SIOUX FALLS, S.D. – The Peacock football team traveled west to Sioux Falls, S.D. to take on the No. 4 Cougars on Saturday afternoon at Bob Young Field. The home team jumped out in front of Upper Iowa on the first play of the game, and never looked back. UIU got within 14-7 before USF rattled off 37 straight points to close out the game. With the win, Sioux Falls improves to a perfect 10-0 on the season and 6-0 in division play. Upper Iowa drops to 3-7 overall and 2-4 in the NSIC South with the loss.

Sioux Falls wasted no time striking first in this contest. On the first play from scrimmage, quarterback Luke Papillion through a lateral to tight end Clint Sigg on the left side. Sigg gathered the ball, took a few steps, and tossed a deep ball down the sideline to wide receiver Kyle Groeneweg, who was all alone. Groeneweg coasted in for a 74-yard touchdown and just 16 seconds in, the home team led 7-0. After a quick Upper Iowa 3-and-out, the Peacock defense started to slow down the Cougar attack. USF punted on consecutive possessions, and UIU started to move the ball.

Facing a fourth-and-1 at the Cougar 41-yard line, Peacock running back Derrick Portis took a handoff and stripped of the football, and Logan Dykstra recovered at the Peacock 48. Sioux Falls took over, and marched off a 5-play drive capped off with a Max Mickey touchdown run of two yards to put USF up 14-0. After Upper Iowa regrouped, the offense went back to work.

Quarterback Dimitri Morales went 6-for-7 passing and led the team on a 9-play, 65-yard drive to put the Peacocks on the board. Morales threw for 60 yards on the drive and capped it off with a perfect pass into the corner of the end zone that senior receiver Jalen Amis hauled in for a 13-yard touchdown. UIU trailed 14-7 with a little momentum, and the defense would carry it over. The Cougars went down the field, but Upper Iowa's Joe Busch blocked a 24-yard field goal to keep the deficit at seven points.

The visitors got the ball with 2:15 left in the first quarter, and went back to work on offense. Morales led the Peacocks on a 14-play, 74-yard drive that got the team down to the 6-yard line. Facing a 4th-and-goal, UIU decided to go for it and drew up a pass play to the left side. Receiver Trey MacTaggart was open in the flat, but the pass was short and fell incomplete and Upper Iowa turned it over on downs. It was the second time UIU got in opponent territory and came away with no points. But the Peacock defense would step up, make a stop, and get the ball back to the offense again.

After the quick 3-and-out by the Cougars, UIU's Jordan Rommes returned a short punt 20 yards down to the USF 30-yard line. The offense was set up in plus-territory, and was looking to cash in. Six plays later, facing another fourth down, this time at the Cougar 12-yard line, Upper Iowa rolled the dice and went for it again. On a 4th-and-5 play, Morales was sacked for a loss, and it was the third time in the game that the Peacocks did not score a point after getting to the USF side of the field.

After back-to-back punts, the home team drove down the field to the Peacock 12-yard line, where they settled for a field goal. USF led 17-7 and never looked back. Just before halftime, Sioux Falls got the ball back and were looking to add more points. Papillion kept the ball on a zone-read play and scampered 13 yards for a touchdown. After a missed extra point, the Cougars led 23-7 at the intermission.

Sioux Falls added on points in the second half. Mickey added another touchdown run, this time from 18 yards out, on the first drive of the third quarter. The Peacocks had a turnover in the frame, when David Esswein caught a pass over the middle and was stripped by Derek Landis and the fumble was recovered by corner back Clifford Redmond. The teams went into the fourth quarter with the home team leading 30-7.

In the final quarter, the Cougars added three more touchdowns. Papillion found Greoneweg for a 27-yard pitch-and-catch at the 10:57 mark, and then Redmond picked off a Brent Lammers pass on the sideline and took it 30 yards for a touchdown 30 second later. Sioux Falls capped off the day with a Colton Myles 16-yard touchdown run, and the game was in the books. Sioux Falls will hope to wrap up their first perfect season since joining the Northern Sun Conference in 2012, and are looking to win the league for the first time as well.

The Cougars racked up 557 yards of offense, including 360 yards through the air. Papillion finished the day 19-29 with 269 yards and a touchdown, and ran for 24 more yards and another score. Mickey led the way for USF on the ground, with 94 yards and a touchdown as well. USF came into the game averaging 341 yards per game rushing, but used the passing game to defeat UIU on Saturday.

Morales was effective for the Peacocks, finishing 22-36 for 174 yards and the lone touchdown pass on the day. Upper Iowa ran the ball 43 times for just 129 yards, and Ryan Parmely led the way with a 4.2 yards per carry average (10 carries, 42 yards). Eight Peacocks caught passes on the day, led by David Esswein's 49 yards on five grabs. MacTaggart hauled in 8 passes for 47 yards, while Jarred Edmonds finished with 4 catches for 24 yards. Keagan Pinter got a big 3rd-and-20 pass for a 24-yard completion, his first of the season.

The Peacock defense was led by Rommes, who finished the afternoon with nine tackles. Linebacker Zach Garnder also tallied 9 tackles, including two for loss. Mitchel Siech totaled 7 tackles, and Marcus McCoy and Adam Lytle finished with 6 each.
 
Upper Iowa will wrap up its 2016 season next Saturday in Mankato, Minn. against the Mavericks of Minnesota State University. 18 seniors will play their final game in a Peacock uniform, and kickoff is scheduled for 12 p.m.