The Tides Turned

MOORHEAD, Minn. (10/03/15) --- Earlier in the week Concordia head coach Terry Horan stated, "The tides are turning." The tides finally did turn as the Cobbers football team edged No.23-ranked Bethel 23-21.

The win ended a six-game losing streak to the Royals and moves the Cobbers' overall record to 3-1. CC is now 2-1 in conference play. Bethel is now 3-2 overall and 2-1 in the MIAC.  

Looking to beat the Royals for the first time since 2008, getting off to a quick start was imperative.

Concordia got the ball to start and began at their 10-yard line. The Cobbers used a balance attack and pushed into the red zone on a 25-yard carry from Adam Essler down to the Bethel  14-yard line. Jason Montonye would be hauled down at the Royals' two-yard line followed by Michael Herzog pushing his way into the end zone two plays later. Concordia drove 90 yards in just over four minutes and grabbed the early 7-0 lead.

The right leg of Dominic Neameyer pushed Concordia's lead to 10-0 after his 26-yard field goal from the left hashmark sailed through the uprights four minutes into the second quarter.

The Royals would strike quickly following the field goal as B. Bomsta took the ensuing kickoff 73 yards down to the Concordia 23-yard line. Freshman Trey Anderson would rush three times for gains of 12, four and one yards, respectively, the last push being for a Bethel touchdown. With 9:33 to play in the opening half the Royals trailed just 10-7.

Senior Austyn Raftevold came up big on several occasions but perhaps none bigger than with 2:38 to play in the second quarter. Bethel halfback Marshall Klitzke took the handoff but was met by Raftevold who forced a fumble recovered by the Cobbers. From the Royals' 26-yard line, Concordia would drive a short 26 yards on six plays capped off by a wide receiver end-around taken by Brandon Zylstra for the Concordia touchdown. After the missed point after, the Cobbers took a 16-7 lead into halftime.

Both defenses would pitch a scoreless third quarter. If Concordia would have lost a close game, many would look to a lost fumble inside the Royals' five-yard line. Herzog flipped a ball to Montonye on a pitch that was too hard to handle and Bethel recovered.

Pinned deep in their own territory by punter Eddie Clifton, Anderson tried to muster up some offense for the Royals. It was Raftevold who came up big again. Raftevold peeled off Anderson's blind side and forced a fumble recovered by Justice Davis at the four-yard line. Concordia would go three-and-out, however, and would have to try for the field goal.

Neameyer's 21-yard try was blocked and the Royals took advantage. Anderson finished off a 10 play, 87-yard drive with a 27-yard touchdown strike to J. Lee cutting the lead down to 16-14 with 7:58 to play.

Concordia would waste little time in responding. Facing a pivotal third-and-15, Herzog connected with Cooper Gauldin over the middle for a 16-yard gain keeping the drive alive. Facing another third down, sophomore Conor Gessell made his only carry of the day count as he busted loose up the middle for a 38-yard go-ahead touchdown scamper that pushed the Cobber lead to 23-14 while making it a two-possession game.

With just 51 seconds remaining, Anderson would lunge in on a quarterback sneak from a yard out making it 23-21 but with no timeouts remaining Concordia lined up in victory formation and went on to win by that final.

CRAFTY RAFTY: Senior Austyn Raftevold was crafty, indeed. He came up with big play after big play, forcing two pivotal fumbles, recording five total tackles, 1.5 sacks and perhaps the biggest hit of the game on Anderson while forcing his second fumble.

BEAST MODE: Levi Hintermeister showed why he is among the elite at his position in the MIAC. The senior recorded a team high 15 tackles, 1.5 sacks and 2.5 tackles for loss.

TIME OF POSSESSION WAR, WON: Coming into the game Bethel and Concordia were No.1 and No.2 in the conference for time of possession. The Cobbers dominated that statistic as they held the ball for an impressive 37:04.

FLIP THE TABLES: What makes the time of possession statistic more interesting is the running statistics. Bethel came into the game leading the conference with 284.3 rushing yards per game. On Saturday they only managed to rush for 117 yards. Concordia punished the Royals on the ground en route to rushing for a total of 270 yards.

EVERYDAY IS A LEGS AND ARMS DAY: Michael Herzog continues to manage the game in the absence of an injured Alex Grove. Though his numbers are not flashy, he gets the job done. Herzog went 9-for-16 with 102 yards and also rushed for 69 yards on 22 carries with a touchdown.

WILD TURNOVER BATTLE: CC let the ball hit the turf five times, but Bethel only recovered two of those fumbles. The Royals coughed  it up three times and lost it each time. Coming into the game Concordia had turned the ball over 22 more times in the past six seasons.  That stat flipped on Saturday.

EDDIE EDDIE: Punter Eddie Clifton played a pivotal role in the game. Clifton lifted four punts for an average of 48.8 yards per punt and kept the Royals from getting good field position for a majority of the game.

WHAT'S NEXT? The Cobbers will travel to Carleton next week. The Knights were defeated by Gustavus 63-14 and are now 1-4. Concordia has not lost to Carleton since 2008, a game they dropped 41-28 in Moorhead.