McKinney leads Eastern Kentucky past Utah Tech 34-30

ST. GEORGE, Utah (AP) Parker McKinney threw two of his three touchdown passes on Eastern Kentucky's first two drives of the second half and the Colonels rallied to beat Utah Tech 34-30 on Saturday night.

ST. GEORGE, Utah (AP) Parker McKinney threw two of his three touchdown passes on Eastern Kentucky's first two drives of the second half and the Colonels rallied to beat Utah Tech 34-30 on Saturday night.

McKinney turned a two-point halftime deficit into a 21-16 lead when he connected with Mo Edwards Jr. for a 69-yard touchdown on the first play from scrimmage in the third quarter for Eastern Kentucky (4-4, 3-0 United Athletic Conference). McKinney teamed up with Jaden Smith for a 15-yard score and a 28-16 lead with 9:11 left in the period.

Kobe Tracy answered with a 5-yard scoring toss to Beau Sparks for Utah Tech (2-6, 1-2), but Patrick Nations kicked a 49-yard field goal to give the Colonels a 31-23 lead heading to the fourth quarter.

Tracy threw a 13-yard touchdown pass to Keith Davis to get the Trailblazers within a point 6 seconds into the final period. Nations kicked a 21-yard field goal with 8:14 left that proved necessary after Utah Tech drove to the Colonels' 16-yard line before turning the ball over on downs with 26 seconds remaining.

McKinney totaled 322 yards on 22-of-34 passing with one interception for EKU. Joshua Carter rushed 20 times for 125 yards and a touchdown. Edwards caught three passes for 101 yards. Hunter Brown had five catches for 88 yards, including a 40-yard touchdown catch that gave the Colonels a 14-6 lead in the second quarter.

Tracy completed 26 of 49 passes for 247 yards and three scores for Utah Tech. Davis had seven receptions for 118 yards and two scores.

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AP college football: https://apnews.com/hub/college-football and https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-college-football-poll