COSTLY TURNOVERS SPOIL ONU’S HOME OPENER AGAINST CONCORDIA
| Final | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | T | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Concordia (MI) (2-0) | 0 | 14 | 0 | 20 | 34 |
|
Olivet Nazarene (IL) (1-1) | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 28 |
BOURBONNAIS, Ill. – A handful of impactful turnovers made the difference in the Olivet Nazarene University football team's home opener against Concordia (Mich.) at Ward Field Saturday afternoon.
The Tigers fumbled the ball five times, surrendering four of them while allowing a defensive score to the Cardinals that proved to be the difference in a 34-28 ball game.
Despite the 4-1 turnover discrepancy, ONU made it a very competitive game, leading for the majority of the contest after striking first on their opening drive.
The Tigers opened the game with a redzone stop and then marched down the field to score a touchdown on the following drive. Brandon Odam linked up with Brian Jenkins from 19 yards out to cap the opening eight-play drive that had the Tigers up 7-0 early.
ONU held the one-touchdown lead for the next fifteen minutes until the Cardinals scored touchdowns on back-to-back drives, with their second scoring drive being set up on a Tiger fumble on the kickoff. However, Evan Leake got the Tigers back on the board with a 94-yard kickoff return on the very next play to level the score at 14-14, where it would remain heading into the halftime locker room.
Cameron Crouch used his legs to get the Tigers back in front to start the second half. He ran for 16 yards on back-to-back plays to kickstart what would eventually become a 13-play drive that found its way into the endzone. Crouch had six rush attempts for 48 yards on the drive, punching in the go-ahead score from three yards out to make it 21-14.
Concordia would tie the game in the opening minute of the fourth quarter. On the third play of ONU's responding drive, the Cardinals forced a fumble on a completed pass and were able to scoop up the ball and return it 38 yards for a touchdown and the lead.
The Cardinals tacked on six more points on their next drive to have the Tigers on the ropes with seven minutes to play. Odam dotted a ball to Blake Lamb from 30 yards out for a score to cut the lead to 34-28 with 37 seconds to play, but ONU's onside kick attempt was unsuccessful, handing the Tigers their first loss of the season.
Crouch was the game's leading rusher, finishing with 83 rushing yards and a score. Behind Crouch, The Tigers finished with 196 yards on the ground and 356 yards of total offense. Behind 329 yards through the air, the Cardinals rolled up 397 total yards.
Odam completed 9-of-10 passes for 122 yards and two touchdowns. Jenkins and Leake hauled in three catches each. Andrew Cloy, Ryan Morrison-Gravenberg, and Arthur Walker all snagged two receptions.
Abraham Flores-Cuen led the defense with seven total tackles. Brayden Cook and Joshua Anderson each had six total tackles and one-and-a-half tackles for loss, while Cook contributed half of a sack. JaTy Mayes was responsible for the Tigers' lone takeaway with an interception in the first half.
The Tigers, now 1-1 overall, will visit No. 6 Marian next Saturday.
--ONU—
*Contact: Evan Wild, Sports Information Director, ewwild@olivet.edu
