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EDMOND (Sept. 24) – A gallant upset bid came up just short Saturday night at Wantland Stadium as Central Oklahoma dropped a hard-fought 30-24 Lone Star Conference decision to No. 10-ranked and unbeaten Midwestern State.
The Bronchos took a 24-17 lead on the first play of the final period on Ethan Sharp's 21-yard TD pass to Tucker Holland, but the Mustangs answered back a minute later with 69-yard scoring dash by Keidrick Jackson to tie it.
UCO missed a 45-yard field goal on its next possession and MSU then drove for the winning score, marching 73 yards in 11 plays before Chauncey Harris' 11-yard TD run capped it with 5:13 left to play.
The Bronchos had two more possessions, but were forced to punt on the first and then Sharp was intercepted with just over a minute remaining as the Mustangs held on.
"I'm proud of the way we competed and we gave ourselves a chance to win," UCO coach Tracy Holland said. "We did some good things offensively and made some plays on defense, but we didn't get in done and it was a tough loss."
Josh Birmingham rushed for 183 yards -- the 37th-best game in school history -- and two TDs on 18 carries, with his 81-yard scoring sprint early in the third quarter giving UCO a 14-10 lead. Sharp ended up 25-of-37 passing for 224 yards, with Matt Jackson pulling in seven aerials for 82 yards.
Linebacker Turner Troup led the defense with 13 tackles and an interception, while defensive backs Randy Stanley and Brad Harmon had nine stops apiece.
The Mustangs finished with 475 yards, picking up 149 of their 263 rushing yards in the final 15 minutes. Jackson ended with 137 yards on 11 carries and Zack Eskridge was 21-of-33 passing for 212 yards with one TD passing and another rushing.
MSU broke on top 7-0 midway through the first period on Eskridge's 24-yard TD pass to Marcus Mathis, with the Bronchos tying it on their next possession with a 10-play, 72-yard drive.
Sharp had passes of 20 and 23 yards to Dolphin Davis to key the drive and Birmingham ended it with a one-yard burst up the middle to tie it.
It stayed that way until late in the half when MSU took a 10-7 lead into intermission on a 42-yard field goal with 28 seconds remaining.
UCO took its first lead in the opening minute of the third quarter when Birmingham took a handoff, zipped through a huge hole up the middle and outraced the MSU defense the rest of the way for an 81-yard TD, tied for the 12th-longest scoring run in school history.
The Mustangs answered back with a 68-yard scoring drive to regain the lead at 17-14 with 10:16 left in the quarter, but the Bronchos tied it on their next offensive try when Chris Robbs nailed a 25-yard field goal to end a 46-yard drive that was keyed by Sharp's 23-yard pass to Jackson.
UCO went back on top with its next possession, getting a 42-yard run from Birmingham on the last play of the third quarter before Sharp found a wide-open Holland from 21 yards out on the first play of the fourth to make it 24-17.
It was a short-lived lead, however, with Jackson ripping off his 69-yard TD run less than a minute later to tie it and MSU made it 30-24 on Harris' 11-yard scoring run. Stanley blocked the extra point after the final TD to keep UCO within six, but the Mustangs hung on.
The Bronchos fell to 1-3 and 1-2, while MSU improved to 4-0 overall and 3-0 in the league. UCO stays home next week to open LSC North Division play against East Central.
