Game Stats vs Southern Utah (PDF)

CEDAR CITY, Utah – After the last two games in the series were decided in the final minutes, it was no surprise when Southern Utah drove to within field goal range to tie the game in the final two minutes. But the Northern Arizona defense stopped the drive to preserve the 26-23 victory Saturday at Eccles Coliseum.

"It seems like the type of game we end up having with these guys," said Head Coach Jerome Souers. "They threw some things at us that put us off balance. We got behind early but our kids never quit and battled back into it. Our special teams and our defense really stood out and made some things happen."

NAU trailed for most of the game and was down 23-19 with 6:46 left when quarterback Michael Herrick took over on the final drive. Freshman Zach Bauman converted an early third down in the possession with 7-yard run and Herrick went 5-for-5, including a 32-yard completion to Austin Shanks that put the Lumberjacks in the red zone. 

"We had Austin isolated in man coverage and Michael threw a great ball," said Souers. "They had great coverage on it and Austin did a great job of adjusting. It was a play we had to have and it really set us up for the win."

Herrick then hit Bauman on a 15-yard scoring play for the winning play with 3:07 left.

SUU got the ball back on the 22-yard line and had no trouble moving early as Brad Sorenson completed four straight passes to move down to the NAU 33-yard line. After a short run and incomplete pass, the Thunderbirds converted a third-and-eight but were called for holding, moving the ball back to the 43. NAU forced two incompletions in a row to seal the game.

"We played all four quarters," said senior Matt Estrada. "We emphasize that every week. It was a great job by the defense and a good team win."

Bauman rushed for over 100 yards for the third consecutive game, finishing with 109 yards with a touchdown with three catches for 33 yards and a touchdown. Herrick went 23-for-35 for 244 yards and a touchdown. Junior Austin Shanks led the receivers with eight catches for 82 yards.

Estrada provided a big second half spark with a 66-yard punt return for a touchdown to propel the comeback effort in the second half.

"There was great blocking on the play," said Estrada. "There was a huge hole. Anyone could have scored on the one. I knew I had to spark our team some way."

Trailing 17-10 in the third quarter, NAU forced a three-and-out on the initial SUU possession, creating a punt which Estrada returned 66 yards down the left sideline to pull within 17-16. Myers missed the extra point attempt, the first PAT miss of his career.

NAU fell behind early when Herrick's pass was intercepted by Colin Pretlow and returned 44 yards for a touchdown one minute and 26 seconds into the contest. The Thunderbirds extended the lead to 10 after a 47-yard field goal Ryan McNamara.

Bauman led the Lumberjacks first scoring drive, carrying five times for 37 yards and adding a 13-yard reception. The big play on the drive was a 22-yard scamper by Bauman on the initial third down.

Myers missed two field goals in the second quarter (48, 47) as the Lumberjacks failed to get any closer. SUU's Austin Minefee extended the Thunderbird lead to 10 points again, scoring on a 50-yard rush with 3:23 left in the half. He accounted for 62 yards on the drive.

Myers got back on track with a 37-yard field goal with 35 seconds left to cut the halftime deficit to 17-10.

The Lumberjacks return to Big Sky Conference play next week, traveling to Eastern Washington. NAU returns home for Family Weekend on Oct. 16 against Montana State, ending a four-game road stretch.