PUEBLO — Although John Wristen pounded the table in front of him three times Saturday, the Colorado State- Pueblo coach wasn’t angry in the wake of the ThunderWolves’ 24-21 loss to defending national champion Minnesota-Duluth in the second round of the NCAA Division II playoffs.
Rather, Wristen was emotionally spent and coming to grips with the fact that the ThunderWolves wouldn’t be able to write a dream ending to their four-season progression from startup program to national power.
“I’m proud of what this group of seniors has been able to accomplish,” Wristen said at the wind-swept Neta and Eddie DeRose ThunderBowl. “We didn’t want it to end. We played a heck of a football game, we gave it our best shot and we couldn’t be prouder of our guys.”
But it wasn’t enough to keep the ThunderWolves, who had a first-round bye in the Division II field of 24 and came in with the nation’s No. 1 ranking in the American Football Coaches’ Association poll, undefeated. The champions of the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference finished the season 11-1.
Trailing 21-17 early in the fourth quarter, UMD moved 49 yards in five plays, with Bulldogs running back Brian Lucas plunging 1 yard for the game-winning touchdown with 8:23 remaining. David Nadeau’s extra point pushed the margin to three, and the Bulldogs held off the ThunderWolves down the stretch.
CSU-Pueblo’s touchdowns came on J.B. Matthews’ 14-yard run on the Wolves’ first possession of the game, defensive end Corey Orth’s recovery of a Duluth fumble in the end zone late in the second quarter and quarterback Ross Dausin’s 18-yard scramble with 26 seconds remaining in the third quarter. In the end, Duluth’s ability to control the ball — the Wolves’ second-half time of possession was barely 10 minutes — was crucial. Also, Dausin, a junior from San Antonio, was harried and sacked five times.
“We tried to go max protection because they started bringing heat in the second half,” said Dausin, who was 14-for-24 passing for 133 yards. “I just had trouble getting the ball off and finding open receivers at times.”
Running back Jesse Lewis was one of the leaders of the program’s original freshman class and now departs as the marquee name among those who stayed with the Wolves those first four seasons. The finalist for the “D2 Heisman,” the Harlon Hill Trophy, had 59 yards on 15 carries against Duluth, with the Wolves — in part because of the sacks — finishing with only 91 net yards on the ground.
“I don’t think we have anything to be ashamed of,” Lewis said. “It’s not like we did anything wrong. It’s not like we didn’t play hard. We did all that. We played hard, we played for each other, we gave it everything we had. . . . We just came up a little short today.
“But I look back and I’ve made some of the best friends I’ll ever have in my life these last four years, and I have some memories I’ll cherish forever. Everybody in this program has touched my life in such a special way, it’s something nobody will ever take away from me.”
Terry Frei: 303-954-1895 or tfrei@denverpost.com
