OSHKOSH, Wis.- UW-Oshkosh football came back all the way back from a 17-point deficit and tied the score at 35 with 4:54 remaining in its season finale against UW-Stout Polytechnic on Saturday (Nov. 14), but a 78-yard Blue Devil touchdown and a turnover on 4th-and-12 turned into a 42-35 loss.
Oshkosh (3-7, 1-6 WIAC) led Stout (6-4, 4-3 WIAC), 197-121, in rushing yards by averaging 7.0 yards per carry, but scored once on the ground to the Blue Devils' three. Stout held a 432-285 yard advantage in passing with a 25.4-yard average per completion while Oshkosh completed five more passes and scored through the air four times to its two
The Titans held a 32:07-27:53 led in time of possession, converted 6 of 14 third downs, 1 of 2 fourth downs and tallied points in all three trips to the red zone, but committed 15 penalties for 110 yards against the Blue Devils' 3-penalty, 19-yard total.
Demir Ashiru (Plainfield, Ill./Plainfield North) completed 22 of his 34 passing attempts for 285 yards and four touchdowns against an interception and a sack while adding 84 yards and another touchdown on the ground.
Caden DuMelle (Algonquin, Ill./Harry D. Jacobs) was Oshkosh's second-leading rusher with 78 yards on six attempts.
Tommy Hammond (Crystal Lake, Ill./Crystal Lake Central) led the receiving corps with two touchdowns on six catches for a season-high 130 yards.
Sam Peterson (Green Bay/Green Bay Preble) snagged a touchdown while tallied 43 yards on three catches and
Carter Howard (Kimberly/Kimberly) caught another on two receptions for 19 yards.
Bryce Manders (Brown Deer/Brown Deer) led the Titans' defense with six tackles (two solo), his sixth sack of the season and his second interception of the year.
Eli Curry (Geneva, Ill./Geneva Community) recorded five pass breakups along with three tackles including one for a loss.
The Titans received the opening kickoff and reached the Blue Devils' 33-yard line before an interception gave Stout the ball and a 7-point lead nine plays later. Oshkosh punted its next possession before Manders returned the favor with his interception and Oshkosh used eight plays to march 87 yards to the end zone to tie the game, capped off by a 49-yard rushing touchdown for Ashiru.
The Blue Devils scored 17 unanswered points with a 1-yard rushing touchdown, a 41-yard field goal and a 91-yard passing touchdown to secure a 24-7 lead with 1:03 remaining in the first half.
In the following drive, Ashiru found Hammond open for a 43-yard play to the Blue Devils' 24 and the two connected again for a 24-yard touchdown following a Stout timeout, cutting the deficit to 24-14 at halftime.
Stout's first drive of the third quarter stalled out at the Oshkosh 16-yard line, so it settled for a 38-yard field goal. After a pair of punts, DuMelle darted out for a 42-yard gain that set up an eventual 10-yard touchdown reception for Howard.
The Titans climbed back within a point of Stout on Hammond's 7-yard touchdown catch and they tied the score at 35-35 on Peterson's score following an 8-point score for the Blue Devils.
Stout quickly went ahead again following a 3-play, 91-yard touchdown drive with 3:25 to go.
Two more punts gave the Titans the ball at their 21 with 2:20 on the clock. An incomplete pass, a short run and a run for a loss brought up 4th-and-12. Ashiru completed a pass to
LJ Kerr (Elgin, Ill./Burlington Central) for a first down and more, but it was determined that he crossed the line of scrimmage before releasing the ball and the Blue Devils kneeled out the rest of the clock.
The Titans 3-win total is the lowest since a 2-8 mark in 1994 and the last time they went 1-6 in league play was 2003.
