EDMOND, Okla. -- 24th-ranked Central Missouri rallied from nine points down in the fourth quarter to beat Central Oklahoms 45-42 in a wild shootout on Saturday afternoon at Wantland Stadium. UCM led a defensive battle 10-7 at halftime before the offenses took over in the second half.
The game got off to a slow start with both defenses controlling the action. The first quarter ended in a scoreless tie and it wasn't until the 8:19 mark of the second quarter that UCO (2-5, 2-5 MIAA) got on the board on Clay McKenzie's 24-yard touchdown run. The Mules (5-2, 5-2 MIAA) tied the game late in the half on
Markel Smith's three-yard touchdown run. It capped an 11-play, 87-yard drive that saw
Garrett Fugate hit
Ian Toalson for a 42-yard gain to get the ball into Broncho territory.
The Mules took the lead on
Billy Greco's 32-yard field goal on the final play of the half. UCM drove 50 yards in seven plays in the final :47 to nab its first lead of the game.
The Mules took the opening drive of the second half down for points, another Greco field goal to make it 13-7. This field goal was good from 31 yards out to extend the UCM lead to six. The lead was short-lived, however, as the Bronchos scored on a 71-yard touchdown pass from T.J. Eckert to Myles Tease on the third play of the drive to take a 14-13 lead. The offensive explosion was on.
The Mules responded with a nine-play, 71-yard scoring drive that was capped when Fugate hit Toalson for an 18-yard touchdown on fourth and five. The extra point as blocked and UCM led 19-14. Five plays later, the Bronchos were back in front 21-19 thanks to an Eckert to Josh Crockett 55-yard pitch and catch.
The Mules came right back with another scoring drive of their own to regain the lead 26-21 with 3:27 to go in the third quarter. Fugate had completions of 28 yard to
Tyler Jones and 32 yards to
Jaylen Zachery on the drive before calling his own number on a four-yard scoring run to cap things off.
Once again, it didn't take UCO long to regain the lead. Following a 13-yard kickoff return and a personal foul penalty, Greg Johnson rushed 59 yards for a touchdown on the first play of the drive and the Bronchos were back in front 28-26. UCO made it 35-26 early in the fourth quarter when Eckert found McKenzie on a screen pass for a 49-yard touchdown. The Mules had stopped UCO on the drive, but a roughing the kicker penalty on fourth down gave the Bronchos new life.
After a three and out the Bronchos were looking possibly put the game away, but on third and four from their own 45 Eckert was intercepted by UCM's
Austin Miller, who returned it 42 yards to the seven yard line. Three plays later,
Josh Pickrell rushed up the middle for a one-yard score and the Mules were back to within two at 35-33.
The Mules forced a three and out on the ensuing possession and the Bronchos shanked the punt giving UCM great field position at the Broncho 43. Three plays later, Smith rushed around left end for a 30 yard score and the Mules were back in front 39-35 following a failed two-point conversion.
UCO embarked on a 13-play, 61-yard drive as they methodically drove down the field for a potential go-ahead score. Facing third and nine from the UCM 16, Eckert tried a QB sneak for no gain and then on fourth down,
J.R. Alexander stopped Josh Crockett well short of a first down to give the ball back to the Mules with 1:09 to play.
On the first play of the ensuing drive Fugate rushed up the middle for an 87-yard touchdown and the Mules went in front 45-35. The Bronchos drove down for a touchdown with :01 left to pull within 45-42, but the Mules recovered the onside squib kick to seal the win.
The wild game saw the teams combine for 1,214 yards of total offense. UCO out-gained UCM 644-570, including 421-239 through the air while the Mules out-rushed the Bronchos 331-223.
Fugate was 20-of-37 passing for 239 yards with a touchdown and rushed for 178 yards on 21 carries with two touchdowns. His 417 yards of total offense is the 10th highest single-game total in school history. His 178 rushing yards are a new single-game UCM record, breaking the old mark of 133 set by Carl Lawrence against Southwest Baptist in 1992. His season rushing total now sits at 524, breaking the old mark of 364 set by Marcus Frazier in 1991.
Smith finished the day with 143 yards and two touchdowns on 19 carries. Fugate averaged 8.5 yards per carry while Smith rushed at a 7.5 per carry clip.
Zachery hauled in eight passes for 105 yards, while Toalson had five catches for 80 yards and a touchdown.
Defensively, Miller and
Sam Smith led the Mules with 11 tackles each, while
Tevin Teamer had 10. Miller also had a tackle for loss, an interception, a forced fumble and a fumble recovery.
Eckert was 31-of-44 for 421 yards and four touchdowns with an interception for UCO. McKenzie rushed for 101 yards and a score on 20 carries while also catching six balls for 63 yards and a TD. Tease had eight receptions for 155 yards and a score. Malcolm Howard led the Broncho defense with 13 tackles and David Busby finished with 10.
The win was the fourth in a row for UCM, the fifth four-game winning streak during the
Jim Svoboda era.
The Mules return home next Saturday to host Northeastern State in the annual Homecoming game. Kickoff at Walton Stadium/Kennedy Field is set for 1:30 p.m. The game can be heard live on 1450 KOKO, 98.5 The Bar and warrensburgradio.com with Greg Hassler on the call.
