The Central Florida Knights dominated from start to finish, claiming a 38-17 Beef 'O' Brady's Bowl victory over the Ball State Cardinals Friday night at Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg, Fla.
2012 Beef ‘O’ Brady’s Bowl final score: UCF routs Ball State, 38-17
Blake Bortles and Latavius Murray put on a show for Central Florida, as the Knights cruised past Ball State.
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Central Florida (10-4) got off to a nice start, scoring two touchdowns in the first quarter to take a 13-0 lead. Blake Bortles passed to running back Latavius Murray for a seven-yard score with 8:33 left in the quarter, and Murray added a two-yard rushing touchdown roughly four minutes later.
Ball State (9-4) answered with a seven-yard touchdown pass from Keith Wenning to Willie Snead early in the second quarter, but UCF pushed the lead to 21 before halftime. Bortles passed to Murray for another score, and the quarterback picked up a rushing touchdown of his own with 11 seconds remaining in the half.
After Ball State's Steven Schott kicked a 45-yard field goal, Bortles added a third passing touchdown in the third quarter, connecting with J.J. Worton from seven yards out. Shawn Moffitt kicked a 25-yard field goal for UCF with 10:23 left in the game, and Wenning threw another touchdown pass to Snead to provide the final margin.
Bortles and Murray ran the show for UCF, claiming responsibility for each of the Knights touchdowns. Bortles was 22 of 32 for 271 yards and three touchdowns, and he added 79 rushing yards and a score on nine carries. Murray rushed 21 times for 73 yards and one touchdown, and he caught six passes for 32 yards and two more TDs.
Wenning completed 22 of 34 passes for 218 yards and two touchdowns for Ball State. Jahwan Edwards picked up 89 yards on 14 carries, and Snead caught seven balls for 78 yards and two touchdowns.
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