SACRAMENTO, Calif. – The Northern Arizona University football team came one point away from its second-straight ranked win this evening, coming up short in a 31-30 loss at No. 8/9 Sacramento State this evening at Hornet Stadium.
Following the near-upset, the Lumberjacks drop to 1-4 overall and 1-1 in Big Sky Conference play while the three-time defending conference champions, Sacramento State, improves to 4-1 and 1-1.
The Lumberjacks scored first but trailed 24-21 at the half as the first 30 minutes of play featured three lead changes. In the third quarter, NAU had the ball for 11:08 and held the Hornets scoreless, taking a 28-24 lead into the fourth quarter. The game's fifth lead change came after an 18-play drive for the Hornets that resulted in a short two-yard rushing touchdown that gave Sacramento State a 31-28 lead.
Northern Arizona used a 17-play drive to take time off the clock and go for the winning score, but an interception in the endzone left the Lumberjacks empty. NAU showed no quit and came up with a safety with two seconds left to cut the lead down to a point, 31-30, but came up short.
The Lumberjacks were perfect on fourth down, converting 5-of-5. They had 450 yards of total offense compared to 418 for the Hornets. Both teams were even through the air, with NAU throwing for 255 yards and Sacramento State throwing for 257. On the ground, the Lumberjacks racked up 195 rushing yards compared to 161 for the Hornets.
"I'm very proud of the way our team played tonight. There are going to be a couple plays we wished we had back obviously, but I'm proud of the way we played. We had opportunities to win this football game and at the end of the day, you have to make those plays against a good football team," said head coach
Chris Ball. "It's not okay to lose, and they're a good football team, but I'm proud of our team and I'm proud of our staff. At the end of the day, there are plays you need to make to win games like that and we didn't make them. We have to put this one to bed and move on. There is a lot of football left and every goal we have is still attainable."
In his second career start,
Adam Damante shined again, competing 23 of his 33 pass attempts for 196 yards and a touchdown pass. He threw one interception and was sacked once.
Devon Starling earned the second 100-plus rushing yard game with 117 yards and two touchdowns, while
Chase Belcher rushed for 72 yards and a touchdown as well.
Coleman Owen hauled in 57 yards on six catches while
Hendrix Johnson added 62 receiving yards on six catches as well. On the defensive front,
Zach Lewis led the team with 10 tackles while
Tommy Ellis followed with nine.
The first half was a back-and-forth affair with three lead changes.
It took the Lumberjacks just four plays on their opening drive to find the endzone. Damante found
Marcus Phillips Jr. for 17 yards and completed a 60-yard pass to
Elijah Taylor to set up first and three. On the next snap,
Chase Belcher, who earned his first career start, scurried in for the rushing touchdown, his second of the season and fourth score overall. After
Marcus Lye's extra point attempt when through the uprights, the Lumberjacks held an early 7-0 lead in Sacramento. The drive was four plays for 81 yards, ticking 1:37 off the clock.
The Hornets quickly evened things up and scored on their next two drives, scoring on a nine-play, 75-yard drive and a 12-play, 58-yard drive to take a 14-7 lead.
On second and four, Belcher found
Hendrix Johnson deep for a 59-yard completion that set up first-and-ten at Sacramento State's 16-yard line. Facing fourth-and-two on the Hornet eight-yard line, the Lumberjacks opted to extend the drive and
Devon Starling rushed for eight yards to the endzone for the score. It marked the third-straight game that Starling scored a rushing touchdown. However, Lye's extra point attempt missed wide right, and the Lumberjacks still trailed, 14-13.
With 8:08 remaining with the half, the Lumberjacks tacked on another score to retake the lead as Damante found
Coleman Owen for a 19-yard completion. Following a successful two-point conversion attempt, Northern Arizona pulled ahead 21-14 after scoring 14 unanswered points. Damante's touchdown pass was the fourth of his young career and the 14
th receiving touchdown for Owen's.
On the Hornet's ensuing drive, they tied the game 21-21 on a seven-yard rushing touchdown. Sacramento State was then able to retake the lead on a 31-yard field goal attempt, 24-21, which would be the score at the half.
Much like they started the first half, the Lumberjacks marched down the field and scored on their opening possession to start the second. Northern Arizona used a 16-play, 99-yard drive that ticked 6:54 off the clock, converting once on third down and another on fourth. A 15-yard rush by Starling set the Lumberjacks up on Sacramento State's eight-yard line where Starling punched the ball in for an eight-yard rushing touchdown. It was his first career multi-touchdown game of his NAU career, and after
Szymon Gawlick made the first extra point attempt of his career, the Lumberjacks pulled back ahead 28-24 for the game's fourth lead change.
The Lumberjack defense cracked down and a sack by
David Spruiells held the Hornets to a 41-yard field goal try that missed wide right.
Heading into the fourth quarter, the Lumberjacks led 28-24. Northern Arizona had the ball for 11:08 in the third and held Sacramento State scoreless.
With 8:31 remaining in the fourth, the Hornets retook the lead after stringing together an 18-play, 81-yard drive that took 6:54 off of the clock to pull back ahead 31-28 after the extra point attempt.
Northern Arizona looked to find the game-winning score and strung together a 17-yard drive in the process. Facing third and 12, the Hornets came up with an interception in the endzone and took over, preserving their three-point lead. The lead was trimmed down to a point, but the Lumberjacks came up short.
Northern Arizona looks to bounce back next week at Weber State. Kickoff is set for 5 p.m. Mountain Standard time on ESPN+.
