Mustangs Rally to Beat Western Oregon, 24-17

WOU QB Mark Thorson completed 21 of 45 passes for 260 yards and one touchdown.

Isaiah Smith had eight catches for 156 yards and a touchdown in Western Oregon's 24-17 loss to Cal Poly. Photo courtesy: WOU Athletics

SAN LUIS OBISPO, Calif. - Cal Poly scored 24 consecutive points to overcome a 10-0 deficit, but still had to withstand a late Western Oregon charge to win a 24-17 non-conference football game in front of 8,837 fans at Alex Spanos Stadium.

It was the first loss of the season for NCAA Division II Western Oregon, who fell to 3-1.

CFS (College Football Subdivision) Cal Poly improved to 2-2 on the year. The Mustangs came into the game ranked 24th nationally in the division formerly called I-AA.

"I was really pleased with our effort," said WOU head coach Arne Ferguson. "We had control of the game early, but we didn't execute well after that and penalties hurt us. Overall, I am very pleased, because we played a nationally ranked team a level above us, but we just couldn't quite get over the hump."

Isaiah Smith had eight catches for 156 yards in a monster effort and Ben Kuenzi had 78 yards on the ground. JT Gilmore led the Wolves defense with 16 tackles.

In a game with large momentum swings, WOU struck first on a one-yard run by Ben Kuenzi, capping a 9-play, 61-yard drive.

Western Oregon would score again early in the second quarter on a 37-yard field goal by Bruce Voges, after a 32-yard pass from Mark Thorson to Isaiah Smith set the table to make the count 10-0.

Meanwhile, the WOU defense forced Cal Poly to three-and-out on its first three possessions.

The Mustangs wouldn't record its initial first down in the game until the 11:37 mark of the second quarter.

Later in the half, the hosts would finally get on the board after a Wolves fumble gave them a short field.

An 18-yard pass from Jonathan Dally to Tredal Tolver made it a 10-7 ball game.

After a first half where WOU had a five minute advantage in time of possession, Cal Poly came out in the second half and swapped momentum with the visitors.

The Mustangs marched 73 yards on its first drive of the second half, scoring on a Dally to Jono Grayson pass of seven yards.

Grayson also had a 32-yard run on the drive, as the Mustangs took their first lead of the game at 14-10.

Cal Poly would later mount a 99-yard drive and score on an 18-yard pass from Dally to Tolver to make it 21-10.

A 25-yard field goal by Andrew Gardner made it 24-10 with 7:50 left, and seemingly nailed the lid on the coffin of the contest.

But on a fourth down, deep in its own territory, punter Juan Rodriguez fired a pass 50 yards in the air to Smith (for 36 yards) to keep WOU's hopes alive.

A 22-yard pass from Thorson to Shaun Kauleinamoku furthered the drive, and Thorson would later find Smith in the end zone for 12 yards to make the count 24-17.

Cal Poly picked up a pair of first downs to kill most of the clock, giving the Wolves just one play for a hail mary. Thorson found Smith, but it was far short of pay dirt.

"Our kids loved playing in this atmosphere," said Ferguson, who team played in front of the second largest crowd in WOU history. "We kept our composure and enjoyed playing in a hostile environment. Our kids honestly believe that we could have won, and they are disappointed."

WOU will have a week off before traveling to Humboldt State for another road bout on Oct. 6.

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