This game got off to a slow start, but those in the crowd of 16,246 that stuck around until the end were treated to a thrilling finish, as The University of Tulsa held off Wyoming for a 24-21 win, at H.A. Chapman Stadium on Saturday.

The Cowboys (3-1) scored first on a 33-yard run by quarterback Sean Chambers with 7:46 remaining in the first quarter and that was the only score in the opening frame.

Tulsa’s quarterback Zack Smith was sacked on third down in the team’s first three possessions, and it appeared both teams’ offenses were struggling early.

It wasn’t until late in the second quarter when the Golden Hurricane (2-2) put some points on the board with a 56-yard touchdown pass from Smith to Keylon Stokes. Smith completed another touchdown pass just before the end of the first half, as he connected with Sam Crawford Jr., this time from 37 yards out, and the Golden Hurricane led 14-7 at halftime.

A 29-yard field goal by Tulsa’s Jacob Rainey in the third quarter put TU up, 17-7.

With 11:03 left in the fourth quarter, Chambers threw a 53-yard touchdown pass to Ayden Eberhardt, bringing the Cowboys within three points of Tulsa (17-14). It was Eberhardt’s first catch of the season. Then Chambers gave Wyoming a 21-17 lead with 2:24 remaining as he carried the ball 15 yards into the end zone.

Tulsa capped it next possession with a 19-yard touchdown run by Shamari Brooks. That would prove to be the game winner, but not before Wyoming got all the way to the Tulsa 10-yard line, and didn’t score.

Wyoming started its final drive at its own 45-yard line, but on 3rd-and-goal from the 10, Tulsa’s Cooper Edmiston chased Wyoming quarterback Chambers and caused a fumble that Reggie Robinson II recovered to clinch the Tulsa victory.

After the game, Tulsa head coach Philip Montgomery was impressed with his team and with their opponent.

“Wow; that’s about all I can say after that,” Montgomery told the media. “Great team win, all three phases, made plays throughout. You’re dealing with a team that is — came in here really 7-0 because they finished last year 4-0, been rolling 3-0, and really just an unbelievably well-coached team, very disciplined about what they do. They threw the ball much better than what they’ve been throwing it. I was impressed with that side of it. I thought their quarterback made a ton of plays. Knew they were going to be really, really stout defensively.”

His counterpart, Cowboys’ head coach Craig Bohl, was equally impressed with how the game went. Bohl was a linebacker coach at TU for two seasons (1985-86).

“Well the game is what I thought it’d be,” Bohl said. “I thought it’d be a close ball game that would come down to a play or two. It was an unbelievably physical game and competitive. There were things that we did well, and certainly things that we can improve on and we need to improve on. That was a hard-fought college football game that was really clean. Congratulations to The University of Tulsa and Coach Montgomery.”

Tulsa finished the game with 437 total yards, with a season-high 354 through the air and 83 on the ground. Smith completed 25-of-50 passes and threw for two touchdowns.

Wyoming compiled 357 total yards of offense, while Chambers completed 9-of-25 passes for 193 yards and one touchdown.

This was the sixth meeting between these two teams and the series is tied, 3-3.

The Golden Hurricane have this week off before traveling to Dallas to play SMU on Oct. 5, game time to be announced.

FROM THE PRESS BOX

At the end of the third quarter, things got quiet throughout the stadium and in the press box, as Wyoming’s right guard Logan Harris was injured on the last play of the quarter. He was motionless for a long time while the team’s medical staff waited for an ambulance to come onto the field. Harris was placed on a stretcher and gave the crowd a “thumbs up” when wheeled into the ambulance. He was taken to a local hospital, but was later released and flew back to Laramie with the team Saturday night, according to a Wyoming team spokesman.

Longtime Major League Baseball writer Tracy Ringolsby was in the press box covering Wyoming. He worked for UPI in the 1970s, and was a beat writer covering several MLB teams for local newspapers over the years. Ringolsby covered the Colorado Rockies for the Rocky Mountain News from 1992 until Feb. 27, 2009, the day the paper folded. He previously worked for the Long Beach Independent Press-Telegram (California Angels, March 1977 – July 1980), the Seattle Post-Intelligencer (Seattle Mariners, July 1980 – July 1983), the Kansas City Star-Times (Kansas City Royals, August 1983 – February 1986), and the Dallas Morning News (Texas Rangers, March 1986 – 1991).

“I retired two years ago from MLB.com and created a couple web sites to cover sports,” he told me. “I was 67, and it was time to move on from MLB.com.”

Ringolsby operates a web site dedicated to covering the Colorado Rockies (www.insidetheseasms.com), and one dedicated to the University of Wyoming athletics (www.welcometo7220.com).