DUBUQUE, Iowa - The University of Dubuque football team scored five touchdowns in the opening quarter of play to put the game away in a 66-14 final at Chalmers Field.
UD scored twice by the defense in the opening five minutes of play. Just 15 seconds in the game Ben Rashid picked off a pass and returned it 17 yards for a score to grab an early lead 7-0. The offense would score just three minutes later on a five play 58 yard drive at 11:!7 of the first quarter off a 12 yard pass from Ben Gultig to Za'Cameron Brice. The Spartans second defensive touchdown would happen on the next series of the Storm when Elijah Diblich intercepted a pass from 34 yards and returned it for the pick six. UD extended the lead to 21-0 in less than five minutes into the game.
The Spartans wouldn't slow down and would score at 7:23 when Gultig found Todd Simmons for a 65 yard strike in a two play 75 yard drive in 41 seconds. UD's running game would attack the Storm defense with Kallion Buckner broke it open on a first down 62 yard touchdown in just 12 seconds at 5:13 of the first. He scored again early in the second quarter off a four yard scamper on a nine play, 60 yard drive at 10:04 to increase their lead 42-0. Simpson chipped away after scoring on a 15 yard pass 5:03 left before halftime. Liam Smith kicked an 18-yard field goal with 11 seconds to halftime to extend the first half score 45-7.
The Spartans would score 21 points in the second half when K.C. Moore came in under center and tossed a 18 yard strike to Jamari Jenkins with 12:13 left in the third quarter. Buckner would grab the hat trick at 4:53 when he scored from nine yards out for his third score of the evening. Brandon Coppola made an appearance at quarterback late in the game and would score from eight yards at 11:36 of the fourth. UD allowed just their second score of the night with 10:07 left when back-up Storm quarterback tossed a bullet in the end zone from 15 yards out to end the scoring with the Spartans collecting an explosive offensive output 66-14.
UD capped off the evening under the lights with 648 yards of offense in 73 plays. Kallion Buckner pounded the night with 141 yards in 15 carries (9.4 yards a carry). Gultig was near perfect with 11-14 passing attempts for 193 yards with two touchdowns. K.C. Moore completed 10-13 attempts for 138 yards and a touchdown. Benjamin Rodriguez was 2-2 for 29 yards, and Brandon Coppola ran three times for 16 yards and a score.
Todd Simmons was the favorite target with 10 catches for 124 yards and collected 54 yards after the catch. Wade Sheets caught six passes for 115 yards and had 40 yards gained after the catches.
In defense, Diblich led with six tackles, but compiled a pair of interceptions for return yards of 34 and the games' third touchdown of the afternoon. LaShawn Walker had four tackles and Garrett Hertzfeldt had four tackles with one sack for loss of nine yards and two tackles for losses of 10 yards. Dalton Wiid had four tackles and a forced fumble. Stone Gorman had four tackles and a pass break-up and Caleb Smith finished with four tackles as well.
In special team, Sheets returned one punt for eight yards, Gary Young returned a kick-off for 25 yards, and Orion Pugh returned a kick for six yards. Liam Smith kicked off 12 times for 658 yards including five touchbacks.
The Spartans (3-3 overall, 3-1 in A-R-C) will travel to Cedar Rapids, Iowa next week to face the Coe College Kohawks on October 15 at 1 p.m.
Football Cruise to 66-14 Win Over the Storm
/seasons/2022/boxscores/20221008_yubw.xml
2022
Simpson
14
Dubuque
66
| Final | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | T |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Simpson (0-5) | 0 | 7 | 0 | 7 | 14 |
| Dubuque (3-3) | 35 | 10 | 14 | 7 | 66 |
Oct 08, 2022