HAYS, Kan. — Fort Hays State secured a 31-23 victory over Missouri Western on Saturday (Sept. 27) at Lewis Field Stadium. The Tigers overcame a 20-14 halftime deficit with a strong fourth-quarter performance, outscoring the Griffons 14-3 to win by eight. FHSU moved to 3-2 overall and 2-1 in the MIAA in front of a massive Homecoming crowd of 8,211, while MWSU moved to 1-3 overall and 0-2 in the MIAA.
Fort Hays State saw its ground game come alive in the fourth quarter after having just 68 rushing yards through three quarters. The Tigers pounded out 135 rushing yards in the fourth quarter, averaging 9.6 yards per carry in the final frame.
Joshua Clark has four big runs of over 10 yards and
Curtis Douglas had the biggest run of the night, going 59 yards to paydirt with 5:56 remaining to give the Tigers their eight-point lead of 31-23. FHSU finished with 203 rushing yards as a team, moving to 40-1 when rushing for 200 or more yards under head coach
Chris Brown.
Down 23-17 going into the fourth quarter, the Tigers flipped the game in their favor when
Caleb Heavner found
Tariq Logan for a 38-yard touchdown pass with 12:25 to go in the game.
David Arriaga added the extra point to put the Tigers up 24-23. The Tiger defense picked up some big stops on MWSU drives to keep their lead, then had to make one final stand at the end of the game. MWSU made it to the FHSU 11 with 25 seconds to play, but that is all they advanced. The Tigers forced four straight incomplete passes to hang on for the win.
Fort Hays State initially took the lead in the first quarter on a Heavner 17-yard touchdown pass to
Joshua Clark. However, the Griffons responded with 10 points to take a three-point lead into the second quarter. The Tigers moved back in front with a Douglas 6-yard rush for a touchdown early in the second quarter, but saw the same pattern of a Griffon field goal and then a 44-yard hail mary touchdown pass with no time remaining to jump in front 20-14 at the break. The Tigers moved within three (20-17) in the third quarter with a 41-yard
David Arriaga field goal, but the Griffons responded with a field goal right at the start of the fourth quarter, which set the stage for the Tigers' big fourth quarter push.
Douglas led the Tigers in rushing with 73 yards, followed by Clark with 70. Heavner churned out 43 yards with his legs, while throwing for 171.
Ryan Allen led the Tigers in receiving yards with 49.
Brandon Hall led the MWSU ground game with 57 yards, while quarterback Kane Donovan threw for 314 yards on 30-of-45 passing with two touchdowns. Malik Moore led the Griffons in receiving yards with 75.
John Johnson was a force defensively for the Tigers with a career-high 16 tackles and a forced fumble.
Michael Chavez also had a big night with 13 tackles.
Jakolbi Wilson and
Koa McIntyre both had sacks, while
Taderian Partee had a key interception in the first quarter that set up FHSU's first touchdown of the game.
TreVon Holmes led the Griffon defense with eight tackles and the team's lone interception in the game. That interception set up the opportunity for the hail mary pass for a touchdown right at the end of the second quarter.
The Griffons had 438 yards of total offense compared to 374 for the Tigers. FHSU produced 179 of its 374 total yards in the fourth quarter.
Fort Hays State heads on the road next week to Missouri Southern for a 1 p.m. kickoff on Saturday (Oct. 4). The Lions are 2-2 overall and 0-2 in MIAA play.
