Kene Nwangwu’s Kick Return Touchdown vs. Patriots

“We had a great scheme … and we had 10 guys doing their assignments, so it’s my job to score a touchdown,” Nwangwu said. “At the 50, I saw the kicker was left, so to me, ‘All right, we’re going to score on that one.’ “

Head Coach Kevin O’Connell said he has hit Nwangwu up at pregame meals all season, asking, “Is today the day? Is today the day?

“He’s just so talented, such a special athlete. I’ve got so much confidence in [Special Teams Coordinator] Matt Daniels and [assistant special teams coach] Ben Kotwica,” O’Connell said. “Our special teams units have had game-defining plays for us all season long.

“I just thought in that moment for Kene, even when it looked like maybe they were closing in on him there, he’s just so explosive, to get that thing going. Then to finish that in a moment where it was a huge play for our team,” O’Connell added. “You’d like to think we would have gone on the field right there and driven for a touchdown. But to get that immediate response allowed the defense to get their cleats back in the ground and be ready to go on the next drive.

“Ultimately as an offense, when we got our op, to make sure we drove the football and got points. That’s three phases of our team. You have heard me talk about that a lot,” O’Connell continued. “Complementary football coming together at its finest. We’re going to need to win like that. We’re going to need to play well like that when it matters in all three phases and win big football games against good teams.”