Hail Mary

’Birds outlasted by St. Mary’s at home

By DAVID DeMILLE
UNIVERSITY JOURNAL

St. Mary’s running back Jeff Brown punched in a 3-yard score with just over two minutes remaining to seal the Gaels’ 24-14 win over SUU.
The Thunderbirds had moved to within 17-14 on a 1-yard run by quarterback Charles Henderson, but the Gaels responded well, just as they did throughout the game, and a Greg Kavulich interception on the next SUU possession put the game out of reach.
SUU had been moving the ball well on offense, again showing explosiveness in the passing game as Henderson finished 8-14 for 177 yards, but the ’Birds averaged on 2.5 yards per carry on the ground and weren’t able to capitalize in scoring situations, finishing with 288 total yards.
“That’s a lot of yards to finish with only 14 points,” head coach C. Ray Gregory said. “The kicking game hurt us, and we hurt ourselves a lot of times. You’ve got to give St. Mary’s some credit; they had a good game plan and did enough to win.”
“We don’t have a fullback,” he added. “(Jay) Gaynor’s hurt, and when you don’t have a true fullback it’s tough to run.”
Dave Pretzer missed a 27-yarder wide in the opening quarter, and Skip Williams missed a 50-yard attempt at the end of the first half. Each saw time as the kicker, making one extra point apiece.
The Gaels received a great game from the versatile Brown, who ran for 78 yards on 11 carries and caught three passes for 47 yards, finishing with two touchdowns.
The SUU defense did a solid job keeping the team in the game, as the Gaels had plenty of opportunities, starting several drives in SUU territory.
Linebacker Bart Amundsen led the team with eight tackles, including two for a loss, while Ryan Thompson and Steve Smith each had seven. Smith also had an interception.
Lineman Major Salanoa had three tackles for a loss, a sack and a fumble recovery, but was more concerned with the team getting back on the winning track.
“It’s about digging down deep and searching,” Salanoa said. “We’ve got to stay together as a team and not get too down on ourselves.”
The ’Birds continued the improved play in the passing game as Wes Patterson, Cory Ashby and Nick Ervin all caught two passes, and Dustin Randolph made his presence felt after missing some time with an injury catching a 23-yard pass and filling in at slotback after playing quarterback most of the year.
Henderson led the team with 63 yards, but it took 26 carries. He scored both SUU touchdowns on short runs, punching the ball in from the 1-yard line.
With running back Gaynor out, Colin Ash filled in with 25 yards on eight carries, and Chris Williams ran for 22 yards on four attempts, helping the offense to take the ball up and down the field after a big game against top-ranked Montana the week previous.
“We have more confidence now,” Ashby said. “Moving it against Montana really helped us to feel good about the offense. It’s too bad we didn’t move it more today. I want to come out and

 

SUU quarterback Charles Henderson outruns St. Mary’s defenders Ramon Burley-Johnson (42) and David Taylor (90) to get the pass of. Henderson threw for 177 yards and ran for 63 more, but it wasn’t enough to get the Thunderbirds the win, despite an offense that contnues to move the ball effectively. The 1-7 Thunderbirds head to Arkansas State next Saturday to try and pick up their first win since the season-opener.
ERIN MADSON / UNIVERSITY JOURNAL

win, and that’s what everyone on this team wants to do.”
The Gaels did a good job of hanging onto the ball with only one turnover, and they converted nine of 16 tries on 3rd down, not allowing SUU any breaks.
SUU started the game with a fumble on the opening kickoff, and bad field position would hurt the ’Birds all game.
St. Mary’s scored a field goal on the possession following that kickoff, and then scored a touchdown after a shanked SUU punt went for only 18 yards, helping the Gaels to a 10-7 halftime lead.
Starting quarterback Stephen Ratliff left in the first half for St. Mary’s, but sophomore Trevor Johnston did a solid job filling in.
Johnston didn’t complete a pass, but the Gaels outscored the ’Birds 21-7 after he entered the game.
Running back Chris Harrell led St. Mary’s with a career-high 105 yards on 13 carries, many of those yards coming on a 33-yarder on a fake punt late in the first half.
The fake didn’t result in any points for the Gaels, but the fourth-down conversion was a telling example of how SUU was unable to do just enough to get the win.
The ’Birds have a tough test next week against Arkansas State, but have reasons for optimism. SUU won the only meeting between the two in 1997, and the Indians have three straight losses following a 26-21 nail-biter with New Mexico State.
The key could be confidence, as a long losing streak can often make players forget how to win.
“We’re trying to switch things up in practice and get the guys to motivated,” Gregory said. “It’s tough for us. Good teams can overcome anything, but right now we aren’t a good team.”
The Thunderbirds will get their shot to improve against the Indians Saturday at 4 p.m.