CLAREMONT — Devin Bullock went off, Aaron Jones made the defensive play of the game andKwame Do was clutch down the stretch.
But despite having a 13-point lead late in the fourth quarter, the Occidental College football team was on the wrong side of an incredible comeback, losing in the final seconds 45-42 at Zinda Field on Saturday.
Season Impact: The Tigers fall to 3-3 overall and 2-2 in SCIAC play. CMS improves to 4-2 and 3-1.
After Chaz Shizumura picked off CMS quarterback Trey Reynolds and Kwame Do walked in his second touchdown of the game to give the Tigers a 42-29 lead with 1:23 remaining, it looked like Oxy was leaving Claremont with a gritty victory.
But the drama was just starting.
Reynolds and Trey Smith connected to make it a one possession game (42-36) with 28 seconds left, capping a 4-play, 62-yard drive. CMS recovered the ensuing onside kick and marched down to the 5-yard line with 7 seconds left. Then Reynolds hit Smith again in the end zone, giving CMS a 43-42 lead after the PAT and shocking the Tigers.
CMS scored a safety on the final kickoff as the Tigers tried to lateral the ball and keep the play alive.
Bullock had 11 catches for 188 yards and three touchdowns, including a 60-yarder from Bryan Scotton Oxy's third play from scrimmage. Scott finished 30 of 41 for 336 yards and two touchdowns.
Do, who was named the SCIAC Male Student-Athlete of the Week two weeks in a row, had 159 yards on 26 carries, putting him over 1,000 for the third season in a row. Do is Oxy's all-time career rushing yards leader with 3,582 with three games to play. He needs 4,044 to catch CMS' Ryan Gocong who is believed to be the SCIAC's All-Time Leader.
Do, who set Oxy's single season rushing yards record at 1,325 in 2013 and is currently third in Division III with 172 rushing yards per game, even threw a for a two-point conversion, findingBrandon Hohengarten in the end zone after his go-ahead touchdown run in the fourth quarter.
Shane Pico led CMS with 24 carries for 194 yards and three rushing touchdowns.
CMS scored two points on a blocked point after touchdown on Oxy's first score of the second half when Geno Quaid ran the ball back 98 yards to the end zone, cutting the Tigers' lead to 27-23.
With CMS looking in control of the first half, Jones made a momentum-changing scoop and score on a fumble in the second quarter, running the ball 63 yards for a touchdown to even the game at 14-14 with 7 minutes left in the half.
Jones' TD was the first of two crucial takeaways for the Tigers in the first half that helped them jump out to a 21-14 advantage.
On the Stags next drive, Smith tried to make a second effort on a play around the goal line and coughed up the ball, sending it rolling into the pylon for an Oxy touchback.
Nicholas Mungia led Oxy with 14 tackles and Chris Garcia had nine, including two for a loss and a sack.
Next Game: The Tigers travel back to Claremont to face Pomona-Pitzer at 1 p.m. on Oct. 31. in the Battle for the Drum, the oldest college football rivalry on the West Coast.
Week 1: Tigers win shootout at Puget Sound, 46-41
Week 2: Pacific (OR) rallies to beat Tigers
Week 3: La Verne Rushes Past Oxy
Week 4: Tigers Crush Poets to Keep Shoes
Week 5: Do, Bullock Lead Tigers Past Defending Champion Chapman
Athlete of the Week: Kwame Do was named SCIAC Male Student-Athlete of the Week in back-to-back weeks after running for 417 yards with seven touchdowns in a pair of wins.
Bryan Scott was named SCIAC Male Student-Athlete of the Week on Sept. 15 after throwing for 421 yards and five touchdowns in Oxy's season opener at Puget Sound.
Getting Ink: Oxy head coach Doug Semones was featured in the Los Angeles Times in August.
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