RIVER FOREST, ILL.- Officially kicking off Northern Athletics Collegiate Conference (NACC) play, the Concordia University Chicago Cougars (CUC) football team made a strong statement in the conference opener against the Rockford University Regents (RU). The Cougars sealed the victory with a final score of 46-20, extending out to a 3-0 lead to start the season - the first time the Cougars have started 3-0 since 2017.
INSIDE THE BOX
- Colton Bosch (Coopersville, Mich) led the Cougars offense through the air, throwing for 282 yards and four touchdowns while completing 13 passes.
- Phoenyx Clark (South Bend, Ind.) made a major impact on the ground with two attempts for 98 yards including an explosive 63 yard touchdown.
- Joron Brown (St.Joseph, Mich.) added to the Cougars strong rushing attack, finishing with 48 yards and touchdown.
- Kevon Lawson (Pompano Beach, Fla.) delivered a standout performance recording 154 receiving yards and four touchdowns, including a long reception of 54 yards.
- Wesley Jackson (Robinson, Ill.) also played a key role in the passing game, completing four catches for a total of 106 yards and a touchdown.
- Defensively, Kadin Stroer (Warrenton, Mo.) led the Cougar defense with an impressive 16 total tackles including five solo stops.
- Hagan Wascher (Frankenmuth, Mich) followed behind with 11 total tackles, while Brandon Shipp (Bolingbrook, Ill.) recorded ten tackles and 1.5 sacks, making key contributions to the defense.
HERE'S WHAT HAPPENED
FIRST QUARTER
With CUC receiving the opening kickoff,
Chauncey Robinson (Chicago, Ill.) immediately gave the Cougars a spark, bolted out of the backfield, and returned the ball 30 yards to their own 46-yard line. Neither team was able to capitalize on its opening drive with the Regents causing some trouble before an interception from Wascher would give the Cougars another opportunity to score in the first quarter. With under five minutes to play in the opening quarter, the Regents were called for pass interference on a third down, giving the Cougars a 15-yard advantage and a fresh set of downs to keep their drive going. Bosch quickly took advantage, finding Lawson for ten yards and another first down to bring the Cougars to their own 36-yard line. With momentum building, Bosch launched a deep pass straight up the middle, connecting with Lawson for a 54-yard touchdown. The Cougars were able to get on the board but missed the extra point, making it 6-0. The Regents looked to answer on its next possession, completing a 16-yard pass before attempting a QB rush that ended in a fumble and recovered by
Julius Davis (Benton Harbor, Mich.), giving the Cougars another attempt at offense. The Cougars wasted no time with Bosch and Lawson connecting once again, this time for a huge 47-yard touchdown and putting the Cougars ahead 12-0 heading into the second quarter.
SECOND QUARTER
The second quarter began with both teams battling for momentum, but the Cougars eventually broke through on their second drive. Completions to
Dominick Jolley (South Bend, Ind.) for three yards and Lawson for nine yards helped settle Bosch in before he found Jackson wide open for a 53-yard completion. Just a few plays later, Bosch attempted to break the line into the but fumbled the ball. Lawson recovered the loose ball in the end zone for a Cougar touchdown, pushing the lead to 19-0. The Cougar defense continued to dominate, forcing the Regents to punt. With the Cougars on return, Lawson was unable to secure the ball with the Regents having another opportunity on offense before the half. Another defensive stop gave the Cougars one more chance with just two minutes remaining. After a penalty against the Cougars, Bosch fired a deep pass to Jackson for a 39-yard completion. With 1:13 remaining, the Cougars took a timeout and came out with a motive, where Lawson hauled in an eight yard catch before Jolley powered ahead for a nine yard run and first down. Following a Regents penalty that moved the ball half the distance to the goal line, Bosch finished the drive by connecting with Jackson for a seven yard touchdown with the Cougars stretching ahead 25-0. Stroer ended the half with a huge tackle for a five yard loss on the Regents offense.
THIRD QUARTER
With the Regents starting the half off receiving the ball, the Cougar defense went straight back to work. On third down, Shipp and
Na'Kwon Johnson () tag teamed a sack for a loss of nine yards to make it fourth and 17 for Rockford. The Regents turned the ball over on downs and gave the Cougars field advantage. Brown entered the game and immediately started the drive with back-to-back rushes for a first down. Bosch then launched another deep ball finding Lawson for a 26-yard touchdown, extending their lead to 32-0.The Regents switched QBs on their drive, but still struggled to convert any of their plays.The Cougars continued to feed Brown on three straight plays, combining for16 yards. Clark then entered the game for the Cougars and took matters into his own hands, powering up the middle for a gain of 35 yards into the Regents territory. Brown finished the ball, breaking through the middle for a 12-yard touchdown run, keeping the Regents down 39-0. The Regents finally found some offensive momentum, returning the kickoff 23 yards to their own 33 yard line. After another QB change, the Regents string together a seven play drive that ended with a 23 yard touchdown pass and moved the score to 39-7 heading to the final quarter.
FOURTH QUARTER
The Regents opened the fourth quarter with a vision to score, putting together a successful drive that ended in a 31-yard touchdown. The extra point was missed, bringing the score to 39-13 still in favor of the Cougars. Matching their energy, Clark returned at quarterback and found a seven yard completion to Jackson before taking off himself, bolting forward for a big 63-yard touchdown. The explosive play pushed the score to 46-13. Stroer came up with another big defensive play, making a key tackle that helped force the Regents into a turnover on downs. The Cougars were unable to convert on their next possession and were forced to punt. The Regents blocked the punt and found the end zone, to cut the deficit to 46-20. With the clocking ticking down, the Cougars took a knee to close out the game with the final score of 46-20.
WHATS NEXT
The Cougars have an early bye week, taking the rest of September off from games, but will be back in action on the road against Concordia University Wisconsin on October 3rd. Kickoff is set for at 2 PM in Mequon, Wis. Coverage can be found at
cucougars.com.
