Bryant Vincent gets first win as UAB takes season opener behind big first quarter

UAB was a big favorite in its season opener Thursday night against Alabama A&M. And it did not take the Blazers very long to show everybody why they were.

Kicking off its second season at Protective Stadium in Birmingham, UAB needed less than a quarter to build a four-touchdown lead and points came in every aspect of the game. The Blazers recorded a rushing touchdown, a passing touchdown, a defensive touchdown and a special teams touchdown before the first quarter ended. That momentum carried throughout the rest of the night as UAB eased to a 59-0 victory in interim head coach Bryant Vincent's debut.

"First off I want to thank our fans, I want to thank Birmingham, and our fans. Our students, for coming out and creating a great game day atmosphere, I'm proud of that, I'm proud of our players. We've worked extremely hard" said Vincent.

UAB (1-0) opened the scoring on its first drive of the game. After receiving the opening kickoff, the Blazers needed just eight plays to go 70 yards as Jermain Brown Jr. capped off the drive with a 19-yard touchdown run.

Alabama A&M gained just four yards on its opening drive and was forced to bring out its punt team from its own 29. UAB's Charlie Goode blocked the kick and it was recovered by Damien Miller for a touchdown, doubling UAB's early lead. Post game, Goode talked reporters through his blocked punt; "I wasn't really even supposed to block the punt I was just supposed to take out the shield, but I just saw it open up and the punter was in my face so I stuck my hands out, and it's crazy, the rest is history, just crazy."

Later in the quarter, Miller recovered a fumble to set UAB's offense up inside Bulldog territory. On the following play, Dylan Hopkins connected with Bryce Damous for a 25-yard touchdown pass.

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The Blazers still would not be finished in the first quarter though, getting their final points of the frame in the final minute. Alabama A&M was just outside the red zone for the first time but quarterback Xavier Lankford saw his short pass intercepted by UAB's Mac McWilliams and it was returned 78 yards for a touchdown with just 19 seconds remaining in the quarter. "It kind of felt good though, just being out there with the boys, and doing what we always do and coming out here and playing it always felt good, I just take everything for what it is and go out there and play" said McWilliams.

UAB gained 127 yards on offense and held the ball for just over six minutes in the first quarter but big plays on defense and special teams allowed the hosts to open up a 28-0 lead which Alabama A&M could never recover from.

UAB held a short ceremony at halftime to recognize former head coach Bill Clark who left the job in the offseason due to a back injury which required surgery.

The Blazers came out of the break and needed just three offensive plays to add to their lead again. Hopkins added a rushing touchdown to his tally before taking a seat on the bench with the lead at 45 points early in the second half.

UAB finished the night with 478 yards of total offense, averaging 7.5 yards per play. The Blazers forced four Alabama A&M turnovers.

Next week, UAB will travel to Virginia to take on Liberty, looking to avenge last season's defeat in the program's debut at Protective Stadium.