PUEBLO, Colo.—Joe Reichert got his hands on the ball at two key moments and didn’t let it—or Minnesota-Duluth’s chances at another championship run—slip out of his fingers.
Reichert caught a tipped touchdown pass and recovered a teammate’s fumble to keep alive a go-ahead fourth-quarter touchdown drive—ending in a 1-yard run by Brian Lucas—and Minnesota Duluth rallied past previously unbeaten CSU-Pueblo 24-21 on Saturday in a second-round NCAA Division II playoff game.
“That’s just hustle and luck. You can’t beat good, old luck,” Reichert said.
The Bulldogs (11-2), the defending Division II champion, advanced to the quarterfinals, where they will play Wayne State, a 38-26 winner over Nebraska-Kearney earlier Saturday. The loss snapped a 15-game winning streak dating to last season by the top-ranked Thunderwolves (11-1), who reinstated the school’s football program three years ago.
“We didn’t want it to end,” Thunderwolves coach John Wristen said. “We played a heck of a football game and gave it our best. Give a lot to Minnesota Duluth to make the plays when they had to. We tasted what it’s like to be in the national playoffs. We want to continue to grow and learn from our experience. The future’s bright.”
Trailing by four early in the fourth quarter, Minnesota Duluth missed a couple of chances to regain the lead before finally breaking through. Chase Vogler had a pass picked off in the end zone by cornerback Stephan Dickens, and a 57-yard punt return for a touchdown by Aaron Roth was negated by a clipping penalty against Minnesota-Duluth.
But the Bulldogs stayed with it, putting together a drive that included a 31-yard run by Vogler. Shaken up after a hard hit at the end of the run, Vogler fumbled. Reichert covered the ball, setting up a first-and-goal at the 9-yard line.
“Joe Reichert did a great job there, never giving up and was all the way downfield and was able to recover that ball. That was probably the biggest play of the game,” Vogler said.
Lucas, taking handoffs from backup quarterback Jon Lynch, took over from there, covering the final yards on three straight runs, including the short plunge into the end zone midway through the fourth quarter.
Vogler, who had an earlier 14-yard scoring pass to Reichert after it was tipped by teammate Ben Helmer, returned to finish the game.
CSU-Pueblo tried to answer, but its final possession ended in a fourth-down sack of Ross Dausin by linebacker Blake Rogers.
“We knew this was not going to be an easy game. We had to be relentless today,” Bulldogs coach Bob Nielson said. “We knew this was a team that was going to battle us to the end. We had to keep staying with what we do. I think that last drive was a perfect example of staying with what we do. We got the ball in the end zone, got the lead and played good defense.”
The Bulldogs were in front after Zach Hulce’s 1-yard touchdown run with 6:36 remaining in the third quarter. The Thunderwolves went back in front 21-17 on Ross Dausin’s 18-yard scramble with 26 seconds left in the third.
With Minnesota Duluth at its 21-yard line and time winding down in the second quarter, a wind-blown shotgun snap sailed over the head of Vogler and the ball rolled all the way into the end zone. Vogler dove after the ball but couldn’t come up with it, and Corey Orth recovered it in the end zone for a touchdown that put the Thunderwolves in front 14-10 at halftime.
Running back J.B. Mathews gave the Thunderwolves an early 7-0 lead when he scored on a 14-yard run. A group of defenders closed down what began as a sweep around left end, but Mathews reversed his field, picked up a block from Dausin, turned the corner on the opposite side and went in for the score.
David Nadeau kicked a 46-yard field goal for the Bulldogs after the Thunderwolves’ Brandon Kliesen, punting into a strong wind, managed only a 5-yard punt that was downed at the Bulldogs 34-yard line.
