Ft Hays State Nips UNK 27-20

The 23rd/27th-ranked Fort Hays State Tigers scored 24 first half points and broke up a 26-yard Hail Mary to hold off Nebraska Kearney, 27-20, Saturday afternoon at Ron & Carol Cope Stadium.

This was the 70th all-time meeting between the two longtime rivals as well as the 2024 season finale for both. Hays (8-3) came in ranked eighth in the NCAA Region rankings but its best chance at the postseason is likely a Texas bowl game. With their third straight win, the Tigers also beat the Lopers (5-6) for the 11th time in the last 12 meetings. Finally, UNK went 3-3 in one-score games this season; they were 1-3 in such contests in 2023. 

On "Senior Day" things did not go well for UNK in the first half. The Tigers had three long touchdown drives (85, 75, and 75 yards) as well as booting a 30-yard field goal right before half. Meanwhile the Lopers first four drives resulted in three punts and a lost fumble at the Hays 25-yard line. 

"Obviously we didn't play very well in the first half in any phase. We were teetering and on the brink of getting run out of the gym," said UNK head coach Ryan Held. "At halftime, we talked about how hard we've fought all year. These guys just kept fighting … we easily could've folded but our 26 seniors did a great job. It came down to the last play so what more can you ask for."

The Lopers more than got off the mat in the second half as they outscored Hays 20-3, out gained the Tigers by 75 yards and returned a block punt 16 yards for six points. That all setup a "Hail Mary" on the final play. Unfortunately, a scrambling Reagan Jones (Wichita) saw his pass into the back of the end zone broken up as Lopers and Tigers were bunched together near the end line. 

"Gosh, we're so close. That the hardest part … how close we are. Because this league is really, really good," said Held. "I think we've earned the respect of people in this league. We got picked last and didn't finish last."

The comeback started on the first drive of the second half as UNK marched 60 yards in 11 plays. Jones converted 4th & 1 from the Tigers 34-yard line with a short run and then hit senior receiver Stephen Lewis (Gardendale, Ala.) from nine yards out four plays later. The deficit was then cut to 10 when senior linebacker David Lilly (Wahoo) blocked a punt by Grand Island senior Parker Janky and returned it 16 yards for another TD. It marked the Lopers sixth blocked kick of the fall.

On the Tigers very next play from scrimmage, a scrambling Caleb Heavner tossed a pass to tight end Cale Formaney near midfield. Senior safety Jamere Jones (Frederick, Md.) managed a pass breakup as they were falling to the ground with junior safety Chandler Brown (Whittier, Calif.) Johnny on the spot for his second pick of the fall. However, UNK's drive stalled when a "trick play" was blown up right away and resulted in a 12-yard intentional grounding penalty.
 

"We tried a couple of trick plays and almost hit on one of them. We were trying to be aggressive. I didn't want to leave anything on the shelf," said Held.

The Lopers next three drives didn't yield any points either as they resulted in two punts and a failed fourth down conversion. However, the defense got another three-and-out with senior backer Devin Guggia (Santa Clarita, Calif.) recording a 16-yard sack. That helped UNK set up at the Tigers 48-yard line with Jones rushing from four yards out and a 24-20 deficit with 6:31 remaining.

The Tigers then had its best drive of the second half, going 60 yards in 11 plays that featured six straight runs by MIAA rushing leader Shane Watts. Using its final two timeouts, UNK forced Carson Ardnt to make a 33-yard field goal with 59 seconds left. The Tigers also could've gone for it on 4th and 4 from the Loper 15-yard line.

On the final drive of 2024, Jones completed passes of 13, 18, seven and 21-yards to give the Lopers a chance. The completions were sandwiched around a holding call. After senior Reggie Anderson (Gaithersburg, Md.) got a first down, UNK "clocked it" to setup the Hail Mary. Safety Mason Perez was one of several Tigers around a bunch of Lopers to break up the pass.

"I'm just so happy these guys kept fighting. Because as a head coach, that's all you can ask for," said Held. "It didn't look good there for a minute. We gave ourselves a chance in the end."

Watts finished with 175 yards on 30 carries while also having four grabs for 43 yards and a score. Next, receivers Jayden Horace (10 recep., 113 yards) and Ryan Allen (eight recep., 108 yards) reached the Century mark as Heavner was 25 of 36 for 294 yards, two TD's and that one INT. He also rushed for 26 yards and a score.

For UNK, Jones was 16 of 29 for 178 yards and totaled 33 yards on nine carries. Junior back Isaiah Harris (Millard South) ran hard and had 63 yards on 15 totes with graduate receiver Shane Dailey Jr. (Bellevue) at 92 yards on seven grabs. Finally, junior back Zane Schawang (Waverly) had nine touches for 35 yards. Defensively, junior backer Anthony Hebert (Corona, Calif.) and Guggia had nine tackles apiece, Jones finished with eight with Lilly at seven and senior end Quillan Felton (Lithonia, Ga.) at six.

"We're not down. The resolve was great today, and we'll move forward. We have a lot of good players returning," said Held.