Sakota kicked a career-long 45-yard field goal on Utah's opening possession of the game. He added a 39-yarder midway through the second quarter.

The game provided a first-time matchup of head coaches who were childhood friends, Utah's Kyle Whittingham and Tulsa's Steve Kragthorpe. Their fathers were on Lavell Edwards' staff together at BYU from 1973-79.

Smith's 1-yard keeper put Tulsa ahead 7-3 early in the second quarter, only after the play was reviewed to confirm the ball didn't pop out of his hands until after he stretched it across the goal line.

That ended an 80-yard drive that almost never got started for the Golden Hurricane after punt returner Idris Moss fumbled. Two Utah players missed chances to recover before freshman linebacker Mike Bryan emerged from the bottom of the pile with the ball.

Tulsa finished with only 254 total yards — 146 below its season average that was second-best in Conference USA.

The fourth-year game, formerly known as the Fort Worth Bowl, was sponsored by Bell Helicopter.