Oct 5, 2002
CEDAR FALLS, Iowa - The Western Kentucky University football was staring at the same situation that cost the Hilltoppers last year's Gateway Football Conference championship. No. 6 Northern Iowa had scored a touchdown with less than 10 minutes remaining in the contest to pull to within 17-12, needing only one defensive stop to get the ball back for a chance at the lead.
But Jeremi Johnson broke off a 47-yard run on the first play from scrimmage after the kickoff, leading to a 10-yard touchdown run by Chris Miller that helped 25th-ranked Western seal its 31-12 victory over the Panthers Saturday at the UNI-Dome.
Sherrod Coates intercepted a Tom Petrie pass and returned it 20 yards for a touchdown with 21 seconds left in the game to cap the scoring.
The Toppers (3-3 overall, 2-1 Gateway) avenged last year's 24-23 loss to UNI in Bowling Green that gave the Panthers the conference championship, picking up their second win over a ranked foe in the last three weeks in the process. UNI (3-2, 0-1 GFC) lost to WKU for the first time since 1979 as the Hilltoppers evened the all-time series, 3-3. Western has won three of four meetings in Cedar Falls.
"The big thing is the quality of the Northern Iowa program," WKU head coach Jack Harbaugh said. ".They've had great success in the past, won last season's Gateway Conference championship and were picked to win the league title this year. To come in here and face them and their crowd enhances the magnitude of this victory."
The Toppers picked up 404 yards of total offense, the most WKU has posted against a Division I school this season. Jon Frazier collected a game-high 80 yards on 22 carries, while Johnson needed only seven attempts to run for a career-high 73 yards. Miller chipped in with 57 yards and Maurice Bradley added 39. Jason Michael was 10-of-15 passing for 150 yards, completing four passes to Jerome Reaves for 92 yards and three more to Johnson for another 33. Five different Hilltoppers recorded at least one catch.
"This was one of the better games we've played," said Harbaugh. "We made some key throws late in the game because Jason loosened up after we scripted throws on 10 of our first 15 plays. We wanted to spread out their defense.
"Our offense is starting to develop a little bit of a personality. We've established up front that our offensive line can move some people. Their confidence is building."
Defensively, the Toppers held Adam Benge -- who entered the game ranked second in the league and fourth in the country with 128 yards per contest -- more than 50 yards below his average, as he finished with 77 on 27 carries (an average of 2.9 yards per attempt). Petrie and Griff Jurgens combined to go 13-of-31 for 181 yards, but the Panthers were limited to 289 yards of total offense. Ben Sanderson made a game-high six catches with Marlus Mays collecting five for 105 yards.
Erik Dandy posted 12 tackles, including two for a loss, and broke up a pair of passes to lead WKU. Charles Thompson added eight stops with two fumble recoveries, and Jon Drummond collected six, including his sixth sack of the season.
Turnovers almost hurt the Hilltoppers, who lost two fumbles in UNI territory in the second quarter and led only 7-3 at the half. Mackenzie Hoambrecker gave the Panthers their only lead with a 28-yard field goal with 1:35 remaining in the opening quarter. The Toppers missed a chance to tie the contest when Peter Martinez saw his 39-yard field goal attempt sail wide left, but scored on their next possession to take the lead for good.
Michael led WKU on a 12-play, 72-yard drive with Bradley scoring from 6 yards out at 5:52 to give the Hilltoppers a 7-3 advantage. After the defense forced a punt that Shannon Hayes returned 34 yards to give Western possession at the UNI-37, Bradley fumbled on the second play of drive and the Panthers took over on their own 22-yard line. But a 3-and-out gave Western the ball back, and the Toppers drove into the red zone before Michael lost control of the ball diving for the end zone with just over a minute left in the half.
WKU took control early in the third, building a touchdown lead when Martinez hit a 27-yard field goal to cap a 14-play, 70-yard drive that ate up more than six minutes to open the half. On the Panthers' second play from scrimmage, Kris Mau collected his first career sack, stripping the ball from Jurgens in the process -- Thompson recovered at the UNI-5 to give the Hilltoppers 1st-and-goal. Frazier scored from 1 yard out on third down to give WKU a 17-3 lead.
Hoambrecker kicked a 21-yard field goal at 2:58 of the third quarter to make the score 17-6 before Benge's touchdown cut the deficit to less than a touchdown.
Miller's touchdown, which came with 5:03 remaining in the contest, was on his sixth straight attempt, ending a nine-play, 84-yard march while doubling WKU's lead.
Martinez moved into fifth place all-time at Western with 210 points. And, Brian Claybourn averaged 46.8 yards per punt while Hayes returned four punts for 65 yards.
The Hilltoppers return home for a 5:30 p.m. (CDT) kickoff against first-year program Florida International on Saturday.
-- WKU --
