ERIE, Pa. – The Gannon football team has a knack of knocking off playoff-bound teams late in the season. It almost happened again Saturday afternoon on Senior Day at Gannon University Field. The Golden Knights gave No. 14 Indiana (Pa.) all it could handle until Rutgers transfer De'Antwan Williams' two-yard touchdown run with 3:16 left allowed the visiting Crimson Hawks to escape with a 38-35 victory.
Saturday's contest was one of many late-season affairs during the last four seasons where Gannon either defeated a playoff-bound team or put a scare into one. Last year, the Golden Knights beat Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) Western Division champion Slippery Rock 33-27 during the final home game. In 2010, Gannon dropped a narrow 27-24 decision to NCAA Tournament-bound Kutztown during the final home game. In 2009, the Golden Knights knocked nationally-ranked Bloomsburg out of the playoffs with a 10-7 overtime upset on the road.
So, it should come as no surprise that Gannon almost sprung another upset special. On a day when the program honored its 11 seniors during pregame ceremonies, the Golden Knights rallied from a 20-7 first-half deficit.
A 10-play, 63-yard drive that ate up 5:08 brought Gannon within 20-14 near the end of the first half.
Liam Nadler's (Leipsic, Ohio/Leipsic Local) 15-yard touchdown pass to
Jansen Jones (Rochester, N.Y./Penfield) with 30 seconds left capped the drive, bring the Golden Knights within 20-14 at the intermission.
Gannon needed only three plays after halftime to grab its first lead of the afternoon. The big call was a 52-yard touchdown pass from Nadler to
Abraham Ocasio (Bronx, N.Y./Cardinal Hayes) that gave the Golden Knights a 21-20 advantage.
After an IUP field goal, Gannon immediately regained the lead with a nine-play, 73-yard drive. Jones' ripped off a 26-yard run to move the ball to the Crimson Hawks' 36-yard line. Five more plays of single-digit gains had the ball at the IUP 10-yard line, before Jones put the finishing touches on the drive by picking up the final yardage. His touchdown run with 3:13 showing on the third-quarter clock put the Golden Knights right back in front 28-23.
The lead switched hands for the fourth consecutive possession when Indiana (Pa.) quickly answered with another touchdown. A Williams 29-yard run and a 15-yard face mask penalty aided the drive, before Mike Box connected with fullback Dom Maggio for a 13-yard touchdown strike. The score gave the visitors the lead back at 31-28 with 22 seconds left in the third quarter.
Things momentarily settled down as both sides traded scoreless possessions. But the inactivity stayed there. Gannon put together its fifth scoring drive of the afternoon that went 63 yards or more. This one went 72 yards in seven plays and gave the Golden Knights a 35-31 lead on Ocasio's 13-yard touchdown catch with 7:43 to play. The sophomore broke Gannon's single-season record for receiving touchdowns in the process with his 10th score. It broke the previous mark of nine set last season by
Lawrence Coleman. A Jones' 17-yard run and a roughing the passer penalty accounted for the two biggest pick-ups on the drive.
The trend of trading scores didn't stop there. IUP answered Gannon's touchdown with one of its own, producing the sixth lead change of the second half. Fifty-three of the first 54 yards on the drive came via the air and a face mask penalty. The final 11 yards came on the ground. Facing fourth-and-one from the Gannon two-yard line, Williams plunged into the endzone to give the Crimson Hawks a 38-35 advantage with 3:16 remaining.
Gannon had two final chances during the final minutes, but had long passes intercepted both times to seal IUP's three-point win.
Saturday's offensive performance by Gannon was the first of its kind against IUP this season. The Crimson Hawks' defense entered the weekend No. 1 among all NCAA Division II schools in scoring defense (8.67) and total defense (227.56). Gannon's 35 points were the most scored this season against a defense that hadn't allowed more than 24 points in a game and had allowed 16 points or less during eight of the previous nine games. The run included three shutouts. The Golden Knights' 351 yards of total offense was 123.44 more than IUP's average number of yards allowed.
Nadler finished 14-of-26 for 238 yards and four touchdowns. The redshirt freshman tied a school record for touchdowns in a game accomplished eight previous times, including once by himself during the season opener against Lake Erie. His 17 touchdowns this season are now three shy of the school record set by Darmel Whitfield in 2003.
The Leipsic, Ohio, native also tied the school record for 200-yard passing games in a season with his seventh. Whitfield accomplished the feat twice in 2003 and 2004. Nadler's 2,575 yards through 10 games represent the second-highest single-season total in school history and sit only 64 yards shy of the record (2,639) set by Whitfield in 2004.
Ocasio was the main target for most of the afternoon, hauling in six passes for 108 yards and two touchdowns. The sophomore increased his season receiving yards total to 886, breaking Lee Castana's school record of 807 set in 1997. Ocasio also tied Castana's school record for 100-yard receiving games in a season with his fourth.
Jones narrowly missed his second consecutive 100-yard rushing game with 94 yards on 26 carries. He also added two receptions for 20 yards, scoring a touchdown in both faucets of the game.
Mike Phillips (Bowie, Md./Bowie) led all defensive players on both sides with 12 tackles and one interception. The sophomore has reached double digits in tackles during four of the last six games.
Luke Rankie (Lockport, N.Y./Lockport) also reached double digits in tackles with a season-high 10 stops, tying his career-high in the process.
Gannon dropped to 2-8 overall and 1-6 in the PSAC Western Division. IUP, ranked 14th in the American Football Coaches Association (AFCA) Top 25 poll and sixth in the NCAA Division II Super Region One rankings, improved to 9-1 overall and 6-1 in conference play with its sixth consecutive victory. As a result, the Crimson Hawks will host Shippensburg in the PSAC Championship Game next Saturday, November 10 at home.
Head coach
Brad Rzyczycki's club concludes the regular season next Saturday against LIU Post at Gannon University Field. Game time is scheduled for 12 noon.
