NEW ORLEANS -- Darriel Mack Jr. threw a touchdown pass and ran for a score, Dillon Gabriel threw a touchdown pass and UCF held off Tulane 34-31 on Saturday to keep its hopes for a third straight American Athletic Conference championship alive.
Tulane scored 24 second-half points and closed to the final tally after UCF recovered an onside kick.
The Knights (8-3, 5-2) entered having lost three games by a combined seven points but jumped to a 10-0 lead after Dylan Barnas's 35-yard field goal and Gabriel's 23-yard scoring pass to Marlon Williams (nine catches for 119 yards).