As Chris Bocage wrapped his hands around the pass against the back wall of the end zone, the 10,631 fans at EnergySolutions Arena stood up and roared.

It had been a heck of a trip.

Banged up and bruised heading into their home finale, the Utah Blaze had predictably struggled and fell behind the New Orleans Voodoo. That's when something unexpected happened: Showing more swagger than maybe they have all season, the Blaze rallied from a 14-point, second-half deficit to knock off New Orleans, 62-58, with only seconds to spare.

"I got jammed up on that play, and I had to get around to cover that back line," Bocage said. "That's when I saw [quarterback Todd Hammel], and he found me. I had to catch that ball — that's it."

Down by 14, the Blaze started the impressive comeback with a 47-yard drive at the start of the fourth quarter. A 16-yard pass to Michael Preston brought the team within a score.

The Blaze defense, which had been burned for most of the night, then came up with its biggest play. Linebacker Michael Lewis forced a fumble by New Orleans (3-14) quarterback Danny Wimprine and jumped on the ball — Utah's first turnover of the night.

"That first turnover really changed things for us," coach Ron James said. "The turnover battle hadn't been going well, and we had to catch up. The defense really came up big there, and our team responded."

The Blaze offense had sputtered in the first half on several possessions, but drew energy from the momentum shift. Hammel, a 44-year-old backup, led Utah down the field. A two-yard run by Bocage tied the game at 55.

It was a huge statement from a banged-up Blaze (8-9) squad that had fallen into a 14-point hole. Despite only having a handful of players still with the team since training camp and having numerous injuries at key positions, the team had found the moxie to come back.

"I told them at halftime they could play like they had been playing and that would be the end of our season, we'd be over with it," James said. "Or, I said, we could go out there and show how we can play. And I think our guys showed some resilience out there." The Voodoo stalled out on their next drive and settled for a 34-yard field goal, leaving Utah 35 seconds to take the lead. Four plays and two pass interference penalties later, the stage was set for Hammel's game-winning pass to Bocage.

It was redemption for a team that had fallen off in the playoff chase the past two weeks, suffering injury-plagued losses to Chicago and Spokane. The Blaze, who went 7-2 this season at home, could at least finish as winners in front of the hometown crowd.

"The biggest thing was we had to make plays and execute," said Bocage, who also had a kickoff return for a touchdown. "I think [the Voodoo] got tight at the end playing with a lead. And we kept on playing until the end."

kgoon@sltrib.com

Twitter: @kylegoon —

Utah 62, New Orleans 58

R Chris Bocage scores three of the Blaze's last four touchdowns.

• Todd Hammel, a 44-year old backup quarterback, throws for 316 yards and 5 touchdowns, including the game-winner.