It was a beautiful Saturday afternoon at legendary Arrowhead Stadium in Kansas City when the 3-1 University of Central Missouri Mules hosted the undefeated, reigning national champion Northwest Missouri State Bearcats. The energy was high in the stadium from both teams and fan bases.
Northwest received the opening kickoff, but the Mules defense stood strong, stuffing a run attempt on third down. UCM’s offense couldn’t capitalize on the strong opening from the defense, going three-and-out on their first possession.
After the Mules defense got another big impressive stop, first year UCM starting quarterback Brook Bolles looked to get his team on the board. On third down it looked as if he would do exactly that, hitting Devante Turner for a 55-yard gain. Unfortunately, that big play was brought back by a facemask penalty. The drive quickly went south from there, as Bolles was sacked on second down. The sack was followed by a devastating pick-six by Jacob Gassman.
The successful PAT gave the Bearcats a 7-0 lead and the momentum swing both teams were looking to gain. The Mules didn’t get discouraged however, leading a strong drive down the field helped out by some Bearcats penalties. Ultimately, the drive ended with a 48-yard UCM field goal attempt that was no good.
Northwest took over in good field position at their own 48, but again, the Mules defense stepped up. Redshirt junior linebacker Austin Miller brought the pressure on third down, forcing a throwaway. This was one play of a very strong showing for Miller, who led the Mules with eight tackles.
The Mules offense continued their search for some scoring but came off the field on a three-and-out. The Bearcats took over with a 1:43 left in the opening quarter. Brody McMahon ripped off a 39-yard run early in the drive and from there the ball moved to the red zone, where quarterback Zach Martin found Jordan Grove in the end zone. The score and extra point put Northwest up 14-0.
The Mules offense had yet another three-and-out, putting the pressure on the defense to get a stop and keep hopes of victory alive. The UCM defense answered the bell, forcing a third-and-11 for the Bearcats. Martin kept it on the long third down and picked up the first. The Bearcats offense picked up another first down, but then Central Missouri’s defensive unit cranked up the pressure on the quarterback and sacked him on third down.
UCM took the field on offense again needed a score in a bad way. Bolles used his legs on two plays to get a first down, and then hit Jaylen Zachery for 41 yards on a second down. The Bearcats put the Mules in a tough third-and-19 where Devante Turner used some swift after-the-catch ball carrying to set up a much more manageable fourth down. On that key down, Jovante Siglar caught a seven-yard Bolles pass for the first.
Devante Turner took the first down handoff eight yards, but UCM couldn’t get enough for the first after that. Alex Langer banged in a 29-yard field goal to put the Mules on the board. Northwest looked to attack through the air on their next possession, but the Mules defense defended it well. After UCM had another quick, scoreless drive, Northwest took a knee and ended the first half.
UCM opened up the second half with the ball, and the offense rolled. On second down, Bolles and Kyrion Parker hooked up for a 27-yard completion. Later that drive on a third-and-5 situation, Northwest jumped offsides, giving Bolles a free play. He capitalized on the defense’s mistake with a twelve-yard completion to Wesley Thomas for the first down. The positive movement halted there, but Langer hit a 34-yard field goal to cut the lead to 14-6.
The Mules came out of halftime with lots of energy, especially the defense, who quickly forced a long third-and-16 for Northwest Missouri, where they tipped away a pass to bring up fourth down. That momentum carried over to the offense, where Bolles hit the tight end, Seth Hebert, for a dazzling 61-yard touchdown. After the successful PAT, the Mules now only trailed by one point.
The Bearcats offense was gifted the ball on their own 43-yard line after a short kickoff. Defensive pass interference on the Mules gave Northwest the first down. On third down, Zach Martin completed a 13-yard pass for the first. McMahon was handed the ball and got six yards, then another run got three. This brought up a crucial third-and-1, where Austin Miller brought down the runner in the backfield.
On fourth-and-2, Bearcats kicker Brett Garner missed a 39-yard field goal short. The Mules offense again took the field, this time with the lead in their sights. The drive was quickly put into reverse. On a third-and-27 situation, Bearcats defender Blake Green sacked Bolles.
The Northwest offense trotted on the field looking to stretch their lead. After picking up a first on a pass to J’Ravien Anderson, Martin launched a 40-yard bomb to his go-to target in the game, wide receiver Shawn Bane. Bane hauled in the pass on an excellent sideline grab. When it looked as if the momentum had been taken by Northwest, UCM linebacker Michael Tannehill forced and recovered a fumble to give the ball back to the Mules.
The offense just couldn’t get anything to go for them, and they were forced to punt to end the third quarter. The Mules defense held strong and forced another Northwest three-and-out. A bad snap on the Northwest punt gave UCM the ball on their own 47-yard line. Bolles completed a deep pass, but a penalty brought it back. After that play, the offense struggled and was forced to punt.
The defensive theme of the game continued as the Mules got another quick stop. The Mules took over at their own 21, but NWMSU’s Anthony Lane recovered a strip sack to give the Bearcats the football deep in UCM territory. However, the defense got possibly their biggest stop of the game, forcing Northwest to settle for a field goal.
That kick gave the Bearcats a 17-13 lead, and the tension of the game rose. UCM’s offense moved the chains but ultimately had to punt the ball away to Northwest, giving them a chance to put the game away. The Mules defense was put to test yet again, and again they prevailed. Wyatt Hendrix got the sack on third down, giving UCM another shot to get the go-ahead score.
The Bearcats’ stout defense had other plans. Jack Richards intercepted a Brooke Bolles pass right away on the drive. When the Northwest offense took the field, Zach Martin immediately threw towards Bane way down the field, but Bane dropped what likely would have been a touchdown. After an unsuccessful run and downfield pass attempts, the ball was punted off to UCM.
At this point, the game was late in the fourth quarter, and the Mules absolutely had to score. The first two plays of the drive failed to gain yards, setting up a third-and-10. Bolles took the snap and was immediately pressured, forcing him to throw on the run. It was a terrific pass to Hebert that went for 50 yards.
That play was followed by another completion and a defensive pass interference call, which put the ball on the Northwest 15-yard line. On second-and-3 to go, Bolles fired a pass to the end zone that was caught by Parker. The PAT was good and the Mules led for the first time in the ballgame, 20-17.
The Bearcats got the ball at their own 32 with 34 seconds remaining, needing a touchdown to win or a field goal to tie. Zach Martin hit Bane for 12, then found Bane again for a big 47-yard gain. On second down, needing seven for the score, Martin threw to Bishop in the end zone for the game-winning touchdown. Central Missouri couldn’t muster a miracle kickoff and the game ended with the Mules offense on their own side of the field.
“I only feel stronger about (the team) right now than I ever have,” Head coach Jim Svoboda commented after the game.
The loss in heartbreaking-fashion puts the Mules at a 3-2 record. The Mules look to rebound from the tough loss at Arrowhead as they travel to face Nebraska-Kearney at 2:00 p.m. Oct. 7 at Cope Stadium.