Oct. 31, 2015 - The inability to overcome a couple of early turnovers sent the Concordia-Chicago Cougars down to defeat this afternoon. The visiting Scots of Alma College built a 22-0 halftime lead and fought off some spirited play by the Cougars in the second half and took home a 36-13 victory.

Alma took the opening kickoff and marched from their 10 to the CUC 19. However, Sang Lee (Tucson, AZ/Canyon Del Oro) and A.J. Seidler (West Chicago, IL/H.S.) made a big defensive stop in stopping Scots' quarterback Dylan Zaborowski on a fourth-down sneak. Seidler also came up big at the end of Alma's second possession as he recovered a fumble at the CUC 37. However, the Cougars turned the ball back to the Scots moments later, and the visitprs capitalized this time as Zaborowski threw 23 yards to Erik Hines for the touchdown and the 6-0 lead (kick failed).

A second fumble by the Cougars gave the Scots another chance in CUC territory. Zaborowski completed three passes on the drive and later scored himself on a sneak from the one-yard line. Alma's two-point conversion try was no good, but they still held a 12-0 lead after one quarter.

Midway through the second quarter, the Cougars made their deepest penetration into Scots' territory, only to be intercepted at the 16. Alma then took the ball the other way, all the way down to the CUC 10. The drive stalled, so Ryan Maguire came on to boot a 26-yard field goal and up the lead to 15-0. The Scots were not done yet, however, as they got the ball back and took just three plays to put another score on the board. Zaborowski and Hines connected again, this time from 28 yards out to put the halftime lead at Scots 22, Cougars 0.

In the third quarter, the lead increased to 29-0 on Zaborowski's 20-yard pass to Jacob Shields who was wide-open on the left sideline. However, the Cougars got on the board following the ensuing kickoff. Jakari Cammon (Oak Park, IL/Oak Park-River Forest) broke loose on a 38-yard run into Scots' territory. Two plays later, Peyton Seidler (West Chicago, IL/H.S.) found Ryan Allison (Parkland, FL/Stoneman Douglas) behind the defense for a 32-yard fly pattern down the right sideline. The extra point missed, but the Cougars were on the board, now trailing 29-6. 

Late in the quarter, the Cougars were gathering momentum when they had it literally stripped from them. Seidler completed a long pass down to the 16, but Alma's Cody Coleman took the ball right out of the receiver's hands and returned it to the 35.

The Scots scored their final touchdown in the fourth on a bit of trickery. On a third-and-15 from the 17, the handoff went to Daniel Hugan who rolled left before throwing the option pass to Hines for the touchdown. 

The Cougars added the final points with just 63 seconds remaining. Rashad Lofton (Detroit, MI/Romulus) fielded a punt at the 15, cut to the right sideline through a crowd and outraced a couple of defenders over the final 40 yards. Lofton's 85-yard return was just three yards shy of his school record set earlier this season.

For Alma, Zaborowski threw for 267 yards on 21 of 38. The Scots rushed for 171 yards, 142 of them from Nick Sullivan on 28 carries.

Seidler passed for 113 yards on 13 of 20, while Cammon was the leading rusher with 78 yards on 18 carries. CUC's defense was led by Lee with nine solo tackles and nine tackle assists. Freshman Isaiah Alvarez (Schaumburg, IL/Conant) added six solo tackles and one tackle assist.

The Cougars (2-6) will play their final two games of 2015 on the road, beginning with Wisconsin Lutheran College next Saturday at noon.