TAHLEQUAH – Washburn scored 21 unanswered points in the second quarter to drop Northeastern State at home 70-13 on Saturday afternoon on Gable Field at Doc Wadley Stadium.
The Ichabods only held the ball for 4:04 in the second quarter and put up 174 yards of offense on the RiverHawks defense.
The turning point proved to be a fourth-down conversion for Washburn at the very end of the first quarter with the RiverHawks trailing 14-7. Needing two yards at midfield, the Ichabods picked up three to move the chains with the drive resulting in the beginning of three TDs for Washburn.
NSU's score came on an 11-play drive on their first possession of the game. Jacob Medrano completed an 18-yard pass to Kevin Jackson for the touchdown.
Out of the locker room, Washburn averaged 13-yards a carry in the third quarter and continued to stack up the points with 21. Jackson had NSU lone scoring play in the second half on a one-yard run up the middle with eight minutes remaining in the third. The RiverHawks would get the ball on that drive off a Taoheed Karim fumble recovery.
In the fourth, Washburn scored two touchdowns with one coming off a 49 yard run and the other on a punting miscue that put the ball on the NSU 14-yard line. With the short field, the Ichabods needed three plays to find the endzone for the tenth time.
The Ichabods put up 595 yards of offense on the RiverHawks with 344 coming from the rush. Washburn quarterback Mitch Schurig went 21-for-24 with 251 yards and had two touchdown passes.
Northeastern State countered with 279 yards with Medrano going 24-for-34 with 195 yards and one touchdown pass. Mark Wheeland caught seven passes for 74 yards, and Jackson had both of the team's touchdowns.
Ty Nichols and Robert Wilkerson both led the RiverHawks with nine tackles. Courtland Clark had five tackles and one forced fumble.
"I mean you look up and again it's the end of the first quarter and it's a 14-7 game, that's a small stepping stone," said head coach J.J. Eckert. "It's the momentum the continuation of being able to stay on the field offensively and not having to punt the football and have five short porches for the defense to have to go defend… you look up and a 14-7 first quarter turns into a 35-7 halftime, and it's no different it's the same results that we were dealing with previously. Like anything else, I mean you got to win third down offensively, you got to win third down defensively, and you got to find a way to create some momentum in the equation."
Saturday's loss brought NSU to 0-6 (0-6 MIAA) and snapped a four-game skid by Washburn, who improves to 2-4 (2-4 MIAA).
Notes
- Both NSU and Washburn quarterbacks opened the contest 10-for-10 with a touchdown pass.
- Northeastern State honored its 1994 NAIA National Championship team at halftime.
- The RiverHawks passed the ball a season-high 34 times with Medrano completing a season-high 24 passes.
- Northeastern State entered the game with the fifth-lowest penalties in the nation (20) was flagged 11 times for 93 yards.
Coming up: Northeastern State will travel to Lincoln for the first time since 2013 this upcoming Saturday for a 2 p.m. kickoff.
