NAU football was one possession away from knocking off the defending Football Championship Subdivision (FCS) national champions, the Eastern Washington University Eagles, after a strong showing in the first half.
However, the Lumberjacks could not keep their momentum going into the second half and dropped the game 36–28.
The meeting was a back-and-forth offensive battle between the Lumberjacks and the Eagles. NAU ended the first half with a one-point lead, 21–20.
Despite leading after two quarters, it was a tale of two halves for the Lumberjacks. NAU moved the ball at will against EWU in the first half, but the Lumberjacks continually hurt themselves with turnovers and penalties in the final half. The Jacks fumbled twice on offense, threw one interception and muffed one punt return.
“We needed to have better ball security, and we didn’t,” said NAU head coach Jerome Souers.
The Lumberjacks threw an interception in the end zone late in the game and had a costly fumble as they were only yards away from the end zone. The bobbled punt came late in the game after a crucial stop that yielded any possible Lumberjack momentum. The opportunities were there for NAU, but they could not take advantage of them.
“We had opportunities when we didn’t convert when our guys were there,” Souers said. “We didn’t protect well enough.”
Despite NAU going scoreless through the entire third quarter, they were able to rally in the fourth and cut Eastern Washington’s lead to a one-possession game. With time running out, NAU fell just 30 yards short of a potential game-tying touchdown, barring a 2-point conversion.
“The problem is too many little mistakes,” said NAU senior wide receiver Khalil Paden. “The toughest loss is when you feel like you beat yourself, and I feel like we beat ourselves. We got to get back to work tomorrow and I’m going to come out and work harder than ever because these are the toughest losses. It hurts a lot.”
After the emotional loss against the defending champions, NAU looks to improve on reducing turnovers. The Lumberjacks plan to move forward with a solid week of practice, emphasizing ball security in the pursuit of a win.
“We did a lot of good things; we’re going to come back with the same mentality,” said NAU junior quarterback Cary Grossart. “Working hard and knowing we can beat these teams [is important.] We played well, and we have to come out with a great week of practice, [and] emphasize being hungry. We got to get a W and continue to prepare like we have.”
NAU travels to Bozeman next week to take on the No. 3 Montana State Bobcats (5-1, 3-0.)
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