive ending with a Leftwich touchdown pass to Marriott, giving the Herd the chance to tie the game with a two-point conversion, which failed. Henry then ran for a second touchdown. With 1 minute 53 seconds left, Curtis Head kicked a field goal for Marshall to cut the lead to 51-45. Marshall then tried an onside kick which East Carolina recovered. The Pirates were unable to move the ball on three downs and punted. The kick went for a touchback, giving the Herd the ball on their own 20 with 50 seconds and no timeouts left.

Leftwich then led the Herd on a furious last-minute drive, connecting with three passes of 20 yards or more before finding Watts in the end zone for a touchdown with 7 seconds left. All Marshall needed to cap a historic comeback was for Head to kick the extra point—but for the seventh time that season, he missed, leaving the game tied at 51-51. The game was already the highest-scoring in bowl history even before going to overtime, with the two teams combining for 102 points, breaking the previous record of 96.

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