On Saturday afternoon, the Crusaders and Cowboys played one for the ages.
Fourth-ranked UMHB and No. 7 HSU matched each other punch-for-punch before Alan Munoz delivered the knockout blow with a 33-yard field goal with 5 seconds left, lifting the Crusaders to a 38-35 victory in an NCAA Division III first-round playoff game at Tiger Field.
The 14th installment of the rivalry series lived up to its billing and wasn’t decided until Cowboys kick returner ZaVious Robbins was tackled as time expired, sealing the Crusaders’ third postseason win over their rivals since 2004.
UMHB will host No. 10 Wesley (Del.) in the second round. The Crusaders (10-1) and Wolverines (9-1), who will meet in the playoffs for the fourth straight year, square off at noon next Saturday.
“We are thrilled with the victory and tremendously excited about the way that we had to win the ballgame,” UMHB coach Pete Fredenburg said. “Our guys know they had to overcome a team that’s well-coached, had a week’s rest and played really hard.
“And our guys did that. That’s a real tribute to our players.”
The Cowboys (9-2) rallied from a 14-point fourth-quarter deficit but were eliminated from the playoffs in Belton for the second time in three years.
“I’m really proud of the guys. There’s probably never been a better game in this conference or a better playoff game anywhere than that,” HSU coach Jimmie Keeling said. “It’s a shame that both teams aren’t still playing next week. That’s a crying shame.”
After the Cowboys tied it at 35 on Justin Feaster’s 6-yard pass to Jerrad Grisham with 1:30 remaining, Matt Hurst returned the ensuing short kickoff 25 yards to the HSU 47-yard line.
A key 25-yard pass from Josh Saenz to Pi’Dadro Davis helped move the ball to the 16, where Munoz calmly drilled the game-winner.
“I already knew it was going to come down to a field goal. I just had a feeling,” UMHB’s sophomore kicker said. “I was quite nervous, but I was sure I would get the job done.”
The Crusaders had to drive only 31 yards to give Munoz his attempt following the short kickoff, which the Cowboys employed on every occasion after Bryson Tucker’s 91-yard return for a touchdown pulled UMHB even at 7-all midway through the first quarter.
“We were hoping we would squib kick it, then get some good coverage and not allow a return,” Keeling said. “But then they hit that pass and that was a big play.”
After a scoreless third period, the Crusaders broke a 21-21 tie on the second play of the fourth quarter - a 73-yard TD hookup between Saenz and Aerttrail Robinson.
Feaster, who threw for 306 yards on 26-of-36 passing, made his only mistake of the day four plays later when he threw behind intended receiver Mychal Carrillo and Derrick Williams picked it off at the HSU 32.
Carrillo had beaten Williams for a diving 30-yard second-quarter touchdown, but the senior free safety had learned his lesson by the final frame.
“When he scored one me, I was playing too aggressive,” said Temple product Williams, who tied a school record shared by Anthony Johnson and Tony Salazar with his 11th career interception. “After that, the coaches had told me to read slow but react fast.
“The quarterback gave a little fake and the lineman did his same little drop step. I just sat there and when I saw the receiver curl up, I just broke on him. The ball hit me right in the chest.”
Ervin Johnson outjumped a defender in the end zone to pull down Tucker’s 27-yard toss on the back end of a double-pass on the very next play to put the Crusaders up 35-21 with 12:08 to go.
“When we had that 14-point lead, I was thinking that it might be over,” said Williams, who went 6-0 against HSU in his college career. “But then here came their offense and I was thinking, ‘Well, we’re in a battle again.’ That quarterback they have is a playmaker.”
And Feaster went to work making plays, capping a five-play, 52-yard drive with a 19-yard scoring pass to Justice Baker on fourth down with 9:45 on the clock.
The Cowboys knotted it about 8 minutes later when Feaster willed them to the tying score. The junior QB had passes of 19, 5 and 18 yards to go with runs of 3 and 8 yards as he continually bought time with his feet and moved HSU to the UMHB doorstep. From there, he squeezed a 5-yard dart between defenders and into the arms of Grisham.
“That wasn’t the first time we’ve been down this season,” Feaster said. “We felt comfortable in that situation and knew that if we could get the ball back, we could go down and score.”
But despite getting outgained 469 yards to 373, UMHB followed Feaster’s feats with the game-winning drive when it needed it.
“That’s a real tribute to the character of this team, with 90 seconds to go to get down there and kick a field goal,” Fredenburg said. “It really shows the kind of leadership this team possesses.”
The teams combined for 31 fourth-quarter points and 28 in the second quarter when they traded scores. Saenz and Tommy Vadell had short TD runs for UMHB, and Feaster had a 15-yard jaunt and a 30-yard pass to Carrillo for HSU.
“It was an amazing game and it builds character in guys,” said Saenz, who was 6-of-7 for 126 yards in the second half. “It didn’t matter if we had to run or throw to get it done. We just wanted to get it done.”
NOTES: Robbins was injured on HSU’s final kickoff return and remained down for about 15 minutes. He was helped to the training room, then transported to a local hospital with what team officials termed “a neck injury.” . . . UMHB is 1-2 all-time against Wesley. The Wolverines won a 2005 second-round game in Belton and an ’06 quarterfinal in Dover. The Crusaders won last year’s quarterfinal 27-10 in Delaware.
edrennan@temple-telegram.com
