UW-Oshkosh owns a 5-0 record for the first time since 1968 after its 50-13 victory over UW-Eau Claire on Saturday (Oct. 6) at J.J. Keller Field at Titan Stadium.
The Titans (2-0 WIAC), ranked 18th by the American Football Coaches Association, set program records with 35 first downs and 69 rushing attempts. UW-Oshkosh totaled 442 yards on the ground, while recording its biggest win in 64 meetings with the Blugolds (1-4/1-1 WIAC). This was the seventh straight win for the Titans, who scored 35+ points in five of those games.
On the day's opening play, Zach Kasuboski (So. • Wautoma) ran for 14 yards. Nate Wara (Sr. • Oshkosh) then ran for a gain of 12 and threw for a pickup of 11. On his second quarterback sneak try, Wara ran in from the one-yard line to go up, 6-0.
The Titans went to a power running game early in the second quarter. UW-Oshkosh ran the ball for at least seven yards on seven straight carries. Cole Myhra (Jr. • Menomonee Falls) notched a 13-yard run for the longest play. On first down from the 12, Jake Dostalek (Jr. • Waterford) scampered up the middle for a touchdown that made it 13-0 with 11:47 on the second-quarter clock.
UW-Oshkosh tallied two more touchdowns before halftime. With 1:22 to go, Myhra burst through the line, spun out of a tackle and crossed the goal line for a 17-yard score. Wara then lofted a 46-yard rainbow to Kasuboski with 26 seconds left to make it a 26-0 lead at the break.
UW-Eau Claire ran on 17 of its first 20 plays. The Blugolds totaled seven first downs and 127 yards during the first half. To start the third quarter, Austin Neu hit Nick Hirsch for 23 yards. Cody Gerver then hauled in a 24-yard touchdown to finish the drive.
The Titans had an immediate response, with Wara firing a 44-yard completion to Caleb Voss (Jr. • Van Dyne). Two plays later, Myhra booked a nine-yard touchdown run to gain the 33-7 advantage.
Following a Blugold punt, the UW-Oshkosh offense got back to work. Kasuboski ran for 15 yards and Wara sprinted for another 10. Next, the Titans snapped the ball quickly as UW-Eau Claire tried to substitute defenders. Mitch Hintz (Jr. • Kimberly) took advantage of the confused Blugolds, running 26 yards down the left sideline for a touchdown.
During the opening minute of the fourth quarter, Nate Ray (So. • Verona) drilled a 34-yard field goal. The Titans had a 12-play, 85-yard march for their final touchdown. Jake Dostalek reached paydirt with a one-yard run that made it 50-7 with 1:52 left.
UW-Eau Claire got a one-yard scoring run from Mark Munger as time expired. The Blugolds compiled 298 total yards, including 71 rushing from Joel Sweeney (14 carries) and 48 receiving by Jared Staege (two catches). Neu finished with 95 passing yards on 8-of-14 throws.
While the Blugolds went 3-for-12 on third down, the Titans were an impressive 12-for-16. UW-Oshkosh racked up 637 total yards. Wara accounted for 198 yards passing and 104 rushing. The Titans also had Myhra run for 83, Kasuboski for 78 and Dostalek for 72. Voss led all receivers with 98 yards on three grabs.
UW-Oshkosh counted four sacks in the contest, including 1.5 by both Alex Smith (So. • Oakfield) and Ryan Stefaniak (Jr. • Milwaukee). Nick Jolin (Sr. • Three Lakes) and Beau Steffens (So. • Waterford) each made eight tackles to pace the Titans, while Coltan Ellis topped UW-Eau Claire with nine stops.
The Titans welcome nationally ranked UW-Platteville for their homecoming on Saturday (Oct. 13).
Written by Jon Feyen, UW-Oshkosh Sports Information