Sept. 13, 2008
Final Stats
The Peacock football team traveled to Aberdeen, South Dakota for today's Northern Sun Conference game. Last season, Upper Iowa was dominated by Northern State in Aberdeen. This season, the Peacocks used a second straight huge rushing game from junior Sam Epsteen and a solid performance by the Peacock defense who made 10 tackles for loss and forced five turnovers by the Wolves. The Peacocks scored the go-ahead score just two minutes into the fourth quarter and the defense forced two turnovers in the quarter to hold the lead and get the first win of the season for the UIU (1-2, 1-1 NSIC).
Northern State took the opening kickoff 50 yards and got on the scoreboard first with a 33-yard field goal. Upper Iowa's first possession began at their own 30-yard line and lasted only four plays. But the short drive covered 70 yards and ended with a Peacock touchdown. The drive opened with a 35-yard pass from Ben Curran to Zach Schaeffer. Peacock running back Sam Epsteen then took over and with runs of 20, 9, and 6 yards crossed the goalline to give Upper Iowa a 7-3 lead.
The Wolves took the ensuing short kickoff and returned it to the NSU 42-yard line. The home team used a five-play drive to move the ball 58 yards highlighted by a 45-yard completion from Eric Ellingson to John Migdal. The score put Northern State on top 10-7.
The Wolves moved the ball again on their next drive. Northern State started the drive at their 30 and walked to the line with a 1st down at the UIU 27. The Peacock defense then came up with the first of four turnovers when Craig Henry intercepted a pass and returned it 63 yards to the Northern State 12-yard line. Upper Iowa and Epsteen needed only one play to retake the lead 14-10. Epsteen took the ball and rumbled 12 yards for the go ahead score.
Upper Iowa had tacked three points onto their lead with an 8-play, 38-yard drive that ended with a Jason Price 29-yard field goal. The drive was highlighted by an 11-yard rush by Epsteen and a personal foul penalty on the Wolves' defense.
The Peacocks did not wait long to put more points on the board as Craig Henry came up big once again for the UIU defense. Henry jarred the ball loose from Ellingson and fell on it himself just inside the Peacocks' 30-yard line. The fumble followed a 29-yard hook up between Ellingson and Brian Jark. Upper Iowa then recorded their second one-play drive of the night as Curran rolled out on and option and pitched the ball to Epsteen who sprinted through a hole and went untouched for 71 yards and a Peacock 24-10 lead. The play was the Peacocks' longest offensive play of the season; only a Dominique Jackson punt return of 88 yards against Drake has been longer.
Northern State did not let Upper Iowa run away and hide with the two touchdown lead. The home team scored the final ten points of the half. The Wolves scored a touchdown with 6:25 to play in the half and knocked a field goal through the uprights at the seconds ticked away in the half to cut the margin to four points. Upper Iowa headed to the locker room with a 24-20 lead.
While the teams combined for 44 points in the first half, both defenses found their stride in the second half and contained the scoring. Northern State was first to put points on the board in the second half as they took their first drive for 49 yards using 12 plays and almost 6 minutes of game time. The Wolves drive was highlighted by six completions by Ellingson, the NSU quarterback. The extra point was missed, so the Wolves clung to just a two-point lead, 26-24.
Northern State looked to add more points on their next possession, but a drive that had covered 47 yards was stopped when Nate Curran picked off another Ellingson pass and returned it 22 yards. The Peacocks took over at their 41-yard line. Upper Iowa began to slowly move the ball into Wolves territory as the third quarter ended and the game went to the final fifteen minutes.
Just over a minute into the fourth quarter, the Peacocks faced a 4th and 3 from the NSU 28-yard line. Ben Curran was able to muscle a pass to a streaking Kyle Hosch as he was being taken to the ground. The spiral from Curran found Hosch on his way into the endzone for a Peacock touchdown. For the second week in a row, the UIU offense turned a 4th down into a touchdown.
Over the final thirteen minutes, Northern State took the ball inside the Upper Iowa 35-yard line on two occasions. Both times the Peacock defense stepped up with to force turnovers. Mike Slaughter intercepted one pass and returned it 28 yards to stop one drive. The Peacock defense stopped the other as a group turning Northern State over on downs on their final possession. Upper Iowa downed the ball once to claim their first victory against Northern State and their first win of the 2008 season.
Turnovers were the story of the game as Upper Iowa forced five Northern State turnovers and only committed one turnover. The Wolves owned sizeable advantages in many stat categories, but the Peacocks defense held up thanks to the big plays. Northern State owned a 25-15 advantage in first downs, a 379-107 yard advantage in passing, a 472-284 yard advantage in total offense, and a 14 minute advantage in time of possession. Upper Iowa owned one major advantage beyond the turnovers on the day and that was in rushing yards as the Peacocks, led by Epsteen, rushed for 177 yards to just 93 yards for Northern State.
The Peacock defense was led by Vernard Wilkins (12 tackles, 2 for loss), Nate Curran (11 tackles, 1 for loss, 1 interception), Slaughter (9 tackles, 4 for loss, 2 sacks, and 1 int.), Shane McComb (8 tackles), and Craig Henry (8 tackles, 1 fumble recovery, and 1 int.).
Upper Iowa's offense was led by Epsteen who rushed for 172 yards and 3 touchdowns, for the second straight week, on 24 carries. Ben Curran racked up 107 yards and his first passing touchdown of the year on 8 completions in 17 attempts. Hosch, Schaeffer, and Lawrence Hellams all caught two passes for Upper Iowa. Price remained perfect in his career on kicks adding four more extra points and a field goal.
Upper Iowa will return to Eischeid Stadium next Saturday, Sept. 20, to host the rival Mustangs of Southwest Minnesota State. The Peacocks and Mustangs have had four close ball games in their short history with Upper Iowa winning the first and last meetings between the two teams. UIU defeated SMSU last season at Upper Iowa's homecoming 39-27. Kickoff is set for 1:00 p.m. in Fayette.
