Drake Rallies Past Morehead State 45-35 With Late Kavaughn Clark Touchdown

Drake trailed by 10 points with less than six minutes to play on Saturday, and Morehead State's Anthony Ice had just caught his third touchdown pass of the day. The Bulldogs still found a way. Two offensive touchdowns in the final 4:40 put Drake ahead, and Tyson Shivers sealed it with a fumble return for a touchdown on the last play of the game.

Drake beat Morehead State 45-35 on Oct. 31 at Phil Simms Stadium in Morehead, Ky. Kavaughn Clark scored the go-ahead touchdown on a 4-yard run with 49 seconds left, and Shivers returned a fumble 38 yards for a touchdown as time expired. Drake improved to 3-6 overall and 3-3 in the Pioneer Football League. Morehead State fell to 2-7 and 1-4.

Quarterback Braylon Wilson carried the Drake offense, accounting for four touchdowns. Wilson threw for 250 yards and two scores and led the Bulldogs in rushing with 107 yards and two more touchdowns on 29 carries.

An Even First Quarter

Morehead State opened the scoring on a six-play, 70-yard drive, finished by Blake Fisher's 24-yard touchdown run at 8:40 of the first quarter. Drake answered almost immediately. Wilson hit Clark on a 54-yard touchdown pass, and the Bulldogs needed just two plays and 41 seconds to tie it at 7.

The rest of the quarter was a turnover trade. Trenton Radloff sacked Morehead State quarterback Bryce Patterson, who fumbled, and Brody Shuss recovered at the Morehead State 29. The Bulldogs gave it right back. Blake Surratt sacked Wilson for an 11-yard loss, then intercepted Wilson two plays later.

Drake's defense answered with a goal-line stand. Keegan Zylstra's 54-yard catch and a roughing-the-passer penalty gave Morehead State first-and-goal at the Drake 4. The Eagles got to the 1 but no further, and Dax Wiskur broke up Patterson's fourth-down pass with 23 seconds left in the quarter.

Drake Controls the Second Quarter

Drake's best drive of the first half was also its longest. Starting from their own 1, the Bulldogs went 83 yards in 22 plays and burned 7:24 off the clock. The march ended with a 33-yard field goal and a 10-7 lead.

Late in the half, Drake struck again. Wilson capped a 10-play, 72-yard drive with a 5-yard touchdown run with 1:01 left, and the Bulldogs took a 17-7 lead into halftime.

Ice Takes Over

Morehead State's offense came alive after halftime, and Ice was the main target. Patterson hit Ice for a 28-yard touchdown to finish an 11-play, 82-yard drive, then found Ice again from 11 yards out after an eight-play, 80-yard march. Just like that, Morehead State led 21-17 with 5:59 left in the third quarter.

The Eagles kept rolling. Their next drive covered 85 yards in 14 plays and 6:47, and Patterson's 15-yard touchdown pass to Cannon Dinger made it 28-17 early in the fourth quarter.

Turning Point: Drake's Final Push

Drake chipped back with a nine-play, 75-yard drive. Wilson ran for 13 and 9 yards on the march, Cody Blicharz caught a 20-yard pass on third-and-18, and Lincoln DeLaere hauled in a 35-yard pass to the 2. Wilson scored from there, then threw to Mitchell January for the two-point conversion. It was 28-25.

Morehead State's answer looked like the knockout. On third-and-4 near midfield, Patterson found Ice around the Drake 39, and Ice took it the rest of the way for a 52-yard touchdown. Morehead State led 35-25 with 5:50 to go.

Drake did not need long to answer. Lucci Fidone returned the ensuing kickoff 60 yards to the Morehead State 40. Three plays later, Wilson threw a 23-yard touchdown pass to Willis Nofsinger, and the gap was down to 35-32 with 4:40 left.

The Drake defense then made the stop it needed. Tyson Shivers sacked Patterson for a 14-yard loss on third down, and Morehead State had to punt from its own 14.

Drake took over at midfield and nearly stalled. Facing fourth-and-6 at the Morehead State 32, Wilson's pass fell incomplete, but Surratt was flagged for roughing the passer. The 15-yard penalty gave Drake a first down at the 17. On the next play, Clark ran for 13 yards to the 4. Clark scored on the following snap, and Drake led 39-35 with 49 seconds left.

Morehead State still had one more chance. Patterson hit Zylstra for 40 yards on the first play of the final drive, and the Eagles converted a fourth-and-10 with a 10-yard pass to Fisher at the Drake 46. On the next snap, with three seconds left, Devyn Davis sacked Patterson for a 16-yard loss, and Patterson fumbled. Shivers recovered at the Morehead State 38 and returned it 38 yards for a touchdown as time expired.

The Players Who Decided It

Wilson completed 18 of 33 passes for 250 yards with two touchdowns and an interception, and his 107 rushing yards led all players. Clark had two catches for 62 yards, including the 54-yard score, plus the go-ahead touchdown run. DeLaere caught two passes for 68 yards, and Nofsinger had three catches for 39 yards and a touchdown.

Shivers was the defensive standout for Drake, with 11 tackles and two sacks, including the late one that forced the punt. Shivers also scored the final touchdown on the fumble return.

Morehead State's passing game was outstanding. Patterson completed 20 of 39 passes for 371 yards and four touchdowns without an interception, and Ice finished with six catches for 175 yards and three touchdowns. Dinger added six catches for 76 yards and a score. Fisher ran for 94 yards and a touchdown on 20 carries. Sidney Webb made 19 tackles, and Surratt had a sack and an interception.

The Numbers That Matter

Morehead State outgained Drake, 489 yards to 405, and held the ball for 33:38 to Drake's 26:22. The Eagles were also better on third down, converting 8 of 15 to Drake's 7 of 17. Drake won the turnover battle, though. The Bulldogs forced two Morehead State fumbles, both on sacks, and lost only one interception.

The difference was in the details late. Drake converted two of its three fourth-down tries, while Morehead State went 1 for 2. Drake was flagged just twice for 14 yards. Morehead State was flagged four times for 37 yards, and the biggest one came at the worst time. The full numbers are in the ESPN box score (opens in a new tab).

What It Means

For Drake, it was a much-needed bounce-back win after the 33-21 loss to Butler a week ago. The Bulldogs host San Diego on Nov. 7.

For Morehead State, it was a painful one to lose. The Eagles had a 10-point lead with under six minutes left, a week after their 38-31 win over Stetson. Morehead State plays at Marist on Nov. 7.

The Last Word

Morehead State scored 35 points and threw for 371 yards, and it still was not enough. Drake kept answering, used its chances late and left Kentucky with a 45-35 win.

Sources: ESPN box score, play-by-play and team stats. More college football coverage on Undrafted.

Photos: Drake Athletics.