The Peacock football team dropped a 45-7 decision to Winona State University at home on a cold and rainy afternoon at Harms-Eischeid Stadium in Fayette. The Warriors, who came in riding the wave of two straight victories over AFCA Top 25 programs, scored 38 unanswered points and shutout their hosts after the opening quarter. WSU improved to 8-2 overall, while UIU falls to 1-9.
The Peacocks touchdown came on the biggest play of the year when
Darryl Overstreet Jr. connected with
Jahani Wright for a 75-yard touchdown strike that tied the score at 7-7 on UIU's second possession.
Winona State racked up 267 yards and five touchdowns on the ground, while holding the Peacock rushers to 57 yards on 34 attempts. The Warriors added 193 passing yards to reach a total yardage count of 460 on Saturday and the defense forced the Peacocks into 11 punts.
The Warriors were able to convert all six of their trips into the red zone into points, while the Peacocks came up empty on all three of their chances. UIU turned the ball over on downs with seven seconds to play in the first half after coming up four yards short of the endzone on fourth down.
Trevor Thompson had a big day for the Peacock defense with 12 tackles, while
Cejai Parrish registered seven tackles and forced a fumble on WSU's first possession.
RJ Knaack added four tackles from his linebacker position. UIU had chances at interceptions on defense on a few occasions, but the ball slipped between their fingers.
Overstreet Jr. didn't have a lot of time to find receivers as the potent Warrior defensive line was consistently in the back field. The freshman threw for 150 yards, half of which came on the Wright touchdown reception.
Four different Warriors paced the offense with solid rushing games. Dominik London (87 yards), Sam Santiago-Lloyd (79 yards and four touchdowns), Nick McCabe (48 yards and one touchdown) and Kyle Haas (43 yards) all ran well behind the WSU offensive line.
Darius Manuel paced the Warrior defense with seven tackles including two sacks and another tackle for loss. While Vernon Porte got an interception and returned it 25 yards to set up the first score of the day for the visitors.
Upper Iowa will remain at home next Saturday for their final game of the 2022 season. The Peacocks will honor their seniors prior to kickoff of their game with the Cougars of the University of Sioux Falls. The two teams will take the field at 12 p.m.
