Oct. 14, 2017 - It was a sloppy afternoon in every sense of the word as the Concordia-Chicago football team traveled to Rockford University, looking to even their Northern Athletics Collegiate Conference record and snap a two-game skid. The Cougars and Regents battled it out in the rain and mud, but in the end, CUC was its own worst enemy as a combination of turnovers and penalties put them in a hole that a late rally could not overcome, and they fell to Rockford by a final score of 29-14.

The Cougars took the opening kickoff and looked to get the upper hand right away as Shane Virnala threw to Ryan Allison for an apparent 55-yard touchdown on the games' third play. However, an illegal formation penalty brought the ball back, and CUC was eventually forced to punt.

Rockford's first possession saw them drive to midfield, from where Isaiah Alvarez looked to have an interception. That call was negated on a defensive penalty, although the Cougars came up with an interception that did count, as Deshawn Battle picked one off inside the five-yard line. The Cougars were unable to capitalize on the break, however, as Virnala was intercepted moments later, and Rockford took possession at the CUC 17. The Regents needed just three plays to turn the turnover into points, with LaVar Johnson Jr. going over from the three-yard line to give the home team a 6-0 lead (extra point missed). 

The first-quarter fortunes went from bad to worse for the Cougars as the Regents' kicker squibbed the kickoff down the sideline in front of RU's bench. The ball stayed inbounds, and the Regents pounced on the free ball to get a new possession at the CUC 36. Quarterback Eric Mackey scrambled for 16 yards for a key first down at the nine and, three plays later, hit Adam Ambrogio for a 10-yard touchdown strike. This time, Rockford went for the two-point conversion and made good on the pass to extend the lead to 14-0 with 2:36 remaining in the opening quarter.

Concordia-Chicago turned to Lance Moise on the next possession, and the sophomore running back picked up a couple of first downs. However, on a second-and-10, the Regents intercepted Virnala to halt the drive. The Regents cashed in on this turnover as well, marching 62 yards in nine plays. The Cougars had a chance to escape unscathed, as a bad snap on a third-and-goal put the Regents back at the 10-yard line. However, the combination of Mackey and Ambrogio worked again on the fourth down play, and the two-point conversion put the Cougars in a 22-0 hole. 

The Cougars had a couple more possessions in the half, with Moise gaining most of the yardage; he would finish the half with 104 yards rushing on 20 carries. But the Cougars went to the locker room at half, still trailing by 22 points.

Rockford looked to increase its lead as they took the second-half kickoff and drove to the CUC nine, but the defense stiffened and forced an incomplete pass on fourth down. The Cougars then turned around and marched 91 yards to their first score of the day. Virnala hit Robert Dominguez for 41 yards on a third-and-10 to move the ball into RU territory.
Moments later, Virnala and D.J. Perry hooked up on their second touchdown pass in two games, this one covering 33 yards. The Cougars went for the two-point conversion but misfired on the pass, and the score stood at RU 22, CUC 6.

Early in the fourth quarter, the Cougars started a drive at their own 48 after forcing the Regents to punt from deep in their zone. The drive threatened to sputter, but Virnala hit Allison for 10 yards on a fourth-and-six. From the 24, Virnala found Dominguez for the freshman's second big catch of the day, this one for 24 yards and a touchdown. The Cougars went for the deuce again, and they made it this time as Virnala threw to Leroy Bridges III.  With jut under 10 minutes left, Concordia-Chciago trailed by just one score at 22-14.

Stagnant for much of the second half, Rockford's offense roared back to life for a huge insurance score. Mackey made two key completions, both covering 14 yards, to keep the drive moving, but it was Johnson running the ball in from four yards out for his second score of the day. The extra-point kick made the score RU 29, CUC 14 with 9:46 remaining.

Trailing by two touchdowns, CUC looked to make things interesting by putting together a 15-play drive. Virnala and Bridges hooked up for a couple of first-down completions, and the Cougars got as far as the Regents' 17. However, a holding penalty stifled the Cougars' momentum, and they eventually faced a fourth-and-10. An interception put the final nail into the coffin, as Rockford was able to run out the clock.

Rockford had the edge in total yardage, 395 to 361, but the Regents had all but 52 of their yards on the ground. Two RU players hit the century mark, Chance Manning going for 133 yards on 20 carries and Johnson for an even 100 yards on 12 carries. For CUC, Moise had a season-high 173 yards on 37 carries while Virnala passed for 189 yards. Dominguez finished with three catches for 80 yards.

Defensively, Zak Ripp led CUC with four solo tackles and five tackle assists. Caleb Casey and Rodolfo Payan added eight tackles each, with Casey also netting a fumble recovery.

The Cougars (2-3, 0-2 NACC) will return home next Saturday, Oct. 21 to host Concordia University Wisconsin. CUC will look to make it two in a row over the FAlcons after last season's 48-36 win in Mequon, WI.