Cobbers Capture Dramatic, Flag-Filled Opener

VALLEY CITY, N.D. (9/01/22)---It wasn't the prettiest win in the history of the Cobber football program, but it may have been one of the most dramatic. Concordia rallied from a 6-0 deficit in the fourth quarter, scored 14 straight points and then blocked the game-winning field goal in the final seconds of play to post a 14-12 win over Valley City State in the 2022 season opener.

The two teams didn't produce a score for the first 40 minutes of play in the weekday night special as the two defenses dominated the line of scrimmage and held the offensive output to under 220 total yards in the first half.  

The Vikings (0-2) struck first with a 2-yard run late in the third quarter. The extra point was blocked which proved to be one of two huge plays by the Cobber special team' squad.      

The turning point of the game came at the start of the fourth quarter after Concordia fumbled the ball deep in its territory. On the very next play from scrimmage, senior defensive back Marshall King was able to latch on to a deflected pass and come up with the first of his two huge interceptions in the game.

King's opening swipe led to Concordia's first score of the year. Sophomore quarterback Cooper Mattern was able to find junior wideout Dawson Schaffer in the left flat. Schaffer collected the ball, broke several tackles and then broke free down the sideline for his first career touchdown.

Sophomore All-MIAC kicker Damien Silus connected on the PAT to give CC a 7-6 lead.

King then made his second clutch INT on the next Viking possession. He stepped in front of a pass at the Cobber 25-yard line and raced 45 yards to the VCSU 30-yard line.

Concordia would score five plays later when senior captain Peyton Mortenson hammered his way through the line and scored from six yards out.

Valley City State would put the drama back in the game when they scored on a 59-tard touchdown pass with just under 3-minutes to play in the game. The Cobber Black Shirt defense then stepped up to deny the 2-point extra point try and keep CC in front at 14-12.

The Cobbers were able to recover the onside kick, but were forced to give the ball back to the Vikings after they were denied on a 4th-and-1 situation with 20-seconds to play.

The Vikings then drove the ball down to the CC 26-yard line with just 14-seconds ticking off the clock. VCSU then lined up for the game-winning 43-yard field goal, but the Cobber defensive line got a great push forward which allowed linebacker Ty Moser to have a clear jump at the ball and he was able to get a hand on it and deny the game-winning attempt.

COLDPLAY TRIBUTE: Fans of the color yellow were happy on Thursday. The two teams combined were flagged 27 times in the game. Concordia had 12 penalties for 116 yards, while the host Vikings were tagged for 15 fouls for 171 yards. VCSU had a pair of players thrown out of the game after each player collected two unsportsmanlike conduct penalties during the game. The 27 combined penalties and 293 penalty yards are the most in a single game in program history for CC.

NOAH'S ARK: Senior linebacker Noah Jenson picked up where he left off last year as the team's leading tackler. Jenson started the 2022 campaign by coming up with a team-high 10 tackles which included 1.0 tackle for a loss.

KORF'S CONTRIBUTION: Sophomore defensive back McHale Korf came through with his first career interception. He picked off a pass with 5:57 left in the fourth quarter which helped CC keep its 14-6 lead. Korf also had a career-high 7.0 tackles in the game.

STEADY SILUS: Silus came up big for the Cobbers in the first half when the game turned into a battle of field position. His booming punts kept the Vikings pinned deep in its own territory. Silus finished the game with seven punts and averaged 43.9 yards per punt.

STAT STUFF: Concordia finished the game with 251 total offensive yards which included 137 rushing yards. Valley City had 451 total yards with 359 of those coming through the air. VCSU quarterbacks were 29-for-48, while the trio of signal callers for CC went 13-for-23.

MARSHALL KING POSTGAME INTERVIEW:


UP NEXT: Concordia will continue its string of nighttime, non-conference games when they play at Presentation (S.D.) on Saturday, Sept. 10 at 7 p.m. The Cobbers beat the Saints 55-14 last year in a game played in Moorhead.