College football Bowl Season has a habit of producing unlikely stars, and Western Kentucky wide receiver Dalvin Smith became the latest instance of that Monday with his performance during the Hilltoppers' improbable 38-35 overtime comeback win against Old Dominion in the Famous Toastery Bowl. Not only did the WKU pass-catcher haul in three touchdowns during the win, but Smith only needed one hand to secure the football on each of his first two trips to the end zone.
The Hilltoppers found themselves trailing 28-0 in the mid-stages of the second quarter before Smith finally got WKU on the board, needing just one hand to reel in a 14-yard strike from quarterback Caden Veltkamp. At that moment, Smith's highlight reel touchdown looked as it may hold as the potential catch of Bowl Season, but he was far from finished as the Hilltoppers attempted to claw their way back.
WKU's second touchdown of the game came early in the third quarter with Veltkamp again finding Smith for the score as the Hilltoppers receiver easily one-upped himself from earlier in the contest. Left completely unguarded, Smith, leaping and with his right hand extended into the air, somehow managed to haul in Veltkamp's pass before taking it the distance for an 18-yard touchdown to cut what was once a 28-point Old Dominion lead right in half.
Smith would go on to record his third touchdown of the game in the fourth quarter before WKU ultimately used Veltkamp's fifth touchdown pass of the game to tie the contest with just 19 seconds in regulation, forcing overtime. Old Dominion had the ball first in the extra period, but the Monarchs came up empty -- a short field goal attempt was blocked -- before the Hilltoppers hit the game-winning field goal on the subsequent drive.
WKU, against all odds, is now headed into the offseason on a winning note after completing what is the fourth-largest comeback in bowl season history. Smith might just be one of the biggest single winners from the contest, too, as a lot of football fans are now familiar with his name after he went relatively unnoticed at the national level during the regular season.