By Con Marshall
The Chadron State College football team came about as close to pulling off a major upset as possible Saturday against Colorado School of Mines, the No. 4 ranked NCAA Division II team in the nation, but the Orediggers won by just a single point – 13-12 – in the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference opener for both teams played in Chadron.
“We nearly pulled it off,” CSC Head Coach Jay Long said. “We did a lot of things really well. I’m proud of our team. Our defense played great. I think we proved we can play with anybody. We’ve still got to figure out how to score more touchdowns, but we did a lot of things well today.”
Mines has ruled the roost in the RMAC recently, going 45-2 in regular season contests against conference opponents the past five seasons. In addition, the Orediggers were the DII national runners-up in each of the last two years. They also had scored 72 points in their first two games this fall against formidable opponents, but managed just 13 against the Eagles.
The Eagles scored first, driving the opening kickoff 67 yards in 11 plays for a 6-0 lead. Mines kicked two field goals in the second quarter to knot the count at halftime. The Orediggers scored their only touchdown by going 75 yards in nine plays to open the second half, moving ahead 13-6 after adding the extra point. Chadron State booted a pair of field goals in the fourth quarter to draw within one point of the vaunted visitors.
The Eagles’ opening drive was impressive. An 18-yard run on a keeper by quarterback Wyatt Sprague, a true freshman from Holyoke, Colorado making his first collegiate start, picked up the initial first down. CSC added two more first downs while staying on the ground, then scored when Sprague connected with wide receiver Grant Swenson on a 15-yard strike in the front corner of the Elliott Field’s east end zone with 5:22 gone off the clock. Hoping to go ahead 8-0, Chadron State went for two points on the conversion with what might be called a “gadget” play. After a lateral, a pass thrown by tight end Peter Krohn to outside receiver Brodie Roden was well covered and did not connect.
The Eagles’ defense also opened the game on fire. Defensive end Hunter O’Connor sacked quarterback Evan Foster for a six-yard loss on Mines’ first offensive play and tackled him again two plays later behind the line of scrimmage on third down and long, forcing a three-and-out punt.
Chadron State’s offense took possession on its own 18-yard line and promptly gained 45 yards when Sprague completed successive passes of 20 and 13 yards to Rollin George III, then hit Roden with a 12-yard shot. The Eagles also rushed for another first down, already its eighth of the game, but the drive stalled in the red zone. The Eagles called on placekicker Wilson Yee to attempt a 29-yard field goal, but the ball bounced off the right upright for a miss that contributed to the final outcome.
At the end of the first quarter, Colorado School of Mines had zero yards of total offense and only one first down, the result of a pass interference call against the Eagles. Safety Dax Yeradi also had a first-half interception for Chadron State.
The Orediggers were more successful in the second period, rushing for 29 yards and completing 10 of 18 passes for 116 yards. However, the CSC defense kept them out of the end zone and forced them to kick field goals. Matthew Eich did the honors, hitting a 22-yarder with 6:42 left in the quarter and a 38-yarder with 37 seconds left to tie the score at 6-6 at the half.
Mines drove 75 yards in nine plays with the second half kickoff for its lone touchdown. The big play was a 40-yard connection from Foster to All-American Max McLeod along the north sideline to the CSC seven. Aided by a pass interference call against the Eagles, Foster scored a 2-yard rushing touchdown and Eich added the extra point for a 13-6 Orediggers lead.
Chadron State had to begin its first possession of the fourth quarter at its own nine, but put together a 65-yard drive that featured a 26-yard pass from Sprague to Jamahd Monroe. It set up Yee’s 43-yard field goal with 6:30 remaining to play and cut the Mines lead to 13-9.
On the first play following the ensuing kickoff, Mines fumbled the ball and Chadron safety Tucker Peterson recovered at the Orediggers’ 26. CSC gained 12 yards on two running plays, but couldn’t get closer to the end zone and called on Yee again to kick a 33-yard field goal. It put the Eagles within one point with 5:19 remaining.
Mines posted three first downs and took five minutes off the clock before the Eagles got the ball back. The Eagles finally took possession at their own 15. Long noted in his post-game show that his team was planning to run a “hook and ladder” play, but it didn’t develop as planned and Sprague’s pass was swiped by Devyn Lauer, who took a few steps before going to the turf to make sure his team maintained possession. The interception was CSC’s only turnover.
Mines finished with 332 total yards and the Eagles with 223. Foster completed 24 of 38 passes for 235 yards, while Braedon Tate had 15 carries for 51 yards to pace the ground game. The Orediggers gained 485 yards during their 31-28 win over Washburn the previous Saturday.
For the Eagles, Sprague completed 16 of 25 passes for 144 yards and was also CSC’s leading rusher with 18 carries for 46 net yards. Yeradi, fellow safety Sutton Pohlman and linebacker Xavier Harrell each had seven tackles to lead the Eagles in that category.
Now 1-2, Chadron State will make its first road trip of the season this coming weekend to meet Colorado Mesa in Grand Junction. The Mavericks also are 1-2 after losing to CSU Pueblo 38-14 on Saturday.