Saturday, Sept. 17, 2011
DES MOINES, Iowa--Drake withstood a late rally by Missouri S&T to claim a 27-23 victory on Saturday night at Drake Stadium. It was the Bulldogs' final non-conference tune-up before they begin Pioneer Football League play next Saturday at Butler.
Senior quarterback Mike Piatkowski (Wheaton, Ill./Wheaton Warrenville South) completed 17 of 30 passes for 230 yards and two touchdowns, and moved into fourth place on Drake's all-time passing yards list with 4,757 for his career.
"We're making it exciting," said Drake head coach Chris Creighton, "and more interesting than I would like it to be, but I'm proud of our guys for finishing the game."
Piatkowski's second touchdown proved to be the game-winner. He connected with fifth-year senior running back Pat Cashmore (Kansas City, Mo./St. Pius X) on a short dump-off over the middle, and Cashmore rumbled into the end zone to make it a 27-yard touchdown play that put Drake ahead 27-14 with 13:21 to play in the game.
The Bulldogs, however, would have to weather a furious Missouri S&T charge. The Miners answered with a touchdown on their next possession, when quarterback Josh Firm connected with tight end Jake Giljum for a 4-yard score to narrow the gap to 27-21 with 10:47 to play.
After an exchange of punts, Drake found itself taking possession at its own 3-yard line with 5:38 remaining. Unable to move the ball and facing a punting situation from the back of his own end zone, Creighton elected to take a safety to make the score 27-23.
The resulting field position did not work in Drake's favor, as Missouri S&T took possession at the 50-yard line with 3:24 to play after Drake's free kick went out of bounds. The Bulldogs' defense stiffened, however, and saved the game by forcing the Miners to turn it over on downs after a net loss of minus-two yards on the possession.
"(The defense) is coming up big, there's no question," Creighton said. "I think that our team just really needs each other. We're a team where all three phases are really dependent on each other. That's a good place to be but it also means that if you're getting through a piece of a game where one of those phases is struggling, you know it can be a rough spot. We need all three phases and our defense, those guys are fighting hard and making plays. We've got some real veterans out there who are leading us and we're going to keep on leaning on them."
The Bulldogs' offense was able to run out the clock, with Cashmore rushing three times for 14 yards and a first down, leading to two kneel-downs.
Drake finished with 299 yards of total offense on 71 plays, including 69 on the ground on 41 carries (1.7), and 230 through the air. The Bulldogs logged 16 first downs to the Miners' 11, and held them to just three in the second half. Time of possession ended up in Drake's favor, 31:30 to 28:30, after Missouri S&T held a slight first-half edge. Drake's defense limited the Miners' running game to 34 net yards on 28 carries (1.2).
Cashmore finished with 75 hard-fought yards on 21 carries (3.6), and added 52 receiving yards on two catches, including the fourth-quarter touchdown. Junior Trey Morse (Elmo, Texas/Parish Episcopal School) rushed 11 times for 23 yards (2.1).
"I'm mainly the third or fourth options on our passing plays," Cashmore said in describing his fourth-quarter touchdown. "We call it a check down and today they kind of left me open. Mike found my eyes, my eyes got really big...somehow I got to the end zone."
Missouri S&T's Smook Thomas led all receivers with nine catches for 131 yards.
Drake senior wide receiver Drew Blackmon (Florissant, Mo./St. Louis University High) led the Bulldogs with four receptions for 34 yards, while junior wide receiver Nick Rosa (Owasso, Okla./Owasso) caught three for 47 and senior running back Nathan Paddock (Lee's Summit, Mo./Lee's Summit West) caught three for 41 yards, including a 16-yard touchdown in the first quarter.
Senior linebacker Tyler Moorehead (Mason City, Iowa/Newman Catholic) was instrumental in the win, leading Drake with nine tackles (7 solo), including a sack (-8), and providing a first-quarter blocked punt that was returned for a touchdown to give Drake an early 14-0 lead.
"Our defense has really been coming through in the clutch, which has been good," said Moorehead. "We're starting to learn a little more about the defense and really step it up when we need to. I think that we're all playing our hardest, we've just got to quit making some mental mistakes and we'll be there."
Drake appeared to be taking control of the game in the third quarter, outgaining Missouri S&T 111-6 in the period and extending its lead to 20-14 at the 3:16 mark on a 37-yard field goal by Janssen, his second of the night.
Janssen converted both of field-goal attempts, and all three PATs to run his streak to 42 in a row. He also averaged 47 yards on five punts with a long of 54.
The Bulldogs led 17-14 at the half, but were outgained by the Miners 167-124. Much of Missouri S&T's offense came in the latter part of the second quarter when it cut into Drake's 17-0 lead.
Drake got on the board first, moving the ball 70 yards in 12 plays over 5:26 for the 16-yard Piatkowski to Paddock touchdown pass with 5:56 to pay in the first quarter. That came one play after Drake converted a 4th-and-13 from the Miners' 30-yard line, connecting with Blackmon on a crossing route.
Drake built on the lead early in the second quarter when Moorehead blocked a Will Morrison punt and sophomore defensive back Brent Shelton (Plainfield, Ill./Plainfield North) returned it 28 yards for a touchdown.
The return for a touchdown was the first by Drake on a blocked punt since Sept. 30, 2000 when Clint Martindale returned a block 39 yards for a score vs. San Diego.
The Miners handed Drake excellent field position after a botched punt attempt resulted in Morrison running out of bounds at his own 22-yard line. The Bulldogs were unable to move the ball, and kicker Billy Janssen (Round Lake Beach, Ill./Carmel Catholic) converted a 45-yard field goal attempt, his first of the year, to increase the lead to 17-0 at the 11:40 mark of the second quarter.
Missouri S&T got on the board for the first time on its next possession, moving 71 yards in six plays in just 2:18, capped by a six-yard touchdown run by Adam Clark. Drake blocked the PAT to keep the margin at 17-6 with 9:16 to play in the half.
The Miners' would score another touchdown just before the half on a 13-yard pass from Firm to Leon Moody, and added a two-point conversion to make the halftime score 17-14.
Drake now turns its attention to its Pioneer Football League opener at Butler next Saturday. Kickoff is set for Noon ET (11 a.m. CT). The home team has won the last four in the series, with Drake's last win at the Bulter Bowl dating back to 2006.
"Butler's a good football team, there's no question," Creighton said. "We have not beaten them at their place in my tenure here. We've played there twice (2008 and '09) and lost both of them, both really tight games, and one for a championship. This is a huge, huge week for us and I think the guys are probably pretty excited."
Cashmore echoed that thought with his view of the rivalry.
"Butler's been very good these past years," Cashmore said. "They've kind of had our number at home, so we kind of want to come out with a chip on our shoulder, some passion, some emotion. Going into their place we want to leave with a 'W' and a loss won't be acceptable."
Tonight's attendance was 3,578.
