SAN ANTONIO — The UTSA Roadrunners lost consecutive games just once this season, when they started 1-3 before rattling off seven straight victories to get their debut American Athletic Conference season back on track.
A win on Tuesday against Marshall would not only ensure that remains UTSA's only skid of the season after losing to Tulane on Nov. 24; it would also give the 8-4 Roadrunners a bowl game victory, capping their season with a program milestone that's remained elusive in its young history.
Here's how the team did in its prior four invitations, which the Roadrunners lost by an average margin of 7.5 points.
2016 New Mexico Bowl
After finishing its first year under Frank Wilson with a 6-7 record, UTSA traveled to the neighboring Land of Enchantment for a date with the hometown University of New Mexico Lobos. The 'Runners scored first, with Victor Falcon nailing a 23-yeard field goal to put UTSA up, 3-0.
But that was also the last time they would enjoy an advantage. The Lobos scampered into the endzone from 1 yard out to take the lead later in the first frame and would eventually hang on for victory in a matchup largely unfolding on the ground; the teams combined for 465 rush yards to just 195 passing yards.
UTSA would make UNM work for the win, however, keeping the matchup close and bringing the Lobos to within 3 in the fourth quarter when JaBryce Taylor hauled in a 6-yard touchdown pass from Dalton Sturm with less than a minute on the clock. New Mexico nailed down triumph after recovering an ensuing onside kick, beating UTSA 23-20 in front of a crowd of nearly 30,000 despite being outgained on offense.
2020 First Responder Bowl
Originally scheduled to play Southern Methodist in the 2020 Frisco Bowl, UTSA instead capped a successful first campaign under Traylor by doing battle with the Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns after a COVID-19 outbreak forced SMU to withdraw. Himself having tested positive for coronavirus in the days leading up to the First Responder Bowl, Traylor didn't travel with the team to Dallas, and assistant coach Barry Lunney Jr. filled in for the game.
The Roadrunners were coming off a 7-4 season ahead of the Dec. 26, 2020 game, having finished on a three-game winning streak. Their opponent was even hotter; the Ragin' Cajuns only lost one game all season, way back in mid-October.
Louisiana asserted itself in the first half of the matchup, amassing a 24-7 lead in front of a pandemic-era crowd of just 3,500. Eventual MVP Elijah Mitchell punctuated his team's early success by reaching the endzone to begin the third quarter.
UTSA competes in SERVPRO First Responder Bowl
That's when the Roadrunners kicked it into another gear. UTSA quarterback Frank Harris threw a pair of touchdown passes over the coming minutes, and Hunter Duplessis tied the game up at 24-24 with a field goal early in the fourth.
The Roadrunners' comeback bid would sputter out there. Louisiana answered with a 1-yard touchdown run that took over six minutes off the clock, and the Ragin' Cajun defense clamped down to prevent UTSA from creating any more drama. Louisiana went on to win a classic, 31-24, as UTSA dropped to 0-2 in bowl games all time.
2021 Frisco Bowl
This regular season was UTSA's true coming-out party, when the team was 12-1 and turning heads nationally ahead of a matchup with No. 24 San Diego State.
The Aztecs, however, had just as strong of a season, and UTSA went into the matchup without star running back Sincere McCormick, who opted out after declaring for the NFL Draft. The Roadrunners ended the first quarter of the Frisco Bowl with a 14-7 advantage, but would go on to be outscored 31-10.
Frank Harris was characteristically strong, throwing for 271 yards and two touchdowns. But his opponent was even better: San Diego State's Lucas Johnson threw for 333 yards, scoring three touchdowns through the air and rushing for a fourth for good measure. His two-yard scamper into the endzone in the fourth quarter sealed the win for the Aztecs.
The 'Runners finished with 388 total yards to the Aztecs' 489.
Photos: San Diego Aztecs beat UTSA Roadrunners at the Frisco Bowl Tuesday night
2022 Cure Bowl
The Roadrunners followed up their breakout 2021 season with another stellar campaign, going 11-3 and finishing with a perfect 8-0 record against conference opponents for the first time. UTSA's reward: A third straight bowl game invitation, this time a date with No. 24 Troy at the Cure Bowl.
Both teams were riding 10-game winning streaks.
Unlike the previous year's slugfest with San Diego State, this matchup would be a grind in which offensive momentum was scarce and touchdowns scarcer. Just three times did the football reach the endzone, one of those scores in the hands of Troy's RaJae' Johnson, whose 12-yard reception late in the third quarter put the Trojans ahead for the first time, 15-12.
UTSA falls to Troy in Cure Bowl
Troy scored once more on a field goal to go up 18-12, securing the victory after keeping UTSA off the scoreboard for the entire second half. UTSA's 12 points were by far their lowest offensive output in a season that saw the Roadrunners averaging 38.7 heading into the matchup, and Traylor's squad coughed the ball up five times in the loss.
The loss dropped UTSA to 0-4 in bowl games all-time, with a conference switch looming.
What's next?
UTSA now heads back to Toyota Stadium in north Texas for their second Frisco Bowl appearance in three years, having drawn the invite to face 6-6 Marshall.
While the Roadrunners got stronger as the season went on, the Thundering Herd trended in the opposite direction, going just 2-6 after starting the season 4-0. On paper, UTSA has the advantage: They've both scored more and allowed fewer points per game than Marshall, and quarterback Frank Harris will be motivated in the 54th and final game of his college career, all of it spent with UTSA.
UTSA will be without AAC Defensive Player of the Year Trey Moore, however, after he announced this month he was entering the transfer portal.
The game will be broadcast on ESPN on Tuesday and is set to kick off at 8 p.m. at Toyota Stadium.