Northwestern Oklahoma State 34, CSU-Pueblo 28
ALVA, Okla. - Despite a late rally, the ThunderWolves couldn;t
keep up with a strong offensive attack by Northwestern Oklahoma
State Saturday, losing 34-28.
The Pack opened up the game with a 70-yard TD run by Jamaal Johnson
(So., Fountain, Colo.) up the gut on the first play from
scrimmage, building a quick 7-0 lead. But the play led to a
false sense of security, which the Rangers took full advantage of.
Northwest Oklahoma State responded with an eight-play, 66-yard
drive, culminating in a one-yard touchdown burst by fullback
Clayton Smith, which tied the game 7-7.
The Rangers' next scoring drive was thwarted by an interception
in the end zone by Chris Brown (Jr.,
Aurora, Colo.), but the Pack was unable to take advantage
of huge defensive play. After failing to gain a first down,
the Rangers' NAIA All-American linebacker, Lantz Mathers, blocked a
punt and recovered the ball in the end zone, giving the Rangers a
14-7 lead and launching the Pack into a tail spin.
The ThunderWolves' offense only managed six first downs through
the first three quarters, while the Rangers tacked on two more
touchdowns running a very sneaky running attack out of the spread
formation. After three frames, the Rangers held a 27-7 lead.
In the fourth quarter, the ThunderWolves circled the wagons and
gave their all in a near-epic comeback. The offense changed
to a pass-first attack behind quarterback Colin Clancy (Sr.,
Longmont, Colo.), who logged an entire game's worth of
yardage in the fourth quarter alone, going 11-for-18 for 257 yards
and three touchdowns. Two of the scores went to Augustine
Agyei (Sr., Aurora, Colo.), and the third went on a
pretty screen pass turned touchdown to tailback Jesse Lewis (So.,
Loveland, Colo.), who took a 96-yard TD to the house.
Clancy's 309 passing yards set a new CSU-Pueblo single game
record.
But the Pack's 21 fourth quarter points, also a school record
for fourth quarter output, were undone by a pair of touchdowns by
Northwest Oklahoma in the quarter. Quarterback Kyle Jech ran
two quarterback keepers for long scores, part of 285 rushing yards
by the Rangers.
The 34-28 loss marks the first of the young season by the Pack,
though the ThunderWolves still hold a tie for first place in the
RMAC two weeks into the young season.
The Pack will open its RMAC schedule next Saturday night when it
hosts Fort Lewis. Kickoff is at 6 p.m.
