Brandon Doughty is so good, he can give his opponent a head start and still win.
Doughty, playing his final game for Western Kentucky, spotted USF a 14-0 lead and spent much of the first half looking spotty. However, he ended up hitting 32 of 45 passes for 461 yards and three touchdowns to lead his team to a 45-35 win over USF.
The Bulls’ secondary never had a chance. Nicholas Norris caught five of Doughty’s passes for 120 yards and Taywan Taylor caught eight passes for 114 yards. Jared Dangerfield caught passes for 97 yards. Running back Anthony Wales ran for 106 yards.
“That wasn’t the same (USF) team we saw the last couple of months,’’ Bulls coach Willie Taggart said.
The Bulls tried to keep pace but could not. Quinton Flowers ran for 109 yards and Marlon Mack 107. Receiver Rodney Adams caught six passes for 130 yards.
In the second and third periods, the Bulls were outscored 38-7.
USF narrowed the margin to three points with 2:09 to play, but Doughty hit Wales for 42 yards to close things out.
“I’m very proud of this football team. I’m very proud of the seniors,” Taggart said. “I was excited they got a chance to be in a bowl game and disappointed that we didn’t get a win for them. The future is bright for USF Football. We have a lot of guys returning and we’ll get back to work.”
Western Kentucky finished the season at 12-2. USF was 8-5.
