Second Half To Much, UNK Football Falls To NW Missiouri State

(Kearney, NE) - The 11th-ranked Northwest Missouri State Bearcats scored 20 second half points to down Nebraska Kearney, 27-10, Saturday afternoon at Ron & Carol Cope Stadium.

The 'Cats move to 6-1 (5-1) while the Lopers fall to 1-7 (1-5).

"I thought our defense, for three and a half quarters, played as well as you can against that outfit. We just have to have the ball bounce our way," said UNK head coach Ryan Held. "It's disappointing because these guys keep fighting. We believed we could win this game and for three and half quarters, we went out there and showed we can play neck and neck with anybody."

On a blustery day with winds moving stiffly out of the North, the punting game was greatly affected, and it was a common occurrence. The teams combined for 19 punts as UNK finished 2 of 16 on third down and Northwest 5 of 16. Several of the punts went held up by the wind and then rolled backwards.

It seemed like it would be a scoreless game at the break, but sophomore Zechariah Owens hooked up for an unlikely 66-yard scoring pass to reserve tight end Tommy Hutsler with 3:17 in the second quarter. On the 3rd & 10 play, Hustler made a high catch near midfield and then broke away from two defenders while running down the sideline. ​

UNK converted both of its third downs on the next drive that went 48 yards in nine plays and was capped by a 48-yard field goal from sophomore Kaden Kiernan (Kansas City). However, the Lopers didn't keep the momentum very long as sophomore back Quincy Torry raced around the right edge 75 yards for a touchdown to start the second half.

"That's a good team and they are well coached. We're not into moral victories, but there was some good stuff out there today and it puts a smile on your face," said Held. "You're not smiling at the end when you don't win but there's time where you're like we're right there."

The Lopers countered with its first TD toss of the year, a 50-yard strike from junior Devin Tate (Oxnard, Calif.) to senior Austin Ayobamidele (Brooklyn Park, Minn.) that made it 14-10 midway through the third. Soon after, UNK was poised to take over at the Bearcat 12-yard line after a muffed punt, but kick catch interference was called instead. Charma showed up three plays later when redshirt sophomore Gunnar Lym (Bennington) picked off a tip pass at midfield.

That's when the game turned as the Lopers dropped a potential scoring catch at the Northwest six and then a fake field goal didn't work from the 19-yard line on 4th & 6. The 'Cats followed with a 10-play, 81-yard TD drive capped by a run by Omaha freshman Jaron Cannon Jr.
 
The final scoring drive came after Northwest had a false start on 3rd & 13, but a Loper didn't hear the whistle and hit Owens for a personal foul. That gave the 'Cats a first down, and they made it 27-10 with a 76-yard drive. Early in the third, a 45-yard pass from Tate to junior receiver Eddie Schultz (Montclair, Calif.) was negated as the officials ruled Schultz had stepped out of bounds before coming back into the field of play.

"We knew we had to throw it against them because they are tough up front. There are not many holes in there and were able to get some throws," said Held. "I faked the field goal with the wind because it was a good opportunity. Sometimes you look good, sometimes you don't. Maybe we could catch them, we thought we had the right look and I'll wear that one."

Northwest out gained UNK by a 397-231 margin with four 'Cat sacks resulting in 59 lost yards for the Lopers. That led the Blue & Gold to have 35 carries for a net of 31 yards. Thanks to that big run, Torry amassed 160 yards on 19 totes with Owens having 46 yards rushing and 115 passing. Backup QB Mason Shorb led the final scoring drive and had 27 passing yards and a TD toss.

"We need to be able to get those momentum plays. Where we're at, when you don't get those (muffed punt, fake field goal, flag on a third down stop etc.), it's hard," said Held. 

Tate finished 14 of 30 for 200 yards while running 14 times. Schultz (seven catches, 100 yards) had his biggest day as a Loper with Ayobamidele targeted 11 times and finishing with 63 receiving yards. Defensively, Lym had eight tackles and a PBU, corner Marquese Chapman (Houston) had five stops and two PBU's and senior backer Parker Wise (Kearney) had seven tackles. That pushes his career total to 200, making him the 20th Loper to reach that total (defensive stats became available at UNK in 1990).

UNK heads to Central Oklahoma next Saturday. The Bronchos (3-5, 2-4) fell today at Pitt State, 52-14.