EUREKA, ILL. -- The Concorda University Chicago football team took the field in Illinois to battle with the Eureka Red Devils, winning 31-27. This marks the second win of the season for the Cougars, doubling their win total from the previous season and securing the second career win for Head Coach
Chase Hankins.
INSIDE THE BOX
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Colton Bosch (Coopersville, Mich.) threw 15 completions for a total of 226 yards, while adding 13 net yards on the ground and securing three touchdowns.
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Joron Brown (St. Joseph, Mich.) picked up a net of 51 yards after a perfect 19 attempts would land him in a position to pick up one touchdown.
- Also picking up touchdowns on the day was
Wesley Jackson (Robinson, Ill.) who snagged two receiving touchdowns on three total receptions.
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Ryan Auer (Newark, Ohio) went a perfect four-for-four on in PATs while adding in a 23-yard field goal.
HOW IT HAPPENED
FIRST QUARTER
The Cougars won the coin toss and elected to receive, giving them the opportunity to strike first. An early penalty in favor of CUC would give them a first down where rushes from Brown would move the chains yet again. Slowly working down field, a deep pass to
Devin Bledsoe (St. Charles, Mo.)would drop them into the redzone and set the scene for the first score of the day. A one yard rush from Brown would put the first points on the board while a good PAT from Auer would put the Cougars up 7-0.
The Red Devils would answer right back on their first offensive possession and level the score at seven apiece, but a 32-yard kickoff return for Henry Jones would put the Cougars in a threatening spot for the next drive. Back-to-back first downs from Bledsoe and
Troy Pratley (St. Joseph, Mich.) would inch the Cougars closer to the endzone before a short dump to
Blake Henson (Potosi, Mo.) would put another six on the board while Auer's PAT would put the Cougars up by seven.
The Red Devils would once again answer back right away, but a failed kick attempt would keep the Cougars ahead by one.
SECOND QUARTER
Spending the early half of the second quarter in a stalemate, the Cougars would break their scoring drought with a deep 40-yard pass to Jackson to find the right side of the endzone. After initially going for the two-point conversion, a delay of game would push the Cougars back and force the PAT, putting the Cougars up 21-13.
The Cougars would force a quick defensive set after an interception from
Adam Lambaz (Elgin, Ill.), paired with a three yard gain, would set the Cougars up on the Eureka 25-yard line. A nine-yard pass from Bosch to
Jayce Levy (Davenport, Iowa) paired with rushes from Brown would set up the tightly caught touchdown for Jackson once again, putting the Cougars up 28-13.
With the Red Devils once again answering to the Cougars' touchdown, they would find one of their own as the half was ending, closing the first half with a CUC lead 28-21.
THIRD QUARTER
With the Red Devils receiving first in the second half, a sack from
Jahmari Jackson (Chicago, Ill.) paired with an incomplete pass would force them to punt, giving the Cougars the ball at their own 37-yard line. A five minute possession for the Cougars would result in their final scoring of the day as 10 snaps would give rushing yards to Brown and Jones and passing completions to
Manuel Mendoza (Ceres, Calif.), Bledsoe, and Levy. Getting all the way down to the six yard line, the Cougars would be forced to take a field goal and go up by ten.
Tight defense would hold the Red Devils scoreless for the entirety of the quarter.
FOURTH QUARTER
The Red Devils would attempt a field goal from the 46-yard line, but find the ball blocked by Lambaz. With the Cougars taking over at their own 28-yard line, they would find three unsuccessful attempts to move the ball and force a punt from
Dennis Vanderplow (Livonia, Mich.). Eureka would find the endzone on their next drive, but fail to achieve the two-point conversion and finalize their score trailing 31-27.
With eight minutes to still play in the game, both teams would get locked up and close the game with the 31-27 victory for the Cougars.
The Cougars will take the field next at home as they face off against Rockford University for homecoming weekend with a slated 1:00 pm kickoff. Coverage can be found at cucougars.com/coverage.
