FLAGSTAFF, Ariz. (November 6, 2021) – A quick start against the No. 7-ranked team in the FCS couldn't withstand a pair of injuries to Northern Arizona's top two quarterbacks on Saturday as the Lumberjacks fell to the UC Davis Aggies on Saturday afternoon.
RJ Martinez led a pair of first-quarter touchdown drives to give the Lumberjacks a six-point lead with 35 seconds left in the opening quarter. While the freshman departed the game due to an injury, the Lumberjacks and Aggies traded field goals midway through the quarter, but Northern Arizona quarterback
Jeff Widener also left the game near the end of his first drive in place of Martinez.
A touchdown pass and a field goal within the final 1:25 before halftime by UC Davis (8-1, 5-1 Big Sky) started a 26-0 run for the Aggies, who rode the swing in their favor to a 40-24 victory over the Lumberjacks (4-5, 3-3 Big Sky) in the Walkup Skydome.
Martinez finished 7-of-10 passing for 90 yards and a touchdown while adding 26 yards on the ground, including a 12-yard touchdown run.
Once again, the Lumberjacks needed just five plays to get into the end zone as
Kevin Daniels broke a 31-yard run to open the game and
Draycen Hall caught a 34-yard touchdown pass four plays later to put Northern Arizona ahead 7-0 with just two minutes off the clock.
An impressive red zone stop, with UC Davis failing to score after four plays from inside the NAU 10, put the Lumberjacks right back on the offensive. After the Lumberjacks snuffed out a wildcat run by UC Davis quarterback Trent Tompkins on third-and-goal from the 4, Jonathan Phenix broke perfectly on a pass from Miles Hastings to Justin Poerio in the back of the end zone to break up the fourth-down try from the NAU 3.
While the stop unfortunately led to a safety on the Lumberjacks, and the Aggies taking advantage for a touchdown on their next drive to lead 8-7 following a failed two-point conversion, Northern Arizona stormed right back for another score.
Converting three times on third down, the Lumberjacks retook the lead at 14-8 with Martinez's 12-yard run. After
Hendrix Johnson converted a third-and-7 with a 29-yard catch, Martinez broke free for a 6-yard gain on third-and-5.
After a pair of runs by Daniels brought up third-and-3, Martinez broke free into the open field with a run to his left.
With Martinez leaving the game one drive later and UC Davis taking advantage for a 31-yard field goal, Widener drove the Lumberjacks right down the field himself as he looked to extend the lead. Rushing for 20 yards on a pair of scrambles and hitting
Matthew Kempton for a 12-yard gain, Widener quickly brought the ball into Aggies' territory midway through the second quarter.
A pass interference call set Northern Arizona up at the 16-yard line, but Widener went down with his own injury three plays later as he rushed up the middle looking to convert a third-and-7. While
Luis Aguilar converted the 25-yard field goal and Northern Arizona took a 17-11 lead, the offense struggled from that point on.
After UC Davis took a 20-17 lead into halftime, Northern Arizona couldn't keep up in the second half and fell behind 37-17.
Niko Haen took over at quarterback with 13:38 remaining in the game and led the Lumberjacks on a 15-play, 96-yard touchdown drive to put Northern Arizona back on the scoreboard with 6:37 to go.
Converting a third down from his own 6-yard line, Haen hit Kempton for a pair of passes totaling 32 yards and broke free on a 23-yard run himself during the drive. Set up at the UC Davis 12 after
Coleman Owen caught an 11-yard pass, Haen rushed for a 6-yard gain before
Tyson Grubbs recorded his first career touchdown with rushes of 2 and 4 yards.
Trailing 37-24, Northern Arizona forced UC Davis into a three-and-out, but the next drive came to an end following a turnover on downs deep in the Lumberjacks own territory and the Aggies hit another 31-yard field goal to effectively wrap up the game.
The Lumberjacks remain at home next week for a meeting with No. 10 Montana which is coming off a 35-0 victory against Northern Colorado on Saturday. The Grizzlies, sitting at 7-2 overall and 4-2 in the Big Sky, visit Flagstaff just one week before taking on rival Montana State (8-1, 6-0 Big Sky) in Missoula to wrap up the regular season.
