ELGIN — A night which began with great promise for the Wolfpack ended with everyone wondering what might have been.
The outcome of the game had yet to be decided early in the fourth quarter, then Creighton pulled away to defeat the Wolfpack 64 to 36.
After surrendering 28 unanswered points midway through the game, the Wolfpack suddenly seized momentum in the latter stages of the third quarter.
Coach Randy Eisenhauer said the defensive coordinator’s fiery speech to the team during a break in the action seemed to light a fire under the Wolfpack.
On the ensuing possession they started on their own 20-yard line and began to move the ball on the ground. Three carries by Andrew Fangman and one from fullback Kyle Kallhoff (nursing a hand injury) moved the ball down to the Bulldogs’ 30-yard line. Then quarterback Seth Schumacher went to the air and found senior Dylan Behnk across the middle of the field for a 30-yard touchdown strike. Chad Bode added the two-point conversion and suddenly the Wolfpack were within striking distance.
They would get even closer a few plays later when the defense held on downs when Austin Meis tackled Lane Walton for a loss on fourth down.
The Wolfpack took over on their 37-yard line and one play later they were near the goalline thanks to a 33-yard fingertip catch by Behnk. On the very next play, Fangman bulled his way into the endzone from 10 yards out. A successful two-point conversion made the score 42 to 30 with plenty of time left in the game.
From his safety position, Schumacher made the biggest play of the night for the Wolfpack defense, intercepting Diedrichsen in Bulldog territory.
Creighton’s defense rose to the occasion as the Wolfpack failed to convert on a fourth-and-five.
Two plays later, Neumann put a dagger into the Wolfpack’s heart with a 56-yard touchdown reception.
The Wolfpack then took the ensuing kickoff and drove the length of the field before losing a fumble on the Bulldog’s three-yard line. On the very next play, Neumann went 77 yards to score, putting the game out of reach.
Reserves for each team would score in the game’s final minutes to make the final score 64 to 36.
First half highlights
The Wolfpack lit up the scoreboard on their first possession of the game when Fangman took the ball 49 yards to paydirt.
Fangman added the team’s second touchdown of the first half on a 35-yard run. Quarterback Seth Schumacher’s two-point conversion pass was good to Dylan Behnk to knot the score at 14-all.
The Bulldogs returned the ensuing kickoff to the Wolfpack one-yard line. Two plays later, Diedrichsen scored on an eight-yard run to claim the lead. Then, just before halftime, Creighton added another touchdown on a Diedrichsen to Neumann touchdown pass to take a 26 to 14 lead, setting the stage for the second half shootout.
Eisenhauer said he told the team at halftime “we were doing everything we wanted to.” He said Creighton’s big plays allowed them to take a halftime lead, but the game’s outcome had yet to be decided. “We just had a few plays that didn’t go our way.”
“We were a whole different team for about seven minutes” Coach Eisenhauer said about the Wolfpack closing the gap in the fourth quarter.
Creighton (1-0) was led by Neumann who had four receiving touchdowns, one rushing touchdown and one touchdown via punt return for Creighton.
The Wolfpack were led by Fangman with three rushing touchdowns, Behnk had one touchdown reception.
Fangman led the Wolfpack with 172 yards rushing on 24 carries. Behnk had four receptions for 70 yards.
Schumacher connected on 14 of 21 pass attempts for 109 yards.
On defense, Kyle Kallhoff, playing through the pain of a hand injury, led tacklers with 16 tackles. Meis had a quarterback sack and Schumacher had one interception.
“We’re going to go on and get ready,” Eisenhauer said about the Wolfpack’s next game.
The Wolfpack (1-1) will have a bye this week. They will next be in action on Friday, Sept. 18, when they play at Hartington.
Creighton 64, Wolfpack 36
Bulldogs……14 12 16 22 — 64
Wolfpack……6 8 14 6 — 34
EPPJ — Andrew Fangman 49 run (PAT failed)
CRE — Ryan Neumann 57 punt return (PAT failed)
CRE — Neumann 5 run (Austin Diedrichsen run)
EPPJ — Fangman 35 run (Seth Schumacher pass to Dylan Behnk)
CRE — Diedrichsen 8 run (PAT failed)
CRE — Diedrichsen 24 pass to Neumann (PAT failed)
CRE — Diedrichsen 24 pass to Neumann (Diedrichsen pass to Tyler Stubben)
CRE — Diedrichsen 16 pass to Neumann (Diedrichsen pass to Lane Walton)
EPPJ — Schumacher 30 pass to Behnk (Chad Bode run)
EPPJ — Fangman 10 run (Schumacher pass to Fangman)
CRE — Diedrichsen 56 pass to Neumann (Diedrichsen pass to Ean Stacken)
CRE — Neumann 77 run (PAT failed)
CRE — Alex Zimmerer 3 run (Brady Wortman pass to Bryze Zimmerer)
EPPJ — Hunter Reestman 19 pass to Chase Preister (PAT failed)
Team Statistics EPPJ
First Downs 15
Penalties/Yds 3/15
Rushing/Yds 48/221
Passing 16/23/0
Passing Yds 160
Total Offense 381
Interceptions by 1
Fumble recoveries 0
Individual statistics
Passing — Hunter Reestman 2/2/0 — 51, Seth Schumacher 14/21/0 — 109
Rushing (carries/yds) — Kyle Schumacher 1/1, Kyle Kallhoff 4/15, Chad Bode 14/33, Andrew Fangman 24/172, Seth Schumacher 5/0
Receiving — Dylan Behnk 4/70, Kyle Kallhoff 1/11, Austin Meis 3/22, Chase Preister 2/51, Andrew Fangman 2/6
Tackles (solo/assists) — Dylan Behnk 0/7, Kyle Schumacher 0/1, Joseph Bailey 0/1, Kyle Kallhoff 4/12, Austin Meis 3/6, Miles Schrage 0/2, Chad Bode 1/9, Chase Preister 3/3, Alois Warner 0/2, Scott Moser 2/9, Liam Heithoff 0/4, Hayes Miller 1/4, Kalin Henn 1/2, Andrew Fangman 4/9, Seth Schumacher 4/5, Ervin Dohmen 1/0
Sacks — Austin Meis (1)
Interceptions — Seth Schumacher (1)
