*Utah scores 28 points in second half to hold off Navy*
By Tim Powers PA SportsTicker Contributing Writer
SAN DIEGO (Ticker) -- Utah did just enough to fight off a furious comeback by Navy.
Utah scored 28 second-half points en route to defeating Navy, 35-32, in the third annual Pointsettia Bowl on Thursday.
San Diego native Darrell Mack rushed for a one-yard score with 1:27 remaining in the game, providing the Utes a 35-25 lead and seemingly sealing a victory.
But the Midshipmen, who won the inaugural Poinsettia Bowl two years ago, got a quick 58-yard strike from Kaipo-Noa Kaheaku-Enhada to Shun White to cut the deficit to 35-32 with 0:57 left in the game.
After recovering the ensuing onside kickoff, Navy marched to the Utah 49-yard line before Joe Dale picked off Kaheaku-Enhada's pass to earn Utah's eighth victory in nine games.
"We knew that when you're going against any academy, they're going to play all 60 minutes," Utah coach Kyle Whittingham said. "I'm just proud of the way our defense hung in there and slugged it out."
The Utes, who struggled offensively in the first half, erased a 10-point second-half deficit with seemingly little effort, scoring three quick touchdowns to build a 28-17 advantage with 12:47 left in the fourth quarter.
"We talked about it at halftime and we wanted to open things up offensively," Whittingham said. "That's obviously what we did in the second half. (Quarterback Brian Johnson) took over with his playmaking ability, both running and throwing. That was the difference."
Johnson threw for a score and rushed for another, finishing the game completing 18-of-23 passes for 217 yards and throwing one interception.
"We just took advantage of what they were giving us," Johnson said. "Guys kept running after the catch. We got into a rhythm offensively. We got the ball to our wideouts and let them run with it." Mack, who went to nearby Monte Vista high school, rushed 23 times for 78 yards and two scores.
"The resilience of the this team, we weren't going to quit," Johnson said. "It says a lot about this team that we kept battling and found a way to win."
Navy cut its deficit to 28-25 when White ran for a 10-yard score with 8:48 remaining, and held Utah out of the end zone on the ensuing drive, stuffing Mack at the 1-yard line on fourth-and-goal with 3:40 left.
"We just weren't able to finish it," said Navy coach Ken Niumatalolo, who was leading the Midshipmen for the first time after Paul Johnson resigned to take the head coaching job at Georgia Tech. "I just wish we could have finished with a kick there. We definitely had an opportunity at the end of the game to come back and win it."
Utah broke a scoreless tie when Mack rushed five yards to give the Utes a 7-0 lead with 8:42 left in the second quarter.
Reggie Campbell, who two years ago scored five touchdowns in Navy's victory in the inaugural Poinsettia Bowl, was held out of the end zone in this one and rushed for 59 yards on seven carries.
Kaheaku-Enhada completed 6-of-11 passes for 63 yards and one touchdown.
"I felt like we could have score some more points in the first half and put the game away," Niumatalolo said. "Against a tough team like Utah, you can't let those get away."