Oct 18, 2025
DECORAH, Iowa – Jayden Thoreson and Noah Cracraft put on a show in Decorah Saturday, connecting for four touchdowns as the Simpson College football team rolled past Luther 36-3.
Cracraft hauled in scoring catches of 32, 38, 40, and 21 yards, tying the program record for receiving touchdowns in a game, while Thoreson completed 88.2 percent of his passes (30 of 34) for 450 yards. Simpson (3-3, 2-2 A-R-C) also got a rushing touchdown from Lucas Knox and a 23-yard field goal from Aiden Lanier to improve to 3-0 in enemy territory this season.
HIGHLIGHTS
- Simpson struck first just three minutes in as Jayden Thoreson found Noah Cracraft for a 32-yard touchdown after multiple double-digit runs by Demarico Young. Luther (0-7, 0-5 A-R-C) blocked the PAT, leaving the Storm up 6-0.
- On its next possession, Simpson drove 93 yards over 10 plays, capped by a 7-yard rushing score from Lucas Knox to make it 12-0. A two-point attempt was unsuccessful.
- A potential three-score lead was halted by a fumble in the end zone, but Luther failed to capitalize, turning the ball over on downs with 6:44 left in the first half. Simpson responded quickly, with Thoreson and Cracraft connecting for a second time less than a minute later to push the lead to 19-0.
- The Norse finally got on the board with a 44-yard field goal from Sean Medcalfe on a 13-play drive, trimming the deficit to 19-3. Simpson answered immediately, with Aiden Lanier's 23-yard field goal 44 seconds later giving the Storm a 22-3 halftime lead.
- Early in the third quarter, Thoreson-to-Cracraft struck again on a 40-yard touchdown reception. The duo's fourth connection came in the fourth quarter, sealing the 36-3 victory and tying the program record for most receiving touchdowns in a single game.
STARS OF THE SHOW
- Jayden Thoreson: 30-34, 450 yards, 4 TD
- Noah Cracraft: 11 rec, 230 yards, 4 TD
- Carson Penyich: 6 rec, 107 yards
- Demarico Young: 16 att, 110 yards
- Noah Noland: 10 tackles (1.0 TFL)
- Adonis McKenzie: 8 tackles, 1 pass breakup
- Connor Stephens: 7 tackles (2.5 TFL)
- Aiden Lanier: 23-yard FG
NOTES
- Noah Cracraft's four receiving touchdowns tie a program record set by Mike Tiedemann on Nov. 15, 2003 against Upper Iowa. His 230 yards are the most by a Storm receiver since Reed Worth amassed 239 against Loras on Oct. 15, 2022.
- Cracraft now has 21 career touchdowns, becoming the eighth Storm to surpass 20 career receiving scores. Seven of his 21 touchdowns have been against the Norse.
- Jayden Thoreson's 88.2% completion percentage is the best by a Storm signal caller since Taylor Nelson completed 23 of 26 (88.5%) passes against Dubuque on Nov. 2, 2013.
- Thoreson becomes just the third quarterback since 1999 to record 450 passing yards in a game, joining J Jensen III (455 yards, 10/1/2022) and Mike Donnenwerth (516, 11/15/2003).
- For the third time this season, the Storm did not register a punt. Coming into the season, Simpson had not accomplished that feat since at least 1998.
- Simpson accumulated 676 yards of total offense, the most since 699 against Buena Vista on Nov. 10, 2018. The Storm threw for 466, the most since 2022, and added 210 yards on the ground.
UP NEXT
Simpson hosts Dubuque for a Homecoming matchup next Saturday at Buxton Stadium.