The football team won the NCAA II first round of playoffs for the first time since 2006. The final score of the game against Sioux Falls was 24-20.
“We knew it was going to be a battle, they were a good football team. The key for us was in the second quarter we scored 14 points and a two-point play. The defense rose up in the second half and only allowed three points. We had some miscues on both sides of the ball but it was a team effort. I like the way we played and our aggression, I am proud of what these guys and their teammates and our coaches. It was a big win for us,” Bill Maskill, head coach, said.
The first quarter was rough with a score of 0-7. The defense did well at holding the University of Sioux Falls back. At the 11:21 mark, DaMarcus Wilson, cornerback and radiology sophomore, made a tackle after Sioux Falls completed a pass. At the 9:09 mark University of Sioux Falls gained touchdown making the score 0-7, which was the score for the remainder of the quarter.
The second quarter started off with a USF field goal at the 13:38 mark. The defense again stepped up their game to hold USF offense back. At the 9:55 mark, Josh Wydermyer, defensive back and sports and leisure studies junior, brought down a Sioux Falls player, but at 9:17 they had another touchdown. With nine minutes left before half time, the score was 0-17. Down to 5:28 mark when Layton Rabb, quarterback and accounting junior, faked a hand-off to Adrian Seales, running back and criminal justice junior. Rabb passed the ball to D.J. Myers, wide reciever and psychology senior, bringing the ball closer to the end zone. At the 5:10 mark Xavier Land, wide receiver and criminal justice sophomore, ran in for the first MSU touchdown. Jaron Imbriani, kicker/punter and sports and leisure studies sophomore, did not make the extra point kick, so the score was 6-17. With 1:54 left before halftime, the football team got the ball back. Myers and Tyrique Edwards, wide receiver and criminal justice sophomore, moved the ball down the field. With 0:27 left, Edwards made a touchdown to boost the score to 12-17. The team went in for a two-point conversion and Brandon Sampson, wide receiver and applied arts and science senior, caught the pass from Rabb to get the two points. The score at the end of the half was 14-17.
“As a team it just feels like a normal game to us. We can’t go out thinking about the fact that it’s a playoff game and being too scared to take chances. We play every game like its’s our last. As long as we are positive and stay confident then it will happen,” Sir’Vell Ford, safety and criminal justice junior, said.
In the third quarter, the football team came out with more aggression. The football team started the second half with possession. Seales began pushing down the field until it turned over to USF. At the 11:59 mark the offense was on the field. Dorian Johnson, tight end and kinesiology/sports and leisure studies senior, completed a pass from Rabb and drove the ball to the five-yard line. Seales then ran a touchdown, the extra point kick by Imbriani was good and the score was 21-17. At the 8:56 mark, Ford and Wydermyer took down a USF running back. Only a minute later, Semaj Robinson, defensive end and criminal justice senior, covered a ball to put the football team on offense. With the offense on the field, Land completed a pass and brought the ball close enough for a field goal. Imbriani made the field goal at the 6:42 mark and brought the score to 24-17. The score remained 24-17 for the rest of the quarter.
“As long as we stay focused with our game, nobody can stop us,” Javin Kilgo, quarterback and kinesiology senior said. “Our mindset for round two is just taking that week 1-0.”
Less than a minute into the fourth quarter, Ford and Wilson made a tackle together to stop USF from moving further down the field. At the 7:03 mark Drew Bolin, linebacker and criminal justice junior, push USF out of bounds. Not far after that, USF made a field goal to change the score to 24-20. At the 2:40, Jaydon Cunigan, defensive back and criminal justice sophomore, covered the ball. With 0:48 left, Rabb ran the ball down to gain a first down, the clock ran out and score at the end of the game was 24-20.
“The game today was great. There are good feelings all over and we are making history,” Jacob Sherrill, linebacker and respiratory therapy senior said.
The football team remains undefeated and 24 Strong as the final score of round one of the playoffs was 24-20 in favor of MSU.
“Hard work does pay off. We are really strong bonded and the passing of Grays has really brought us together. There is something special going on here with these guys. We are close knit and have each others’ backs, so it is great being a part of this team,” Rabb said.
The football team will travel to Minnesota next week to play Minnesota State University for round two of the playoffs.