Second-Half Success Secures Troll Trophy

NORTHFIELD, Minn. (11/05/16)—Concordia lived up to the cliché "it's not how you start the race, it's how you finish it", as the Cobbers outscored St. Olaf 28-0 in the second half and beat the Oles 42-13 in the annual battle for the ugliest rivalry trophy in college football.

Concordia led 14-13 at the half but then put up a pair of touchdowns in each of the third and fourth quarters to seize control of the Troll Trophy for the fifth straight season.  

The win also sets up a showdown with St. John's for second place in the MIAC, and a possible at-large berth into the NCAA playoffs, in the regular season finale next weekend.

The 28-point second half helps Concordia move to 7-2 in all games and 6-1 in the MIAC. The Cobbers have the identical record as the Johnnies entering the last week of the 2016 regular season. Concordia has now won four straight and seven of the past eight.

In a game featuring the league's best rushing offense going against a defense that allowed the most rushing yards in the conference it was inevitable that it would come down to the ground game. When they needed it most, the Cobbers ran the ball 27 times and gained 190 yards in the third and fourth quarters.

Concordia also got three of its four touchdowns in the second half on the ground.

The Cobber backfield tandem of Chad Johnson and Michael Herzog was responsible for a majority of the offensive yardage in the game. The two combined for 165 of the 190 rushing yards in the second half and also scored all three TDs.

For the game the running firm of Johnson and Herzog was responsible for 228 of the team's 317 rushing yards and five of the six touchdowns.  

The game started as poorly as it could for the Cobbers. Concordia won the toss and elected to receive but St. Olaf decided to go for an onside kick to begin the game and they recovered the 16-yard onside surprise to take control of the ball at the Concordia 49-yard line.

The Oles then went 49 yards in eight plays to take a 7-0 lead a mere 3:07 into the first quarter.

The two teams would trade punts before Concordia tied the game on a 13-play 60-yard drive that culminated in a Johnson 1-yard plunge. The Cobbers converted three straight third-down plays on the drive and then scored on a fourth-and-goal situation.

The Concordia "Black Shirt" defense stopped the Oles on a 4th-and-1 play on the very next drive but CC was unable to capitalize on the momentum change.

St. Olaf would take their final lead of the game with 6:47 left in the second quarter when Khayleb Willis busted free for a 67-yard TD run. The play was the second longest of the season against the Cobbers.  Unfortunately for the Oles the point after was blocked.

Concordia responded on their next drive by going 70 yards in 10 plays to take a 14-13 lead. CC did the bulk of the work on the drive on first down situations.  During the drive the Cobbers only faced three second down plays and a pair of very short third-down plays.

Johnson earned his second short TD of the game when he scored from three yards out.

The Cobbers blew the game open in the second half when they scored on their first two possessions and four of their five possessions in the third and fourth quarters.

Sophomore defensive back Treyton Austvold capped the win for the Troll when he reached over his shoulder to make an interception late in the fourth quarter, turned and sprinted 35 yards for the score.

Austvold's INT was one of three on the day for Concordia. Senior Matt Ahrndt and Jake Erholtz also had picks on the day.

Sophomore linebacker Alex Berg had a team-high 10 tackles while Dallas Raftevold had 7.0. Hank Van Liew had 6.0 tackles and a game-high 2.0 tackles for a loss.

WE LOVE THE TROLL: Concordia has now beaten St. Olaf for five straight seasons and seven of the past eight meetings between the two teams. The Troll trophy has now been in head coach Terry Horan's office for 1,891 straight days.   

100-YARD RUSHING CLUB:  Concordia had a pair of players go over the 100-yard mark on the ground. Chad Johnson rushed for 116 yards on 19 carries and Michael Herzog had 14 carries for 112 yards. The last time the Cobbers had a pair of rushers go over 100 yards was 2007 when quarterback Jesse Nelson rushed for 122 yards and fullback Adam Swingdorf had 101 yards.

THE BEST OFFENSE IS A GOOD DEFENSE: For the fourth straight week the Cobber Black Shirts put up points on the scoreboard. Treyton Austvold's "Pick 6" in the fourth quarter marked four straight games with a defensive touchdown.  

DOUBLE DOLLARS: Concordia quarterback Michael Herzog rushed for 112 yards and also threw for 111 yards as he went 13-for-17 with one TD pass. The last time a CC QB rushed for 100 yards and threw for 100 yards was in 2007 when Jesse Nelson accomplished the feat against St. Olaf on Oct. 13. Nelson rushed for 104 yards and passed for 225 yards in that game.

FALL HARVEST CONTINUES: Concordia had three interceptions on Saturday which makes 15 picks in the last four weeks. That number is the most in a four-game stretch in program history. The Cobbers now have 16 interceptions in their seven conference game which leads the MIAC.

WHAT'S NEXT: The two speeding trains will finally meet on the same track. The Cobbers have won straight and seven of the past eight and will host St. John's who has won five straight. Both teams are 6-1 in the MIAC and will square off on Saturday, Nov. 12 at The Jake.

CONCORDIA at ST. OLAF HIGHLIGHTS