Tipp grad kicks five field goals, including game-winner, in Sun Bowl

Ben Sauls makes 20 of 24 field goals in first season as starter at Pittsburgh
Pittsburgh place-kicker Ben Sauls (90) and punter Cam Guess (92) celebrate after the team's win over UCLA in the Sun Bowl NCAA college football game Friday, Dec. 30, 2022, in El Paso, Texas. (AP Photo/Andres Leighton)

Credit: Andres Leighton

Credit: Andres Leighton

Pittsburgh place-kicker Ben Sauls (90) and punter Cam Guess (92) celebrate after the team's win over UCLA in the Sun Bowl NCAA college football game Friday, Dec. 30, 2022, in El Paso, Texas. (AP Photo/Andres Leighton)

Tippecanoe High School graduate Ben Sauls kicked a 47-yard field goal with four seconds left to give Pittsburgh a 37-35 victory against No. 18 UCLA in the Sun Bowl on Friday in El Paso, Texas.

Sauls, a redshirt sophomore, made five goals in the game: kicks of 22 and 49 yards in the first quarter; and kicks of 31, 27 and finally 47 yards in the fourth. He also made 2 of 2 extra points.

Pittsburgh started the final drive on its 25-yard line with 34 seconds left. Nick Patti completed passes of 18 yards and 17 yards and then ran for 11 yards to give Sauls a chance from the UCLA 29.

Sauls made 15 of 19 field goals in the regular season and all 45 of his extra points. His season-long field goal was 51 yards.

In Pittsburgh’s opener, Sauls kicked a 42-yard field goal and made all five of his extra-point attempts Thursday in a 38-31 victory against West Virginia in the Backyard Brawl.

At Tippecanoe, Sauls was a Division III All-Ohio first-team selection. He kicked field goals of 55 yards and 49 yards, twice breaking the school record, against Fairborn as a senior in 2019. He was the 12th-ranked placekicker in the class of 2020, according to 247Sports.com.

Sauls also played soccer for Tippecanoe and ranked third in the Miami Valley League with 19 goals as a senior.

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