NAU SPORTS INFORMATION
The Northern Arizona football team suffered a 41-10 defeat against the University of San Diego on Saturday evening in the opening round of the 2017 FCS Playoffs at the J. Lawrence Walkup Skydome in Flagstaff.
The loss ends the Lumberjacks’ season as they finish with a 7-5 overall record. San Diego advances to the second round of the NCAA FCS Playoffs and will face No. 2 seed North Dakota State on Saturday, Dec. 2. San Diego eliminated Big Sky Conference member Cal Poly last season.
“We prepare every week to play sixty minutes of football and you can’t ask any more than what these guys did today,” USD head coach Dale Lindsey said. “Our goal every week is to be as physical as we can be for sixty minutes, establish the running game which helps with our passing game, and defensively out-hit you and not give up the explosive play. If we can do that we feel we have a good chance to win the game.”
San Diego receiver Justin Priest with a leaping one-handed touchdown catch/ USD athletics
NAU senior linebacker Byron Evans registered 17 tackles for the Lumberjack defense – tied for the second-highest single-game total for the program since 2010.
Jacks’ sophomore quarterback Case Cookus completed 22-of-41 pass attempts for 178 yards along with a touchdown and an interception. The Lumberjacks were without receivers Emmanuel Butler (season-ending shoulder injury suffered in Week 2) plus William Morehand and first-team All-Big Sky selection Elijah Marks. Sophomore running back Joe Logan also did not play due to injury.
The Lumberjacks played without the services of four starters due to injury in Saturday’s FCS Playoff game including All-Big Sky First Team wide receiver Elijah Marks, running back Joe Logan, strong safety Wes Sutton and nickel back Josh Clarke.
San Diego dominated the line of scrimmage on both sides of the ball throughout the contest as it out-gained Northern Arizona 439-238 for the game. The Toreros posted a total of 211 rushing yards, while limiting NAU to 60, including just 11 in the first half.
The 238 yards of total offense marked the lowest total for the Lumberjacks since a 232-yard performance against Montana State on Oct. 5, 2013.
The Toreros’ ground attack was led by Emilio Martinez, who posted 117 yards on 20 carries along with a touchdown in the win.
The San Diego defense posted a total of five three and out possessions against the ‘Jacks offense along with forcing three turnovers (one interception and two fumbles).
Northern Arizona 20th-year head coach Jerome Souers
USD junior quarterback Anthony Lawrence led the Toreros’ air attack by completing 16-of-28 pass attempts along with three touchdowns. His top targets were Ross Dwelley and Justin Priest who combined for 11 receptions, 167 yards and three scores.
San Diego took the game’s first lead at 3-0 on a 24-yard field goal by Patrick Murray with 7:08 remaining in the first quarter. The score was set up by 49 rushing yards by the Toreros, including a 22-yard burst by junior Joseph Binda.
The Toreros increased the advantage to 10-0 on a one-handed touchdown grab by Priest, that capped off a seven-play, 49-yard drive with 3:45 left in the opening quarter.
Following a fourth consecutive three and out by the Lumberjack offense, San Diego added another score with a drive that took just four plays and 1:09 off the clock which ended with Lawrence hitting a wide-open Dwelley for a 26-yard score to make the margin 17-0 at the 13:41 mark of the second quarter.
Cookus used his arm and legs to get the ‘Jacks on the board as he set up a six-yard scoring toss to freshman Terrell Brown with a season-long 32-yard scramble to get NAU to within 17-7 with 11:32 left before halftime.
San Diego’s defense got in on the act on the next Lumberjack possession as Jon Petersen sacked Cookus and forced a fumble that was recovered by the Toreros at the NAU 14. Martinez sprinted 14 yards for a score two plays later to give USD a 24-7 lead with 5:28 remaining in the opening half.
“That was the best 11-man effort I have been a part of in my four years here,” Petersen said. “From the top down, to the corners to the D-line. Everyone played really well. We knew our offense was going to be able to put up points. We knew if we could hold them under 20 points that we would have a good shot of winning, and that is what we did.”
The Lumberjacks capitalized on back-to-back pass interference penalties on San Diego with a 28-yard field goal by sophomore Griffin Roehler at 1:12 of the second quarter to get back to within 24-10.
The NAU defense came out strong in the second half as it forced the Toreros into a three and out on their first series. San Diego was able to answer on defense as well when two plays later David Tolbert broke in front of a Cookus’ pass and pulled down an interception – just the third in the last 10 games for the Lumberjack quarterback.
San Diego then drove 22 yards on four plays before Murray booted his second field goal at the 11:14 mark of the third quarter, this one from 27 yards out, to increase the Toreros’ lead to 27-10.
NAU was forced into its fifth three and out on its following possession before San Diego added its fourth touchdown of the game on a one-yard plunge by Zach Nelson, which was set up by a 42-yard reception by Priest, to extend its lead to 34-10 at 7:59 of the third quarter.
Dwelley pulled down his second touchdown reception of the game from 13-yards out to increase the Toreros’ advantage to 41-10 with 9:24 left in regulation.
San Diego advances to play second-seeded North Dakota State in Fargo next week. USD lost 45-7 in Fargo in the second round last season.
“We have great respect for North Dakota State,” Lindsey said. “Their program has been at the pinnacle of FCS football for the last five or six years and they gave us a nice little whipping last year. We look forward to playing them again. We feel like we didn’t play our best last year, but we are going to give them our best shot. That is all we can ask these guys to do. I don’t think in my five years here that our guys have ever felt they didn’t give it their best when walking off the field at the end of the game.”
