TACOMA, Wash. — The Occidental football team's offensive stars had it rolling and its defense came up with a pair of crucial turnovers in the fourth quarter, winning a shootout at Puget Sound, 46-41 in the team's season opener on Saturday.
Oxy quarterback Bryan Scott was 33 of 45 for 421 yards and five touchdowns through the air. His biggest play was a 22-yard touchdown pass to Max Gruber on 3rd and 8 with 4:11 remaining in the fourth quarter, that gave Oxy a two-possession lead (46-35).
Kwame Do, Oxy's single-season rushing champion, had a huge game, rushing for 141 yards on 31 carries, including a pair of touchdowns. He broke loose for a 62-yard run on Oxy's final drive of the game, burying the Loggers deep in their own territory while allowing Oxy to burn most of the clock.
Do also led Oxy with seven catches for 59 yards. He was one of eight Tigers to catch a pass, along with Devin Bullock who snagged six for 56 yards, including a pair of scores, and Gruber, who had three catches for 71 yards and two touchdowns. Ian Bonde made five catches and led Oxy with 82 yards receiving.
UPS had one final possession with 10 seconds left, but could not get passed midfield in its last-ditch effort to win an explosive offensive contest.
Turning Point: With Puget Sound threatening deep in Oxy territory, Oxy middle linebacker Devin Chapman knocked the ball loose from Kevin Miller and Evan Buckwalter jumped on it at the Tigers 14-yard line, giving Oxy a much-needed turnover. The Tigers held just a 40-35 lead at that point and were able to make it a two-possession game at the other end of the field on Scott's touchdown pass to Gruber.
Play of the Game: Oxy defensive back Shay Mueller intercepted Hans Fortune with 2:36 left in the game, ending the Loggers last quality drive of the game.
Defensive Standouts: Along with his forced fumble, Chapman anchored Oxy's defense with a team-high 11 tackles, three pass break ups and a tackle for a loss.
Zachary Hunter made seven tackles and Marcus McDuffie and Matthew Mulvehill each had six.
Puget Sound: The Loggers were led by Fortune, who had six touchdown passes and 431 yards. Receiver Brennan Schon had 189 yards receiving and three touchdowns.
Taking the Lead: On 1st and Goal from the 2-yard line with just under 14 minutes left in the fourth quarter, Scott found Bullock in the end zone for the pair's second touchdown of the game, giving Oxy its first lead of the afternoon, 34-28 after the point after touchdown.
First Half: Both teams were hot on offense for most of the first half, combining for 42 points and 485 yards of offense.
UPS scored first and had a 14-7 edge after the first quarter and then the Tigers outscored the Loggers 14-7 in the second, making it 21-21 at halftime.
Scott completed 18 of 24 passes to six different receivers. Cordell Harris led the way with four catches for 58 yards.
Do had 18 carries for 61 yards and two touchdowns, along with five catches for 47 yards.
At one point, from the middle of the first quarter to the middle of the second, the teams scored on five consecutive drives.
The Tigers got a big play from defensive lineman Adam Koel when his sack of Fortune forced a fumble that teammate Mulvehill recovered, but Scott had one of his only blemishes of the first half on the next play, throwing an interception in the end zone.
Next Game: Oxy has a bye week next Saturday and then returns to action against Pacific (OR) for its home opener on Sept. 26 at 7 p.m. at Jack Kemp Stadium.
Getting Ink: Oxy head coach Doug Semones was featured in the Los Angeles Times earlier this month.
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