GOLDEN, Colo. - It wasn't always pretty, and it didn't always go according to script, but it was a win.
#10/7 Colorado School of Mines bounced back from a rough first quarter and then held off a terrific effort by #19/13 Minnesota State as they won, 48-45, in the NCAA Division II Football Second Round to advance to its second straight regional final.
The Orediggers (11-2) will head on the road for the national quarterfinals in a rematch against #2/2 Angelo State (12-0), which beat Bemidji State 33-7. That game will take place Dec. 3 at a time to be announced.
A game featuring two of the highest-powered offenses in the nation turned into a track meet as they combined for 926 yards of total offense and 93 points.
John Matocha accounted for more than 400 yards of offense by himself, throwing for 307 yards and four touchdowns and also rushing for a season-high 106 yards and a score;
Michael Zeman added a touchdown on 74 hard-fought yards and
Josh Johnston caught three touchdowns in a 78-yard day.
Mavericks' quarterback Hayden Ekern was outstanding throwing for 377 yards and four scores, producing two 100-yard receivers in Isaiah Emanuel (5 rec., 117 yards, 1 TD) and DJ Barber (6 rec., 108 yards, 2 TD). Minnesota State's ground game was stymied with just 83 net yards, forcing them into the air.
Mines would strike first in the game when
Max McLeod had one of his patented long catch-and-run scores, streaking 71 yards to the house less than five minutes into the game for the early lead. Minnesota State would stun the Orediggers with three straight scores, however, first using Alijah McGhee's near-pick-six to get into the scoring column thanks to Shen Butler-Lawson's two-yard score, then leveraging Trey Vaval's 51-yard punt return to the Mines 11 to get in on another Butler-Lawson carry to lead 14-7. Another big punt return, this time 39 yards from Nyles Williams, set the Mavericks up to score on Ekern's six-yard strike to Barber to lead 21-7 at the end of one.
An out-of-sorts Mines offense began to get going as Matocha's 40-yard shot to
Flynn Schiele set up his six yard dive to the pylon, but MSU responded with Ekern's 41-yard deep ball to Barber to double the lead at 28-14. Mines then embarked on an epic 16-play drive that finished with a spectacular one-handed touchdown grab by Johnston, and a defensive stop set up another Johnston touchdown as Matocha hit him in the end zone from 45 yards out to tie the game with 29 seconds left in the half. MSU had a chance to grab last-second points after Ekern's 53-yard pass to Gabe Hagen was stopped at the 2, but they missed a chip-shot field goal as time expired.
The first play of the third quarter was a turnover in favor of the Orediggers with
Nolan Reeve strip-sacking Ekern on the run for
Zach Hester to recover in the red zone, and that led to a three-yard touchdown pass to Johnston at the boundary to take a 35-28 lead. MSU's Damian Chowaniec and Mines'
Jacob Click traded field goals, and a key moment came late in the third quarter when Chowaniec's 40-yard bid was blocked by
Kyle Bahnsen.
The fourth quarter opened with Zeman finding the end zone for a two-yard score to make it a 14-point game, 45-31, but it was a long way from over. Ekern finished a lengthy drive with a four-yard strike to Jake Cicero in the back of the end zone to make it a one-score game with 5:44 to go, and after trading outs, Click would make what would prove to be a critical field goal as he was true from 30 yards to go up 48-38 with 2:06 remaining. Ekern hit one last deep ball, a 66-yard score to Emanuel, to give the Mavericks hope, but
Mason Karp recovered the onside kick and with no timeouts in the way, the Orediggers were able to kneel for victory.
NOTABLES
- Mines advances to the Super Region IV final for the second straight season, and will face off against Angelo State again who they beat at home last year. Angelo State defeated Mines in overtime, 30-27, back in Week 2 of this season.
- Zeman became Colorado's all-time touchdowns leader finding the end zone for the 64th time in his career, surpassing Western Colorado great Austin Ekeler's record of 63.
- It was the second straight week that a Mines receiver caught three touchdowns as McLeod did it against CSU Pueblo in the first round.
- McLeod had a team-leading 82 yards with a touchdown, extending his postseason streak of games with a touchdown catch to five and finding the eighth of his career in the NCAA tournament.
- Reeve had a huge game with a team-high nine tackles, two sacks, a key batted pass in the fourth quarter, and the forced fumble.
Cameron Reller also led the defense with six tackles and one for loss.
- Bahnsen's field goal block was the first by an Oredigger since RJ Phillips did so against CSU Pueblo in the 2019 NCAA First Round.
- It was the first-ever meeting between Mines and Minnesota State. The Orediggers improve to 3-0 all-time against the NSIC.
- Mines defeated an opponent ranked in the AFCA Top 25 for the first time since the 2019 season when they beat #9 CSU Pueblo in the regular season.
NEXT UP
Mines will visit Angelo State in the Super Region IV final on Dec. 3 at a time to be announced.
